Animatus II: The Descent
Notes: Thanks for the reviews. Keep them coming! For all of you 'Standing on the Edge of Tomorrow' people, I have completely outlined what I want to do with the third part of the story. So, as soon as I'm done with this one, I'll start posting that one. I know it's been a long time, so thanks for bearing with me.
Previously:
"I got some news," Jay said, smiling widely.
"What's that?" Faith asked, not entirely sure that she looked the expression on his face.
"The army is assembling a team to go into the Initiative to try to find a cure for the virus," Jay explained. "They think the scientists made one before everything went to hell. And guess what? They're asking for volunteers."
"Volunteers?" Faith asked.
"Yeah," Jay nodded. "How would you like to go back to Sunnydale?"
Chapter Two: A Reason to Continue:
"A cure?" Faith asked suddenly, Jay's words registering in her mind. "There's a cure?"
"Apparently," Jay replied. "They're holding some of the Initiative scientists here. They were reluctant to talk at first, but they've been telling their interrogators some interesting things lately."
"Like what?" Faith asked eagerly.
"They were working on a virus on Sub-Level Three of the Initiative. The government had contracted it as a means of controlling wartime casualties," Jay explained.
"Which means?" Faith prompted.
"Given the increasing cost of human life inherent to modern warfare, the government wanted a way to ensure that it wouldn't lose its soldiers so easily to wounds that could be healed if they were treated at a hospital," Jay continued. "When a guy gets his leg blown off in the field, he generally dies. The blood loss becomes too much and hospitals are few and far between when you're on the front line."
"So the government contracted for a virus that would prevent those injuries from becoming fatal," Faith concluded. "Something that soldiers could carry with them and inject themselves."
"Exactly," Jay nodded. "But the Initiative took the idea a step further. They knew that they could devise something that would work quickly to heal fatal wounds. But they wanted to make something that would prevent death altogether, even after someone had died. The virus hadn't been officially named yet, but the scientists that were working on it were calling it 'Animatus' because it reanimated dead flesh. You know scientists, they have a thing for Latin."
"It brought the dead back to life," Faith whispered.
"Yeah. However, there was a problem with the virus that they hadn't expected," Jay continued.
"People weren't the same once they were brought back to life," Faith finished.
"They were violent, unpredictable," Jay stated. "And they had this crazy desire for human flesh."
"Why?" Faith asked.
"The virus was made from demon blood," Jay replied. "I don't know the specifics, but that's why the contract went to the Initiative. The Initiative dealt with demons that could live forever, demons that could regenerate body parts, and even demons that, once they were killed, could reanimate themselves. It was only natural that they would win the bid for the contract. However, demon blood is incredibly unstable. And so was the virus."
"Shit," Faith muttered, running a hand through her hair, which she had recently washed courtesy of the army's showers. It felt soft to her touch.
"So, like I said, you want to go back to Sunnydale?" Jay asked expectantly.
Faith laughed bitterly. There had been a cure to the virus that caused the zombie invasion. If only she had known that earlier, she might have been able to save her lover. Buffy had died needlessly. "Are you going?" She asked, looking up at the soldier standing before her. His green eyes twinkled back at her. He had visited the barber and his hair was shaved close to his head again. By the time they had reached the fence that had separated them from the outside world, Jay's hair had been curling around his ears. She liked his new look much better.
"Yeah," he replied seriously. "I know you may not understand why…after all, we just got out of there, but I signed up for a reason. Though the Initiative may be gone, I've still got a job to do."
"I understand," Faith nodded. "So do I."
"Does that mean you'll come with me?" Jay asked hopefully. Though he already had agreed to reenter the Initiative compound to find the cure to the virus, he was nervous. However, he felt comfortable around Faith. He knew that she would watch his back.
"I'll come with you," Faith agreed. "I'm not so sure that Giles will be happy to hear it though."
"No?" Jay asked.
"He wants me to go to Los Angeles," Faith explained.
"Would you rather go there?" Jay questioned.
Faith smiled and shook her head. "A great part of me died when Buffy did. I need to go back, if only to put everything to rest. If I can help find a cure for this thing, maybe I can find a reason to keep on going."
"Come on," Jay said, moving towards the door. "We have to sign you up before all of the spaces are gone."
"That many people volunteering huh?" Faith smirked.
Jay flushed red with embarrassment. "Well, no," he admitted. "But I want you to sign your name on the dotted line before you change your mind."
"I won't be changing my mind," Faith assured him.
