Xander would have been pleased. Not only was the disappearance of Sunnydale on the news, it was nearly the top story around the globe. "Geologists Baffled!" read one headline. "Aliens? Demons?" said the National Enquirer with a picture of a Roswell gray pointing a laser gun at the town from orbit. Needless to say, people were concerned. Willow's parents even remembered they had a daughter back in old Sunnydale and might have even shed tears. Scientists were having difficulty explaining what could cause such a disturbance without leaving a debris trail. At first glance the egg shaped crater appeared to be from a glancing meteor strike, but that would have caused shock waves and sonic booms and sprayed debris for hundreds of miles. None of these had been witnessed. Other theories were that a subterranean cave system had collapsed. This had a little more credence, given that there was an extensive cave system underneath Sunnydale, but the edges of the crater were far to precise for it to have been a collapse. There were a number of flashing red explosions down in the bottom of the crater reported on the first day after the town vanished, but since the crater quickly filled with a brackish mix of sea and fresh water, no more exploration could take place. To the more mystical minded, with a bit of research a person would have realized that these explosions were actually Turok-Han that had until recently resided in the coastal hellmouth and exploded in the morning sunlight. The spike in deaths in the surrounding region would have told someone in the know that not all the Turok-Han had been destroyed.
There were memorials for the dead that would continue for several months. Each one was dedicated to the children, or the soldiers who had been stationed there, or the police, or whatever demographic put enough money to have a mournful ceremony. Already the governor of California had put in a bill for money to build a permanent memorial and the US Congress was talking of making the area into a national memorial, protecting the area from exploitation. Other countries were sending their well wishes to the people of California. All in all, it was an outpouring of support the US was not likely to see again and the president was not foolish enough to simply ignore using Sunnydale as his blaze of glory. It was a welcome diversion from the so-called sex scandal the opponents in the congress had put together and the President was determined to make it the primary note of his career. When house republicans voted down aid to the survivors and displaced of Sunnydale, he counterattacked blow for blow. Soon he had regained all the popularity in the poles he had started to loose. He sent his vice-president out to meet with the families. He had a mournful thanksgiving where he invited the displaced of Sunnydale to eat with him at the White House. Soon, his opponents were jumping on his bandwagon, helping him get what he wanted, just because he planted a little piece of Sunnydale in a bill here and a bill here. Voting against Sunnydale was going to poison the upcoming elections.
The Pentagon was not nearly as pleased by the results. The Initiative was suddenly cut short in California, but was still active in Cleveland and several other hellmouths around the world. With the unexplained disturbance and disappearance of the town of Sunnydale, the only explanation was an attack by an HST. Unfortunately all records were gone so there were no reports as to what had actually happened. Under the guise of scientists, the Initiative was making a full investigation into the matter.
In England, the Watcher's Council was elated by the news of Sunnydale's destruction. Quentin Travers had been upset for a while about the Sunnydale slayer. She refused to obey orders; she never moved to where she was needed; and her watcher let her get away with it all. Kendra had been a good slayer, raised right and trained and died as she should have. All in all, it was a good day for the Watcher's Council. The humanist faction had taken a blow with the loss of Rupert Giles. Quentin grinned at the thought of the conservatives' continuing power.
Rupert Giles had been trouble from the start. He was an embarrassment to his family, all longtime watchers and he had been a troublemaker as a child. His continuing use of black magic had been a clear sign of his instability and Travers had wanted to remove him from the Council, unfortunately Giles the elder had disagreed. So instead, Giles was sent into that damn cave, but he didn't die like he was supposed to. He just had to come out again and "prove himself worthy." Bah! He had been a thorn in Travers' side from the day he joined the Council. But in the end, he died like any other watcher. Joyfully, Quentin Travers drank to Rupert Giles' health.
Perhaps this Faith Lehane would be a more obedient slayer?
Buffy and company is owned by Joss W. and Mutant Enemy.
The Forgotten Realms and such are created and owned by Ed Greenwood and Wizards of the Coast and the various authors of the fiction.
Ranma 1/2 is owned by Rumiko Takahashi.
Thanks go to Janessa Ravenwood for editing this massive literary beast.