Chapter Twenty – Three: The End Is High

Buffy opened her eyes slowly, taking in the darkness that surrounded her and consumed her vision. She struggled to sit up, finding that her hands were bound together tightly and she winced as the ropes burned against her skin. She knew she was alone and the rough surface against her back indicated a cave wall of sorts.

She felt incredibly stupid. She should have seen before that they were hiding out below the high school, in the vast caverns that seemed to allow evil to reside. Spike had even told her, be it subconsciously, that he was beneath her. She had to take it literally, when instead she took it literally and now she was too late. Her only hope was that the guys could come up with something. Or that the knots in her bindings were so bad she could wiggle out of them.

The first attempt revealed expertly tied knots and they bit into her flesh, causing rivulets of blood to snake down her arms. She felt tears prick at her eyes – not from the pain, but from the loss of hope she was currently suffering. She couldn't fail. She couldn't let Spike have his soul ripped away. She couldn't let David get his way and become whatever it was he was aiming to become.

It was her job to stop it from happening. She was the Slayer.

And right now, she had no hope of escape.

Willow sat at Giles desk, her legs folded on the chair. Oz walked around her with incense and apart from the location, the scene mirrored a time almost a year before, when Angelus had first lost his soul and sought to restore it. Willow knew it had worked before, but they weren't sure if it had worked in time. Buffy had never really revealed what exactly had happened in the mansion and most likely never would. But this time, they had a good shot at restoring Angel and allowing him to help Buffy stop David.

'Are we ready?' Giles asked, hesitantly. He knew this was dangerous; magic always was. He feared for Willow's safety whilst she performed the spell, but knew at the same time that the young red head was capable of far more than he gave her credit for.

'We're ready.' Willow said, steeling herself and shutting her eyes.

Xander was standing in the background with Wesley, watching as Willow cast stones across the table, around the Orb and Giles began reading from the book.

'Quod perditum est, invenietur.'

Willow took a breath and opened her eyes again, focused on the Orb of Thesulah. 'Not dead... nor not of the living. Spirits of the interregnum,

I call.' She closed her eyes, squeezing them tightly. 'Gods, bind him. Cast his heart from the... evil... realm.' The room grew cold and Giles took a step back as the magic seemed to concentrate around the red head. She breathed heavily and Xander shut his eyes, knowing this happened last time. 'Return. I call on…' The room was static and Willow's body tensed as she looked up, her eyes opening and staring at the Orb as words began to pour from her mouth. 'Te implor, Doamne, nu ignora aceasta rugaminte.'

Giles looked over at Xander. 'Is this what happened last time?'

'Nici mort, nici al fiintei...'

Oz looked between his girlfriend and Xander and nodded at Giles, seeing Xander was trying to look anywhere but at his best friend. Giles mumbled something, frowning deeply. Willow continued to chant quickly, and they all stepped back as the orb began to glow slightly.

'Lasa orbita sa fie vasul care-i va transporta, sufletul la el.' She shook the table. 'Asa sa fie! Asa sa fie! Acum! Acum!'

The Orb glowed, light filling its interior, growing brighter until the whole thing disappeared and Willow fell back against the chair, sighing heavily. She blinked a few times as the magic cleared itself from her system. Giles stepped forward at the same time as Oz and they looked at her in concern.

'You okay?' Oz asked. Willow nodded, smiling.

'Did it work?' Giles questioned. Willow looked at him, nodding again.

'I'm sure it did this time.'

Angelus opened his eyes and grimaced in pain as he felt it happening again. His demon fought to hold onto the control as the spell took affect and he groaned, rolling over to the side and falling off the bed onto the floor in a graceless heap. Fire seared his insides as his soul was restored for the third time and he clenched his fists, trying not to make noise. Alerting anyone else to his problem was a sure fire way to result in death.

The pain passed and Angel resurfaced, landing on his back as he stared at the ceiling. Candle light illuminated the same cave-like room and he frowned, wondering how he had gotten there. A few seconds passed as he searched for the memories.

As they returned, he clenched his jaw, his stomach churning violently in the wake of the new crimes he had committed and he baulked, rolling onto his front, pressing his face against the cold stone floor. He shook as the guilt of what he had done overwhelmed him and she swam into his thoughts once more.

'Buffy.' He whispered. Spike was in here somewhere and David was going to destroy his soul. He had to stop it. He had to get Buffy away and stop it. He was responsible for this. 'Shouldn't have let my guard down.' He cursed himself and then struggled to his feet, pulling his jacket from the chair in the corner and slipping it over his shoulders.

The corridor was empty as he stuck his head out through the door. He knew they were underneath the school, right near the Hellmouth – he could sense the evil permeating his skin with every movement. Angelus was still inside him, fighting for release, angered all the more by the placement of the curse once more. But he couldn't give in. Buffy may not be his anymore, but he still loved her and still needed to help. And Spike was his Childe, his responsibility. He had to help him.

He started out into the corridor, affecting an Angelus type smirk to cover his re-emergence. He knew that any vampires suspecting his change would stake him on the spot, or if Drusilla discovered it, she wouldn't hesitate to remove his soul again. He had to get to Buffy quickly and without suspicion.

