Title: Phoenix Risings: Necro-Gate
Rating: PG-13/R
Chapter Number: 9
Author: White Werewolf
Category: Buffy/Xander, Eric/Faith, Sam/Daniel (Maybe), Gabrielle/Joxer
Spoilers/Timeframe: All I know for sure it is after "Becoming Part 2."
Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the ideas and my computer.
Summery: After Buffy leaves Sunnydale, Xander decides to go looking for her. On the other side of the universe, Ninedinna wants the book she created...the Necronomicon Ex Mortis: the Book of the Dead.
Author Notes: This part is just a prologue to the Phoenix Risings Trilogy; which is in turn the starting fic to a huge series. This is the third part of the trilogy. It will be mainly focused on the Buffy/Xander relationship and it will be housing many crossovers.
Special Thanks: Danii, Tenhawk, Teri, Silent Bob Foley, and X-Lander
Crossovers Planned:
Buffy: the Vampire Slayer
Hercules: the Legendary Journeys
Evil Dead
Stargate SG-1
Xena: Warrior Princess
Boy Meets World
Cameo Crossovers will suddenly appear. Take a read, and see if you can spot one.
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"Excuse me?"
A woman looked up from her cash registrar as she saw four people dressed in army fatigues.
Jack smiled, "I was wondering. Does a Buffy Sumemrs work here?"
She showed a confused look, "Who is Buffy Summers?"
Daniel corrected his friend, "Anne Phillips he means."
The clerk smiled, "May I ask why you want to talk to Anne?"
Sam said, "We need Mss Phillips help on something. We were told she would be a good source."
Her eyes narrowed, "What kind of source? No offence, uh?"
A grin appeared, "Captain Carter. That's Colonel O'Neill, Murray, and Daniel Jackson. We're with the air force."
"Why would the air force want Anne?"
Jack grinned, "That's confidential."
Her eyes scowled, but sighed knowing nothing was going to be spoiled, "I'll get her. By the way, the name's Danielle."
------
"Anne?"
Buffy looked at her co-worker as she placed the last dish in the washer. "Yeah, Danielle?"
Her friend said, "People from the army are here to see you."
The blond's eye brows shot up, "Army?"
Danielle nodded, "Yeah. The say they need your help."
She asked, "What kind of help?"
Her friend shrugged, "Dunno. Confidential. Want me to call Xander or someone just in case?"
Buffy thought about if for a second, but shook her head, "No. I can handle this." (I hope,) she thought of anyway.
With that said, Buffy washed her hands, dried them, "Thanks, Danielle. I'll go see what they want."
Then it hit her. She looked at Danielle and said, "Actually, do call him. Tell him to meet me here and soon."
Danielle grinned, "Sure."
The Slayer stated, "Thanks." (With Xander's army knowledge, I can tell if these guys are right.)
Then she left the kitchen.
------
SG-1 sat at one of the booths with Teal'c looking around the establishment.
"This place seems to be quite full."
Jack said, "Well, it is a restaurant, Murray. People tend to eat here."
Daniel said, "I'm more interesting on meeting Buffy. Wonder why she's going by Anne Phillips now."
Teal'c looked at him, "Perhaps to create an identity for herself." He glanced at the colonel, "Isn't that what Spider-Man would do, O'Neill?"
Sam asked confusingly, "Spider-Man, Sir?"
He shrugged, "Used to read comics when I was a kid, Carter. I have a couple comic books in my office. And besides, Spider-Man is a cool character."
"You're looking for me?"
SG-1 looked to their left as they saw a young blond woman.
"Miss Summers?"
Her eyes widened as they called out her real name. She immediately shrank in fear. Here was an army team that knew her true name.
She smiled slightly, "My name is Anne Phillips. I'm sorry. You're mistaken."
With that said, Buffy started to leave for the kitchen.
Daniel spoke up, "That's not what Merrick knew you as, is it?"
The name of her first watcher made her turn around and look at the members of the SGC.
"You knew Merrick?"
The archeologist nodded, "You could say that. We just came from his sister's house."
Buffy nodded as she pulled up a chair from an empty table. She sat down in front of the four person team.
She said in a sad voice, "He died two years ago."
Daniel nodded, "We know. Merrick left a notebook for me and we need your help."
"There you are, Anne."
Buffy looked up as her best friend came walking inside. "Hi, Xander."
Noticing the people in army clothing, he became more serious. "Everything alright?"
She shrugged, "Dunno, Xand. These people know who I am."
He chuckled, "Yeah, you're Anne Phillips."
The blond shook her head, "No. They know who I really am."
Xander noticed the seriousness of the comment from Buffy. He took another seat from the same table Buffy did earlier. Sitting down beside her, he asked, "Everything okay, Colonel?"
Jack's eyes widened, "You know I'm a colonel?"
He nodded, "Noticed your uniform. And by the type of uniform, it's an air force uniform. Danielle called me telling me that Anne wanted me here. So, I just left from my break at S-Mart."
Sam turned the conversation back, "Miss Summers?"
Buffy said, "Call me Buffy. That's Xander. Everything you need to tell me, you can tell him. He knows a lot about the army and how it works."
Jack asked, "He does?"
The boy nodded, "I do, Colonel. And if I were you, I'd be cooperative."
The colonel smiled slightly, (This guy is getting on my nerves. How does he know this information?)
Sam introduced herself, "My name is Captain Carter. This is Murray, Daniel Jackson, and that is Colonel Jack O'Neill."
Daniel added, "As we said before, we need your help. It has to deal with a vampire."
The head of SG-1 nodded, "We recently came across this vampire and found out through Daniel's friend that you are a vampire slayer."
She nodded and said to herself, "One of two."
Xander heard her because he was sitting right next to her. He said, "Colonel O'Neill, why would the army be interested in Buffy?"
Thinking for a second, Xander corrected himself, "Scratch that. My question is why would the US Air Force be interested in Buffy? As long as I known her, she never took up any flying lessons."
Jack looked at his friends. Daniel just shrugged, Teal'c raised an eyebrow, and Sam smiled slightly.
Daniel spoke, "Well, it's like this."
Jack scowled, "Daniel?"
He sighed, "Jack, they have to know about Caroline."
The colonel said in a somber tone, "Oh."
Buffy asked in surprise, "Caroline?"
Sam nodded, "Caroline is a vampire we recently came across. We found out that she came to Los Angeles and decided to go after her."
Buffy nodded, "Let me guess. And you thought the vampire slayer would help?"
Daniel said, "Exactly. We never came across a vampire before. If you asked us a few days ago, we'd never know about vampire. We'd think they wouldn't exist."
The blond slayer said, "I'm just surprised the US Air Force wants my help."
Xander said, "You are the slayer, Buff." He turned to SG-1, "We got some friends that might be able to help." Glancing at Buffy, he asked, "When do you get off work?"
Buffy looked at her watch, "Four more hours."
