Title: A Breed Apart
Author: Knife Hand
Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated
Spoilers: Some, mostly early series.
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy. I would buy the show but I am broke.
Summary: On her first day at Sunnydale High, Buffy finds an odd kinship to a fellow student and something she never knew about herself.
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Xander and Buffy were wandering through the graveyard in their civilian hunting gear, Buffy occasionally snuggling up in Xander's Swim Team Jacket, letting their mingles scents waft through her senses. As they passed a crypt, three vampires moved out of the shadows.
"Hey boys, look. It's dinner." The stupid lead vampire said.
"Wanna give this a try?" Xander asked Buffy, pulling out what looked like a white and sliver pineapple grenade.
"Sure." Buffy replied, plucking the grenade from the air and giving Xander a quick nod.
Buffy popped the pin and threw the grenade into the middle of the three vampires, where it quietly detonated. For a second the vampires just stood there confused, and then they began to burn. Their skin began to dissolve as if it had been doused in acid; however there were bouts of flame licking at the wounds as well. The three vampires quickly immolated into ashes.
"Wow, that worked well. Much better than pure Holly Water." Xander said as they started to walk away.
"Yeah. The Silver nitrate adds that extra kick, plus it works on most demons." Buffy added.
"We'll have to thank Wills and the tech crew at the base. Did you know that they are working on a targeted proximity mine that works only for demons and vamps? Wills is gonna fill them with this mix."
"No, she didn't mention it."
"I guess she was waiting for it to be completed before telling us. I heard from one of the techs."
"All Sierra Golf Units, this is Sierra Golf 3 reporting nest at following co-ordinates." Came Kendra's voice over the radio, followed by a set of co-ordinates.
"That's near the Bronze." Buffy said.
"Sierra Golf 1 and 2 responding. ETA 10 minutes." Xander replied.
"Sierra Golf 5 and 7 responding. 3 minutes." Came Willow's voice.
That meant that Kendra and Angel, Kendra's partner and Sierra Golf 6, were on scene with Willow and Oz, 5 and 7 respectively, on rout. Buffy and Xander hurried to the warehouse at the co-ordinates only to find no one else present. Shrugging, Xander pulled out his Quarterstaff and approached the door. Buffy drew her sword and followed Xander. Xander opened the door and she entered, followed quickly by Xander, who blocked her blow with his staff when she reflexively swung at the noise.
"Happy Birthday!"
"Surprise!"
Buffy went from ready for combat to ecstatically happy in a heartbeat. Everyone was at her surprise Birthday party, and judging by Xander's grin he knew about it. The Scooby Gang; Willow, Oz, Giles, Jenny Calendar, Kendra and Angel, all immediately came up with Joyce to wish Buffy a happy birthday. The Sierra Tango team were gathered under a huge "Happy B-Day Major!" sign and were grinning with beers in their hands. Colonel Henson was there with his wife and daughters, who all smiled and congratulated Buffy. After initially wishing Buffy happy Birthday, Willow and Oz went to join the R&D tech crew who had been developing new anti-demon weapons. A scattering of school students were there, mostly from the Self-Defence and Gymnastics clubs.
Buffy received a large amount of presents, mostly weapons, but there were three that were really special to her. One was from Jonathan Levinson, who got Buffy an authentic Martial Arts Gi as a thanks for the training. The second was from Colonel Henson, who handed Buffy and Xander Presidential Commendations. The third and most sentimental of Buffy's favourite presents came from Sierra Tango. It was a new unit patch, for all Sierra Golf and Sierra Tango members and their support teams. They had been designated as the 1st Platoon, 1st Nocturnal Tactical Regiment and the team had decided to call themselves 'The Slayers' in Buffy's honour. The patch, besides the new name, had a stake poised to strike bearing down on a crossed rifle and crossbow, with a cross underneath.
"Where's your present?" Buffy asked, pouting.
"I'll give it to you when we get home." Xander said, winking.
"Really?!? What about mom?"
"She's having a girl's night out with Jenny and Kathryn, the Colonel's Wife." Xander replied.
"How did you manage that?" Buffy said.
"A very embarrassing conversation." Xander growled in response.
Buffy purred in an erotic manner and started sniffing at Xander.
"Alright everyone! Party's over!" Xander said, before pulling Buffy towards the door, which cause a laugh by those who knew, or figured out, Xander's present.
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Principal Snyder thought that it was his big chance for revenge when he saw a group of US Army soldiers in the main office asking for the location of Mr and Mrs Harris, so he decided to follow them to the classroom. When they arrived, Snyder could barely believe what happened.
The leader talked to the teacher for a second, making all the students nervous, except Xander and Buffy. Then the leader approached Buffy and Xander and, to Snyder's total disbelief, saluted.
"Majors, we have an Apache Omega One situation." The leader said.
