Chapter 23.
I do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Stargate SG1.
Please review! Compliments make me write faster; criticisms make me write better. Both are needed if you wish this fic to continue.
/Xander's thoughts/
%Jolinar's thoughts%
#"Tok'ra or Goa'uld voice"#
Giles drove everyone over to the Library that morning. A bagged and blindfolded Ford sat between Martouf and Xander. A round-about trip to make sure Ford couldn't easily find Willow's house.
They dropped Ford off in an empty classroom and told him to wait there while they talked about what they wanted to do with him. He sat down in a desk and folded his hands.
"So you came in a space ship?" Willow asked Martouf once they arrived at the library. "What was that like? It must have been exciting!"
Martouf smiled. "Yes, I did. Though it's not as exciting as you might think. It was a rather long trip. The most exciting part was dodging all the satellites in your upper atmosphere. There are quite a lot of them up there."
"That reminds me of a joke," Xander stated. "Two Aliens out in space were looking down on the planet Earth. The first alien said, 'It seems the dominant life-forms on Earth have developed satellite-based weapons.' The second alien asked, 'Are they an emerging intelligence?' 'I don't think so,' the first responded. 'They have the weapons aimed at themselves.'
Willow giggled and Giles smiled thoughtfully. Martouf frowned. "Is that true? You have satellite based weapons but they are aimed at yourselves?"
"Unfortunately the people of Earth have yet to unify as they need to. Though the United States, who controls the Stargate, is one of the dominant powers." Jolinar explained. "Looking back through the history of Earth, its people are able to come together to defeat great enemies. But so far, the people of Earth do not know about the Stargate or about the enemy they face. It's our belief that telling them would eventually result in the unification of most of the Earth as a single entity instead of a bunch of warring kingdoms."
Jolinar took a breath and continued, "There is greater diversity on Earth than on almost any other planet. It makes unification more difficult. Different tribes evolved at different rates. And many countries have been at war for generations. And while many people are fairly advanced and enlightened. Many are not. Knowledge of the Stargate and access to advanced technology may help equalize classes and eliminate some of the strife affecting the world today. Therefore, I would recommend that the Tok'ra council insist on making the Stargate public. Not as an ultimatum, but as a persistent request."
"I will pass on your recommendation to the council." Martouf agreed. "Are you sure they're as advanced as you think, though? Satellite weapons aimed at themselves is no joke."
"Advanced enough to build the components needed to build the healing device. Even if they don't know how to put it together yet." Jolinar assured them. "Apophis and Ra underestimated them to their detriment. Whether they're enlightened enough not to destroy themselves is the question. Still, they've had the technology to destroy themselves for 60 years now. They haven't quite managed it yet."
Once Jenny and Buffy arrived, they put Ford to a vote, whether to allow him to stay or not. Xander voted not. But Willow, Jenny, Giles, and Jolinar voted yes. Buffy just couldn't make up her mind and was perfectly happy to have her friends' help in that regard. Willow went to fetch him and they came back.
"Well, we voted and we've decided to let you stay." Giles informed him. "Now, the question is, do you want to stay and if so, what can you contribute?"
"Like money?" Xander jumped in. When everyone looked crossly at him, he asked, "What? That healing device was expensive."
"How much?" Ford didn't seem as offended as everyone else.
"Ended up being six grand." Xander stated. He was actually rounding down a little. Cost overruns and some parts that only came in certain quantities had pushed his original estimate up a little bit.
Ford didn't even think. "Done. I'll call my dad. He'd probably be willing to pay 3 times that. And it'd be worth it too. Heck, I'll call him right now." Before anyone could stop him he was on the phone. "Dad. Hi. No, I'm fine. Yeah, that free one I told you about turned out to be a scam. You were right. No. Wait. Hi Mom. I'm fine. Not right now. Could you put Dad on again? I have to talk to him. Bye. I love you too. Ok. You were right about the free one. I was actually saved from that by an old friend of mine. Do you remember Buffy Summers? Yeah, the one who burned down the gym. Anyway, she heard about me and pointed me towards a friend of hers. This one's legit. I toured the facilities and saw the cat scans and everything. There's a problem though. They're not on human trials yet. Well, I'm getting to that. For $15,000 they said they can sneak me into the primate trials. Well, I trust Buffy." he looked at her and smiled. "And they seem like good people." He took a deep breath. "Otherwise I'll keep looking. I'm not coming back for more chemo." He was silent for a moment and just listened. "Thanks dad. I love you too. I'll call you when it's done. Or have them call you if anything happens." Ford hung up the phone.