The boy grinned, "Alright. Meet us here at 8 o'clock. Then we'll go to Ash's."
Jack asked, "Ash?"
The male Scrappy member nodded, "One of our friends." Looking at his watch, he noticed the time, "I hate to stop this, but I have to get back to work. See you guys in four hours."
Bad Faith turned to a page. She began to read it. Getting to a spell, she smiled. After reading it through once silently, she closed her eyes and said in a menacing tone.
"Garaca bulno brorias japka laus brozo elzo bob funas."
Closing the book, she could feel something happen in her stomach. With a sadistic smile, she said to herself, "I'll find you warrior. You're mine."
"Gabby?"
She looked as her eldest friend came through the door.
"Hi, Joxer."
She smiled at the mention of her old nickname. "How are you?"
She shrugged, "Okay, I guess."
Joxer asked, "Just okay?"
She got up from his chair and sat down at the bed Hercules said he could use. "Come in, Joxer."
The brunette nodded as he walked into his bedroom. "Yeah, Gabby?"
Watching him sit down, she said to him, "I'm just thinking about the past."
He lowered her eyes to the ground, "You miss them, huh?"
She agreed, "Everything we know is gone, Joxer. Xena is long dead. Lilla is dead as well as my parents. I'm no longer human. I'll live forever while you'll die eventually. Hercules is only ageless. He can die at some point. I'm going to be all alone at some point."
Taking her hand in his, Joxer said, "Gabby, we'll find a way to turn you human. Becoming a vampire wasn't your fault. Being separated from us wasn't your fault either. You were taken from us, and now that your back. I won't ever let you go."
She smiled at the sincerity of his words. He loved her. Simple as that. Gabrielle looked to her right and could see the emotion the man held in his eyes. She reached her hand up to his cheek, and caressed it lovingly. The vampire lowered her face to his, and gave him a kiss on the lips. A brief one at that.
Withdrawing from him, she could see the shocked look on his face.
"What was that for?"
Gabrielle grinned, "That was my way of saying thank you."
He showed a confused look, "For what?"
The bard said honestly, "For being you.
"For placing yourself in suspended animation. For telling me you love me. For helping me get rid of Callisto. For loving me for me. For being my best friend. For being you."
He couldn't help the wide grin appearing on his face, "You're welcome."
"Hi, Faith."
The brunette turned around to see her friend coming up the driveway.
She greeted him, "Hey, Eric."
The man from Philadelphia smiled, "It's been a while, huh?"
Faith shrugged, "It's only been three days, Eric."
He nodded as he stepped on the front porch by his friend, "I know, Faith. It's just been a few days since we last talked. Wanted to know if everything was alright."
She grinned, "Everything's five by five."
He nodded with uncertainty, "Uh, and my brother Cory, he doesn't love Topanga."
The young slayer looked at her friend, "No. Everything's cool."
Eric sat down on the front step. Faith sat beside him, and looked at him. "I mean it, Eric. Everything's cool."
He sighed, "Faith?"
"What?"
"I don't believe you. Ever since we met at your birthday, I've been learning a lot about you. You're a very loving. Especially to your uncle."
Faith said with certainty, "I just know what's important in my life."
He grinned, "That's always good. It's just that I am worried about you. What aren't you telling me?"
She sighed, "There's nothing to tell you." (I'm not ready to tell you yet,) she thought sadly.
The security guard nodded, "Well, I know something is bothering you. And right now, it looks like you aren't going to tell me." He got back to his feet. "When you are ready to tell me. Call me. You do know the number."
With that, Eric started to walk down the stairs. Turning around, he said to Faith, "I'll be here when you're ready to tell me. Just remember, I can't wait forever."
Taking a breath, Eric Matthews left Faith to think.
"It's 8:01, Sir."
Jack nodded, "I know, Carter. It's only one minute passed eight."
"I know, Sir." Sam said with a sigh, "I'm simply just stating the time. That's all. Nothing wrong with that."
He shook his head, "Nope. Nothing wrong with that, I guess." The colonel tucked his legs behind the legs of the stool that he was sitting on. Taking a quick spin, Jack spun around on the stool he was sitting on. When coming back to the counter, he looked up at the menu. "What looks good?" He asked himself.
"This isn't the time to eat, Jack. We have to take care of the Caroline situation."
He nodded, "And Banks. Don't forget him."
"I didn't forget him, Jack. We just been using Caroline's name more recently, and I decided to keep with the trend."
"Perhaps we should see if Buffy Summers is alright?"
The colonel said, "Easy, Murray. I'm sure Anne will be right out."
"Hi, Colonel."
Jack and the other members of the SGC looked as Xander came in. "Glad you made it."
He shrugged, "What exactly were we going to do? We don't know LA that well, Xander. Besides, I was thinking of getting a slice of cherry pie."
The boy chuckled, "Yeah, this place does have a pretty good cherry pie. I'm sure Anne will be out soon."
"Somebody mention my name?" A voice asked as she walked out of the kitchen.
"Hiya, Buffster."
She smiled at Xander's nickname for her. "You haven't called me that in a while."
The teenager shrugged, "I thought I start using the name again. You ready?"
Buffy said, "One second." She opened the door to the kitchen, "I'm leaving Danielle."
"You can go, Anne. I'll clock you out."
She grinned, "Thanks. See ya tomorrow."
Closing the door, Buffy turned on her heals. Looking at her best friend and the people in army fatigues. "Let's get going."
Jack sighed, "And I wanted that cherry pie."
Xander grinned, "Another time, Colonel."
"You ready?"
Joxer and Gabrielle looked up as Hercules entered the room.
"Where we going again?"
The demigod looked at the human, "We're going to Ash's, Joxer. We patrol every night."
She asked confusingly, "Aren't you worried somebody will find out your secret?"
He grinned, "You mean, like yours and Joxer's?"
The vampire nodded, "Yeah, I guess I do mean that."
The actor said, "When I first met Xander, I was nervous. But now, I'm feeling a little more comfortable."
"How so?" Was the blond's question.
Kevin answered, "For one thing, Xander knows about me and I trust him. I also now have you two to help me back up stories. And since Gabrielle is a bard, all the better for us."
The mention of her former life made tears glisten in her eyes. "I haven't written so many centuries."
Joxer smiled, "You were somewhere else." Thinking for a second, he asked, "Where were you exactly?"
Gabrielle said simply, "Another planet."
He nodded, "Okay, another planet." Joxer looked at the demigod, "Gabrielle was on another planet."
His eyes widened, "Another planet? What in Tartarus is a planet?"
Hercules chuckled, "Remember my theory where the Earth was round."
Joxer sighed, "You still telling that crap. Hercules, the Earth is flat."
He laughed, "Actually, a man named Christopher Columbus proved that wrong. He went by boat to America, where we're standing now. America is on the other side of the Earth from Greece."
The warrior made the connection, "You mean the Earth is actually round?"
"That it is, Joxer."