"Faith?" Willow called. She had sensed the movement in her sleep. Snippets of the dark haired Slayer's conversation with Jay had floated through her dreams and she knew that Faith was leaving.
"Yeah?" Faith asked, turning back to the red haired witch. Both she and Tara had awoken and were sitting up in their bed.
"You leaving?" Willow asked, though she already knew the answer to her question.
Faith looked down at the floor for several moments before nodding slowly. "I have to."
"What happened to sticking together?" Willow asked, smiling softly.
"I'm coming back," Faith promised. "There's just something that I have to do."
"Be careful," Tara said emotionally, her voice clear and strong.
Faith smiled at the change and nodded. "I always am."
"Take care of her, okay?" Willow instructed Jay.
Jay nodded. "I don't have too many friends left," he stated. "I don't plan on losing anymore."
Jay opened the door. The light of the moon crept into the room. Faith flashed a smile back at the two witches and walked out into the night. Jay followed after and the door closed behind them with an audible bang. "When are we leaving?" Faith asked.
"Tomorrow morning," Jay answered.
"What makes you think that they'll want me to come along? I'm not in the military," Faith reminded him.
"You know the town," Jay answered matter-of-factly. "Who better to lead them?"
"What about you?" Faith asked. "You know the town."
"I do," Jay nodded. "But I'd only been there for a little while. I had just been transferred to the Initiative."
"I can't believe that I'm going back there," Faith muttered under her breath as she and Jay walked across the street. "Where are we going?"
"We're going to see the General," Jay answered. "He's the one recruiting volunteers. I'll explain to him that you want to go back. You led us out of Sunnydale, you know how to use a gun. You can lead us back in."
"And hopefully he'll say yes?" Faith finished.
"Hopefully," Jay grinned. "Listen, I'm sorry about Buffy."
"It's okay," Faith replied softly.
"I know that she meant a lot to you," he added.
"The world," Faith whispered tool low for him to hear.
"I just want you to know that if you need anything, I'm here," he said sympathetically.
"Thanks," Faith smiled.
"Here we are," Jay announced as they approached a rather large tent. Slipping inside, Faith blinked her eyes, trying to adjust them to the bright lights blazing within. "Sir," Jay stated, his voice firm.
An older man looked up at the young soldier. Faith eyed him warily. His gray hair was cropped close to his head and when his clear, blue eyes fell upon her face, she felt like he could see into her very soul. "Who's this?" He asked gruffly. He was hunched over a map of Sunnydale. In one hand he held a red marker. He was circling places on the map.
"This is Faith," Jay replied. "She's the woman who led us out of Sunnydale."
The man looked up at Faith again, scrutinizing her more closely this time. "Hello," he said finally, stretching his other hand out to her. Faith accepted it, gave it a single, firm shake, and then released it.
"Good to meet you," she replied unevenly.
"Faith wants to volunteer to go back into Sunnydale," Jay explained.
"A civilian?" The General asked. Faith thought that she heard a smirk in his voice.
"I know that it's not customary, sir," Jay added quickly. "But she knows what she's doing. Besides, she can lead us through the town better than anyone else can. She lived there."
The General stared at her for several long moments. Faith shifted uneasily under his gaze, but remained firm. Finally, he nodded. "You up for this?" He asked her.
"I am," Faith nodded.
"It's not going to be a walk in the park. I have to warn you. I don't know what's down there," he said, in reference to the Initiative. "It might not be pretty."
"I can handle it," Faith reassured him.
"And you can handle a weapon?" The General asked.
"Would you like a demonstration?" Faith snapped back.
The man smiled and shook his head. "I don't think that will be necessary."
"So she can go then?" Jay asked.
"Against my better judgment, yes, she can go. To be honest, we need people. No one's keen on volunteering, oddly enough," the General said with a laugh. "The team leaves tomorrow morning just after dawn. We'll outfit you with weapons and brief you on the details of the mission then. Might I suggest that you get some sleep? Once you get in there, you won't get another chance until you come back out."
"Thanks," Faith nodded as Jay pulled her out of the tent. He flashed a quick salute back to the General as they slipped out into the night.
"Would you like a demonstration?" Jay whispered harshly as they exited. "Are you insane?"
"What?" Faith asked defensively.
"He might have shot you for that," Jay muttered.
Faith smiled. "He didn't though, did he? I think he kinda liked me."
"I think he thought you were crazy," Jay shot back.
