The Gates Of Hell - XXIII
'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here' - Dante Alighieri
Buffy opened her eyes with a snap as she felt a heavy object barrel into her, knocking her to the tarmac and expelling the air from her lungs in the process. Realising that the object in question was actually a body, the Slayer recovered quickly and urged her bleary vision into focus. Angel lay sprawled across her lap, apparently unharmed save for a thin scratch decorating his temple on the left side. A line of blood oozed from the wound, which Buffy could tell from a mere glance was superficial. She could feel Angel's body trembling above hers, a testament to the fact that he had expected nothing less than his own end.
The Slayer blinked in shock, contemplating the hows and whys of suddenly finding her lover in her arms when only moments before he had faced death at the jaws of a demon. Angel and Buffy stared at each other silently for a beat before each scrambling to their feet and turning in perfect unison to see what miracle had halted Cerberus' attack.
Buffy felt the bile rising in her throat as she took in the sight of Angel's saving grace; Brent slumped over in the jackal's arms, his once gleaming eyes now unstaring and hopelessly glassy. His rifle lay several feet away still in the spot he had abandoned it before he had thrown himself in front of Angel's body, thus securing his own fate.
Cerberus lowered his muzzle to Brent's meaty neck and tore great chunks of flesh from the bone with his teeth. Hungrily, the demon devoured the soldier, picking at his carcass like a vulture. Buffy knew beyond all doubt that there was nothing more they could do for Brent. Although with this mission she had expected the further loss of life, the sight of the soldier who had sacrificed himself so willingly for the greater good only ignited her anger.
Buffy prepared to fling herself forwards and interrupt the beast's meal with flying fists, but Angel seized her arm and hauled her back to his side. Pain jarred in her ankle and Buffy almost growled as she rounded on the vampire.
"Let me go…" Buffy snarled, her desperation only growing as Cerberus continued to gorge himself on the body of the man she owed her lover's life to. The demon smacked it's lips together before lowering it's mouth once again to Brent's shoulder.
"We can't help him now…" Angel hissed in reply, dragging Buffy towards the relative safety of the nearest car. They hunkered down behind the ruined vehicle, Buffy panting out her fury and Angel sneaking glances at the feasting demon.
"He's involved in his… meal… for now," Angel murmured, visibly disturbed by his own choice of phrasing. "We have to go now, Buffy. This is far worse than I ever thought…"
"What is that thing?" Buffy demanded. Her eyes blazed with fury as she shot another glance at the demon. All the muscles in her body tensed at once and Angel gripped her wrist tightly in fear that she would suddenly spring forth.
"I believe it's Cerberus," Angel replied in a whisper as he used the sleeve of his coat to wipe the blood that trickled from his temple and threatened to obscure his vision. "The guardian of the gates of Hell."
Buffy's mouth fell open as she turned once more to regard the demon, this time a tinge of alarm present in her eyes.
"But… I thought that was just a myth," Buffy faltered, gripping Angel's hand in her own.
Angel grimly shook his head, "Apparently you thought wrong."
"Isn't he supposed to have like three heads?" Buffy challenged, unable to admit her mistake despite the gravity of the situation they found themselves in. Angel rolled his eyes, amused by Buffy's relentlessness.
"He does, you just don't see them all at once I guess…" Angel replied in a distracted tone as he combed the area with his gaze in an attempt to locate a route to safety. Angel knew beyond all doubt that the demon would catch up with them before they made it back to the alley, and that left them with little other option than to stand and face this new foe.
Angel swallowed hard and adjusted his hold on the hilt of the sword.
"Legend says that Hercules decapitated Cerberus and killed him," Angel began, glancing briefly at Buffy who was listening with the rapt attention of a child hearing a bedtime story, "but the truth is Hercules made the same mistake I just did. Except there was no one there to save him. His body and soul were devoured."
Buffy shuddered as she realised that for Brent, the pain would not end with his death. Wrapping her arms around herself, Buffy returned her attention to Angel.