He showed a confused look, "What are planets though?"
The demigod said, "Earth is classified as a planet. Centuries ago, people found objects in the night sky that resembled to what Earth looked like. The people classified them as planets."
"Huh?"
Hercules sighed, "This is going to take a while to explain. Why don't we just go to Ash's right now? Then I'll explain it in a way that you'll understand. Alright?"
He looked at his best friend who nodded in understanding. Joxer looked back to the eldest man in the room and said, "Alright, Hercules. I guess that mean's we're going."
Gabrielle, Joxer, and Hercules walked up the steps to Ash's cabin.
The bard looked at the demigod and said, "Ash really looks like Autolycus, doesn't he?"
He nodded, "Yeah. They do look a lot alike. I keep wondering if he would recognize us from Greece."
Joxer smiled, "You never know, Kevin. I'm just afraid that Ash might blow our cover."
The son of Zeus said, "I doubt Ash or Autolycus will blow our cover. That is of course if we talk to him first. Should be interesting I must say."
At that point, Gabrielle knocked on the door as they reached the front door. "I just hope tonight goes right. "
The door opened to reveal a scarred man.
"How ya doing, Kevin?"
Hercules grinned, "I'm good, Ash. Gabrielle and Tim came tonight too."
The former promised one looked at the three of them for a second and took a step back in shock. "Woah."
Hercules looked at him in curiosity, "You alright, Ash?"
He nodded as he scratched the back of his neck, "Yeah, I just had a strange sense of déjà vu. I don't know why, but when I look at you three, I suddenly got this strange feeling as if we met before."
Joxer grinned, "We have those types of faces."
The clerk shrugged, "Well, either way. Everyone's not here yet. Come on in."
With that said, the four of them walked into cabin and saw some of their friends inside.
Faith and Gunn sat down on the couch. Wesley was looking through a book at the table by the other side of the room. Doyle walked through the doorway, drinking something.
"Glad you made it, Man."
The demigod nodded, "Had a free night, Doyle. Xander here yet?"
Faith shook her head as she got up from her seat, "Not yet, Kevin. X and B haven't turned up yet."
Joxer grinned, "They're probably on their way, I'm sure."
Ash grinned, "You're probably right, Tim. They'll show up eventually."
The blond nodded, "Eventually."
The atmosphere in the room just turned a little stale. Gabrielle cursed herself knowing that everyone wasn't comfortable with her yet. She could understand.
A vampire that none of them knew was inside the cabin. She could tell that they didn't like vampires. And she didn't blame them.
Making a sudden giggle to try and lighten the mood, she turned to Joxer who noted the looks of fear in her eyes. Gabrielle hoped so anyway that Joxer would understand.
Creating a smile on his lips, Joxer said, "So, how'd you guys meet Xander? Kevin introduced him to me the other night."
For some reason Ash had to say something. Looking at the three of them made him feel like he knew them from somewhere. But from where? He didn't know. Ash knew he had to contribute his story.
"Xander and I work at S-Mart. He met me one night when we were called in to work."
Faith added, "Uncle Ash invited X over for dinner one night. He's the one that found out that I was a vampire slayer."
Hercules grinned, "I met him at Caritas. You should hear him sing. He doesn't have a bad voice."
Joxer smiled, "I've been known to sing at times. Pretty good at it."
Faith asked, "You sing?"
Gabrielle smiled, "Yeah, he sings. Believe me, he sings. Whenever you hear his voice, you know it's from him."
He grinned not getting the idea, "Thanks, Gabby."
All of a sudden the door made a sound.
Ash said, "I'll get it." He opened the door to reveal six people. The former promised one recognized two of them immediately. "Hi, Kid. How are you, Buffy?"
He then noted the rest of the people behind them. "And you are?"
Xander said, "Easy, Ash. This is Colonel O'Neill, Captain Carter, Daniel, and Murray."
Jack smiled as he extended his arm, "You must be Ash."
The scarred man nodded as he shook the man's hand with his normal hand. "That be me. May I ask why you people are here?"
Sam said, "We needed Buffy's help, Ash. Can we come in?"
He looked at Xander who nodded. With a smile he said, "If Xander says you're okay, then that's fine by me." He moved to allow them inside.
He said, "Come on in."
The six of them entered the room as Xander said, "Everyone, meet Colonel Jack O'Neill, Captain Samantha Carter, Daniel Jackson, and Muray."
Wesley walked up to them, "What is your last name, Mr. Murray?"
Teal'c raised his eyebrow, "Last name?"
Ash nodded, "Yeah, a last name. You know. My full name is Ash Williams."
Jack looked at Teal'c and said, "Don't be rude, Murray. You know your last name is Jaffaman."
The Jaffa nodded, "Indeed."
Wesley grinned, "Was that so hard, Mr. Jaffaman? My name is Wesley Whyndam-Pryce. Next to me Doyle, Faith Williams, Gunn, Tim Joxer, Gabrielle Brinkman, and Kevin Sorbo."
Jack's eyes widened at the site of the blond. He growled, "Caroline."
Joxer asked, "You must be mistaken. That's Gabrielle."
Jack went to his side and took a zat. He aimed it at the vampire and placed his finger on the trigger.
Joxer didn't know much about this world yet, but one thing seemed not to change was weapons. With all the strength he could muster, he leapt forward to protect the woman he loved.
Jack squeezed the trigger and the electricity of the weapon discharged and made it's way to the vampire, but Joxer intercepted and got hit instead.
Suddenly, his body fell to the ground with a thud.
Gabrielle screamed, "No!"
She immediately went down to his side and went to check his pulse. "What did you do to him?"
Knowing Tim was alright, Jack aimed his weapon at the vampire and was about to shoot when he heard a familiar click.
"Put the weapon down."
------
Watching the scene unfold, Ash went to his mantle and grabbed his shotgun. Loading it quickly he aimed it at the colonel.
After it clicked, Ash said, "Put the weapon down."
------
"Carter?"
"It's alright, Sir. I have Ash." Sam then aimed her zat at Ash to make sure Jack was alright.
Thinking Ash would surrender, Sam relaxed a little, but still had her zat ready. Teal'c followed suit.
Normally, anybody would give into the statement, like that. But Ash knew otherwise.
With a wild grin, he dropped to the floor and did a foot sweep watching the two of them drop to the ground. Ash got to his feet and aimed his shotgun at Sam and Murray.
"I wouldn't move it I were you."
"Sir?"
Teal'c jumped back to his feet and knocked the weapon out of Ash's hand.
He aimed his zat back at the man as Faith pulled back her chackram and said, "Leave my uncle alone!"
"Uh, Jack?"
Jack said, "A little busy right now, Daniel."
"You might want to take a look at this."
Sighing, he shot Gabrille once with the zat and looked at the others.
Jack turned around with his zat tightly in his hand. Ash picked up his shotgun and aimed it at Teal'c. Sam was standing as well now with her Beretta aimed at Faith.
