CHAPTER 14: TERMINAL DECISION
Buffy slammed Spike, face first, against the wall in his crypt.
"Ow! Bloody hell, woman." He struggled to get loose, but she held him firmly in place.
"One more time, Spike. Do – you – know – how Angel lost his soul?" Spike chuckled as Buffy turned him around and held him with his back pinned against the wall.
"I thought that was your area of expertise, love." Buffy raised her fist and hit Spike across the face. He wiped his bloody lip with the back of his hand. "Okay, not the best time to crack jokes, suppose. No, I don't know. But if you're not going to pummel me all night, I could see if anyone's heard anything."
"About what?"
"What do you think? About black arts, powerful shamans and such. Something tells me that the bloody sod didn't draw the soul out with promises of furry puppies and cotton candy, if you know what I'm saying. Could look around for you." He smiled smugly. "You know, for the right money." Buffy scowled.
"Don't forget that I'm evil, pet," Spike continued before she could protest. "Cash just might encourage me to look just a little bit more carefully." Buffy sighed, releasing her grip on him.
"Fine, fine. You'll get paid, WHEN you bring us something useful." Spike opened his mouth to say something.
"Don't forget that I'm the slayer, Spike. I don't run a social welfare's offices for harmless, big mouthed vampires."
"Oh, you don't? Musta gotten mistaken, what with you shagging and being all gaga about some of us that fit into that category." She tightened her grip around his collar.
"Said 'some of us'. Hit a nerve, love?" he smirked. Buffy stared coldly at him, not even bothering to humor him by responding to his comments.
"You find something; you bring it to me; you get your money. That's the only way this deal works." With that Buffy spun around and left the crypt without looking back.
Angelus slowly opened the door to the sorcerer's home. He'd already been invited, so that wasn't a problem. The sorcerer had called him to his home for some reason, he had no idea if it was a trap, a problem with the soul extraction spell – of if the old wretch simply wanted to talk to someone. Angelus snorted. Well, if it was the last, the old man would get to experience his wrath… that was for sure.
Things were going well so far. When he was done with Joyce, he had driven the car away from the house, making sure Buffy wouldn't suspect that she had in fact already gotten home. He would have to se how those things would unfold later… At least he was happy about only being one separate entity again. There was no need for two Angelus-es in the world - he was evil enough to do well with only one entity. Sharing life and town with another one of him was demanding.
Now, of course the next problem was how to stop Buffy and the red headed witch from cursing him again. He was sure they would as soon as they got a hold of everything they needed… Maybe that was why the sorcerer had told him to come here tonight.
"Come in, vampire."
The hoarse voice was heard from the living room, where the sorcerer had his shrine, all his books and stinky herbs. A few of them was clearly there to repel demons and vampires, but they didn't bother Angelus. His generous use of garlic was however a different story… The strings cloves that hung across the walls made sure that he would want to cut his visit as short as possible. Angelus stepped inside the living room. The man sat cross legged on the floor, incense burning and a book spread out before him.
Angelus crossed his arms over his chest and looked coldly at the man.
"What do you want?" The man looked back at him, gesturing at the floor in front of where he sat.
"Sit down, young fellow."
"Thanks, but I'm very comfortable standing," Angelus scoffed, not considering for a minute to sit down so close to the sorcerer. He didn't trust him. What would the next thing be, the old man offering him tea and asking him 20 questions about his future and goals in life? Now that would be priceless. "You wanted something?" he demanded.
"Yes. I thought you should know, that the powers of Kalderash speak again." Angelus narrowed his eyes. Like he thought, then.
"You mean that the redheaded witch is going to try to curse me again. Right, thanks for the heads-up, I'll be off to take care of that."
The old man laughed a little, causing him to start coughing.
"Foolish creature," he said, recovering. "The powers of Kalderash has already spoken, and failed. My magic prevents the essence from being released into the ether." A grin slowly spread across Angelus' features as he understood the meaning of the man's words.
"Really. So what's the downside to this confirmation of my infinite liberation?"
A flash of menace appeared in the old mans eyes. "Well, I don't really think you've been appreciative towards me, vampire. I did not agree to use my magic's on you out of amiability. Perhaps I should just tell these warriors how to return your conscience."
