A/N: And here it is, the third chapter. Not fully satisfied with it but why don't you all let me know what you think? Your reviews are appreciated.

The game is afoot

"Wise man say: forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza."

- Michelangelo

Slayer HQ, New York
Frankie was looking around, waiting in front of the empty front desk. The building looked big enough and the front door wasn't locked but nobody was in the lobby to greet her and nobody had come after she had loudly announced her arrival. To be fair she hadn't been to loud because she saw an opportunity to look around on her own. But the two doors leading further into the building were locked so now she was just waiting.

The front door opened again behind her and she turned to see who it was. It was a pale girl in sweats wearing sneakers. She looked kinda like a frightened rabbit at the moment and made a point of looking everywhere but at Frankie first. Only when she had done that and couldn't find a trace of anybody did she address Frankie. "Hi," she meekly said accompanied by a jerk with her head that could be a nod.

"Hi," Frankie greeted back. She took another good look at the girl who looked to be about her age. "You sick or something?"

VVV

Alice considered telling the confident latina a lie but hesitated. Alice did feel the same vibe coming from this girl that she had felt coming from Faith, although it seemed to be less powerful. And she also seemed to be waiting and didn't seem to recognize her. Which could mean that Faith had approached her like she had Alice and Alice wanted to start on a good footing with her possible co-worker. She had decided to take Faith's offer even before she had reached her home, because she didn't have much too loose anyway and saving Alice's life gave Faith a lot of credibility with her.

"Or something," Alice settled on. "Name's Alice, Alice Cooper. Faith, uh, approached you too?"

"Frankie," the girl said and held out her hand. Alice shook it and Frankie continued," Yeah, I met Faith last night. Told me the most ridiculous shit I ever heard and then proved it." Suddenly Frankie's grip on her hand intensified and she quickly rolled up her sleeve to expose her lower arm. Then she let the arm drop with a look of disgust. "And that something would be what exactly, junkie?"

Alice didn't know where to look, her mind grasping for something to say. It was then that she felt Faith approaching, her eyes automatically drawn to the door she knew Faith would be coming through in a few moments. Sure enough, she was right.

VVV

Faith entered the lobby seeing the two girls facing each other. Alice still looked bad, but the fact that she was here made Faith hopeful that she would sign up. Frankie was facing away from Faith but turned around when she heard the door opening. "You two introduced yourselves to each other?" Faith inquired.

"Yeah, we exchanged names." Frankie replied while giving a disdainful glance at Alice. The she looked back at Faith, "And you people are obviously not looking for the best of the best."

Faith gave a smirk, "Those already got their asses kicked. And we ain't the ones that choose who gets to be a Slayer. Don't know which ones upstairs do, just know you're born with the potential. What do you say we take this conversation to where they got chairs and a Watcher to explain things better."

Faith didn't even wait for their reply but simply expected them to follow. When Frankie and Alice caught up, Alice asked, "What's a Watcher?"

"Watchers are stuffy guys and girls who read a lot of books. They also used to order the Slayer around while they sat on their asses, sipping tea while contemplating ways to make life more difficult for her," was Faith's answer. Then she added as an afterthought, "Vishe is alright though." She led them through a long hallway with no doors, then the hallway turned left and that part did have some doors. Two to be exact, one on the end and a double-door midway on the left.

It was the latter that Faith opened and the girls were now looking at a very large room with a fireplace. The furniture looked antique, but Faith didn't treat it like that. She just sprawled on one of the chairs next to a short, balding man in a suit. The smell of hot coffee was coming from the pot on the table but neither girl wanted a cup at that moment.

Frankie whistled. "You people seen too many X-men movies."

"I was thinking more of that old Batman series," Alice added.

Frankie nodded, "Place seems a little big for just two people?"

"It is," Faith confirmed, "we're understaffed at the moment. But right now, time for a little show and tell." She waved a hand towards the man. "Meet John Vishe, resident Watcher. John, take it away."

"Ehm, nice to meet you," He directed at the two girls, then he turned to Faith. "Take what away?"

Faith sighed, "Great, ruin a dramatic exposition why don't you. Just start with the 'One Girl in all the world..' routine and we'll muddle through from there."