Faith held up some kind of weapon toward Teal'c while Gunn held his axe, standing in front of Jack.
Xander, Buffy, Kevin, Wesley, and Doyle all had stunned expressions on their faces.
Jack aimed his zat at Ash, "Well, isn't this a fun party?"
Hercules suddenly broke free of his trance and walked to the center of the room. Taking a breath and holding his hands up, he said, "Alright, everyone. Calm down."
Ash snarled, "Not until these people yank their weapons away from my niece, Kevin!"
Daniel said, "This isn't going to get us anywhere. Like Mr. Sorbo said, everyone calm down."
Jack glanced at his friend, "They're protecting a vampire, Daniel! She killed three people!" Looking around the room, he yelled, "And where's Banks!?"
Xander looked at the fallen forms of his friends, "First of all, Colonel. What did you do to my friends?"
Wesley said, "Before we get into discussion, I suggest we place our weapons down."
Ash said, "I'll do it once she gets that Beretta off my niece!"
She glanced at the colonel, "Sir?"
Jack surveyed his surroundings. Then he glanced down at the people he shot. Knowing Daniel had the best interest in mind, he sighed, "Stand down."
Slowly, he lowered his zat as he watched the others lower their weapons.
"Somebody damn well tell me what the hell is going on!" Jack said to the group. "For crying out loud! Why would you protect a vampire?"
Suddenly, Gabrielle's eyes popped open. She slowly raised her hand and cleared the blurriness from her eyes. Trying to remain calm, she turned over to face Joxer.
He was still out...
...but alive.
She leaned down and kissed his forehead. In a quiet voice, she said, "Come back, Joxer."
Suddenly remembering what was happening, she stood back to her feet and punched the colonel across the face. "What the hell did you do to him?"
Jack took a few feet back and glared at blond, "You should be stunned!"
Teal'c said, "O'Niell, the zat'nik'tel effects people differently."
He stated, "Thanks for telling me that now, Murray."
Gabrielle approached her assailant, "What did you do to him?"
Jack snarled, "I shot him, Caroline."
The name shot through her like a ton of bricks.
What was she going to do? If she told him that she was Caroline, the others would have to know about her true identity. She would have to explain about Hercules and Joxer as well.
From what she recently learned from Hercules, people right now weren't ready for the truth.
But how would she explain Caroline?
Only if she had a twin.
Xena had four look-alikes. Diana, Meg, Leah, and Lyla.
If Xena had four, why couldn't Gabrielle say Caroline was a look-alike of her? Even Hope at one point looked like her.
Her eyes widened at the sudden thought of her daughter with Dahok.
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts of Hope, she glanced at the man staring at her.
"Well?"
"My name is Gabrielle. It's not Caroline."
He nodded slowly, "Well, you look like Caroline. And how does the line go? If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and moves like a duck, it probably is a duck."
Sneering at him, she said, "I can assure you. I am in no shape or form this Caroline you mention."
"Jack?"
Spinning around he looked at Daniel, "What Daniel?"
The archeologist said to the colonel, "Banks isn't here."
He nodded, "I see that, Daniel."
Sam said getting the idea, "So, Sir. Maybe Gabrielle is telling the truth. When you faced Caroline at the motel, Banks was with her."
Gabrielle smiled thinking her idea was actually pulling off.
She glanced at the demigod hoping he would understand the Caroline situation.
------
Hercules looked at his friend from so many centuries ago and noticed something in her eyes.
Was she trying to tell him something? He didn't know. Maybe the colonel was right. Maybe there was some truth in the Caroline mention?
But why? But how?
Thinking back to the a few days ago, Gabrielle emerged as Callisto. It seemed as if Callisto knew what was going on.
He then thought back to Xander's evaluation on the situation between Gabrielle and Callisto.
Back in Greece, Gabrielle was a very intelligent woman who trained well and fought well with Xena. Xena took a young innocent woman and taught her everything she knew.
It was a simple fact that Gabrielle became a tough warrior who was also very intelligent. She faced Callisto many times. Callisto even slew Gabrielle's husband, Perdicas.
Gabrielle and Xena had faced Callisto many times in the past. Hercules even fought against her a few times as well.
Now, Hercules and Gabrielle reunited an old friendship after a 5,000 year hiatus. Only thing different was that Gabrielle was now a vampire who took on the persona of Callisto.
Knowing how clever Gabrielle was, he wondered if the colonel was right. Maybe Gabrielle was Caroline. It would make sense. He himself chose numerous names over the centuries to blend into Earth's history.
Maybe Gabrielle chose another name too when she showed up on Earth. Gabrielle called herself Callisto for so long, it would be only natural for the vampire to chose another name when she came back to Earth. Calling herself Gabrielle would be a mistake on Callisto's part. It would give Gabrielle some strength to fight back and take over.
So maybe Callisto chose the name Caroline to blend into the current Earth's history.
There was also a man with Callisto that dressed like the colonel. Was that this Banks the colonel was talking about? It had to be.
If Callisto started calling herself Caroline, then that would make the man with her be Banks.
One problem though.
Xander staked that man. Xander staked Banks. That's had to be who the boy slew.
Hercules smiled in triumph realizing the truth. So now, he had to help his friend out.
------
"Gabrielle's right, Colonel O'Neill. She isn't Caroline."
The colonel looked at the television actor, "How do you know? How do you know that this woman isn't Caroline?"
He said calmly, "Because I dusted Caroline myself. Same with Banks."
His eyes widened, "What do you mean dusted?"
Buffy spoke up, "When you kill a vampire, they turn to dust, Colonel."
Jack glanced at Daniel, "They do?"
The archeologist shrugged, "I dunno, Jack. I never 'dusted' a vampire before."
O'Neill looked at Teal'c who raised an eyebrow and at Sam who said, "Don't look at me, Sir. I don't know either."
He glanced back at Buffy. She was a slayer for at least two years now. If she knew vampires turned to dust, then it had to be true.
Jack looked at Kevin and then Gabrielle. Maybe they were right. Doubles were nothing special. He himself was cloned at one point and took on his identity. He'll never forget the blue crystal. Because of the crystal, he was able to see Charlie again. His son.
"O'Neill?"
Jack looked at Teal'c forcing him to come back to the present.
The colonel didn't know how long Caroline was on that planet. Maybe Caroline and Gabrielle were related some how. Maybe not. Anything is possible.
Sighing, he lowered his zat and looked at Gabrielle, "Alright whoever you are. Maybe you are Gabrielle and maybe you are Caroline."
Gabrielle said on her behalf, "I am Gabrielle. As Kevin said, he staked Caroline and Banks."
Nodding, the colonel said, "Well, this trip was pretty much a let down, huh?"
At that point, Joxer began to stir as he pulled himself into a sitting position, "Gabby? What happened?"
Gabrielle went to inspect her friend as the door flew open.
"You!" A voice said as she walked inside the cabin.
