Authors Note: I know it has been a very, very long time since I updated this story but I was going through my fanfic stories the other day and I felt the inspiration to doing this. The first chapter has been changed slightly but essentially remains the same and this chapter is the second part of the prologue which is setting the scene for the story and how I am going to continue on after the series finale.
For the reviewer who suggested that it should have been Fred coming to Wes not Lilah I do understand why that would be an idea but for the way the story will continue I think it's necessary for it to be Lilah. Seeing Lilah again, so soon after losing Fred, knocks Wes for six. In the back of his mind he still feels a little guilty about how things ended with Lilah and the fact that he couldn't save her. But it also reminds him of a darker time in his life. When he and Lilah were "together" Wes was suffering after the drama with Connor and Holtz. His friends saw him as betraying Angel and betraying them by not confiding in them and he was, apart from Lilah, all alone. It's for this reason that it had to be Lilah coming to him in this chapter with news of the prophecy, the battle and the deal.
PROLOGUE:
Part II: "Serpent in the Garden of Eden."
4 days before the battle.
"Hello Wesley." A voice said.
Wesley blinked and looked around. Where was he? The setting was picturesque perfect- startlingly blue sky only marred by a couple of light looking clouds, thick green grass below his bare feet, trees with flowers in incredibly vivid colours, bright pinks, deep purples, stunning oranges. It was like something out of a movie. But even so Wesley couldn't quite shake the feeling that he wasn'tmeant to be here.
"What you're ignoring me?" The woman's voice sounded indignant.
Wesley turned around. And blinked again. "Cordelia?" He asked.
"In the flesh…Well so to speak anyway." Cordelia came towards him and brushed an imaginary wrinkle from her white mini-dress and surveyed her friend thoughtfully. "You look well Wes…Okay I'm lying. You kinda' look like crap."
Wesley wasn't surprised at her directness. "I kind of feel like crap." He responded. What on earth was going on with him? First two visits in his office from the dead Lilah and now he was conversing with the also dead Cordelia.
"I'm not surprised to see you but I bet you're surprised to see me." Cordelia said. She brushed her long, dark hair back from her face and smiled at him.
"Am I dead?" Wesley asked.
Cordelia laughed. "No. You're in a little place some people call The Garden of Eden. Pretty isn't it? Although a beach and a shopping mall might make it more like paradise. I wonder if they've got feedback forms anywhere around here."
"I don't understand. Why am I here?" Wesley demanded.
"Because you obviously needed to be. The Powers that Be don't do things without a reason Wes; you know that as well as I do." Cordelia replied.
"I've got work to do-" Wes began.
"I know." Cordelia interrupted him. "The Hindun Prophecy."
Wesley did a double take. "How do you know that?"
"Well for starters being dead has its advantages- like being able to spy but don't worry, I wouldn't ever spy on your more…ah…private moments if you get what I mean, I just spy on the more interesting, the more important events like Fashion Week in France, the Oscars, occasionally Brad Pitt or Jake Gylnnehall in the shower-"
Wesley coughed and Cordelia laughed. "Sorry, you know how excited I get by fashion and hot men. Anyway a lot of people know about the prophecy. Good, bad, evil, dead, alive, the works. What I'm wondering is what are you thinking about it right now?"
"I don't know. We've been tricked before Cordelia and that had disastrous consequences." Wesley said. While he'd said as much to Lilah Wesley felt like with Cordelia he could be more honest about the prophecy, about his thoughts, even more honest about his motivations- why he would, or wouldn't, do what the prophecy implored him to do. He had yet to make up his mind though about whether or not he was going to sign on the dotted line. The deadline was fast approaching but Wesley thought it likely it wouldn't be up until the last minute that he made his decision. What worried him was that he really didn't think this was a trick.
Almost as if she'd read his mind Cordelia nodded sagely. "So you're gun shy? I get that. I know the last thing you'd ever want to do is do something you think is betraying Angel-"
"Isn't it betraying him? Making a deal behind his back?" Wesley interrupted her angrily. Of course his anger wasn't really directed at Cordelia; instead it was more directed inwards, at himself, for seriously considering doing this thing.
"There are two ways this thing can play out. Firstly you do nothing, you ignore this new prophecy, and Angel signs away his right to be human and takes on the Circle of the Black Thorn from the inside, takes them down. And, in retaliation, an Apocalypse of the likes we've never seen before is rained down on the city, the state, the whole freaking country. And in the process you'll probably die, Angel will probably die, Spike will probably die, Gunn will probably die, even the demon who took over Fred's body will probably die. Along with many, many other innocents. Or you take the prophecy as true and live to fight another day, to keep on fighting the good fight. And you, the champion will survive along with the one with the visions-"
"But you're already dead." Wesley interrupted her.
