The Summers Residence, 1620 hours.
It was done.
Riley and Graham returned home after dropping Wesley off at the Crawford Street mansion to find everyone having pizza. They saw Tara was taking a bite off a slice and making some tea on the stove, with Willow seated next to Althanea, while Giles and the other adults were leaning against the walls whilst eating pizza slices. Riley and Graham then told them about the destruction of the warehouse, they said that Angel would be taking his team out there in the evening in case any of the vampires survived. And if any did.. then they would be taken care of by the ensouled vampire and his team.
"What weapons do we have?" asked Willow as she looked at Riley.
"Swords, axes, crossbows," said Buffy as Willow turned towards her, "Riley and Graham managed to get some guns from some of the Initiative hideouts around the city."
Willow lingered on Buffy for a few more seconds before looking away at Riley and Graham, and then at Xander and asked if they still had the Rocket Propelled Grenade they used to destroy the judge, "we had two remember?"
"The other one's in the Magic Box," said Buffy looking towards Willow, "you think we're gonna need that?"
"We need everything we have, Buffy," Willow replied as a mixture of emotions went through her very being. On one hand, she had these murderous thoughts going through her mind as she looked at Buffy, but there was another part of her that felt upset at herself for having those thoughts. As Willow told Buffy that the AT-40 worked on the Judge, and that they had to hope that they could weaken Borzan enough to use the weapon successfully on him, she remembered being back in the Coven where she thought after numerous meditation sessions that she could handle being around Buffy; being around her friends. But ever since leaving the Coven, Willow had been conflicted with dark thoughts.. one of them being what she was thinking right now.
Willow imagined Buffy was on her torture rack in Hell while Borzan looked on, smiling in a corner of the room with the floor covered in blood. Willow looked down at the symbol on her chest, followed by the knife in her hand, and then up at Buffy who was begging the white haired girl to stop… that they are the best of friends. Willows stared at Buffy coldly before taking a step towards, followed by another step, and another, her bare feet making disgusting squelching sounds on the blood. She saw more people on different racks; Giles, Xander, Cordelia, and Althanea. A smirk appeared on her face tears fell down Buffy's face, and then Willow pulled her hand back while looking at the others, and then at Buffy.
Suddenly, Willow found herself in the kitchen where the others were already discussing tactics.
"I… I…." said Willow as her face paled before she got up from the kitchen island and rushed out the back door while Buffy and the others stared confused. Willow knew that her mind pushed her out of her thoughts just as she was about to plunge the knife into Buffy's abdomen with a maniacal smile on her face. Once she reached the back porch and closed the door behind her, Willow grabbed the banister and closed her eyes. Willow breathed in and out, in and out while willing herself to her happy place. Opening her eyes slowly, she found herself standing under the great green tree, looking out at the rolling hills as the sun gently caressed her face, and a warm breeze brushed past.. making the white skirt she was wearing flutter slightly.
Willow smiled and took in a deep breath of the clean air before sitting down at the base of the trunk, next to the thick roots that disappeared into the grassy ground. However, it was a few minutes later that she saw something that concerned her, the usually sunny sky was being covered with dark clouds. Willow started to pant as the warm breeze turned cold and the grass trend to black, and then to dust until the ground was barren and dry. She stood up with her eyes wide open as the gentle rustle of the green leaves above her stopped, the green leaves turning to orange, and then black, and then falling on her as dust.
"No!" screamed Willow as she looked around with her hands on her head while she was screaming 'no'. Her happy place was being corrupted, it was being destroyed… and the last vestige of it was nearly gone. The tree was starting to rot as she took a few steps back, it was rotting before it turned black and then crumbled into dust. Willow shook her head while she turned around and scanned the brown, barren, and cracked landscape while darker and darker clouds gathered over head.
It was then she looked down at her white dress which vanished, leaving her in loose rags, and then that vanished. She covered herself with her arms while tears fell from her eyes. She looked at the scars down the front of her naked body, and screamed in anguish.
She then heard a laugh on her left, and the next thing she knew was that she felt a hand smash into the side of her head; she was sent flying into the air, landing on the rough ground with a thud. She looked up, and saw Borzan in his black suit and red tie looking at her just as a predator was looking down on its prey. Willow saw him lick his lips before he crouched down and tilted his head.