Angelus winched slightly. "No, I really don't think you should do that."
"Then you will agree to my conditions. You will, from here on out, work for me. You will…"
"And already, I'm bored." Angelus rolled his eyes. "No, no and no. I will not do anything." He walked up to the man, grabbed him by the throat, lifted him up and left him dangling inches above the floor, squeezing his throat. He enjoyed the strained sounds as the old man tried to breathe.
"Idiot. Do you think I'm this easy to kill?" he gasped. "My body might be aged and frail, but generations of power are in my blood, coursing through my veins. Do you really think…" Too late the sorcerer realized he'd made a mistake.
"Your power's in your blood, huh?" Angelus morphed into vamp face. "Thanks for the tip." He sank his fangs in to the old mans jugular, drinking deeply and enjoying the power he could feel in the blood – even though it was tinged by the bitter taste of old shaman that surely took potions meant to hinder demons from feeding on him. The meal was refreshing, but it didn't last very long. Angelus let go of the limp body and it fell to the floor with a satisfying smack. "It's been fun," he smirked as he turned his back and left the sorcerers house.
A few hours after his meeting with Buffy, Spike arrived back at the Magic Box. Xander, Anya, Wesley and Cordelia were scattered over the shop. Wesley and Cordelia were reading through volumes on Romany curses. They didn't really expect to find Angel's curse in it, since it was written by the Kalderash people specific for Angelus, but at least it kept them busy. Xander sat with Anya on the couch, speaking quietly to her.
"Hello all." No one even looked at Spike. He frowned. "So, what's with the gloom and doom?"
"Do you really wanna know, Spike?" Xander released himself from Anya's grip and sat up straight. "We have evil Angel roaming around town. His cure failed. Willow has locked herself in the bathroom with a book that's called 'very bad magic's or something."
"'Mehrenstadth's dark compendium'" Anya corrected. "It's an expensive book, I told her she will have to pay for it if she wants to take it home." A beat of silence. "That was when she went into the bathroom."
Xander ignored her. "Buffy and Giles went off into the training room to have a 'serious talk', everyone is sad, two of our friends has been murdered during the past days – and Buffy's mom is missing. AND, possibly the worst thing in all this – Buffy tells us that at the moment, YOU are our biggest hope."
Spike smirked. "She's bloody right." He frowned. "Did you say Joyce is missing?" He shook his head. "Lady made a nice cuppa."
"Raise your hand if 'ew'" Xander said, imagining Buffy's mom serving Spike warm 0-pos with marshmallows.
"Not blood, you stupid sod," Spike rolled his eyes. "Hot chocolate. Not all vampires go strictly on the red stuff, you see."
Before Xander could respond to that, they were interrupted by Buffy and Giles who came out of the training room. Buffy looked upset. She barely spared Spike a glance before she slumped down into a chair, biting her lip. She was clearly worried and very tired, and who wouldn't be? Her sister was possibly on her deathbed, her mother was gone and might very well be dead and they had no idea how to stop Angelus. Seeing that Buffy wasn't up for a rousing speech of any degree, Giles took over.
"Buffy and I have been, er… discussing the ways that Angel could possibly have lost his soul this time. So far we've ruled out true happiness…"
"Why?" Spike interrupted. "The ninny always did have a weird sense of humor." Giles sighed.
"Because the curse didn't work. I have presented other alternatives to Buffy…" He looked at her, but she just stared at the floor.
"Unfortunately, the news isn't good. There are three big possibilities, as far as I can tell. The first one is a soul stealing demon. Angelus could have sent one after Angel. That's not good, because if you destroy such a demon after it has, er… Ingested a soul, the soul is consumed and gone for good. However, it could be resolved if we found the demon alive. Another possibility is a shaman, sorcerer or witch. A powerful one might be able to extract a soul. The problem is, that can be done from a distance, which means that Angelus in theory could have hired a shaman in China, and we'd need to find the specific shaman to make him release the soul into the ether. The third possibility… is a spell that destroys souls. It's called the Maldad Ritual."