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TBC
Rating: PG-13/R
Chapter Number: 9
Author: White Werewolf
Category: Buffy/Xander, Eric/Faith, Sam/Daniel (Maybe), Gabrielle/Joxer
Spoilers/Timeframe: All I know for sure it is after "Becoming Part 2."
Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the ideas and my computer.
Summery: After Buffy leaves Sunnydale, Xander decides to go looking for her. On the other side of the universe, Ninedinna wants the book she created...the Necronomicon Ex Mortis: the Book of the Dead.
Author Notes: This part is just a prologue to the Phoenix Risings Trilogy; which is in turn the starting fic to a huge series. This is the third part of the trilogy. It will be mainly focused on the Buffy/Xander relationship and it will be housing many crossovers.
Special Thanks: Danii, Tenhawk, Teri, Silent Bob Foley, and X-Lander
Crossovers Planned:
Buffy: the Vampire Slayer
Hercules: the Legendary Journeys
Evil Dead
Stargate SG-1
Xena: Warrior Princess
Boy Meets World
Cameo Crossovers will suddenly appear. Take a read, and see if you can spot one.
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"Excuse me?"
A woman looked up from her cash registrar as she saw four people dressed in army fatigues.
Jack smiled, "I was wondering. Does a Buffy Sumemrs work here?"
She showed a confused look, "Who is Buffy Summers?"
Daniel corrected his friend, "Anne Phillips he means."
The clerk smiled, "May I ask why you want to talk to Anne?"
Sam said, "We need Mss Phillips help on something. We were told she would be a good source."
Her eyes narrowed, "What kind of source? No offence, uh?"
A grin appeared, "Captain Carter. That's Colonel O'Neill, Murray, and Daniel Jackson. We're with the air force."
"Why would the air force want Anne?"
Jack grinned, "That's confidential."
Her eyes scowled, but sighed knowing nothing was going to be spoiled, "I'll get her. By the way, the name's Danielle."
------
"Anne?"
Buffy looked at her co-worker as she placed the last dish in the washer. "Yeah, Danielle?"
Her friend said, "People from the army are here to see you."
The blond's eye brows shot up, "Army?"
Danielle nodded, "Yeah. The say they need your help."
She asked, "What kind of help?"
Her friend shrugged, "Dunno. Confidential. Want me to call Xander or someone just in case?"
Buffy thought about if for a second, but shook her head, "No. I can handle this." (I hope,) she thought of anyway.
With that said, Buffy washed her hands, dried them, "Thanks, Danielle. I'll go see what they want."
Then it hit her. She looked at Danielle and said, "Actually, do call him. Tell him to meet me here and soon."
Danielle grinned, "Sure."
The Slayer stated, "Thanks." (With Xander's army knowledge, I can tell if these guys are right.)
Then she left the kitchen.
------
SG-1 sat at one of the booths with Teal'c looking around the establishment.
"This place seems to be quite full."
Jack said, "Well, it is a restaurant, Murray. People tend to eat here."
Daniel said, "I'm more interesting on meeting Buffy. Wonder why she's going by Anne Phillips now."
Teal'c looked at him, "Perhaps to create an identity for herself." He glanced at the colonel, "Isn't that what Spider-Man would do, O'Neill?"
Sam asked confusingly, "Spider-Man, Sir?"
He shrugged, "Used to read comics when I was a kid, Carter. I have a couple comic books in my office. And besides, Spider-Man is a cool character."
"You're looking for me?"
SG-1 looked to their left as they saw a young blond woman.
"Miss Summers?"
Her eyes widened as they called out her real name. She immediately shrank in fear. Here was an army team that knew her true name.
She smiled slightly, "My name is Anne Phillips. I'm sorry. You're mistaken."
With that said, Buffy started to leave for the kitchen.
Daniel spoke up, "That's not what Merrick knew you as, is it?"
The name of her first watcher made her turn around and look at the members of the SGC.
"You knew Merrick?"
The archeologist nodded, "You could say that. We just came from his sister's house."
Buffy nodded as she pulled up a chair from an empty table. She sat down in front of the four person team.
She said in a sad voice, "He died two years ago."
Daniel nodded, "We know. Merrick left a notebook for me and we need your help."
"There you are, Anne."
Buffy looked up as her best friend came walking inside. "Hi, Xander."
Noticing the people in army clothing, he became more serious. "Everything alright?"
She shrugged, "Dunno, Xand. These people know who I am."
He chuckled, "Yeah, you're Anne Phillips."
The blond shook her head, "No. They know who I really am."
Xander noticed the seriousness of the comment from Buffy. He took another seat from the same table Buffy did earlier. Sitting down beside her, he asked, "Everything okay, Colonel?"
Jack's eyes widened, "You know I'm a colonel?"
He nodded, "Noticed your uniform. And by the type of uniform, it's an air force uniform. Danielle called me telling me that Anne wanted me here. So, I just left from my break at S-Mart."
Sam turned the conversation back, "Miss Summers?"
Buffy said, "Call me Buffy. That's Xander. Everything you need to tell me, you can tell him. He knows a lot about the army and how it works."
Jack asked, "He does?"
The boy nodded, "I do, Colonel. And if I were you, I'd be cooperative."
The colonel smiled slightly, (This guy is getting on my nerves. How does he know this information?)
Sam introduced herself, "My name is Captain Carter. This is Murray, Daniel Jackson, and that is Colonel Jack O'Neill."
Daniel added, "As we said before, we need your help. It has to deal with a vampire."
The head of SG-1 nodded, "We recently came across this vampire and found out through Daniel's friend that you are a vampire slayer."
She nodded and said to herself, "One of two."
Xander heard her because he was sitting right next to her. He said, "Colonel O'Neill, why would the army be interested in Buffy?"
Thinking for a second, Xander corrected himself, "Scratch that. My question is why would the US Air Force be interested in Buffy? As long as I known her, she never took up any flying lessons."
Jack looked at his friends. Daniel just shrugged, Teal'c raised an eyebrow, and Sam smiled slightly.
Daniel spoke, "Well, it's like this."
Jack scowled, "Daniel?"
He sighed, "Jack, they have to know about Caroline."
The colonel said in a somber tone, "Oh."
Buffy asked in surprise, "Caroline?"
Sam nodded, "Caroline is a vampire we recently came across. We found out that she came to Los Angeles and decided to go after her."
Buffy nodded, "Let me guess. And you thought the vampire slayer would help?"
Daniel said, "Exactly. We never came across a vampire before. If you asked us a few days ago, we'd never know about vampire. We'd think they wouldn't exist."
The blond slayer said, "I'm just surprised the US Air Force wants my help."
Xander said, "You are the slayer, Buff." He turned to SG-1, "We got some friends that might be able to help." Glancing at Buffy, he asked, "When do you get off work?"
Buffy looked at her watch, "Four more hours."
