Cordelia had just picked up her purse and was preparing to dig out her car keys. The plan was for her and Willow to head over to the Galaxy Quest sets to pick up her script so that she could start practicing for the return of Mirabanna. Willow mainly wanted to go see Alex, and was trying to ignore the possibility of the handmaiden's return as well.
"Are you ready yet? We don't have all day…" Her words were cut off as she had this half moment's warning from her body suddenly feeling all prickly. That was right before she felt this sort of pressure surround her, feeling as if her skull was being ground between several hard things as the images bombarded her mind.
Something made out of rocks, almost along the lines of the Pillsbury dough boy, but about thirty feet tall. It was crashing through the street… crushed a nice little yellow Camero… people were screaming, panicking. Bullets bounced off of the thing, and one massive hand smashed into the side of a building, sending bricks and concrete chunks flying. There was a sign just below the new hole, 'Bellard's Herbal Supply'.
A small room, with plaster walls and a bank of what looked like computers. There was a conference going on, a pair of plasticy looking people in nice suits, a giant gray-green octopus looking thing holding another piggy statue and a strange sort of crystal in two tentacles, and something that looked like a giant armored bug-man. There was a glowy diagram made out of light in the air, with stars and a couple mobile points of blue. She had the unmistakable feeling that these were the bad guys.
'We must hurry. If they are not stopped, the consequences…" The words came from another almost plasticy looking man in a very familiar uniform… It looked almost like Jason's Taggert suit, only with a few more pips and stripes. '… need more help, or all is lost. Bring back the Commander.'
She was on the floor, gasping for breath, her eyes squeezed shut as tears escaped from the corners. Her muscles were aching as if they'd just all been bruised, and her teeth hurt from being clenched. Pain pulsed through her whole body, following her bones. Gentle hands were on her, one supporting at her elbow, the other rubbing circles on her back.
"Try to breath, Cordy. Inhale, count to three, and let it out. Imagine the pain flowing out with the old air." Willow's voice was low, filled with worry.
"asprin… water…" She could hardly get the words out around the throbbing pain that radiated from her skull, down along her spine and out to the rest of her body. "alternately, just kill me now…"
Willow's hands tugged her into a more upright position. "Here, drink this. It should help with the pain."
There was a cup hovering in the air. It looked like one of Angel's mugs, a dark bluish black color, and it was filled with something dark and thick. Her hand was shaking as she reached for the mug, and she drew it closer, slowly sniffing to try to figure out what Willow was trying to give her. It had a sort of sharp, green smell, like herbs. With a mental shrug, Cordelia took a drink.
She nearly spat it out at the taste. It was the most revolting, horrible flavor, like… she had no words. It had the taste of something that should have emerged from some muck-encrusted pool of green, nasty water. But instead, she swallowed, fighting the urge. It seemed to push the pain back.
Cordelia blinked as she realized that the pain was less. If one revolting swallow could do that… Her eyes closed again as she drank down the rest of the brew, trying not to taste it. Her stomach rolled, apparently as unimpressed by the drink as her tongue, but the pain receded, becoming nothing stronger than what could have been a paperwork headache and a bad night's sleep.
"That is the most vile tasting disgusting… and effective thing that I've ever encountered." She looked at Willow, almost shoving the mug away from her. Little shriveled dark bits were clinging to the bottom. "They aren't usually that strong. I think…. This is something really big, and bad. Bad on a whole different scale."
Willow picked up her cell phone as well as her little phone book, covered in an almost appalling wildflower print. "Tell me what happened, please. It's much too sunny out for Angel to deal with things, so maybe there's somebody that we can delegate things too…"
Slowly, fumbling occasionally for the words, Cordelia began to explain the images as they walked out of the hotel towards her car. The huge rock thing, the creepy bad guy meeting, and the most baffling, the guy in the uniform.
Willow just listened, occasionally asking for a clarification on something. Then, she started calling on her cell phone. She called someone named 'Raf' and mentioned a 'big nasty problem', suggesting that he make certain all the fragile merchandise was moved away from the windows. That was followed by a call to someone named Sherry about an 'impending incident' and requesting that what she called 'heavy artillery' be ready, following that up with 'you'd never be able to convince them to listen if I explained how I knew, or what it's going to be.'
