Author notes: Sorry for the long wait in the update of this story, I was stuck with one of the scenes and my workaround ended with scrapping most of what I initially intended to use. Anyway, here it is. I hope you will enjoy it and if you have anything to say about it, please feel free to review.
- Harris house, Sunnydale, Saturday 5 November 2011, 11:00 -
Xander was doing something very unusual for a Saturday morning. He was going through his homework with what he was tempted to call military precision. That last point was probably something he owed to Heimdall. The Asgardian had often been in the shadows of human wars, helping one side or the other. Xander could not help but smile as he remembered the siege of Danzig during the Napoleonic Wars. Heimdall had then been posing as a soldier of the French Army and been there when Chambure took the Kabrunn redoubt and left a letter in a destroyed mortar to tell the enemy that he took the artillery post because they disturbed his sleep and would continue to do so if they persisted.
Heimdall's influence wasn't the only reason though. On the first of November, parts of the classes had been replaced with self-study while the teachers sat in multiple meetings to 'make necessary updates.' From what he had learnt, this was something that also affected the elementary and middle schools of Sunnydale. Things like the pledge of allegiance had been banned immediately from all schools. Even if Shedim parents had a veto right on their underage kids' oaths, it was better to prevent a potential mess. As the week progressed, more changes were implemented. Language classes had been the first victim. There was no sense spending time learning vocabulary when it could be uploaded straight into the students' brain. That meant more time to write essays and analyze literature… in whatever language met the teacher's fancy that day.
That last point was his big issue. The new and improved teachers had decided that as they all had new and improved brains, they might as well use them. Even worse, Snyder had been hit by Halloween too and now seemed dedicated to doing his work as a principal in an exemplary manner. From what Cordelia had told him, the Sunnydale High principal was now 'afflicted' with K'uei Hsing, Chinese god of Examinations. Among other things, Xander was currently reading and taking notes on excerpts of Goethe's Faust, all in the original German.
But I have a big silver lining: the jocks have it a lot harder than a semi-nerd like me.
Another thing that had quickly become evident was that the usual pecking order of high schools didn't mean anything anymore. There had been several incidents and changes in the behavior of the teachers, but one had stood out particularly. One the first of November, while they were all adjusting to it, one of the jocks had tried to pick on Andrew Wells as he usually did. The tiny little issue is that Andrew now preferred to be called Heru. A second later, the jock had a pissed-off, eight-foot-tall, falcon-headed Egyptian god holding him by the shirt. The coolest part had been when Heru had let the former school terror fall on the ground, saying he was not worth his time.
Funny how I never thought that most of the Egyptian god names we're familiar with are in fact Greek translations, like Anubis and Anpu or Heru and Horus…
"Good morning, Alexander," said a soft voice from behind his room's door. "May I come in?"
This is so wrong… him, of all people, asking for permission before entering my room…
"Sure," he replied.
He turned on his desk chair, looking at his father's pristine white linen shirt, something that would never have happened with the old Tony Harris. Of course, the black-furred jackal head that came out of the shirt's collar was a rather blunt reminder that this wasn't the old Tony Harris.
"Your mother told me that Willow came to invite you for a movie night tonight. She also told me about Urd's influence on her."
He was about to say something to defend Willow's virtue but was interrupted by Anpu's raised hand.
"Son, you will have to forget some preconceptions. While not as… carefree with the matter as the Shedim, the idea that the flesh is evil is a human invention, not ours. We had millions of years to make our bodies exactly what we wanted them to be. Neither do we have some demented double standard, calling people doing basically the same thing a ladies' man or a slut depending on his or her gender. On the contrary, it is considered quite healthy for Elohim of her age to experiment, as long as public appearances are preserved. I would even add that, in Willow's case, some would like her to settle with a nice Eloah who would keep her… safe from temptation."
"Those people are afraid of her defecting, right?"
"They are. Those people may have asked you to just… 'Lie down and think of Asgard' to tweak the saying. I will not. Like all of us, Willow must find her Ma'at."
Ma'at. Xander knew that word. It was to the Elohim what logic was to the Vulcans. Just like the Vulcans had used Surak's teachings of Logic to overcome their violent nature, the Elohim had followed the philosopher Atum in an attempt to overcome their gregarious instincts. Ma'at was Truth, but it also implied that everything had a proper place in the universe. In a perfect world, Ma'at was absolute, and things were balanced and just. Unfortunately, the world was not perfect, and chaos tried to destroy the world. It was the Elohim's duty to fight against it and be the guardians of Order.
"Dad… I know that the various Houses see Ma'at differently. I know how it is for Heimdall and I know he would not accept Urd defecting."