"It," he said.
"Ho.. how…." Stuttered Willow as she stared at her tormentor. She thought that she was brave, Willow recalled talking to Joyce and Jenny back in the house which such confidence.. but facing Borzan now, she knew her bravado was a fake. Her entire body was shaking as she remembered her torture at his hands, she hadn't gotten over her fear… she was in fact still terrified of him.
"Come to me, it," Borzan hissed while calling her to him with his finger; he remained crouched down and staring at Willow, "you will come to me, and I will kill you all. You cannot escape, you will cower like you are doing now, and you will watch all of them die."
"Stay away," said Willow as she looked at the cracked ground while on her hands and feet, and away from the demon in front of her.
"I will bring hell here, and…"
"Willow," said a gentle voice as the former redhead suddenly felt sunlight touch her head, and then her face. She saw the ground once again covered in green grass, and she was wearing the white dress from earlier. The young woman then looked up upon feeling the gentle breeze, and tears welled up in her eyes, and a smile formed as she saw the man she loved standing in front of her with a pair of jeans and plain T-shirt, reaching out a hand towards her.
Willow's bottom lip quivered as she reached up, and grabbed the offered hand, which then pulled her up to her feet.
"Oz?" asked Willow before her voice broke, "are you…"
"Still dead," he smiled before Willow hugged him tight. Her hands roved his upper back to make sure that he was real, and then she took in his scent, and ran her hand through his hair. Willow didn't care about her surroundings, all she cared about that she was hugging Oz. She felt one hand on her back, and then another hand running through her hair; and tears fell from Willow's eyes and onto his shoulder, staining his shirt. This was real, it wasn't a dream… Oz was really here with her, "shhh, it's ok, Will."
"I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice broken before she started to sob, "I'm so sorry!"
"I knew what I was getting into," whispered Oz into her ear, "it's not your fault, and it's not Buffy's fault… it was my choice to join you guys. I never stopped thinking about you the whole time, Willow… I never stopped."
"I'm still afraid," said Willow as she looked into his eyes, "I… why didn't you come to me?"
"You were doing so well, Will," Oz admitted as he caressed her cheeks, "when you came back from Hell, you were doing so well in Devon that I knew you didn't need me."
"But I did," she admitted, "and I do."
"You don't," said Oz, "not anymore."
"I love you so much, and…" Willow couldn't finish what she was about say when, suddenly, Oz pulled her in and kissed her. Willow moaned into his mouth as they continued to kiss, while Oz unzipped the back of Willow's dress. Willow continued to kiss him while he brushed his fingers up and down her bare back, and then his hand rested on her shoulder. He broke the kiss and then went down onto her neck while Willow ran her hand through the hair on the back of Oz's head. She breathed in and out while he moved down to her shoulder, and then back up to her neck, and then her ears.
"I love you," breathed Oz into Willow's ear, "I love how your ensouled flesh tastes, my it."
Willow opened her eyes wide as she turned her head towards Oz, who was looking back at her with a grin, and familiar red eyes. She looked on in horror while he was still holding on to her as Oz's face melted away to reveal the demon, while the surroundings of bright light and green reverted to darkness and the barren, cracked ground.
"Get away!" screamed Willow as she gritted her teeth and mentally pushed Borzan off her. Tears in her eyes at the gall of the demon to take the image of OZ, and her own stupidity at being used once again, Willow glared at the demon who stood up, his suit forming around him while licking his lips as Willow shook her head and fell on her knees.
"You're broken, It," said Borzan, "look at you, you see your love and you get so weak."
"You…"
"Shhhh," said Borzan with his finger on his lips before Willow could finish what he wanted to say, "you will end, It. You, the Slayers, the witches, the mother… the mother, Joyce, will be special. I will take her while you and the others watch, and then I will kill them in front of you once I bring Hell here. Imagine the pain, 'It'. I will bring back your pain. You will become insane… an animal. You will never die, even when your humanity is completely shattered, you will never die!"