They were pulling on to the parking lot of the set by the time Willow had finished that discussion, and Cordelia grimaced, hoping that there would be something inside to get rid of the lingering aftertaste of that potion she'd drank. Certainly no more time to discuss visions and rock monsters, or octopus things.
If there was coffee inside, then things would be better. Anything more would be great. Cordelia sighed as they walked towards the building, a cold certainty filling her that things weren't anywhere near done yet. Things were probably only just beginning.
End part 7.
Willow wanted to just worry about the problems of being in front of a camera with her stage fright. But Cordy's killer vision, with the rock-creature, the bad-guys-R-us meeting, and the 'strange guy with pale rubbery skin in a Taggert's boss uniform' that Cordelia had mentioned wouldn't go away. She wanted to hope the uniform was just some over-enthusiastic fan of the show, but… it would be a bit much to expect. Which meant there was lots of trouble, and it was probably only getting bigger.
Maybe seeing Alex again would help. He could always make her smile, especially now. Of course, if things were simpler…
Cordelia suddenly froze, her hand grabbing Willow's elbow almost too hard. "Willow? That woman… Lali-whats-it. She looks… she's got that same look. Like the freaky uniform guy, and those two baddies in the meeting."
Willow looked over, her eyes finding Laliari easily enough. It hadn't really registered before, partly from not having a lot of contact with the actress, and partly because she'd been too busy staring at Alex, but… there was something a bit off about her. Might as well look at her aura…
Willow relaxed a part of her mind, letting the people take on a blurring haze of colors. Multicolored halos of light surrounded them, familiar shimmering colors. But Laliari's wasn't quite the same. Oh, there were the normal sorts of colors from someone, and the colors indicated that she was fairly nice and incredibly devoted to Fred, but… but… the shape of her aura was all… well, different. It wasn't the sort of tall oval shape of a human aura, it was more a mass of swirls. Sort of like an octopus or an upside down shrubbery. Laliari wasn't human.
"okay….' Rubbing at her eyes, Willow pushed back her awareness, the auras fading from her eyes. "She's not human. Not a threat, but not human. So, if they're like her… urghh… coffee."
Willow smiled as she caught the scent of coffee. Now, where was that wonderful brew? After a moment, she started off, finding Alex sitting in a chair beside Gwen, both of them looking at scripts. She made a slight detour to a table with cups and a coffee pot, snagging a cup as she made her way over.
"So, how's that sub-plot working for you?" She couldn't quite keep from asking. Alex got this awkward look every time, and Gwen would blush… it was cute.
"Willow… umm…" Gwen was blushing, looking down at the script. "You're doing that on purpose. It's wonderful to have something to do that isn't talking to the computer."
Alex smiled, one hand reaching out to touch hers. "It's good to see you again. Of course, I think they've decided to give you a line or two this time around."
Willow blinked, her throat tightening at his words. "Lines?" Her voice had definitely just squeaked. "They want me to talk… in front of the camera?"
Gwen just laughed. "There are hundreds… thousands of people who would love an opportunity like that, and you look terrified. I'm going to go find Murray, figure out what they're planning to shoot next."
Willow offered a shaky smile to the now departing Gwen. "Those thousands of people… they're called actors, not computer consultants."
Sitting beside Alex, she tried to smile. "So… how've things been here?"
Looking into her eyes, Alex soon acquired a worried frown. "Willow… what's wrong? You look… rather shaken."
For a moment, Willow wanted to pour out the confusion of Cordelia's vision. But she didn't, partly because she wasn't certain if she could even explain that and have it make sense, partly because the visions weren't hers to talk about, and partly… "It's pretty complicated. And it has to do with… other stuff. Sunnydale sort of stuff that I'd sort of rather not go into here."
"Perhaps later then?" Alex pulled her closer for a one armed hug. "I can listen, if nothing else. And maybe having someone listen would help you calm down."
Thinking back to the sight of Cordelia arched in pain as the vision had ricocheted in her skull, Willow winced. "Maybe in a little bit, when we can have a moment of privacy. I can… well, I can tell you a little of it."
Smiling at her, he offered a suggestion. "Perhaps in the meanwhile, we can watch Cordelia and Jason argue?"
