Title: Resistance (7/7)
Author: Miz Thang
Characters/Pairing: Ensemble, Illyria/Spike, DS/Angel, WR/OFC, CG/HK, DS/Spike
Rating: FRM
Word Count: 1479
Warnings: Angst. Melodrama. Romance. Character death.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the little story's idea. Everything else belongs to who it belongs to.
SummaryLet's pretend, that, for a moment, Illyria's great army isn't dead at the end of Shells, and that she begins a great rise to power, and basically, war breaks out. There's only one group that dares intervene, known as the Resistance.

Notes: This is an ahead-of-time warning. This story only has five chapters, a prologue and an epilogue. This is supposed to tell the end of the struggle against Illyria. If not, it'd be some long drawn out story about the three hundred and fifty years I skipped. It's also quite possible that there could be a sequel. And oh, this story is Spike/Illyria, among other pairings.

Author's Note: This is the end.

Epilogue

-2704-

There is much speculation about what happened in that dungeon that day. Some say that it was the end for the Resistance. That after Sandris dropped dead, Dawn had caught Gwen off guard and killed her before finishing all the executions.

Others, the more optimistic ones, say that it couldn't have been the end, that the Resistance will never die. They say that Gwen led the last remaining members to safety and hid for the next three hundred fifty years to rise again and take on Illyria and Spike with an army of their own.

Some of those that believe that the Resistance was still alive also believed that a great battle commenced soon after Gwen staked Phoenix and that many died and only a few survived to restart the secret group.

Only one fact remained no matter the rumors. The Slayer Hope had been caught and murdered before the citizens. The people had crowded in the courtyard of Illyria's palace and watched as Buffy publicly humiliated the girl. They watched as she was hung on Illyria's balcony with sickened interest and none failed to cheer as it was celebrated.

Astin, Sari, Miller Gwen and a new comer by the name of Daphne had watched this on television, watched with guilt and some grief as they lost another slayer. She would be the last one to speak out for another three hundred fifty years.

For months they stayed in the shadows, determined to plan their attacks and save the world from the atrocity that was Illyria. Their saving grace came in a Chinese girl named Xian Yin. She proved herself useful, attacking Harmony one-on-one and slamming the stake into her heart before Gunn's very eyes.

This renewed Resistance paid for this dearly as Daphne was brutally maimed and dismembered in a park one night by Faith, left for mothers to find the next morning. It would toss anyone's stomach to see the body. Gunn had thanked Faith before many in a televised report.

The Resistance was sent deeper into hiding as innocent bystanders were killed, one for each year of Harmony's existence, both vampire and human. The numbers were staggering.

Unbelievably, this was not the largest blow the Resistance faced. It was the two subsequent returns of Phoenix and Angel. She was still the evil Phoenix vampire (brought back by a ritual and the necklace Spike gave her just moments before she ventured down to the executions), while he was souled, innocent and human. Just what Phoenix would want in him. For weeks, they had kept him out of her reach as she stalked him, played mind games, and drove him down until she had him begging her to kill him. And then she did. She brought back Angelus. They tried to stop his rise, but Phoenix, super human key-turned-vampire, was no force to reckon with as the Resistance quickly found out. She made her actions known, showing off her sadistic creation.

Defeat was imminent, but they would not admit to it. No, Angelus, had been sadistic before, but this one-this thing that Dawn-Phoenix-had created. He'd specifically gone after Astin. Astin who had once seen him as an ally, a friend, for three centuries. And now the only vampire on their team had to see him as an enemy. The day that Angelus had smirked and slammed the stake into Astin's chest was a day where reevaluations had to be made. Choices and plans were needed, and soon.

In simple terms, all hell broke loose throughout the next three hundred or so years.

Gwen went after Gunn herself, not that many knew this. She and Gunn had a match that would end all matches, both equal in strength and supernatural energy. It could only end one day. Illyria never told Gunn that her gift of immortality was only to prevent age. Gwen gave her ex-ally the strongest shock she had and watched with intense pleasure as she shoved him off his own balcony and down to his death.