"The Maldad Ritual?" Wesley frowned? "I don't think I've ever heard of that."
"Well, it's a very rare and dangerous ritual, but I suspect it could be done," Giles went on. "I could even imagine one or two magicians here in Sunnydale that would be willing to try. If a soul is destroyed by this spell, there's no going back."
Buffy collected herself and looked at Spike.
"Spike, what can you tell us?"
"Uh, I… Not much. But I found a Slug demon that says he saw something." Spike opened the door and shouted into the darkness. "Blenny, you can come in now!"
A short, greenish creature with stubby legs walked into the shop. When it turned its back against the group, they could see that it had an eye in the back of its head. A puke green eye staring at them.
"Remember Spike, when we're done, you owe me five fresh kittens."
"Yes," Spike said loudly and laughed nervously. "I'll give you your money when you've told us what you know."
"Did he just say 'kittens'?" Xander asked and pictured what a slug demon could possibly do with a bunch of kittens. "Scratch that question, I don't even wanna know."
Buffy walked up to the slug. "Tell us what you know. Now."
"Slayer! It's an honor…" the slug laughed uneasily, gesturing with its hands.
"Tell us what you know," Buffy repeated, not allowing the creature any more time for groveling.
"Well, you see, the other night I was out looking for stray cats. I know, strange thing to do for a demon you might think, but cats happen to have small kittens in their bellies pretty often." The slug licked its lips. Buffy crossed her arms over her chest.
"So anyway, I see this mean looking bloodsucker standing behind a crypt. By the way, I could tell right away that Spike was from his line. What is it with the males from that kinship and their hair? I find it funny that two of the baddest vampires in history are using so much product." The slug shook its head, which made a bit of slime drip from its face.
Spike glared at him. Being compared to his grandsire and mocked because of his hair all at the same time. Maybe bringing Blenny wasn't such a good idea...
"So he was standing there, and he had a human in a robe with him, and suddenly another one just like him came walking down the street. They were talking. More like, insulting one another. So suddenly, the first bloodsucker makes the robed guy show himself. He says something about a soul and excretion… or maybe it was extraction. Probably, yes." The slug added at their looks. "The robed guy started with this spell and the other bloodsucker just leaped up to him and snapped his neck. Crack!" The gang winced. Spike smirked.
"So, what does that mean? Which one of them was Angelus?" Xander said, clearly confused. The slug continued.
"So the first guy says something about not thinking the second guy would kill a good guy without brollying about it first." A beat of silence. "Now that part I don't get. Maybe I heard wrong."
"Maybe you did," Buffy said dryly. "Go on."
"Anyway, then he said the real sorcerer wasn't actually nearby, and then something I didn't hear. Then the other guy ran away. That's all I've got." Buffy nodded shortly.
"Good. Spike, you can escort the… slug-thing out of here and… pay him or whatever."
"Whatever. Don't forget you own me money, slayer," Spike reminded her before he disappeared out the door, presumably to pay the Slug his kittens.
"So." Buffy looked pleadingly at Giles. "Is this good news?"
"I suspect so, yes." Giles smiled a little. "It would mean that Angel's soul most probably hasn't been destroyed. The problem is that we need to find the sorcerer, and even if he actually resides in Sunnydale, I don't know how, to be quite honest."
"I do." The all turned and saw Willow coming from the bathroom. She opened the book with dark spells and pointed. "There, I can do a locator spell that will show me where dark magic's have been performed in the last few days."
Giles opened his mouth to say something. "Don't say it, Giles," Willow cut off, looking firmly at him. "I'm going to do this, and we don't have time for an 'it's very dangerous'-speech. I already know that." Giles remained quiet.
It didn't take long for Willow to complete the locator spell. It showed them that dark magic's had been performed on four locations in Sunnydale during the last few days – the Magic Box, that was when Willow threw Angelus through the door when she revealed who he truly was – though not the attempted curse, since it was considered good magic, Willow's dorm room where she had performed the location spell on Angelus, the mansion, which was Willow's attack on Angelus, and a fourth place. A house.
As soon as they had pin-pointed the exact address, Buffy, Giles and Wesley took off to go and meet him, well aware that their time was limited. If Angelus had targeted the person living in that house, chances were that they were already too late.