His smile was full of mischief, and Willow couldn't help but smile back. "We might as well give them an audience. It will make it easier for anyone to find us if they're looking."
End part 8.
Alex looped his arm over Willow's as they made their way towards the bridge set. He could already hear the sound of Jason saying something, probably to Cordelia.
"Because I'm Commander Taggert! Of course you can't resist me! Nobody does."
"Oh, get over yourself. You're not ugly, but there are better looking guys out there. With smaller egos."
"They don't have their own space-ships!"
"Does she even know why she's still dating him?" The voice carried a faintly Irish accent. Angel stepped from the shadows, his shirt untucked, his hair in disarray. He looked… pale, and his eyes almost bloodshot. As if he'd gotten too little sleep.
"Angel? What are you… How?" Willow was frowning at him, looking worried again.
He looked as if he was going to answer, but simply shrugged. "There are ways. I…. Couldn't sleep. Something's…. something wrong."
Gwen looked at the dark haired man, the smile lighting up her whole face. "Angel. I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"Bridge Crew on the set! Filming in two minutes people!" Murray's voice rang through the air.
Glancing at Willow, Alex sighed. He'd much rather stay at her side, but this was his job. "Pardon, but it seems I must go now and listen to someone tell me how to do my job."
Alex walked towards the bridge, noticing that Fred and Laliari were there, neither one looking quite calm. When Fred looked uneasy, it was troubling. And he couldn't quite help thinking that this might be connected to Willow's unease. He was slightly distracted by Angel speaking in a low voice to Cordelia and Willow… something about a demon? And did Cordelia say something about a rock monster?
As they slowly began moving onto the set for a scene, Alex tried to drag his mind away from Willow's conversation to his job. He'd missed the statement of what scene they were supposed to be doing. Taking a deep breath, he hoped that he didn't have the first line. Surely he'd remember when he heard the scene begin…
Fred looked over at Jason, his face once again impassive. "We need to make a few major engine repairs. That will take a few minerals, and some refined metals… A lot more than the amount that we have in storage."
Alex felt relief wash over him. He knew this scene, could do this one easily. "Commander? The closest friendly source of refined metals would be Delphos, the homeworld of…"
He was interrupted by Jason, who was smiling at Taggert's line. "The home of Princess Mirabanna. Of course. Laredo, set course for Delphos. Tawny, prepare a message requesting some assistance to be broadcast when we're close enough."
There was a sudden chirping noise from Laliari's pocket. It wasn't the soft ring of a cell phone. At least, not from any cell phone made on Earth. It was the annoyingly perky chirping sound of the Thermian communicators. Startled, half the people turned, looking at her in puzzlement.
Alex had a sudden feeling, and one hand raised, as if to block some sort of view. This would not be good. "Oh no…"
Just then, he felt the horrible tugging feeling, as if some invisible force had reached inside his head, pulling him upwards. His stomach protested and all of his muscles felt like they were trying to resist, to hold him here, on Earth, at the set.
But it was too late, he'd been digitized.
Stars seemed to flicker before his eyes, blurs and streaks of light as his essence was dragged through space to be reassembled on the Protector. It was a rather unsettling experience, one that he'd only had a few times, and would have been content to never repeat. As the streaks of light flickered past, he remembered that Willow, Cordelia and Angel had been there, as well as the production crew. How would he ever explain this one?
Then, he was standing on the platform, his muscles feeling rigid as he shook, his whole body feeling cold. Part of him was trying to figure out if everything was precisely where it should be, if he'd been put together properly. There was a sort of flash beside him, and Jason was there, his body twitching and shivering. Then Gwen, and Laliari and Fred, now holding a bag of coffee beans. A group of Thermians entered, looking like a small flock of rainbow colored octopi with hairdryers, the devices sending warmth back into shivering limbs as they pulled them off the transport pad, into another room. A table was there, with steaming mugs of something to drink.
As he lifted a cup in trembling hands, he heard the soft 'zapppff' sound of the digital transport activating again. And then he knew. Malthesar hadn't just brought them, he'd also brought 'Princess Mirabanna' and her handmaiden. Possibly Angel as well.
End part 9.