"Understood Captain Stands." Buffy said as she and Xander rose from their seats, their bearing changing completely.
"Watson, Smith. Sierra Golf 3 and 4 are in Sierra Alpha. Carson, White, 5 and 8 are in the computer lab, down the hall to the left. Mac, catch 7 in the rec room." Xander said.
That took care of Kendra, Giles, Willow, Jenny Calender and Oz respectively.
"Meet at the transport to Sierra Beta in the lot in fifteen." Buffy added.
"Rodger, Major." Sierra Tango said in unison before breaking off on their individual assignments.
Snyder went almost catatonic as Xander, Buffy and Captain Stands followed the rest of Sierra Tango out of the room. The rest of the class, including the teacher, stared in amazement, with the exception of Jonathan, who wore a little smile.
"Did you manage to contact Sierra Golf 6?" Xander asked.
"Negative sir." Stands replied.
"3 will know how to contact him, brief us on the way in and we'll fill him in." Buffy ordered.
"Yes, ma'am." Stands said as Sierra Tango began falling in with the rest of Sierra Golf.
"Party time." Xander said with a smirk.
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"At ease." Colonel Henson said as he entered the briefing room that contained 'The Slayers', Angel having been located on rout to the base. "Last night, at approximately twenty-two hundred hours, a squad from Echo Company, working with Local law enforcement, raided a truck that was suspected of drug and weapons smuggling. Inside they found a box, that contained this…"
A slide appeared on the projector that showed a large, blue severed arm 'dressed' in what looked like some kind of chain mail armour.
"The digital picture was sent remotely back to the base. Ten minutes later, the truck was attacked by upwards of thirty vampires, killing all of our men and law enforcement present. Fortunately one private managed to attach a tracer to the truck before dieing. We assumed that the weapons and blood stores found on the truck were the intended target of the attack, until a researcher found something about the arm on the database of Mr Giles' books."
"It's the Judge, isn't it?" Angel asked.
"Yes. For those who don't know, the Judge was a demon sent to destroy the world." Colonel Henderson added.
"To sperate the righteous from the wicked, and burn the righteous down." Giles quoted. "Apparently no weapon forged by man can stop the Judge. An army was sent against him, most were killed. In the end they managed to dismember but not kill him. The pieces were boxed up and sent to the farthest corners of the world."
"So this guy loose would be a bad thing. Who's up for killing all the vampires before they can assemble him?" Buffy said.
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Nervously tightening her dark green bandanna, Buffy knelled beside the blacked out skylight of the large warehouse. She was dressed in full combat patrol gear, with Xander crouched beside her, also in full combat gear, holding his G3 lightly in his arms. Buffy lowered the probe of the fibre-optic camera into a small crack at the edge of the skylight and scanned the interior through the display.
"Shit. Judge is mobile. Breach in thirty." She said into her tactical radio's throat mike.
She quickly removed the probe and raised her MP5/10 to a casual hold. Smith quickly hooked Buffy up to the repel line while Carson was doing a final check on his own. Down by the front entrance Willow, Oz and the rest of Sierra Tango were all preparing to enter the warehouse. Giles and Jenny Calender were covering the back entrance with a force of regular soldiers, the sewer entrance being similarly covered by Kendra, Angel and more soldiers.
Thirty seconds after Buffy's order, two simultaneous bangs interrupted the part in the warehouse. One bang was the implosion of the blacked out skylight, raining glass and sunlight into the warehouse, as well a four armed soldiers sliding down repel lines and firing into the demonic entities. The other bang was the breaching rounds that blew out the lock and the hinges on the front door, casting the entire door into the building to crush two vampires. The general confusion of three vampires bursting into flames and two being crushed was compounded by the deadly gunfire of the invading forces. As expected, several vampires tried to make a break to freedom through the sewers, only to be decimated by Angel and Kendra's forces. Only seconds after the initial breach, Buffy moved towards the Judge, firing an entire clip at the big blue demon, however they did minimal damage to the demon. One of the Sierra Tango soldiers tossed a grenade at a bunch of vampires near the Judge. When it exploded it took the vampires out, but several fragments hit the judge and he cried out in pain.
"Judge, 203's." Xander and Buffy ordered together.
Four soldiers who had the M-203 grenade launchers attached to their M-16's all fired them at the Judge within seconds of each other. The explosion obscured the Judge and when it faded, all that was left was a few small chunks of roasted meat.
"Report." Buffy ordered.
She was replied with various clears from around the factory.
"Clear. Eight in, eight dust. No casualties." Came Angel's voice over the radio.
"Clear. Two escaped. Broke through our lines in a car. We couldn't stop them and three were wounded, non serious. From descriptions it was Spike and Drusilla." Jenny reported from outside.
"Alright everyone. Final cleanup then we are done for the day." Buffy said. "Good work."
TBC.