Chapter 17
Riley Finn was trapped. Trapped inside his own body being possessed by a demon. Never had he imagined it would come to this. His own body used against him. When he'd been stopped by a gentleman asking for directions outside of the magic box Riley hadn't been in the mood to help. Having just been broken up with didn't make him feel very helpful. His mother would have tanned his hide if he'd taken his bad mood out on someone else, so he'd stopped to answer the man's question. The next thing he knew he was trapped in his body with someone else at the wheel. Riley was utterly horrified, but determined to warn Buffy anyway he could. As he listened to his new father start handing out instructions Riley paid attention. Hearing their discussion on the use of him, in feeding Buffy information, made Riley wanted to be sick. Their desire to use Riley as a tool for determining whom the key and the lock were had Riley's mind swimming. Hearing Aaquerafet request his son to peruse Riley's memories for an in with the slayer Riley thought quickly and tried to mentally influenced the demons choice. Showing him the fear the Initiative had initially shot through the hearts of all creatures in Sunnydale, he pushed that thought with everything he had. He backed it up with images of him and Buffy in love, and working together at the Initiative. Hearing the demon tell Aaquerafet the plan had Riley breathing a sigh of relief. Feeling weak from effort, and feeling his hold on even his mental space growing dim Riley knew the rest would be up to Buffy. Sending up a prayer for her survival Riley released his last hold and whispered out of existence.
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That afternoon when Dawn got out from school, she, Sam, Buffy and Dean were getting put through the paces by Giles, and John. They were spared the curiosity of Willow as she was working with Tara to get ready for Riley's arrival the next day. Sam, Buffy, Dean, and Dawn had made another transfer of shared power. Buffy & Dean were now up to 35 and the difference was startling. Buffy and Dean both were able to create a link not only with Sam and Dawn, but also with someone new as well. That was going to come in very handy when directing troops. Dean was also getting faster and stronger. He wasn't equal to Buffy yet, but he was at least equal to a fledgling vampire. The hardest part was working together as a unit. They worked great in pairs, and it didn't even matter which way the pairs went, but working as a foursome was proving to be trickier then initially anticipated.
"Augh!" Buffy screamed and collapsed onto the floor. "What's going on, why can't we get this to work?"
"It's like something is missing." Sam mused equally frustrated at their lack of progress.
"What could be missing?" Dawn asked taking a seat besides Buffy.
"Could you have missed a step in the bonding process?" Giles asked.
"No the bonds are complete and strong." Dean said, "It's something else."
"Like a piece is missing from the puzzle." Buffy finished for Dean.
"Another person? Who could that be?" John asked.
"I don't think it's a person, I feel like it's an object. Something important." Sam mused.
"Something that's vital to the channeling of our power." Dawn finished for Sam.
"How about accessing previous lives to see if they hold the answer?" Giles queried.
"Best idea, we've had so far?" Dawn said sitting up and waited for Sam to join her. Looking at Buffy she said, "Want to come along to help. You might find something we miss."
Sharing a look Dean shrugged his shoulders and said, "Sounds like a plan, let's do this bitch."
Forming the link took a matter of minutes and then all four were in Dawn and Sam's subconscious waiting to begin their search.
All of a sudden Sam froze. "Stop!" He shouted.
Feeling his unadulterated panic Dawn rushed to his side screaming, "What's wrong?"
"Someone else is here with us?" Sam voice rose with concern. "Can't you feel that?" He asked all the others.
Looking around the white room no one else could see or feel anything different. "Sam, man are you sure, cause I'm not picking up anything different." Dean asked worry coloring his tone.
"Look I know it sounds crazy, but there's someone else here with us. They don't feel harmful, I don't know how they got here, but they are and their getting closer." Sam ground out concerned that he was the only one who could feel this presence.
"Maybe this is a good thing. You said it didn't feel harmful, maybe it's help to show us what we're missing." Buffy commented.