Angel stood on the platform, his entire body feeling odd. Sort of prickly, almost tingling. It sort of reminded him of the way he thought it had felt when his foot had fallen asleep, back when he'd been mortal, but he couldn't remember the sensation clearly. He was still trying to figure out what in the hell had just happened… No. No, he'd been to Hell, and nothing like that had ever happened there.
He'd been talking to Willow and Cordelia, trying to figure out what was going on, why his demon felt so restless that he couldn't sleep. It almost reminded him of thwarted or unfinished hunts… But he'd been unable to get more than a few moments rest at a time, and he'd finally given up. Hoping that one of the women had an answer, he'd gone downstairs, looking for them. Instead, he found a mug on the front desk, containing the dregs of a rather vile tasting herbal potion that served as a potent painkiller. He'd seen men that had been half dissemboweled drink that, get up and walk. Only Willow or Wesley would have known about it, and Wesley had been elsewhere for the weekend. But why would she have… unless Cordelia'd had a vision.
The implications were not good. If her vision had been that severe… Could that be connected with his demon's restless unease?
Fortunately, there were sewer tunnels that would allow him to get to the set where they'd gone. One of them actually came up in the basement of the very building, which had probably been the access used by that disgruntled fan that had frightened Gwen. Ooh, if he went, he might have the bonus of seeing Gwen… Tempting, pretty Gwen.
He'd been talking to Willow and Cordelia, having just managed to get Cordelia to admit to having a vision when he'd felt it, something like a tiny earthquake. It had struck again, a vibration in the earth that had been strong enough for the mortals to feel it. Cordelia had suddenly smelled of near terror, and had clutched at his arm, her face gone pale.
That had been when Alex Dane had suddenly shimmered and vanished. One by one, the rest of the actors on the set had vanished as well, with a sort of minature thunder popping noise. And then, he'd felt it – this strange tugging feeling, as if something had tried to grab his spine through his head. Everything had gone strange and cold, there were blurs of light, and then… here. Wherever here was.
It sort of looked familiar though, as if he'd seen it once before.
When the green octopus thing had entered the room, waving what looked like a pair of hairdryers at him, he'd blinked, wondering if he'd just gone entirely insane. Was he hallucinating from sleep deprivation? But if so, why were Willow and Cordelia still here beside him? One green tendril reached out, slipping around his wrist and gently tugging, trying to get him to move, to follow it through a doorway.
Following the thing, he found himself in a room, with the actors, all of which looked like they were feeling cold. Gwen was still shivering, her lips almost purple. But wait… they looked cold, but not confused. "What just happened?"
Gwen looked at him, her eyes full of so many things that he couldn't read. She might have wanted to answer, but she still looked as if she felt too cold to speak. Instead, she sipped at the cup in her hands.
"We have been digitized. Through the technology of digital transportation, beings can be moved from the surface of a planet to a ship almost instantaneously." The dark haired woman spoke, sipping at her own cup. She didn't seem to be nearly as affected as the other actors, perhaps because she wasn't human.
"Digital transportation… meaning? We've been kidnapped by aliens?" Angel could hear the bit of growl that had crept into his voice.
"We would not have brought you here if the need had not been most urgent. Please, you must help us… you and the Princess… and of course, the handmaiden."
The voice held a strange accent, and there was something else about the tones that told Angel that regardless of the shape, the man speaking to them was definitely not human. His smell was wrong, in the same way that the woman – Lalir or something like that? had a wrong scent. His skin seemed just a little too pale and smooth. And his uniform looked very similar to the ones worn by the actors.
"How did you know about us?" Cordelia's voice sounded far to calm.
The man's smile lacked comfort, and didn't quite fit right, as if he was copying a poorly understood movement. "We saw the historical broadcast. You and the Handmaiden defeated a Fangor Beast… surely you can help us. Without sufficient skill and forces, all…"
"Yes, yes, without more help, all is lost. I know." Cordelia made a gesture with her hand, as if to wave his words off. "What's at risk, and who precisely is everything at risk from? I'm a little bit unclear on that part."
For a moment, Angel felt utter confusion. The answer, oddly enough, came not from the inhuman man, or from Cordelia, but from deep inside, from his demon. Cordelia's vision must have included this man and his trouble. And he was utterly certain that while he'd done a great many bad things, none of them had been bad enough that he deserved this sort of punishment.