Cordelia shrugged and didn't meet his eyes. "I don't know how that works, I won't pretend to be some kind of prophecy expert. And, if the Apocalypse is stopped in time, its possible Angel, Spike, Gunn, Lorne and Illyria will survive as well. You could all go on doing the work that's so important. I've learnt a bit from the Powers that Be, when I was first taken up there, up to the higher plane, and then from after… you know…, and one thing I can tell you Wes is that the eternal fight between good and evil is something that needs to keep going. What Angel is planning on doing is selfish. He'll be virtually signing the death warrants of his friends as well as all those other "helpless" victims he used to care so much about. He's become one-minded and there is no doubt he's going to do what the prophecy says. The world might end because of his actions Wes! Can you really live with that?" Cordelia demanded. Her eyes met his now and Wes saw the worry in them.
He felt sick. "I don't know what I'm meant to do. You're talking about Angel being selfish but if I do this aren't I being as selfish? He's trying to do what he thinks is right-"
"Has he discussed it all with you?" Cordelia questioned.
"No. He hasn't mentioned it yet. But if this prophecy is right and he wants to take down this Circle of the Black Thorn-"
"He will-" Cordelia interrupted.
"- there is no way he'd do something this big without talking to us about it first." Wesley continued, undaunted.
Cordelia sighed. "I'm sure he'll tell you but if you all say no we're not okay with this do you think he'd change his mind? No. He'd go ahead and do it."
Wesley didn't speak. He was thinking back to through the years that he'd known the souled vampire- including the few soulless occasions- and pondering whether there'd be any chance that Angel would do this without talking to his trusted colleagues, his trusted friends, first. It was not a complete stretch to say that he had always been a bit of a lone wolf but Wesley firmly believed that wasn't the case any longer. No. There was just no way that Angel'd do this without talking to them about it first, asking for their support to do something he clearly believed in.
"You know I'm right." Cordelia said. She touched Wesley's arm gently. "Believe me Wesley on this point: Angel knows about the Circle. He knows that there aren't many ways to take them down, to rid the world of such a powerful evil empire, and he'll do anything to get rid of that threat. At the expense of anyone. Maybe that's why he's yet to talk to you about this?"
Wesley gave her a dirty look. Her words cut to the core of how conflicted he was about this choice. Had he ever made any harder choice? This was bigger than leaving the Watchers Council, bigger than loving Fred, bigger than not killing Knox for what he did, bigger, even, than separating Angel and Connor. He wasn't going to be bullied into making a decision until he had every single fact he could have in front of him.
"For heavens sake Wesley, stop looking at me like I'm corrupted." Cordelia said, annoyed.
"Just answer me this then. Aren't the Circle of the Black Thorn part of the senior partners, or made up of some of them at least?" Wesley asked.
"The Circle of the Black Thorn is a secret society of elite demons who mastermind the path of the apocalypse." Cordelia answered him.
"Are the senior partners part of the Circle? Yes or no." Wesley persisted.
"Yes. To be part of the Circle of the Black Thorn is virtually to be the senior partner's instrument on earth." Cordelia told him.
"Then if this is the case why are they sending Lilah to me with this prophecy, asking me to sign, to become part of this Trio so I could save lives, if they're Black Thorns too?" Wesley asked. This was a question that had been bugging him ever since he'd started reading the prophecy and going through all the books in his possession, the Source books and the ancient texts warning of many things- one of which he'd recognised as Jasmine's arrival which, apparently was foreseen by a powerful Seer in the 1700's. It wasn't just a "loose end" he had to tie up. It was something he needed to know to help him make his decision.
"Ever heard of the senior senior partners?" Cordelia asked, again reaching a hand up to brush her hair back from her face.
"Are you serious?" Wesley asked, his face a mask of confusion.
"Deadly. Ha. That's funny." Cordelia said with a small, mirthless laugh. "These partners, the senior ones, are part of the Trio of Poseidon instead. They don't like the power the Circle has here on earth and having Angel destroy the group is what they desperately want." Cordelia told her old friend.
"So they're manipulating him? There's a shock." Wesley said with a shake of his head as he remembered thinking just the other day about how Wolfram and Hart had done that in the case of Connor and Sahjahn.
"No they're not. There's such a thing as free will Wes. And Angel will use his own free will to do this thing, with no little push from Wolfram and Hart." Cordelia said.
