Knights of the Intrepid
Disclaimer: Don't own anything you recognize.
§◙§
The United Kingdom; London, England; Watchers' Council Headquarters; September 29th, 2016:
"Track them down," Buffy ordered as a mage healed her minor wound, "Find where they went, and bring them before me. And bring me Giles…he knew of this."
She turned her attention to the wall for a moment.
"And have someone clean up this mess," she motioned to the shriveled body of the animal that had attacked her, then, the Slayer turned and moved down the hallway, intent on having revenge.
§◙§
The United Kingdom; London, England; Private address of Rupert Giles; September 29th, 2016:
"Mr. Giles," she called into his office, gripping her club tightly as she prepared herself, "You have a phone call."
No response came.
"…Mr. Giles, is everything alright," she asked, putting all the concern she could into her voice.
Without waiting for a response, she opened the office door and went inside. No one was there, it was merely an empty office.
"What," she asked in confusion…then, her whole world lit up.
Literally.
§◙§
Rupert emerged from behind his desk as his spell took place. He acted quickly and left his office with only a small book in his possession, one that he was sure would play a role in the future.
He slinked along the hallway quickly and, upon getting to the desired wall, muttered a spell and pulled back the portrait of a Slayer from the eighteenth century, revealing a passageway that had not been in existence since the Second World War.
He crawled through the small space, making sure to shut the portrait along the way, and made his way out towards the garden near the manor's property line. By the time he had emerged from the bushes where the other end of the passage was hidden, the Slayers that had been standing guard had already been recalled to help in the search for Giles.
He quickly made his way off the manor, and into the nearby forest, where he hoped to make his way to London.
§◙§
The United Kingdom; London, England; underground apartment rented by 'Data Fett'; September 29th, 2016:
"NNNNOOOO," Xander raged as his feet hit solid ground, and he collapsed to his knees from pure exhaustion, the fatigue that had been forgotten through the rush of adrenaline and the death of his friend quickly catching up to him.
Andrew, meanwhile, quickly moved deeper into the room and activated his computer. Using the back window that he had set up, he monitored the situation from his desktop as Buffy began issuing new orders.
"What do you mean, you can't find them," the blonde Slayer was yelling at a dazed-looking Willow, who simply stayed quiet, not knowing how to answer the question.
"Try again, damn it," the Slayer bellowed, "And find Giles. He escaped, too."
Andrew smiled in joy upon hearing that his friend had escaped alive. He knew that the old Watcher had one left in him.
"G-Man made it out," he turned to see Xander, apparently having regained control of himself, standing above him with a look of resentment on his face.
"Yep," Andrew told him, "…I'm sorry about-"
"It's alright," Xander told him with a sigh, "…Andrew, can this thing hack into any government satellites?"
"Assuming we can get to any, definitely," the computer expert agreed, "What're we looking for?"
"Colonel Finn's cell phone," Xander said, handing him the number of the phone, "See what you can do."
"I'll have him up within the hour," Andrew told him, "Maybe you can be working on some new ID's for us?"
"I don't think they'll be needed anymore, Andrew," Xander said with a sigh.
"…No," he admitted, "Probably not."
§◙§
International Waters; September 29th, 2016:
"Ok, we got everyone packed up," Don said as he closed the cabin door and started up the plane, "I'm getting us back to the States."
"NO," the Slayer objected, "We had a deal!"
"I don't give a shit," Don told her angrily, "The world, the whole God damned WORLD, was just attacked, bitch!! You really think I give a shit about some damn sexual harassment charges!!?"
Instead of answering, Dana just slammed her fist into his head, effectively sending him into the land of the dark. Shoving him into the back, she climbed into the pilot's seat and, listening carefully to the voices in her head, started the plane up and lifted off from the water.
With that, she began to make her way to coordinates 32 degrees North, 5 degrees West.
§◙§
The Land of the Rising Sun; Tokyo; Watchers' Council Headquarters; September 29th, 2016:
Dawn bit her lip as she tried to lift herself off the ground, only to fail for the fifth time that day after she'd had enough strength to do so. As of yet, she'd barely even managed to get herself into a sitting position (doing that alone was difficult enough). Granted, she had no idea what she would do after being capable of standing but, she knew it was better than just sitting there and…thinking.
All her mind was filled with questions.
Why were they doing this?
What was it, exactly, they were doing?
What happened to Buffy? Willow? Xander?
And, why hadn't they enslaved or killed her like the others?
