Disclaimer: Same stuff as before, look at chapter one….
A/N - Real quick, what do you think of the characterizations? Good, bad, horrible what? Oh, and Italizied is for thoughts. Enjoy!
Chapter Two: Second Chances
Part 1
"So, what did you get?" Xander asked as he came up to Willow, noticing her brown colored bag. He had finally found her though it wasn't inside the store like he had thought. She was outside, sitting on a bench and from the looks of it had been waiting for him. She was wearing one of her light blue overalls, she had on a red colored T-shirt underneath and a smiley face button pined on the left shoulder strap. Her long red hair waved slightly, as a breeze blew through. I can't believe she's been waiting here, the only way she'd be waiting outside is if she got that ghost costume- He half thought, before Willow answered his question. "A time honored classic, a ghost!" She said jubilantly, raising her bag so he could see inside. Xander groaned inwardly, as he looked at the white sheet. "That's great Wills." He said, wincing as his eyes caught a glimpse of the sun, a blue ford mustang rolled past them on the road across. Its reflective surface recreating the sun in all its shining glory. Ahhg! Pain, blinding pain! He thought, the glare from the car causing his eyes to blink repeatedly, as he looked back to his best friend. Xander shook his head, trying to get rid of the spots in his vision. I was hoping she'd go as something, different this time. He thought mournfully, Willow really needed to get out of her comfort zone, she'd been going as the same thing every Halloween, for the past ten years. But apparently, old habit's were hard to break. "What's wrong?" The seventeen year old asked in concern, as she saw him flinch. "Nothing, I'm fine, …..just a reflection of the sun. So, want to see what I got?" He said, holding up his own brown bag. "Yes!" She said happily, peering inside to look at his packaged costume. After a minute, she looked back up at him. Confusion scrawled across her face, "Xander, why do you have a fish bowl in there?" He blinked, fish bowl? Then looked inside his bag again. "Willow, I didn't buy a fish bowl." He said, looking up at her puzzled expression. "It's a helmet" he said flatly, "I bought a Cobra Commander costume." Silence reined as recognition finally donned on her face. 'Uh, you mean that silly bad guy from the tv show?" she asked. "Yes, and No" he said, sighing as he looked back at the bag. "This is the same character, but it's a different version of him. Unfortunately, the tag didn't say what he's from." Xander replied, as he and Willow started to walk away from the store front. "So, what time are we supposed to arrive at Buffy's place?" He asked, as they continued walking down the street.
Halloween Day, 2008 3:20pm
Buffy's house
Buffy Summers gulped in a breath of air as she had Willow pull the back strings to her corset. "Uggh, how did women in the 17th century breathe in these things?!" She asked her friend, as they stood in her bathroom. "I have know idea, but at least you don't have to chaperone little kids tonight," her friend said from behind her, pulling away to look at her costume in the mirror above the sink. Buffy looked at her own costume in the mirror, a dark green noblewoman dress offset by her tasteful black wig. Each lace and frill of the dress set in place, ready to go. Lucky me, I get to go to a Halloween party with my mom, and on the only night I have off from vamp slaying! She thought. Though to be honest, she kinda liked it. Her mother worked at an Art Gallery in town so there weren't many times they could do something like this together. She looked back to Willow already in her ghost costume. Checking the sheet for any unwanted rips or holes, when satisfied, she turned to Buffy. "Will, the little kids aren't going to go on a rampage across Sunnydale, don't be so stressed. Besides, think of the extra school credit you could get." Buffy said, trying to reassure her friend, before looking at the wall mounted clock. "Hey, what time do you and Xander have to be at the school for the chaperone thingy?" She asked, seeing that it was already 3:29 pm. "Ah, 4:02 why it's only…..Oh my gosh! I, we have to go or we'll be late!" Willow shouted, trying to run out of the room. Buffy stopped her by grabbing her right hand. "Willow, chill! My mom is driving you guys remember? The high school is on the way to our party." She said, as Willow stopped in mid run. "Oh, oh yeah." She breathed, as Buffy let go of her hand. Both girls started to walk out of the bathroom, shutting the door as they left. As they walked down the stairs, they saw Xander dressed in his costume, sitting on one of the couches. He looked intimidating with his reflective face mask and black commander's get-up. He held an intricately detailed plastic sword in both hands, playing with it before looking up at their approach.
"Ah, there you guys are, I've been…. Wow Buffy, you look…just wow." he said, as he saw Buffy descend the stairs in her dress. "Why thank you, kind sir." she said with a smile. He coughed to clear his throat, "You're welcome. Wills, that's a scary costume ya got there. A pleasure my ghostly Baroness." he said with a slight nod, standing up as he put the plastic sword in its scabbard. He walked forward tripping over the carpet, just barely keeping his balance and nearly knocking over a lamp on an end table, before catching it. "So, ah, you two ready to go?" he asked sheepishly, after righting himself and setting the lamp back in its place. He grabbed a bottle of soda from the coffee table, carrying it as he walked. "Yep, Xand we're both ready to go." Buffy said in-between fits of laughter, as she stopped in front of him, Willow quietly giggling right behind her. "Where's mom?" She asked, looking at Xander. "In the kitchen." He said.