"Ahem, yes. Of course. Let's see, I've learned the words but I never thought I would recite them to a Potential let alone a Slayer." Faith gave him a look. "Right, getting to the point." Vishe took a deep breath before speaking, "Into each generation a Slayer is born, one girl in all the world, a Chosen One,
one born with the strength and skill to hunt the vampires and stop the spread of their evil. She is the Slayer."

"Okaay," Frankie responded after a minute of silence. "I thought vampires had fangs, not horns?"

"Vampires aren't the only monsters out there. Mister swing-and-a-miss last night was some kind of demon of the unfriendly persuasion. We just deal with vampires most of the time," Faith explained.

"Why did Mr. Vishe speak of only one girl in all the world?" Alice interjected.

"be-Because that is how it has been for thousands of years. Council records, I mean of the old Council, never spoke of even two Slayers existing at the same time. But that changed with Miss Summers." John seemed to forget others were in the room as he continued, "apparently it is only necessary that the current Slayer briefly stops living, like drowning or perhaps a heart attack would do it too. But we have also learned from Miss Summers second and third death that this mechanism does not reset itself."

"Second and third death?" Frankie interrupted. She turned to Faith, "you do get hazard pay for this shit, right?"

Faith grinned. "Nope, didn't get paid a dime until three months ago. Council wasn't big on independence, they liked their Slayers quiet, obedient and short-lived. New Council is a different story though. The new motto is by the Slayers, of the Slayers and for the Slayers."

"Very original," Frankie retorted.

Again it was Alice that went to the heart of the matter. "But what happened four months ago to change that 'one girl' rule?"

Vishe couldn't answer that one, he hadn't been there so it was left to Faith. "Last year the Big Bad decided to wipe out the Slayer line. That meant it was going after the Potential Slayers like you. To top things of it also had some army waiting in a hell dimension and that was just too much for just B. and me. So four months ago B. decided to change the rules. Red worked her mojo so all the Potentials we were guarding became Slayers. Long story short, we kicked ass and the world kept spinning."

Frankie blinked. "You know, I really should be worried about my lack of skepticism after that story. Just one question, who the hell are B. and Red?"

"I-I believe Miss Lehane, I mean Faith, is referring to Miss Summers and Miss Rosenburg." John supplied.

Faith nodded. "So now we got a whole lot of Slayers and we are busy tracking them all down. But we are not drafting you. Being a Slayer is important, it means you can make a difference but it is dangerous and you don't get any recognition for saving the world from demons. However, if you don't want to have anything to do with this, we can change it back. Make you normal again."

Frankie tried to interrupt her but Faith ploughed on, her face dead serious. "But there ain't no going back, you can't change your mind later on and become a Slayer again. If you give it up, you really give it up. I already told Alice that but you should both think hard before telling me what," and Faith told these last words with an enigmatic smile," your choice is.

The Sewers
The last vampire finished his report. Shredder had sent the four he had inherited from his sire to the various vampire groups that lived in the city to deliver a simple message. Swear allegiance to the Foot or die. The response had been negative although none of the four were actually dusted.

Shredder had received them seated and had listened to them in silence. "Leave us," he commanded. His voice didn't betray what he thought but the four scurried away regardless. One of the Foot standing guard outside closed the curtain behind them. Both occupants remained silent as the four were still in hearing range.

But Tatsu did not hesitate to speak once that was no longer so. "Master, your enemies have insulted you. And those miserable creatures are the reason those enemies think they can do so without fear of punishment. Master, why do you keep those weaklings around?"

Shredder's eyes cringed in savage humor. "Because they are still of use to me. I wanted our future…'associates' to underestimate us. It gives us the perfect excuse to wipe out an obstacle." He now got up and strode to the table. There was a map of New York on it, which he began to examine and he beckoned Tatsu to join him. Tatsu himself was puzzled as to why they would need an excuse but remained silent and simply moved to the table too.

"Here," Shredder put his finger on the map, "is where we will start our operations once again." Tatsu gave him a questioning glance. "I never intended to remain here, among the waste of civilization. The junkyard was only meant to be a temporary base. There was where I wanted to rebuild the Foot in the event our original base was lost. But I will not let outsiders find this base as well. I want the vampire nest in that area eliminated."

