Angelus gets his chance to take out Willow and Kelly. Meanwhile, Wes and Gunn find themselves outnumbered, isolated and fighting in the face of seemingly hopeless odds.
Separated from the others in an unfamiliar building, Faith and Lindsey quickly get lost in the sub-basement. They snake through the narrow hallways and kitchen corridors. Faith hears sounds of a struggle in the distance to their left. They walk to the end of the hallway and turn left. In front of Faith is Nat. Lindsey turns and notices that to his left, coming up behind them, is Gelo.
GELO: Well lookie here. If it isn't the distressed damsel.
NAT: And his girl.
Wes, Gunn and Fred worry that they are missing the fight. They haven't seen Faith or Connor. Or Angelus or Drusilla, for that matter. They decide to go up the stairs and head to wherever the action is. When they are 30 feet from the stairwell, Lewis, Tina, Tristan and Vala come round the corner and appear before them. The two couples are smiling and holding hands like they haven't a care in the world. Their human adversaries appear to be anything but care-free. They huddle together and point their weapons at the oncoming vampires. Vala looks behind her at the door to the stairwell.
VALA: Were you nice people trying to get away?
TINA: Apparently you're not familiar with the hotel rules.
As the four vampires move forward, Gunn, Wes and Fred retreat.
TRISTAN: You can check out any time you like.
RONAN: But you can never leave.
Ronan's voice echoes down the corridor. The six vampires laugh. Wes, Gunn and Fred look behind them, and see Ronan and Alanna coming at them from the other end of the hallway. In a six foot-wide hallway, they will be easily trapped. They turn around and run in the direction of Ronan and Alanna, looking for a way out. Fred spots a door to their left and opens it. It's a storage closet. Fifteen feet down and to their right, Gunn spots a double-door. This looks more promising. The vampires are closing fast. Gunn tries to kick it open, but fails. Wesley tries next, but also fails. Gunn raises his ax. Fred grabs the raised ax handle with her left hand. With her right hand, she twists the doorknob and opens the door. Wes and Gunn look chagrined. The three of them enter and flip on the lights. They're in a room that is 60 feet long, 40 feet wide and nearly 20 feet tall.
GUNN: Ain't this that old ballroom?
FRED: Don't look so old.
WES: Evidently Angelus has put it back into service. Though for a vampire hangout it's surprisingly clean.
The two doors open inward, and the six vampires enter.
ALANNA: Master hates it when we get blood on the carpet.
LEWIS: Course if it's your blood, I'm guessin' he won't mind.
Faith and Lindsey are cornered. She faces west. Nat is six feet in front of her. Lindsey faces south. Gelo is five feet in front of him.
FAITH: Only two. This shouldn't take long.
Faith tries right and left punches. Nat backs out of the way. She tries a right kick to his face, but he keeps backpedalling. She looks over her shoulder and sees Lindsey 15 feet behind her. Nat exploits her distraction and lands a left hook kick to the right side of her jaw. Faith floors Nat with a quick left roundhouse to the head.
Lindsey hits Gelo with a right hook, then a left cross. Gelo responds by landing a right hook. Lindsey backs up into the corner, his back against one wall and his left shoulder against the other. He kicks Gelo in the stomach with his right foot. Gelo throws a left hook. Lindsey ducks, and Gelo's fist hits the wall to Lindsey's left. Lindsey lands a right uppercut to Gelo's chin. The vampire belts Lindsey in the stomach with a right uppercut. Out of the corner of his left eye, he sees Faith approaching. When Faith attempts a leaping right kick, Gelo ducks and Faith slams feet-first into the wall to Lindsey's left and tumbles down to the ground. He helps her up. She takes a left jab from Gelo, then hits him with a left jab and a right hook, knocking him back several steps. She turns to her right and nails Nat in the nose with a left cross, following this up with a straight right kick to his chin.
LINDSEY: What was that for? I didn't need your help yet.
Faith stands right in front of Lindsey, in the middle of the hall where it turns the corner, waiting for the next attack. When it comes, she hits Gelo with a left jab. A fraction of a second later, she hits Nat with a right jab, then a left kick. Lindsey knocks Gelo back with a right hook.
LINDSEY: Point taken. Better early than never.
