Ezekiel

Disclaimer: Do not own Buffy.

Detective Daniel Cohen sighed to himself. If this day got any worse, then he would stake himself with Ezekiel's sword.

"Honey, what do you think of this for the bridesmaid dresses?"

Daniel turned to his future-wife. About a week and a half ago, his partner's sister had been in court to maintain Pam's status as Tara's guardian. Right now, he wished that was going on this week. He also wished that he was with Ezekiel and Adil on one of their idiotic missions. Right now, he was in a wedding shop.

I liked it better when the shit hit the fan, he thought to himself.

Ezekiel jumped down from the warehouse rafters. It was around midnight. Adil was at the hospital. His uncle had just taken a huge turn for the worse, and it looked like he might not last. Ezekiel had only just heard about it half an hour ago, and he was already knee-deep in his job. This might be his chance at stopping a massacre.

Tara and Edana were out at the movies. More like, they were thrusting their tongues down each other's throats. Apparently, Tara hadn't been that in the closet when Ezekiel had slept with her. Oh, well. He had fun that night. And it was worth it to watch those two get into it every once in a while.

He held onto the bars, thankful that he had actually remembered his leather gloves tonight, and shimmied himself over to the landing. He let go and crouched on his knees as he felt the full impact. He had thought that he was landing in a solid area, whereas the surrounding metal was rusted. Instead of which, he felt the floor beneath his feet begin to crumble and whine in frustration as the rusted area prepared to let him fall. He made to jump up away from the area, but he failed. He felt the air rush through his hair as he fell.

Adil Ansar held his uncle's hand. From what the ER docs had said, it looked like he was going tonight. He had maybe till tomorrow afternoon. Aside from that, his uncle was pretty much a goner. He had given Ezekiel a call, the first time that he had called Zeke's new cell phone, courtesy of Daniel. Of course, the second he had finished telling Zeke about it, the phone went dead. Dang new cell phones, thought Adil.

He had wanted to get in touch with Edana and Tara, who had been over a few times to see if Tara's magic might be able to help. It hadn't. So, he had called Pam. She was off trying to find them at the theater, though she couldn't remember which movie they were going to see. Pam had also tried to call Daniel, but…he and his future wife were out doing some wedding crap.

Adil wasn't sure about Daniel or anyone at the PD, save Pam, but as of right now, his heart went out to the poor bastard.

Ezekiel felt his bones hit something…soft. Not the hard ground that he had expected, but instead something…springy. He looked down beneath him.

And who says there isn't a comfortable mattress when you need one, he thought.

He sat up and looked around. The second he did so, he heard growling all around him. The dark warehouse was alit in an instant, revealing the presence around forty demons and seventeen vampires.

"Oh, fuck," he whispered to himself as he drew out the Blood Sword.

Tara watched the movie, but only half heartedly. She was enraptured at the moment by Edana and her lustful lips as they caressed the witch's skin. She sighed contently as the mage found an excessively joyful spot along Tara's neck.

Daniel thanked whatever power there was out there when his cell phone began to ring.

"I'm sorry, honey," he said honestly to Rebecca, "I thought I'd turned it off. I'll deal with it really quick."

"Don't take too long," said his fiancée, "We still need to pick out the flowers."

"Be with you in a second," said Daniel as he left the shop and pulled out his cell, "Detective Cohen."

"Danny," shouted a voice Daniel recognized, "It's Ezekiel!"

"What's going on," said Daniel, worry evident in his voice.

"I'm pinned down right now," yelled the Warrior, "In a warehouse on the harbor! 67, I think! Yeah, 67! Shit, man, they got at least fifty of these shit eaters! I need backup and I need it fast!"

"I'm on the way," said Daniel with a smile.

Ezekiel may be a church trained bad ass, but he certainly has good timing!

Ezekiel dodged a strike against his abdomen as the next wave of demons came his way. Fortunately, they didn't seem to be as interested in him as they were in whatever was in the wooden crate they were currently dragging out the warehouse. If that contained what he was after, then he would get at it no matter what the cost.

He sliced another demon's head off as they suddenly realized that he had noticed their merchandize. He ducked down as a sword came his way, then drove his blade into the vampire's gut. He pulled it out quickly, ignoring the fire and the ash as he slammed it into another vamp's…area.

He stopped as the assault came to an end. About fifteen demons and seven vamps had surrounded him, all of them armed with swords or axes. He turned his attention to where the crate had once been. It was now gone. Growling in frustration, he turned his attention back to the demon horde. They were smiling the smiles of people who believed that they had already won.