Glancing over at Gwen, he paused. Maybe this could have a few bright spots after all… "So, we're really on the Protector now?"
End part 10.
"Are you ready yet? We don't have all day…" Her words were cut off as she had this half moment's warning from her body suddenly feeling all prickly. That was right before she felt this sort of pressure surround her, feeling as if her skull was being ground between several hard things as the images bombarded her mind.
Something made out of rocks, almost along the lines of the Pillsbury dough boy, but about thirty feet tall. It was crashing through the street… crushed a nice little yellow Camero… people were screaming, panicking. Bullets bounced off of the thing, and one massive hand smashed into the side of a building, sending bricks and concrete chunks flying. There was a sign just below the new hole, 'Bellard's Herbal Supply'.
A small room, with plaster walls and a bank of what looked like computers. There was a conference going on, a pair of plasticy looking people in nice suits, a giant gray-green octopus looking thing holding another piggy statue and a strange sort of crystal in two tentacles, and something that looked like a giant armored bug-man. There was a glowy diagram made out of light in the air, with stars and a couple mobile points of blue. She had the unmistakable feeling that these were the bad guys.
'We must hurry. If they are not stopped, the consequences…" The words came from another almost plasticy looking man in a very familiar uniform… It looked almost like Jason's Taggert suit, only with a few more pips and stripes. '… need more help, or all is lost. Bring back the Commander.'
She was on the floor, gasping for breath, her eyes squeezed shut as tears escaped from the corners. Her muscles were aching as if they'd just all been bruised, and her teeth hurt from being clenched. Pain pulsed through her whole body, following her bones. Gentle hands were on her, one supporting at her elbow, the other rubbing circles on her back.
"Try to breath, Cordy. Inhale, count to three, and let it out. Imagine the pain flowing out with the old air." Willow's voice was low, filled with worry.
"asprin… water…" She could hardly get the words out around the throbbing pain that radiated from her skull, down along her spine and out to the rest of her body. "alternately, just kill me now…"
Willow's hands tugged her into a more upright position. "Here, drink this. It should help with the pain."
There was a cup hovering in the air. It looked like one of Angel's mugs, a dark bluish black color, and it was filled with something dark and thick. Her hand was shaking as she reached for the mug, and she drew it closer, slowly sniffing to try to figure out what Willow was trying to give her. It had a sort of sharp, green smell, like herbs. With a mental shrug, Cordelia took a drink.
She nearly spat it out at the taste. It was the most revolting, horrible flavor, like… she had no words. It had the taste of something that should have emerged from some muck-encrusted pool of green, nasty water. But instead, she swallowed, fighting the urge. It seemed to push the pain back.
Cordelia blinked as she realized that the pain was less. If one revolting swallow could do that… Her eyes closed again as she drank down the rest of the brew, trying not to taste it. Her stomach rolled, apparently as unimpressed by the drink as her tongue, but the pain receded, becoming nothing stronger than what could have been a paperwork headache and a bad night's sleep.
"That is the most vile tasting disgusting… and effective thing that I've ever encountered." She looked at Willow, almost shoving the mug away from her. Little shriveled dark bits were clinging to the bottom. "They aren't usually that strong. I think…. This is something really big, and bad. Bad on a whole different scale."
Willow picked up her cell phone as well as her little phone book, covered in an almost appalling wildflower print. "Tell me what happened, please. It's much too sunny out for Angel to deal with things, so maybe there's somebody that we can delegate things too…"
Slowly, fumbling occasionally for the words, Cordelia began to explain the images as they walked out of the hotel towards her car. The huge rock thing, the creepy bad guy meeting, and the most baffling, the guy in the uniform.
Willow just listened, occasionally asking for a clarification on something. Then, she started calling on her cell phone. She called someone named 'Raf' and mentioned a 'big nasty problem', suggesting that he make certain all the fragile merchandise was moved away from the windows. That was followed by a call to someone named Sherry about an 'impending incident' and requesting that what she called 'heavy artillery' be ready, following that up with 'you'd never be able to convince them to listen if I explained how I knew, or what it's going to be.'
They were pulling on to the parking lot of the set by the time Willow had finished that discussion, and Cordelia grimaced, hoping that there would be something inside to get rid of the lingering aftertaste of that potion she'd drank. Certainly no more time to discuss visions and rock monsters, or octopus things.