Faith turns to her left and knocks Gelo down with a right hook kick to the left side of his head. Then she turns to her right and hits Nat with a straight left kick. He responds with a right cross. Faith grabs Nat and tosses him to her left, so that both vampires are now coming at them from the south.
Wes, Gunn and Fred back up. They notice an emergency exit behind them and to their left. The vampires notice them noticing. The male vampires are bumpy, while the female vampires have on their human faces.
TINA: Think you can beat us to that door?
WES: I must say, I find it very gallant of you gentlemen to accompany your ladies while they're hunting for your replacements.
Wes is on the right, with Fred in the center and Charles to her left. Vala and Tristan are in front of Wes, Alanna and Ronan are in front of Fred and Tina and Lewis are in front of Gunn. Wesley gives Vala a flirtatious smile and raises his eyebrows. Fred thinks that either Wesley's taken leave of his senses or he really does like his women evil. At first Gunn is shocked. Then he notices how Tina is looking him over, and he realizes what Wesley's up to. The male vampires give their female counterparts suspicious looks. Tristan sees hunger in Vala's eyes. He knows she wants Wesley for more than a meal. Tristan charges Wesley and leaps at him. Wesley stands still, his arms at his side, his sword in his right hand, its point facing the floor. He waits until Tristan is in mid-air and halfway towards him before he raises his sword. Wes swings and beheads Tristan a few hundredths of a second before Tristan's right fist slams into Wesley's face. The blow connects before Tristan turns to dust, and it knocks Wesley down. He leans against the back wall, looks up and sees Vala.
VALA: This mean you want me all to yourself?
WES: No. It means chivalry always gets you killed.
While still sitting on the ground, Wesley swings the sword in his right hand for Vala's knees. She does a backflip to avoid the blade. Wesley stands up. Vala kicks him in the chin, knocking Wes back into the wall.
VALA: Dusting Tris makes sense. Way I hear it, you're don't stand up too well to competition.
Wesley swings for her neck. Vala does a backwards handspring. When Wesley steps towards her, Vala sends a right hook kick towards his stomach before he can swing his sword. Wesley spins around clockwise to avoid the blow. Meanwhile, Vala spins counter-clockwise. When Wesley comes back around swinging his sword, Vala kicks it out of his hands with a left roundhouse.
VALA: Don't see Little Miss Longhorn worrying about your fate.
Wesley glances to his left and sees Fred near Gunn on the other side of the room. Vala kicks him in the stomach with her right foot and punches him in the jaw with a left hook, knocking Wesley on his back. Vala gets on top of him and goes bumpy.
VALA: Made you look.
On the other side of the room, Lewis charges Gunn. Charles swings his ax and Lewis swerves his head back out of the way. The vampire throws a left jab, which Gunn leans back to avoid. He hits Lewis in the forehead with the blunt top end of his ax, knocking him back a step. In the center of the room, Alanna and Ronan approach Fred. She retreats leftward, towards Gunn. Fred fires her crossbow at Tina. The bolt sails past Gunn's right shoulder and hits Tina just under the sternum, about an inch too low. Tina looks down at the wound. She pulls the bolt out, snaps it in two and looks at Fred.
TINA: Guess you'd rather save his skin than your own. Suit yourself.
Gunn steps forward and hits Tina in the nose with a right jab. She knocks him down with a flying right roundhouse kick. Ronan wants to charge Fred before she can re-load. Alanna grabs his left arm, whispers something in his left ear and bites his earlobe. Ronan smiles and stays put. Fred reloads, standing behind Gunn and to his right. Before she can aim, Ronan charges. She tries to point her weapon at him, but he's too fast. With his left hand, Ronan knocks the crossbow out of Fred's hands before she can pull the trigger. With his right hand, he pushes her back into the wall. Gunn rolls backwards and stands up before Lewis or Tina can touch him. He sets up like he's about to swing his ax for Lewis's neck. Instead, he sticks his right foot forward and sweeps out Lewis's legs. Gunn spins counter-clockwise and swings for Tina. She grabs the ax handle with both hands. Gunn kicks Tina in the chest, knocking her backwards. He looks back and notices Fred is against the wall, 15 feet behind him and five feet to his right. Ronan grabs Fred. Gunn races to her rescue. He swings for Ronan's neck. At the last instant, Ronan ducks. The ax goes through the wall two inches to the left of Fred's right ear. Fred screams. At this point, Wesley is on his back and in no position to help, since Vala is lying on top of him. Gunn stops in his tracks when he sees that he nearly decapitated Fred. He looks at her.