The Dominance, as the Resistance had taken to calling the Illyrian reign, was furious at the development. Gwen had to go into hiding for the longest while as Spike took up the search for her; she fell under his jurisdiction, as a supernatural being that wasn't a slayer or demon. Willow had accidentally given her immortality. Xian Yin more than made up for it, taking to hunting after the ex slayers-turned-vampires as Spike went after Gwen.

Xian Yin was successful in her attempts, as successful as Spike was. The same morning that Phoenix realized her sister was missing was the same morning that the Resistance turned on the news to see the recovery of Gwen's body. Sari herself was sick of these developments. Every night one of the members went out, she would have insomnia, not falling asleep until they returned. She didn't like all the death.

Around the year of 2671, they found the Slayer once more. They rejoiced for a while, glad to have something in their favor. Miller and Xian Yin trained her as best as they could, and Sari kept her from falling under Dawn and Spike's radar. It did not last long, but they never truly expected it to; Sari had never been good at magic.

The Slayer, Tempest, did not fall victim to either Spike or Dawn though, Angelus himself took great pleasure in killing the girl and had made comments about the race to find the next one. Xian Yin had foretold to them of the apocalypse that would come, a final showdown of the Dominance versus the Resistance. She pointed it out as soon as they found the next Slayer named Gale.

She was trained to the best of Xian Yin's ability, but that wouldn't be enough. They wouldn't give up, though; they could never give up and let the Dominance just win. They planned a suicidal ambush, Xian Yin and Gale. They rushed Illyria's palace and intended to kill as many traitors and opponents as possible.

Those that fell included Faith the ex-Slayer, and it was believed for a while (not that the Dominance attempted to stop it) that Connor was dead. He wasn't. Neither Xian Yin nor Gale was informed that Connor had been immortal like Gunn and Gwen had.

Gale was killed not too shortly after that, by Dawn, who had earned herself the name Dark Phoenix. Xian Yin had felt that something bad would happen and had gone out in search of her protégé. All she found was the cold and lifeless body of a girl who had yet to reach the age of fifteen. They couldn't find another slayer in enough time before she could be killed after that.

To be truthful, Xian Yin, Miller and Sari were quite drained after fighting against the Dominance for three hundred and fifty years. Ironically, then, the day that many optimists talked about and the day that Xian Yin had repeatedly prophesized was not as great as they thought. Sandris was right, in either case.

The Dominance won, and the Resistance lost. Dawn, Connor and Angelus had gone to face down the last members. Dawn had drained Xian Yin of her life's blood with a lot of joy, though she'd wished Gwen was still alive just to kill her. Connor had snapped Sari's neck as if she was just a tiny twig and had waited patiently as Angelus faced off Miller. He would be the last surviving member of the Resistance and take all three to kill him.

There would be parades, because the Resistance would be gone, and tales of how the defeat came to be would travel throughout the world. Many different versions would arise, including ones in which the final three members had managed to escape…

Illyria gave a great speech. "Today, Illyrians, we make a great step towards advancement…"

A blue eyed girl with a unique shade of silver hair rolled her eyes. "Right. Advancement. She's still a goddamn tyrant."

"Ssh. If anyone hears you speak against her, we will die for the final time." Her companion said, a girl of darker eyes and vibrantly red hair. She still did not understand, after three and a half years, why it became fashionable to stick out like a beacon.

"Yeah, yeah, I know." The first female says. She turns from the crowd and is followed by her much more uptight friend. "The Resistance is dead, Yin, I understand It, but can we really leave the world like this? Ruled by a blue bitch and her bleached blond ass of a mate?"

Yin, formerly known as Xian Yin, looked around her. "We have to. We cannot ruin this, Sari."

Sari nodded reluctantly. "Right." She started to walk again, "How about an Illyrian burger?"

Xian Yin followed and responded accordingly.

Sandris also wasn't lying when she said there were tricks.

END STORY-