If there was coffee inside, then things would be better. Anything more would be great. Cordelia sighed as they walked towards the building, a cold certainty filling her that things weren't anywhere near done yet. Things were probably only just beginning.
End part 7.
Willow wanted to just worry about the problems of being in front of a camera with her stage fright. But Cordy's killer vision, with the rock-creature, the bad-guys-R-us meeting, and the 'strange guy with pale rubbery skin in a Taggert's boss uniform' that Cordelia had mentioned wouldn't go away. She wanted to hope the uniform was just some over-enthusiastic fan of the show, but… it would be a bit much to expect. Which meant there was lots of trouble, and it was probably only getting bigger.
Maybe seeing Alex again would help. He could always make her smile, especially now. Of course, if things were simpler…
Cordelia suddenly froze, her hand grabbing Willow's elbow almost too hard. "Willow? That woman… Lali-whats-it. She looks… she's got that same look. Like the freaky uniform guy, and those two baddies in the meeting."
Willow looked over, her eyes finding Laliari easily enough. It hadn't really registered before, partly from not having a lot of contact with the actress, and partly because she'd been too busy staring at Alex, but… there was something a bit off about her. Might as well look at her aura…
Willow relaxed a part of her mind, letting the people take on a blurring haze of colors. Multicolored halos of light surrounded them, familiar shimmering colors. But Laliari's wasn't quite the same. Oh, there were the normal sorts of colors from someone, and the colors indicated that she was fairly nice and incredibly devoted to Fred, but… but… the shape of her aura was all… well, different. It wasn't the sort of tall oval shape of a human aura, it was more a mass of swirls. Sort of like an octopus or an upside down shrubbery. Laliari wasn't human.
"okay….' Rubbing at her eyes, Willow pushed back her awareness, the auras fading from her eyes. "She's not human. Not a threat, but not human. So, if they're like her… urghh… coffee."
Willow smiled as she caught the scent of coffee. Now, where was that wonderful brew? After a moment, she started off, finding Alex sitting in a chair beside Gwen, both of them looking at scripts. She made a slight detour to a table with cups and a coffee pot, snagging a cup as she made her way over.
"So, how's that sub-plot working for you?" She couldn't quite keep from asking. Alex got this awkward look every time, and Gwen would blush… it was cute.
"Willow… umm…" Gwen was blushing, looking down at the script. "You're doing that on purpose. It's wonderful to have something to do that isn't talking to the computer."
Alex smiled, one hand reaching out to touch hers. "It's good to see you again. Of course, I think they've decided to give you a line or two this time around."
Willow blinked, her throat tightening at his words. "Lines?" Her voice had definitely just squeaked. "They want me to talk… in front of the camera?"
Gwen just laughed. "There are hundreds… thousands of people who would love an opportunity like that, and you look terrified. I'm going to go find Murray, figure out what they're planning to shoot next."
Willow offered a shaky smile to the now departing Gwen. "Those thousands of people… they're called actors, not computer consultants."
Sitting beside Alex, she tried to smile. "So… how've things been here?"
Looking into her eyes, Alex soon acquired a worried frown. "Willow… what's wrong? You look… rather shaken."
For a moment, Willow wanted to pour out the confusion of Cordelia's vision. But she didn't, partly because she wasn't certain if she could even explain that and have it make sense, partly because the visions weren't hers to talk about, and partly… "It's pretty complicated. And it has to do with… other stuff. Sunnydale sort of stuff that I'd sort of rather not go into here."
"Perhaps later then?" Alex pulled her closer for a one armed hug. "I can listen, if nothing else. And maybe having someone listen would help you calm down."
Thinking back to the sight of Cordelia arched in pain as the vision had ricocheted in her skull, Willow winced. "Maybe in a little bit, when we can have a moment of privacy. I can… well, I can tell you a little of it."
Smiling at her, he offered a suggestion. "Perhaps in the meanwhile, we can watch Cordelia and Jason argue?"
His smile was full of mischief, and Willow couldn't help but smile back. "We might as well give them an audience. It will make it easier for anyone to find us if they're looking."
End part 8.