GUNN: Get out.
Ronan grabs Gunn from behind and throws him into the side wall, near Lewis and Tina. The ax blade remains imbedded in the wall. With her right hand, Fred pulls out her mace and hits Ronan in the front left side of his skull, opening up a bloody gash. Alanna joins the fight. With her left hand, Fred reaches across her body and pulls the ax out of the wall, hitting Alanna in the head with the blunt back end of the end.
FRED: Charles!!!
Fred flings the ax to her left. Gunn, who is trying to fend off Tina and Lewis, reaches up and grabs the ax handle. He swings it in a circle, forcing his assailants to back off.
GUNN: Now's your chance. Get out!
Gunn motions his head towards the rear exit. Fred moves along the wall to her left, towards the exit. Charles stands in front of Fred to protect her.
FRED: I can't leave you.
GUNN: Someone's gotta find Faith and Connor.
Fred realizes there might be a tiny bit of tactical wisdom in Gunn's self-sacrificing chivalry. She ducks out the rear exit as he fends off Lewis, Tina, Ronan and Alanna, maintaining a six-foot perimeter around the back right corner of the room by swinging his ax. Tina and Alanna each take their man by the hand and back up ten feet away from Gunn. He stops swinging. Alanna and Tina are laughing.
ALANNA: How very noble of you to to send her out to face Angelus and Drusilla all by herself.
TINA: I'm sure he'll have a lot of fun with that philly.
The male vampires chuckle. Gunn worries that maybe he made a mistake. But he knows there's no point in running, since they could easily catch him. Alanna puts her right hand on the right side of Ronan's head and pulls it towards her. He goes back to his human face. She licks the blood coming out of Ronan's head wound, then kisses it. It seems to make him feel better. Gunn's tired and quadruple-teamed. He knows he'll have to use a lot more than muscle to get out of this jam.
GUNN: So you guys don't mind bein' Angelus's sidekicks?
LEWIS: I ain't no sidekick!
GUNN: I hear ya, bro. At least you outrank this white dude with the tattoos, right?
Lewis goes to his human face.
GUNN: Damn, bro. You a sub-sidekick.
Lewis looks hurt. Gunn's struck a nerve. Ronan and Alanna have their minds on other things. They nuzzle and grope and whisper sweet nothings into each other's ears about Ronan killing Faith. He thinks Angelus is too much of a control freak and not enough of a risk-taker to kill a Slayer. She knows Dru will focus on siring Connor. That leaves Faith to Ronan. He's feeling especially macho right now, since unlike Tristan and Lewis, his girl isn't looking to sire a new boyfriend. Ronan thinks he's the only one for Lana. He doesn't know that she'd drop him for Spike – Ronan's polar opposite – in a millisecond. All this sweet talk is making Alanna excited, and she goes bumpy. For now, Ronan keeps his cool.
Tina can tell her man's feelings have been hurt. She rubs the back of Lewis's smooth, bald head with her right hand, and reaches under his tank-top and rubs his chest with her left hand. She looks at Gunn seductively.
TINA: You have a sharp tongue.
Tina puts her mouth to Lewis's left ear. She goes bumpy.
TINA: [whispers] Maybe I should rip it out.
Tina sticks her tongue in Lewis's ear. He smiles. Tina takes her hands off of Lewis and turns to face Gunn. She steps forward as if about to charge him. Gunn raises his ax. Tina gives him a quick kick on the chest, knocking Gunn back into the emergency exit. It opens outward. But Gunn has no intention of leaving, and the vampires have no intention of letting him. Alanna grabs Gunn and flips him over her shoulder. He lands on his back ten feet out from the corner. Charles swings his ax to keep Ronan and Lewis away, and gets to his feet. The four vampires surround him.
Vala lies on top of Wesley. She puts her ankles inside of his and spreads Wesley's legs out so he can't use his feet to push her body away. She grabs his wrists and pins his arms to the ground. The first time Vala moves in to bite Wes, he tries to head-butt her. She pulls her head up out of the way and smiles, her eyes gazing down into his from a foot away.
