Majin Gojira: Nah, I wasn't scared off. I've just been busy (and trying to be careful with my story). However, I was able to do more thorough research thanks due to our dialogue. Even made a call into one of the head guys at Top Cow for info (though I didn't get the info I wanted, I did get a pack of free comics sent to me). Plus, I've been making sure that where I want to go with this story is exactly what I want. I've also been planning out the third part in my trilogy, separate self-contained shorts, and a post-trilogy addition.
To my readers: Thanks for tuning in to this story. Like I said before, I'm planning some big additions to this thing. Hope you'll still be reading. Read, review, and enjoy.
Constructive criticisms always welcomed. Flames cheerfully ignored.
9:10 p.m., Friday - Slayer Base HQ
"So we've got '10 tonight' and 'tiles'," Buffy said. "I know it's not much to go on, but let's do the best we can to figure it out."
That was nearly five hours ago. They had gone through a list of possible locations, but had no leads or clue as to what Sara's destination was. They went through directories for businesses that did tiling and other hardware jobs, but the only thing they found was more dead ends in their efforts.
"This is pointless!" Kennedy exclaimed in frustration, throwing down a stack of papers. "I mean, '10 tonight' and 'tiles'; how's that going to help us? We've got just under an hour before 10:00 hits."
"I know, I know, but we can't just give up," Buffy replied. Turning to Willow she asked, "Do you remember anything else when you read her mind, anything at all?"
Closing her eyes and concentrating, Willow tried to remember any detail she could from the day's earlier encounter with Sara's mind. She tried to pick up on anything that could have slipped past, even the most insignificant thing. Repeating in her mind what she heard, two words came out that was faint: 'red' and something with a hard 'c' or 'k' sound.
"Red," she repeated. "The only thing else I heard was 'red' and something with a hard 'c' or 'k'." Willow looked dejected, as it still wasn't much to go on.
"Red? 'K'-sound?" Buffy said aloud. "Red. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait…"She started pacing around and shaking her head, as if caught in a trance.
"What is it, Buffy?" Willow asked.
Buffy just looked over at Rona on the computer and said, "Rona: run a search on the computer for the word 'red' on all of the news clippings related to Amy."
"Alright," she said before turning and entering in the criteria. "OK, we've got 'red tape' regarding some imported art, 'red delicious' about some apple orchard she purchased, 'Red Hook' property…"
"Hold on," Buffy interrupted, "click on that one."
Rona clicked on the small article and started reading aloud. "Owners of property along the Red Hook waterfront seeking a buyer finally found one in New Empire Textiles, a division of The Encog Company. The site and abandoned warehouse building will be renovated for the company's product line. Newly-crowned Encog CEO Amy Madison-Vitelli…"
"That's it!" Buffy exclaimed. "'Tiles' was actually part of 'Textiles'. Sara and I had a chat about that warehouse about some time before I left. She said it'd probably be a couple of months before police would have to bust the place for drugs or something. Anyway, it's Amy's warehouse and Sara's headed there. Let's go!"
"Getting to Red Hook, in a van, in midtown traffic no less, on a Friday night, in forty minutes? Buffy, we'll never make it," Adrienne complained.
"We won't if we stay here griping about it," she said pointedly. "Pack weapons and move out!"
"And what do we say if we do get there in time, huh? 'Hi, Amy. Look, we're going to retrieve a Bladewielder looking to rip you a new one. Could you please not justifiably shoot us while we trespass on your property to get her?'"
Buffy looked at her sharply.
"Right," Adrienne said, "packing weapons and moving out."
9:46 p.m., Friday - New Empire Textiles Warehouse
It had been six hours since the police station incident. Sara had driven herself back to the motel to rest some more after settling down for thirty minutes on the couch in the lounge, the entire time being ignored by Danny and minimally acknowledged by Jake. She knew they were livid about her refusing hospital treatment. But she also knew that if she went there, either Jake or Danny would have driven her car to her apartment where no doubt Willow would have sent people to stake it out and intercept her. That would have been the smart thing to do. And one thing she knew was that Willow was smart.