"Any last words, Warrior," growled a red demon.

"Yeah," growled Ezekiel as he stared behind the demon, "When you feel that metal hit your neck, tell the Devil I said 'F U!'"

The demon smirked at him, then fell to the ground as his head flew into the air. Behind him stood a tall man with brown hair. He was dressed in black clothing with a leather duster. He held a bastard sword.

"It's the traitor," shouted one of the vampires, "Kill him!"

Ezekiel took the opportunity. He swung around and brought his sword up until it was embedded within the vampire's underarm, turning the parasite into ash and flame. He sent his foot into the next demon's stomach, knocking the wind out of it. While it was momentarily disabled, the Warrior brought his blade down upon it's back. He heard the bones crunch against the force of his weapon. He drew the blade back out and allowed the dead demon to fall to the ground.

The other fighter remained silent as he fought of his opponents, most of which were vampires. He dodged the first strike from a demon, then stuck his blade into it's ribcage. It coughed up blood and fell to the ground, dead. He twisted around and brought his sword up into the air, slicing off two vampiric heads in the process. As he turned to face his next enemy, he felt a boot land a solid hit against his chest. He flew backwards and into Ezekiel, barely missing the Blood Sword as he did so.

The two fighters fell to the floor in a heap. They got up as quickly as they could to meet their next onslaught. There were seven demons and one vampire left and they had lost their confidence, though it was returning.

"I don't know who you are," whispered Ezekiel, "But I owe you one."

"I'll remember that when I ask you what's going on," whispered the man.

Both brought their swords up in a defensive stance. The demons prepared to charge upon them, each hoping that he would be the one to bring these two down. Before any of them could move, however, the sound of a gun going off was heard in the night.

Ezekiel and the other fighter turned their heads to see who it was. Daniel stood in the open doorway, his trench coat and eyeglasses evident against the light. He fired off a few more shots, instantly bringing down three more demons. The Warrior took action and rammed into the nearest enemy, a vampire. His compatriot, meanwhile, sliced off two demonic heads. The remaining two demons decided to take off into the night.

They turned around and ran out the back, the way in which they had flown the coup with the crate which may or may not have contained something very important to Ezekiel. Daniel had seen them and had shot off two more shots. One found its mark, ramming itself into one of the demon's necks, while the other made its way into the final demon's arm. Though wounded, it did not stop its retreat.

Daniel sighed and turned his attention to Ezekiel and his new friend, whoever he may be. Ezekiel crouched over the vampire, the Blood Sword raised high over its head.

"What was in the crate," shouted the Warrior of God into the damned creature's face.

"What the Hell do you think," cried the vampire, "The Destroyer?"

Ezekiel cried out in rage and stood up, then rammed his blade right in between its eyes. It disappeared into fire and ash. Ezekiel sighed and turned his attention to the other warrior who had joined him.

"So," he began, "What is a vampire doing helping me?"

"Vampire," asked Daniel as he leveled his weapon with the creature's head.

"…Listen," said the vampire, "I know what you're thinking. I'm on your side."

"…You're Angelus," whispered Ezekiel, "The vampire with a soul."

"I wasn't aware that I had a reputation," said the vampire, "And it's Angel."

"Well, Angel," said Ezekiel, "You really don't. They look upon you as scum. The only reason why I know you, or of you, is because of a seer. He told me you were coming."

"Who is this seer," asked Angel as he placed his sword back in his sheath.

"Bob Kard," answered Ezekiel as he mimicked Angel's unspoken sign of peace.

"The lead singer in Bob and the Kards," said Angel, "I know of him. Never met him."

"He's a unique person," said Ezekiel.

"Excuse me," asked Daniel, "But…vampire with a soul?"

"Tara," stage whispered Pam inside the theater audience, "Edana?"

"Shut up," called someone behind her.

"I'm sorry," whispered Pam, "I'm looking for my sister and her girlfriend. One's got-"

"Girlfriend," asked a short, stocky, balding man who could easily take George's place on Seinfeld, "You're talking about like, friend friends, right? Not lezbo, right?"

Oh, shit, thought Pam.

Thump…thump…thump……thump………thump………………

"Code Blue, Code Blue!"

"Thanks for the ride, Danny," said Ezekiel as Daniel drove them down the street to the hospital, "I left my van at the apartment tonight. Had to be all stealthy. Like that worked out so well."

He glanced over at his backseat companion. Angelus, or Angel as he was called now, was what one would generally regard as an up-to-date vamp. He dressed in black clothing had a leather duster, had his hair spiked up in a way that the Warrior could appreciate, and was paler than fog. Though Ezekiel knew why the vampire was here, he wondered if Angel himself did.