"You will be stopped," hissed Willow as her heart raced, her hands clenched into fists, the fear she felt lowly melting away to rage, "I…."
"I will see you soon, my It," smiled Borzan before he vanished, and Willow snapped her eyes open to find herself back in the Summers backyard. Releasing a sob while covering her eyes with one hand, Willow internally screamed in anguish as she imagined Borzan's smile. Willow breathed in and out deeply while she imagined what Borzan had just done, he had called her weak, which she acknowledged for that one moment. At least that is what she kept on telling herself as she stood up. During her recovery at Devon, she used her happy place to escape, to gather herself when things got too difficult… but now it was destroyed. It was something she would have to rebuild, but only after Borzan was gone; being in Sunnydale brought him into her mind since he was a powerful demon after all.
'Oz is gone,' thought Willow to herself as she closed her eyes once again, 'he's gone and never coming back. Borzan used Oz to get to me, and he did.. he made me realize that I'm still terrified of him. All my fears came rushing back when I had him in my mind.. it wasn't like my vision… I could feel him this time, I could feel his power, his evil. He used me again and… and not anymore. He used my love for Oz to get to me, that won't happen again. He will not use Oz like that ever again.'
Willow clenched her fists tight while whispering as she opened her eyes, "no more, Borzan. If you can hear me, no more. I am terrified of you, but you made a mistake. You used someone I love to screw with my mind… and I will use my terror to fuel my anger. I will channel every fear I have to end you… I will use everything the Circle taught me to end you."
Back in the house, Buffy was about to get up and stay with Willow, who she could had stood up again after a few minutes, her back facing the Slayer, when Althanea gently asked her to stay, "Buffy, you and Faith need to prepare for tonight."
"But…"
"Buffy," said Giles gently as the blonde Slayer looked over Althanea's shoulder at Willow, and then at Giles, "we have time until the battle at the Initiative, and until then we need to prepare ourselves. Riley, Graham? Have a bite to eat and then we should begin preparations for getting into the Initiative. In the meantime, we need to have something prepared to use against Borzan, we need…"
"Too bad we simply can't use all of us at once," said Xander as he walked towards the back door, and looked through the glass at Willow. He looked at his old friend, and then noticed the silence around him, looking back at Giles, he was astonished when the older Watcher said that he may have had a great idea.
"G-man?" asked Faith.
While Giles was telling them about a spell that could funnel all of their strength, skill, and abilities into a Slayer, Tara finished making the tea and walked towards the rear door. She heard Giles say something about needing a very powerful witch to handle the spell, and that they had two in Tara and Willow. Tara stopped, and then turned towards Giles, who was looking at her, and said that Althanea was powerful as well, but it would help if a younger witch were able to perform the ritual since they would be able to handle the strain of the unification spell.
"You and Willow have the power," said Giles, "and the both of you have the skill, fortitude, and in Willow's case, thanks to Niko, you both have the experience in handling magic."
"I sensed Willow's magic, Mr. Giles," said Tara, "she's much more powerful than me, and…"
"This spell," said Giles, "it'll connect those who participate in the ritual, it would connect our essences to that of the Slayer. It's extremely powerful, and…"
"And Willow's seen things that… that no one should ever see during her time in hell," Althanea said while emphasizing the fact that Willow's mind will be open for everyone to see if they join together, "we'll wait for her to tell us, but for now, I'd say that you, Tara, is our best bet."
"I…" said Tara whose eyes were side open in surprise as she held the warm tea in her hand. It was just then that the backdoor opened, and Willow stepped inside before closing the door behind her. She looked at Buffy, and then at Xander, Giles, Faith, Anya, and the others before looking at Althanea.
"Borzan knows I'm here," muttered Willow as Althanea and the others looked on in surprise.
"How?" asked the older witch.
"I went to my happy place," said Willow before explaining what it was to Buffy and the others, while Tara nodded her head before handing the tea to Willow. Whispering her thanks, Willow took a sip form the cup, and felt the liquid warm her up from the inside out after swallowing the sip. She looked at Tara who took a seat at the island before telling everyone that she had her own happy place after her mother died.
