Standing on the Edge of Tomorrow II: The Rising Sun

Previously:

"Hey," the person said, walking up the sidewalk. Kara smiled widely when his face was revealed by the light of the street lamp.

"Lucian."

Chapter Thirteen:

Faith smiled and slung her arm around Buffy's shoulders. Leaning over, she planted a kiss on the blonde slayer's cheek. "What was that for?" Buffy asked, smiling widely and looking over at her. Faith simply shrugged. The elevator doors slid open. They stepped out into the hallway and began walking back toward the wing where Willow was being treated.

"Faith!" Cordelia said, appearing in front of them suddenly. "Thank God," she muttered to herself. "We need your help."

"What's wrong?" Faith asked, instantly concerned.

"Is it Willow?" Buffy asked, moving away from Faith and wrapping her arms around herself. Faith looked over at her quickly, but Cordelia recaptured her attention with a simple word.

"Lucian," Cordelia said. "He's left the hospital."

"Alone?" Faith asked, alarmed.

"Yeah," Cordelia responded. "He was feeling guilty about what happened to Willow, which is perfectly understandable I guess, but he's going to get himself killed out there. We don't know where Cassius is," Cordelia said, her voice getting steadily higher as she worked herself up into a panic.

"Calm down, C," Faith said, laying a comforting hand on the other girl's shoulder. "I'll go find him."

"I'll go with you," Cordelia said, her face suddenly deadly serious.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea, maybe B should go instead," Faith said, looking over at Buffy hopefully.

"I can't," Buffy said, unaware of the frustrated look on Faith's face at her response. "If Willow wakes up and I'm not here..."

"Fine, me and C will go," Faith said, turning and heading back toward the elevator.

"We'll be back soon," Cordelia shouted back over her shoulder at Buffy as she followed Faith down the hallway.

"Where should we look?" Faith asked, turning back to Cordelia as they waited for the elevator doors to open.

Cordelia thought for a moment, "Joyce's house," she said. "He likes it there; it's like home to him. Besides, Joyce has some whiskey in her kitchen cabinets. Lucian and I found it one night."

"You think he's gonna drown his sorrows?" Faith asked, smirking slightly. An alcoholic god was all they needed.

Cordelia smiled humorlessly. "Wouldn't you if you were him?"

....................................

"You know, Angel, when you said that we were after a sewer demon, I didn't think you meant a demon that could actually be misconstrued as a sewer," Callum said, wrinkling his nose at the disgusting smell wafting off him and his companion. After a rather lengthy and difficult battle with the sewer demon, they finally managed to kill it, only after it sprayed a noxiously fragranced spatter of an excremental substance on them.

"I thought sewer demon was pretty self explanatory," Angel said, shrugging slightly.

"Well when you've been around for two hundred some odd years, I'm sure you learn what exactly sewer demon means. I, however, have not had the pleasure of existing for such an ungodly amount of time," Callum argued. "And, thus, I'm a bit pissed at having been dragged onto this ridiculous adventure only to come out broken, bruised, bloodied, and smelling very much like shit."

"You Brits sure get long winded when you're angry," Angel responded, chuckling to himself as Callum snorted in frustration and stamped his foot slightly.

"Some people might take offense to that," Callum replied after a few moments. "But fortunately for you, I'm a benevolent god."

"Must be my lucky day," Angel retorted. "This is ours." Putting one muck-covered foot on the base of the ladder leading up through the sewers, Angel began to climb. Callum followed after him. Ripping open the manhole cover that led to an alley behind a bar, Angel stuck his head through the opening. The fresh air hit his face and he smiled slightly. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, relishing the scent of the night.

"What's the hold up?" Callum asked, his voice carrying up from down below. "It stinks down here and you're not making it any better. You're blocking all of the air."

"Just making sure it's safe," Angel lied. Hoisting himself onto the ground, he reached down and helped Callum up.

"Where are the others?" Callum asked, looking around at the vacant alley.

"They'll be here shortly. They were a little further away than us," Angel replied. He stood, his vampire sense alert, waiting for any sound of his friends.

