Ezekiel

Disclaimer: Do not own Buffy.

A/N: Thanks to Dragonmaster for the 'rant.' I did notice it before, but, I just didn't do anything about it. Let me know if this is better, man. And I hope you enjoyed your rant as much as I did.

Detective Daniel Cohen walked into the crime scene, wondering just what they were dealing with now. This vigilante was out to get him killed, he just knew it. If the Chief of Detectives canned his ass or this guy got him killed, he'd be dead either way.

"Who is it this time," asked Daniel to the officer.

"No one," said the uniformed man, "We got a call from a Patricia Bell who lives across the street from that club right there called Noctem."

"Where is she," asked Daniel.

"She's talking to your partner right now, detective."

Daniel nodded his thanks, then took off towards where the uniform had pointed. His partner, Miguel O'Hare, was questioning an elderly woman in a bathrobe with octagonal glasses.

"Miguel," he called.

"Thank you for your help, m'am," said Miguel as he left Ms. Bell.

"What did she say," asked Daniel.

"Says that she saw three men come up against a woman in the street," said Miguel, "She heard the woman shout, then she noticed a man walk forward. Then, she saw the woman shoot flames at the three men."

"A woman who shoots flames," echoed Daniel, "Great. The whole damn town's going to the nuthouse!"

"Yeah," agreed Miguel, "Well, the flames burnt those vampires up to a crisp, but nothing else got burnt."

"How'd she know they were vampires," asked Daniel, knowing that only members of the police were supposed to know about demons and vampires.

"She's a lifelong resident," answered Miguel, "She can't remember a time when she didn't know about vampires. Anyway, after the flames settled, the man that she had noticed before walked out and checked the woman out after she fell to the ground. That was when she called the police. After she got off the phone, they were both gone."

"Did she give a description," asked Daniel.

"Nope," answered Miguel, "Said that she couldn't remember what they looked like. Her mind was too focused on the flames."

"Figures," said Daniel, "How much do you want to bet that the man was our vigilante?"

"About as much as I put into the pool," said Miguel, "Four thousand on four months."

Ezekiel leaned against his seat in his apartment in the early morning hours. He was staring at the young, blue haired girl lying inside his bed, willing her to awake at any time now. He allowed his mind to replay the events that led up to this situation.

Ordinarily when there was a beautiful woman inside his bed, he was in a much better mood. However, he had a whole different reason for having her here. When he had seen her use fire like that, he knew instantly that she must have power and he needed to be aware of what that power was. Anything with that kind of power in this city could be a threat. Aside from that, she had passed out and would be in jail right now if it weren't for him. Or worse, dead. And even worse, a vampire. Any vampire who can safely use fire couldn't be good for society…or him.

He sighed and sipped on his beer, wondering how this was going to go. He'd find out soon, for the woman was beginning to moan and wake up. Ezekiel put his beer down and waited for her to get fully awake. When she did, she sat up immediately and began to look around, a panicked look on her face. When she found him, her eyes easily became slits.

"Where am I," she demanded.

"In my apartment," answered Ezekiel, "You took quite a fall after you vaporized those vampires."

The woman glared at him.

"How do you know about that," she asked.

"I saw you do it," answered Ezekiel, "Ordinarily, it's my job to do that in this town."

"Sorry for stealing your thunder," the woman said, and she seemed to mean it, "But, I'm not just going to wait around for some jackass to save my ass when I can save it all on my own."

"And how exactly are you able to do all that ass saving," asked Ezekiel, "The only thing I can figure is that necklace that has 'Divine Fire' written in Latin on it."

"I wish it were something like that," said the woman.

"Care to share," asked the 'Warrior of God.'

"Sorry," she answered with a sneer, "But I don't even know your name…or why you care."

"Fine, then I'll tell you," he said, "My name is Ezekiel and I'm a demon hunter who was trained by members of the Catholic church in Vatican City."

"…So, what, are you some kind of monk," she asked.

"Nope," he said, "The church can only hold me for training until I turn sixteen, then I'm on my own. That's the way I like it."

"Alright, sense we're being friendly," she said, "My name's Edana Thorne and I'm an elemental mage from Winslow, Arizona."

"Edana? Celtic for 'fiery.' I like it," he said.

"Thanks. I like it, too," she said, somewhat intrigued that he actually knew what the name meant.

"I've always wanted to go to Winslow," said Ezekiel, "So, Edana, what exactly is an 'elemental mage?'"

