Imhotep's Key Chapter
By Joseph Black
Disclaimer: Red Storm and Tom Clancy own Rainbow and Characters. Joss Whedon owns Buffy and Characters. Anyone else belongs to me. I make no profit of the following except to have a little fun.
Spoilers: Buffy to present. Rainbow to Bear and the Dragon.
Authors note 1: I am adjusting the Buffy time line slightly, this fic starts just after "Never Leave Me", moving things back about a month.
Authors note 2: I can't seem to get Fanfic to except my special formatting. So anytime you see this ' anything inside is in a foreign language. And if you see this it's some ones thoughts.
Authors note 3: This is a continuation of the story started in 'Rainbow Over Sunnydale'. It would be helpful to read that fic first.
Majin Gojira: Thanks for the review. I look forward to yours. You raise many good points, and I think you nailed a couple of them expertly. Looking over ROS I can see where I have departed from the modern horror film. This maybe because I grew up with the Saturday afternoon grade b horror films from the fifties. Things like 'The Deadly Mantis', 'It Came From Beneath the Sea', or 'The War of the Worlds'. In many ways your right, having the government involved does make things too easy. Look at Season 5 and 7 of Buffy. Glory, when all was said and done, wouldn't have been all that hard for the US to handle. If she wasn't able to handle the relatively small amount of energy from getting hit with a wrecking ball, I doubt she would have been able to handle getting whacked with a 37mm DU round from an A-10. Which on full auto would have had a realistic chance of tagging her, probably more than once. Similarly in Season 7 if the Turak Khan had come boiling out of the Hellmouth, how long would it be before some one, somewhere decided that writing off LA would be a cheap price to pay for the survival of the human race? Because even if these beasties were immune to the physical effects of a thermonuclear detonation, care to bet what being exposed to fusing of the tritium in the core of the device would do to them? Okay its small compared to what's happening in the sun, but it would also be a wee bit closer. So in the modern horror story you have two choices, you can either take higher authority out of the equation, either by making them incompetent or just ignoring them. Or you can make them the source of the problem. While I have, to a limited extent, made them part of the problem with the rouge Initiative team, I'm also hailing back to the B pictures of the 1950's and making them part of the solution.
APS: Thanks. I'll do my best.
Antonio: Thanks. No problem on the not reviewing. I was wondering if something had happened to you though. Glad you are okay.
John: Yes, I'm putting a character list that I'm including at the start of the next story. I was surprised how long it was. The future stories will mostly have a lower number of introduced characters. I hope you like this.
Sirc: No 'It is' is actually something of a homegrown weapon. I had a character once in a Rollmaster campaign (Rollmaster is like D&D, only with more charts.) that had a rapier with the same qualities; I just couldn't see Buffy running around Sunnydale with a rapier though.
Dorothy: I think Bob will manage; his therapist is going to be busy though.
Jedi-Princess: This is well before Angel looses his soul in Season 5. Angel won't be showing up in this fic. He will be putting in an appearance in the next one though.
WBH21C: Thanks!
Paladin Steelbreaker: Thanks for the catches, I'll try and get back and change them. Can't really help you on new Clancy books. I haven't read either Red Rabbit (I don't really like prequels all that much.) And the jacket on his latest one didn't thrill me. If you are looking for a good read that is non Jack Ryan, try 'Red Storm Rising'. It's a pretty good WW3 yarn. Faith is coming, she will have a much larger roll in the next story. What happened to bugs is explained in this chapter. Sorry this chapter took so long coming out. I had a little writers block and then an accident at work left me unable to type to any extent for a week or so. Hope this chapter is worth the wait. I can't say how much of this is native ability, or how much is that I worked on this story for almost a year before I started writing. When you decide to write a story, first think on it a while. Go through and work some alternate plots and see how they work out. Don't be afraid to say, okay that doesn't work. Then write out what you have plotted out. Then wait a little bit, maybe even a day, then go back and re-read it. You'll be surprised at what you spot when you do this.
Duchess67: I don't know, that was the shirt Willow was wearing when Tara got shot. There was a lot of emotion dumped into it. You'll just have to wait and see what happens.
Allen Pitt: No Angel and group in this story. But they will be putting in an appearance in the next one. Trust me, The First hasn't been sitting on its hands, its been moving its agenda right along. That would be ugly though, wouldn't it? Lots and lots of dead bringers, everywhere.
