Azure Halloween
Summary: Crossover with something of my own invention Halloween fic. Things will never be the same again for Xander.
Disclaimer: Buffy belongs to Fox Interactive and Mutant Enemy. No copyright infringement intended. Anything not recognizable as someone else's work most likely belongs to me. Mitts off.
Sorry for the delay, people. I had to write this on the computers at my school because my monitor broke down.. three-feet-off-the-table-onto-the-hardwood broke down. Don't ask. I got a new one anyway (pats his new 15" TXT monitor lovingly) At this point I'd also like to say that since Skye is an original chapter some readers might be confused by certain references. If anyone has any questions regarding Skye or his background please e-mail me (the link can be found in my bio) and I'll be happy to answer your questions.. unless, of course, the answers happen to be important plotwise.
Chapter 4
Xander closed the book he was holding with a soft thump and a puff of dust that made his eyes water for a moment. Sighing, he placed it in the steadily growing pile of skimmed through books on the table. After four hours of reading, scribbling notes and inhaling enough dust to give an elephant asthmatic seizures he had.. nothing. Zippo. Nada. Squelch. So far no supernatural creature described had fit his criteria of 'super-strength, super-sense, senses electricity, senses undead'. The closest hit had been a Fi'k'k'k'tha demon (how the name was pronounced Xander had no idea and he didn't even want to know) that could sense certain energy sources and undead creatures but that one resembled a giant jellyfish/sea serpent hybrid that couldn't survive fifty feet away from the nearest body of salt water. No banana. So far he had found no mention of Dachar, children of Dachar, or dachardal'ai either.
There was a faint yipping sound and Xander raised his head, taking a look around. The table he was working on was in the library basement, practically filled to the point of overflowing with old leatherbound tomes and bits of paper with various notes scrawled on them. The back of the room was separated from the rest by a strong steel cage, which currently held several mattresses and a scraggly werewolf. He was a huge thing, covered with brownish-black fur, and he was currently lying on his back, making small yelping and whining noises, his cloven paws twitching in the air.
Xander grinned. No matter the fact that Oz could tear a man into shreds while in his werewolf state, he still looked like a really big puppy while asleep.
Xander hadn't realized the time of the month when he'd decided to do some research, mostly because of the fact he'd had so many things on his mind. It wasn't until he'd gotten to the library that he had remembered that it was full moon tonight.. and that it was his turn to keep an eye on Oz. At least he had a good reason for being in the library- he knew that if he'd just show up and head to the demon books at least Giles would get suspicious. He had, for a moment, considered telling the Watcher of his situation, right until common sense had squashed that thought. Giles would have probably just cleaned his glasses, oh-deared and buried himself in the library.. which Xander was doing fine by all himself, thankyouverymuch. Besides, Willow would've killed him if he told someone else than his bestest bud first. Well, not killed, but her resolve face would've made him wish he was dead. There should've been a law against that face. In fact, he was quite sure there was one.
Xander skimmed through several pages, finding nothing useful, until a certain passage caught his eye. It was a part of some old Watcher's Diary from the 1750s, the ink badly worn and weathered, but if he squinted he could make out most of the words even if the language was a little old.
Apparently the Slayer of that time had discovered a vampire nest and, while cleaning it up, had encountered a demonic being she hadn't been able to identify. Like any good Watcher's Council-trained Slayer she had doubled back to report to her Watcher before setting off to destroy it. That had been the last time the Watcher saw his charge.. according to the Watcher nearly two hours later the warehouse (times never changed, did they?) had been decimated in 'a violent explosion of undetermined origin'. The body of the Slayer or the demon had never been found, although a week later a new Slayer had been discovered.
Xander paused to consider that. Suddenly a tingle shot through his body in warning moments before his mind was assaulted in a barrage of sensations.
FLASH
Fear, excitement, anger.. Danger, close, very close..
"If you see me fall, turn and stay away. The males of my kind leave behind no trophies for our enemies, only death to those who cut us down."
"The thing we love the most about you is your bright outlook in life, big guy. You'll live. We all will."
FLASH
Xander made a low pained growling noise, pressing his palms tightly against his skull. Just as he'd thought he had gotten used to the 'memory flashes' they seemed to get more painful. Before they had been more like fuzzy mental images, more like impressions rather than actual memories, but this one.. this one had had actual words. Words or no words, his head felt like someone had used it as a football. Or a wrecking ball, take a pick.
There was a faint whine from Oz before the werewolf twitched and opened his cool blue eyes. A formerly nearly unnoticeable presence in his spook radar lit up stronger as Oz righted himself, nostrils flaring. It didn't feel dark like a vampire did, just.. it was difficult to describe, like a sensation of wild hunt and silvery moonlight, bound by something that felt.. tainted with shadow, but Xander knew with a frightening certainty it meant 'werewolf'.
Xander watched Oz slowly pad to the front of the cage, the werewolf still sniffing the air. "Hiya, Oz. Looks like I got to watch over you tonight.. the hell?"
The moment he opened his mouth Oz's eyes had snapped wide open. With a sudden whine the werewolf seemed to shrink a size or two as he backed up to the corner of the cage, as far as possible from Xander. Xander stared as the werewolf actually trembled and whined like a scared puppy.