"I still don't get why no one else can feel it though?" Dawn said looking very confused. "I mean Sam and I are connected how come I'm not aware of this presence."
"Because I only have a connection to Sam, not to anyone else." A voice spoke in the light.
Buffy, Dean and Dawn looked around in confusion, but Sam froze shock covering his face and tears filling his eyes. "Jess?" he croaked out finally
"Jess?" Dean said looking shocked.
"It's good to see you again Dean." Jess said her voice getting clearer as she materialized visually inside the room. "Hello Sam." Jess said looking at Sam with such love and compassion. "Surprised."
Buffy, Dean and Dawn stayed back as Sam walked towards Jess letting him have this time with his dead love. "How is this possible?" Sam asked as the tears fell from his eyes.
"Because I'm here to help you." Jessica told him putting a hand to his face and caressing it gently. "I was always there to help you."
"What do you mean?" Sam asked as he grabbed her hand and held it determined not to let go.
"Sam, I always knew who, and what you were." Jess answered gently.
"What!" Dean exclaimed Sam just stood there looking shocked.
"For as long as there has been a lock and a key there have been those dedicated to the protection of both. Your birth was foretold in this life, and my family has been a part of an organization of women dating back 1000's of years to its protection." Jess finished proud of her mother's heritage.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Sam asked. "Was it just a job, being with me?" Sam whispered the last part out unable to stand the thought that Jess had been with him out of some sort of duty.
"No, Sam, oh no!" Jess exclaimed. "I wasn't even supposed to get involved with you, but I fell so in love with you I couldn't stop myself. You were so amazing, you still are, and I just couldn't resist you." Jess finished putting both hands on Sam's face and cupping it gently. "I didn't say anything, because I didn't want to lose what we had. I knew I would have to give you up to your key eventually, but I was selfish I wanted those years we had together. You were running so hard from your past I was afraid if I told you, you would run away from me." Jess said sadly.
"Good bet." Dean said wryly, only to get a poke in the ribs from Buffy.
"Shut up." Buffy hissed, her own heart breaking at the pain those two had to endure.
Dawn didn't even bother to say anything; she just whacked Dean upside his head.
Shooting Dawn a concerned look, Buffy took her sister's hand in her own for support.
Squeezing Buffy's hand, Dawn sent a reassuring smile to Buffy and whispered, "It's okay, I'm concerned for Sam, not because of him."
Nodding her head Buffy turned back to Sam and Jess. The two were embracing trying to comfort each other while apologizing for all the pain they had unintentionally inflicted.
"So are you the missing piece?" Sam whispered into Jessica's hair, inhaling the scent that was so unique to her.
"No, that would be a little awkward." Jess laughed self-deprecatingly. I'm just here to show you the way. Or show Buffy the way anyhow."
"Buffy?" Dean, Dawn, and Buffy chorused together.
Turning towards the others, Sam sought out Dawn to make sure she was okay. Meeting her eyes Sam felt a great surge of love towards Dawn for the understanding and compassion that was reflected in her eyes. Mouthing "Thank you." To her, Sam felt a smile come over his face at Dawn's answering wink.
"Uhm, Buffy, Dawn this is Jess." Sam said ironically since that part everyone had figured out. "Jess this is Buffy, Dawn, and you've met Dean. Buffy is the slayer and Dawn is…." Sam trailed off.
Smiling at his unease Jess answered, "Your jailbait mystical soul mate?" with no small amount of humor.
Busting out laughing Dawn answered, "Got it in one. I keep trying to convince him to keep his hands to himself, but he's all over me." Dawn joked back.
Giggling hysterically at the look on Sam's face Jess answered, "Oh I know what you mean, I mean I was eighteen when me met, but the only reason he paid any attention to me was because I looked 16 max."
"It's so sad really, it's a sickness you know." Dawn gasped out holding her stomach from laughing so hard.
