Lisa stormed out on the corridor with Spike on toe. She quickly made out the source of the commotion, which was not too difficult given the conspicuity of the situation. There was a young woman standing in the middle of the corridor. Her eyes were wide in horror and her gaze was fixed on her hand in silent bewilderment. Blood trickled down her arms and stained her white blouse. A scissor was sticking out of her palm.

"What have you done! What have you done to me!" she sobbed in pure terror.

Another figure advanced threateningly from the shadows. When he stepped into the light Lisa vaguely recognized the young man's face as one of her co-workers. She didn't know any of them by name, their mutual correspondence was limited to a friendly greeting here and there at the beginning of workshifts.

When Lisa observed the young man more closely she noticed an important detail that had escaped her until now. She sucked in her breath in surprise. It looked like he was crying blood.

"That will teach you! You always borrow my stuff, but you never return it. Your doing it on purpose and now you'll pay for it. Everybody has to pay," he thundered raising a paper cutter over his head like a sword, ready to strike her down.

Lisa was ready to throw herself at him, though she knew her chances on wrestling the weapon out of her colleague's hands were actually pretty slim, him being probably stronger than her. It was not bravery...rather instinct. With grim determination she hurried down the corridor, but Spike was a little bit faster than her. Unlike her, he was eager for a fight. He hadn't had a decent one in months.

"Sorry, mate," the blond vampire grabbed the other man's arm, effectively keeping him from executing the deadly strike, "Do you mind if I borrow this?" he wrenched the paper cutter out of the lawyer's grasp and drove it unceremoniously into the ceiling behind him. It's grip vibrated only centimetres from where the young man's head was. After having overcome his initial surprise, the man let out an angry howl and threw himself at Spike, who only grinned smugly and then knocked him down with one single blow.

"I think you're right, love. There's definitely something wrong," Spike called out to Lisa from over his shoulder, looking down on his unconscious opponent.

They had come to see Angel not get a lecture about a prophecy by some frigging stuffy Englishman. So it was something about Angel becoming human again, after sufficiently atoning for his sins, that much she had understood. Now Spike's reappearance as a souled and now corporeal vampire champion was threatening the balance, as there were suddenly two vampires signed up for the course on "how-do-I-become-human-again".

Geeze, she could literally see the testosterone bouncing of the walls. Spike and Angel seemed to hate each other to the guts. It didn't take a genius to understand as much. Whenever men acted like that, it was always about who's the bravest, the toughest or strongest and usually it also involved a girl.

The Englishman bent over the scrolls, now translating something about a Cup of Perpetual Torment, from which the champion had to drink in order to accept his destiny. Fighting the good fight, saving the world and what not. Lisa stifled a yawn. Please, as if something like that actually existed and could be found in an opera house in Death Valley of all places. You really had to be dumb to buy such a load crap. And, of course, she saw Spike hurrying towards the doors only seconds later. She briefly looked around. Nobody else had seen him go. Lisa quickly raised from her seat to follow him.

"Off to that opera house I suppose?" the young woman called after him, having drawn shut the door behind her.

"This isn't the time for conversation," Spike answered without stopping to walk.

"Funny, I remember you pestering me all the time in the last couple of weeks. Back then I wasn't in the mood for talking either, but that didn't stop you…" normally that comment would have provoked him sufficiently for a comeback. This time it didn't. Lisa sighed in resignation.

"So you and Angel are going to beat each other to bloody bulbs over that stupid cup, I guess?" she asked with sarcasm tripping from her voice, while she hurried along besides him.

"That's the plan."

"Yeah, maybe also Wolfram & Hardt's plan of getting you both out of the picture. If you are going to kill each other, they can lean back in their armchairs comfortably. Problem solved, case closed. Ever thought about that?"

"This is my destiny and I won't let him take it from me this time."

"This time? Sounds like this something personal. About a girl?" she asked half jokingly.