"This is true. Heimdall has a point of view often seen among our soldiers. They have a tendency to see any deviance from the norm as treason. Given our history, it is understandable, but in no way commendable. We must remember that we are imperfect creatures and that our understanding of Ma'at is therefore imperfect. To think otherwise, to think that we can force 'truth' on someone, is nothing more than hubris. As Atum taught us, we must embrace tolerance, understand that our place in Ma'at is different from the one of our neighbors."
"Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations," said Xander, remembering something Andrew said.
"Indeed… is this from a show you follow?"
"Star Trek, it's part of Vulcan philosophy."
"Interesting… to get back on the matter, I do not want our people to repeat the mistakes of the Atlantean War or the uneasy truce that followed. Your mother and I discussed it, and we agreed that Willow has a right to renew her bonds with the part of her culture Odin ripped out from Urd. Now, the question is not only about Willow's Ma'at but also about yours. Look into your heart and tell me, son, do you desire her like a man desires a woman?"
Xander blinked several times and wondered if Willow hadn't dosed him with a hallucinogen as he heard this last question. Brewing such things was certainly in Urd's skill but… no, Willow would not do that, and neither would Urd. He remembered something the Elder Norn had once said when asked about her use of love potions. She had replied that what she used was just giving someone the kick in the ass they needed to overcome their insecurities and that it certainly did not create a feeling that didn't exist before.
He felt a tiny jolt coming from his brow seal. Like most of the 'kids,' he had been bumped back to second category compared to Heimdall's first. He remembered from the classes Heimdall attended that like the Shedim Styx network, the Ma'at network had been developed as 'a return to the fundamentals' to help the Elohim overcome what was seen as the collapse of their society. At first, it had only concerned some key civil servants, but it had soon been extended to all the population. A distinction had been made, because the common Eloah could not be expected to behave to the same exacting standards as the best of their people. The original settings had been left for the first category accounts. They had enormous powers, but the system forbade them from lying.
Of course, gaming the system had become an art for some of the 'firsties.' Just like Shedim were experts at finding loopholes in oaths and agreements, some Elohim had become masters of spin control. They knew how to say things that were true, but prone to be interpreted in the desired way. Gabriel was notoriously an expert at it, having been taught by Loki when the latter was part of the Aesir. Others had become masters of the cryptic statement, what they said often ending up in the writings of prophets like Nostradamus.
His case was a little different. As someone with a second category account in Yggdrasil – which meant most of the Elohim population – he could lie, but there was a catch. Lies said aloud were monitored, making you pile up demerits based on the lie's circumstances. This was how Urd had ended up suspended a few times in her life. It wasn't all, however. The system was also warning him when he was in denial or lying to himself. Those warnings were thankfully a purely internal effect generated by his seal, just something to help him stay on the straight and narrow. They didn't end up marked in his Yggdrasil file.
He was pretty sure that the system's influence had a fair share of responsibility in how quickly some people had adapted. He wasn't sure how it had worked on the Nidhogg side, but he knew his own problem with Yggdrasil. Because of it, ignoring that little voice that pointed out everything he had won thanks to Halloween was becoming harder every day. He could not deny that, even if he was freaked about it, there was a part of him that craved nice parents. Before, he had tried to find a little of that with Mrs. Summers. Now, Halloween had replaced Tony Harris with someone who actually tried to be a dad. He was, little by little, starting to get used to it.
"I… I don't see her that way, Dad."
"And how do you see her? Like 'one of the guys'?" asked back Anpu, his eyes half-closed in a way that was the equivalent of a smile for his canine head.
"No! She's the girl with the yellow crayon who's been with Jesse and me since kindergarten… I mean, she's like my sister."
"From her behavior, she doesn't see things the same way. What will you do?"
"Be… be honest, I suppose. I don't think it would work between us anyway."
"Is there someone else?"
He was about to say no when a stray thought hit him. His dad was Anpu. Maybe Halloween was indeed giving him a chance to do what he thought impossible.
"Dad… mummies are your specialty, right?"
"Indeed."
"There… might be someone, but it's complicated. Her name is Ampata…"
He started to tell him about the exchange students coming a month ago and about Ampata Gutierrez, the Peruvian girl rooming at Buffy's, or so it seemed. He had been initially relieved to see it was a girl instead of the boy their homeroom teacher had told them about. He had quickly warmed to her and felt the crush he used to have on Buffy fade in favor of the new girl. Supreme joy, she had even started to return the attention. Of course, this was Old Sunnydale, and the other shoe was just waiting to drop.
At the same time the exchange students were in, the town's museum hosted an exposition about the Incas, including the mummy of a princess. Of course, the girl he was crushing on just had to be the mummy pulling an Imhotep. They started to find mummified victims, people she had drained to keep her human appearance. Where the story had taken, for him, a different turn, was at the end. When he interposed himself as she tried to drain Willow, she stopped. After that, she pretty much let Buffy destroy her from what he had seen.