Pulling his chair further away from the cage Xander sighed, scribbling hastily 'freaks out werewolves' in the slowly growing list of 'stuff to look out for'. Then he decided to go look for some Tylenol for his headache.
----
The moment Xander got back home he snuck up to his room and made sure the mace was still in its place under his bed. Touching the warm, humming metal sent an equally warm shiver through him. For a short moment the hum of the weapon intensified into a low purring noise before dying down. Xander smiled and stretched, reaching out with his Xander-sense for a moment. The air in his room felt suddenly hot and stuffy; he couldn't sense anything nearby so he opened his window. The evening wind ruffled his hair and gave a pleasantly cool tingle against his skin.
Living on the Hellmouth had taught Xander to be extremely careful at all times. Nevertheless, as he drew in the night air.. then climbed out the window and onto the roof. The stars shimmered down at him from the cloudless sky as he spread his arms, feeling the wind with his body. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed open spaces until now.
Sighing, Xander sat down comfortably and leaned his back on the wall next to his window. He sat there feeling the wind and watching the silvery moon rise slowly until his eyes fluttered shut. He didn't wake up as the wind picked up slightly.. nor did he wake up when that same wind wrapped itself around him, forming an invisible swirling protective shell around him that masked his scent from anything that hunted in the night.
That night the clouds covered the moon from sight shortly after Xander fell asleep. An unearthly chill spread over the town, a dark haze settling on the streets. The howl of the wind turned into something that resembled the wail of a dying animal, the sense of darkness so strong not even vampires dared to show their face.
Xander knew nothing of this. He slept there, his dreams filled with a faint beautiful music of thousands of voices raised in a wordless praise ringing through his very soul, the shell of air around him, and didn't wake up until the sun began to rise. And when he woke up he felt more refreshed than ever.
----
Xander yawned and stretched, his fanged canines glinting in the sunlight. He hadn't slept that well in ages. Somehow the sunlight seemed warmer, the air more fresh, the town even more quiet than usual.. this night he hadn't had any weird dreams or flashbacks. He could remember hearing the most beautiful music he'd ever heard in his sleep, basking in a pleasant warmth as the song had washed over him, but that was it.
Xander opened his eyes slowly.. then blinked as he realized that he was in a half-lying position on his rooftop. He blinked again, then shook his head and stretched before picking himself up. It was until he stretched and smelled the air again that he realized something was wrong. Sunnydale wasn't exactly the most lively town he'd seen, but now.. nothing was moving in the streets. Nothing. He couldn't even hear the normal sounds of traffic.
Xander frowned and looked around. Something on the sidewalk next to their front yard caught his eye- a scraggly ball of fluff he first thought was a feather duster. Then he saw a second one. And a third. Only after he spotted a fourth one on the corner of the roof did he realize what they were. Birds. Dead birds. There were dozens of them, spread all over the neighborhood, unmarked like they'd just keeled over and dropped out of the sky. Sniffing the air, Xander realized that there was a faint smell in the air he couldn't recognize but couldn't be good. A cold wave washed over him as he clambered in through his window, suddenly fully awake.
Xander hadn't even gotten all the way down the stairs before he got the nagging feeling he'd forgotten something. He returned to his room and peered under the bed. A wave of ozone met him as tiny strands of energy arced on the silver-and-ebony metal of the Stormhammer. Slightly hesitant, he reached out, his fingers not quite meeting the handle.
"Oh, to hell with it.." he muttered darkly before snatching the mace. Three minutes later he had the weapon neatly strapped across his back as he reached the street, headed for Willow's house.
Xander found the fact the weight of the weapon on his back felt comforting only slightly disturbing.
----
Xander estimated the time was somewhere between ten and eleven AM. Everything was deathly silent as he ran through the streets as fast as he could. The sun was shining, it looked like the beginning of a beautiful day.. but all Sunnydale except him was unnervingly still. The dead birds and other small animals scattered around town didn't help the eerie feeling he had at all either.
He finally reached the Rosenberg house with its immaculately trimmed hedges and lawn. His 'knock' probably shook the windows at the back of the house as he banged the door with a fist.
"Hello? Anybody home?"
There was no answer from within. Belatedly Xander realized there was no car in sight, which meant that Willow was probably home alone. He knocked and shouted one more time before digging out the spare key from the flowerpot next to the door. The door opened easily and silently.
"Willow? Are you here?"
Absolute silence rang in the house. When Xander reached Willow's room he found the door locked securely.
"Wills? You in there?"
There was no answer.
"Willow?"
Unnerved, Xander tried the door one last time to no avail. He unclipped the Stormhammer, feeling the mace vibrate ever-so-slightly in his hands.
"Look, Willow, if you're in there I'm going to open this door in five seconds. One.. two.. three.."
..and if she's not in there.. well, it won't be the first time I've made a complete idiot of myself.
"..four.. five.. I'm coming in, Wills!"
He hefted the Stormhammer once, then swung at the lock. There was a sharp crack of splintering wood and twisting metal followed by a thud as he gave the door a swift kick where the handle had been, nearly taking it off its hinges.
