Rebuilding
Chapter 27 – Goodbye, Dawn
"Man, this is a mess…," Warren sighed over the disconnected head of April.
"Actually, it could have been worse," Jon sympathized. "I mean, at least her composite cranium was only cracked… her brain centers could have been smashed to pieces."
"I still don't understand why we need a skanky robot," Andrew said.
"You know, I'm starting to think you're jealous of my robot," Warren teased. He'd been suspecting for some time that Andrew wasn't 'into girls'.
"Th-that's ridiculous! I'm not jealous… I just… I mean we already have a robot warrior."
"Adam's a cyborg," Jon pointed out. "And he's looking really bad."
"I'm trying! It's not my fault that the Tannis leaves are failing," Andrew whined. "According to the tome, they've kept shambling mummies stable for hundreds… even thousands of years!"
"Maybe it's the demon parts interfering in the process… or the metal," Warren said thoughtfully. "Either way… we may need to move the freeze ray over to Aprilbot here, if we can get her functional."
"You'll do it," Andrew smiled, "You're like… brilliant."
"Thanks, Andy," he said with a small smirk. To Jonathon he said, "How's the bionics coming?"
"Uh… not really bionical. I mean… I think our exo-attachments are nearly ready for a first test, but I wouldn't want to try inserting them in our body or anything."
"Close enough to bionics… at least for now," Warren said in that far-away, day dream voice. He came back to himself a moment later, "Okay… so we all have a project… let's get to work."
"I'd like to," Jon said, "But Aunt Martha's over and I have to get home. My mom's already going to be pissed that I missed dinner as it is."
"B-but I can stay," Andrew added. "I mean… uh, all night if, you know, we need to."
"Well, at least one of us is committed," Warren muttered as he stared at Jonathon's exiting back.
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Willow sat in back of the Burnside B&B in Tara's car. In the driver's seat, Tara was trying Giles' phone. They had expected to find him already here and she wanted to see how close he was.
In a bar near the old mall district, Ripper glanced at his cell phone. With an annoyed roll of his eyes, he turned the device off and returned his attentions to the red head in front of him.
"My apologies," he told Susan Cranns. He spoke in an uneasy accent lost somewhere betwixt British and Turkish-accented English. Susan didn't seem to mind the odd way of the man speaking; her attention was solely on the mysterious, dark eyes and the oddly sensual and exciting hint of danger chilling her spine.
"No apology necessary. You didn't answer it," she said confidently.
"I believe I've grown bored of this place. I suggest we change our venue."
"To my apartment," she smiled seductively.
"My thoughts exactly," he smiled back. His grin however held a hint of darkness.
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"This is ridiculous," Willow complained harshly. "First Xander and now Giles. I'm telling you… it's no wonder I've completely given up on guys!"
"Well, I was hoping that I might have had a part in that, too," Tara smiled.
"Well… you were pretty irresistible," Willow gave her. "So what do we do?"
"I'm worried about storming the place without backup…."
"But we are witches," Willow pointed out. "I mean… I love Xan, but do we really need him? And Giles? Well, we both know he hasn't been the same since that night. Maybe it's better that we handle this one alone."
Tara sighed indecisively. Finally she met Will's eyes and grew more determined, "I guess we can't wait. We don't know how long it will take for them to get here. We don't even know where Spike is at right now and anything could be happening to Dawnie."
She reached over onto Willow's side and opened the dashboard box. Inside laid two crucifixes.
Willow grabbed one and handed the other to Tara, "Listen… be careful, okay, Tara. I mean, we don't know how many more vampires this Vanessa woman created."
"I know. I'm actually surprised that we haven't already been attacked."
"Maybe luck is with us. Maybe they're out."
"Okay," Tara said, letting out a deep, cleansing breath. "Let's do this."
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Gladys, Tammy and Rachel approached the front of the B&B. All of them felt full and energized in that way that only fresh, human blood could provide.
"Do you think you'll ever Sire anybody," Tammy asked.
"Oh, eventually," Gladys immediately answered. "I mean… when I meet the right somebody."
"We all had the 'right somebodies', already," Rachel said.
"I didn't," Glady said. "Tim was a complete milquetoast. No way that spineless nerd would have made a good vampire. I can't see what in the hell I was thinking marrying him."
