Everything either belongs to Joss or it should, no infringement is intended and no profit is to be made. When you get right down to it I'm not really worth suing anyway unless you want a share of an underpaid civil servants wages and it just wouldn't be worth the hassle trust me.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Hyperion Hotel – Los Angeles – February 2004
They'd moved the prisoner from the basement to the more salubrious environment of the dining room, he remained silent but he seemed to relax when they stopped pointing a shotgun at him which was understandable. He still wasn't going anywhere, he was under guard but they were being much nicer about it now.
'So who's this?' Andrew queried, bringing out a plate of fresh doughnuts from the kitchen.
'Government' Xander answered taking one of the doughnuts for himself and taking a bite. 'Help yourself' he told the agent, 'we can get you a cup of coffee or a can of soda if you like?' he offered.
'So more of a guestage than a hostage' Andrew noted. 'Is he staying for dinner?' he asked Xander. 'How do you like your steak?' he asked the agent, getting a small notepad and a pencil out of his pocket to record his preference.
The Initiative guy looked more than a little surprised at the hospitality but still remained closed lipped and professional. Andrew waited for a few seconds until he realised he wasn't going to get an answer and sighed. 'I'll cook it medium' he said. 'Now don't fill up on doughnuts' he told Xander and the two slayers with him who had also by now reached over to snag some.
'Yes Mom' Xander responded with a grin. The fact was Andrew was a much better cook than she'd ever been.
Buffy walked in with Knox following holding a walkie-talkie which the agent had with him when captured. She had dragged him off the project he was working on to develop a portal generator using the key from Jasmine's old world which annoyed him but Illyria had told him he had to do what the senior slayer instructed and he wasn't bout to disobey his God. 'Seen these before' Knox told Buffy. 'Government issue, encrypted signal almost impossible to intercept and decode and you have to punch in a numerical sequence before you can even use it, which we don't have of course' he told her.
The government agent smirked slightly.
'Nowhere near as good as the ones we've started using of course' Knox continued. 'I hacked right in using my PDA, good security though, took nearly a minute to run through all the variables' he told Buffy. 'Just press the transmit button there, it's ready to go' he instructed he, indicating the right one as he passed it over to her.
The agents eyes widened and his face fell causing Xander to grin in response. 'Hey man don't sweat it' Xander told him, 'You just don't have our calibre of geeks on the payroll, nothing to be ashamed of using second rate equipment' he continued, unable to resist smirking himself.
Buffy held the radio to the side of her head and pressed the transmit button. 'I guess there's someone from the Initiative listening' she began, 'we've got your spy guy here and if you want to come and collect him that's fine but we'd like to talk about stuff first' she said. 'For a start we might have accidentally hurt him and we wouldn't want a misunderstanding to blow up into something serious' she continued. 'Just walk in the front door, you can come armed if you're worried it's a trick, we won't mind' she offered then released the transmit button, offering the radio to the agent. 'They'd probably like to know you're okay' she told him, 'I would if somebody ever captured one of my people' she told him.
The agent looked at the radio for a second then took it from her. 'This is Unit Seven' he said, 'I am unharmed but being held against my will.'
'Oh come on that makes us sound like we threatened you with anything other than cholesterol' Xander interjected. 'He's sitting here surrounded by good looking girls and with a plate of doughnuts in front of him, we're not running Camp X-Ray here' he said loudly. 'Quick, send in the Marines and save him before we offer him a back rub and a glass of brandy' he said putting on a deep and dramatic tone of voice. 'You need to rescue the man before he faces the horrors of the jelly filling, all it takes is a few good men' he declared.
'Unit Seven what's going on, over' the radio squawked.
The agent grimaced. 'I'm being detained by some girls and a smart-ass' he replied into the walkie talkie whilst glaring at Xander. 'Do not consider my life in jeopardy but they are aware of the existence of the Initiative and the girls are HST level strong. Over' he stated.
After a few seconds another voice emerged from the radio. 'Buffy?' it said. 'Is that you? Over' it asked.
Buffy sighed and held out her hand to take back the radio which the agent returned. 'Riley' she began. 'Get your ass down here and pick up this guy before we stick him in a cab with a few bucks for the fare because I'll put in a claim to get the money back from the Department of Defence and that'll look really bad on your service record' she told him.
Xander waved at her then spelled out a short word in the air.
'Oh and if Sam's there bring her around, always good to catch up with people you haven't seen for a while when they're in town' Buffy added.
Xander pointed at Buffy. 'She used to date him' he told the agent. 'I just used to watch sports with the guy sometimes' he added.