Buffy was trying to hold Dawn upright while laughing herself, and Dean clapped a hand on his brother's shoulder and said, "Sam, I don't know how you managed to get both of them, but you are truly one lucky son of a bitch."
Grinning wryly at the humor of the situation Sam answered, "Yeah I know."
"Okay as much fun as teasing Sam is, Jess what were you saying about Buffy?" Dawn asked finally able to get control.
"As you know your missing a piece of the puzzle, you've all felt a kind of distraction when working as a group yes?" Jess asked. At everyone's nod she continued, "Take a seat, because this is quiet a long story. As you know Demons used to roam the earth feeding off humans to the point of almost extinction. In order to save the human race, the leaders of the time made a deal with their gods for a warrior to fight for them, and drive the demons from the earth. Needless to say it was to big of a task for just one person, a slayer or not." Jess smiled at Buffy, who was grinning and nodding her head. "However mankind needed help so the slayer was created out of a young girl the elders sacrificed to their god. What was lost over time was how the slayer was created. The watcher council believes the slayer was created by the council of elders sacrificing a young girl to be raped by a demon to imbue her with its powers." A loud round of shouting, mainly from Buffy and Dean, interrupted Jess.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Dean shouted jumping up, and looking ready to rip the watchers council apart.
Buffy was just as furious, "You mean they knew all along, they sacrificed some girl to save their own hides, why because she was the most expendable." Buffy ranted.
"Buffy, Dean please calm down." Jess asked. "I said that's what the watcher council believes, but that's not actually what happened.
"Sorry." Buffy said, "Sore subject, please continue."
"Don't worry, I understand. So what really happened was that The Powers that Be needed a champion. The problem was finding a power source to imbue the champion with that would be great enough to fight evil, and most importantly never run out. So they harnessed the power of the key and used that power to create the first slayer." Jess stopped and let that revelation sink in before continuing.
"You mean Buffy's power comes from me?" Dawn asked increduously.
"How's that possible." Sam stammered.
"Make's sense to me." Dean shrugged.
Looking at his brother like he was crazy Sam asked, "How does that make sense?"
"Think about it Sammy what else could they use, and why after 5000 years of protecting this key did they give it to Buffy. It makes everything else fall into place. I mean if the demon rape story was real that there would be no way Buffy could protect the key properly, but with Buffy's slayer essence coming from the key, they would be compatible." Dean finished.
"Exactly." Jess answered. "That's not all though."
"Of course it's not." Buffy muttered waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"Good news I promise. Like with the key, and lock, a council was created to protect and guide the slayer. This was the watcher's council and at the time it was made entirely by men. The women created their own council to create a weapon. One unique weapon made solely for the slayer and created with the power of the lock and key. It's this weapon that you are missing. You need to find it and reclaim it to be successful in battle against Glory and Aaquerafet."
"What is the weapon and where is it?" Dean asked anxious to find something to help in the upcoming battle.
"It's here in Sunnydale buried under an old monastery on the West end of town. Buffy is the only one who can retrieve the weapon since it was made for her, but you all can use it. Once you find the weapon it will help bond you together fully, and you will at last be a complete functioning unit." Jess finished looking proud and sad at the same time.
"We'd better get going then." Buffy state anxious to get started.
"Anything else we need to know now Jess, or can we finish when we get back." Sam asked as he to started to get ready to hunt down the much-needed weapon.
Giving Sam a sad little smile Jess said, "Just a few points, but I won't be the one you need to go to for them."
Looking confused Sam stopped and said, "What do you mean, there's someone else we need to find?"
"You'll meet them when the time is right, and you'll need the weapon to find them, so don't worry." Jessica said standing. "I've done what I was sent here to do Sam, you won't see me anymore." Jessica finally broke the news to Sam.
Looking horrified Sam scrambled to find a way to change the inevitable. "But we're not done, what if we can't find this weapon. We need you Jess." Sam grabbed her hands and pulled her close. "I'm not ready to lose you again." Sam whispered in her hair.