Harry: Yep it does, but how could I have a Srgt-Maj Benton running around with introducing a Yates?
JA Baker: Sorry about the confusion. The first couple of stories in this series are building stories. I'm setting stuff up for farther down the pike. All I can ask is that you trust me that it will all mesh in the end. While there will be new characters introduced in future stories, the rate that they are introduced should be much reduced. I think I have largely introduced the main players at this point. So after this most new characters will be story specific. And don't worry about me not liking a review. Constructive criticism I always appreciate.
Joe: Up in the area of Tokyo's when Godzilla gets that certain gleam in his eyes. Nope, 'It is' is just a knife, doesn't do anything for its wielder, it doesn't believe in magic. Not quite the end I have planned for the good general.
Holyknight: SNAFU? Not quite. Thanks for the review.
War90: Spike falls under the 'He's with Buffy' clause. You're right, they aren't happy about it, but there isn't a whole lot they can do about it either. And Buffy will be learning some stuff from the military.
Tjack: Andre' De Vries is my own creation. Michael Yates, technically, is too. He is the son of a character from the Doctor Who series. If you haven't ever caught any of the early seasons of the show, they are well worth the hunt. The effects are very cheesy, but the writing is first rate.
Thanks to all that reviewed. Constructive criticisms always welcomed. Flames cheerfully ignored.
Fic Starts Here XXYYXXYYCCYY
Elsewhere
Unknown
Unknown
"Like that's going to happen," Willow retorted.
Imhotep put on a shocked expression, "Ah yes, your friends are going to rescue you," he said in mildly sarcastic voice.
"Friends like the Slayer perhaps?" Imhotep waved his arm at the wall and images began appearing on it. Buffy was running after the van that Willow had been kidnapped in. The black haired woman who had been in charge was standing in the back door of the van and shooting at Buffy.
"No!" Willow gasped as Buffy suddenly went tumbling down the road.
"Or perhaps you can trust your friend Xander?" Imhotep said helpfully and waved his hand again. The scene changed. Buffy was talking to Xander holding a sword. From Buffy's hairstyle and how Xander looked it was sometime in high school. Xander was saying to Buffy, "Willow says, 'Kick his ass,'"
Willow realized it was when she had been trying to re-soul Angel.
"Perhaps your friend Riley can be trusted to come to your rescue?" The hand wave again and Willow recognized Buffy's kitchen.
Riley was talking to someone she couldn't see and was saying, "Then on watch tonight go into her room, stand at the foot of her bed, and put a bullet through her brain. She was upset tonight. She may not have placed any wards on her room."
Tears began to well in Willows eyes.
"Or perhaps your new friend John Clark?"
Clark appeared standing outside the Secure Store. He was talking into a cellphone and said, ""Badger, have your choppers split up, one searches north the other south. If you locate the van I want both choppers on it. Under no circumstances are you to allow it to escape. If no other option is present you are to destroy it."
"I thought there was a friendly on board?" The voice on the phone said in a shocked voice.
"If the only way to stop it is to destroy the van that's what we'll have to do."
Imhotep turned back to Willow, "Yes, your friends really are trying to save you."
Imhotep went on, "Come Willow, you must of suspected you would end up in Hell with all you have done, didn't you?"
He turned back to the wall and gestured again, "I have to admit I was impressed by this," he said as Warren Mears appeared. He was spread-eagled in the woods at night. His eyes were wide in terror over sewn lips. Willow was standing there in all her dark glory, black eyes, hair and clothes. She causally waved her hand and Warren's skin was ripped from his body, which then incinerated. "I don't think I was ever that…,creative with a revenge."
Willow dropped her head into her hands and began weeping.
Imhotep calmly walked over to the girl and pulled her hands down and pointed at the wall again. "But, you know the one act that condemns you to this place more than any, don't you?"
Willow again saw herself, luring a young fawn to her, she petted it, then cut it's throat. "That act of betrayal was just a prelude to what was to come though, wasn't it? You never saw what Buffy went through did you? You've never even thought about it, really, have you?"
Suddenly a dissected corpse appeared, Willow realized it was Buffy's body. A red light filled the coffin and seeped into the corpse. The dried skin of the body smoothed and softened, the sightless eyes could suddenly see again and the body sucked in its first breath in four months.
Buffy looked around, she started panicking when she realized that she was in a coffin. She began beating on the roof and Willow got to watch as Buffy clawed her way out her grave.