"So, what's next?" Ford asked.
It turned out that what was next was an analysis of the patrol from last night as well as an analysis of police reports so they could see where demons were likely attacking people. Xander led the briefing but kept everyone involved. He even asked Martouf and Ford if they had anything to add. Martouf didn't, but Ford knew quite a bit about the demonic activities around the motel he was staying at. They made plans to sweep the area that night with Ford acting as guide. His first official action as a (provisional) Scooby. Xander also got a payment from Giles on his car. Xander left to 'pick up something new or maybe old' he said.
"So this is the Stargate?" General Carter asked
"Yup." Major Carter answered.
"And it sends you to other planets?" Jacob clarified.
"Chevron 7 locked." Sergeant Harriman reported over the intercom. The Stargate went kawoosh and Jacob gasped in amazement.
"How about them apples, huh?" O'Neill joked.
"Incredible!" Jacob acknowledged.
"Let's go, Dad." Carter started up the ramp.
"Does it— what does it feel like?" Jacob stalled.
"You've handled worse, Dad." Carter smiled. It was nice to be braver than her father in this.
"It's a piece of cake, sir." O'Neill assured him before guiding him in.
They got to the Tok'ra base, or what was left of it. Just a ring transporter and three hallways that didn't go far. After the introductions between Selmak and Jacob, Saroosh came out.
"I'm the one to whom you should be talking." Saroosh said.
"You're the host then?" Jacob asked.
"I am Saroosh. I am in the position to help you most." she stated
"How's that?" General Carter wondered.
"I have lived with Selmak for 200 years." Saroosh explained.
"I see." Jacob acknowledged.
"Selmak is a wonderful Tok'ra. She is selfless and caring, she is good company. She has a wonderful sense of humor." Saroosh went on.
"Well that's good Dad, you can sit around for hours cracking yourself up." Sam joked.
"That's funny." Jacob didn't laugh.
"She's not far wrong. I've had almost two hundred years of laughter thanks to Selmak. I'm biased, of course, but I believe that Selmak is among the best educated of the Tok'ra. You will probably be overwhelmed by the knowledge and wisdom you will gain upon blending." Saroosh gushed.
"Okay. What do I do?" Jacob wondered.
#"First, Selmak would like to interview you."# the attendant stated.
"Huh?" Jacob wondered.
#"If I am to spend the next hundred or more years with you as my host, do you not think I have the right to decide if I even like you?"# Selmak spoke up.
"Oh, I thought it was this or we both die. Right?" Jacob clarified.
#"Having a poor host could be worse than death. Tell me, how do you feel about the Goa'uld?"# Selmak asked.
The attendants left and took Sam out with them.
"I don't know. I've never met a Goa'uld. Although from what Sam and her people tell me, I don't think I like them much. As I understand, my daughter has been fighting them for a year now. If they're her enemy, they're my enemy." Jacob stated.
#"Interesting. Tell me, sir, are you a good man?"# Selmak asked
Jacob laughs, "You're kidding, right?"
Selmak shakes her head. #"No, we'll be spending the rest of our lives together."#
"Well, to answer your question, I try. But I'm a little confused. I was under the impression that this was more of a shotgun wedding." Jacob wondered.
#"I do not understand."# Selmak asked for clarification.
"Well, either we do this or we both die. Right? So my point is, good man, bad man, what difference does it make? We don't have a choice. And I don't mind telling you the whole idea scares the hell outta me. So can we just get it over with?" Jacob asked.