"Oh Sam, you can't ever lose me, I'll always be with you, but I can't stay. I don't belong here. I was allowed to come to help bring you closer, my love. I'm so proud of you, and Sam please don't ever worry about being happy. I want you to have a life filled with joy, with Dawn." Jess pulled away enough to look Sam in the eyes as she gave him that last command.
Cupping her face Sam brought his lips to hers and kissed her with all the love and sorrow in his heart. Tasting the salt from their tears on his lips Sam finally pulled away and said, "Thank you for being my guardian angle Jessica Moore. You will be in my heart forever."
With tears streaming down her face Jess whispered, "Thank you for 4 of the best years of my life Samuel Winchester. Have a good life, and promise me you won't feel guilty anymore about me, I made my choice, and I would do it again in a heart beat."
Pulling her tightly to him they held each other for one brief moment before Jess pulled back and said, "It's time for me to go Sam. Always remember I'm with you, and I'm so proud of all that you are." Jess caressed Sam's face one last time before she began to fade from sight.
Turning away from the group Sam tried to get his emotions under control. His shoulders shaking with ragged breaths as tears continued to run down his face.
Not willing to allow Sam to go through this pain alone Dawn crossed quickly to his side and enveloped Sam into a tight hug. Buffy and Dean quickly followed and the four stood their wrapped in each other's arms offering all the comfort they could give.
Stepping back after a moment Sam said, "We'd better get back and let Dad and Giles know what we've found, we need to get that weapon and fast."
The four closed their eyes and focused on returning back to reality. Taking few moments to reorient themselves before turning to Giles and John who were waiting expectantly.
"Good news." Sam started his face still showing the strain of having seen Jess and then losing her all over again. "There's a weapon we need to locate. It's buried here in Sunnydale, and it will help us defeat Glory and Aaquerafet."
"Oh thank god." Giles said. "We were starting to get worried."
"How long were we gone?" Dean asked.
"Three hours." John answered showing his worry at how long it had taken for them to come back.
"Damn it didn't feel that long." Dean muttered. "Look we need Intel on a monastery on the West side of town. The weapon is buried underneath, and we need to get on this right away."
"Do you have any idea what type of weapon it is?" John asked.
"No." Buffy said, "But it was made specifically for me."
"Really." Giles said looking up from the maps of Sunnydale he'd been pulling out. "What past life allowed you to access this information?" He eagerly interrogated Sam and Dawn.
"This one." Sam said before walking out of the room.
Looking confused John walked over to Dean and asked, "What did Sam mean by that?"
"We didn't end up needing to access past lives to find this information. While we were under we had a visitor. It was Jess, dad." Dean finished softly.
As Dawn and Dean proceeded to fill Giles and John in on what had happened, Buffy went looking for Sam. Finding him in the courtyard looking up into the now night sky Buffy said, "Mind if I join you?"
Looking over and smiling softly Sam said, "Not at all. Sorry about bailing I just wasn't ready to pick the experience apart looking for answers."
"Yeah I know the feeling. Emotions tend to get forced to the back ground in the middle of an apocalypse." Buffy said wryly as she took a seat beside Sam and looked up at the stars. After a few minutes of silence Buffy spoke, "Are you doing all right Sam?"
"I actually think I am." Sam answered his eyes clear for the first time since Buffy had met him.
While his eyes still showed the horror that he'd seen they no longer looked haunted. In fact Buffy remembered thinking Sam's eyes reminded her of Angel when they'd first met. Full of guilt, sorrow, and confusion, it had drawn Buffy to him eager to ease some of that pain. "I'm so glad, Sam." Buffy finally said knowing there was nothing else to say.
"Think they're done dissecting everything." Sam asked.
"Safe bet." Buffy replied.
"Guess we better go back in and get to work then." Sam answered standing and stretching the kinks out of his back.
"Yep." Buffy said as she followed Sam back into the mansion.
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A few hours later the entire group including Xander, Anya, Willow and Tara were heading across town towards the monastery.