"It's my private name for myself," she answered, "See, when I was five, my mom was setting up for this dinner party. She lit up a candle and then she left the room. When she came back, she saw me staring intensely at the flame. It started to grow and it eventually became a wildfire. Nearly lost the house.

"She talked to her cousin in Alabama, who was a witch. She said that I had the ability to manipulate fire through my mind. It was probably because of the magical capabilities that she herself had inherited from their mother. Anyway, I had a few more accidents, one of which involved me burning down my school. We moved to LA and there…my brother got eaten by vampires."

"I'm sorry," said Ezekiel, choosing to not tell her his story of how he came to be what he is today.

"It's alright," said Edana, "I'm over it. Well, not exactly. I was with him when he died. I remember…feeling so angry at those things as they killed him. Then, they just…burned up in flames. I realized then and there that I had to learn to control my gift. I started training with it and I eventually learned how to create fire by heating up the particles around me and even how to keep my fire from burning anything aside from what I wanted it to."

"Ok," said Ezekiel, "You're a woman with the ability to create and manipulate fire and knows about vampires. Why were you in Noctem then?"

"My family just moved here and I was trying to get home," she answered, "I went there and got hit on by those three jerks. I'm guessing you know the story from there."

"I do," said Ezekiel, "What about you passing out after you fried them?"

"I…wore myself out."

"…Makes sense, what with how much power you used. Did you ever think about hunting them?"

"Well, I kinda had no choice in the matter," she said, "I wasn't going to let innocent people die. So, now that you know my story, what's yours?"

"You already know it," answered Ezekiel in a tone that left no room for argument.

"…Ok," said Edana, fear in her eyes, "Um, do you go to school anywhere? Because, you look like you're around my age."

"I go to the high school nearby," he said, "Paradise High. Do you go there?"

"Yeah, I do," she said, "I'm a sophomore there. Same with you?"

"Yeah," said Ezekiel, "Though, they don't exactly expect me there. They're happy so long as I show up once a week and for every test they have in my classes."

"Why's that," asked Edana.

"The principal's a former cleric," said Ezekiel, "Look, your mom's probably worried about you."

"I doubt that," said Edana, "After I burned down that school, she could care less what I do so long as it doesn't involve her paying for it."

"…Well, we got school in a few hours," said Ezekiel, "I'll take you home and you can get your stuff."

"Do you have a car," asked Edana, "My house is…I don't even know where we are."

"We'll take the bus," said Ezekiel.

"You don't have to come," said Edana, "I mean, I can make it on my own."

"Maybe," he replied, "But, by now, your little stunt at Noctem is famous with every demon and vampire in the city. That kind of makes your pretty little ass a fine target."

"Such foul language for a member of the church," said Edana with a smile.

"But it's all true," said Ezekiel.

"Ezekiel," shouted Angus as he raced down the street to the two teenagers, "Man, what the Hell did you do?"

"What," asked Ezekiel, "What the Hell are you talking about?"

"What am I talking about," cried Angus, "After you and your girlfriend's little stunt at Noctem, you got a Master Vampire coming up your ass."

"What," asked Edana.

"Yeah, lady," said the snitch, "The demon community's in an uproar. They're pissed off about what you did. Vamp's are starting to get together to come and take you down. Those three vamps you did in last night were popular, had a lot of friends. One of those friends is a Master Vampire."

"And who is this Master Vampire," asked Ezekiel with a scowl, hoping it wasn't anyone he knew of.

"His name is Luke," answered Angus, "He was traveling to Sunnydale to take part in some kind of a ritual when he heard about what you lot did. He's gathering a force of vampires to come and kill you two."

"So, we'll kill them when they come," said Ezekiel.

"We," cried Edana, "How is there a 'we?'"

"Because, they obviously saw you fire them up," he explained, "And then they saw me take you away. By now, every vampire and demon's aware of the two of us and are going to come after us. If we want to survive, we have to stick together. Same goes for you, Angus. As of right now, you're on the endangered species list."

"How the Hell am I involved," asked the fearful snitch.

"Because, they know that you talk to me," said Ezekiel, "Before, I was merely a nuisance to the vampires and demons, though a powerful nuisance. They found it easier to stay away from me. Now, they're after me for vengeance. Since you're one of my informants, they'll be after you, as well. And let me make this perfectly clear."

Without warning, Ezekiel grabbed Angus's shirt and slammed him up against the wall. He dragged him to an alley and threw him into a dumpster.