#"I have decided I like you."# Selmak announced.
"Super." Jacob stated.
#"But I must be sure that you understand there will be no turning back. I cannot blend with you, cure your disease, then leave. To do so, would probably kill us both."# Slemak stated the rules.
"I understand. Let me ask you something, though. After we do this, will I still be able to talk to my daughter?" Jacob asked the only question that really mattered to him.
#"The way Saroosh talked to you, yes. But you and your daughter must understand the blending may not work at all. I am very weak, and the damage to your body may be too extensive."# Selmak explained.
"In other words, we might die anyway." Jacob clarified.
#"Yes."# Selmak agreed.
"Then can you give me five with my kid?" Jacob asked.
#"Of course."# Selmak allowed.
After a tearful goodbye where Jacob told Sam just how proud he was of her, the blending began.
Then they waited. Finally Jacob opened his glowing eyes.
"Dad?" Carter asked.
#"Pinochet?"# Selmak asked.
#"I am here."# Pinochet stepped forward.
#"It went well. The damage was not as severe as I had feared."# Selmak explained.
"Uh, is my Dad in there somewhere?" Sam asked.
Selmak nodded and Jacob comes back, "I'm here, Sammy. Oh man, talk about your hangover." he grabs his head.
Sam looks concerned, "How are you Dad?"
"I'm awful. Headache the size of Kuwait. There's too much stuff in here." He jumps off the bed, "Whoa!"
"What?" Samantha asks, alarmed.
"No more arthritis!" He jumped around a bit and flexed his fingers, "Holy Hannah! No more arthritis!"
Sam gives him a relieved smile. "Come on Dad. Let's go home. Jolinar wanted to talk with you once you were blended."
Jacob stopped walking and nodded his head. Selmak came back. #"Jolinar is alive? I thought she died in you?"#
"She did." Carter explained. "But it seems that he was cloned into a boy on Earth."
#"And he is still on Earth? Why has he not joined the Tok'ra at the new base?"# Selmak wondered as they walked to the ring platform.
"Well, it's a long story." Carter explained. "We'll explain what we know back at the SGC, then you can call him and maybe he'll explain more to you then."
Xander returned to the library an hour later with a bundle of 1 inch diameter, wooden dowels and a machete.
"Xander, what is this?" Giles wondered when the young man set the bundle of 6 foot long dowels on his table.
"New weapons. Or old. Depending on how you look at it." Xander pulled a dowel out of the pack. He braced it on the table with Willow's help and took a couple whacks at it with the machete. He almost had a serviceable spear when Willow leaned a little closer and her breast accidentally touched his arm. His last shot missed the mark and turned an almost complete spear into a much shorter dowel again. "Oops. This one can be Buffy's. A full size one would have been too big for her anyway." Xander tried to cover his gaff.
"That had better not be a 'short' joke mister." Buffy warned.
"No, Xander's right. A full sized spear would be a bit big for you. Even with your strength, it would be awkward." Giles came to Xander's defense. "But I don't think we can use these Xander. We can't walk around town carrying spears."
"Not during the day, no." Xander agreed. "And not at the Bronze, even at night, but there are a lot of places that we regularly patrol where no one is going to notice anyone carrying a spear. They give the human members patrolling tonight extra reach that way." Xander explained. "No one has to carry one, but I'm going to tonight and I'll recommend that everyone else do so as well." Xander finished reshaping the spear and tossed it to Buffy.
Buffy grabbed the short spear out of the air and twirled it around her body in a series of complicated patterns too fast for the merely human people present to follow. Then she lunged at Xander and stopped the very sharp point of the spear just short of his heart. Xander stood perfectly still until her 'attack' was done and then stretched out his arms to show that he was still short of being able to grab her.
"If you can kill them without putting yourself in the grasp of superhuman predators, I call that a win." Xander reasoned.
It was hard to argue with the impromptu demonstration. Giles wasn't entirely convinced and insisted that everyone still take stakes and crosses as backup. Which Xander heartily agreed with. He also demonstrated, with Willow's help, how to use the spear if a vamp got in too close. Another accidental boob-brush and he lost his train of thought. Instead deciding that it would be best to just drop the spear and pull a stake and cross.