Willow had been recruited immediately to help narrow the search down on the computer. She and Tara had all most finished all the precautions for Riley's arrival the next day, and this was terribly important. Everyone was trying to be very careful around Sam, since no one was quite sure how he was doing at first.
After Buffy had reassured everyone that Sam was doing okay, he was just taking the time to process the search sped up and with in the hour they were on the road. They had made a pit stop and Xander's place of business to pick up supplies for tunneling and were still debating the best way to unearth the weapon without destroying it.
Arriving at the monastery it was determined that Buffy and Sam would do recon before bringing in everyone else. Though John thought it might be better if Buffy went in with Dean, because of the bond they shared Dean knew Sam needed to be the active one right now, so he turned his position over to his baby brother. Besides with Sam gone the job of protecting Dawn fell on him, and if there was one thing Dean Winchester was good at it was protecting a younger sibling.
As Buffy and Sam crept towards the front entrance of the main building Sam opened the link between them so they could maintain silent communication.
"You ready?" Buffy queried through their link.
"Good to go." Sam replied.
Buffy made her way to the door and tested the lock. It was an old caste iron lock that looked like the key to it would have been the size of Buffy's arm. "What do you think?" Buffy sent to Sam.
"Can you break it?" Sam asked.
"Yeah, but I'm not sure how quiet it will be. The lock is old and rusted, and the door is solid oak. If we want to get in undetected I say we move around back and see if there's a better way."
"Though I wouldn't mind kicking some ass right about now, I will defer to rational opinion." Sam sent sardonically.
Shooting him a grin, Buffy began to work her way around the side of the building. It had obviously been out of use for a while as the flora was out of control. Ivy and monkey grass grew wild and abundantly. The windows showed signs of vandals numerous panes having been knocked out by rocks most likely.
By the time they had reached the back door Buffy was willing to bet the building was unoccupied. There had been neither lights nor sounds coming from within, and the general state of grounds would have annoyed even a demon. With that thought in mind Buffy broke the lock on the back door, which was thankfully not as big or loud, and motioned for Sam to follow behind her.
The inside of the monastery was in even worse shape then the outside. The floors were warped from water damage, and the bird droppings were almost toxic. It took the duo a full hour to inspect the whole building but at last they were satisfied that they were the only ones home. Sending a mental note to Dean and Dawn to bring everyone else in, Buffy and Sam headed back to the main entrance to open the door from the inside.
Once everyone and all the equipment was inside, the problem arose of where to dig. "Well Jess did say it was made from my power, and for Buffy, so I say let's see if Buffy and I can sense where it's buried." Dawn finally said already fed up with the bickering.
"Out of the mouths of babes." John quoted softly with a chuckle.
It took Buffy and Dawn about 15 minutes to both agree on the spot. It practically screamed at them with recognition. Feeling the pull from deep with in her, Buffy nearly started digging with her bare hands. Quickly handing her a shovel Dean and Buffy began digging in perfect synchronization.
They started with 4 person shifts for thirty minutes and then the next 4-person crew took over. This gave everyone time to rest and kept one group from getting to worn out in case of attack. Everyone knew that Glory and Aaquerafet would kill everyone in Sunnydale to keep the Scooby's from getting their hands on the weapon.
Taking a break from his shift John grabbed a bottle of water and crouched against a wall in the corner and watched his kids and their better half work. John couldn't quite believe the difference a week makes. It didn't seem possible that it was only a week ago that he was alone cut off from his sons, and on a suicide mission to take out the demon that killed Mary. Now his sons were by his side and he and Sammy hadn't had a knock down drag out fight yet, which was a damn miracle. Both his boys had found their soul mates, and John had found a good friend in Rupert Giles. For the first time in twenty-three years John felt hope for the future. That the future for his children wouldn't be a painful death at the hands of some monster all alone never having accomplished any of their dreams. It was heady stuff. Thinking back to the revelation that Jessica had shown herself to Sam, John couldn't help but feel grateful and envious at the same time. The closer he got to the end of this journey the more he wished for just one more moment with Mary. Pushing that thought to the back of his mind John realized it was time for him to start digging again. Standing with a groan he grabbed his shovel and headed back into the fray.
