Chapter 8

Buffy screamed and screamed as she continued to fall. When will I hit the bottom? How am I ever going to get out of this one?

SPLASH

It wasn't what she expected.

Buffy found herself submerged in a warm liquid. Her mouth had fallen open at the impact and something thick and metallic tasting filled it. She choked recognising the taste, her arms thrashing, legs kicking, trying to surface. It's blood! Oh god, I'm in a pool of blood and I just swallowed some!

Buffy gasped for air as strong hands gripped her and pulled her to the surface. I'm covered in blood! When the dripping red stuff cleared from her eyes she could see who had pulled her up.

It was the clone of her…and she had vamped out.

"You liked it didn't you? You want more don't you? Taste it…the blood, you've always wanted to know what makes the things you kill go crazy over this stuff…" vampire Buffy whispered.

Buffy began to paddle backwards furiously. So far, she had thought she had been handling this weird world pretty well; it wasn't as bad as that time she had been trapped between dimensions and everything had happened in her mind. At least this time she could control, to some extent, what she was doing, and she knew nothing could really physically harm her. And I know my purpose for being here…Spike…

But seeing herself as a vampire….

Suddenly she couldn't handle it. Buffy thrashed about blindly until she hit something. She grabbed onto it and climbed out of the blood pool. Now she was in a forest. Buffy looked behind and saw her vampire clone coming after her.

She ran.

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Xander and Willow slowly backed away, ready to bolt any second.

"Hey, it's alright. I have my soul again, now." Angel said.

"Ah…." Willow started nervously. "You're not angry about that are you?"

Angel looked down sadly. "No. I figured that you found out a way to do it…but… I couldn't be around Buffy anymore after what happened."

"So then why are you here?" Xander asked bluntly.

"Is Buffy okay?"

Willow and Xander looked at each other, not sure what or how to tell Angel where Buffy was, and the fact that they really didn't know if she was okay. She had been gone four months now.

Four months.

Four months without the slayer had meant that the vampires of Sunnnydale were becoming far more numerous. Giles, Willow and Xander had been trying to keep the numbers under control, but they were no replacement for Buffy, and the news that the slayer had left town spread rapidly throughout the vampire community. Things were becoming chaotic.

"I heard vampires up in LA say they were going down to the Hellmouth to 'party' since the slayer was gone." Angel explained. "I thought I better come over to check things out. I didn't really expect to find you two here, but now I'm even more worried. Where is Buffy?"

Willow sighed. "You better come with us. This might take a while to explain."

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Buffy's feet thudded against the ground as she ran and ran. I feel so lost…how big is this place? What if I never find him?

The ground shook and would burst open without warning, revealing giant chasms. Buffy had managed to jump out of the way just in time so far. She had also learnt that things in this world could still touch her, and attack her, and she could still feel just as much pain, even if she wasn't really getting hurt.

But the thought of not ever finding Spike….that scared her much more than anything else.

Trees, which poured blood from their long crooked branches, scratched and snagged at her as she ran. Dark forms and ghost like figures filled the air so thickly it was hard to see more than a metre ahead. Some screamed in her ears, others whispered words, worst still, sometimes they called his name…

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"She's dating Spike?!?!"

"Uh, yes, I thought we already established this fact, that's the third time you've exclaimed that. Personally, I thought you would be more concerned over the fact that Buffy is currently in some HELL DIMENSION."

Xander, and Willow had brought Angel back to the school library where Giles was working late, to tell Angel the story. However, he had frozen at the part where they explained why Buffy had gone to try and save Spike, and couldn't seem to be able to get over this information.

"Why on earth would she be interested in Spike in that way? Not only is he a vampire, he doesn't have a soul…and, well, he's Spike." Angel shook his head. "Is she under some kind of spell?"

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Buffy opened her eyes. What happened?

Oh yeah, I feel down another one of those chasms…where am I now?

She stood up and immediately began to back away, her mouth falling open in a silent scream at the sight before her. Please don't tell me this is real…

There were thousands of them…. billions. Stretching out for miles and miles, a rugged terrain with bodies chained and bound to everything and anything.

Is Spike here? Is he one of them?

Instinctively touching the amulet around her neck, making sure it was still there, Buffy slowly moved forward, even as her mind screamed at her to turn away. She walked past the bodies, noticing that they each seemed to be experiencing their own individual tortures. Their eyes were rolled back showing only white, their faces twisted in anguish and pain. Tugging on the chains, screaming, struggling to escape…

The further she walked, the more voices she heard until it was starting to become hard to separate her own thoughts. Buffy shivered. Some of the voices, some of the words…they were so dark, so twisted….so evil. And they were all in her head. If she didn't find Spike soon –

What was that?

Her eyes widened as she came across a bent over figure with bleached blond hair. He wore nothing but black jeans, his bare back covered in bruises and deep jagged wounds, still oozing blood. He was crouched in the corner, his hands digging into the blood stained dirt, shaking his head from side to side, "No….no…."

Is it Spike? Could it really be him?

Buffy inched cautiously over to the figure. She reached out slowly, wanting to touch his hair, to run her hands through its softness, despite the blood that stained some strands. Just as she was about to do so...

He looked up.

Wild, flashing blue eyes met hers and Buffy gasped at their intensity. His eyes held a haunted quality that looked like he had already experienced an eternity of torture and had long ago given up hope…but it was him, it was really him!

"Spike!" Tears flowed down her cheeks. "Spike!"

Recognition filled his eyes and they became slightly less wild looking ."Buffy?" he crocked. "How are you…. is it really…?"

Buffy threw herself into his arms. "Spike!" she sobbed, clutching him close. "I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry. We're going back now, okay baby? I'm going to bring you back."

She reached for the amulet and froze as her hand couldn't find it. Dread hit her suddenly as someone laughed and she turned around to see who she already knew it was.

Vampire Buffy dangled the amulet from her hand. "Lookie what I got." She grinned, flashing her fangs. "You were so busy embracing your vampire lover you didn't even notice me slip it from your neck. Well, I guess it's kind of poetic really. You and your boyfriend…trapped in hell for eternity!"

She laughed again, and before Buffy could even blink, disappeared, along with the amulet, the slayer's only way of returning home.