"You could say so," Spike answered while entering the elevator, half expecting her to follow him, but Lisa had stopped walking at his last words. The shiny metal doors were slowly closing, effectively ending their conversation.

"Don't get killed," Lisa called out to him seemingly nonchalant, as she abruptly turned on heels and walked away. She would need some time to work through those newly gained information.

"I'll do my best, " she heard him say, followed by the bling of the elevator, that announced that the doors had closed and that he was off looking for the "holy grail".

Only seconds later the door of the Englishman's office opened with a bang. Entrance Angel. The race had begun.

The water surface lay dark and still before her. Nothing moved and no sound could be heard. Not even the characteristic dripping of water mingled in with the splashing sound of swimming sewer rats. It was like stepping into a black and white photography. The sewers…She had been her a million times, but this time it was different. This was not a cosy place to be in, but she had gotten used to it and like everything one grows familiar with, it had lost its terror. Being scared was a luxury she had denied herself a long time ago. It immobilizes you, makes you unable to think… in short you usually become a useless shivering mess.

She knew what would ensue, what path to take through this labyrinth of tunnels. She knew every step by heart, every gesture like an actor playing out the same part for the umpteenth time. Nevertheless she couldn't shake off this strange feeling. The young woman shook her head as if to free herself from those disquieting thoughts. She forced herself to take the first step...then all hell broke loose. A loud howling resounded through the long tunnels and let her step falter for a second. She tried to concentrate. She had to walk on. It was the only way to end this.

The surface of the dark pools was starting to ripple. This hadn't happened before. This was not to supposed to happen! She braced herself for whatever was to come, her hands balled into fists at her side. The howling increased in intensity. Her eyes widened in disbelieve. Suddenly the water was everywhere. Like a hundred ice cold hands it tore on her clothes, her hair, slapped her in the face brutally. For a moment she thought she could actually feel nails digging into her skin.

She fought against the onslaught of the torrent trying desperately to stay on her feet, but in the end she had to give up. The ice cold stream started to make her limps feel heavy. With a surprised scream she fell. Murky water streamed into her mouth and invaded her lungs. She crashed against the stone wall behind her and slowly slid downwards. As if to mock her the water was now slowly retreating, returning to its previous state of eerie calmness. Afraid to move she just sat there, her wet dark hair hanging into her face.

Lisa's loud coughing resounded loudly in the tunnels. Every bone in her body hurt. She heard approaching steps, but felt too tired and exhausted to even look up or care. Two dirty boots and its respective owner came to hold in front of her. She knew those boots from somewhere…

"You look a mess…," a familiar masculine voice noticed. She hadn't heard that voice in a long time. It was like a blow to the stomach.

"I'm sure you don't look so good either – being dead and all..," Lisa replied, wincing in pain, when she unsuccessfully tried to stand up and failed pitiably. She tried to avoid looking at her vis-à-vis. She wasn't sure she could handle it.

"Why the big entrance? Why are you sneaking around in my dreams? I thought you had enough of it by now," she brushed the hair out of her face and stubbornly decided to continue staring into the bluish dark tunnel in front of her, instead of looking at her counterpart.

"To warn you," the young man lowered himself to eyelevel with her. He still looked the same as the last time she saw him. That light brown hair, the green eyes, the attractive dimple on his chin. About seventeen.

"Charlie…," ironically his name slid over her lips easily. Unlike the times she had cried herself to sleep repeating it over and over again like a prayer to the Gods.

"Glad you remember me, princess," he winked at her. Since they had been little, he had always called her like this.

She let out a bitter laugh. The retort she had planned out in her head just wouldn't leave her mouth.

The smile on Charlie's face slowly faded, as he remembered why he had come to visit her. His time was limited and though he was ecstatic to see her again, he had to ruin this moment by delivering her the inevitable bad news.

"I came to warn you," he started vaguely.

"Wait you're the ghost of Christmas last?" Lisa asked sarcastically.

"Afraid not," he didn't even smile. It had to be serious.