Earlier, after stopping to get some pain relievers for what had to be the worst headache she'd ever felt, she journeyed back to the motel to run a double-check on her things. The modified shotgun, extra box of shells, and pistol with spare clip were set. The five stakes were still in place. She also had something special for Amy that she had tucked away in her car; something designed to give Sara an edge in her fight. She felt ready. Looking at the bottle of water she bought earlier for her pain pills, she brought out the Witchblade and unsheathed its sword. She had swiped at it quickly, cleanly separating its head from the body.
And now: now she was at the warehouse, in her car, a good distance away from the perimeter of the property. She would have to be quick, since no doubt Amy would sense her presence as she got closer and closer. The good thing was that it would take some time before she could pinpoint her exact location, giving her enough time to launch a surprise attack.
Through binoculars, she saw six guards along a cordoned-off section, which was to be an addition to the warehouse facility. There were four near the front entrance and two along the side. She knew there was more than likely two more on the other side. A fence topped off with barbed wire surrounded the grounds. Sara moved over to the western side of the grounds, carrying her shotgun. She saw the two guards standing by the fence near a crane and a bundle of girders. She dipped behind them, hoping for some way to get one before the other had a chance to alert his buddies. Moving closer behind the crane out of the view of the guards, she decided to make her move. She picked up a rock and threw it over the fence. The two guards turned quickly toward the noise, poised and ready to render any intruder a faint memory. Moving as fast as she could, Sara ran up to them. They turned around at the sound of footsteps hitting dirt and gravel only to see a shotgun flying toward their faces. They dropped their guns in shock and Sara quickly pulled out her two pistols and pointed them at both of the guards. They had radio transceivers on their person and Sara was going to use them to make her presence unknown until the last minute.
"Richie, Terry: how's everything on your guys' end?" a voice called out from one of the radios.
Sara just smiled at them, knowing that a prime opportunity had come about. "I don't think I have to tell you boys what to say," she said coolly.
Their hands up, one of the guards slowly unclipped his radio and said, "Everything clear, over."
The other guard unclipped his radio and spoke into it, "All set on this end, over."
"Good," said the voice on the other end, "check-up in ten, out."
Sara smiled at them and said, "Fine job, guys. Now, turn around." Doing as they were told with their hands up, Sara then hit them in the head, rendering them unconscious. Holstering her guns again, she picked up her shotgun and unsheathed the Witchblade's long sword. Slashing at the fence she created an opening and slipped in.
"Ms. Vitelli…"
"Mr. Post," she nodded in reply. "I trust you have my merchandise."
"And I trust that you have my money."
Amy smiled as Sean opened up a black briefcase filled with hundred-dollar bills. "250,000 dollars," she said, "all for you."
His eyes glazed over with greed. He reached out his hand toward the bills saying, "Yes, all for me."
Sean closed the briefcase, much to the man's surprise. "The merchandise, Mr. Post. I showed you mine, now you show me yours."
Smiling, Devlin had his man bring out a small box. Upon opening it, Amy's eyes lit up. There in the box stood a small red stone, perfectly cut and rich in its entire blood-colored luster. She stretched out her hand to touch, only to retract it and gather her self-control. She nodded to Sean, who handed the black briefcase to Devlin's man as he handed Sean the stone.
"I believe this concludes our business, Dona Vitelli," Devlin said.
"Unless I can retain your services to acquire the other two stones, then it does." All of a sudden, Amy sensed something. She turned her head slowly, looking around. Someone had decided to crash her little party,
"Is that so?" he asked curiously. "Well, that being the case, I would require payment of..."
"Quiet," she interrupted, "it seems we have an uninvited guest." Sean immediately picked up his radio and started talking into it, alerting the other guards to an intruder. When he left, the fourteen vampire guards that Amy had hired started to fan out, six checking the perimeter and the others staying behind.
But Amy didn't want to let the opportunity of killing Sara up close and personal to pass her by. She started walking slowly toward the darkness that surrounded them, the only light being from the moon above. Coming upon a set of girders, she was confident her prey was near, quite possibly behind that batch. Getting closer, she and her guards were surprised from behind as Sara jumped down from a tall set of dry cement bags and pointed her shotgun at them.
"Detective Pezzini," Amy said calmly.
"Amy."
"Certainly wasn't expecting you to show up here."