Then they went over the plan for that night. Apparently the motel area was a hotbed of demonic activity. They decided that it would be a full sweep with everyone involved. They'd stay tightly packed to support their weaker members, but would still be sweeping a very large area. Far larger than Buffy could sweep on her own.
Ford would take point with Xander to show him the area and where different demons tended to hang out. Buffy would take the left wing of the sweep. Xander put Willow next to her. Then Martouf, Giles and Angel rounding out the right flank. Jenny, after promising to take very good care of it, would be driving Giles' car. She had extra stakes, spears, holy water and crossbows in case they were needed. Xander had insisted that Jenny and Giles and Buffy and Angel not work side by side. He didn't explain why to the newcomers. Buffy and Giles at least blushed. Jenny looked rather smug.
"Not that they were that expensive, but any chance of getting compensated by the council for these?" Xander handed over the receipt to Giles.
Giles frowned. "The council is not made of money, Xander."
"Sure you guys are. You're an old secret organization. Things like that are always rolling in the dough." Xander retorted.
Giles just shook his head.
"What? You mean there's no black helicopters with a hundred commandos ready to back us up if anything goes wrong?" Xander asked.
"No. The council doesn't have its own wet work team. Should something like that be necessary, they have some contacts in the SAS and former SAS, but if you were thinking of using them against your NID friends, I'm afraid that just wouldn't work. It would be a diplomatic nightmare." Giles shook his head. "Though diplomacy is about all they are really good at. Getting Watchers and Slayers into and out of countries that might otherwise be hostile towards such things." Giles explained. "But the entire council operates on a very small budget. Even the full time employees such as myself must either take an additional job or have a partner with a job in order to make ends meet. It makes recruiting rather difficult. 'Would you like to join a life of poverty and boredom occasionally interrupted by stark, raving terror?' Makes a poor recruiting poster."
"But I thought they were this super-old society. Shouldn't they be rich and powerful by now?" Xander complained.
"The council has outlived thousands of organizations and even governments that were both richer and more powerful than they." Giles countered. "However, they are not a government or the Vatican. They lack the taxes and tithes that organizations like that command. There is very little actual income generation and thus they must maintain tight control of the money they do have or risk having to sell some priceless artifacts for nothing near what they're worth."
"So, no help from the council? Then what good are they?" Xander wondered.
Giles scratched his temple. "Well, besides paying me... at least a little. Research. Much of my collection comes from them or from contacts I got through them."
Xander considered this new information. At least one of his contingency scenarios was now a bust. The council riding in to save the day was never going to happen. But maybe the diplomatic avenue could be worked. It was an idea for later.
For now it was time for dinner. Ford was taken to Giles' apartment and Xander and Martouf went home with Willow. They played Paper/Rock/Scissors to decide who would make dinner and who would do the dishes. Willow won. So Xander showed Martouf the healing device while she cooked.
As they walked down the stairs Martouf asked, "What was that game you played to decide who would do what?"
"It's called Paper/Rock/Scissors," Xander explained. "There are three options, each one beats one and loses to one other."
"And you lost?" Martouf confirmed.
"Well, I don't know about that." Xander smiled. "This way, none of us has to eat my cooking. Me included. Besides, I'm used to loosing to Willow. She knows I always throw the Scissors."
"Is that wise? Surely you should vary your attack somewhat?" Martouf wondered.
Xander shook his head. "Nah. You see, when we were really young, Willow and I had another friend, Jesse, who's dead now. But he and I got into an argument over which of us was going to marry Willow when we grew up. So we played Paper/Rock/Scissors. Jesse threw Paper, I threw Scissors, so I won. I've thrown Scissors every time I've played since."
Martouf wasn't quite sure what to say to that. It was clear that the young man had feelings for the girl. And if he couldn't be with Jolinar right now, then he wouldn't stand in the way of their happiness. But for now, he'd content himself with the fact that she was alive and study the piece of machinery she and her host had built.