VALA: You know the one about how it's the size of fight in the man that matters?
Wesley struggles in vain to free his arms and legs. He spits on Vala's face. She goes unbumpy and licks it up.
VALA: They must have been talking about you.
Vala leans down and licks the tip of Wesley's nose, gazing at him with her big blue eyes.
WES: Could you please get on with it and try to kill me already? You really aren't very good at foreplay.
Vala's fangs come back out and her eyes turn from blue to yellow.
VALA: Could you squirm a little more to get me in the mood? Mmmn. That's better.
As Wesley frantically tries to free himself, Vala leans in to bite the left side of his neck. He keeps raising and lower his right hand, flicking his right wrist, which Vala holds down with her left hand. She squeezes and tightens her grip on Wes's right wrist as she sinks her teeth into his flesh. But she only gets to drink a few ounces before a wooden stake shoots out of the bottom Wesley's right wrist, slicing through Vala's left palm. She takes her left hand off his right arm and pulls her head up.
VALA: Ow!!! What the - ?
Wesley shoots his right arm for her heart. Vala lets go of Wesley's left arm and grabs the stake with her right arm when the point is two inches from her skin. She rips Wesley's little contraption apart. He punches her in the face with his left fist, then pushes Vala off of him. Both of them stand up. Vala looks at the wound on her left hand. A small amount of Wesley's blood trickles out of the right corner of her mouth. Wesley turns around and sees his sword on the ground ten feet behind him. Vala, who stands six feet in front of Wesley, also notices the weapon. When he dashes towards it, so does she. Wesley reaches down and grabs the sword with his right hand. Vala slashes his left shoulder with the edge of the stake she ripped off his right wrist. When Wesley turns and tries to slash Vala with the sword in his right hand, she grabs his right wrist with her left hand and slashes the inside of his right forearm with the stake in her right hand. Wes hits her mouth with a left cross. Vala sends a right roundhouse kick for Wesley's face. He slashes her right calf muscle with his sword. He charges at the injured vampire, and Vala retreats towards the center of the room.
The room Willow was performing her spell in appeared to be completely secure. The thick metal doors were impossible to break down. The elevator and stairwell were sealed off. There was, however, a two foot-wide square metal grate in the floor which connected to the ventilation shaft in between the basement and the sub-basement. Wes, Gunn and Kelly had all checked the grate and made sure it couldn't be pulled out. And it couldn't – from above. The grate was solidly bolted into the metal strip it rested on. The metal was strong enough to support the weight of the grate by itself, or the weight of someone standing on top of the grate, or someone jumping up and down on top of the grate, but not strong enough to hold if someone pulled down on the grate with more force a human could manage. Angelus was the only one who knew this. This was why he wanted Willow to be in that room. She would feel a false sense of security, and Angel's friends wouldn't feel the need to protect her. She would be trapped, alone and helpless. To Angelus, this was the easiest to keep that pesky soul from coming back.
Angelus walks to the spot directly underneath the room. He pushes a ceiling panel to the side. Above the panel is the ventilation shaft. Angelus had cut a hole in the shaft directly below the grate. He looks up and sees the grate ten feet above him. Angelus reaches into his right pocket and pulls out a long, thin metal chain with a hook on the end. He tosses the chain upwards. Its links slink through the spaces between the grates and wrap around them. Kelly hears the noise and turns around to see chain in the grate. Angelus pulls down on the chain, and the grate tumbles down to the sub-basement floor. Kelly runs over the hole to prevent a break-in. Angelus leaps up, knocks Kelly down and lands fifteen to Willow's right. She is in the middle of her incantation.
ANGELUS: I guess Angel's not the only one who chooses to get locked in cages.
Lorne, who is ten feet to Angelus's right, lets out a shrieking high note which reverberates off of the metal doors and walls. Less than two seconds after Lorne begins screaming, Angelus hits him with a left cross that sends him back into the wall, then knocks him out with a right uppercut.
ANGELUS: Your friends can't save you this time, old pal.
When Angelus turns around, Kelly kicks him in the face with her right foot. She is the only thing standing between him and Willow.
ANGELUS: Maybe I'll do you after the redhead. Don't take the snub personally.
Angelus throws a right cross. Kelly backs out of the way and tries a left roundhouse kick. Angelus blocks it with his right hand and hits Kelly in the face with a left jab.