It was because of these last moments that he could not see her like the other monsters he had faced. Vampires did not feel guilt, but she did. Without Halloween, he would probably have forgotten about it, given enough time. There was nothing he could do about it anyway. But now… now he was a god and maybe he could use a little bit of the might of Asgard to do something, even if it was only to make sure she was finally at rest and to have his dad put in a good word for her in the afterlife.
"Dad?" asked Xander, seeing his father in deep thought.
"This definitely needs my attention, Xander. Do you know where she is now? I know this is not in Sunnydale or I would have been consulted on the matter. There is no chance that her signature would have been missed."
"So, you think that even with her mummy destroyed…"
"Broken, not destroyed and yes, I think so. If I am not mistaken, the curse used on her sealed her ba in her body, preventing it from reaching the afterlife. This kind of spell does not stop because of simple bodily damage. Only an exorcism can actually free her. As for her ability to drain life, this is a common side-effect. As her body is without ka, her vital spark, she seeks the ka of the living in a vain attempt to heal her soul. Did she ever tell you her Ren, her real name?"
Xander winced. An eternity bound to the shattered remnants of her corpse, probably becoming a little crazier every day… Nobody deserved that.
"No… just what she was. Never really who she was."
"Predictable," replied Anpu with a nod. "Erasing the name, reducing the victim to her function reinforces that kind of curse. It is probable she has forgotten it too. So, it seems that we will need to put back together the five parts of her soul in order to save her. As for my first question…"
"Let me see," replied Xander, rising.
He thought about her, remembering every feeling of her presence. According to Heimdall's memories, he could locate people this way… yes, it was faint, but he could smell her perfume. He turned his eyes toward her. He felt very conflicted as he saw her broken remains, flesh almost reduced to dust and broken bones carefully laid on a slab. He un-zoomed and looked for landmarks around the building she was in.
"She's in Chicago. I think that they're trying to restore her."
He felt his father's hand on his shoulder, and he concentrated, sharing his vision, and zooming back on the lab.
"Good. Xander, mark down tomorrow in your agenda. This laboratory looks well apart from the museum and there won't be too many people on a Sunday."
"All right… we could even go tonight."
"No. I need to make some preparations, like notifying some people about this operation. I would also… advise honesty with your friends."
- Bric & Broc Factory, Sunnydale, Saturday 5 November 2011, 18:51 -
Xander rang the bell and waited. He wondered why Belldandy had chosen this place… and why she, of all people, was living with Loki. The door soon opened, a blond man standing behind it.
He knew that man. He remembered the parent-teacher night. He remembered the vamp leader. He was about to yell something, but his new and improved brain conspired with his super-senses to interrupt his righteous outrage with those pesky things called facts.
The first to come pester him was the soul he could sense right in front of him. It was one thing for which Heimdall's courtesy for his memory had not helped. Because of it, he had no 'personal' experience with what was for him a completely new sense. So, he was learning… and it was another thing his dad had been helpful with. His current problem was that he could feel a soul occupying the same space as the 'vampire' in front of him. A Shedim soul that made him think of fire. Second came his eyes, going straight to the Nidhogg marks. This time, the book-like memories of Heimdall were enough. Those marks were Loki's and the IFF request sent by his own mark was telling him it was genuine.
"Let me guess," said Spike. "Urd omitted to tell you I was a vampire before Halloween. She can be sneaky like that."
He took a deep breath. He promised Willow to play nice with Loki.
"How? I mean, how many vampires were turned by Halloween?"
"Angel, Dru and I. According to the Halloween spell log, there were four others, but they didn't survive the process."
"I knew about Angel, but I thought it was because of his soul…"
"It probably played a role. Not that I mind chatting with you, but I think it would be better for you not to keep the ladies waiting."
"Right…"
"Listen, Watchman. I know it's just unnatural for us to be all chummy. But I don't want to have Dru give me a 'Belldandy is disappointed with you' glare. You don't want Urd getting creative with lightning or whatever she can whip up in her alchemy lab. So, I say truce. Agreed?"
"Agreed, Lie-Smith," he said, forcing himself to extend his hand.
"Good," replied Spike, shaking his hand. "Now, your fun movie night with two pretty ladies is this way. Mine is at the other end of the house, with a few Black Cats and a taped match between Manchester United and the Real Madrid."
He watched Spike go up metallic spiral stairs, entering what probably used to be an office area. He took the door the former vampire had indicated to him and entered a hall, soon hearing a strange noise. It was a particular crackle Heimdall's many observations of Thor made him immediately associate with large amounts of electricity. He peeked in the room and saw a demon girl… one from Daemonea judging from the bolt-shaped horn on her brow and the tail. She was working on some kind of complex plumbing, an intense blue-white light coming out of her right forefinger while she held a metal bar in the left.
Everyday magic… using lightning spells to do arc welding…
Looking closer, he realized that he knew that girl. She was one of Dawn's friends: Kit Holburn. No surprise, Dawn was there too, looking at wiring with a brunette Elohim girl. Even if he couldn't see her marks, the mad science machinery around them made a name pop up in his mind: Skuld.