At her questioning look, he explained. "She said something about getting a drink and asked if I wanted one."
"Well Mr. Clumsy Commander, we've gotta go, or you two will be late." Buffy said, smiling, as she walked into the hallway to the kitchen.
"Oh ha ha Buff, real funny." Xander said, as he and Willow followed her to the kitchen.
-
Hours later- 8:00pm
Xander led his group to the last house that night, the steps creaked as they ascended. He hoped this place would be better then the last. Mr. Kerza seemed to think that handing out slices of octopus was an acceptable treat for Halloween. The guy was nice and interesting to be around, but really …..Sushi?
Then again the man was a nut. Xander remembered one night where the man cut the wires to the motor of his neighbor's car, because he thought the machine was talking to him.
Then the next day he apologized giving them $4,000 in cash. Of course, Sunnydales' finest, never did anything about it. He supposed it was due to Sunnydale syndrome. Weird or unexplainable events happen and the whole town either ignores it, or blames gangs on PCP. Still the man was okay, as long as you didn't aggravate him. Though the fact remained that the town was practically built on top of a Hellmouth. The stupid Gate to a hell dimension probably messed with peoples minds. He turned around to face the little kids' he was chaperoning. "Okay troops, after this we go back to the high school." he said as the kids following behind him groaned. "Hey I took you guys to fifteen different houses, So-" he was cut off suddenly as searing pain filled his entire body. Xander grabbed the nearby railing with both hands, holding on to it, as the pain intensified. A sensation of burning swept across his left hand, his head throbbed feeling like an over ripe melon about to burst. All around him he could hear people screaming and kids shouting.
The mask becomes flesh! was the last thing he heard, as a blanket of darkness filled his vision.
_
Eric D'Cobray aka Cobra Commander, screamed in rage as Duke finished strapping him down to the lab table. The restraints were made out of Anemite, a near indestructible metal which could survive anything, except a nuclear detonation. The cuffs were icy cold against the skin of his one good arm, the other having been replaced years ago with a mechanical gauntlet. A missing arm was the only gift from his days in the US military, after creating Cobra he had updated the pitiful prosthetic into this. The mechanical F.A.N.G Gauntlet could fire beams of concentrated energy, paralysis darts and more recently, extract information from a targets mind just by piercing the tips of the fingers into the head. He was told it was a quit painful experience. The Commander had just finished his most promising experiment, Immortality by nanite injection. If Dr. Mindbender was to be believed, he could now survive anything. Unfortunately they hadn't had time to test it yet, and the good Dr. was now lying on the floor in a pool of his own blood. Upon awakening from his procedure, Eric found his platoon of guards had been taken out, while he was asleep, Baroness was long gone. That traitor! he thought, in a whirlwind of fury. And Destro, …well he didn't really care about him anyway. By the time he was fully conscious the Joes' had pinned him down, Duke locking the cuffs in place as he struggled to get up. The procedure had left him weak, sapping his strength and playing havoc with his senses. That however was expected Dr. Mindbender had said so, what was NOT expected were the Joes' finding his hidden base. The Commander strained even more against his bonds, wishing for all the world that he could claw Dukes out eyes. Duke stepped away from the table, nodding to one of his subordinates. A redheaded woman acknowledged his unspoken command, walking over to the a nearby console. Until now he hadn't known she was there, he was too focused on Duke. Pulling a black box from one of her packs, she placed the curious devise on the keypad. Craning his neck, Eric saw what the box was …..a bomb, more specifically a hydrogen bomb.
Fifty-six minutes to detonation. The mechanical voice echoed signaling its activation.
"Lets see how your little experiment fairs against a Hydrogen bomb, Commander." Duke spat out. "Come on Scarlett we got to go, we'll meet the others at the canyon to the north." The woman- Scarlett nodded, following Duke as he exited the lab. Neither sparring a second glance at the still struggling Commander…
Fifty-five minutes to detonation.
"I am IMMORTAL, you puny insects!" Eric screamed at the top of his lungs in full confidence. "I can not be killed!" The confidence rolled off him in waves, broken only when the timer hit ten minutes. By this time he was thrashing wildly at the cuffs, voice hoarse as he screamed in frantic denial.
Five minutes. The metallic voice said, as he griped the ends of the cuffs. Beads of sweat rolled off him, as he still tried to deny the inevitable. He feared only one thing…. HIS death.
"NO! I will not die like this!" he screamed, as the metallic monotone voice called out agian.
Two minutes to detonation.
"Not like this..."
He was going to struggle one more time, before a blinding pain seared through him drowning out all sound. His mind spun, blackness started to creep over his eyes. A deep voice rumbled within his head. The mask becomes flesh! Echoing, pulsing with its own energy. He felt as though his body was being ….shoved into a tight space.
The mask becomes flesh! …the mask becomes flesh….the mask- He lost consciousness at that moment. The blackness fully enveloping him.