"So wait, if Hercules decapitated him once and you just did again then maybe that means he's only got one more head left?" Buffy said hopefully. A quick glance over her shoulder alerted her to the fact that the demon had almost picked Brent's body clean. She looked away rapidly as she caught site of bone protruding from beneath mounds of the soldier's flesh. She felt sick to the pit of her stomach but she fought against the nausea for the time being. Buffy knew that should she escape this place with her life, these images would be ones that haunted her for a long time to come. Now, however, was neither the time nor place to indulge in a complete mental breakdown.
"It's worth a shot," Angel answered, frowning as suddenly Cerberus released a howl that caused the very ground underfoot to tremble. Several car windows, which had up until that point still been intact, cracked and exploded as a result.
"I guess he's done," Buffy whispered, her heartbeat quickening as her body released the extra adrenaline she would require to see her through the impending fight. "We're up."
Before Angel could so much as flinch, Buffy had sprung to her feet and vaulted over the car. By the time Angel had recovered himself and leapt over the vehicle, Buffy was already running full pelt at the demon, her eyes narrowed purposefully. Cerberus roared in response and then, to the intense surprise of both Slayer and vampire, began to pound his paws together as though providing them with a round of applause for his amusement. He tossed back his head and chuckled. Buffy's pace slowed until she eventually drew to a complete standstill, her eyes wide as she stared at this apparently intelligent monster.
"Slayer," Cerberus hissed in a raspy bass tone, "welcome."
"Did it just talk?" Buffy demanded, turning to glance at Angel who was approaching with his sword drawn defensively. He nodded once, not daring to take his eyes off the demon.
"We were so glad you could join us," Cerberus continued, his tongue sliding over his fangs and wiping away the remaining traces of blood and flesh. "My master has many plans for you both. Surrender to me now and you may live to see another day."
"Sorry, Fido," Buffy sneered, her nose wrinkling as she spoke, "surrender has never been a word in my vocabulary. Just ask Angel."
Angel nodded in confirmation, "She's really quite irritatingly persistent."
The demon snarled, his lips curling back from his teeth, and then snapped his jaws in Buffy's direction. The Slayer stood her ground, only moving infinitesimally in order to adjust the height of her sword. Cerberus inclined his head slightly as though hearing some sound that was clearly not meant for either Buffy or Angel's ears. One quick glance at Angel alerted Buffy that he also heard nothing other than the rattling breath of the jackal.
"No matter girl," Cerberus stated with an air of pomposity. He turned to gaze at Buffy with evident glee present in his beady blood-red eyes, "I will feast upon your soul when the time comes."
The words had barely spilled from the demon's mouth when the sky above began to shift and change. The rolling clouds darkened to a disturbing shade of black and the atmosphere itself seemed to be splitting apart. A fork of lightning cut through the sky and Buffy leapt back as it struck the ground at her feet, cutting a deep trench in the tarmac. Buffy whipped the sword around her head, almost inviting the demon to try it's luck with her blade.
"Buffy!" Angel yelled as Cerberus moved into a deadly crouch. But the Slayer's attention was diverted to the sky from which an impossibly loud grinding noise seemed to be emanating. Drawn by the alien sound, Angel glanced upward in time to see a gateway materialise above their heads. The shining grey bars had an almost metallic appearance although Angel discerned quickly that they were formed from pure energy rather than any solid matter. With a grinding creak that set her teeth on edge, the gate swung open and a second bolt of lightning streaked towards Buffy. She rolled out of the way with a startled cry, and that was when the demon chose to spring.
Yet, instead of leaping atop the fallen Slayer as Angel had expected, Cerberus sailed toward him. Angel barely had time to raise his arms to shield himself from the attack he anticipated before the demon's body connected with his own, knocking him to the ground. After a few painless seconds had elapsed, Angel realised that in this instance defending himself would be unnecessary. Cerberus seized the collar of Angel's jacket in his teeth and hauled the vampire to his feet. Buffy appeared routed to the spot, despite her senses screaming at her to come to Angel's aid. Some invisible force held her fast and Buffy was powerless to resist it.
Then, using his powerful hind legs to launch himself from the ground, Cerberus leapt almost elegantly into the air and disappeared through the shimmering gateway. The collar of Angel's coat was still held firmly between his teeth. Buffy screamed as her lover was swallowed by the gates of Hell.