"Wills?"
Xander could barely make out a familiar shock of coppery hair buried under what seemed like a mountain of blankets. She was lying still, so pale that for one heart-wrenching moment Xander thought the worst. Only when he reached out and gently sought the artery on her neck with his fingers he found a pulse. Her skin felt cold and clammy and to the touch, her pulse was slow and faint.. she was still breathing but so slowly it was hard to tell. Her skin was extremely pale, nearly white, and Xander thought he saw a faint greenish tint on it.
"Oh no, Wills, what's wrong with you.."
She reeked of illness, Xander realized. The faint smell he had felt outside was now strong, a sickening bittersweet tang in the air that felt wrong. He could practically smell the sickness creeping in her blood with every taxed heartbeat. He felt a sudden chill that had nothing to do with the air as he came to a sudden realization; for some reason the disease or whatever had taken Willow down had not affected him, but.. what if the rest of Sunnydale was like this?
----
Xander had never felt this helpless in his life. He must have broken several land speed records running through town only to find Buffy and Giles in no better condition than Willow. Even Oz, now back in his human form, was down, still in his cage. Whatever had happened had been quick. The really frightening part was that Buffy was down as well. Slayers were supposed to be unaffected by simple diseases, mostly because of their rapid healing, but now.. if the sickness was powerful enough to take Buffy out, why was he still standing?
Stupid question, Xander berated himself. I've got the spectral remains of an inhuman warrior stuck in my head and a thunder-enchanted mace. I'd bet my shirt and boots Skye was immune to diseases too.. which means most likely I'm the only one unaffected save for vampires and demons. Just peachy.
That train of thought lead Xander to a worrisome conclusion. If he was the only one unaffected.. only he could figure out what had caused this mysterious plague and how to put an end to it. Sighing, Xander closed his eyes and focused, reaching out with his Xander-sense.
Xander couldn't help flinching as a sense of taint washed over him. It felt like he'd fallen into a cesspool.. the very air itself was filled with a sickening sense of illness that made his skin crawl. Tiny particles of shadow danced in the air around him.. but where they touched his skin they flickered out and disappeared like they'd never existed. Every little current of air sent the particles swirling and spinning, a deadly cloud of pestilence he could almost taste.
Xander swallowed hard and reached farther out, seeking anything- anything- that could hint at the possible source. North, east, south.. Nothing except tiny concentrations of vamps and other demons hiding from the scorching rays of the sun. But to the west.. He could sense a writhing dark mass of something at the very edge of his range.. the disease particles much more dense there. Streams of the shadowy particles flowed outwards from it, spreading in a network of tubes all over the town and up to the streets.. through manholes. Whatever it was had to be in the sewers.
----
The manhole cover lifted slowly, nearly reluctantly with a gritting sound of metal against concrete. Grunting, Xander shoved it aside and strapped the crowbar he'd 'borrowed' from their garage back onto his shoulders. The stairs to the bottom seemed like they descended directly into a gaping dark maw as he peered in, armed to the teeth with holy water, stakes, several blades and the mace that thrummed a soft purring noise on his back.
"When I wanted to be able to help.. this isn't exactly what I had in mind."
----
I know, eeevil cliffhanger. I'm sorry updating has taken so long but I've had some real-life issues to deal with- namely school finals, other hobbies and certain technical problems. The next chapter should be coming out much faster, I promise. I just hope I haven't scared away all my readers. Anyway, onto Review Responses:
Ronin100: I'm glad you liked it so far, and I'm sorry for not updating sooner. Skye is indeed an original character- in fact, one of my first and probably my favorite one. Thanks for reviewing.
Shinigami-chan: I'm glad you like this. I've been considering posting some of those earlier stories but it seems like I've gotten stuck in most if not all of them- I have the first one or two chapters of at least a dozen different stories from various fandoms collecting virtual dust on my hard drive⦠By the way, doesn't 'Shinigami-chan' translate into 'Little Goddess of Death'?
ESR: You'll get to read the rest just as soon as I can coerce it out of my head and onto the keyboard. Thank you for reviewing.
Lwbush: I haven't exactly been a fan of the idea of 'instant change' myself so this choice came to me quite naturally. This also allows me to roll out the changes one or two by one, which, I believe, is more comfortable for the reader. You have no idea how many good fics I've seen ruined by a few 'WTF just happened?!' moments in the wrong places. Thank you for reviewing, and I hope you enjoy the rest of the story as soon as I can write more.
Dogbertcarroll: I'm glad you enjoyed this and I can only hope you enjoyed this chapter as well. I myself think that Chapter 1 was the most successful one, although I had fun with chapter 2 as well.
Suzuka Blade: I hope you liked this chapter as well. Mmmm.. chocolate. breaks off a piece while giving the plushies next to the monitor a fond look
Skygirl: Right now. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting.
Lil-sis4556: I'm glad you liked it. Skye is an original character loosely based on the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons system who I have been, so far, unsuccessful in recreating in any game system. He's been in a few so far unpublished fanfics so I'm unsurprised you don't recognize him. All shall be cleared in due time.