"Xander!" said Dawn as she noticed him in the entrance.
"Hi, Dawn, Kit and… Skuld?"
"I prefer Alice," replied the Eloah with a little smile.
"Eh Alice, from the memories I have of… the other you, I may regret asking this, but… what are you building?"
"Initially we were building a robot," said Dawn. "Then reality stuck its ugly nose in our plans."
Tell me about it… he thought, remembering how Sunnydale's new reality had screwed with his worldview lately.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"Skuld is a genius all right, but we don't think the same way," replied Alice. "Among other things, I have my big sister Dawn to keep me from going overboard and force me think about the annoying details. Like the fact we need a lot of energy for what we're doing. So… generator time."
Xander caught Dawn's slight blush at being called 'big sister.' She seemed… more mature and he immediately noticed the Baphomet lapel pin on her shirt. He wondered briefly if she knew the implications but quickly reached the conclusion that there was no way that Joyce would have left any daughter of hers unaware of their political role.
"Which kind of generator?" he asked, preferring to push away politics for now.
"We only have basic materials, so we're keeping it 'simple'," replied Kit, making air quotes around simple.
"The idea is to use this and the automated construction shop that will be phase 2 to build the next generation and so on," said Alice. "So, the generator is just a low-yield fusion reactor. Just a few gigawatts of power."
"You know, girls, when I hear things like that, I think we really should rename our city Eureka," said Kit. "You know that 'a few gigawatts' is what the Hoover Dam does, right?"
"This is not so advanced, merely a few decades above what the humans can do," replied Alice. "Remember also that this is just a first step, because we do not have the tools to do better… yet. Once we do, we will replace it with something with more punch… maybe a caged singularity or a tachyon collider, I haven't decided yet…"
Xander backed away slowly, taking advantage of the fact Alice was now showing blueprints to Dawn and Kit. His 'mad scientist' sense was tingling even worse than when Willow was on a hacking spree. He closed the door and saw Willow waiting for him, grinning.
"Please tell me Belldandy is keeping an eye on it…" he asked pleadingly.
"She is, but Alice isn't Skuld."
"What do you mean?"
"As much as Urd loves her little sister, Skuld is a brat. She's brilliant but like all kids, she gets bored quickly and she overlooks details. What she builds usually works but, at the core, they're prototypes. Alice is slower, but more thorough. She doesn't want quick and dirty prototypes but production models."
"Why?"
"Her Dad was an engineer. I think she wants to make him proud."
"How did he die? You told me she had no family left… barbecue fork incident?"
"Yeah… the vamps made her watch and kept her, draining her a little each day. When Halloween arrived, Skuld napalmed the vamps responsible."
"Shit. Does she…"
"She's coping. Dru and I helped, and she found a real friend in Dawn."
He followed Willow and they soon arrived on a balcony with a spiraling steel stair going down. He frowned a little but quickly understood that the main floor had been removed to make one big room between the ground floor and the basement of this part of the factory.
He could a see a big white couch making roughly two-thirds of a circle and surrounding a round steel coffee table. A projection screen occupied most of one of the walls and a quick glance revealed a beamer set for it in the ceiling. A bar with high stools took another part of the huge living room. On one side at the lower level, behind a transparent wall and an airtight door was a room with chemistry apparatuses. In another place, sliding paper walls revealed a bedroom and he guessed that the frosted glass door was for the bathroom. His hunch was confirmed when Buffy exited the room, allowing him to see a sink.
"No kitchen?" he asked.
"In the common area, near the atrium you entered the house through," replied Willow. "Alice's rooms are above here, with direct access to her own lab and the main technical rooms. Dru and Spike's loft is at the other end of the factory and the kitchen and main dining room are there."
"Hello Xan," said Buffy. "Not too many problems with Spike?"
"We agreed to a truce… and you?"
"Not a problem for me. Things are different now… for me they are a lot better. Take tonight: no patrol, just have to be reachable by phone in case the Abaddon needs me. So, Tollywood fun?"
Willow started the movie with a wave of her hand, and they all sat on the couch.
"You know, I think the bad subtitles actually made it funnier," said Willow after half an hour, as she poked the levitating popcorn bowl, sending it to float in Xander's direction.
"Agreed," said Buffy. "I also think that we are more… well we're older than before Halloween if you get my drift. We also inherited some things from our alter egos."
"Well… I may have a backup plan," said Xander. "Andrew lent me a French movie he really liked. From what little I understood from his explanations, it looks pretty weird. We can give it a try."
"Which movie?" asked Willow.
"It's called 'Immortal Ad Vitam' with the two last words in brackets. He said something about the guy doing it… Enki Bilal, being a genius."
"Okay, but we keep to tonight's theme by watching it in French," said Buffy.
