Timeline: January 2001. Everyone, except Faith is now 20 years. Xander's birthday being Dec 21st and Cordelia's being November 30th. Faith will be 20 in February.
It had been four months since the weird snake demon had attacked Cordelia. In that time they had found out that the hammer Xander had taken from the dead troll calling himself Olaf, the troll god, amplified the strength of the one wielding it. They'd also found out that the weird glowing ball was known as the Dagon's Sphere, and it's purpose was to, quote, 'to repel that which cannot be named'. Though they hadn't figured out why whatever it was trying to repel couldn't be named.
It had been a fairly uneventful four months. The Pack and Faith dusted vampires and killed a few demons. They ran into a few more of those weird hobbity creatures, but they kept running away from them, and they didn't find any information on them in their books, either. It was speculated that they might be related to the ongoing insanity crisis that seemed to have spread to Los Angeles, as victims had been found there as well, but nothing concrete.
They also dealt with a seriously disturbed former classmate who built himself a robot girlfriend. After his arrest and involuntary committal after an anonymous phone call about his plans to rob several places found blueprints for all kinds of things and a manifesto, things seemed to calm down for awhile. Willow personally confiscated the robot, before the police could get their hands on it, as she wanted to study it and its programming. She was teased about how closely she might want to study the well built female form of the robot, which got a universal ew at the thought and Kyle doped slapped.
Abigail's longtime medical partner and fellow Magic user, Samantha Gray, had taken over Jesse's studies and reported he was doing well in said studies. He was also taking classes at the local college since the government did require certain certifications and a degree in this modern age, even if those certifications and degree would never have them consider him a doctor. Jesse didn't care about the title, he just wanted to help people. During this time a very nervous, but completely sober Jesse McNally presented Sarah Andrews with a tiny blue diamond engagement ring and asked her to marry him. She accepted and proudly and joyfully showed off the pretty blue diamond. It was appropriately oohed and awed over.
Xander and Cordelia began seeing Samantha as well, to track the baby's health and growth. They excitedly viewed the baby on the ultrasound and refused to let anyone tell them the baby's gender since they wanted to be surprised. They started a playful competition that many couples do, with Cordelia insisting the baby was a boy and Xander insisting it was a girl.
Bets were made by everyone as to height, weight, gender etc. Cordelia was nearing her seventh month and showing. Though given her height at 5' 8" and activity level it didn't seem to be much. Xander happily catalog every movement he could.
Maybe their joy tempted fate. Maybe the Hellmouth didn't like when good things happen to good people. Whatever the cause, they were about to find out something that would shake their world. The reason for the attack. They were also going to find out, their child was more than they had ever thought possible.
Kyle and Rhonda had patrol duty in the warehouse district again tonight. Tor and Heidi were on the other side of town and Faith and Jesse had the in-between area. Kyle and Rhonda were about to run into something they'd never encountered before. They were checking the top floor of the building when they discovered a man tied to a chair. He'd been beaten. They got him untied, despite him telling them to run and leave him, when a nicely dressed woman attacked them. She sent Kyle flying into a wall, leaving a person sized dent in the concrete. If Kyle had been a normal person, he'd likely have died from the injuries. As it was, he still suffered injuries. Not waiting around to try to deal with an incredibly strong whatever-she-was on their own, Rhonda grabbed a last ditch type of weapon they all carried. A grenade. She pulled the pin, grabbed both Kyle and the beaten man and jumped out of the window, taking the brunt of the fall. She got them both up and picking up the man, they ran. The explosion caused the roof of the building to collapse down on the woman.
The made it to the Magic Box, where they called everyone in to discuss the woman and question the man. When Jesse arrived, he began treating the man's injuries. Unfortunately, he reported, they were too sever. He needed surgery immediately or he'd die. The man refused to be taken to the hospital. He had information they needed, he insisted, so they heard him out.
"I know who you all are. You are The Protectors and the Slayer. I know Protectors are Bonded to animal souls. You must protect the Key from the abomination. She seeks it. We hid it from her. She will destroy the world if she finds it."
"Okay, where's this key? Where'd you hide it?" Xander asked.
"The Key was energy. In that form, she could track it. So we altered its form. We molded it flesh. We formed the basis of the flesh, the seeds from which it would grow, from you. We formed it from Alexander Harris, Cordelia Chase, your wolves and from the Dark Slayer, Faith Lehane. We planted these new formed cells within your womb, Cordelia Chase. The Key must be protected or the abomination will use it to destroy us all. The child is innocent, it knows nothing of what it was before. But energy is apart it. Please protect it. My brothers and I, we the Monks of Dagan, have all given our lives to keep the abomination from ever laying claim to it. Please protect it."
And with that he died, leaving a stunned group behind.
A/N When the monk first told Buffy, in the show, that they made Dawn from the Slayer and gave her to Buffy to protect, I wondered if they made it from Faith and just gave her to Buffy because of Faith's circumstances. Buffy declaring them one blood and mingling their blood, could mystically have bonded them.