Alex looped his arm over Willow's as they made their way towards the bridge set. He could already hear the sound of Jason saying something, probably to Cordelia.
"Because I'm Commander Taggert! Of course you can't resist me! Nobody does."
"Oh, get over yourself. You're not ugly, but there are better looking guys out there. With smaller egos."
"They don't have their own space-ships!"
"Does she even know why she's still dating him?" The voice carried a faintly Irish accent. Angel stepped from the shadows, his shirt untucked, his hair in disarray. He looked… pale, and his eyes almost bloodshot. As if he'd gotten too little sleep.
"Angel? What are you… How?" Willow was frowning at him, looking worried again.
He looked as if he was going to answer, but simply shrugged. "There are ways. I…. Couldn't sleep. Something's…. something wrong."
Gwen looked at the dark haired man, the smile lighting up her whole face. "Angel. I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"Bridge Crew on the set! Filming in two minutes people!" Murray's voice rang through the air.
Glancing at Willow, Alex sighed. He'd much rather stay at her side, but this was his job. "Pardon, but it seems I must go now and listen to someone tell me how to do my job."
Alex walked towards the bridge, noticing that Fred and Laliari were there, neither one looking quite calm. When Fred looked uneasy, it was troubling. And he couldn't quite help thinking that this might be connected to Willow's unease. He was slightly distracted by Angel speaking in a low voice to Cordelia and Willow… something about a demon? And did Cordelia say something about a rock monster?
As they slowly began moving onto the set for a scene, Alex tried to drag his mind away from Willow's conversation to his job. He'd missed the statement of what scene they were supposed to be doing. Taking a deep breath, he hoped that he didn't have the first line. Surely he'd remember when he heard the scene begin…
Fred looked over at Jason, his face once again impassive. "We need to make a few major engine repairs. That will take a few minerals, and some refined metals… A lot more than the amount that we have in storage."
Alex felt relief wash over him. He knew this scene, could do this one easily. "Commander? The closest friendly source of refined metals would be Delphos, the homeworld of…"
He was interrupted by Jason, who was smiling at Taggert's line. "The home of Princess Mirabanna. Of course. Laredo, set course for Delphos. Tawny, prepare a message requesting some assistance to be broadcast when we're close enough."
There was a sudden chirping noise from Laliari's pocket. It wasn't the soft ring of a cell phone. At least, not from any cell phone made on Earth. It was the annoyingly perky chirping sound of the Thermian communicators. Startled, half the people turned, looking at her in puzzlement.
Alex had a sudden feeling, and one hand raised, as if to block some sort of view. This would not be good. "Oh no…"
Just then, he felt the horrible tugging feeling, as if some invisible force had reached inside his head, pulling him upwards. His stomach protested and all of his muscles felt like they were trying to resist, to hold him here, on Earth, at the set.
But it was too late, he'd been digitized.
Stars seemed to flicker before his eyes, blurs and streaks of light as his essence was dragged through space to be reassembled on the Protector. It was a rather unsettling experience, one that he'd only had a few times, and would have been content to never repeat. As the streaks of light flickered past, he remembered that Willow, Cordelia and Angel had been there, as well as the production crew. How would he ever explain this one?
Then, he was standing on the platform, his muscles feeling rigid as he shook, his whole body feeling cold. Part of him was trying to figure out if everything was precisely where it should be, if he'd been put together properly. There was a sort of flash beside him, and Jason was there, his body twitching and shivering. Then Gwen, and Laliari and Fred, now holding a bag of coffee beans. A group of Thermians entered, looking like a small flock of rainbow colored octopi with hairdryers, the devices sending warmth back into shivering limbs as they pulled them off the transport pad, into another room. A table was there, with steaming mugs of something to drink.
As he lifted a cup in trembling hands, he heard the soft 'zapppff' sound of the digital transport activating again. And then he knew. Malthesar hadn't just brought them, he'd also brought 'Princess Mirabanna' and her handmaiden. Possibly Angel as well.
End part 9.
Angel stood on the platform, his entire body feeling odd. Sort of prickly, almost tingling. It sort of reminded him of the way he thought it had felt when his foot had fallen asleep, back when he'd been mortal, but he couldn't remember the sensation clearly. He was still trying to figure out what in the hell had just happened… No. No, he'd been to Hell, and nothing like that had ever happened there.