"You inherited Mara's love for Paris?" asked Willow with a smirk.
"Yes… you know, she spent all the Années Folles there. I remember a lot of things, like talking with Hemingway. That's pretty heavy stuff."
"It's not like languages are a problem," replied Xander, while sending mentally a request to Yggdrasil to install the French language in his brain.
"No problem for me either," said Willow.
He got up and changed the DVD in the player. He quickly admitted that it was indeed a little weird. The movie sure wasn't a formatted Hollywood blockbuster and he admitted that the French version had been a good idea, given the use of French poetry by the hero.
"Just regretting they're using the Greek names and not the original Egyptian ones… my parents are a little picky about that," said Xander as the end credits rolled. "Easier for the public I suppose… Anyway, I understand better some things about Andrew. What do you think? How long until he uses one of Horus's lines in the movie?"
"He probably already did," said Buffy. "I'm fond of Nikopol personally… I mean I can relate."
"The whole 'I didn't ask for it'?" asked Willow.
"Yeah, but not only. To quote Horus: Elegant, famous, and subversive. Just what I like... gotta use the little demon's room," she finished, getting up and heading for the bathroom.
Xander looked at her and then at Willow. He gathered his courage.
"Will… I wanted to tell you something."
During the whole evening she had teased him repeatedly, among other things by making sure he would get an ample view of her cleavage. He had to be honest. He had to make it stop before it hurt even more.
"Yes, Xander?" she asked.
"I… I'm sorry, Willow. I have seen how you are with me, the teasing and all. It's just that… I'm sorry, I like you, but… like a sister, not the way you seem to want it."
"Oh," she replied, raising an eyebrow that sent his 'Hild' alarm wailing.
He winced, preparing himself for the lightning bolt. Instead, he felt a hand, her hand on his shoulder.
"You're not angry with me?" he asked, not daring to look at her.
"Well… you see you're lucky you are dealing with the brand-new Willow and not the old one or pure Urd. Old me would probably have gone all mopey and Urd might have reacted a little violently in a 'Rejecting me? How dares he!' way. But, lucky you, brand-new me is better balanced. In fact…"
"Yes?"
"In fact, I noticed how uncomfortable it was making you, so I figured it was like that for you. If I continued, it was because I wanted you to admit it. Of course, I'm a little disappointed but that's nothing I can't fix. Just be aware that, by making me your honorary big sister, you made it my duty to… make fun of you. I think I will start by telling Cordy that you are on the market and see if we cannot find…"
"Please, no!" he cut in, horrified at the idea of Willow and Cordelia playing matchmaker for him. He needed to say something, anything… he knew. "I convinced Dad to help me save Ampata," he babbled quickly.
"The Incan Mummy?" asked Buffy as she exited the bathroom. "We dusted her, no?"
"Dad says it doesn't work like for a vampire. Her soul is still attached to the pieces."
"Ouch… and the life drain thing?"
"We won't just reanimate her," he replied.
- 1630 Revello Drive, Saturday 5 November 2011, 20:00 -
"I am sorry to disturb you on a Saturday evening, your Majesty," said Anpu.
He was, even more than usual, keeping a tight lid on his feelings. Intellectually, he knew that Joyce Summers wasn't Hild, but Anpu had grown up hearing all the stories. Hild, who could freeze you bone-deep with a mere glance. Hild was the bogeywoman used to scare little Elohim children. Even worse, he remembered Athena once telling him that Satan found the reputation these stories gave her amusing.
One thing was helping though. Except in the very unlikely possibility that she was doing some kind of undercover work among the humans, Hild would not have touched the off-the-shelf jeans and shirt Joyce was wearing with a ten-foot pole.
"I intended to have a chat with you and your wife anyway, so I suppose we can have it tonight," replied Joyce.
"What… I am sorry, your Majesty but how did we come to be worthy of your attention?"
"While the person I was made a habit of missing clues since she arrived in Sunnydale, I am not so oblivious. The family situation of my daughters' friends is worthy of my attention. This brings me to a very simple question before I consider discussing any other matter. Will Anpu and Bast be needing the same attention I would have had to devote to Tony and Jessica Harris?"
He winced as he felt the gaze of her burgundy eyes tear through his soul. In a way, he was glad for it. Tony Harris had been allowed to harm his son for too long. He just regretted that it had needed Halloween for people to start reacting.
"No, Your Majesty," replied Anpu, feeling a tiny little bit of relief, thanking Ma'at that his first category license would have her believe him more easily. "We won't need your attention on this matter. The very reason I am not wearing my human appearance anymore is to make that very point constantly."
"Good. Then we can talk," she replied, going back into the house, "and cut out the protocol."
"Thank you," he said, following her. "Have you read Athena's report on this world's gods?"