By the time the scene had finished Willow was on the ground almost catatonic. Imhotep didn't let up though, he began showing Willow every instance of her being cruel or petty to other people, from her tampering with Tara's memories, to her tricking Cordelia into deleting her work in computer class. He was relentless in his attack. Willow was too upset to notice anything, but as the attack continued the bandages that wrapped her body began disappearing from her and began wrapping Imhotep. Eventually he was forced to get up on the second table and was soon immobilized. He kept up his verbal assault right up to the point were his mouth was covered.
Willow didn't even notice when he stopped talking, so lost was she in her pain. Through the pain though she felt the cool hand that pushed her hair off of her forehead.
1630 Revello Drive
Sunnydale,
CA
30Oct2002
1111hrs
Diggs, Masterman, and Hamm took an involuntary step back. Okay it was one thing to be told magic was real, something else entirely when the woman who had briefed you on magic suddenly changed color and didn't seem to quite be herself. Buffy and the others took up positions around the room and waited to see what happened.
Eddington on the other hand stepped up to his niece. He went down on one knee and grabbed a hand, "Cindy, listen to me. I know you're in there honey. We need you to come out now."
Cindy cocked her head and jerked her hand out of his, "Cindy doesn't live here anymore."
"Bullshit," Eddington replied. "You are nothing but a memory, a powerful one maybe. But that's all."
"You're proving a little knowledge is a dangerous thing Uncle. You have no idea what you are dealing with." She slowly turned and smiled at the people around the outside of the room. "Do you think the Slayer gets this tense over a regular possession? She knows what she's dealing with, maybe you should take the hint."
"I know what I'm dealing with too. I need my niece to show me where Willow Rosenberg is."
"Willow is weak. Why would I want to help her?"
"Because it's what you do. It's why you put yourself through this."
Cindy bowed her head and her eyes scrunched as she concentrated. She suddenly threw up her arm and pointed it out through the living room. Sam Finn reacted instantly and threw her arm up along the other woman's. Her husband was a second behind her as he pulled a compass out of his back pocket and shot a sight with it, "275 degrees and about 5 minutes," he called. Clark grabbed a notebook and wrote down the sighting.
Cindy dropped her arm, looked at her Uncle and said, "Bored now," and took off running for the door.
Buffy, being closest, started to stop her. Eddington barked, "Let her go!" In his best command voice, Buffy hesitated as the other woman reached her and then Cindy was out the door.
Buffy turned on the Colonel and growled, "What did you do that for? Your niece is on her way to kill someone right now."
Eddington took off running through the door his niece had left open and called over his shoulder, "The thing in charge just thinks it is."
Buffy, Sam, and Riley followed the older soldier out the door at a trot.
Clark turned and grabbed Xander as he went to follow and asked, "What did she mean?"
Xander turned, jerked his arm out of Clark's grip and called as he took off, "Dawn, clue him in!" And then he was gone.
Clark turned to the younger Summers and just waited.
"That was the shirt that Willow was wearing when Tara was shot. Willow tried to kill Andrew and Jonathan after she killed Warren. She must be after Andrew."
Clark jerked one of the two radios on his belt he keyed it and said, "Rainbow Six to Rover."
"Rover," Lara Croft's voice came back.
"We have a person, female, five-six, dressed in black, with black hair and eyes, heading for Sunnydale General. She will attempt to kill the patient in room 714. Take your team and deploy to stop that."
"Understood," was the reply.
Lara Croft, as soon as she found out what was going on, had volunteered to stay and help. Clark had been going to turn her down when Alistair had signaled for him to accept. Trusting his Exec he had. It still left him in a quandary, though, he really didn't trust her, and didn't want her hanging around the search HQ. That was doubly true of the forest ranger and his men. Dan Murray had done a background check on Pete Broadman after the incident with the Shadow Hounds and he had checked out okay, but Clark wanted a much deeper check before they trusted them with anything sensitive, like an encrypted radio. Buffy had accepted the men's help with no reservation and so he couldn't just ignore them. However, if they used their normal radios then anything that the transmitted could be easily intercepted so they could inadvertently let information slip.
Lara Croft had come to the rescue and supplied a couple of her own radios. Clark noticed with disgust they were every bit as good, and perhaps even a little better than the ones Rainbow used. She had also suggested that she and the Rangers team up and they had readily agreed. She had moved in and taken over the investigation of where the beetles had come from and was already making progress. In spite of himself he was starting to be impressed with the woman.