He'd been talking to Willow and Cordelia, trying to figure out what was going on, why his demon felt so restless that he couldn't sleep. It almost reminded him of thwarted or unfinished hunts… But he'd been unable to get more than a few moments rest at a time, and he'd finally given up. Hoping that one of the women had an answer, he'd gone downstairs, looking for them. Instead, he found a mug on the front desk, containing the dregs of a rather vile tasting herbal potion that served as a potent painkiller. He'd seen men that had been half dissemboweled drink that, get up and walk. Only Willow or Wesley would have known about it, and Wesley had been elsewhere for the weekend. But why would she have… unless Cordelia'd had a vision.
The implications were not good. If her vision had been that severe… Could that be connected with his demon's restless unease?
Fortunately, there were sewer tunnels that would allow him to get to the set where they'd gone. One of them actually came up in the basement of the very building, which had probably been the access used by that disgruntled fan that had frightened Gwen. Ooh, if he went, he might have the bonus of seeing Gwen… Tempting, pretty Gwen.
He'd been talking to Willow and Cordelia, having just managed to get Cordelia to admit to having a vision when he'd felt it, something like a tiny earthquake. It had struck again, a vibration in the earth that had been strong enough for the mortals to feel it. Cordelia had suddenly smelled of near terror, and had clutched at his arm, her face gone pale.
That had been when Alex Dane had suddenly shimmered and vanished. One by one, the rest of the actors on the set had vanished as well, with a sort of minature thunder popping noise. And then, he'd felt it – this strange tugging feeling, as if something had tried to grab his spine through his head. Everything had gone strange and cold, there were blurs of light, and then… here. Wherever here was.
It sort of looked familiar though, as if he'd seen it once before.
When the green octopus thing had entered the room, waving what looked like a pair of hairdryers at him, he'd blinked, wondering if he'd just gone entirely insane. Was he hallucinating from sleep deprivation? But if so, why were Willow and Cordelia still here beside him? One green tendril reached out, slipping around his wrist and gently tugging, trying to get him to move, to follow it through a doorway.
Following the thing, he found himself in a room, with the actors, all of which looked like they were feeling cold. Gwen was still shivering, her lips almost purple. But wait… they looked cold, but not confused. "What just happened?"
Gwen looked at him, her eyes full of so many things that he couldn't read. She might have wanted to answer, but she still looked as if she felt too cold to speak. Instead, she sipped at the cup in her hands.
"We have been digitized. Through the technology of digital transportation, beings can be moved from the surface of a planet to a ship almost instantaneously." The dark haired woman spoke, sipping at her own cup. She didn't seem to be nearly as affected as the other actors, perhaps because she wasn't human.
"Digital transportation… meaning? We've been kidnapped by aliens?" Angel could hear the bit of growl that had crept into his voice.
"We would not have brought you here if the need had not been most urgent. Please, you must help us… you and the Princess… and of course, the handmaiden."
The voice held a strange accent, and there was something else about the tones that told Angel that regardless of the shape, the man speaking to them was definitely not human. His smell was wrong, in the same way that the woman – Lalir or something like that? had a wrong scent. His skin seemed just a little too pale and smooth. And his uniform looked very similar to the ones worn by the actors.
"How did you know about us?" Cordelia's voice sounded far to calm.
The man's smile lacked comfort, and didn't quite fit right, as if he was copying a poorly understood movement. "We saw the historical broadcast. You and the Handmaiden defeated a Fangor Beast… surely you can help us. Without sufficient skill and forces, all…"
"Yes, yes, without more help, all is lost. I know." Cordelia made a gesture with her hand, as if to wave his words off. "What's at risk, and who precisely is everything at risk from? I'm a little bit unclear on that part."
For a moment, Angel felt utter confusion. The answer, oddly enough, came not from the inhuman man, or from Cordelia, but from deep inside, from his demon. Cordelia's vision must have included this man and his trouble. And he was utterly certain that while he'd done a great many bad things, none of them had been bad enough that he deserved this sort of punishment.
Glancing over at Gwen, he paused. Maybe this could have a few bright spots after all… "So, we're really on the Protector now?"
End part 10.