'I'll be there in twenty minutes depending on traffic. Over and Out' the radio announced. Riley sounded more than a little annoyed Buffy noted.
'You know sending someone to spy on your ex could be considered stalking' Xander joked.
Buffy shrugged. 'He sounded surprised it was me' she replied.
'That's the problem with these Black Ops types' Xander observed, 'they always expect some dark conspiracy so they never just walk up, knock and ask what's going on if they can play ninja and spy on you with zoom lenses and directional microphones instead' he continued.
'And when you catch them doing something cloak and dagger in full uniform they try and tell you they've been playing paintball' Buffy replied with a chuckle.
The agent looked from Buffy to Xander and shook his head sadly, he was pretty convinced by now he was in less than mortal danger. 'If I have to stay here until Major Finn arrives can someone tell the little chef dude to cook my steak medium-rare?' he asked.
Great Northern Forest – Pylea – February 2004
'Well they can't shoot for shit but they love bayonet practice' Ashton observed as another batch of recruits yelled a battle cry and went charging full tilt towards a line of sandbags hanging from trees. Reaching their objective and using their own momentum to drive in the blade they slammed the bayonets on the end of their unloaded Kalashnikovs through the coarse material, spilling another trickle of sand into the dirt.
Wesley nodded. 'Swords and spears have been the order of the day here since time immemorial' he replied. 'Some of the demon clans think using a crossbow is beneath them let alone a firearm.'
The mercenary scratched his chin and then spat on the ground, he'd tried some local food earlier and it had an aftertaste that just wasn't going away. 'The bayonet has it's place' he remarked, 'I've seen crowds dispersed and militia rabble run away by just fixing them and looking like you mean it, but it's usually a last resort' he stated. 'We need these bastards to get used to the idea that their job is to shoot the enemy, and ideally without giving him the opportunity to ever fight back.'
'I'm having a tough job convincing them of that' Wesley responded with a wry smile. 'To be honest Groo isn't helping much there' he added. 'A lot of what we might consider good military tactics and common sense seems like cheating and unchivalrous conduct to the locals.'
Ashton sighed. 'It's not the fucking Dark Ages' he said, before looking around at the clothes some of the people in camp were wearing, many of them refugees in barely more than rags. 'Okay maybe it is' he admitted, 'but we don't have the numbers to fuck around playing Ivanhoe.'
'The human recruits are doing a lot better than the demons' Wesley pointed out.
'Less problems with being told what to do by our people' Ashton replied, 'plus they like the idea that the guns put them on a level playing field' he continued. 'We've got a lot of racial tension going on, we used to be nearly all human around here but you liberating that camp and bringing them back here bought some serious issues up, I've broken up a few fights myself and so have the girls. Not surprising I suppose, people back home kill each other over that shit and it's a lot easier to tell a Human from a Deathwok than a Tutsi from a Hutu, or Perković there from a really tall Serbian guy.'
'Or a Canuck from a Yank' Wesley added with a smile.
'Hey the only thing we've got in common is we've both got a country with a lower standard of living south of the border' Ashton snapped back with a grin. 'And we haven't had to kick their ass in nearly two hundred years. Guessed they learned their lesson in the War of 1812 eh?'
Wesley laughed then his put on a more serious expression. 'None of the girls went home then?' he noted.
The mercenary shook his head. 'Once they had a couple of days to get over it they were okay' he said. 'Course it took a few of them that long to get rid of the hangover.'
'I hope you haven't caused any of them to develop a drink problem' Wesley replied with a half smile.
'Not with my scotch they fucking won't' Ashton told him seriously. 'And I bet half of them won't touch a drop again in years' he said then took a deep breath. 'HEY JAILBAIT' he hollered. 'Five more minutes bayonet practice then get these maggots up to the firing range' he told the slayer who was leading the drill. 'Janko is up there already, he can drill them' he added. The slayer blushed intensely and then gave him a thumbs up.
Wesley crossed his arms. 'That's the second time I've heard you call Charlotte that today' he said quietly. 'What's the story?' he asked.
The mercenary chuckled. 'After we finished off the bottles I was willing to part with I got back to my tent and found her stark naked in my sleeping bag drunk out of her skull and saying she really liked me.'
'You didn't?' Wesley asked nervously.
'I left her there and slept outside' Ashton told him. 'I was either too sober to take advantage or too drunk to do anything about it, I'll let you make your mind up which' he joked. 'Well she got a nickname out of it anyhow.'
'You know a gentleman would have spared her blushes as well as her honour and wouldn't be reminding her of the event' Wesley chided.