"If you betray us," warned Ezekiel, "I shall ensure that you never have children."

Angus paled at his words, then nodded. Ezekiel nodded at him, then left the poor man in the alley.

"Was that necessary," asked Edana, "I mean, if he is your friend-"

"He's not my friend," answered Ezekiel, "He's a lowlife snitch who hands out information to those who keep him safe. He'd betray me in under a second if it meant keeping himself alive. However, he knows what the consequences would be if Luke succeeds."

"The Pope would be mad," asked the 'Elemental Mage'.

"Enraged," said Ezekiel, "I may not be working for them exactly, but they've put a huge investment in me. They won't let me die easily, and neither will I. And if I do die, they'll forget about that little rule on vengeance."

It was about twenty minutes after the first bell rang that Ezekiel walked into his first class, which was welding.

"Glad you could join us, Ezekiel," said Mr. Marx, the teacher, "I was wondering which day it would be this week."

"It God were willing, it wouldn't be any day at all," answered Ezekiel.

"Well, maybe He's not listening to you," said Marx with a smile.

"That's what I think most of the time," he answered with a smile.

Marx was a good guy with a good heart. He enjoyed his relationships with his students and often found himself as their confidant. Ezekiel sighed, wondering how anybody could be nice in this world, and took his seat.

"For those of you who weren't here yesterday," said Marx, "Today, your projects are due. Now, you know the rules: I don't see it until it's finished. I don't care what you make, and I don't really care if it is against the rules. Make whatever you want, but make it right. That's all I'm looking for. Get started. You have till the end of the block to present me your project."

Ezekiel nodded to Marx's orders, stood up and walked over to his bench. He got out his project and looked down at it. He had spent the last thirteen school days he was here designing a special sword. It was a basic blade, about four feet in length, and was extremely sharp. As an extra feature, it had two blades sticking out of the side, giving the blade the definitive shape of a cross. All he had to do today was finish the hilt, then he would be able to take it to the church and have it blessed. His arsenal would be upgraded from four stakes, two of them silver, his gloves, and a few vials of holy water, to four stakes, gloves, holy water, and a blessed sword that could hold vampires at bay. It would make all the difference if Luke did find him, which the Master Vampire most certainly would.

He set to work on it and about a half-hour later, he had a complete sword, ready for cooling. He set it down and let it sit. As he waited, he allowed his thoughts to turn to Edana. The woman had skills with her powers, that much was certain. She also had style and tended to stick her nose in other people's business, though Ezekiel could be accused of the same thing. She also seemed to have a general need to help people. That was something rare in people these days, particularly in people who got involved in the demon world. Ezekiel most certainly couldn't be accused of such a thing. He was in it for vengeance, not helping people. Oh, well. To each his own.

"Are you done," asked Marx as he came over to his student.

"Just waiting for it to cool down," said Ezekiel, "I want it to be natural."

"Let me see it," said Marx.

Ezekiel moved aside from his bench and allow Marx to see his work.

"Impressive," said the welder, "An interesting design. The blade itself is covered with markings. What are they?"

"Celtic runes and Latin," said Ezekiel, "They form a phrase together. It's 'In the Almighty's light, this blade shall shine.'"

"Is that supposed to mean something special," asked Marx, "I mean, Christ does say that those who live by the sword shall die by the sword."

"Yes, he does," said Ezekiel, "But, it is also said that 'if thou do which is evil, be very afraid, for he beareth not the sword in vane.'"

"Well, you're the religion expert here," said Marx, "The hilt seems like it should be fine once it's done cooling. Does it also have markings?"

"No, I just designed it so that it would give an excellent balance to the blade."

"Excellent," said Marx with a smile, "Although, I do wish you would have designed something that doesn't coincide with violence. I'll probably get fired for this, but, if it helps you to discover who you are, then I'm happy. Good work, son."

The Warrior of God sat down at his usual table during lunch outside. His lunch, which was little more than road kill, sat inside the little tray they gave to the students. Sighing, he dug in, grateful for one meal that didn't revolve around a can of beer.

"Man, alive, that is some foul shit," said a voice behind him.

Ezekiel had to control his instinct to not kill his friend. He slowly turned around and looked up into the dark haired face of his friend, Adil Ansar. The native of Yemen had been brought to America on his fifth birthday by his uncle, whom he now lives with. Adil was known throughout the school as a being of honor to all around. The only thing that anyone could possibly accuse him of would be having one of the foulest mouths on Earth. He was dressed in a pair of overly large jeans and a plain, brown shirt.