"Well, I would have turned my husband if he hadn't been killed instead," Tammy said. "But, you know… no crying over spilled blood."
"I don't think I'm ready for that sort of responsibility. Maybe when I'm a hundred or so… but for now, I plan on enjoying just getting stronger," Rachel said.
"There is that," Tammy agreed.
"Wait," Gladys said suddenly. With a slight tilt of her head, she breathed in, "I smell something."
"Yeah… women… that red head is definitely one of them, too. I can recognize a magic taint from her," Rachel said.
"They must be here to rescue the brat and Spike," Gladys complained. "That is really gonna piss our Sire off."
"Not if we stop them. Let's go ladies! Carefully, quietly… we strike before they know what hit them." Rachel smiled, mouth full of fangs, at her compatriots.
"I'm glad we decided not to go out without our little friends," Tammy smiled back, patting her crossbow and the drugged bolt that had helped them so much against their Grand-sire.
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"Let's go in through the cellar," Tara whispered.
"Are you sure? I mean… in the movies, that's where the vamps are always waiting."
"Well, there is that. But I think we'll be a lot more noticeable breaking in the back door."
"Good point," Willow whispered back as they headed for a root cellar.
The side by side doors were badly weathered and cracked. A chain hung through the handles, but the lock itself was rusted and a quick yank snapped it off, even without super-strength.
"Don't wipe that rust on your jeans… I'll never get that out," Tara warned.
The two witches made their way down the stairs. Once down, Willow gave a single word chant in Latin and a small glow emanated from her free hand.
"I don't see any coffins," Tara whispered.
"I think Buffy said that Dracula used the upstairs. That's probably where they're at. Uh, why don't you give Xan and Giles one more try before we storm the place?"
"Okay, hold on a sec."
Tara reached into her jacket and pulled out her pink cell phone. A minute later and she shook her head, "No answer from either one."
"Okay… here we g—ack!"
Tara cried out Willow's name as she saw her girl friend fall to the ground, an arrow or something jutting from her thigh. With a start she turned toward the cellar entrance just in time to shout an incantation that deflected two more pointed sticks flying through the air toward her. In front of her were three vampire women… all of them held crossbows, none of which were now loaded.
"Oh, crap," she hissed. "Desolvo!"
A green ribbon of energy projected outward from her palm, encasing the vampires. With growls and hisses they were suddenly sent flying out of the cellar doors. Tara was running after them, close on their flying heels. However, she didn't follow them out into the night… instead she yanked shut the cellar doors.
"Blockade," she whispered in Latin before adding, "Goddess Artemis, hold this barrier."
Once this was done she added the same incantation Willow had just used, as the light had immediately failed once she'd fallen to the floor. Now bending onto her knees, she turned Willow onto her back and checked for a pulse, breathing a sigh of relief.
"Will? Willow, can you hear me," she gave the other witch a shake. She tried to ignore the angry noises of battering going on at the cellar door. The wood was already cracking and the barrier spell wouldn't hold them for long. When she looked, Will's eyes were wide and open… she could see conscience behind them, but she appeared completely paralyzed.
"Goddess…, okay, okay… let me think a minute. I can undo this," she told Willow. There was no response from the red-head.
Only feet away, the cellar doors were being torn apart as the barrier spell struggled to hold the disparate pieces into a unified whole.
"Unnamed Goddess, here the plea of your daughter…," Tara started, before she interrupted herself with a startled yell. The cellar doors came flying into the space in tatters.
"Crap! Desolvo," she yelled again, pointing.
This time the vampires were more than ready for a witch's spells, however. As one they dove out of the way with Gladys diving under the blast of power. Moments later she'd sent an uppercut into Tara's jaw, knocking the woman unconscious with one blow.
"This must be our night," Tammy said.
"Two more gifts for Vanessa," Rachel laughed.
"Let's get them upstairs quickly," Gladys told the other two. "We need to administer the paralyzing solution to this other witch before she comes around."
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"Giles? I've located a clue… I heard detectives talking and…, Giles? Watcher, are you nearby?"
The Buffybot turned in a 360-degree circle as she attempted to ascertain where her Watcher had disappeared to. When she'd completed her revolution, she stood in indecision with a pronounced frown. "Giles, it was rude of you not to wait for your Slayer. Of course, you are my Watcher so you needn't report to me before you take action. But now I'm not sure what I should do. Giles, are you nearby? I need instruction."