It took them four hours to get to the hidden chamber underneath the monastery. Everyone was exhausted, and yet there was an air of excitement and anticipation that crackled like electricity around the room. When Buffy pulled open the trap door Willow bounced around like someone had given her caffeine. "Do you see anything Buffy? What's it look light? Do you have enough light? What about booby traps? There are always booby traps in the movie." Willow babbled.
"Breath Willow." Sam said putting an arm around her gently. The booby trap is for anyone who isn't a slayer. Buffy will be fine."
"Right, right. Forgot for a second." Willow said as she took a deep breath.
"Well once again, Buff it's up to you, so get to work." Xander joked handing Buffy a flashlight.
Peering into the darkness Buffy grinned and said, "Well here goes nothing." and jumped down into the dark cavern.
Hearing her land with a soft oomph Giles called down, "Everything okay Buffy?"
"So far so good." Buffy answered. "I don't see any type of weapon so far, but… hang on guys I'll be right back." Buffy's voice trailed off as she followed her senses deeper into the cavern.
"Be careful." John hollered as the group sat with bated breath surrounding the opening anxious for any word from Buffy.
The quiet was finally broken by a distant "Oh my god." From Buffy.
It started a melee. "Did you find it?"
"What does it look like?"
"Are you okay?"
"Buffy can you hear us?"
"What's going on?"
Trying to identify who had said what was impossible in the barrage of questions. So Buffy simply waited for the initial bombardment to pass before saying, "Yes I've found it, it's amazing. I don't know how to describe it; you'll just have to wait to see it. I'll be up in a moment so step back from the edge okay? I need someplace to land." Buffy walked closer to the scythe gleaming under the light from Buffy. It took her breath away. It was the most perfect weapon she'd ever seen, and it called to her. She felt like she was coming alive for the first time since she'd become a slayer. All those senses that Giles tried to teach her to hone were finally awakening. Reaching out she ran her hand along the back of the scythe up to the handle. Buffy felt like she was about to pass out. The power radiating off the scythe was making her giddy. Buffy could feel Dean, Sam, and Dawn through their bond and they were getting anxious to finally see the weapon that was causing this kind of reaction. One end of the weapon was a wickedly curved blade that had a sharp point perfect for decapitation. There was a long pole that ran from the blade to the end about the length of a yard. That end was sharpened to the point of a stake. There was a metal handle in the center making it the perfect weapon for a slayer. It was mounted in what looked like solid rock. That didn't deter Buffy she simply griped the handle and lifted. Like Arthur pulling Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake, the scythe came out of the stone like it had been waiting for Buffy all along. Grinning madly Buffy ran back towards the entrance to the cavern so she could show off her new weapon.
Jumping up back to the upper floor Buffy landed lightly holding the scythe up for all to see.
Dean got to it first as he'd been tracking Buffy as she got closer and knew where she was going to land. Grabbing the scythe from her he exclaimed, "Damn now this is bad ass!" He twirled the weapon once before Dawn snatched it from his hands.
"Well duh!" It was made by women." Dawn joked before closing her eyes and reveling in the completion she felt when she held the scythe.
Her enjoyment was cut short as Sam took the scythe from her with a look of pure glee on his face. "We're going to have to work out some sort of system for who gets to use this when, cause otherwise we won't be fighting Glory and Aaquerafet, but each other over who gets to hold the scythe." Sam said in a joking manner, but underneath there was a thread of truth.
"Well it's my turn now." Buffy said neatly as she deftly got the scythe away from Sam.
"Well what about the rest of us? We helped recover the scythe shouldn't we get turns holding it?" Willow piped up anxious to see what the power felt like up close.