"And we'll be leaving for Sunnydale now, right?" Callum asked, standing next to the souled vampire.

"No," Angel said.

"What do you mean?" Callum asked, looking over at him in surprise. "We had a deal."

Angel smiled. "If you don't mind," he said slowly, "I thought we'd head back to the hotel and get cleaned up first. But, if you want to drive all the way up to Sunnydale smelling like shit, be my guest. But you won't be riding with me."

Callum smirked and looked down at the ground, his face red with embarrassment at having doubted his new friend. "Alright. So showers first. Then off to the mouth of Hell."

......................................

After hotwiring a car in the hospital parking lot and driving it at breakneck speeds through the streets of Sunnydale, Faith and Cordelia arrived at Joyce's driveway. "I didn't know you could drive," Cordelia said, relinquishing her grip on the car seat. Her knuckles were white.

"I can't," Faith said, shutting off the car and hopping out onto the driveway. "That was entirely illegal," she said, smiling brilliantly.

"You're so going to jail one of these days," Cordelia said, rolling her eyes at the younger girl.

"Yeah," Faith snorted. "Me? Locked up in a tiny, little room all day? I don't think so. Not in this lifetime."

"The lights are on," Cordelia said, looking up at the house. "He must be inside."

"Now's a good a time as any to find out for sure," Faith said, walking up the sidewalk to the front door. As her hand reached out for the doorknob, she paused.

"What are you doing?" Cordelia asked.

"Shh...," Faith said, glaring over at the seer. "Something's going on in there."

"What?" Cordelia whispered.

Faith leaned forward and pressed her ear against the door. Closing her eyes, she concentrated. Her eyes suddenly flew open and stepping back, she kicked the door in. Wood splintered around them and Cordelia covered her face. She and Faith rushed into the house and stopped dead at the sight in front of them. "What are you doing?" Faith asked in disbelief.

Kara turned and looked back at her, a wicked smile covering her face. She had a bloodied knife in her hands. Lucian was tied to a chair in front of her, his head lolled back slightly and his eyes half open. "Help me," he croaked out, blood bubbling over his lips from a cut on the inside of his mouth.

"I'm just having a little fun," Kara said, turning around fully. "I think I inherited this, yeah? The thing about knives," she said, eyeing the blade in her hand appreciatively.

"Kara? Why are you doing this? You know what'll happen if he dies," Cordelia said as she and Faith inched forward into the room.

"Yeah, I do," Kara said. "You really aren't the brightest crayons in the box are you?"

"Cassius," Faith suddenly spat, realizing all at once that Kara was no longer in the body standing before her. Her daughter's eyes always had a certain sparkle to them. But the eyes of the girl standing in front of her were dull and lifeless.

"The one and only," Kara said, twirling the knife around her fingers. "Now, if you don't mind, I was in the middle of something," she said, turning back around. Faith took that opportunity to charge, tackling Kara from behind. They fell forward onto the ground in a heap. Faith was on her feet before Kara. Using that to her advantage, she grabbed Kara from behind, wrapping her arm around the girl's neck and pressing her knee into her spine.

"C, get some rope," Faith ground out, struggling as Kara bucked wildly, trying to get free. Taking the knife, Kara dragged it across Faith's arm. Faith cried out, watching as blood spilled out from the wound, but she didn't loosen her grip. Cordelia reappeared with a pair of handcuffs.

"Where did you get those?" Faith asked, looking at the cuffs in surprise.

"They were in Spike's weapons chest," Cordelia said. "I don't think we want to know."

Faith nodded her agreement as she dragged Kara over to another chair. Sitting the girl down, they cuffed her hands behind her back so she couldn't move. Ripping off the sleeve of her already ruined shirt, Faith bound Kara's mouth to keep her from talking. "Check on him," Faith said, motioning to Lucian as she did so.

"I'm okay," Lucian said as Cordelia released him. "Just a little knocked around."

"I'll get the first aid kit," Cordelia said, disappearing into the hallway bathroom. She reappeared a few moments later and began patching up Lucian.

Faith watched her for a moment before looking back at Kara. The girl was staring at her, murder in her eyes. "I'll call the others."