Cindy Stewart was running down the street at a good clip. Buffy, Sam, and Riley were easily keeping pace, but Eddington, having let his physical training slip a little since he retired, was starting to feel the pace. "Cindy where's Willow?" He called between gasps.
Cindy got another half a block when she stopped and threw her arm up. Sam managed to get her arm up before Cindy took off again and Riley shot another angle. Buffy followed the possessed sensitive.
Eddington put on a last burst and almost caught up with his niece and panted, "One more Cindy, then you can let her go." Cindy got three steps this time then turned and pointed. Sam got there and matched the other woman. As soon as she did Cindy abruptly returned to her original coloring and then collapsed onto the sidewalk tears starting to leak down her cheeks as sobs wracked her body.
Eddington was making soothing noises to his niece between his own attempts to get oxygen back into his system. Xander and Buffy came trotting up, the later with a noticeable limp. "Come on, we need to get her back," Buffy said gently, as she bent over and started to give the other woman a lift to her feet.
Cindy looked up at Buffy and asked in a quiet voice, "How could you forgive her?"
Buffy stiffened, took a breath then looking away said, "She didn't do it out of malice, she thought she was rescuing me."
Cindy looked away, letting Buffy believe that was the whole truth.
By the time the group got back to Buffy's house Clark had already triangulated the three sightings and David Paled was piloting one of the predator drones to take a look. His first circuit of the area showed good size lots and sizable homes populating the neighborhood, any of which could be housing Anck-Su-Namun's people. Almost dead center of the area though was one of the larger homes and instead of a large backyard there was a fair size hill.
David kept the drone flying straight until it was out of the area so as not to alert any one that they might have been discovered. About two miles away David put the drone back into an automated search pattern then rewound the tape they had shot. As most everyone was watching the tape trying to spot something Clark was going through the underground photos that had been taken their first days in Sunnydale looking to find that hill.
Finding it he looked. The hill was too thick to see to its center, but Clark could see that there was an entrance that almost immediately branched out in three passageways. In the back corner of the hill there was a second opening that looked like it could be an airshaft. "I think we may have something," Clark said. All eyes turned to him.
He put the photo down and pointed, "We can't see the center, but it sure looks like it might be hollow.
"David, can you get a shot of the entrance? It's in the northwest corner, the house may block it."
David just nodded and took the drone out of autopilot. The predator had good cameras, not on the par with the Dark Star drones, but good enough for this. He brought the drone down to tree top level about a half a mile from the hill. Watching the map he waited until the drone was where he wanted it and then popped it up to get a shot of the cave entrance, then took it back down under the tree line, exposing the drone for less than three seconds.
Clark was already rewinding the tape, he hit play and then hit slow until the drone was just starting it's pop up, then he hit pause. Advancing the image one frame at a time they waited till the entrance came into few. It wasn't a straight in view, but they could clearly see the two brown figures, standing like statues, holding the odd question mark shaped swords called khopeshes , on opposite sides of the entrance.
"Bets on there being another cave guarded by mummies, even in Sunnydale?" Clark stated dryly. There were no takers.
Elsewhere
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Willow opened her eyes and stared up into a pair of blue eyes that she thought she would never see again. "Tara!" she cried and went to throw her arms around her dead lover. Just as she her arms where about to tightened it occurred to her that this was probably The First, come to gloat. But her arms found skin and she halted for a second in shock, and then started squeezing for all she was worth. "It is you," she breathed.
Arms went around Willow and squeezed back.
On his slab Imhotep began struggling and trying to say something, but it couldn't get through the bandages around his mouth.
Willow suddenly stiffened and then tried to push Tara away.
"What are you doing," Tara asked as she held her lover in her embrace.
"He's right," nodding at the struggling form of Imhotep, "I deserve to be here. What I did to Buffy, you, Dawn, Xander, even Warren. I sure don't deserve your love. Not after everything I did to you."
Tara smiled a gentle smile, "No one deserves to be here Willow. People choose to come here. Time and again you have chosen to help people, that's what matters. You've done bad stuff, but you are trying to make amends for that. As long as you do that, then you aren't choosing to come here."
"And as far as who deserves my love, I'm sorry, but, that's not your decision."