There were only two conclusions that automatically came to mind, aside from that bullshit they fed her about needing her to sound human.
One was that they wanted to use her for something that she couldn't do in a trance, or dead, though she had no idea what.
The other…was a bit more frightening.
A banging on the door alerted her to the person on the other side.
"Chow," the Slayer tossed the Hungry Man dinner into her cell, which she took and ate (only a quarter, opting to save the rest if needed).
All the while, that one possibility plagued her thoughts.
Buffy wanted her alive.
§◙§
The United Kingdom; London, England; underground apartment rented by 'Data Fett'; September 29th, 2016:
"Xander, I've found him," the young man leapt up from his seat and raced over to Andrew's computer, which had a map of Nevada on it, "He's in the middle of the desert."
"…That's gotta be Area 51," Xander muttered, "Or Area 19. One of those two has got to be where that prison he mentioned was."
"I thought Area 51 was where the Aurora jet and aliens were kept," Andrew asked timidly.
"Oh, that's where the Aurora originated," Xander commented dryly, remembering having seen the vehicle itself, "Aliens…none have ever set foot on that base. Now, in California, they definitely have."
"Really," Andrew asked, amazed that Xander could possibly know such a thing.
"Sure," he said with a sigh, "What do you think demons invading from a different plane are?"
Andrew slouched at that, his mind dulled with disappointment.
"Can you hack into their computers," Xander asked.
"Already did," Andrew informed him, "I've got a patch set up for you. They haven't detected me yet, but, that's no surprise, given the circumstances. Take this time to write up a report to send to the Colonel."
Xander nodded in agreement and sat down at a computer to do just that.
§◙§
The United States; Nevada; Secret Military Instillation, codenamed 'Area 51'; September 29th, 2016:
Sergeant Andrew Masterson watched his screen with a definitive sigh. He, like nearly every other military man, or woman, in the world, was in a state of perpetual grief, mixed in with rage unlike any he had ever felt before.
He wanted vengeance.
But, for now, he was confined to this chair, watching over the base's computer systems…a glorified baby-sitter.
Suddenly, an alarm blared on his computer, and his screen instantly switched over to an online instant message system.
Colonel Riley Finn, U.S. Army. Get him.
It was signed by a man named Harris at He stared at the message for a moment, confused, baffled, and basically wigged about someone sending a message for a man who, technically, didn't exist anymore.
After a second, that puzzlement gaze way as his training took over. He set to work on tracing whoever it was that was playing them, along with alerting his station officer of what was happening…only to be interrupted as another message came over the line.
Get him…before it's too late.
That made him come up short. Deciding that it may end up being worth the court-martial, he picked up his phone and hit the number for the PA system.
"Colonel Finn, please report to comms station alpha eight niner."
§◙§
Agent Riley Finn ran down the hallway as fast as he could. At first, he had been under the impersonation that there was a message from his wife, who had been aboard the submarine Alexandria during the attacks. But, as he ran down the hallway, he heard rumors that it was a message from an outsider who had somehow gained access to the base's computers.
That had made him continue at his pace, setting a record for navigating the base.
Upon his arrival, he hastily stopped as he came to the base's CO, Major General Robert Sinclair, and came to attention, rendering a salute to the General.
"Colonel Finn reporting as ordered, Sir," he barked out, and the General returned that salute.
"At east," Riley immediately relaxed and waited on more, "Who is Harris?"
That question made him stand up straighter.
"Harris, Sir," he asked.
"Yes," the General told him, "He's the one who hacked into our base, and he's asking specifically for you. You have something you wanna share, son?"
"The Harris I know is a Marine," he told his superior, "If he's contacting us, it means he knows something about the bombings."
That brought the General up short.
"…Get on that damn thing and find out what the Hell is going on," the General barked out, eager as all of them to get some pay-back on the cretins who 86ed them.
"Yes, Sir," Riley said, and he took a seat at the station and hastily typed in a code that would prove whether it was Xander or not.