The others stayed behind. Willow was working on a protection spell that might be able to keep Angelus out of the Magic Box.
"So, this is it." Buffy knocked on the door. The two ex watchers stood just behind her.
No one answered the door. Buffy swallowed hard. Did that mean… Did it mean anything? Of course it didn't. It was late, for all they knew the person inside might be asleep. Right? She extended her hand and grabbed the doorknob. Did she want it to be locked or open? What would locked mean? Nothing probably; Angelus still could have been there. She turned it and pushed the door… and it opened.
"It's open," she said with some disappointment. It didn't mean much either really, did it? The inhabitant if this house supposedly was someone powerful enough to extract Angel's soul from a distance, maybe he could rely on protecting the premises with only his magic.
The three entered. The house was dark and smelled of burning incense. It didn't seem to have any artificial light, only candles, and lot's of them. Not to mention smelling herbs, garlic and something else that Buffy didn't know exactly what it was – but it smelled strange. At least there was no question whether they had come to the right house…
"Hello?" Wesley said loudly.
"Maybe he's just… out. Or sleeping. People sleep at this hour, right?" Buffy suggested. They moved further into the building. Buffy took point, peeking into every room, disappointed yet relieved when she found them empty.
"Here's the living room," Buffy said. "If he's not in there, I think we can assume he's not in at the moment." The three of them stepped in there. Buffy's heart sank when she saw the body.
"Or not," she whispered. Giles kneeled beside the still form of the old man.
"He's dead. And has been so for at least a few hours." He rolled the body onto its back. "Vampire attack," he noted, indicating the bite mark on the man's neck.
"So Angelus was here first, I suspect," Wesley said, smothering a sigh. Well, what had they expected, really? They were dealing with the Scourge of Europe, not some simple vampire lackey. Angelus hadn't earned his title and reputation as a cunning mastermind through missing important loose ends and leaving openings for his adversaries.
"What does that mean?" Buffy inquired. "Does the magic break when they die?" Giles shook his head.
"No, I don't think it works that way. Angelus probably killed him because he knew that the only way the sorcerer could hurt him was by putting the soul back himself, or release it so we would be able to do it. I'm very sorry Buffy. I have no idea what to do now. Even if there is some ritual somewhere that can break the sorcerer's magic, and I doubt that there is, neither of us have the power to perform it."
Giles looked at her sorrowfully. He could only hope that Buffy would see what she had to do if there was no reasonable chance to bring Angel back. It was a conclusion he couldn't push her to, she had to figure it out herself. And something in her eyes told him that she was doing just that in the very instant.
And once again Buffy's world came crashing down on her – it wasn't the first, or even second or third time during the last few days. Angelus was free, he had the advantage and he had made clear that he was going to use it. Her mother was gone, and might very well be dead already – if she wasn't; it was probably because Angelus had thought of some delightful way to kill her to make Buffy suffer as much as possible from it. She had a duty – to all her friends, to her family and to the world. As a friend, daughter, sister and the Slayer. And she had a duty to the man she loved – because no matter how much she tried to deny it she still loved Angel deeply, and she knew he wouldn't ever want her to let his demon kill and destroy again.
If there was no way to bring him back… Then it was very clear what she had to do. She didn't want to do it – she couldn't think of anything that she wanted to do less, but it was her responsibility. She was the one that had to end this.
The whole situation was absurd. If someone had told her this a week ago… that she was about to be thrown into a chaotic scene where she would be forced to take the decision to kill Angel once and for all, she would have told them that they were insane. Possibly laughed at them even. Well, life truly takes some funny turns sometimes. Somehow she managed to keep her voice steady when she uttered the words.
"Don't worry about it Giles. This has gone too far, and if there's no chance that we can get Angel back, I already know what I have to do." She looked first at Wesley, then at Giles, both of them glancing back at her with deep compassion. She knew what she was going to say next. They knew what she was going to say next. Then how come the words still got stuck in her throat? At last she turned away from them to look at the sorcerer's dead body – and hide the tears that welled up.
"I have to kill Angelus."