"This is quite impressive. While not as portable as a normal healing device. It's amazing that you were able to reproduce it at all with such limited means." Martouf complimented.
Xander didn't take it quite as a compliment. "Which is why the Tok'ra will never beat the Goa'uld. You're not innovators." He motioned to the chair. "The Goa'uld and Tok'ra have been playing the same game by the same rules for thousands of years. I'm going to warn you right now. We humans? We're changing the rules of the game. Whether the Tok'ra like it or not. And whether Earth can provide hosts or not, the Tok'ra need to ally with Earth or be left in the dust."
Lantash apparently took offense at those words. #"Insolent fool. The Tok'ra were fighting this war long before whatever ancestors you can trace back were born. We'll be fighting it long after you're dead."#
"That's just it though. You aren't fighting a war. Not like humans fight a war. Compared to how we do business you've been playing games. Or at best, fighting a delaying tactic. You weren't fighting to win. 'Just Win Baby.' is one of our mottoes. And I can tell you right now that the Goa'uld are going to learn exactly what that means very soon." Xander said calmly. "Come on. It's time for dinner."
The sweep would be tight. With everyone able to see the people next to them. It meant that they wouldn't need their radios unless something went wrong. So of course, Murphy had to make an appearance.
The area around the motel was every bit as thick with vampires and demons as Ford had indicated. Xander and Ford at point mostly kept an eye on things letting most demons get by them and into the trap set behind them. Giles was quite skilled with his crossbow and with his sword if anything got past that. Lantash proved that though he had little experience, the Tok'ra was not to be taken lightly. Buffy and Angel covered the wings and made sure nothing escaped. And even Willow was able to impale a vampire. Or rather she closed her eyes and it impaled it self. But that gave her some confidence and Xander smiled as she held off another vamp until Lantash could back her up.
All in all, it was a good if rough display of teamwork.
Then things went wrong. They ran into a group of demons and vampires, larger than they'd run into that night. Xander and Ford jumped into the fray. Jolinar had to take over to keep them out of trouble and protect Ford as well. Behind them, everyone else was being overwhelmed as well. Everyone except for Buffy and Angel. Angel finished his minions and started helping Giles. But Buffy had decided to take some time to rob the ones fighting her before she staked them. That left Lantash and Willow on their own. Lantash was holding his minions off with his spear while retreating to give his teammates time to come to his rescue. Willow was not nearly good enough to do the same. She took a blow to the head and dropped to the ground; not moving.
"Willow!" Xander shouted. He threw the crossbow to Ford and ordered him to, "Help Buffy." while he ran to Willow's prone form while yelling into his radio. "Jenny! Willow's down." He didn't wait for the acknowledgment but knew the teacher would be on her way. By the time he got to her all but one of the vamps had moved off for a new fight. But one picked her up and was about to feed on her unconscious body.
Xander let out a roar of rage. And Xander, not Jolinar, felt his eyes grow bright and a burst of speed and strength filled his limbs. It was a bit like the merge, only he could still feel Jolinar. He took his spear and jammed it straight through the vampire's head, which exploded into dust. Xander grabbed Willow before she hit the ground and gently cradled her while checking for a pulse.
/Still alive./ Xander sighed in relief. He took off his t-shirt and laid Willows head on it before laying her back on the ground.
%If we get her to the healing device quickly, there should be no permanent damage.% Jolinar assured him.
/Anyone else injured?/ Xander asked.
%No. Though Ford and Buffy still have two vampires remaining.% Jolinar informed him. %Jenny is here.%
Xander looked up. Miss Calendar was just pulling up. She put the car in park and rushed over to them. "What happened?" She sounded a little panicky.
There was quite a lot of blood, turning Willow's hair an even darker shade of red. But head wounds always bleed a lot. And she wasn't yet in any danger of dying from blood loss. "She hit her head. Don't suppose we brought any towels?" Jenny shook her head. "Fine. I'll carry her. You help stabilize her head." He ordered. They ended up having to bend Willow's knees before she could lay in the back seat of the car. Xander didn't move to the front seat once she was in though, and just squatted in the leg area of the back seat. Jenny tried to get him to sit down, but he snapped at her to just drive.