"Zeke, you really should learn to not eat shit like that," he said as he sat down beside Ezekiel, "But, you are one of the biggest pieces of shit I've ever seen in my life. It only makes sense that you'd eat that much shit, now don't it?"

"Is that your new word of the day," asked Ezekiel.

"Yeah," said Adil, "Yesterday it was damn, today it's shit. Damn shit."

Ezekiel smiled at his friends antics. Recently, he had gone to using only one kind of cuss word a day. It was his way of appeasing his uncle before he got kicked out of the house.

"So, I heard you made a friend last night," said Adil with a wry grin.

"Sort of," said Ezekiel, "More like a partner."

"What kind of partner," asked Adil.

"Not that kind," said Ezekiel.

"Yet," said a voice behind them.

Adil and Ezekiel turned around to see who the speaker was.

"Edana, hey," said Ezekiel, "How are you?"

"Good," she said as she sat down next to him, "Who's your friend?"

"Adil Ansar, madam," said Adil as charismatic as James Bond as he said it, "At your service."

Edana looked at him like he was a moron.

"Adil's a little weird," said Ezekiel, "You get used to him after a few…come to think of it, I'm not used to him."

"Like I've never heard that shit before," mocked Adil.

"This is an interesting side of you, Ezekiel," said Edana, "The only time I've ever heard you make a joke was when you complimented my ass."

"I wasn't joking, you know," said Ezekiel with a smile, "Besides, Adil tends to bring the humor out of everyone."

"Which is why I'm the only person in the world that's allowed to call you Zeke," said Adil.

"You two must be good friends," said Edana.

"Not the best, not the worst," said Ezekiel, "We're comfortable around each other and we don't mind sharing secrets, particularly my big one."

"So, you know about demons," asked Edana.

"Oh, sure," said Adil, "I come from Yemen. That area's overpopulated with demons."

"Do you hunt them," asked Edana.

"Nope," said Adil, "My uncle's on his death bead. That's why I'm trying to appease him. It might make him live a little longer."

"To avoid that awkward pause," said Ezekiel, "Adil, have you ever heard of a Master Vampire called Luke?"

"Can't say I have," said Adil, "A little shit like that shouldn't be hard to find. Ask that shit-head, Angus. He'll know."

"You know, that's not a bad idea," said Ezekiel, "I'll go ask him. He's on duty right now at Surge. I didn't bother asking him the first time. Why not?"

"Can I come with," asked Adil, "It's been a while since I've seen Angus. I'd like to remind him why he's a little piece of shit."

"Sure, why not. You want to come, Edana?"

"…Yeah, might as well. All my classes for the rest of the day suck. Let's go."

Ezekiel, Edana, and Adil walked into Surge that afternoon, just as Angus was walking out.

"Hi, guys," said the snitch as he started sweating, "What's up?"

Then, he fell to the floor. Adil shook his fist in annoyance.

"I got him right in the tooth," The Yemen native said, "That smarts."

Ezekiel rolled his eyes, grabbed Angus by his shirt and threw him into the wall.

"Where is Luke hiding," growled Edana as she caused flames to light up around her fingers.

"Holy shit," shouted Adil, "How in the shit do you do that shit?"

"Tell you later," said Edana.

"Where is Luke hiding," growled Ezekiel.

"I don't know," shouted Angus.

"Bullshit," said Adil.

Ezekiel sighed to himself. Angus knew something, he could tell by the extra shift in his eyes. Ezekiel knew the man would only betray someone to save his own hide, but where could he hide from the vampires? He lived in one of the upstairs rooms above the Surge, and vampires could go in their. Ezekiel lived in an apartment and anyone could walk inside because the previous owner put up a 'Welcome' sign. Edana's mom would probably get mad at Edana from bringing some home that she hadn't even met. Adil…

"Adil," said Ezekiel, "Rip off his shoes."

Adil looked at him oddly, but obeyed and ripped off his left shoe.

"Edana," said Ezekiel, "Burn his feet off."

She smiled evilly, then bent down as fire began to cover her hand.

"Alright, alright," shouted Angus, "You win!"

The mage frowned slightly, but stood up and backed away.

"Talk, you little shit," said Adil.

"I want protection," shouted Angus.

"Adil, you can hide him in your house," said Ezekiel, "If he watches your uncle."

"If he does, I want in," said Adil.

"What do you have," asked the demon hunter.