Ashton snorted. 'I fight other peoples wars for money' he retorted, 'not screwing her is as close to gentlemanly as it gets.'
Wesley thought that over. 'Well we're not paying you to act as an example of moral rectitude and decorum I suppose' he admitted.
'I carry a rifle, blow shit up and yell at people' the mercenary said. 'If you want more we can renegotiate my contract' he continued. 'Another few hundred a week and I'll teach 'em good table manners and the waltz' he offered tongue-in-cheek.
'Your current three specialties are just fine for now thank you' Wesley told him. 'I'll see you later I've got to see Lorne and find out how his spy network is going' he said and headed off across the expanding campsite.
It seemed like dozens more arrived every day Wesley thought as he made his way across the clearing in the centre of the village of tents and quickly assembled and extremely rough shacks. Vi and half the slayers were out running raids and sabotage missions leaving the mercenaries to oversee the training regime. More and more volunteered to fight and they were now using some of those who had been in training longest in the role of non-commissioned officers, raising them to corporal or sergeant rank and putting them in charge of others. They didn't want to commit any of them into action for a while yet, a week or twos additional training would prevent casualties and raise their effectiveness, but they were starting to shape up nicely and with automatic rifles in their hands they'd be another nasty surprise for the occupation. Their weren't enough slayers to hit any more than a tiny minority of the available targets but once hundreds of AK-47 toting guerrillas started roaming the forests and swamps of Pylea, Sebassis demon legions would start rueing the day they portalled in to this particular hell dimension.
As he passed a small hut Wesley was accosted by an old woman who threw herself to the ground on her knees in front of him, took his hand and kissed them. He cringed with embarrassment and told her to get to her feet which she did immediately, tears streaming down her cheeks. She told him her grandson was awake again, his fever was gone and she thanked him for using his magic to save the boy. Wesley tried to explain that all he'd done the night before was inject him with a hefty shot of penicillin from supplies and there was no magic involved at all, only science but they just weren't buying it. It must be magic, like the tiny white pills that took away pain, the goggles that could make you see in the dark and all the other wonders the off-worlders had bought with them. Eventually Wesley gave up trying and told her if the boy's condition did turn for the worse again to tell one of the girls and they'd give him more of the "magic" medicine.
Still at least it was less awkward than when one of the locals had asked if he and Vi were in kye-rumption or they were just involved in activities related with something that translated into English as hedgehog.
With Vi too mortified to reply an extremely flustered Wesley had explained he only com-shukked the woman with the blue hair that appeared in camp sometimes and that ended the matter.
Well except for the guy that started bringing Vi flowers anyhow.
Hyperion Hotel – Los Angeles – February 2004
'As far as I know he's still down in the dining room finishing dinner' Buffy answered dropping into a chair across from Riley in the conference room with them being the only ones there. 'So how's the secret government agency business?' she asked.
Major Riley Finn narrowed his eyes. 'What in God's name is going on Buffy?' he asked forthrightly ignoring her question as he had done with the prior one concerning where his wife was.
'Care to be more specific?' Buffy asked him.
Riley crossed his arms and looked stern, the scar on his face helping that a lot. 'We've been receiving wild stories about demons getting massacred right across the US for months' he said. 'I got pulled off my last assignment to look into it because everyone else drew a total blank and when the shaman working with us finally locates the place that seems to be the centre of it all what do I find but you.'
'You were expecting maybe Van Helsing?' Buffy asked with a chuckle.
'I've got people back at the Department of Defence who think there's some kind of terrorist conspiracy going on and they even tried tracking the people who they thought were involved but they kept losing them. They just kept damn well disappearing' he continued, 'half my superiors are starting to think it's just a weird coincidence.'
'Ah yeah' Buffy responded with a slight shrug, 'we've got these symbols we found out, like runes you know' she said, 'well with those plus some spells my people can just vanish' she told him. 'Well not literally but you can't pick them up with electronic surveillance gear or magic either so if they think they're being followed they're under orders to use them' she continued. 'It's usually the Police but I guess sometimes it was your people instead.'
Riley frowned. 'What do you mean by your people anyhow?' he asked.
'Slayers' Buffy replied. 'Plural' she continued. 'Really plural' she added.
'I thought there were only two of you?' Riley asked. 'You and Faith?' he queried.
Buffy smiled. 'New rules' she replied. 'We estimate about two thousand now, most of whom should be on the payroll by the end of the year' she told him. Illyria had told her this was slightly higher than in the original timeline, probably because they'd killed off so many more bringers who had been hunting potentials, and that they were getting much better success at recruiting them, likely because of better funding. With hundreds of millions of dollars available, and the sum increasing faster than they could spend it, they could offer a very attractive salary as well as appealing to the girl's sense of public duty.
