Wesley's eyes opened to reveal a dark room. He remained still and silent, waiting to see what had awoken him. The sound of a soft knock caught his ears. Wesley pushed himself to his feet, grabbing the language translator off of his bedside table before stumbling over to the door. "Yes?"
"Sir, they've called a head of staff meeting," the man told him. Wesley rubbed at one eyes and nodded, grabbing his robe. If they wanted a meeting in the middle of the night, they would have to deal with him in just his robe and pajamas.
He leaned against the wall of the elevator, half-asleep, as he made his way to the first floor. Everyone else was present and Wesley was the last to slide into his seat. Cordelia stood at the front of the room, her hair a mess and her clothing from the day before wrinkled. It looked as though she had not slept since they're last meeting a week before. She looked up to see everyone there and cleared her throat.
"We've received an order from the U.N. about our little problem below the ice," Cordelia announced.
"I'm thinking it's not so good," Buffy commented. Wesley glanced at her and fought the urge to roll his eyes at her choice of sleepwear. The skimpy silk nightgown was the exact reason for her to be huddled up and shivering.
"If we were a full team of archeologist, I assure you we would all be jumping for joy," Cordelia said. "We have been given permission, which was quite obviously an order, to keep drilling as originally planned. I've plotted the drilling's course and discovered that one drill leads to a slight alteration in the building below. It looks to be a door. Once we hit that door, we'll suit up and investigate. If we find anything of actual use, then this entire project will be cancelled and a full archeological excavation team will be assembled."
"Wait, you mean to say we have to realign the drills to where they were originally?" Wesley demanded.
"It would take another week just to get them on course!" Willow insisted.
"That is just something we're going to have to deal with," Lindsey stated, voice cool and collected. "We all have our orders from our respected countries to deal with this project in a certain manner, only to change position if ordered by the United Nations."
"We're quite aware of the contracts that we signed going into this," Wesley said, "but to shift course with these drills is massive work. The drilling teams have just now been able to sleep full nights because of the last realignment."
"Unless there are any other questions, I suggest we all get some sleep," Lindsey said, standing.
Wesley could see the expressions of disbelief in the drill operators' faces the next morning when he gave them the order to change position, yet again. Sighing in frustration, Wesley left them to do their job and went in search of something to eat. Gunn met him along the way, chatting on and on about some glitch in his language program.
The next week was filled with yet more sleepless nights for Wesley's team members, but once the drills were finally realigned, Wesley allowed himself a moment of comfort. Gunn was nowhere to be seen, having finally located what was wrong with his program. The man had been locked up with the computers, calling in a few people for language testing, for a few days.
"How is Tara?" Wesley asked Oz when the younger man entered the cafeteria a week after the drills were fully realigned.
"She threw up this morning," Oz commented in that soft tone of his.
"Still?" Wesley asked, frowning. Oz looked at him, green eyes thoughtful but not revealing anything. Wesley said nothing more, knowing Oz wasn't the type to reveal everything unless it was necessary.
"Have you seen Cordelia?" Oz finally asked.
"She's locked up in her office," Wesley replied. "Gunn is doing the same, actually. It's amazing how little of each other we actually see, considering how small our living quarters are."
"Hmm," Oz nodded. Oz pulled a small bag of crackers out of one of the cabinets and began making tea. Wesley remained silent, watching as Oz worked. When the man was finished, he glanced at Wesley and said something in Chinese. Wesley's translator crackled, before finally relaying the message. "I'll see you later."
Wesley rubbed at the ear the translator had been placed, before standing to discard of his meal.
As the drills buried themselves deep within the artic ice, the days for the team seemed to blend together. The only daylight they saw was when they ventured up to the first floor, but that wasn't often. Then, one day, Wesley found himself being woken up at three in the morning, one of his night employees insisting he come to the computer console.
"What's going on?" Wesley asked as he entered the room. Buffy sat in front of the computer, eyes glued to the screen. A video monitor was playing. It took Wesley a moment to realize it was from the drilling machine. Wesley took a step closer until he stood next to Gunn. "What is that?"
"They're doors," Cordelia said, voice soft. "Fuck all, I was actually right."
"They're at least five feet wide," Oz commented with barely a glance at the screen. Next to him sat Tara, whose eyes were partially closed.
"We've got to go in," Lindsey informed them. He turned toward Cordelia, "You've been given the order to pick the team."