§◙§
rfinna51.gov/account/lilac:Who's not the Dark Prince's Me. Who's head got bashed in by a dead boy?
rfinna51.gov/account/lilac:…Mine. Asswipe. Damn straight, Corny. How's it going?
rfinna51.gov/account/lilac:…Don't know if S. made it out. She was on the Alexandria when the bombings happened, and we don't know if subs were hit yet. We haven't received any communications, so, we're assuming the worst. Sorry to hear that. …Look, I got something to share with you, and…well, you aren't gonna believe it. But, I need you to trust me on this one. Marine to Army, Jarhead to Grunt, Friend to Friend. Can you do that?
rfinna51.gov/account/lilac:…You've never let me down, Trippy, so…I'll go along with you on this one.'Trippy?' What the Hell does that mean?
rfinna51.gov/account/lilac:'I trip over my own feet.' Or would you prefer 'Drac's Man-Bitch?' …That's low, man. Real low. LMAO-NOT!!!
rfinna51.gov/account/lilac:'LMAO-NOT?' What's that all …It's sad when I know more about this techno garble than the Army does. Anyway, moving on, I'm sending it over now. You secure?
rfinna51.gov/account/lilac:We're all squared, here. OK. Email me back whenever you get in touch with your superiors…if you have any left.
rfinna51.gov/account/lilac:Will do. Tell Buffy I said 'Hey.'
USER HAS LOGGED OFF
§◙§
"Colonel, what do you have," the General asked Riley about fifteen minutes later.
"…No," Riley muttered in disbelief, "It's…not possible."
§◙§
The United Kingdom; London, England; underground apartment rented by 'Data Fett'; September 29th, 2016:
"Think he'll buy it," Andrew asked as he and Xander packed up what gear they needed.
"I hope so, but, I'm not holding my breath," Xander told him as he grabbed a few guns from Andrew's locker and loaded them into his pocket, "Alright, it's nighttime. We wait till Giles gets here, then, we head for my place in the docks."
"Right," Andrew said, looking around his safe house another time before asking, "We cleared everything out, right?"
"Yeah," Xander told him, "…You're sure Giles would head here, right?"
"He knows about my safe house," Andrew said with some confidence, "…At least, I think he does."
Xander rolled his eyes and settled in, knowing that the wait was going to go on for quite a while.
§◙§
The United Kingdom; London, England; Kingsley Docks; September 30th, 2016:
Dana pulled into the dock with a relieved sigh. It had been quite the challenge, flying this vehicle all by herself, but, it had been a success. Now that she was where she needed to be, she just had to figure out what her next move was.
Weapons, her instinct told her.
She looked over at the docks, then back at her plane…coming to a quick decision, she ran back to the plane and began to unload.
§◙§
The United Kingdom; London, England; underground apartment rented by 'Data Fett'; September 30th, 2016:
Xander watched with a cold eye as a figure emerged from the darkness. He knew that silhouette anywhere.
"Here," he handed his gun off to Andrew and went forward to help Giles down the hallway.
"Xander," the Englishman greeted him, happily accepting the aid that the young man was offering down the stairs.
"Morning, G-Man," he wrapped his arm around the older man's, "How's your first day as a fugitive been?"
"Better than anything Harrison Ford could come up with," Giles said, only to have his quip fall upon deaf ears, "…Really, Xander, you must start watching something aside from Saturday morning cartoons."
"Hey," Xander said, somewhat offended by that comment, "I watch other stuff."
"I don't think the adult's channel counts here, Xander," Andrew said with a smile.
"Shut up, Andrew," Xander scolded his friend, "Help me get this tub of lard inside, then, we'll…"
"What," Andrew asked upon seeing his friend's confused look.
"Why is that rock glowing yellow," Xander asked, knowing that it couldn't be anything good.
Andrew turned around and, quite uncharacteristically, cursed, saying, "They've broken through my barrier. They found us."
"Great," Xander muttered, "Up we go."
§◙§
"Well," Giles asked, "Now what?"
"We requisition a vehicle," Xander stated, scanning the streets like a window-shopper.
"Xander," Andrew tugged on his shirt like a little kid and pointed down the street.
"…Oh, this is too good," Xander said with a grin.
§◙§
"I don't know why you had to pick this vehicle when there was a perfectly good Citron down the road," Giles yelled over the roar of the motorcycle whose side cart he was currently occupying.
"This thing saves us about two hours, and can outrun a Slayer," Xander told his friend as Andrew gripped his backside, "Unlike that rust bucket, which I am convinced was yours."
Giles gained a thoughtful look and said, "Well, now that you mention it-"
"Xand, they're behind us," Andrew called, a frightened quiver in his voice.
The former Zeppo looked in his mirror and cursed as he saw two SUVs speeding after them.
"Shoot them, damn it," Xander yelled.
He quickly got out his extra pistol and handed it to Giles, while Andrew pulled out his own, and the duo worked together to try and bring down their pursuers.
"Try and hit the tires," Giles shouted.