Joyce nodded. Establishing a coherent picture of the possible threats had been a very high priority for both Hell's and Heaven's Intelligence Services. The starting situation was drastically different from Hild's Earth and actually not that different from what Lovecraft had written about in his Cthulhu mythos. Initially, life on Earth had been the kind of demented abominations she remembered all too vividly thanks to Hild. Here, they were called the Old Ones. But, one day, things changed. One of the most coherent scenarios Athena had come up with pointed at a civil war between the Old Ones, an echo of the generation war present in so many myths. At that point, an aetheric singularity had rewritten reality and given Earth its current geological and biological history. Only a few remainders of the old ecosystem had survived, becoming the basis for modern demon species through interbreeding with humans and animals.
One of the most important points of the report was that the aetheric structure of Earth was unstable. The gods that had arisen after the singularity could never come to an agreement on how to handle things and demon lords from other dimensions had taken advantage of that. Without a central architecture to rationalize production, those 'old gods' had exhausted themselves in a back-and-forth game for what little energy there was. Most had faded nowadays and only a few could still muster enough power to act as foci for spells. Even the Powers That Be… the analysis of Giles's books was still ongoing, but she had the impression that they were fading too, which was why they used champions without intervening themselves.
In the end, we're just giving the coup de grace…
"So, which one of the old gods is creating a problem?"
"I am not sure he is a god, actually. He is called Sebancaya, and he seems to be the spirit of the volcano Sabancaya in Peru. He is bound to get very angry tomorrow and I would like to prevent adverse consequences for the area."
"Possible, but why me?"
"Roughly a month ago, you hosted an exchange student called Ampata. Also, I suppose you remember what the Inca called Hild."
Joyce's mind started to run at full gear. The conversation indicated that Ampata – that she remembered as a nice girl – was linked to the strangeness of the old Sunnydale. Second fact, that strangeness included the spirit of a Peruvian volcano. Third fact, this had to do with Hild's identity as Pachamama. Fourth fact… yes, she remembered that exposition at the museum and reading an article about vandalism on an ancient mummy.
"Ampata was the mummy of the Incan princess? An offering with a soul seal?"
"Right on the first, very likely on the second. Xander asked me to save her."
"Young love," she replied with a smile. "So, I suppose I could sacrifice part of my Sunday then… though I may not want to meddle with my little Urd's projects regarding this boy."
She thanked the fact that her daughters were both hanging out with their friends at the moment. Negotiation would have been more difficult with them getting emotional as this was about Xander.
"He intends to tell Willow he sees her as a sister," he replied, thanking very much that he had managed to disarm that landmine this morning.
"A pity… though it may mean that I can arrange a few dates for her with some nice demons… but we are getting away from the topic. This is my offer: The dead of Sunnydale are pretty tight-lipped and Mictlantecuhtli is definitely not the ideal person to gain their trust. You, on the other hand, are an expert at that. I want you to gather information from them on a specific topic."
He frowned. He knew that there were a lot of blanks in the history of Old Sunnydale. Satan was obviously wanting him to fill them.
"This is possible. What would the topic be?"
"Richard Wilkins one, two and three. The reason is evident. Like I am not fully Hild, he is not fully Odin."
"As he is the Mayor, you can surely find…"
"A lot of information that looks promising but will be revealed as meaningless by a thorough analysis. I have reasons to believe that this man buried his secrets. So, I am using this occasion to hire myself the best of gravediggers."
"You realize that he will probably know about this?"
Joyce took a small shoebox in a cupboard. He noticed the many runes drawn on it, recognizing illusionary charms. She opened it briefly and he saw a collection of small electronic devices in the box.
"Microphones?" he asked, his eyebrows rising.
"And cameras. Two distinct sets of them. One is relatively cheap and amateurishly put in place, but this was offset by the apathy charms placed on it. Those charms are not unlike the ones that were set upon the town, and I was able to determine they were put in place after I signed the contract for this house but before we moved in. The second set is state-of-the-art – the kind intelligence agencies would use – and was very professionally placed. We estimate it was done last summer, at a time when Buffy and Dawn were with their father, and I was on an acquisition trip."
"Why… the Slayer," he said, remembering what the dead had told him about Buffy Summers.
"The Slayer. The second set is using the same camera model as the one found in a recent incident handled by the Abaddon. So, I suspect this is something external, maybe a reactivation of the government's Demon Research Initiative Loki told me about. The first one on the other hand is local. The question that remains is who. The Mayor knows that I am looking for clues on the matter and he knows that I consider everyone suspect, him included. How much information I actually have… this is something for me to know and for him to be paranoid about. Do we have a deal?"
He didn't like it. In a way, this was treason but… Ma'at. The task Satan asked of him was to uncover the truth and this was honorable. Maybe he would find nothing but if it wasn't the case… the Elohim knew what to do with tainted leaders. He would just make sure to give that report to Athena at the same time.
"We do."
