'Angel' and Demons - VIII

'You're not alone, together we stand,

I'll be by your side, you know I'll take your hand,

When it gets cold and it feels like the end,

There's no place to go you know I won't give in'

- Keep Holding On by Avril Lavigne

Buffy forced herself into a standing position, her palms pressed firmly over her ears in an attempt to block out the relentless screaming. She shot a concerned glance at Willow, whose eyes were almost rolling into the back of her head. The witch continued to writhe in agony on the ground, unable to be of help to either herself or her friend. Buffy knew they had to reach cover as soon as possible but she figured the group of vampires had an entirely different agenda in mind. For the time being, she somehow had to find a way to help Angel.

The vampire stood almost in the centre of the road, seemingly unconcerned by the fiery storm that raged around him. Buffy could barely tear her gaze away from her former lover, who had appeared at her side like an apparition from the shadows.

The remaining vampires wasted little time in rushing Angel, and almost instantaneously his chiselled features submitted to the demon residing within. Buffy felt her knees tremble a little as Angel's brow protruded, and his dark eyes suddenly glowed with an extraordinary yellow hue. A low growl escaped his throat and Angel bared wicked fangs at his adversaries.

He moved with stunning precision and inhuman speed, a veritable blur as he landed a series of punches against the body of the first vampire to reach him. The demon's torso had begun melting into ash before he had even hit the ground, a consequence of the shard of broken timber Angel had rammed into his heart. Angel had dispatched two more vampires before Buffy had even begun to collect herself. In all the years they had fought side by side, the Slayer had never seen Angel so focused, so intent on his targets- so deadly.

Buffy winced as Angel seized the vampire who had prepared to bite her by the throat and, without flinching, ripped his head from his body. Angel tossed the head into the air, shielding his eyes with one arm as it exploded into a cloud of ash. He turned to regard the remaining two vampires, raising his jaw almost defiantly to the sky and releasing a roar that succeeded in kindling fear in even the Slayer's heart.

Her hands still poised to defend her ears, Buffy leapt at the larger of the two vampires in a spinning roundhouse kick that slammed his meaty body into the tarmac. Buffy was astride his chest within a second, and had pulled a stake from her waistband and used it to dust the vampire in less than several more. However, to do so Buffy had been forced to remove her hands from her ears, and thus was once more assaulted by the terrible shrieking.

The surviving vampire surveyed both Angel and Buffy before breaking into a run that led him in the direction of the city centre. Angel, his lips set in a grim line of determination, snatched the stake that Buffy had employed only minutes before, and pursued the vampire for several feet. Suddenly, the vampire froze, and as it exploded before her eyes Buffy realised that Angel had launched the stake into it's back from where he stood. Satisfied that the danger had for now subsided, Angel turned his attention to Buffy.

Her heart leapt into her mouth as she felt Angel's inhuman gaze boring into her. A moment passed between the two and the air in the immediate vicinity crackled with a visible electric charge. The features of the vampire melted away, leaving Buffy in the company of the man. Their eyes locked but the two remained unblinking and unmoving, one barely breathing and one not at all.

Pulling herself from Angel's apparent thrall, Buffy's eyes snapped to Willow, who appeared to have sunk into unconsciousness. Without uttering a word, Angel gathered the redhead's limp body into his arms and took off running towards a nearby manhole cover.

Buffy was left with no other choice than to follow.