The argument was interrupted when the brass doors at the end of the chamber swung open. Six large figures, man shaped, but with the heads of jackals, entered the chamber. Balanced on their shoulders was a briar. The set it down and then stood in a line against the wall. They just stared straight ahead and seemed to pay no attention to the occupants of the chamber.
Tara looked concerned, turning to Willow she said, "They are here for one of you. Which ever side wins in Sunnydale, the loser will be taken into hell."
1630
Revello Dr.
Sunnydale CA
30Oct2002
1152hrs
Lara Croft knocked on the front door and then let herself in with Pete Broadman following her in. She found John Clark standing next to the table talking on his cellphone. Judging by the conversation they were setting up a raid. He noticed her and nodded, he ended the conversation with, "Get a couple of Riley's guys to do a walk-by of estate. We'll do the real planning once we hear from them."
Lara cocked her head, "You found her," she stated.
Clark nodded.
"She's being held in the northeast corner of the town isn't she?" Lara asked.
Clark cocked an eyebrow, "How did you figure that out?"
Lara smiled, "Hillary," she said simply. When Clark's look indicated she really needed to amplify that she went on, "He finished analyzing some soil samples I managed to recover from the beetles after the exterminator got through gassing them. It comes from deposits in the northeast corner of town."
Clark nodded, what got him was her whole support group was two guys, a techno geek named Bryce, who made her gadgets, and one named Hillary that apparently did everything else. She had already invited Clark and Rainbow to Croft Manor when all this was over for some training, and despite his initial reservations he was going to do it. "We got lucky with a sensitive," he walked over to the table and pointed at the map that was spread out over it. There were three red lines drawn on it and they crossed just inside the city limits in the northeast corner. Clark then took some photos out of a folder and spread them out for her.
"Was this from a KH-12?" she asked looking them over with a professional eye.
"Yeah, we scanned the whole underground of the city right after we got here,"
"It doesn't show us much," She commented.
"Enough to get at least a basic plan into place."
Elsewhere
Unknown
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Willow gulped and looked the creatures over. Tara smiled and said, "You don't think that the Scoobies are going to let you down, do you?"
"Are they even trying to rescue me?" Willow replied.
Tara smiled a gentle, yet reproving smile, "You don't belive what he showed you, do you? Of course they are planning a rescue."
"While we are waiting though, we do need to talk. About you."
"What about me?" Willow asked nervously.
"You are blocking yourself off, emotionally. Willow, I'm not coming back, you can't spend the rest of your life waiting for me."
"But I don't want to let you go," Willow cried, shaking her head in negation.
"But, you are going to have to," Tara replied gently, pushing one of her Willow's locks back into place.
"You have too much love inside you Willow, you need to care for someone. If you keep bottling it up it will destroy you. One day, if you stay on the path you are on now, we will be together again, but until that day, you need to live, not pine for me."
314 Front Str.
Sunnydale CA
30Oct2002
1232hrs
Kennedy looked out onto the warehouse floor where everyone, except the potential Slayers, had gathered to plan the assault on Anck-Su-Namun's base. Turning to her sister Potentials she said, "You know, if Giles wants us to pretend not to have anything to do with the US Military he is going to have to stop dumping us here every time we prep for something major."
The other two just looked up at her from where they were going through the stuff that Dawn had brought back from the Secure Store. For once, Kennedy, had a point, but as there wasn't anything they could do about it they just went back to reading. After a moment, Kennedy turned from the window and grabbing a manuscript and a translation dictionary went to work.
Clark looked around at the gathered forces, considering he had showed up in Sunnydale about a week ago with two other men, the forces at his disposal were impressive. He had twenty-one effectives from Rainbow. Team 3 added ten more. Then there was Lady Croft and the Rovers for six more. O'Connell was here with his crew, that was a half dozen more. Finally Amed had showed up with not only the five guys he originally had, but also ten more. He had explained that he had been held them in reserve outside of town so as not to tip off Their enemies that the Medji were in the area in force. Then there was the local FBI, Pat O'Day and Andrea. Then on the Scooby side there was Buffy, Xander, Spike and Rupert Giles. All told almost seventy people. Now, he just had to figure out what to do with all of them.
"First thing," Clark began. "For this operation, I'm in charge. I welcome input, but Sunnydale is my responsibility, so I get the final call." He looked at Lara Croft and Amed holding their gaze till both had nodded in agreement.
Turning back he pointed at the map, "We have two ways in, the first is the main entrance, it is guarded by two mummies," he then turned to Amed, "How hard are they to sneak up on?"