"So," said the hunter to the vampire, "What are you doing in Paradise for?"

"You don't know," asked Angel.

He's good, the Warriorthoughtto himself.

"I know what Bob told me," said Ezekiel, "I just don't know if I trust him. Why don't you alleviate me of my worries?"

"…I'm here for the Codex."

I'll give you this one, Bob…you're frigging good at what you do.

"He's frigging good at what he does," said the Warrior.

"He told you I'd come for the Codex?"

"Yep. It's at my apartment."

"Is that where we're going?"

"No, actually, we're going to see my friend. His uncle's on death's door."

An awkward silence filled the car. Thankfully, it didn't last long, as Daniel's cell phone rang.

"Sorry about this," Daniel said into the back, "Cohen. …OK. I'll be there in a few minutes. Right. Got it, Captain. What about Pam? Well, she's trying to find her sister and her date for the evening. Not Pam's date, Tara's date.

"Well, her friend's uncle is about ready to hit that tunnel. You know what I mean, Allan! …Alright, I'll try to get Pam on the way there. She'll probably get thrown out of the theater."

"What's up, Danny," asked Ezekiel.

"Bank robbery," answered the detective as he pulled out his police siren and put it on the roof, "Of the fangy kind. I'm the best supernatural detective on the force, so…I'm the natural choice. Sorry, guys. You're going to have to go with me on this one. They want me there yesterday, and you might be good backup."

The Warrior and the vampire shared a glance.

"This is going to be interesting," said Ezekiel.

"I'm sorry, son," said the doctor, "He didn't make it."

Adil nodded his head, not really hearing the man who had tried so hard to save the person who took him in.

"Danny," greeted Captain Poe as his best detective made his way to the scene, "Thank God you're here."

"Right," said Daniel, "How many inside?"

"Hacked into the surveillance," explained Allan as he led Daniel to the control area, "There are ten vampires, and they have around twenty hostages."

"Damn," shouted Daniel, "Great. …Well, fortunately, we got the big guns here."

Ezekiel and Angel stared at the detective, then turned to face each other. Sighing, the Warrior of God turned and went back to the car. He reached into the back and pulled out two bottles of 50 vodka and tossed one over to Angel.

"What are you doing going through my stash," asked Daniel in disbelief.

"Consider it our payment," said Ezekiel as he opened his bottle.

"Bottom's up," asked Angel.

"Bottom's up," said Ezekiel.

"Tara," Pam called out, "Edana! Are you in here?"

"Pam," called a voice somewhere in the middle row.

Pam sighed in relief as she realized she had found them. She walked down the lane and met the two teenagers just as they were leaving the row.

"Pam," asked Tara in a pant, "What're you doing h-here? Has something happened?"

"It's Adil's uncle," said Pam, "I just got a call from his doctor. Tara…Edana…he didn't make it."

Angel watched as Ezekiel expertly hacked into the security mainframe and began to hack away at their systems. From the moment he had heard the fighting in the warehouse, to his time fighting alongside the demon hunter, the vampire with a soul could see something inside the young warrior. He could smell it. He had been touched by something incredibly holy, and Ezekiel did have faith in what he was taught, but…he didn't have any faith in the representatives.

If there was anything on this Earth that Angel, Angelus, and Liam could all agree on, it was their hatred of religion. It tended to taint the human heart and turn it against their brother. So many wars had been started in the name of God, or the Bible, or the Holy Land. As far as he was concerned, the Powers That Be were the closest thing he had ever thought might be divine.

"OK," said Ezekiel as he looked up at Angel, "I've set up a twenty minute window in the security feed. It starts in two minutes. Got your bastard sword, you bastard?"

Angel glared at the hunter. Despite Angel's respect for the young man's methods, he had no liking of his sense of humor.

"Right here," said the solemn Angel.

Pam drove the distraught Tara and Edana to the hospital that night. Neither could believe the hardship that had just fallen upon their friend. They wanted to do whatever they could to help ease the pain, but…Pam didn't know if they could.

Adil leaned back in his chair, watching the people passing through the hospital in silence.

Ezekiel watched the door carefully. From the…twenty seconds worth of video feed left, he and Angel knew that there was one vampire guarding this door, with one hostage on the wall. Angel was positioned right in front of the door, ready to break it down the second the feed died. It was a good thing that Ezekiel truly loved killing demons, and that Angel shared this passion. If they didn't, the odds were that…they wouldn't get along too well.