"Some place I went to so that I could slowly get over being alone," said Tara while she looked at Willow, and then looked away while brushing some stray strands of hair behind her ear. This was a revelation that the other Scoobies were not aware of, as far as the blonde witch's family life was concerned since she rarely talked about them.. even when asked, "I used to go there a lot when I stayed with my brother, dad, and my cousin; before coming to Sunnydale. And.. yeah…"
"Tara," said Giles, "you…"
"I know I haven't talked about my family and… and right now it's not a biggie, you know?"
Althanea knew that for someone to come up with a 'happy place' meant that they lived a harsh life. It was something that she felt she needed to talk to Tara, bout.. but that would have to wait. Walking up to the young blonde witch, Althanea asked her if she'd like to talk once Borzan was taken care off, and smiled when she nodded her head.
Willow and Tara then looked at each other, and it made the former redhead wonder what could have been so bad about Tara's life that she needed to have a 'happy place' of her own. But it was something was going to have to ask later while telling her that she shouldn't visit her 'happy place', "Borzan shredded mine. Everything's gone, all turned to ash."
"Even the tree?" asked Althanea.
"The tree too," replied Willow nodding her head, "he used Oz to get to me."
"Oh God," said Joyce, "Willow, I'm so sorry."
"The truth is that I'm terrified of him," admitted Willow as she looked at Althanea, who told Willow that no one's expected her not to be afraid, "I went into my 'happy place' and he destroyed it because I… I had thoughts in my head. Thoughts that…"
"Will?" asked Xander.
"Doesn't matter now, I guess," whispered Willow as she looked at the floor, and then back up at Xander as she imagined gutting him, "you guys were in my mind. That's all. We need to make a move soon."
"We have a plan," said Buffy, "and according to Giles, it's a real doozy."
Initiative headquarters, 1940 hours.
It had taken some time for Willow to be brought up to speed on the plan; and once she had been, she and Althanea headed up to the second floor with Tara, the three of them meditating for a few minutes to center themselves for the coming battle. Tara and Althanea were using their own techniques, while Willow used those of the Circle of Thought. Now knowing that Borzan was able to invade her mind, Willow used Niko's mental techniques and built up mental walls, and even more walls within walls while she imagined sitting on the fields of Xanadu among the multi-coloured trees and plant life with Ariel sitting in front of her.
Once the three of them had completed meditating, they went back downstairs with Tara being briefed by Buffy and Faith on what was going to happen next, while Willow went down to the basement with Graham and Riley to check out the weapons they had brought with them.
"So you have Niko's memories too?" Graham asked as he took out a nine milometer weapon, "she was some kind of a space…"
"Ranger, Galaxy ranger," said Willow before looking over her shoulder at the footsteps coming down the stairs. She gave a small smile and nodded at Xander as he reached the bottom step before asking if she wasn't going to be joining the others upstairs, that they could need her for the magical parts.
"I have a connection with Borzan, Xander," said Willow shaking her head after turning towards him, "I'm scared that if I use magic while he's here, then he'll take it over, and then use me against you. Xan, I… I saw things in Hell… I.."
"I know," whispered Xander as Riley and Graham looked each other before suddenly feeling as if they shouldn't be here. However, they still had to go through the weapons check one more time to make sure that everything was in working order before the attack. So they continued silently, occasionally glancing at Willow as she told Xander that she feared Borzan using her magic to try and harm him.
"All my thoughts.. I… I'm afraid of what he'll do, I'm afraid that if he can still read my mind as he did in Hell, then.. then I have to relive all the horror for real," whispered Willow while looking away as she imagined Xander on her torture rack, with her skinning him alive while his screamed reverberated through the walls of the large room, "there are some things that I can't tell anyone."
"I'm here if you need to talk, Will," said Xander before he kissed her cheek, "I'm right here, and so is Buffy."
Willow nodded her head before Xander told Riley and Graham that he'll see them upstairs. Willow then watched the young man dash up the stairs, and close the door behind him while she glanced over at Riley and Graham, the both of whom were occasionally glancing at her before going on to do their work. She then sighed, walked towards them and said that Niko had to practice with ammunition rounds before graduating to a pulse blaster; with her weapon of choice being a shotgun, both an energy variant with powercells, and a variant that used twelve gauge shells.