"Why can't the Trio destroy the Circle?" Wesley questioned. "If they want to be rid of them so quickly."
Cordelia sighed, frustrated. "If you've done all the research you'll know that answer."
"Right. They're up there, we're down here. Proximity and all." Wesley replied airily. "So if they welcome this why would they rain down fire and brimstone and turn the streets of LA into a bloodbath where not just their demon clientele will be vastly wiped out, as well as their human employees?"
Cordelia gave a small shrug. "The senior partners will. But the Trio- who has the sort of power to affect big things like apocalypses just like the Black Thorns do- will, if you agree to join them, stop too many deaths. Wolfram and Hart might be evil, the senior partners, the Circle and the Trio, all villains but they want to keep going, to survive I guess you could say. I mean don't they say survival is the biggest instinct humans, and demons, have intrinsically? It's about the balance between good and evil."
"So I'm really meant to do this…believe the prophecy, sign on with the Trio, save lives in the fight, so Wolfram and Hart can continue to exist?" Wesley asked, doubtfully.
"Sure they'll survive to fight another day but so would you. There's something I've learnt about with being in contact with them up there and that's about the cosmic energy of the world, the universal struggle between good and evil which needs to keep its delicate balance." Cordelia answered. She sighed heavily. "What do I have to do to convince you Wes? To make you see that the prophecy is one hundred percent genuine and that only one person in this entire world, you, can save the human race."
Wesley shook his head. "I don't know. I wish I did."
"Do you think the Powers that Be sent you to speak to me if they didn't want you to do this? If they didn't think it was the only way out of this mess that Angel- with all the best intentions admittedly- is about to get you all into?" Cordelia demanded. "Anyway that's beside the point. We don't have much time Wes. You were only brought here for a short time- while you're stealing a catnap- for me to convince you I know what I'm talking about. The Trio of Poseidon will welcome the downfall of the secret group and, so long as you agree to a few little conditions, will stop the apocalypse before it goes too far. Angel won't even know you made the deal. How could he?"
"Because he'll be dead. The prophecy only says two will live…" A triumphant look came over Wesley's face. He'd had an epiphany. "Although if I can convince Angel not to sign away his right to Sanshu then he will still be the champion and he and you can go on fighting. Surely that will make up for the things I've done, the bad things."
"NO!" Cordelia's voice was loud and firm. "You can't do that Wes. If he doesn't sign it away the Circle will never trust him and he'll be dead."
"Why are you encouraging me to make a deal with evil? I know you're no angel Cordy, but I didn't think you were evil." Wes said, a little wearily and a little sadly. Had all that she'd been through changed her? And not for the better.
To Wesley's surprise Cordelia actually laughed. "Wes there are great things you can do after this crisis is over, people to save. And this Trio- they're powerful. Really powerful. Their resources, combined with your knowledge learnt from the Watcher's Council, and the resources of Wolfram and Hart, with all that you can- no you will- make a difference, far bigger than Angel Investigations could ever do. This is for the greater good Wesley."
Wesley sighed deeply. "The conditions you mentioned- what are they? I don't quite understand what I'm making a deal for or why it has to be me or even who I'm making the deal with."
"You're making it with the senior partners on behalf of the Trio. It's not hard Wes. You agree to help the Trio, put your name on the paper, and while Angel tricks the Circle and takes them down the Trio will stop the Apocalypse before too many people die." Cordelia answered.
"Even dead you're being evasive." Wesley said, frustrated. "What's the catch? What am I doing to help the Trio?"
"Saving the world. Does there have to be a catch in that?" Cordelia asked. Then she sighed. "Oh for heavens sake, let me show you then, Wes, what will happen if you don't help the Trio, don't become their inside man. Here, give me your hands." She held out her own.
Wesley hesitated and then reached across and put his hands in hers.
"Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. And watch the show courtesy of 'Cordelia-vision' now." Cordelia instructed.
Wesley closed his eyes. For a minute there was nothing, just blackness behind his eyelids, and the faint pinpricks of light that a bright sky let in, and then everything changed. He was watching something unfold, various scenes, kind of like a preview for a coming attraction at the cinemas.
