Chapter 19

Angel frantically looked around the large room. He could sense that Buffy was in danger and the sent of her blood was getting stronger. The problem was her sent was all over the place. Suddenly he saw her on the floor desperately trying to fend off an attacker. Every part of his body tensed as he covered the distance in flying leaps and crashed his full weight into her attacker. When he had averted the immediate danger he regained his balance and used the element of surprise to chop the head off another guy that stood near by, only to meet the sharp end of a sword cutting through his shoulder. He retreated slightly and it took a few seconds before his brain put the appearance and smell of the enemy together with a name; the Farach clan. He had never met them before but he had heard enough to make him whish for another bug to fight. Buffy was still on the ground, bleeding and badly hurt. Spike was slowly making his way in their direction but in his condition he would be very little use in a fight. Kaya was not bad in a fight but not near good enough for these hardened mercenaries. And the others were already preoccupied with Catherine and her witches. So he basically faced them alone.

He gritted his teeth a little then straightened. If Buffy could hold out this long and even manage to kill one of them, he should be able to keep them distracted long enough for Willow and the others to deal with the witches. That was all that mattered. Catherine had stopped chanting and was standing on a platform looking down at Willow who was apparently trying to plead with her. Even the Farachs seemed to keep an eye on the scene behind them, perhaps hoping for an order to withdraw. But the tone in Catherine's voice told him that she would never yield in her quest.

"I am your High Priestess." Catherine declared in loud, haughty voice giving Willow a superior look, "I am the oldest living witch. I have seen things beyond your wildest dreams. I taught you everything I know and I loved you. And this is how you repay me!" Willow's voice was surprisingly calm when she answered,

"This isn't you Catherine. This isn't the woman who I learnt from or the woman I loved. You know what unleashing the power of this crystal will do to the world and I refuse to believe you really want that. Just talk to me Catherine, let me help you."

Angel thought he could sense a change in the old woman and for a fleeting second he hoped it would all end here but then she spoke again and her voice was as cold and contemptuous as before,

"You think you know me because I occasionally let you crawl on my body like a flailing insect! You think you understand me because I taught you how to unbind a Taranik spell!" She suddenly threw her head back and laughed; a mad, detached laugh that killed all hope. Then she stopped abruptly and fixed a cold stare on Willow and hissed in a hoarse voice,

"You understand nothing! You don't know what it's like to see yourself slowly fade away, to watch as the person you once were slipping away. You're too young to understand the unbearable cruelty of the inevitable end. This crystal will give me the power to set it right, to bring peace and prosperity, to bring happiness and ultimate bliss." Her face was showing nothing but determination now and her voice burned with the passion of someone with no doubts. Angel had seen it before, the blinding terror of mortals as their lifespan reaches its conclusion. He knew in that moment this would never end until Catherine was dead. Apparently the Farachs came to the same conclusion and as the loyal mercenaries they were they immediately sprung into action.

As the broad sword of the Farach mercenary clashed with his he only had one thought; he had to protect Buffy. She had propped herself up against the wall behind him and he could hear her struggle to breathe. Over at the altar the witches had begun their battle. He could see a cascade of lights flying back and forth and Willow seemed to be going one on one with Catherine. But he couldn't pay attention to the witches for long as the four mercenaries took up all his focus. They began to take turns attacking him as if they were playing with him or testing his strength, but then suddenly two of them launched for him simultaneously and he barely managed to doge their weapons in time to keep his head. This wasn't working. He had to take control here. With a sudden leap he jumped over their heads and landed behind them. His sword missed the back of one of them by an inch as the mercenary spun around and blocked his efforts. But as he dodged another attack he did a double spin and managed to lodge his sword in his back. As the guy doubled over two others came for him and he had to fight hard to keep their swords off him. They were strong, stronger than any enemy he had fought in a long time and unlike him they were well rested. For every blow he had to match, for every punch they delivered to his body he could feel his energy fading. Eventually only willpower kept him going.

The sharp pain in his side told him he had been struck again and he fell down on one knee as a well aimed foot hit the back of his thigh with a loud crack. He forced himself up in time to block another attack but then reeled as he noticed one of the mercenaries going after Buffy. Strength he didn't know he had started to flow through him and he started pounding on the two guys in front of him with sheer rage. But Buffy had gratefully regained enough strength to hold her own and was doing a fair job of fighting him off. To his surprise Angel suddenly realized he was just fighting one as Spike and Kaya had started to tackle the other one. With Spike barely on his feet and Kaya not even close to a match for a Farach mercenary it didn't look good and Angel found himself worrying as much for them as he did for Buffy while at the same time trying to defeat his attacker. Just as he felt he was getting the upper hand on him a flash of light so bright it blinded them all came from the altar. Through the light Angel thought he saw Willow but only like a black shadow against the whiteness around her. A second later she flew through the air like a mitten and fell hard against the floor. They all froze for a moment, staring as Willow remained lifeless on the floor and Catherine calmly went back to the crystal and began to chant again. A chill spread around his body as he realized the High Priestess couldn't be defeated by magic. That only left physical force and he was the only one left with enough strength to take her on.

The temporary interruption soon ended and Angel launched with every last drop of determination on his adversary and succeeded in cutting off the hand that held the weapon. One quick blow later the mercenary lay dead at his feet. He hesitated there for a moment, torn between helping Buffy, Spike and Kaya or neutralizing Catherine. But a quick glance at Spike told him that the vampire was doing rather well for someone who had just been speared and Buffy seemed to be winning her battle, fighting with the passion and liveliness only she could muster at times like this. God how he loved her! But that made up his mind and he turned and ran. Within a few seconds he was heading up the stairs towards the altar.