The boy grinned, "Alright. Meet us here at 8 o'clock. Then we'll go to Ash's."
Jack asked, "Ash?"
The male Scrappy member nodded, "One of our friends." Looking at his watch, he noticed the time, "I hate to stop this, but I have to get back to work. See you guys in four hours."
Bad Faith turned to a page. She began to read it. Getting to a spell, she smiled. After reading it through once silently, she closed her eyes and said in a menacing tone.
"Garaca bulno brorias japka laus brozo elzo bob funas."
Closing the book, she could feel something happen in her stomach. With a sadistic smile, she said to herself, "I'll find you warrior. You're mine."
"Gabby?"
She looked as her eldest friend came through the door.
"Hi, Joxer."
She smiled at the mention of her old nickname. "How are you?"
She shrugged, "Okay, I guess."
Joxer asked, "Just okay?"
She got up from his chair and sat down at the bed Hercules said he could use. "Come in, Joxer."
The brunette nodded as he walked into his bedroom. "Yeah, Gabby?"
Watching him sit down, she said to him, "I'm just thinking about the past."
He lowered her eyes to the ground, "You miss them, huh?"
She agreed, "Everything we know is gone, Joxer. Xena is long dead. Lilla is dead as well as my parents. I'm no longer human. I'll live forever while you'll die eventually. Hercules is only ageless. He can die at some point. I'm going to be all alone at some point."
Taking her hand in his, Joxer said, "Gabby, we'll find a way to turn you human. Becoming a vampire wasn't your fault. Being separated from us wasn't your fault either. You were taken from us, and now that your back. I won't ever let you go."
She smiled at the sincerity of his words. He loved her. Simple as that. Gabrielle looked to her right and could see the emotion the man held in his eyes. She reached her hand up to his cheek, and caressed it lovingly. The vampire lowered her face to his, and gave him a kiss on the lips. A brief one at that.
Withdrawing from him, she could see the shocked look on his face.
"What was that for?"
Gabrielle grinned, "That was my way of saying thank you."
He showed a confused look, "For what?"
The bard said honestly, "For being you.
"For placing yourself in suspended animation. For telling me you love me. For helping me get rid of Callisto. For loving me for me. For being my best friend. For being you."
He couldn't help the wide grin appearing on his face, "You're welcome."
"Hi, Faith."
The brunette turned around to see her friend coming up the driveway.
She greeted him, "Hey, Eric."
The man from Philadelphia smiled, "It's been a while, huh?"
Faith shrugged, "It's only been three days, Eric."
He nodded as he stepped on the front porch by his friend, "I know, Faith. It's just been a few days since we last talked. Wanted to know if everything was alright."
She grinned, "Everything's five by five."
He nodded with uncertainty, "Uh, and my brother Cory, he doesn't love Topanga."
The young slayer looked at her friend, "No. Everything's cool."
Eric sat down on the front step. Faith sat beside him, and looked at him. "I mean it, Eric. Everything's cool."
He sighed, "Faith?"
"What?"
"I don't believe you. Ever since we met at your birthday, I've been learning a lot about you. You're a very loving. Especially to your uncle."
Faith said with certainty, "I just know what's important in my life."
He grinned, "That's always good. It's just that I am worried about you. What aren't you telling me?"
She sighed, "There's nothing to tell you." (I'm not ready to tell you yet,) she thought sadly.
The security guard nodded, "Well, I know something is bothering you. And right now, it looks like you aren't going to tell me." He got back to his feet. "When you are ready to tell me. Call me. You do know the number."
With that, Eric started to walk down the stairs. Turning around, he said to Faith, "I'll be here when you're ready to tell me. Just remember, I can't wait forever."
Taking a breath, Eric Matthews left Faith to think.
"It's 8:01, Sir."
Jack nodded, "I know, Carter. It's only one minute passed eight."
"I know, Sir." Sam said with a sigh, "I'm simply just stating the time. That's all. Nothing wrong with that."
He shook his head, "Nope. Nothing wrong with that, I guess." The colonel tucked his legs behind the legs of the stool that he was sitting on. Taking a quick spin, Jack spun around on the stool he was sitting on. When coming back to the counter, he looked up at the menu. "What looks good?" He asked himself.
"This isn't the time to eat, Jack. We have to take care of the Caroline situation."
He nodded, "And Banks. Don't forget him."
"I didn't forget him, Jack. We just been using Caroline's name more recently, and I decided to keep with the trend."
"Perhaps we should see if Buffy Summers is alright?"
The colonel said, "Easy, Murray. I'm sure Anne will be right out."
"Hi, Colonel."
Jack and the other members of the SGC looked as Xander came in. "Glad you made it."
He shrugged, "What exactly were we going to do? We don't know LA that well, Xander. Besides, I was thinking of getting a slice of cherry pie."
The boy chuckled, "Yeah, this place does have a pretty good cherry pie. I'm sure Anne will be out soon."
"Somebody mention my name?" A voice asked as she walked out of the kitchen.
"Hiya, Buffster."
She smiled at Xander's nickname for her. "You haven't called me that in a while."
The teenager shrugged, "I thought I start using the name again. You ready?"
Buffy said, "One second." She opened the door to the kitchen, "I'm leaving Danielle."
"You can go, Anne. I'll clock you out."
She grinned, "Thanks. See ya tomorrow."
Closing the door, Buffy turned on her heals. Looking at her best friend and the people in army fatigues. "Let's get going."
Jack sighed, "And I wanted that cherry pie."
Xander grinned, "Another time, Colonel."
"You ready?"
Joxer and Gabrielle looked up as Hercules entered the room.
"Where we going again?"
The demigod looked at the human, "We're going to Ash's, Joxer. We patrol every night."
She asked confusingly, "Aren't you worried somebody will find out your secret?"
He grinned, "You mean, like yours and Joxer's?"
The vampire nodded, "Yeah, I guess I do mean that."
The actor said, "When I first met Xander, I was nervous. But now, I'm feeling a little more comfortable."
"How so?" Was the blond's question.
Kevin answered, "For one thing, Xander knows about me and I trust him. I also now have you two to help me back up stories. And since Gabrielle is a bard, all the better for us."
The mention of her former life made tears glisten in her eyes. "I haven't written so many centuries."
Joxer smiled, "You were somewhere else." Thinking for a second, he asked, "Where were you exactly?"
Gabrielle said simply, "Another planet."
He nodded, "Okay, another planet." Joxer looked at the demigod, "Gabrielle was on another planet."
His eyes widened, "Another planet? What in Tartarus is a planet?"
Hercules chuckled, "Remember my theory where the Earth was round."
Joxer sighed, "You still telling that crap. Hercules, the Earth is flat."
He laughed, "Actually, a man named Christopher Columbus proved that wrong. He went by boat to America, where we're standing now. America is on the other side of the Earth from Greece."
The warrior made the connection, "You mean the Earth is actually round?"
"That it is, Joxer."
He showed a confused look, "What are planets though?"