It was L.A and even though it was still only the afternoon the sky was almost dark, the sun blocked out by something, and the moon beginning to show faintly. All over the city people were screaming about the earthquake that was rocking the city. Only it wasn't an earthquake, it was the beginning of the Apocalypse, the battle to end all battles if the Hindun Prophecy was correct. There was an alley and standing at the end of it were Angel, Gunn and Spike. Facing them was an army of demons- some Wesley recognised from personal experience, some from books, others he didn't know of at all. It looked like Gunn was unwell and then Illyria arrived and told them that Wesley had died and that she didn't understand the feeling of grief and needed violence. And violence was what they were about to get as the army of demons- complete with a dragon screeching overhead- charged them. Then Wesley was looking at a similar scene with a different cityscape, he recognised the statue of Liberty to identify it as New York, and then there was the Whitehouse in Washington D.C being blown to pieces as demons overran the people. Then time was racing by; he could only pick out a few things as scenes blurred into the next- Big Ben, the Pyramids in Egypt- and then a lot of nothingness. There were bodies everywhere, both human and demon, and not many survivors of either kind. And those scenes were repeated in country after country.
Then it was over and Wesley was standing in the garden with Cordelia again. "Jesus" was all he could manage to say. If that was the future it wasn't much of one. If what he was contemplating doing, if the research he'd done was right and the prophecy had been set into motion long ago, could stop this kind of thing didn't he have an obligation to do anything he could do? Like believe in the prophecy, let Lilah know he'd sign it in his blood. He did not want to be part of the Trio, that was an unfortunate side-effect, but he could worry about that later. Save the world first, save his soul later.
"Not quite I don't think." Cordelia answered. Then she made a face. "Why is it all demons are so icky? They've got seriously bad skin, like vampires, mega hygiene issues, and the tackiest sense of fashion I've ever seen."
Wesley did not have an answer for that one.
"Now do you see why you've got to do this Wes? To stop all that death and destruction? Tell me though, before you have to leave, do you believe this prophecy?" Cordelia continued.
Wesley sighed, wearily. "I've spent all my energy for the last week trying to disprove the prophecy but everything I've looked at, everyone I've spoken to- soothsayers, a couple of demons even- suggests its real. And the lost books that Lilah returned to me only serve to further confirm that the prophecy is real and I'm the only one who can sign it, the only one who can stop this apocalypse…" But he stopped short of saying "yes, I believe" because it wasn't time to say that out loud now. He could tell Cordelia and Lilah that he was going to keep working on disproving it but he was starting to think- not in the least due to Cordelia's little vision of the near future and the desolation of the world as it should be- that was an exercise in futility. Besides saving innocent people and himself he might also be able to save Fred which just might completely tip the scales in the direction of giving his blood oath to Wolfram and Hart's senior partners, to the mystical senior senior partners and the Trio.
"Have you heard of the Urn of Zamwar?" Cordelia asked.
"I recall hearing it mentioned somewhere. It's from Egyptian times, it's been in the hands of various powerful demons at various stages, and it spent most of the 1900's in a private collection before being handed to a museum somewhere after the collector's death in 1998. Am I close?" Wesley asked.
"Spot on. It's in Boston. And if you go and look at that urn Wes you'll see the writings on it will mention the downfall of the Circle of the Black Thorn welcomed by the Trio of Poseidon. Just a little bit more proof for you Wes, the proof you asked me for a couple of minutes ago." Cordelia told him. "You've got to go back now, wake up. But you have to remember this Wes- believing this prophecy, signing on, it's not only your destiny but it's your only real chance at survival. At LA's chance, possibly the rest of the country if the apocalypse spreads as they're apparently wont to do. Demons aren't much for staying in their own territory."
"Thank you." Wesley said.
Cordelia raised an eyebrow. "For?"
"Helping me. Letting me know the Powers that Be are on board this thing. Letting me know it's real. Making me feel less of a backstabber." Wesley answered.
Cordelia smiled. "You're welcome Wesley. You're a good man. Don't forget that."
Gunn stuck his head around the door to Wesley's office. He wanted to talk to him about Angel. Angel wasn't like other people, not just because he was virtually immortal and possessed a preternatural strength on account of him being a vampire, but he'd been acting different the last week or so. He spent more time alone. And when he was with them Gunn always felt like his mind was somewhere else. He hadn't voiced his concerns with anyone and he thought that Wesley was probably the best person to talk to about it, after all Wesley was by far the most intelligent man he'd ever met and if anyone had a clue about what was going on in Angel's head it could be him.
But he saw now that Wes's head was face down on his desk, in the middle of a pile of books. He grinned slightly- he was like a kid with a candy bar and he had been ever since they'd come to Wolfram and Hart. If there was anything that made him believe they'd done the right thing Wesley was that it. But on the other hand if they hadn't come they'd never have lost Fred. That sobered him up. After all he'd cared for the girl almost as much as Wesley had…
Almost as if Wesley sensed Gunn's presence in the room he sat up, a little flustered. He cleared his throat. "Gunn. Have you been there long?" He asked, straightening his glasses which were sitting askew on his face, and running a hand over his face to try and rub away the remnants of sleep.