Even though Catherine was unharmed the other witches had not been so lucky. All seven of them lay dead or dying at the base of the altar. He ignored them as he took the stairs three at a time. When he reached the top he raised his sword, aimed it at her backside and was just about to strike when she suddenly turned, mumbled something and to his shock he could no longer move. He stood there like a statue, his sword raised high and unable to complete his mission. She looked up at him with such a sickening smile that he whished he could throw up.

"Soon my darling." she whispered and caressed his cheek with her long fingers. "Soon we will have all the time in the world." Her eyes slid along his body in such a voluptuous way it made his skin crawl. He remembered all too well their encounter under the stars. How she had flattered him and praised him on his splendor, trying to get his loyalty. When he finally asked what she wanted she had actually tried to convince him that Buffy was no good for him, that all he needed was her. He remembered the desperation in her eyes, how she clung to his arm like a drowning to a lifeboat. She had even sunk so low that she tried to seduce him right then and there, letting her hand glide down along his chest and inside his pants. That's when he had freaked out and she had put the spell on him. Now it was obvious where she was planning on picking up from once the ceremony was complete. He felt strangely violated and whished he could at least close his eyes so he didn't have to look at her.

Just as Catherine was about to return to the crystal and her chanting, Buffy's voice came from behind him, strong and determined.

"Get your wrinkly paws off my boyfriend, bitch!" He could hear her walking up towards them but as Catherine turned with a menacing glint in her eyes he knew she was going to kill her. He fought like mad to break free, to move something, to do something but nothing helped. He was trapped and all he could do was watch helplessly as Catherine formed a fireball in her hand and threw it at Buffy. He couldn't see her fall but he heard it and he felt it. As her body hit a pillar and it collapsed on her the pain tore through him like million knifes. He wanted to scream but nothing came out.

"There now." Catherine purred in his ear. "No more unpleasant interruptions." Then she calmly went back to her chant.

Giles slowly opened his eyes. It felt like someone was pounding a sledgehammer on his head and he almost doubled over in pain trying to breathe. The last thing he remembered was helping Deanna holding off the attack of one of Catherine's witches. Now he was on the floor and by the feel of it rather badly hurt. He made an effort to sit up but he gasped in pain and had to abandon such a notion. His leg was clearly broken and he could see the bone sticking out of his flesh. And considering the pain in his shoulder he guessed he had dislocated it. He forced himself to breathe calmly and looked around. He could hear Catherine still chanting so the ceremony was apparently not finished yet but except for her voice echoing through the room there was an eerie silence. Had they already lost?

He clenched his jaw to keep from crying out in pain as he carefully sat up. Deanna was lying on the floor next to him, still unconscious but by the movement in her chest-area he concluded she was still alive. Some distance away he saw Xander sprawled on the floor, also unconscious but he was too far away to see if he was breathing. As his eyes kept scanning his surroundings his eyes fell on the scene by the altar. Angel was standing right behind Catherine with his sword pointing towards her back. Giles exhaled gratefully. It would surely be over soon. Angel would take care of it. But nothing happened. Angel just stood there as if he was carved in stone. It took a while for him to realize Angel was probably under some spell and his heart started to beat faster as panic began to spread through his body. He tried to get up but quickly had to concede he was in no shape to take on the High Priestess. But surely they couldn't all have been defeated?

He looked around frenetically. When his eyes landed on Willow's lifeless body a pain struck his chest worse than the pain in his leg. It couldn't be! He had been so sure she could take Catherine. She had stood so calm, so strong. He had never been more proud of her. All the things she had gone through, all the things she had sacrificed over the years, he had been convinced she was destined to be the most powerful High Priestess of all times. But there she was, motionless and helpless, and Catherine was close to succeeding. Tossed between hope and despair he continued to scan the large room as much as his broken body would allow. Where was Buffy? Please don't let her be dead too! Then he saw her and all hope vanished. She was lodged under a fallen pillar and all he could see of her was an arm and a leg sticking out under the rubble. The crystal was beginning to glow now and he could feel the surge of energy emanating from it. Slowly the energy started to flow from the crystal, through Catherine's hands and up her arms. There was only a matter of minutes before it would all be over. He made one final attempt to get up but his body wouldn't obey his whishes and he had to give up. He lay down again cursing his own weakness. Tears rolled down his cheek and he closed his eyes. He couldn't bear to watch the end.

Catherine's chanting was reaching its climax and the floor began to shake under him. Every movement was excruciating and he cringed in pain. It almost got to the point where he wished for it all to be over. Suddenly he heard something. He looked up, fearing his mind was playing tricks on him. But there she was, limping and bleeding but unbreakable. As she made her way up the stairs and towards Catherine it was clear every step she took was a painful struggle but she refused to give in. He smiled to himself. That was his Slayer.

Catherine´s chanting and the humming of the energy surge, was echoeing round the room but as Buffy painstakingly moved closer the High Priestess suddenly went silent. As Catherine squared her shoulders and turned regaly, Buffy used all her ironwill to take one last leap and launched her whole weight against the sword Angel still held in his hand. It pushed right into Catherine's heart and the energy surging through the woman stopped abruptly and Giles could hear a loud, inhuman shriek emanating from her throat. His eyes watered with pride. The dear, sweet girl had done it, she'd actually done it! She…the explosion hit like a ton of bricks and all went black.