The demigod said, "Earth is classified as a planet. Centuries ago, people found objects in the night sky that resembled to what Earth looked like. The people classified them as planets."
"Huh?"
Hercules sighed, "This is going to take a while to explain. Why don't we just go to Ash's right now? Then I'll explain it in a way that you'll understand. Alright?"
He looked at his best friend who nodded in understanding. Joxer looked back to the eldest man in the room and said, "Alright, Hercules. I guess that mean's we're going."
Gabrielle, Joxer, and Hercules walked up the steps to Ash's cabin.
The bard looked at the demigod and said, "Ash really looks like Autolycus, doesn't he?"
He nodded, "Yeah. They do look a lot alike. I keep wondering if he would recognize us from Greece."
Joxer smiled, "You never know, Kevin. I'm just afraid that Ash might blow our cover."
The son of Zeus said, "I doubt Ash or Autolycus will blow our cover. That is of course if we talk to him first. Should be interesting I must say."
At that point, Gabrielle knocked on the door as they reached the front door. "I just hope tonight goes right. "
The door opened to reveal a scarred man.
"How ya doing, Kevin?"
Hercules grinned, "I'm good, Ash. Gabrielle and Tim came tonight too."
The former promised one looked at the three of them for a second and took a step back in shock. "Woah."
Hercules looked at him in curiosity, "You alright, Ash?"
He nodded as he scratched the back of his neck, "Yeah, I just had a strange sense of déjà vu. I don't know why, but when I look at you three, I suddenly got this strange feeling as if we met before."
Joxer grinned, "We have those types of faces."
The clerk shrugged, "Well, either way. Everyone's not here yet. Come on in."
With that said, the four of them walked into cabin and saw some of their friends inside.
Faith and Gunn sat down on the couch. Wesley was looking through a book at the table by the other side of the room. Doyle walked through the doorway, drinking something.
"Glad you made it, Man."
The demigod nodded, "Had a free night, Doyle. Xander here yet?"
Faith shook her head as she got up from her seat, "Not yet, Kevin. X and B haven't turned up yet."
Joxer grinned, "They're probably on their way, I'm sure."
Ash grinned, "You're probably right, Tim. They'll show up eventually."
The blond nodded, "Eventually."
The atmosphere in the room just turned a little stale. Gabrielle cursed herself knowing that everyone wasn't comfortable with her yet. She could understand.
A vampire that none of them knew was inside the cabin. She could tell that they didn't like vampires. And she didn't blame them.
Making a sudden giggle to try and lighten the mood, she turned to Joxer who noted the looks of fear in her eyes. Gabrielle hoped so anyway that Joxer would understand.
Creating a smile on his lips, Joxer said, "So, how'd you guys meet Xander? Kevin introduced him to me the other night."
For some reason Ash had to say something. Looking at the three of them made him feel like he knew them from somewhere. But from where? He didn't know. Ash knew he had to contribute his story.
"Xander and I work at S-Mart. He met me one night when we were called in to work."
Faith added, "Uncle Ash invited X over for dinner one night. He's the one that found out that I was a vampire slayer."
Hercules grinned, "I met him at Caritas. You should hear him sing. He doesn't have a bad voice."
Joxer smiled, "I've been known to sing at times. Pretty good at it."
Faith asked, "You sing?"
Gabrielle smiled, "Yeah, he sings. Believe me, he sings. Whenever you hear his voice, you know it's from him."
He grinned not getting the idea, "Thanks, Gabby."
All of a sudden the door made a sound.
Ash said, "I'll get it." He opened the door to reveal six people. The former promised one recognized two of them immediately. "Hi, Kid. How are you, Buffy?"
He then noted the rest of the people behind them. "And you are?"
Xander said, "Easy, Ash. This is Colonel O'Neill, Captain Carter, Daniel, and Murray."
Jack smiled as he extended his arm, "You must be Ash."
The scarred man nodded as he shook the man's hand with his normal hand. "That be me. May I ask why you people are here?"
Sam said, "We needed Buffy's help, Ash. Can we come in?"
He looked at Xander who nodded. With a smile he said, "If Xander says you're okay, then that's fine by me." He moved to allow them inside.
He said, "Come on in."
The six of them entered the room as Xander said, "Everyone, meet Colonel Jack O'Neill, Captain Samantha Carter, Daniel Jackson, and Muray."
Wesley walked up to them, "What is your last name, Mr. Murray?"
Teal'c raised his eyebrow, "Last name?"
Ash nodded, "Yeah, a last name. You know. My full name is Ash Williams."
Jack looked at Teal'c and said, "Don't be rude, Murray. You know your last name is Jaffaman."
The Jaffa nodded, "Indeed."
Wesley grinned, "Was that so hard, Mr. Jaffaman? My name is Wesley Whyndam-Pryce. Next to me Doyle, Faith Williams, Gunn, Tim Joxer, Gabrielle Brinkman, and Kevin Sorbo."
Jack's eyes widened at the site of the blond. He growled, "Caroline."
Joxer asked, "You must be mistaken. That's Gabrielle."
Jack went to his side and took a zat. He aimed it at the vampire and placed his finger on the trigger.
Joxer didn't know much about this world yet, but one thing seemed not to change was weapons. With all the strength he could muster, he leapt forward to protect the woman he loved.
Jack squeezed the trigger and the electricity of the weapon discharged and made it's way to the vampire, but Joxer intercepted and got hit instead.
Suddenly, his body fell to the ground with a thud.
Gabrielle screamed, "No!"
She immediately went down to his side and went to check his pulse. "What did you do to him?"
Knowing Tim was alright, Jack aimed his weapon at the vampire and was about to shoot when he heard a familiar click.
"Put the weapon down."
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Watching the scene unfold, Ash went to his mantle and grabbed his shotgun. Loading it quickly he aimed it at the colonel.
After it clicked, Ash said, "Put the weapon down."
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"Carter?"
"It's alright, Sir. I have Ash." Sam then aimed her zat at Ash to make sure Jack was alright.
Thinking Ash would surrender, Sam relaxed a little, but still had her zat ready. Teal'c followed suit.
Normally, anybody would give into the statement, like that. But Ash knew otherwise.
With a wild grin, he dropped to the floor and did a foot sweep watching the two of them drop to the ground. Ash got to his feet and aimed his shotgun at Sam and Murray.
"I wouldn't move it I were you."
"Sir?"
Teal'c jumped back to his feet and knocked the weapon out of Ash's hand.
He aimed his zat back at the man as Faith pulled back her chackram and said, "Leave my uncle alone!"
"Uh, Jack?"
Jack said, "A little busy right now, Daniel."
"You might want to take a look at this."
Sighing, he shot Gabrille once with the zat and looked at the others.
Jack turned around with his zat tightly in his hand. Ash picked up his shotgun and aimed it at Teal'c. Sam was standing as well now with her Beretta aimed at Faith.