A silent ride to Willow's was interrupted by radio chatter.
"Jenny. What's going on?" Came Giles' voice.
"Willow got hurt. We're taking her back to her house." Jenny answered. "Why don't you guys meet us back th-"
"At the library." Xander cut her off.
"At the library." Jenny repeated. "Did you get that?"
"Right, we'll see you at the library." Giles confirmed.
Two minutes later, they pulled up to Willow's house and Jenny again helped steady Willow's head. Though she had to let go as they went down the stairs as there just wasn't enough room to do that going down the narrow stairwell. She helped Xander shift his arm to support her head better instead. When he got to the bottom of the stairs, he laid Willow down in the dentist's chair but waited until Jenny joined him to gently lift her head from his arm. Once she was in place he flipped the switches to power the device and then had to wait impatiently while the machine charged up.
"Xander?" Jenny began.
"Xander is under a lot of stress at the moment." Jolinar answered. "Perhaps it could wait until later?"
Jenny nodded then stepped back to watch as Jolinar activated the device and moved it around Willow's head. The bleeding stopped almost immediately, though Jolinar continued to move it all around her head, fixing whatever unseen problems that were there. Finally he moved the device aside and stared into Willow's face. When she didn't wake up, he lifted each of her eyelids. Satisfied with the results, he dropped the second eyelid.
"She should be fine." Jolinar assured the computer teacher. "We have repaired all the damage, but being knocked unconscious is not something you can just jump back from. Even with this device. She'll have a headache when she wakes up." He paused. "Perhaps you could clean her up before we put her to bed? I dare say, she wouldn't forgive me if I allowed Xander to see her naked."
Jenny agreed and Jolinar carried Willow up two flights of stairs to the upstairs bathroom and laid her in the tub. "If you need us, we'll be down in the kitchen." he said before they left the girls in the bathroom.
/It's my fault./ Xander stated as they sat in the living room instead of the kitchen.
%It's not your fault.% Jolinar argued. %Bad things happen on missions. We both know that.%
/And worse things happen when you allow untrained people to go on those missions./ Xander argued back. /I should have never let her come. It was my op. That makes it my fault./
%And how would you have stopped her?% Jolinar asked. %She was determined to come on this mission. And we both know how determined she can be. She might have simply tried to sneak out with us and gotten captured or worse. No. She's still alive and we all learned some valuable lessons from this.%
"Like what!" Xander blurted out loud.
%Like you already pointed out; not allowing untrained people on missions. Now we have an example of the consequences of breaking that rule.% Jolinar offered.
/I already knew that./ Xander countered.
%You did, but your team didn't. They have to learn some lessons on their own or they'll never trust you on the big things.% Jolinar pointed out. %We also learned just how much you care for Willow.% Jolinar offered.
Xander swallowed. /I already knew that too./ he thought softly.
Jolinar was silent for a moment before he continued. %Perhaps it is time to tell her that then?% Jolinar was really pushing just how far he was willing to meddle in his host's love life. But the arrival of Martouf and Lantash had changed his thoughts on his original idea to not interfere. He just couldn't stand the thought of being lonely, even with his funny host to keep him company. And he wanted Martouf to move on as it would never work out with them now. He comforted himself that he was only helping along feelings that were already there and mutual to both humans.
The phone ringing shocked them out of their reverie. "Rosenberg residence." Harris answered for his sleeping friend.
"Ah good. Xander." Giles replied. "How is Willow?"
"She'll be fine, but she's still unconscious." Xander answered. He became aware that the water in the tub had just shut off. He hadn't noticed it turn on. "Is everyone else ok?" realizing he hadn't really checked to make sure everyone was ok before he'd evacuated Willow.
"Yes, everyone is fine. I'm just calling to let you know that a friend of yours from out of town called." Giles said slyly.