Shredder chuckle had the same metallic quality as every sound that came from his mouth. "And now that I have fooled everybody into thinking I am weak I will show them I am not. And ensure that no one will stumble onto our base."

"But master, will they not look there first?"

"Of course they will! They will search the former nest as well as every sewer and abandoned building there. And never even consider that I might simply have bought the building. And that, Tatsu, is why they will bow before me in the end."

The Sewers, the abandoned Metro station
"Hey guys, April's on!" Michelangelo cried out. The Turtles had been exhausted after their final battle with the Foot, not to mention the little lecture Splinter gave them on being caught on camera. But now they were waking up and of course Mikey had turned on the TV. It was a little late for cartoons but hearing a recap on the demise of the Foot would be equally entertaining.

As April ended introducing herself and started on the first segment, the other three Turtles finished seating themselves before the TV. "Last night, the only leader of the group called the Foot in police custody was murdered while being held at Kings County Hospital. The officer guarding him was also killed. But in a bizarre twist the body of the man, only known as Tatsu, was reported missing from the morgue the next morning. Police are working on the assumption that the same parties that killed him also stole his body, although they refused to speculate on a possible motive for the body theft.

In a related story, City workers finished clearing the collapsed pier where witnesses placed the other leader of the Foot, Uroku Saki, fighting four costumed performers from a nearby club. No bodies were found in the debris."

O'Neil was moving on to another news item but the Turtles weren't paying attention anymore. Raphael rose up. "I can't believe this! What the hell does it take to kill that guy? A stake through the hart?"

"Or silver bullets," Michelangelo offered.

"We haven't tried decapitation yet," Leonardo calmly suggested.

Now Donatello jumped in, "hose his painting with paint remover."

His brothers now looked at him askance then to each other. Donatello tried again, "You know, from The Picture of Dorian Gray?"

Again the other three Turtles shared a look. Mikey spoke up, "Donnie, we're going for classics here."

Donatello almost made another attempt to explain but then thought better and hung his head in defeat. None of them noticed Splinter's arrival until he spoke. "So, the Shredder has survived again."

"Yes, Master Splinter." Leonardo confirmed.

Splinter sunk into quiet contemplation for a moment before speaking. "Then we will resume your training immediately. I do not believe that, wherever the Shredder now is, his latest defeat has dampened his thirst for revenge."

"Will we ever stop him, Master?" Donatello asked dejectedly.

Splinter's tone was gentle. "Together the four of you can accomplish any task you set your minds too. This war will end one day and I have faith that you will be the victors. After all, the Shredder is not immortal."

Waterfront, abandoned Warehouse
The sun had just set and the vampires in the nest were becoming restless. But none of them dared to leave until Klaas had given his orders of the night. Klaas Verbuuren as his full name was, had been around for a while. Nobody knew exactly when he became a vampire but he had staked his claim in the late 19th century and had weathered the occasional territorial squabbles between the vampire gangs without losing his life or territory.

Conversations halted abruptly after Klaas came into view. Dressed in clothes he had gotten in the eighties he purposefully strode to a soapbox that he always used to address his underlings. As always, he kept things brief and his voice left no doubt that he would not tolerate any disobedience. "As you all know, we have been getting a lot of out-of-towners lately trying to take-over what's ours. That idiot that came in a few hours ago is just the latest example. So none of you are going out alone and if you see an outsider hunting on our turf you take him out. If it's a group you get back here and tell me about it."

Now Verbuuren switched to another item. "Last night two Slayers came into Willy's." This surprised some of the vampires, apparently the gossip hadn't reached them yet. "So until we know what they look like, none of you maggots go after poor, defenseless, teenaged girls. I do not want a Slayer showing up here." This of course caused some unhappiness, but none were dumb enough to speak up.

Klaas opened his mouth again, but whether he simply wanted to dismiss them or give another order would never be known as the sound of breaking windows and splintering wood startled everybody. Men dressed up in green pajamas that covered them from head to toe quickly entered through the doors, windows and some were even jumping in through the roof. Only Klaas could see that a few of them also entered through the sewer, the supposedly guarded sewer.