"He's after you again and he won't rest until he gets what he wants. You can't save me, princess, but you can save everyone else."

Lisa was quickly getting worried. "What do you mean I can't save you? Who is he? What the hell are you talking about? Who is following you, Charlie?" she had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"Baku." This was the answer she had dreaded the most.

The words get stuck in her throat and she needed a while to compose herself. "It can't be. We vanquished him the night you..., " Lisa stopped. This was ridiculous. Even now she couldn't bring herself to say it. Those simple words would make it even more real…would make it hurt even more.

"The night I died," he finished the sentence for her.

"Yes, the night I let you die," her words were barely above a whisper. She hung her head. The memories flashed in her mind again like they had done so often in the past years. Her mournful strangled voice that chanted out a spell into the night. Glassy green eyes fixed lifelessly on a point in the distance so far far away she would never be able to reach it in this lifetime. Pain, anger and desperation.

"It was my decision, my life, princess," Charlie's words were soft and comforting, but the warm undertone of his voice escaped her. She couldn't hear it, like she couldn't stop to blaming herself.

"You have to leave now, Lisa. He's close by," his rare use of her first name gave the words more emphasis. Charlie held out his hand to her, inviting her to take it with a friendly nod of his head. She gingerly reached for it as if afraid it would disintegrate into thin air when she touched it.

He pulled her to her feet in one swift motion. His finger felt deceptively warm against her skin, yet she knew she was talking to a ghost. "This is just a dream," he smiled at her and brushed a stubborn strain of loose hair behind her ear like he had done so many times.

"A dream from which you have to wake up now," Charlie continued firmly, with a regret clearly audible in his voice. "I will always be with you, my dear princess. When you're looking for me, look within your heart," pressed a tender kiss to her temple and then softly but determinedly pushed her away.

"A dream," Lisa repeated his words full of amazement. They seemed to be magical and to decrypt the mysteries of a whole universe. "A dream," realization spread on her face and slowly she felt the imaginary reality slipping away. The colours suddenly became blurry and started to brighten. From the back of the tunnel she could faintly make out a formless greyish mass that was approaching quickly A sense of dread overcame her. Lisa reached out for Charlie's hand again, but this time it slipped right through him, as if she herself was a ghost.

She awoke in her bed with a scream in her throat and the memory of Charlie's sad goodbye smile. The t-shirt she had slept in clung icy cold to her body like she had taken a swim in it. Her breath was leaving her mouth in rapid intervals. Had this been a mere dream? It hadn't felt like it.

A feeling that had been buried deep down inside of her seized hold of her with an unexpected intensity. Terror. Her limps started shaking uncontrollably. If that is true…This couldn't be true. It just couldn't be. Lisa repeated those words over and over in her mind.

The young woman swung her legs out of bed energetically, but her decisiveness was suddenly quenched. Dizziness swept over her and grey dots danced before her eyes as if she was about to faint. She had to bring up an enormous amount of concentration to master the simple things that suddenly seemed so difficult. Lisa tried to calm herself taking steady breaths and finally was able to stand up. With slow and ginger steps she made her way into the living room, that was bathed in the greyish blue light of the morning sun. The neon green digits of her video recorder announced it was 5:17 in the morning.

She came to a halt in front of a closet with a milky glass sliding door. With a swift movement, Lisa had carried out uncountable times, she opened the doors which revealed a little alter. In the middle of it a simple bronze statue of Osiris, ruler of the underworld. His facial features into which she had stared so often, seemed calm and regal, even peaceful. Lisa let out an ironic snort. She felt everything but calm, but she had to be, in order to get the information she needed. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the question that she had to ask. Her steady voice broke the dead silence of the room.

"Osiris, my master, I seek your guidance in this hour of need. The disturber of the balance is rumoured to have turned up once again. You, who rule justly in the realm of death grant me the sight of the all-seeing eye." She felt the energy build up. It prickled in the air and made her skin tingle. A golden glow spread from the altar and finally engulfed the whole room.