Faith held up some kind of weapon toward Teal'c while Gunn held his axe, standing in front of Jack.
Xander, Buffy, Kevin, Wesley, and Doyle all had stunned expressions on their faces.
Jack aimed his zat at Ash, "Well, isn't this a fun party?"
Hercules suddenly broke free of his trance and walked to the center of the room. Taking a breath and holding his hands up, he said, "Alright, everyone. Calm down."
Ash snarled, "Not until these people yank their weapons away from my niece, Kevin!"
Daniel said, "This isn't going to get us anywhere. Like Mr. Sorbo said, everyone calm down."
Jack glanced at his friend, "They're protecting a vampire, Daniel! She killed three people!" Looking around the room, he yelled, "And where's Banks!?"
Xander looked at the fallen forms of his friends, "First of all, Colonel. What did you do to my friends?"
Wesley said, "Before we get into discussion, I suggest we place our weapons down."
Ash said, "I'll do it once she gets that Beretta off my niece!"
She glanced at the colonel, "Sir?"
Jack surveyed his surroundings. Then he glanced down at the people he shot. Knowing Daniel had the best interest in mind, he sighed, "Stand down."
Slowly, he lowered his zat as he watched the others lower their weapons.
"Somebody damn well tell me what the hell is going on!" Jack said to the group. "For crying out loud! Why would you protect a vampire?"
Suddenly, Gabrielle's eyes popped open. She slowly raised her hand and cleared the blurriness from her eyes. Trying to remain calm, she turned over to face Joxer.
He was still out...
...but alive.
She leaned down and kissed his forehead. In a quiet voice, she said, "Come back, Joxer."
Suddenly remembering what was happening, she stood back to her feet and punched the colonel across the face. "What the hell did you do to him?"
Jack took a few feet back and glared at blond, "You should be stunned!"
Teal'c said, "O'Niell, the zat'nik'tel effects people differently."
He stated, "Thanks for telling me that now, Murray."
Gabrielle approached her assailant, "What did you do to him?"
Jack snarled, "I shot him, Caroline."
The name shot through her like a ton of bricks.
What was she going to do? If she told him that she was Caroline, the others would have to know about her true identity. She would have to explain about Hercules and Joxer as well.
From what she recently learned from Hercules, people right now weren't ready for the truth.
But how would she explain Caroline?
Only if she had a twin.
Xena had four look-alikes. Diana, Meg, Leah, and Lyla.
If Xena had four, why couldn't Gabrielle say Caroline was a look-alike of her? Even Hope at one point looked like her.
Her eyes widened at the sudden thought of her daughter with Dahok.
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts of Hope, she glanced at the man staring at her.
"Well?"
"My name is Gabrielle. It's not Caroline."
He nodded slowly, "Well, you look like Caroline. And how does the line go? If it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and moves like a duck, it probably is a duck."
Sneering at him, she said, "I can assure you. I am in no shape or form this Caroline you mention."
"Jack?"
Spinning around he looked at Daniel, "What Daniel?"
The archeologist said to the colonel, "Banks isn't here."
He nodded, "I see that, Daniel."
Sam said getting the idea, "So, Sir. Maybe Gabrielle is telling the truth. When you faced Caroline at the motel, Banks was with her."
Gabrielle smiled thinking her idea was actually pulling off.
She glanced at the demigod hoping he would understand the Caroline situation.
------
Hercules looked at his friend from so many centuries ago and noticed something in her eyes.
Was she trying to tell him something? He didn't know. Maybe the colonel was right. Maybe there was some truth in the Caroline mention?
But why? But how?
Thinking back to the a few days ago, Gabrielle emerged as Callisto. It seemed as if Callisto knew what was going on.
He then thought back to Xander's evaluation on the situation between Gabrielle and Callisto.
Back in Greece, Gabrielle was a very intelligent woman who trained well and fought well with Xena. Xena took a young innocent woman and taught her everything she knew.
It was a simple fact that Gabrielle became a tough warrior who was also very intelligent. She faced Callisto many times. Callisto even slew Gabrielle's husband, Perdicas.
Gabrielle and Xena had faced Callisto many times in the past. Hercules even fought against her a few times as well.
Now, Hercules and Gabrielle reunited an old friendship after a 5,000 year hiatus. Only thing different was that Gabrielle was now a vampire who took on the persona of Callisto.
Knowing how clever Gabrielle was, he wondered if the colonel was right. Maybe Gabrielle was Caroline. It would make sense. He himself chose numerous names over the centuries to blend into Earth's history.
Maybe Gabrielle chose another name too when she showed up on Earth. Gabrielle called herself Callisto for so long, it would be only natural for the vampire to chose another name when she came back to Earth. Calling herself Gabrielle would be a mistake on Callisto's part. It would give Gabrielle some strength to fight back and take over.
So maybe Callisto chose the name Caroline to blend into the current Earth's history.
There was also a man with Callisto that dressed like the colonel. Was that this Banks the colonel was talking about? It had to be.
If Callisto started calling herself Caroline, then that would make the man with her be Banks.
One problem though.
Xander staked that man. Xander staked Banks. That's had to be who the boy slew.
Hercules smiled in triumph realizing the truth. So now, he had to help his friend out.
------
"Gabrielle's right, Colonel O'Neill. She isn't Caroline."
The colonel looked at the television actor, "How do you know? How do you know that this woman isn't Caroline?"
He said calmly, "Because I dusted Caroline myself. Same with Banks."
His eyes widened, "What do you mean dusted?"
Buffy spoke up, "When you kill a vampire, they turn to dust, Colonel."
Jack glanced at Daniel, "They do?"
The archeologist shrugged, "I dunno, Jack. I never 'dusted' a vampire before."
O'Neill looked at Teal'c who raised an eyebrow and at Sam who said, "Don't look at me, Sir. I don't know either."
He glanced back at Buffy. She was a slayer for at least two years now. If she knew vampires turned to dust, then it had to be true.
Jack looked at Kevin and then Gabrielle. Maybe they were right. Doubles were nothing special. He himself was cloned at one point and took on his identity. He'll never forget the blue crystal. Because of the crystal, he was able to see Charlie again. His son.
"O'Neill?"
Jack looked at Teal'c forcing him to come back to the present.
The colonel didn't know how long Caroline was on that planet. Maybe Caroline and Gabrielle were related some how. Maybe not. Anything is possible.
Sighing, he lowered his zat and looked at Gabrielle, "Alright whoever you are. Maybe you are Gabrielle and maybe you are Caroline."
Gabrielle said on her behalf, "I am Gabrielle. As Kevin said, he staked Caroline and Banks."
Nodding, the colonel said, "Well, this trip was pretty much a let down, huh?"
At that point, Joxer began to stir as he pulled himself into a sitting position, "Gabby? What happened?"
Gabrielle went to inspect her friend as the door flew open.
"You!" A voice said as she walked inside the cabin.
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TBC