- Andes, Sunday 6 November 2011, 08:46 (GMT -5) -
"Mom… it's not that I don't like spending time with you and all… but I still fail to see why you dragged me out of bed before dawn to get… here. I mean, we're in the middle of nowhere. All I can say is that we're somewhere high given the landscape and the and the thin air," Buffy said while pouring herself a cup of coffee from the thermos her mother had packed.
"What's not to like? We have gorgeous landscapes, the pure air of peaks and a healthy hike instead of playing couch potato," replied Joyce with a smirk as she took a sip of her own coffee.
"Sure… except that you teleported us here and you are currently obscuring our location. Also, if this is a simple family outing, why isn't Dawn here and why is he here?" she asked, nodding toward the third member of their little expedition.
He was a middle-aged Latin American man, currently dressed quite sensibly for a mountain hike. He was also a Shedu with Nidhogg marks. The real problem, however, was that Mara knew this Shedu.
"Our dear monarch didn't tell me more than she told you, but I have my suspicions. I must point out that she didn't give me time to warn anyone."
"My dear Tezcatlipoca," said Joyce with a typical 'Hild' smirk. "You are painting me blacker than I am."
"My dear Hild, I can guarantee that if your plan is to bury my body in some unmarked grave, or maybe throw me in lava like a certain ring as we seem to be on a volcano, you will have to work for it. The reason I agreed to come is that I am just as curious as you are, because I want the same answer about you."
"Thankfully I have gotten better at reading the subtext lately," said Buffy. "This means that I can guess you are both talking about how much your Halloween alter ego is dominating you."
"Correct. By the way, my name is Esteban Guerrero. I am normally an Assistant Professor in Native American history at UC Sunnydale. One of my ancestors was a high priest of Tezcatlipoca, which may be why I ended with him. What do you remember about the Smoking Mirror?"
"Your alter ego thinks Hild is 'a sow who pollutes her blood by laying with evolutionary failures.' He was very vocal about the research to make fertile hybrids and hated Urd for being the first. Ragnarok would barely be enough to convince him to work with Hild."
"Yes, which makes the current state of affairs a little difficult for this part of me. Thankfully, I know how the Aztec empire fell. I know the danger the inside enemy represents. So here I am, so that we can both discover if we are still enough Esteban and Joyce to be able to cooperate, for the good of our people. As I am at an advantage, I will even the odds by volunteering some information about myself. I knew before Halloween that you are… or were the Slayer. The reason why is that I was dabbling in the magic of my Aztec ancestors. Before you ask, only animal sacrifices."
"Looks like a good start," said Buffy. "Mom…"
"Yes, briefing time. This has to do with the Incan princess mummy from last month's exposition."
"I see… so this is the Sabancaya," replied Guerrero, waving at the mountain around them. "I suppose that the mummy being damaged was no simple vandalism?"
"No," replied Buffy. "She woke up and was draining people to sustain herself. I suppose we're here to look at the source of her curse and that what Xander told us about is for today?"
"Yes, he and Anpu are handling things mummy-side, but we have to deal with the 'mountain god' she was sacrificed to."
"We are far from the site of the tomb," said Esteban.
"True but look at this," replied Joyce, handing him a computer tablet.
The screen showed a satellite picture of the area with curves looking like a weather pressure chart. According to it, they were standing on the border of circular phenomenon.
"That's a lot of mana," said Buffy, recognizing a magical density map.
"One of the nexuses should be nearby. Esteban, what's your first impression?" asked Joyce.
"Imprisonment seal. The princess was probably the sacrifice to power it, and it would explain why she stayed undead. She probably cannot truly die while this is standing. Of course, it's just a likely hypothesis."
"Then let's find some proof."
- Chicago, Sunday 6 November 2011, 10:29 (GMT -6) -
"We're clear," said Xander as he finished his sweep. "There is a guard doing his round one floor above, though."
"My spell will keep him outside long enough," replied Anpu.
The teenage god nodded. He was genuinely impressed. One long-range teleport to get on the roof and another, shorter one to get in the lab itself. The cameras had been neutralized efficiently and he was now following his dad's gestures and chant as he laid another complex spell.
"This one will clean the room of any biological trace we may leave. Now…"
He extended his hands on the shattered, desiccated fragments laid on the metal table in the rough shape of a human body. Spectral bands of golden light, not unlike the linen used in mummification brushed them, making them glow with the same golden light. They started to twitch, rolling as bones started to grow, soon finding the correct position as the skeleton was rebuilt. Dry, wiry flesh came then, moving and covering itself with greyish skin. Another gesture and shadow gathered, forming the silhouette of a young woman on the wall. Anpu extended his hand, letting his own shadow take the shadowy girl's hand and lead her to the mummy, soon attaching her to it.
"Now for the heart," he said, placing his hand above her chest.