"And…NOW!"

Angel surged forward and sprang, ramming his foot into the door as he did so. It instantly flew off its hinges and into the wall. Ezekiel tossed the laptop (not literally) onto the ground and ran through the open door. He brought his Blood Sword up and quickly slid it into the vampire's ribcage, sending it to eternal flame.

"What exactly is that sword, anyway," Angel asked as he untied the hostage.

"It's the Blood Sword," answered Ezekiel as he started up the stairs.

"I thought it could only be used by the demon who made vampires," said Angel as he followed from behind, quickly gaining ground.

"It can also be used by humans," said the Warrior with a grim smile as they reached the top landing, "Alright, we're on the," he looked down where they came from, then up to confirm, then turned back to Angel, "third floor. This floor contains the vaults and, from what I saw, it looks like there were four vamps on this floor. There are three on the floor above, where they're holding the hostages. Daniel and his SWAT team are our backup. They have snipers set up and ready to go if needed.

"Here's the plan: you go in and get rid of these four bastards. I'll go and free the hostages, sense I have a cell phone and can contact Daniel for advise. After that, there should be…two left in the conference room, where they got the bank manager and operations officer. That's on the sixth floor. We'll regroup in the back hallway there."

"Sounds like a plan," said Angel with a nod.

"Remember,thorough and fast. Don't let them have much time with the hostages. And I'll see you in a few."

Angel nodded as Ezekiel turned and ran up the stairs. The vampire took an unneeded breath to steady himself, drew his bastard sword, and gripped the doorknob in his hands. He waited and, the second he heard the door above squeak open, charged through the doorway.

He ran into the room and charged at the nearest vampire. Before the blonde girl even noticed what was going on, he had swung his sword through her neck, hearing the sounds of cartilage breaking and bones shattering, followed by that familiar sound as all the moisture escaped her body.

"Angelus," cried out a vampire with a purple Mohawk, "What the Hell are you doing?"

"Hello, Antonio," mocked Angel as he vamped out.

He ran at the purple haired vampire. The soulless creature cried out with rage and met him head on, charging right at the former Master Vampire. A dangerous game of Chicken, and there would most definitely be a loser. As Antonio drew nearer to Angel, the Sunnydale defender suddenly slid forward and along the carpet. He pushed his sword up upon his chest and felt a satisfying crunch as the sharp blade pressed through his enemy's chest bone, slicing at the heart.

Angel brought both his legs up and thrust Antonio up into the air, vampire blood flying against his skin and the floor as he did so. The soulful vampire leapt up and kicked the next vampire in the head as it came forward. He brought his sword down upon its neck, ending its reign of terror as he did so. He ducked the next assault from the last vampire standing that wasn't him. Angel blocked the next punch with his blade, and countered with a strike from the hilt against his opponent's forehead.

It blinked, dazed, and thought no more as Angel sliced its head off. Sighing slightly, Angel turned his attention to Antonio, who lay passed out on the floor. Angel remembered him from his time in Spain. Ironic, that the one who sired him should also be the one to end his so-called life. Angel swiftly struck the vampire in its neck, littering the floor with dust.

Ezekiel stormed the cubical filled room. He took a quick look around: two vampires were directly in front of him, both armed with short swords. The third, however, stood inside a cubical, his hand gripping a semi-automatic.

Ezekiel decided to act and slashed out against his enemies. The first vampire parried his assault, and countered with a thrust at the Warrior's belly. Ezekiel sidestepped and drove his blade into its ribcage. It disappeared even as the second vampire came forward, it's own blade aimed directly at his heart.

Suddenly, a plan formulated inside his brain. He came forward and allowed the vampire to impale himself with the Blood Sword. However, Ezekiel grabbed the demon's short sword in his hand and screamed out in 'agony.' He collapsed to the ground and held his breath, fearing that his ruse would fail against the remaining vampire's senses. Of course, he could be wrong.

"Look at that," the vampire mocked the crowd, "Your rescuer just got his ass killed! Anyone try that again, and you will all pay the price!"

As the vampire finished his sentence, Ezekiel sprang up and threw the short sword at the vampire. It flew through the air, slicing the vampire's neck off completely. It went to its final resting place with a look of surprise on its face.

The Warrior of God stood up and walked to the hostages. They were curled up on the floor, none looking up.

"Get up, everyone," said Ezekiel, "Come on. We gotta go."

The hostages slowly looked up at him, then one-by-one began to stand up.

"The back hallway is safe," said the Warrior to them, "Get out of here. The police will get you safe."

The hostages hesitated for a moment, then sprang up and ran out the door.