ANGELUS: Willow's not my type, and I'm pretty sure the feeling's mutual.
Kelly throws a right hook. Angelus blocks it and belts Kelly in the stomach with a powerful right uppercut that nearly raises her feet off the floor. Kelly continues to fight desperately. She hits Angelus in the chin with a right uppercut, but he hardly notices. Angelus lands a left hook to her ribcage. He hits the left side of her face with a right hook, then the right side of her face with the back of his right hand. Kelly falls to the floor. Angelus walks towards Willow. She's in the middle of a trance and isn't aware of what's going on around her.
ANGELUS: Then again, I know for a fact that you'd make one helluva vampire.
Angelus smashes Willow's Orb of Thessala with his left foot and kicks her in the chin with his right, knocking Willow on her back. She comes out of her trance, looks up and sees Angelus standing over her.
ANGELUS: Maybe I should have killed you instead of those goldfish.
Angelus clobbers Willow's face with two left crosses. He picks her up with his right hand and throws her into the wall opposite Lorne. Willow stands up and tries to repel Angelus. He kicks her in the stomach with his left foot and punches in the her face with a right jab. Angelus takes Willow's arms and lifts them over her head. He grips both her wrists with his right hand puts his left hand over her mouth so she can't try any spells while he bites her. Angelus digs his fangs into the left side of her neck. But right when he's about to take his first big gulp of blood, Angelus feels a searing pain on the back of his neck. Kelly has jumped on his back, and the crucifix she wears around her neck is burning his flesh. Angelus lets go of Willow and takes a step back. With her left hand, Kelly rips the cross off her neck and sticks it into Angelus's open mouth. While she's doing this, he reaches back, grabs her head and throws her to the ground in front of him. Kelly stands up and notices that Angelus's fangs went straight through her left hand. She's bleeding badly, but knows it was worth it when she sees the smoke coming out of Angelus's mouth. He looks alarmed, realizes why his mouth feels like it's on fire and spits out the crucifix. But Angelus is still in an incredible amount of pain as the smoke continues to rise off his tongue. Knowing that these next few seconds are her only chance, Kelly hits Angelus in the face with a straight right kick followed by a left roundhouse kick. He staggers across the room. Kelly runs at Angelus and connects with a leaping right kick. Lorne had gotten up and opened the door. The kick knocks Angelus outside, and Lorne immediately shuts the door in his face. Angelus rises to his feet and stands there, growling and furious, with a black cross burned onto the top of his tongue.
ANGELUS: [under his breath] Why do I keep forgetting that blondes AREN'T more fun? [yelling at the door] Hey Lorne! How many of your friends I gotta kill before you guys come out and play?
Angelus walks away, thirsty for blood. Inside, Kelly helps Willow to her feet.
WILLOW: I'm okay. Thanks for the timely life-saving.
Kelly picks up her crucifix.
KELLY: Don't thank me . . .
Willow looks at the cross and appears a bit queasy.
WILLOW: The Jewish, neo-pagan wiccan in me would rather not.
KELLY: Still, ya gotta admit it's nice when God actually IS on your side.
WILLOW: Your ritualistic charmed talisman aside, I've found it's a lot more useful to have the Goddess on your side.
Kelly notices how bad her hand's bleeding. So does Lorne. He rushes over and giver her his handkerchief.
LORNE: Here you go, sweetie. I really hate the sight of blood. Obviously the Fates have a wicked sense of humor.
Kelly sees that the blood is soaking through the handkerchief.
KELLY: Got anything else to stop the bleeding.
LORNE: Lemme see. [reaches into his jacket pockets] Thanks for saving the day, Kel. I dunno what I woulda done without you.
Kelly grabs the left sleeve of Lorne's green jacket and rips it off.
LORNE: Well, I know I woulda kept this jacket from becoming a vest.
Kelly wraps the sleeve around her left hand.
KELLY: That should stop the bleeding.
Lorne looks at his one-armed blazer.
LORNE: I suppose I could do without the jacket. [he takes it off] Look on the bright side – at least you didn't rip off my pants!
Kelly picks up Lorne's metal bat and stands over the hole in the floor. She looks at what's left of Willow's supplies.
KELLY: Angelus smashed your works.