"Back up, all of you," Sara ordered, the group backing up toward Devlin and his small group.
"Come on, Detective," Amy said smugly, "you know how useless guns are against vamps."
"Oh, really?" Sara replied. She then pointed her shotgun and got closer to one of the vampire, aiming the muzzle at his neck. She pulled the trigger and the next thing anyone knew, he was dust. She pulled the pump handle and loaded another shell into the chamber, pointing it at Amy.
"I beg to differ."
"Alright, alright, I get it," Amy said playfully. "This is about last night's little ambush. Trust me, I wasn't too happy about it either. I mean, you go to such lengths to kill people and they come out with nary a scratch on them." Amy looked at Sara and cocked her head slightly. "Or did they?"
Sara slightly twitched at the self-satisfaction of the person standing before her. She couldn't believe it; Amy had sent one of hers to the hospital and had the gall to be gleeful about it. But if she didn't betray her feelings by barging in on the property, she did when Amy questioned last night's ambush.
Amy smiled. She noticed the detective's agitation at the question and decided to provoke her even more, as foolhardy as the notion was. "Who was it?" she asked, grinning at her own bluntness. "Was it one of the girls?" She then smiled wide and said, "Or maybe, it was the stuffy Watcher..."
"Shut up! Shut up!" Sara shouted, keeping the muzzle pointed at Amy's head. She had come here to kill the woman, but something deep inside restrained her. Giles' voice, the girls' disappointment, and her own conscience held her back. She had never been a cold-blooded killer, and now she was dancing on the edge of being one.
"You can't take us all, Sara."
"No, but I can kill you sure enough."
"You know I can take that away at any time," Amy said threateningly.
"Yeah, I know," Sara replied. "That's why I got this." Reaching her left hand into her jacket pocket, she brought out a small cylindrical object. Forcing the pin out she threw it on the ground and quickly closed her eyes and covered her ears.
Curiosity had led Amy to look at the object. That same curiosity would also render her and her companions blind and deaf as the flash grenade exploded. Amy screamed out as her eyes and ears were made temporarily useless.
"You can't take what you can't see," Sara quipped.
Rubbing her eyes Amy yelled out, "Get her!"
Sara moved over to Amy and pointed the shotgun at her head. It was so easy now; one shot and she would end this farce. But she hesitated, hesitated to cross a line that she had been ready to go beyond just hours earlier, and that hesitation cost her. Vampires had excellent hearing and one of them had faintly heard Sara's footsteps along the dirt and gravel. He tackled her and a shot fired. The others followed suit after hearing the shot and the scuffle. Sara jumped up, her shotgun still in hand, and lunged at one of the approaching vamps, stabbing him directly in the heart. As he turned to dust, she hit another one in the face with the butt of the shotgun and stabbed another one in the heart.
Luckily, Devlin had moved far back enough to avoid the full effects of the flash grenade. Though he had only a few men with him, he knew he had a potential cash cow in Amy. And that cow was about to run dry if this cop had her way. It was a prospect he deemed unacceptable. "Get her!" he ordered.
His three men, all human, ran toward the cop, who was defending herself against five vampires. She still held on to her shotgun and pointed it at one of the vamps. It was a clean shot, but not a kill one. It would only buy her some time. After she fired, another vamp kicked away the shotgun and punched Sara in the face. She brought out her two pistols and fired as fast as she could her advancing foes. Guns in hand, Devlin's men were about to fire when they saw her fire at them instead. They dropped down to the ground to avoid her shots, somewhat wild given the circumstances. While many found their mark, they had only succeeded in staving off the vampires.
After emptying her clips, she threw her guns down, knowing that she had no time to reload. Sara activated the Witchblade and brought out her sword. Wielding it around she tried as best she could to fend off her attackers. The vampire that ran at her she quickly sidestepped and beheaded. But there was no time to revel in the kill as one lunged in and was swiped in the chest. Another came in on her left and grabbed her arm. She kicked him in the leg and backfisted him, only to be grabbed from behind by the another vampire. She headbutted him and he let go. She quickly turned around and ran him through the stomach. Though he growled in pain, his feral yellow eyes told Sara she had made a big mistake. With her good hand stuck in his gut, he repeatedly punched her in the face. Pushing her away he kicked her in the stomach and she staggered back into another vampire. She quickly elbowed him and threw him over her shoulder and to the ground. She then dragged her sword across the gravel and through his neck, beheading him. She looked up only to see the formerly impaled vampire kick her in the face, making her fall back to the ground. He then jumped on top of her and proceeded to punch her in the face again.