The conversation he'd just been having with Cordelia- in the dream world of the Garden of Eden- was still stuck in his mind and ideally he wanted a bit of time to go over what was said, to make sure there wasn't any hidden message in the words, that there was no chance it wasn't Cordelia and instead was some kind of illusion sent by Wolfram and Hart's senior partners, or the Trio perhaps, to convince him that the prophecy was real and that he alone could stop the devastation that would hit LA in only a few days time. There was no point asking her that because even if she was a fake she'd lie. Although she sounded like the Cordelia he knew- lamenting that paradise wasn't paradise without a mall and beach, wearing some kind of expensive high-end fashion dress, being sarcastic and occasionally blunt.
"No, only a few seconds. Wes have you got a few minutes? There's something I really need to talk to you about?" Gunn asked, still hovering in the doorway.
Wesley nodded his consent and closed some of the books. He didn't want Gunn to see some of the English texts and start asking questions. Obviously he didn't need to worry about him reading the older texts, nor the books written in long dead languages.
Gunn closed the door and went into the office. He sat down opposite Wesley and gathered his thoughts. "It's about Angel. Wesley I think he's hiding something."
Wesley was a little startled. He had been thinking the same thing but then again he now knew there was a very real, a very big, reason for this. Sometimes he really underestimated Gunn. He was definitely more street-smart than book-smart, he was a hell of a fighter with a very big sense of right and wrong, but he was obviously intuitive as well. Rather than giving his own opinion Wesley asked "Like what?"
"I don't know. Maybe he's evil again?" Gunn suggested.
Wesley shook his head. "No. Believe me if he was, if his soul had disappeared again, we'd know about it. Primarily because we'd all be dead."
"Okay so maybe it's something about this place. I mean wasn't it founded not only be lawyers, which we all know are, generally, bad enough in themselves, but also by evil lawyers, demons even? It could be corrupting Angel. Or power. Power corrupts right?"
Gunn pushed.
Wesley frowned. It was like Gunn was clutching at straws, trying to find a real explanation, a plausible one, for what was happening with Angel. "It could be something personal. Maybe something to do with Nina? Or perhaps our friend Marcus is bothering him more than usual? It could be anything and unless he wants to talk to us about it there's nothing we can do." He said.
"Well I think we should talk about it Wesley. Have some kind of emergency meeting. You, me, Spike, Illyria maybe, even Lindsay since he really knows this place, knows Wolfram and Hart best, to work out whether something is happening with Angel, something that could place us in jeopardy." Gunn continued.
"Okay. I've got to go to Boston tonight though, if I can get a flight, but I'm hoping to be back tomorrow night at the latest-"
"What's in Boston?" Gunn interrupted.
"An Urn I want to see. It's incredibly old, I don't even know the real date it was made, only rumors because it was so long ago. I do know though that Julius Caesar was in possession of it at one stage, same with Cleopatra, Atilla the Hun, many, many other well known names." Wesley replied. Obviously he wasn't going to explain to Gunn precisely why he wanted to see the Urn.
"So it's an evil Urn? And Wolfram and Hart want it somehow. You need me to come with? Help steal it?" Gunn asked.
"It's not evil. It's just an Urn, no magical properties, no value for this firm unless they're running out of money and want to sell the thing. No, I'm not stealing it. I want to see it." Wesley answered.
Gunn looked perplexed. "Why?"
"Oh trust me you wouldn't be interested. It's just the most amazing specimen of its kind, the way it was made, the decorations and words carved into it, its just mouth-watering." Wesley answered. He didn't feel too uncomfortable saying this- after all wasn't it half true? It was an amazing piece of artwork.
"You're right. I wouldn't be interested. So when you get back can we please talk about Angel?" Gunn asked.
Wesley nodded. He'd have liked to leave Lindsay out and tell them all of the prophecy so they'd have the full facts if- no when, he had to believe it was when- Angel told them about the Circle of the Black Thorn and what he was planning. But he didn't think that would work. Keeping this to himself, having the burden of making such an enormous decision, was better. It wasn't fair to the others to know the things he knew. Perhaps later he'd change his mind but not right now. And he knew that talking to his colleagues was the best idea, better than them talking without him and maybe coming to conclusions that were wrong and almost as dangerous as Angel's plan.