WILLOW: Not to worry. I have more. [she pulls out another Orb of Thessala, sits down, takes a deep breath and tries to recover from the beating Angelus gave her.] Angel re-re-re-souling, take two.
While Gunn desperately tries to hold off three vampires at once, Alanna turns around to see how Vala is doing. She's surprised to find Vala still battling Wesley, and decides to give her sister a little help. Alanna picks up Fred's crossbow and aims it at Wesley's back 25 feet away. Alanna pulls the trigger. The bolt hits the left side of Wesley's lower back. Alanna rips the string off the crossbow so it can't be fired again. Wes winces in pain. Vala slugs him with a left hook to the jaw. Wes spins around and lands on his stomach.
VALA: I thought the crossbow belonged to your dream girl. Why would HER weapon hurt you? Maybe it's a sign. [she grabs the shaft sticking out of Wes and wiggles it around, hurting him even more.] This wound's pretty deep. Looks like the head went all the way in.
Vala rips the bolt out of Wesley's back. He grinds his teeth and groans in pain. Wes rolls over and sweeps Vala's legs out. They are both on their backs. Wes rolls to his left and stands up. Vala vaults to her feet and sees Wes in front of her and to her right. Behind Wesley and to his left is Alanna. One could draw a straight, 30 foot-long diagonal line from Vala, through Wes Alanna and Ronan, to Gunn. Wes raises his sword in his right hand. With Vala focused on the weapon, Wes hits her in the throat with the tips of the fingers on his left hand. Vala grabs her throat in pain (though she doesn't breath, the blow still smarts). He takes his sword in his left hand and quickly turns counter-clockwise. Catches Alanna by surprise, Wes stabs her in the stomach with his sword. While she is distracted by this non-fatal but none-the-less painful injury, Wes runs to Gunn's aide. Charles kicks Lewis in the stomach with his left foot and hits Tina in the face with her right elbow. He swings for Ronan with the ax in his left hand. Ronan grabs the ax handle with his right hand and puts his left hand around Gunn' throat. Wesley grips his sword with both hands and comes at Ronan from behind, slashing for his neck. Ronan reaches his right hand back and grabs the blade, snapping it in two. He keeps choking Gunn with his left hand, but turns to look at Wesley, who is still in shock about what the vampire has just done to his weapon. Ronan squeezes his right hand into a fist. Blood pours out of it from the wounds he sustained from gripping the sharp blade.
RONAN: That stung a little.
Ronan floors Wesley with a right cross to the face.
Gunn swings his ax for Ronan's left arm. Ronan sees this, removes his left hand from Gunn's throat and pulls his arm out of the way in the nick of time. Charles grips the ax handle with both hands and swings for Ronan's neck. The vampire backs up out of the way. Gunn keeps swinging the ax in a counter-clockwise direction, towards Tina and Lewis. Tina moves out of the way. Lewis holds his ground. When the blade is two inches from the left side of his neck, Lewis grabs the top of the handle with his left hand and quickly snaps it in two. The metal blade falls to the ground. Charles smiles.
GUNN: Gonna regret that.
Lewis knocks Charles into the back wall with a left jab to the chin. Gunn holds the broken ax handle in his right hand. When Lewis throws a right cross, Gunn thrusts the pointy end of the broken handle towards Lewis's heart. Gunn takes Lewis's punch. The vampire looks down and sees the wood stuck through his heart.
GUNN: What'd I tell you?
Lewis turns to dust. Gunn grabs the 18 inch-long wooden weapon out of the air. After getting knocking down by Ronan's punch, Wesley got to his feet before Alanna or Vala could set upon him. He pulled a wooden stake out his his pants pocket and clutched it in his right hand. Wes circled counter-clockwise towards Gunn. When he sees Lewis turn to dust, Wesley races for the back wall. Tina immediately tries to set upon Gunn, but he holds out his pointy weapon, causing her to step back. Wesley makes it to the wall. He stands to the left of Charles. Both men lean against the wall and catch their breath. The four vampires, nearly as weary and almost as determined as their opponents, slowly converge on Wes and Gunn. They glance at each other, exhausted, injured, knowing they can't take much more of this.
NEXT: What happened to Fred went she wondered the hallways all alone. Plus, Angelus joins the fight. He's out for blood - and revenge. But so is his son.