"I got two gothic maces at home," said Adil.

"Deal," said Ezekiel, "Where is Luke!"

"He and his gang are hiding in a yacht on the docks," said Angus, "They killed some millionaire for it."

"How many," asked Edana.

"Around twenty, maybe twenty-five," said Angus, "Now, get me some safety."

"You don't leave the house at all, got it, you little shit," growled Adil, "If you do, you die. Got it?"

"Got it," said Angus.

Ezekiel stood up and walked out the club, followed by the other three. He let his mind wrap around the situation at hand. The odds were that none of them were getting out of this one alive, and if they were, then they had someone up stairs looking after them.

"Edana, you need a weapon," said Ezekiel, "You can't only rely on your fire abilities."

"I've never used a weapon before," she said.

"Don't worry," said Adil, "I'll give you one of my maces."

"What is the plan, anyway," asked Edana, "I mean, we are doing this, right?"

"…You ever seen a John Wayne movie?"

Ezekiel and Adil walked along the docks that night and stopped to look at the yacht on the other side.

"That's Luke's yacht," said Adil, "Angus said it was like a millionaire's yacht, red, blue, and was named Phi-bird."

"Do you see those guys on the dock it's anchored to," asked Ezekiel.

"Yeah," answered Adil, "They look like vampires."

"They are," said Ezekiel with a frown, "And Edana's already on the roof of the marina. She can do her part from there while we distract the guards."

"How much do you want to bet we're going to get killed," asked Adil.

"I don't bet on death that's my own," said Ezekiel.

"That's bullshit and you know it," said Adil.

"…Let's go make a mess."

Edana stood atop the marina and looked down at the yacht that supposedly contained Luke and his gang. Edana squinted down to look at the guard's faces. Oh, yeah. Those were vampires. She looked up at Ezekiel and Adil, who were standing on the docks across from them she could see them clearly in the moonlight. She saw a flash come from Ezekiel's sword. That was the signal.

She collected the particles around her, heated them up, and then flung them at the yacht.

Ezekiel charged forward as the yacht exploded from Edana's burst of fire. He could hear the vampires scream against the flames. He jumped across the bend to the dock and ran towards the vampire guards as they came his way. He brought his new sword up, preparing to slice and dice.

"Let's hope I don't suck at welding," he whispered to himself.

He swung his sword at the vampire's head, and he felt a satisfying snap against the blade. He ducked a punch that came his way, then embedded the blade into its stomach. He then ripped it out of its gut and jammed his pike into its skull, making its eyes roll back into its head. He then took its head off, forcing it to lose all the moisture within its body.

As the being turned to dust, he felt something hard slam into his chest. He fell backwards as the fist struck him. He landed on the hard dock, barely even keeping himself from falling into the water as he did so. He looked up at his assailant and saw a huge vampire dressed in black with brown hair. He was glaring down at him.

"So," he said, "You're Ezekiel. The demon hunter of Paradise."

"And I'm guessing you're Luke," said Ezekiel as he stood up.

"Yes, I would be Luke," grinned the vampire, "I must admit, I was angry that you slew two such children of mine. They would have served the Master well."

At least that explains why he's so mad about them, thought Ezekiel, I knew it had to be more that friendship. No vampire I've ever met before has ever worried about losing friends. Followers, sure, but not friends. Children, that I get.

Sighing to himself, he stood up before the vampire, glaring at it.

"I don't give a flying fuck about your Master," said Ezekiel, "If he comes here, he'll get his undead ass sent back to Hell where it belongs."

Without any more words, Ezekiel slammed his blade into Luke's dignity. The Master Vampire cried out in agony. Ezekiel twisted the blade sharply, then pulled it out. He jammed his blade's pike into the vampire's heart, causing it great pain.

"Blessed metal can kill you, right," asked Ezekiel.

Without waiting for an answer, he sliced the vampire's head off.

"Morning, Zeke," said Edana as she sat down on the bus.

"Hey, Edana," said Ezekiel, "Have a good night last night?"

"Sure," said Edana, "So long as you don't mind fighting for your life. Two vamps found me on the roof. Good thing I had flames, eh?"

"Yeah, good thing Adil came and saved your cute ass from that one that was about to snap your neck."

"Again, I notice a compliment about my ass. You know, if you keep on talking about it, you might have to buy it."

"How much does it cost?"

"It's not for sale."

"Can I have it anyway?"

"Say pretty please."

"I never say please."