"I see. Did he and Marty talk at all?" Xander asked.
"Yes, umm... Marty explained the situation and your other friend said that he would stick around until tomorrow morning if the three of you wanted to talk then." Giles summarized.
"Alright. I'll be in before school tomorrow then. You want to bring Marty over early as well?" Xander asked.
After agreements to meet the next morning and mutual 'thank you's they both hung up.
Jenny came down the stairs, "She's cleaned up and sleeping."
"Thanks Miss C." Xander replied, looking up. "Sorry if I was a bit short with you earlier." he apologized.
"You were worried for her. You care for her." They weren't questions. They were statements. "Maybe you should tell her that?" Jenny asked.
"Funny. That's what Jo said." Xander smiled and stood up. "I think I'll go check on her. If you want to stay here for the night, the guest room should still be made up from when Ford stayed last night."
"Thanks," she said as they both walked back upstairs.
Captain Turner had mixed feelings about going out tonight. They were field testing the 2nd generation of Zat weapons, which was good. They were lighter, faster to recharge, and packed a more consistent charge than the first generation. The downside was that they had no idea where the Slayer was or if she was still alive. She'd suddenly gone silent after encountering a Tok'ra, which was just another name for Goa'uld. And they hadn't heard from her at all tonight, which meant that they could stumble into her if they weren't careful.
Being careful meant sticking close to campus, where the pickings were already starting to slim. Having so many HSTs escape after being electrocuted the first go round seemed to have warned some of the smarter ones off.
The other thing he was testing out were those new drugs they were giving the soldiers. He certainly didn't buy the 'vitamin' cover story. But he could already feel himself becoming faster and stronger, so he was more than willing to keep taking them. Anything to give him the edge when he finally met the Slayer again. No one had said anything, but he knew he was here to give these people the edge they'd need to take her down when the time came. For now, he satisfied himself by bagging a new HST and calling it a night.
Maggie Walsh was frustrated. The 2nd generation of stun guns was being tested tonight. She didn't particularly care about that. But Colonel Maybourne himself was on base. Probably to check on his pet Slayer, who had suddenly gone dark. She would have smiled at that thought, but having him here made sabotage almost impossible. He watched her like a hawk. She was rather glad she hadn't bothered to nix the drug treatments they had ordered for the soldiers. Thanks to her efforts, it was probably the only positive thing to come out of this base.
She had finally gotten the power supply they had been promising for their Frankenstein's Monster. Something called a naquadah reactor. It was big and bulky. Luckily, with it, the monster wouldn't need any internal organs or they'd never have room. Still, the power output was amazing. But it was also sealed and power generators weren't her field anyway, so she didn't bother to study it.
She looked up on the catwalk where Maybourne was briefing the soldiers in the Honey Trap op. The next semester of school would be starting soon and they'd be transferring in as student teachers. The original plans had called for them to be students. Ha! Maggie had really wanted to see how that went but one of the other scientists had pointed out that they looked nothing like teenagers.
Oh well. She would be patient and bide her time. It was a dangerous place to work after all. Perhaps Colonel Maybourne would have an unfortunate accident while on base. She thought about that for a while and decided she'd have to think about something other than his death while she reported it or risk breaking out in laughter. Too bad he wasn't likely to leave himself open to something like that.
A/N: I have no idea where the idea that the council was rolling in money ever came from. Sure, I saw them try to throw their weight around every so often, but it always looked like a guy in a Sumo suit rather than an actual Sumo wrestler to me. I suppose it was just convenient for writers to give the Scoobies hordes of cash when the council died. In reality, an organization like that would likely be running on a shoestring budget and scratching to make ends meet, year to year.
Much of the Blending of Selmak and Jacob was taken from canon. I try to avoid quoting either show too much, but this was too important to miss.
In Season 2, Episode 1; we learn that Xander always throws Scissors in P/R/S. Now you know why.
"Just Win Baby." Written not long after Al Davis of the Raiders died. RIP.
Stake to the head will also kill a vamp. It's just a small, better armored target that's harder to hit solidly than the heart.