Amed considered what he knew of mummies, "Their senses are not much more acute than a normal person. So normal stealth should prevail. They do, however, see in the dark as well as in broad daylight so darkness gives us no advantage."
"Can we kill them the same way that we did at the Secure Store?"
Amed nodded, "Blowing them apart will work. I would think that would spoil the surprise though."
Clark nodded, turning to Kenshin, "Do you think you could take out both of them with your sword?"
Kenshin considered the photo of the mummies guarding the entrance, "As long as they are still in this position, yes. If they have moved farther back in the cave or have separated farther apart then it becomes more difficult. "
Clark nodded, "Okay, the pictures show that the passage forks into three about twenty feet in and that there is a back entrance large enough for people to get down. That gives us four attack routes. We also have to cover our base so that makes five groups we need to come up with."
"Ding, I want you to take four guys and go down the back entrance. I'll take the rest of team one, plus team two up the middle. Riley, take Team 3 and the Rovers up the right tunnel. Amed, take your people up the left. They probably meet somewhere up the line so be careful you don't take each other out."
"What about us?" Buffy asked, annoyed that the Scoobies seemed to be being excluded from the mission.
"Do you think your leg is healed enough for this?" Clark asked. "I noticed you were limping when you came back with Cindy this afternoon." There was no accusation in his voice; it was a simple request for information.
"We probably need Buffy in the attack regardless of the condition of her leg," Amed stated.
Turning to the Medji chief Clark asked, "Why?"
"Anck-Su-Namun is a puissant sorceress, if we hit her without something to hold her attention then likely she will just use magic to defeat us. But, she is also a bully who enjoys proving her superiority to her victims. She was originally the head of Seti's bodyguard. I don't think she could resist testing herself against The Slayer. If Buffy is there she could well be to busy with her to use magic on the rest of us."
"Great, if she'll let me get close then the fights over, I take her down and we rescue Willow," Buffy said smiling.
Amed shook his head, "It's not that simple. Anck-Su-Namun is not stupid. She will have some dead man's switch set up in the case she is rendered unconscious. We will have to reduce her minions to the point so that when it is triggered we will be able to handle what ever it is."
Ding frowned, "If it would tip the balance why not just hit us with it at the start?"
"Because she is like a cat that likes to play with its food. Plus if she can defeat us with the forces at hand it will increase her standing. Only if she is about to fail will she resort to more stringent methods."
Buffy was frowning, "Let me get this straight, you want me to let her beat on me until we beat everyone else?"
"We may be able to handle whatever she has planned if we face it separately, we would stand no chance if they were combined."
"What about my people General?" O'Connell asked.
Glancing at the cop Clark remarked, "This isn't exactly your thing Lieutenant."
"Begging the Generals pardon, but this is exactly 'our' thing." O'Connell said without challenge. "My family has been fighting these guys for over eighty years. I've been training my men for three years now. We probably have a better idea what to expect down there than any of your troops, excepting Riley's people."
"What do you want to do then Lieutenant?"
"Give us the backdoor. If it is an airshaft it probably lets out somewhere around the main chamber. If you can hold their interest then we can slip in. According to Meredith, all we have to do to disrupt this ritual is damage the writing on Willow's shroud. I figure this," he said pulling a can of vandalism out of his backpack, "will do the trick."
Clark considered for an instant then said, "Okay, the Sunnydale PD nightshift has the backdoor. Ding, you're back in the main corridor."
"I'll leave Team 1's snipers and machine-gunner at the base, along with Major Covington and Colonel Stanley."
"What group am I going with?" Xander asked.
"You're not," Clark said. "And before you go off listen to me Xander. This isn't going to be like going in after Spike. It's going to be like the storage site. These guys use guns Xander, and lots of them, and I'm not handing you one."
"Right, because we all saw how well guns worked on those mummies. Sure, if you have the space you can kill them, what happens in confined spaces, you know, like say tunnels under hills? You are going to need some hand to hand people and I swing a mean axe."
"We'll take him," O'Connell's voice cut through the argument. "We can use an extra hand to hand person. Plus if you guys get all their attention we shouldn't have to do much fighting anyway."
Clark thought about it, he didn't like it, but from the look on Xander's face he'd come anyway. This way at least he'd have someone to watch his back. Clark nodded. "Any other problems? Thoughts? Okay folks, lets get saddled up then."
To be concluded.