"I'll need Oz," Cordelia immediately said, "if only for his ability to measure distance with a blink of an eye. It's pretty deep in there and pretty damn cold, so if Tara is able I want her with us just in case."
"I can go," Tara replied, pushing herself to her feet.
"Alright, let's go suit up," Cordelia ordered. "I want to get down there as soon as possible."
Wesley watched them leave, before sliding into one of the now vacant chairs. Gunn sat down on the ground near him, fighting down a yawn as they waited. Wesley wasn't sure why he was so anxious all of a sudden. He shifted in his seat, a feel of unease coming over him. For some reason, Wesley had feeling that this was going to be big.
Soon, the screen flickered and they all waited on baited breath and the frozen doors were pried open. The room that was revealed looked more like a high-tech facility of the future than something from an ancient civilization. Intricate designs were one the ice covered walls, but mostly there was the basic designs of computer equipment imbedded into the walls.
"Damn, that's some expensive stuff right there," Buffy muttered, eyes wide.
It became obvious that Oz was holding the camera as Cordelia stepped into the room with Tara right behind her. A sharp intake of breath could be heard across the room as the camera revealed what looked like two metal alters. Upon the altars were two figures, both men with helmets covering their faces. The men were perfectly formed; their muscular form visible even through the grainy computer image. Both, due to the rapid freezing their body must have undergone, were hard, their erect penises standing at attention. Wesley felt himself blush.
"Guys?" Tara's soft voice was heard over the computer's speakers. Wesley jumped in shock, having forgotten that they should have been able to hear the three all along. Tara stepped over to one of the figures. Tara inspected the computer equipment next to the body, raising a hand to rub off a tiny screen. Tara looked up at Oz, and as a result the camera. Her pale gray eyes were wide with shock. "I think he's still alive."
"There's no way!" Willow exclaimed.
Wesley shook his head. Medicine wasn't his forte, but he didn't think a man could survive being frozen like that.
"I think we need Buffy in here," Tara said, turning to look at the camera. "She should look at these computer programs."
"Ugh, I hate putting on those suits," Buffy complained, loudly. Yet, she was already standing up and heading for the door.
Wesley remained where he was, watching the screen, staring at the frozen figures. Where had they come from? There was no way the technology that was present in the room could be old. It was advanced, far too advanced. Wesley leaned forward, eyes narrowed as Oz filmed the room in a slow circle.
"Stop," Wesley ordered. The camera stopped. "What is that?"
"Looks like a box," Oz's voice offered. The camera moved closer to the box sitting on a low table. "It's got a lid."
"We'll bring it up," Cordelia called over. Buffy had arrived and was inspecting the computer consoles attached to the tables the men lay on. There was a sound of surprise from Buffy's microphone. "Don't keep it to yourself."
"Let's just say that Tara is good for more than her pretty face," Buffy said. The camera shook a little and Oz made a vaguely pissed off sound. Wesley had to smile. No one insulted Tara, even if it was in jest, while Oz was in hearing distance. Buffy continued, "These machines have been keeping their bodies alive. They're frozen, yeah, but according to this all you have to do is press this little red button on each computer and they'll wake up."
"It's that simple?" Willow asked. Buffy turned to look at the camera and shrugged inside her suit, which was obviously too big for her. Wesley wondered if she had grabbed one of theirs in her excitement to get down there.
"So it says," Buffy replied. "Hell, for all I know pressing that button will blow the place sky high."
"That's refreshing," Lindsey muttered, before speaking up. "Okay, just bring up that box and we'll send for confirmation with the U.N."
The box was sent to Wesley and Willow to investigate. They found nothing, not even a way to open it. Willow continued inspecting it throughout the night, but Wesley wasn't that hopeful. He awoke the next morning to find Willow fast asleep in their office, the box till intact. As he left the room, preparing to grab Willow some coffee before he woke her up, Gunn grabbed his arm and began dragging him in the opposite direction.
"What is the meaning--" Wesley began.
"We just got a message from the U.N.," Gunn announced, "and guess what? We've got confirmation. It has to be recorded and documented, but we can thaw out one of the guys downstairs."
"Just one?" Wesley asked.
"Just one," Gunn said. "Buffy and Tara have been scanning the computers below for information on their status. We're going with the bigger guy, because apparently the other one was injured before frozen. He might not survive the defrosting."