Her room was locked when he got there and he panicked, before locating the key in his own pocket. It made sense seeing as she was always going to be Angelus' pet project and no one was expecting him to get his soul back and free her. Which was a good thing, seeing as if it hadn't happened, he would most likely be plotting all the gruesome ways he could inflict pain on her. The thought alone made him wince and he opened the door quickly, slipping inside.

She flinched when he entered and shut the door behind him. The room was dark, but she obviously recognised him.

'Get away from me.' She hissed, crawling backwards. He smelt blood and noticed it glistening in the dim light on her wrists. She'd tried to get free. It wasn't going to happen by her hand, not with the knots he could tie.

Another jolt of guilt ran through him and he shut his eyes briefly. He approached her and she almost snarled at him, her anger at him all to visible. He held up his hands in a non-offensive gesture and she frowned.

'Buffy, it's me.'

She faltered for a second and then sneered, scrunching her pretty face up. 'Yeah right. That has got to be the lamest…' She stopped as he knelt down before her and untied her hands. She rubbed them gingerly, hissing at the pain from the burns the bindings had caused. Seconds passed as she stared at Angel, and then she raised her hands, pushing him away. 'It is you.' She whispered as he landed across the room. He made no move to get up and she stared at him again, a frown deepening on her forehead. 'How could you be stupid? Letting yourself get de-souled like that?'

'I didn't mean to. I just…she used thrall on me and…' Angel struggled to find an excuse and then stopped, looking up at her. 'You're right. There's no excuse. I should have resisted.'

'Damn right you should have. Now Spike might be evil, or worse, dead...and…' She stopped abruptly as the room began to shake, lightly at first and then violently. Angel jumped to his feet and grabbed her, pushing her tight against the door as the shaking continued. It slowly, but didn't stop and Angel scowled.

'This is it. He's starting the ritual.'

'We have to find Spike.' Buffy said; her eyes devoid of anything but desperation and fear.

'He's tied up in the main chamber, where the Valkyrie were.'

'The Valkyrie. Those bird things. Did he resurrect the clan?' Buffy asked and Angel nodded. 'How many?'

Angel frowned. He had witnessed the ceremony but had left after he sensed Buffy in the tunnels. He knew the ritual had gone as planned. 'Ten. There were ten. They used hosts, vampires that already existed as shells for the resurrected demons.'

Buffy looked worried. 'I can do ten.'

'They'll be weak Buffy.' He stated. 'The ritual went fine but David needs to cleanse his demon before any of the others become strong enough to challenge him.'

'You know what happens?' She asked and he nodded.

'David has to drain Spike completely and then there are some words or something. He didn't explain it too thoroughly.'

'Drain him?' Buffy paled. 'Won't that kill him?'

Angel shook his head. 'It'll just hurt. But hopefully it won't come to that.' The ground was still shaking as he opened the door and looked out. 'Just be careful of Drusilla. I'll back you up, okay?'

'Angel.' She stopped him with a hand on his arm. 'Thank you.' She said, seriousness clouding her face.

'I'm guessing we probably have Willow to thank for this. Otherwise we would be facing vampire domination right now.' He smiled briefly and then looked out into the corridor once more. 'Right, coast is clear. The main chamber is down there. You can't miss it.' He pointed to the right. 'It's the one with the Hellmouth in the middle of it.'

She nodded and sprinted off as Angel watched her leave. A voice from behind him stopped him from following and he turned, coming face to face with Drusilla.

'Daddy has gone again.' She whispered. He nodded.

'I'm sorry Dru.' He wasn't entirely sure why he was apologising and wished he hadn't when he saw the Dagger in her hands again.

'It's okay. The pixies told me you needed your medicine.' She smiled and moved forward, holding the Dagger in front of her. He looked at it briefly and then away, avoiding eye contact with her. She frowned. 'You're not playing nice.'

She lunged for him. 'You promised me a prince, Daddy.' He dodged her attack and spun round her, grabbing her around the throat and immobilising her arms. The Dagger clattered the floor and he held her tight, grimacing when she kicked him in the shin. 'You lied.' She whispered.

'No I didn't. Your Daddy did.' Angel said, throwing her against the wall and stooping to pick up the weapon. She fell to the ground and looked up at him sadly before clambering to her feet and swaying slightly.

'Daddy's all gone away. I won't have a prince, no playmate, no fun. It's all your fault!' She hissed and threw herself at him. He held the Dagger out and it pierced her chest solidly. She stopped, looking down, her hands going to the wound. 'It's not a stake.' She whispered. 'Won't hurt me.'

'It cures all.' Angel said sadly and her eyes went wide with realisation.

'No…' She whispered. She looked up at him, a sweet smile cracking her face as all signs of insanity disappeared from her eyes. 'Goodbye, Daddy.' She said, pulling the Dagger from her chest and dropping it as she crumbled to dust. Angel stood for a second, his eyes on the floor. The Dagger cured all…and vampires were parasites, leeches, a disease.

Right now, one was about to attempt to dominate the world.