His people were quickly encircled by the attackers and Klaas noted dismally that quite a few of them were armed with swords and long sticks. Perfect weapons against vampires. Some of the green-clad men made room to let a bald, Chinese fellow through dressed in something that looked like a dress. Klaas decided to be bold. "And what in the name of all that is unholy do you freaks think you're doing?"

But he was met only with silence and a grunt from the bald guy. Then the guy in the dress raised his left hand and finally spoke, closing his fist with the last word. "Ninja's, attack!" The ninja's did so yelling while Klaas his own people just stood there, but Verbuuren himself wasn't stunned. On the contrary, the order simplified the situation and left him with only one option.

"Kill them!" he roared and he pushed some of his men forward. Both to get them going and to clear enough space for him to step of his box. He had already picked who he was going to beat to a bloody pulp and he retrieved his brass knuckles as he advanced towards the only one not dressed in green. That guy was advancing towards him as well, easily swatting away any vampire that came into his path.

Verbuuren didn't have all his attention on the man coming towards him. From the corners of his eyes he followed the progress of the battle and he didn't like what he saw. His people were mostly unarmed and while the did seem to be stronger then their opponents, it was clear that they were not human after all. And the ninja's were definitely trouncing them in the skill department.

Klaas' only hope now to win this was to beat the leader and hope to hell these guys would back off. He swung first but baldy blocked it with a grunt and followed it up with a palm strike to the face that snapped Klaas' head back. But he managed to block the two follow-up kicks and retaliated with a jab of his left fist that sent his opponent reeling. But he stepped out of the way of the right uppercut that followed before planting a sidekick in Klaas his unprotected right side.

Baldy's next attack however was blocked again and he stepped back for a moment to look for an opening. But Klaas had been waiting for that and launched himself at his opponent, pushing himself to move faster. The first punch was a feint and his opponent fell for it, leaving him out of position to stop the real attack. A right punch to his face that lifted him off his feet and launched him back a good two meters before sliding to a stop.

But it was too late as by then; the attackers were finishing off the last of his people leaving Klaas alone in a circle of green-clad demons. Baldy was getting up again but Verbuuren didn't pay attention to him as a new figure made its entrance. He was dressed in some purple get-up with armor protecting his underarms and shins. Armor that was adorned with sharp blades. He also wore a helmet that obscured most of his face. The guy was trailed by four vampires carrying videocameras and Klaas recognized one as the clown that had delivered the ultimatum that afternoon.

Klaas surmised that he hadn't been fighting the leader of this pack after all. But he hadn't survived this long by giving up, or by hesitating. So he didn't wait for the guy to introduce himself or wax about how futile or foolish his resistance was. Klaas just threw a punch towards his midriff. It was caught effortlessly and he barely saw the return punch that landed in his gut.

While vampires didn't need to breathe, it still hurt a lot. Then the guy began squeezing Verbuuren's right fist. His bones and the steel of the knuckles resisted but then gave in and Klaas resultant scream drowned out the sounds of bones snapping and steel being bent. When his hand was finally released he could only look at it dazed, trying and failing to guess how long it would take for that to heal.

So caught up with his own pain he was that he didn't even notice that the guy in the armor had walked around him. But he snapped out of it when strong arms encircled his neck and grabbed hold of his head. In a reflex his hands came up in an attempt to dislodge his opponent but the simple act of moving his right hand caused blinding currents of pain to shoot through his arm and into the rest of his body, paralyzing it for several precious seconds.

When Klaas felt the guy pulling he didn't at first get what he was trying to do. But then realization hit him as he felt his own skin and muscles being torn apart. Oblivion came centuries later.

VVV

Shredder rose up again from his crouching position and now he spoke. He would not let the pathetic creatures that were taping him even now to speak for him ever again. There was no need for it anymore and soon no need for them at all. "You already know what I want. Tomorrow I will visit one of you, one that has not yet given his allegiance to the Foot. And the night after that and so on until all that remains is the Foot and," he briefly looked to the floor, "dust."

TBC