The Buffybot continued to stand in the rear of the Sunny Mall, unsure how to proceed. She'd heard detectives stating that the maintenance door was left cracked open. Apparently there was a team of officers waiting for the Public Works personnel to show up so they could begin a search of the area. She wanted to get down there first, but she couldn't just leave without her Watcher. He could be in trouble.
"Giles? If you're in trouble, please respond," she said patiently. "Giles, it isn't appropriate for me to stand here while Dawn is in trouble. Therefore, I will count to sixty seconds and then I will proceed with my search plan below the mall, okay? If that isn't satisfactory then please say so now…."
She waited for five point eight seconds before saying, "Okay, then. One… two… three…."
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Vanessa came in through the front door of the castle, her eyes lighting up in delighted surprise when she found her three minions carrying the red-head and another young lady through the hallway.
"Sire! Look at what we have for you," Rachel said excitedly.
Behind her, Tammy carried a girl with long blonde hair. Gladys had the other in her arms.
"Please tell me they are alive," she questioned.
"Oh, yes. We knew you'd wish to see our Grand-sire's reaction to their capture and restraint."
"Can we torture them later," Gladys asked.
"We need to get this one drugged, Sire. She's not paralyzed yet."
"Unfortunate. I'm afraid we're out of juice… its very expensive, you know. Why don't we secure her extra tightly, however? We'll just keep bashing her in the head when she comes round until I'm ready to kill her."
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"Oh, no," Dawn whispered as the vampire ladies came into the room with Willow and Tara. She looked desperately over at Spike, but he was still very much unmoving.
"Hello, Sire, dear… still not moving, I see," Vanessa smiled. "Well, good! As you can see, I have your little friend now. You know, I didn't expect my vengeance to make me this giddy," she giggled.
As Vanessa stood over Spike's staring, motionless eyes the others chained the two witches next to him. He couldn't move his neck to see them, but he heard the chains rattling clearly enough. In his mind, dark anger and violent rage swirled and surged. It helped to keep the fear away. He was in the presence of a vindictive bitch and he was momentarily powerless… who knew what she'd do before he could snap these chains and stop her.
"You know," she continued, lowering herself to her knees to meet his frozen stare. "I had ever so many plans for the young girl. Hot pokers… an axe… you know… the classics. But then I had this idea… I mean, I have the others to play with, after all. It occurred to me that you could have bit that juicy teen at any time… and yet you didn't."
She smiled predatorily, "And I was asking myself tonight… again… just why you hadn't. What made her so special, Spike, that you haven't preyed on her?
Well, it doesn't really matter. Maybe she'll be able to tell me later. Because you see, her fate has already been decided."
She stood up and Spike heard her footfalls as she exited his viewpoint. Seconds later, Dawn began to struggle and scream for him. A tear fell down his cheek, but he couldn't feel it.
Vanessa appeared again and Spike struggled with everything he had to move, for Dawn was struggling in her grip and pleading with her not to do something. Her tears were more than he could stand hearing, but it was worse when his sired shoved her to the floor, crouched behind her. He could see Dawn's desperation… smell the sourness of her terror. He tried… he tried so hard, but the paralysis that held him only allowed his vocal chords to make the weakest of grunts… his body remained stubbornly immobile.
"Watch this," Vanessa whispered loudly to him, as if he had any choice.
He grunted only slightly louder as he struggled to prevent her from closing on Dawn's neck. And then it was too late; she bit down, causing a cry of pain from his 'Bit. There was an agonized cry and then an accepting sigh as Dawn's struggles grew still and she grew ever more white.
I'll kill you! I'll kill you, you fucking bitch, he helplessly raged as his heart shattered into more pieces than even Buffy's death had caused.
"Oh, don't cry, Sire. The brunette isn't quite as gone as all that," Vanessa smiled again as she ripped a tear in her wrist. Pressing the bloody gash to Dawn's lips she tipped her head back and allowed the red liquid to flow down her throat.
"Now you don't need to worry about turning her or not. She belongs to me. I wonder… just how much more will it hurt when she's the one to kill you," Vanessa smiled widely.
In his mind, Spike screamed in despair and hatred while his anguish remained locked behind his paralyzed vocal chords.
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End Chapter 27