"No." Came in unison from Buffy, Dean, Sam and Dawn.
"Sorry guys, but you're just going to have to wait." Buffy said grinning unrepentantly.
"Yep, this could take a while." Dean voiced as he once again managed to get the scythe away from Buffy.
"Well then I say we head back to the mansion. The wards there are better, and I can get some rest." Giles voiced as he watched with amusement as Dawn and Dean fought over whose turn it was while Sam used their distraction to get the scythe for himself.
"Agreed." John said before turning to his kids and shouting. "Don't make me come over there. Sam give the scythe to Buffy to carry home then you can all sit in a circle and pass the damn thing around. I'm tired and want to get some sleep so no more fighting on the way back to the mansion."
A chorus of "Yes Sir's" followed as Buffy stuck her tongue out at Dean, Sam and Dawn and walked out into the night grinning. Dean, Sam, and Dawn followed scowling.
As they got back to the mansion the sun was just beginning to come up. Xander, Anya, Tara, and Willow bid goodbye as they headed home to get some much needed sleep. Giles and John headed upstairs, Giles decided to spend the night in one of the mansions many bedrooms rather then try and drive home half asleep. Dawn won the argument about going to school as there was no way she was going away from the scythe right now, and added to the fact that she'd been up for twenty four hours no one was going to make her.
Meanwhile none of the four were able to let the scythe go no matter how tired they were so they ended up camped out in the living room on the floor in a circle with the scythe in the center. They each had a hand on the scythe as they drifted off into slumber unaware of what was waiting for them on the other side of consciousness.
Coming into awareness, Buffy couldn't figure out where she was, but she knew she was no longer in the mansion. Sitting up she could see that Dean, Sam and Dawn were still asleep, though they were starting to stir. Instead of the mansion living room they appeared to be in a desert at dusk.
"What the fuck?" Dean exclaimed sitting up quickly preparing for a fight.
"I don't think we're in danger." Buffy said still trying to get her bearings. This place felt familiar to her.
"We're not. Or at least we're not in danger physically." Sam spoke up sitting cross-legged in front of the scythe.
"What makes you say that?" Dawn asked as she sat up herself.
"Mainly because we're still asleep, and we're deep with in our subconscious." Sam replied closing his eyes and focusing inward. "We're at the beginning, we've gone back to the time of the creation of the slayer and the scythe. I can only imagine it brought us here on purpose to show us something."
"It would explain why none of us were willing to let go of the scythe." Dawn mused copying Sam's position.
"Okay so what are we supposed to do, just sit here and wait." Dean asked not comfortable with doing nothing.
"Essentially yes." Sam said with his eyes still closed. "Calm down and focus inward. Just like when we're bonding. Now's not the time for action, but for learning so relax solider." The last was said with the knowledge that, that was going to drive Dean crazy.
Letting out her own sigh of frustration Buffy crossed to Dean and sat beside him, so they could at least keep each other company as they went crazy from inaction.
Luckily for Dawn and Sam, since they would have been the ones to put up with a bored and twitchy Buffy and Dean the scythe began to glow. It began to pulse with a white light that seemed to come from within. For the first time since he woke up Sam opened his eyes and said, "It's starting."
Dawn smiled and answered, "Blessed be the creator, may your wisdom guide us in our endeavor to protect your people."
Dean leaned over and whispered to Buffy, "Do you know what the hell is going on?"
Shaking her head Buffy could only stare at the scythe and Sam and Dawn who were acting like this was the most common thing in the world.
"Relax guys, you're not missing an instruction manual. Sam and I don't really know what's going on either. Not on a conscious level. We're operating on instinct here, and since it hasn't let us down so far, we're going to keep on trusting that on some level we know what we're doing."
"Okay." Dean said holding his hands up in the classic I give up position.