Faith chuckled and glanced out into the night. Ahead of her, she saw Dr. Rachel Lenz striding purposefully towards the tent. "Faith," she stated, smiling when she saw the younger girl. "I was just coming to tell the General that your tests were negative. You're not infected, though I imagine you knew that already."
"That's good news," Faith replied. "And yeah, I did."
"Looks like you're cleared to go then," Jay stated.
"Go where?" Rachel asked, glancing back and forth between them.
"I volunteered to go back into Sunnydale," Faith answered.
"Back into Sunnydale?" Rachel asked, shaking her head. "That's suicide."
"Maybe," Faith nodded. "But I always did like living dangerously."
"Well, good luck," Rachel said as Faith and Jay walked past her. "You're going to need it."
………………………………………….
When the first light of dawn was straining over the horizon, Buffy shifted uneasily in her chair atop the roof of the sporting goods store, and awoke. Blinking her eyes several times to clear them of sleep, she sat up, wincing as her back cracked. "Well that wasn't exactly comfortable," she muttered. Rising to her feet, she stretched her sore muscles. The morning was crisp and cold. Wrapping her arms around her body, she shivered. The sun slowly was rising over the edge of the world. Buffy could no longer hear the moaning of the zombies. They had disappeared back to wherever they emerged from each night.
The wound on her arm throbbed painfully, reminding her of the infection flowing through her veins. She had forgotten about it momentarily as she watched the sun struggle to climb into the sky. But the pain reminded her that she had a mission to accomplish. However, her growling stomach took precedence and she reached down into her bag. Pulling out some beef jerky and a bottle of water, she walked over to the edge of the roof, and sat down on the ledge. With her feet dangling off of the roof, she absently chewed on a strip of jerky and watched the sky turn from dark blue to orange to its regular shade of blue. The sun crept higher in the sky until it was paralleled her.
The blonde Slayer wondered where Faith was at that moment. Somehow, she felt that Faith was watching the sun rise as well. That thought made her smile. She could picture the golden rays of the sun lighting up Faith's dark, brown eyes – those eyes that had seemed so dead to her at one time, which now contained a myriad of emotions that the younger girl only had allowed Buffy to see. "Faith," Buffy whispered, her voice sighing through the breeze. "God, I miss you." She wanted nothing more than to feel the warmth of her lover's arms wrapping around her, holding her close. But she knew that she would not feel that warmth again until she was able to find a cure for the infection spreading through her body. She wondered why she had not turned already. She assumed that her Slayer strength and healing was preventing the virus from spreading too quickly through her. Perhaps her immune system was struggling to fight it.
When she had finished eating, she placed the left overs back inside of her bag and zipped it shut. Though the van sat waiting for her on the street below, Buffy decided that she was going to walk to the nearest Initiative entrance. Ultimately, she believed that it would be faster. If she took the van, she would have to pick her way through the abandoned cars littering the street. However, on her feet, she could maneuver between them easily. She remembered seeing an auxiliary entrance to the main floor of the Initiative just outside of the campus of U.C. Sunnydale. A storage shed had been constructed in the woods, which contained several flights of stairs leading deep underground. She knew that she could find it again.
Rising to her feet, she closed her eyes, and allowed the warmth of the sun to touch her face. Already, the chill of the morning was dispersing. Though Buffy knew that she might not make it to the Initiative, and, even if she did, she would have a difficult time finding the anti-virus, all she could feel was hope for the future. Every step she took brought her closer to Faith. Slinging her bag over her shoulder, she moved over to the trap door. Pulling it open, she gazed down into the store. She could see no movement within. Climbing down the ladder, she moved quickly over to the stairs and descended them. Pushing open the door leading out to Main Street, she felt the anxiety that had arisen in her heart once she had entered the store again dissipate like mist rising over water.
Once she had filled her pack to the brim with food, water, and ammunition, she shouldered it and started walking. The empty streets of Sunnydale greeted her silently. She wondered if she would ever feel at home in any other place. But she knew that wherever Faith was, she would be at home. Fingering her gun absently, she glanced at the abandoned stores littering the block. She remembered when Sunnydale had been a bustling town, full of life. The memory caused a deep pain in her heart. She knew that she could not have done anything to prevent the zombie attack; yet, she felt that, as the Slayer, she should have somehow known that it was going to happen. Shaking the feeling away, she set a determined pace towards the college campus. She wanted to reach it before noon. Once she entered the Initiative, she had no idea what to expect. But she knew that as long as Faith was safe, she would have a reason to continue.