"Think you can handle this?" asked Graham as he threw an unloaded shotgun at her. She grabbed in mid-air before spinning it in her hands and then aiming it at a corner of the basement. Riley whistled as she put the weapon down, before she caught the box of shells which was thrown over to her by Graham.
"This is what I… she… I guess we're one and the same, used during training," said Willow as she looked at the box of ammo in one hand, followed by the shot gun in the other hand. While she helped them to check the other weapons, with the two military men giving the white haired young woman facts and tips on the various weapons around them, Tara and the others were topside getting prepared for the assault later on that night. Once Willow was back upstairs with Riley, Graham, and the weapons; Giles told Althanea to stay with Joyce, Anya, and Jenny in the house, and that she needed to put up a magical shield that would prevent anything from getting through.
Althanea nodded her head just before Willow hugged her, the both of them whispering in each other's ears for the other to be safe. Nodding her head, Willow stepped back and then headed out of the house with Tara, and Giles by her side, with Buffy, Riley, Faith, and Graham leading the way. They got into Joyce's jeep, and Giles' new Volvo before leaving for Lowell House, the fraternity which was in reality the primary entrance to the Initiative complex underneath the university.
The drive there was quiet, with Willow recalling what Borzan had nearly done while disguised as Oz. She closed her eyes and looked away from the window, however, she hadn't seen Tara glancing at her while feeling the rage emanating from the young woman. Tara wanted to reach for Willow's hand to reassure her that she was going to be alright, but the truth was that even Tara wasn't sure that they would be alright or not. The plan was to get as close to Borzan as possible, and then she, Giles, and Xander could begin the ritual. In the meantime, Faith, Graham, Xander, Riley, Buffy, and Willow would be going after Borzan. However, the first roadblock was getting the army to trust them…. And all of them knew that it would be nearly impossible.
And it was.
Buffy and Riley used their credentials to get access to the Initiative, and the entire group was captured and taken to the Commander of the base once they reached the main lobby. The Colonel in charge told the group that they were committing an act of treason and that they were all looking at jail time in prison due to the break-in. Surrounded by armed personnel who caught them, the group had their weapons confiscated, including the things they needed to perform the ritual. Willow glanced at the monitors behind the consoles while they were being frisked in front of the Colonel and frowned at the screams from the cells which were stuffed to the brim with demons of all kinds.
"You don't know what you're doing," said Buffy as she jerked away from one of the soldiers.
"You do not get to speak!" ordered the Colonel as he glared at Buffy, and then at Graham and Riley who were both classified as deserters, and thus, were traitors to the cause in the Colonel's mind.
"You're facing a demon in your robot Adam," said Faith, "you…."
"The Army will deal with Adam.. and…."
"He's occupied by a demon, sir," said Riley.
"Borzan," added Graham as the Colonel turned to him, "Sir, we need to get out of here and activate emergency protocols. Borzan wants all the demons to…"
Suddenly, the lights turned off, and the red emergency lamps on the walls turned on, as well as a few of the monitors which showed the cell doors opening. Willow and the others looked on in horror at the demons escaping into the hallways killing soldiers. Willow turned towards the Colonel who was about to say something while pointed at their direction, and the young woman then mentally threw him and the soldiers against a wall.
"They'll live," said Willow as Graham and Riley ran past the white haired young woman who rushed to a computer and pressed a few keys. She then looked at Buffy saying that all the cells in the complex were open, and that she was looking for a place where Borzan could be hiding out. The Scoobies could hear growls and screaming in the distance, followed by weapons fire as Willow continued to check the schematics of the Initiative base.
And then she found what seemed to be a location where large amounts of power was being channelled, and she got up and pointed it out. It was a location behind one of the labs, a secret entrance that led to another room that seemed to be blacked out, and that room led to another blacked out room.
"What about the others?" asked Riley as he pointed at the running battles going on in the base.