The scythe continued to glow brighter till it became painful to the sight. A sudden wind began to blow all around them that roared through their ears making talking impossible. Then the sky began to change at the rate of the pulsing coming from the scythe. Night passed in the blink of an eye, only to have day pass just as quickly. Time appeared to be speeding up as if it could have no meaning with the entity that was approaching. A vortex of light began to shoot up into the sky and began to swirl like a tornado. In a moment everything stopped and in the center of the circle was a being holding the scythe lovingly.
"Whoa what an entrance." Dean managed to get out as he tried to comprehend everything that had just happened.
Dawn let out a laugh and jumped up and threw her arms around the being hugging him tightly.
The being appeared to be well over six feet tall, dressed in all white, and silver he reminded Dean of a cross between Elrond and Shaft. His skin was the color of chocolate and his head was bald. It made for interesting contrasts.
"Uh, Sammy whose this?" Dean asked his brother never taking his eyes off the guy who was holding on to Dawn with one hand and the scythe with the other.
"My name is neither here nor there, young warrior." He spoke his voice like thunder echoed through the now calm desert. "I am here to assist you in finding the balance you lack. All the pieces are assembled, they must simply be put together." He continued.
"And you know Dawn how?" Buffy finally spoke after getting over the shock of watching Dawn hug this stranger.
"Duh Buffy, until last year I was chilling in the mystical universe. What you think I didn't have friends?" Dawn joked impishly.
Buffy rolled her eyes at her sister's antics and said, "Now's really not the time, Dawn."
"So, how do we achieve balance?" Sam asked trying to move things along since Buffy and Dean both looked a little overloaded, and that never boded well.
"The scythe was designed not only as a weapon, but also to channel power from you all as well. The vortex of power you and Dawn are currently sharing with Buffy and Dean is incomplete. Instead of channeling it through each other channel that power into the scythe. This will not affect the bonds that you now share as those are permanent. With the power in the scythe as you use the weapon it will imbue you with all the strength of the four of you combined. It was meant for this and will give you an edge in the upcoming battle." The being finished and let them process what he'd just told them.
"So do we pull all the energy out of Buffy and Dean first and then transfer it to the scythe?" Sam asked looking for clarification.
"Does this mean I'm going to lose all those handy powers that I've been getting used to?" Dean wanted to know.
Addressing Dean's question first the being replied, "No the physical changes you've been experiencing aren't coming solely from Dawn and Sam. You're bond with the slayer will allow you to continue and share her power, which is from where you will draw your speed and strength. Do not worry warrior we would not cripple you before a fight." The being winked at Dean as he finished to allay his fears.
Letting out a sigh of relief Dean had another thought, "Is that going to weaken Buffy, with us sharing power?"
"No the bond between you is an equal one, you both benefit from it. She gains strength from you as well." He finished addressing Dean's fears and then turned to Sam. "Essentially yes that is what we are going to do, but it won't be just you and Dawn it will be the combined power of all four of you. Do not fear I will guide you through the process." Stepping out of the circle and letting go of Dawn so she could take her rightful place beside Sam he continued. "As you have done previously release your powers into the circle." He instructed all four. As the four released their power into the circle it once again took their breath away. "Very good." The being said with a smile, then in a move none of them were ready for he threw the scythe into the circle, and the world seemed to explode.
To be continued.
I know I suck yet again. Sorry I like a bit of a cliffhanger. I want to apologize for taking so long with this chapter my life's been pretty crazy lately. I've also been plagued with insomnia so that makes it difficult to write coherently. To make up for it I determined that this would be my longest chapter ever, and it was, all 16 pages. I'm so proud of myself. I have some ideas about the next chapter so hopefully it will come out quicker. I am going on vacation Sunday, and won't be back till Wednesday, and where I'm going there is no computer access, so it might be Friday before another chapter is posted. So sorry in advance. I want to give a big thank you to everyone whose reviewed. I can't tell you how much it inspires me. I also want to shout out to Allen, who is a friend, whose reading this story for the first time. Thanks for the support. Have a great weekend.