"Andrew, aim for the driver," Xander countered, "The two of you working together on two different fronts is better than both of you wasting bullets and not hitting anything."
Andrew nodded, getting where he was coming from. He was certain that it was Buffy driving the first vehicle, considering that the SUV was swerving in and out of the lane with seemingly no cause as to why.
Andrew and Giles both lined up their shots and opened fired.
§◙§
The United Kingdom; London, England; Kingsley Docks; September 30th, 2016:
Dana loaded the plane up with the extra gas that she had been able to get with what was in Don's wallet, along with a Colt .45, bought under the table, seeing as guns were illegal in this country. She had dumped Don inside the dock's owner's cabin, where he sold crap to anyone who could buy. It had cost the pilot an arm and a leg but, it was better than sleeping on the dock for the night.
Of course, she didn't know that the man also happened to be a cannibal. Tough break.
What she had known, though, was that people firing guns were coming this way and, if the voices in her head were to be believed, a large number of her former brethren were currently en route to her location.
Counting on the people firing the guns being friendlies, the wayward Slayer started up the plane and prepared for a tactical retreat.
§◙§
A few moments later, a motorcycle with a cart sped down the dock, followed closely by an SUV with several bullet holes in the front window, along with one in the grill. The second one had been, interestingly, taken out by a shot from Giles to the tires.
"I told you, aim for the tires," Giles commented as he popped off another shot.
"Shut up and shoot," Xander yelled, cutting off Andrew's response.
The two resumed firing just as Xander turned a corner, coming to the part of the docks where a plane flown by a formerly insane girl was housed. Said girl was, at that time, waving them over and shouting at them to get aboard.
Xander, seeing it as a possible escape route, slammed on the breaks and quickly dismounted the vehicle.
"MOVE," he shouted with all his might.
Andrew jumped off the back, miraculously just avoiding landing in the water. Giles, meanwhile, had leapt out of the vehicle and directly into the water.
The Slayer's SUV rammed into the cycle at full speed, and continued to move forward for a good ten seconds before it finally came to a stop.
"Hurry up," Dana shouted at them.
"Andrew, get Giles into the plane," he picked up both the forsaken weapons and began popping off shots at the SUV as people emerged from it.
They, in turn, responded with crossbow bolts. Fortunately, they stood no chance as Xander easily shot the crossbows into a thousand pieces before they could finish loading the second round. He put two bullets into the bodies of two different Slayers and turned his head for a split second to check on Andrew and Giles, both of whom were now entering the plane.
His moment of distraction proved to be costly as a thunderous blow landed against his skull, forcing him to drop like a steel weight. He blinked the stars out of his vision as he faced up towards the current bane of his existence.
"Exactly where you need to be," Buffy sneered at him, a look of sheer contempt written all over her face, "On the ground, at the feet of a Slayer. You're so pathetic, Xander. You can't compete with us, so you turn against us. That's cowardice, you fool; or, maybe in your case, just stupidity."
Xander growled and raised his gun up to Buffy, a clear shot at the space between her two eyes easily coming into his focus.
"Go ahead," she snickered at him, "Shoot me. Go on, Xander; you know you want to rip my heart out. Do you still think I think of you as a big brother, keeping me out of the sandbox?"
That statement caused him to come up short in what he had planned on being a killing moment.
How could she know that, Xander thought, realizing that it had to be more than coincidence.
His hesitation cost him as she easily kicked the gun out of his hand, then, reached down and pulled him up to her face.
"You never learn, do you, Xander," she asked him, "You just can't compete with us Slayers."
He looked into her eyes, and was not surprised by what he saw…there was nothing left, nothing of the Buffy he had once known, not even the one that she had become after her second resurrection…she was hollow inside. She pulled back her fist, readying herself for the killing blow and Xander, all too aware of what the consequences would be, sighed and awaited the inevitable.
Instead, a bolt of lightning fell from the heavens in the form of a hot piece of lead as a bullet embedded itself into Buffy's abdomen.
Everyone stared at the fallen Slayer in shock before turning their attention to the one who had pulled the trigger.
Dana glared at her from the behind the smoking barrel and said, "You're not the Slayer…none of you are anymore."
She looked up at the other Slayers, all of whom were now positively radiating fear upon seeing their leader fall so easily.
"…Get to the plane," she ordered, and Xander found himself obeying her order with no thoughts otherwise, his momentary weakness regarding Buffy easily forgotten in the shot.
Dana watched her former sisters for a second more before turning away from them and boarding her plane. All they could do was watch as it took off into the night sky.