"You're welcome," Ezekiel whispered to himself.

"How'd yours go,"The Warriorasked as he joined Angel on the sixth floor.

"No problems," answered the vampire, "Yours?"

"Same. Alright, there are four people on the other side of this door. Two vampires. You take on one, I'll deal with the other. Ready?"

"Ready."

"Adil," Pam asked as she, Edana, and Tara joined the Yemenite in the hallway.

"How'd it go," Daniel asked as Angel and Ezekiel walked out of the bank, manager and operations officer in toe.

"Better than I thought it would," Ezekiel answered, "So, where to next."

"…Zeke," said Daniel, using the Warrior's nickname to enunciate his meaning, "Adil's uncle. He's dead."

"Hey, Zeke," Adil greeted his friend.

"How you doing, man," the Warrior of God asked as he embraced his friend.

"Been better," muttered Adil, "Man. Does it always hurt like this?"

"…It hurts for a while," answered Ezekiel, "But, it eventually gets better."

"What are you going to do," asked Edana.

"…I wish I knew," admitted Adil, "…Who's he?"

"Oh, this is Angel," said Ezekiel, "Vampire with a soul."

"Cool," said Adil as he glanced up at Angel.

"I'm sorry for your loss," said the vampire, his voice filled with emotion.

"Thanks," said Adil, "Um, don't you need that book? The Codex?"

"I do," answered Angel, "Um, not to be rude or anything, but…"

"No, it's alright," said Adil, "You guys go ahead. I got some paperwork I need to do, anyway."

"Alright, man," said Ezekiel, "Let me know if there's anything I can do when I get back. Ugh, Tara, come with us. I need you to do me a great big favor. The rest of you, stay with Adil."

"Alright, Angel," said the Warrior as he reached underneath his bed for the Codex and pulled it out, "Here's your book."

"Good," said Angel as he took it, "This should help. Thanks. If there's anything that I can-"

"I'm going with you," said Ezekiel.

"What," said Tara and Angel in unison.

"There's no debating about this," said the Warrior with a glare, "Bob told me to not go to Sunnydale. That tells me that that's what the Powers want. Well, I don't serve the Powers. I serve God, and that's only because He provides me with the power to do what is necessary."

"What about us," asked Tara, "What if something happens?"

"I've already figured that out," answered Ezekiel, "That's why you're here."

"W-what?"

"Tara, I want you to lead the group while I'm gone. Out of all of us, you have the most power, the most experience with magic, demons, and vampires, you have access to some pretty impressive resources, and you have that shiny gun. I'm leaving, but just temporarily. I believe that you are more than capable of leading our group."

"…Alright. I'll do it."

"Good. While I'm gone, I need you to do some things for me."

Ezekiel reached back underneath his bed and pulled out a file. He approached her and held it out for her to take.

"I need you to start looking at that file," said the Warrior as she took it, "While I'm away, I want you to start searching all those locations for what's inside that file. Always go armed, and don't inform the others until it's absolutely necessary."

"Why," asked Tara, "What's inside this?"

"You'll understand once you read it. And, if you do feel it is necessary to tell them, be careful and tell them in a place of complete privacy. The fewer people who know about this, the safer we'll all be."

"…Ok," said Tara, wondering what on Earth could be inside the file as she did so.

"Good luck," said Ezekiel as he wrapped her inside a tight embrace, "Watch over them. They're my family, just like they're yours."

Tara sat down as the two left the apartment and opened up the file. About twelve minutes later…

"Holy Fucking Shit," she whispered to herself, "No wonder he didn't want to tell us."

"What was all that about," Angel asked as he and Ezekiel walked out the apartment.

"New threat," said Ezekiel as he led Angel to his van.

"Need any help," asked the vampire.

"With luck on our side, I hope we can stop it before it can even get to be a true problem," Ezekiel took a glance at Angel, then looked back to his van, "We may have a problem."

"Yeah," said Angel as he looked at the van, "The sun's going to get in."

"I've got a few cardboard boxes," said Ezekiel, "We could tape them up to the windows with black duct tape."

"That might work," said Angel as he opened up the side door and looked at the window.

Around half-an-hour later, the two were on the highway.

"We'll have to go in through LA," said Ezekiel as he drove along the highway, "That's the way the line goes: Paradise, LA, and Sunnydale. Plus, we can get some reinforcements while we're there."

"I don't think we'll need them," said Angel from the back, "We don't even know what's about to happen. Best whoever they are just keep out, at least until we're certain that we know what's going on."

"Fair enough."