Sara reeled from the blows. But in her daze she had enough coherence to extend her short blade and stab the vampire in the side. While it worked in getting him off of her, it did nothing to stop the assault against her. The vampire she had swiped in the chest came over and kicked her in the stomach over and over. With the strength she had left she pushed him away only to have the vampire she ran through approaching with a metal pipe. Forming her sword again she intercepted his blow and cleaved it in half. It didn't stop, however, the subsequent kick to her face. The other two vampires grabbed an already tired Sara and stood her up as they took turns hitting her. Their blows were just enough to soften her up.
"Hold her still!" the vampire with the cleaved pipe said. Sara's cut had made the pipe more lethal than before, as its head now bore a sharp end.
"Finish her and let's get out of here!" Amy yelled out, her blindness now replaced by blurs of motion.
"No problem," he said. He approached Sara slowly. She was bleeding from her nose and mouth, her visage a picture of violence and rage realized on its intended victim. Her stomach was bruised and ached from the blows. Her head throbbed and her right eye was beginning to swell. The vampire with the cleaved pipe came toward her. He hit her in the stomach with the blunt end, forcing her to cough up blood. He then grabbed her hair and pulled it back.
"Well, I was hoping we could have a good time tonight, gorgeous," he said sinisterly. "What a waste." He pointed the sharp end of the pipe toward her face, smiling as he brought it closer and closer. "Still," he remarked, "I guess dinner's on you." Sara watched wide-eyed, breathing quickly and sharply, as the vampire touched the cleaved end just under her chin and slid it menacingly down her neck. It was then when Amy felt something powerful, or rather someone, and whipped her head around. She knew who it was. It was a witch she had formed a bond with briefly before trying to kill her. "No…"
Just as he was about to plunge the pipe into Sara's neck, an arrow flew through the air and landed in the armed vampire's chest. He looked down in surprise and turned to dust. The two other vampires looked where the shot came from and saw something they hoped never to see.
"I think the lady declines, guys," Buffy said as she held her crossbow. There she stood, flanked by five Slayers and Willow.
"Kill them! Kill them all!" Amy yelled. As the vampires let Sara go, Amy journeyed over to the cop. She had just enough vision to know where the woman was and where to hit.
Devlin's men pointed their guns against the girls. As soon as they saw them do so, everyone ducked behind the steel girders as they fired. Buffy just looked at Willow and called out her name. "Willow…"
"I'm on it," the redhead replied. As soon as the firing stopped, Willow came from behind the girders. Stretching out her hands she telekinetically took the guns from their assailant's hands and pointed their weapons at them. She had no respect for those who used guns to terrorize and destroy others, and she certainly had no respect for these guys.
"You know, I really hate these things." The men stood there, scared of their fate. But luckily for them Willow wasn't that type of person and proceeded to swirl the guns around as if caught in a small tornado. The gunmen were being knocked on the head and in the face by their own weapons and as soon as they were rendered unconscious, Willow made a crushing gesture with her hands and turned the guns into scrap.
That still left Amy and the two vampires… until more who had been searching the perimeter arrived from the rear of the Slayer brigade. Upon hearing them arrive the six Slayers turned around and were soon embroiled in a melee. Only Michelle noticed Amy advancing on one Sara Pezzini.
Amy went up to the woman and kicked her so hard she was lifted off of the ground. Sara, already weak from her blows, tried to resist the next kick and crossed her arms as it came. Despite her efforts, she was thrown across the ground by it and slid to a stop. Amy then walked over to Sara and grabbed the detective's neck with her right hand, her gauntlet fully visible, and lifted her off of the ground.
"I see you now," Amy said wickedly. Applying more pressure to Sara's throat, she began to squeeze the life out of the cop.
Sara started to feel her world go black. She thought on the people who mattered most to her and felt regret when she thought of Giles. She would never see him again and she didn't avenge him by taking out the one who put him in the hospital. She started to think it was all over… until she noticed a blur rushing towards them.