'Two thousand slayers' Riley repeated slowly. 'You're kidding?' he asked.
'No' Buffy replied honestly, 'we've only got a few hundred trained and in the field so far though' she admitted.
Riley shook his head. 'Would I be right in assuming you had something to do with Sunnydale falling into a sinkhole?' he asked rhetorically.
'Yeah' Buffy admitted, wincing slightly, 'we needed to collapse the Hellmouth to stop another apocalypse but we made sure nobody was there first' Buffy told him. 'We even warned people who we wouldn't have minded falling in with the town' she continued. 'Illyria said something about it causing trouble later if we didn't, she didn't specify what she meant by that and there was no point pressing her on it so we didn't.'
'Who's Illyria?' Riley asked.
'I am Illyria' a slender woman with blue streaks in her hair and wearing a light cotton dress declared striding into the room. 'You are from the government' she said. 'I have already taken steps to prevent you interfering with our mission, do not get involved in matters that are not your concern and do not attempt to make hostile moves against us, you are ill-equipped for the task.'
Buffy grimaced. 'Like she says this is Illyria' she told Riley. 'I wish I could say this was unusually rude for her but it's not.'
'One of your new slayers?' Riley asked.
'No she's a God' Buffy replied with a shrug, there was little point in prevaricating about it.
'He looks unconvinced' Illyria noted. 'I would demonstrate but I have just utilised my powers more than I would normally care to and the shell is barely stable' she stated then address Riley directly. 'My minion Knox detected your orders to freeze our financial assets through our hacks into what you laughably think of as your secure military communications system' she told him. 'You will unfreeze them and never do so again or I will retaliate in a more extreme manner next time' she told him.
'You froze our assets' Buffy responded glaring at Riley.
'Only the minority they could locate' Illyria told her. 'No more than fifty million or so, but it is the principle that is at stake.'
Riley straightened up in his chair. 'The United States Government is not going to sit idly by while a bunch of rank amateurs run around like supernatural vigilantes' he declared. 'I'm sure we could find a place for some of your personnel in our organisation, Lord knows I appreciate what a slayer can do, but now I know the full story the little crusade you've got running from here is over' he declared.
'You know barely a fraction of the full story and should be grateful good relations with your superiors are in our best interests' Illyria responded curtly, 'or else I would consider teaching you all a lesson in what the term superpower really means and it has very little to do with Carrier Battle Groups' she declared.
Buffy mouthed an obscenity. 'Look Riley' she began, 'you don't know what you've got yourself involved in here but trust me, you and the people you work for are in way over your heads' she told him. 'We're not playing the game at your level, to you and your superiors something like the mess over in Iraq is a big deal' she said, 'we're gearing up for a war that isn't even confined to this dimension.'
'It is unlikely he will listen or see reason but I have already provided a demonstration that should make them more willing to take us seriously' Illyria stated.
Buffy squeezed her eyes shut. 'I know I don't really want to know but what have you done Illyria?' she asked.
The God-King smiled. 'They froze our assets so in a more literal way I froze theirs' she replied cryptically.
Riley rolled his eyes. 'You can't freeze the assets of the United States Government' he retorted.
'Not only can you, I in fact did so' Illyria replied smugly, 'or at least a substantial portion of them' she continued. 'I always expected this situation to happen eventually so I made plans and visited the location previously to make sure I could portal in to exactly the right point when required.'
'Spill it Blue' Buffy told her. 'I can tell you're just itching to do it' she said. Illyria was an egomaniac and enjoyed this kind of thing immensely.
Illyria grinned. 'As soon as my Knox informed me of the Governments actions I portalled to Fort Knox in Kentucky, disabled the vault guards and opened another portal directly under a large quantity of bullion' she declared. 'I was forced to utilise ten CC's of Dawns blood from the stockpile to open a sufficiently large portal' she added, 'I did not wish to risk using more in order to remove the entire stockpile.'
Buffy groaned as the God-King started to look even more pleased with herself and smirked at Riley. 'If you want me to tell you where in Antarctica approximately five hundred tons of US gold bullion is currently laying in the snow you will unfreeze our accounts immediately' she told him. 'And if you ever cross us again I'll dump the next load into the Marianas Trench and let you try and recover it from the bottom of the Pacific Ocean' she told him.
Buffy dropped her face into her hands as Riley stared at Illyria in shock.
'Your move G-Man' Illyria told him.
Note from the Author:
This Fanfic runs on reviews (and I apologise for the Knox-Knox joke :-D )