When she opened her eyes again she found herself in a dark and dang alleyway that was wrapped in grey mist. The street light above her flickered incessantly and gave the whole scenery an eerie vibe. Definitely not the right place for a pick nick. Yet again what was more important, why on earth was she here of all place? There was nobody there. Or at least she thought so.

The mist that hovered over the whole scenery began to move and started contracting until it vaguely resembled the shape of a human body. It seemed to be in constant motion as if it were alive, all the while forming little swirling patterns. Its outlines became clearer with every second, but obviously it could only attain a certain level of human resemblance. Its facial features as well as its hands refused to materialize completely. They stayed blurry as if looking at them through a grey veil, which made its whole appearance even more spookier.

Lisa instinctively took a step back, though she knew that she was protected by Osiris's power. Then, despite the fact that the thing had no proper mouth, it started speaking. Its voice sounded like scratching nails on a chalk board – barely above a threatening hiss. It seemed to come from everywhere.

"There she is again. The girl who condemned me to this existence. I thought you would turn up sooner or later."

"I'm not a girl anymore and I'm not frightened either," Lisa screamed, her hoarse voice erupting angrily out of her throat.

"True. You've grown up a little," the phantom advanced on her, his arms extended to long greyish tentacles that danced in front of her face greedily. She didn't flinch, though it cost her an enormous effort.

"You still smell deliciously of fear. It engulfs you like an expensive perfume."

It circled her. Lisa fought hard to keep her composure. She was painfully aware that she was only clothed in her sleep shirt and was bare footed. It made her feel vulnerable and unprotected.

"I see you worked your way up. You serve him of all people. He would have had reason enough to rip off your throat for all the mess you made…," the voice paused for a second, relishing the words it was about to utter like full-bodied red wine, "For all the times you worked against him."

"I've learned from my mistakes… Unlike you," she crossed her arms over her chest in defiance.

"No, little girl, it is you, who didn't learn anything at all. You thought you had gotten rid off me. Instead you only helped me to become more powerful."

"A talking cloud of mist can hardly be accounted for as something powerful."

The thing laughed. It was a dreadful sound. "Still as arrogant as ever, I see. Let me explain it to you. When I was alive I consumed the souls of the living to prolong my own life. Back then you were strong enough to stop me, even kill me, yes…. but now I'm incorporeal. I can go anywhere without you being able to do the slightest thing against it. Once I had my share of souls I'm going to come for yours. It will be like dessert after a long and decadent banquet. The last and the most powerful one, that will finally restore me to a new even more powerful existence."

"I will never let this happen!"

"Oh, yes little girl, you will! Your chances are rather slim," it whispered in her ear amusedly. "Ask Charlie, your friend, who sacrificed himself not once, but twice for you…His soul tasted so good. Oh, It was so pure!"

Lisa's nails digged into the palms of her hands. Hatred was boiling up inside of her, but she denied herself the luxury of letting it surface.

"I'm going to leave you a good-bye present, so you won't forget our little conversation," the phantom growled at her. Without a warning its grey tentacle lashed out and slung around her throat. Her eyes widened in horror as she gasped for air and desperately tried to pull on it. It wouldn't even budge an inch. The greyish skin of the tentacle started to singe where it touched her and the smell of burned flesh hung in the air. She started feeling dizzy and black dots danced before her eyes.

"You forgot one thing," the thing laughed out delightedly, "This is a vision. You're bodily shape is only an astral projection. It as unreal as mine and so I'm able to touch you. Lucky for you Osiris is still there to protect you."

Behind the phantom the scenery was slowly starting to disintegrate and fade back to comforting reality of Lisa's apartment.

" Next time your master won't be around to stretch out his hand over you, girl. And then you will be mine!" the voice shouted at her and its echo still resounded in Lisa's living room, when she was lying on her carpet, greedily sucking air into her lungs.