"No!" Michelle yelled as she tackled Amy, thus releasing Sara from her grasp. After tumbling to the ground, Amy became frustrated; she was determined to see that at least one of these 'do-gooders' die tonight.
"Meddling little…" she retorted before grabbing Michelle's head with her gloved hand. Smiling wickedly, red-hued electricity started to course through Michelle's head. At first, her cries were small, the pain being slightly bearable. But soon it culminated in a full-fledged scream, as the pain became worse.
"Not the brightest move to make," she said as the girl's nose started to bleed. It was then when Sara decided to return the favor for Michelle's help. "No!" she yelled out before delivering a double-footed jump side kick to Amy's body. Though powerful, Sara had delivered it with all of her might and fell to the ground exhausted.
She released her grip on the girl and rolled on the ground, but quickly recovered. Though her eyesight was still blurry from the grenade, she was ready to continue the fight until she saw Buffy, Willow, and the rest of the Slayers stop right to the side of her. Willow's hands were covered in flames.
"Stand down, Amy," Buffy said.
"You're not in a position to give orders," she retorted. Though Buffy and company had taken out most of the vampires, they were still enclosed by humans who had guns, machine guns at that, and were primed and ready to fire.
"You're right," Buffy remarked. "That's why I called the police before we got here."
"You're bluffing."
"You've got eight," Buffy said before looking at her watch, "no, seven minutes to find out. So unless you want to spend time explaining to them why a bunch of girls and a cop ended up dead on your property, I suggest you let us take Sara and go."
Amy stood there, unhappy with the prospect of explaining anything to the police. No doubt they would peruse into every nook, cranny, crooked deal, and record to find out why one of theirs and a group of girls died on land she owned. And that was unacceptable.
"Tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock..." Buffy quipped.
Shuffling her fighting stance into a passive one, Amy decided she had gotten what she wanted out of the evening and said, "Let them go." She turned over to Sara, who was standing with Michelle's support, and said, "Don't worry; we'll get around to finishing this soon. You can count on it."
Sara scowled at Amy. She and Michelle walked over to the rest of their group, each holding the other for support as Michelle was still dazed from Amy's attack. The group hurried away from Amy's men, back near the van that had crashed through the front gate and loaded into it. Kennedy started up the van and sped off.
"Were you bluffing?" Sara asked Buffy in an exhausted voice. But upon hearing the police sirens a good distance away from sight, she found her answer.
"Does that answer your question?"
Sara nodded.
"Is everyone alright?" Buffy asked, looking around the back and front of the van. Everyone nodded in reply. Some had a few cuts and bruises, but nothing severe.
"Are you alright, Sara?" she asked. "Anything broken? Do you need to get to a hospital?"
"No," Sara replied, still breathing heavily.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I'm sure," Sara replied.
"Good…" Buffy said softly before delivering a punch to the woman's jaw. She had pulled it, knowing she was stronger than the cop was and that Sara couldn't take a really strong one in her present state.
"That's for doing something so mind-numbingly stupid!" she yelled out. "You could have gotten killed, Sara; you could have gotten us killed, all because you wanted revenge! Is that what Giles would've wanted? He's spent a lot of time and effort helping you to control the Witchblade, and you nearly destroyed all of that work for payback!"
"I had to do something!" Sara yelled back, reeling from the punch.
"Then you should've been with Giles!" Buffy shouted. "You should've been by his side!"
"I couldn't!"
"Why?" she asked angrily, tears forming in her eyes. "Why couldn't you be there when he needed you the most?"
"Because it's my fault he's there!" Sara shouted. "He's there because of me, because I got him shot. And I couldn't go back, I couldn't go back, and it's all my fault, it's all my faaaaauuuult…" The woman broke down and her outburst turned in wailing. Falling forward in her grief her head fell into the Slayer's arms, the weeping Buffy letting Sara release all of the emotion and guilt she felt. The rest in the van stayed silent and somber as the two held each other. Sara continued to cry loudly, the salt from her tears stinging her wounds and soaking Buffy's jacket.
And the van sped off into the night, a night that embraced its weary warriors.