"We don't take care of Borzan now?" said Buffy, "then the people here won't be the only ones who die. Riley, we need you and Graham to guard Tara, Giles, and Xander while they do the ritual. Willow, Faith, and me will be heading directly to Borzan and… and we'll need the unification spell to have a chance against him."
"They knew the risks," whispered Willow as Riley and Graham looked at her before she rushed up and picked up her shotgun, and ammo belt while Faith picked up her machete's and stakes, "Buffy's right, we don't kill Borzan now? Then everyone else dies anyway."
"We should go," said Giles as the Colonel and the other soldiers started to groan.
The group, with Buffy holding onto the rocket launcher under her arm, headed for the lab with the secret passageway. On the way, Riley and Graham were telling them that Adam was powered by a plutonium power cell, that they needed to get rid of that cell… and then he would die. The entire journey was surreal as they fought various demons on the way; Faith and Buffy hacking their way through the two demons attacking them, and Willow mentally pushing away some of the ones that were going after them while Riley and Graham were firing rounds into fur covered monsters.
"Move!" Move!" yelled Riley as they continued to fire, while Willow mentally snapping the necks of some demons while firing at others with the shotgun in her arm. The weapon feeling familiar to her, as if she had been using it her entire life, while Tara was using her magic to push away some demons that were coming after them. All the while, the Scoobies were moving through what could only be described as a warzone; there was smoke everywhere, the smell of blood and flesh, bodies littered the hallways.. bodies of both humans and demons while more weapons fire and screams could be heard in the distance. The group finally entered a large complex where running battles were taking place between demons and humans all over the place with explosions on the far end killing demons while howling screams filled the air. Rushing to the lab, located behind a secured door, which Faith and Buffy kicked open… the group ran into the hallway while being pursued by some demons who had seen them. They killed the soldiers in their arms before dashing after the Scoobies, but were soon riddled with bullets as both Riley and Graham took up the rear and fire on them.
It wasn't long before they were in the lab. Riley and Graham blocked the entrance with a shelf, while Buffy searched for the secret entrance. Upon finding it, Tara told them that they needed to begin the ritual, and that it would take a few minutes to affect Buffy. Nodding her head, Buffy, Faith, and Willow then rushed through the passageway and headed into another empty lab. There were a few beds and machines, but everything was empty. Willow and the two Slayers then moved on, not wanting to waste any more time and soon reached a large room filled with consoles.
It was there that Buffy placed the rocket launcher on her shoulder while Willow, her eyes opened wide in shock at the organic-metal hybrid standing on the other side of the room, and Faith took a step back.
"Hello, my It," said Borzan with a smile as Willow clenched her hands.
"B," said Faith as she grabbed Willow's arm, "Fire!"
Everything went into slow motion as Buffy fired the RPG, just as Willow and Faith turned around. As the weapon flew towards Borzan, Buffy dropped the launcher and ran behind Willow and Faith. The ground shook as they reached the other secret lab, and dove into the left side of the room as a fireball funnelled through the hallway just missed them. Once the fireball had dissipated, Willow, Faith, and Buffy slowly got up with the smell of explosives, concrete, and flesh in the air as they slowly made their was trhough the hot hallway and into the other room. The three Slayers were in shock with their eyes wide open; it wasn't the destroyed consoles that got them, now was it the scorch marks on the walls with some of the panels from the ceiling hanging down and sparks flying everywhere.
No, that wasn't what had them in shock.
It was the smoking figure standing in front of them, as he tilted his head, and smiled.
"I am a lord of Hell, one of Acathla's lieutenants," growled Borzan as he strode towards the three who were rooted to the spot, "did you really think…"
Buffy was thrown to one side before Borzan turned around to Faith at inhuman speed and picked her up, and then threw her to the other side until she hit the wall, and fell to the floor. Willow, unable to move, felt Borzan's hand around her throat before being lifted up into the air. She was gasping for breath while her legs were flailing as Borzan laughed.
"Did you honestly believe that kind of piddly weapon could stop me? I have magic that even you, or your witch friend are aware of," growled Borzan glaring at Willow, and then at the groaning Buffy, and then to Faith, and finally.. back to Willow, "no matter, I have won. Hell will be open this day… and until then, I will have fun with you three."
TBC.