A beating heart of golden light exited the desiccated chest while scales appeared, the heart resting on one of them. Xander feared that part. He knew that his Dad had very strict rules. He watched anxiously as Ampata's heart was weighed against the feather of Ma'at.
"Dad… I will take her sin upon me," he said, stopping the scales. "Give her a chance to do better."
"This is a great gift, my son… but well within your rights as a god. You will therefore be the one to breathe ka in her body and soul, because this new life is your gift to her. I will go watch over her from the other side."
"Eh… Dad…"
"Just do what princes do in such situations," he replied softly.
"Got it."
He felt dizzy. What he was about to do… it went beyond simple magic. By doing it, he would forever acknowledge what he had become. He would act as a god. He leaned to kiss her while his father took a step forward and disappeared.
- Andes, at the same time -
Joyce looked at the huge scaly shape sleeping in the cave. Esteban's hunch had been correct, and the seal array was here to keep something slumbering.
"The question is: what do we do now that we found it?" asked the university professor.
"Could we try discussion?" asked Buffy. "If those readings are correct, he's sapient and I'm not too keen on fighting something as big as an airliner."
"Esteban, any insight on the matter?" asked Joyce.
"Some representations of Pachamama are draconic in nature. We also have to take into account that the original Incan goddess is less benevolent than the modern interpretation. It is possible that this world's Pachamama is an actual dragon and that Sebancaya is her offspring. All in all, I advise caution."
"I have maybe one thing," added Buffy looking at a tablet. "The gremlins have finished going through the wards' code. Most of it is what I would call local but there are subroutines using Sumerian."
Joyce raised an eyebrow. Gremlin was the name Shedim gave to semi-autonomous spellware. Often used as saboteurs, they had been the source of several legends among the humans.
"And as these wards are from the mid fifteenth century, they're out of place," said Esteban. "What are their functions?"
"One is an energy leech; another is an alarm. I already have the gremlins on standby to fake the alarm's 'all is well' signal."
"Well done," said Joyce. "So, we have another faction meddling here."
"Someone with an interest in the European conquest of the New World preparing the terrain?" asked Esteban. "They could have neutralized spiritual guardians to make things easier."
"If that's right, there will be a string of seals from that era on the continent," said Buffy. "It could just be the Watchers giving a hand to the locals. From Giles's diaries, they knew about this continent long before Columbus."
"I think it's starting to wake up…" cut in Esteban.
"Buffy, fake the alarm signal. We try diplomacy first."
- Another plane of existence, at the same time -
She was drifting in the darkness, almost oblivious to the void around her. Sometimes, she managed to gather enough of her shattered essence to get a peek 'outside,' but this was becoming harder and harder. True, her body had been shattered in Sunnydale, but her soul was still clinging to it, held by the ancient curse that made her a bride to Sebancaya. If she wished it, she could perceive the outside world, listen to the humans scurrying around.
This was how she had learnt English and Spanish, by listening to the people around her, year after year as her mummy traveled from museum to museum. But a month ago, the exposition she was a part of reached Sunnydale. There, the seal paralyzing her had been broken and she had been able to taste life again… or rather some semblance of life. She had soon learned the price of the curse. She had no life of her own. She could only 'live' by stealing the life of others.
O Inti… please forgive my selfishness… I just… I just wanted to be like any other girl…
Despite that darkness, despite that lie, she had taken everything she could from that moment of freedom. She had felt simple things, like the waves crashing on her feet as she took a walk on the beach. Others less simple… it had only been a mere moment, but she treasured what she had with Xander. She understood why he had acted like he did. He had seen what she wouldn't admit. She was doomed and even if she had killed Willow to sustain herself, there would have just been another and another. No, he had been right to stop her before she could kill even more, stain her soul even more.
Now, with her body reduced to fragments, reaching to the outer world was more difficult… not that she had any desire for it anymore. No, that wasn't fully honest, but her reasons for wanting it had changed. It wasn't so much that she wanted to see outside, but rather that she wanted to escape the darkness. There were things here, maybe the Supay her people believed in. They were lurking there, tormenting her, and waiting to drag her with them to the Realm of the Dead. They couldn't reach her if she was looking outside, so, sometimes, she tried, trading one torment for another. This was how she had learnt that the scientists had carefully laid out her remains and were trying to put her body back together.
Better to give up… better to follow the Supay to the World Below than to let the living restore me enough for the curse to wake me up…
She could hear them coming. Soon the taunts would start, telling her she was worthless, that the gods had abandoned her… Suddenly, their whispers disappeared, cut by a growl. She startled as she felt fur brush against her. This was impossible! The lack of touch was something that had never changed in this place!
Reddish light pierced the darkness and she started to feel her weight, landing on a soft bed of sand. Shaking, she ran her hand through the sand, feeling each grain, reveling in the sensation. The light continued to shift, as if the sun was rising and the green of lush plants appeared. She remembered how these places were called: oases. She could also see the source of the growl, a black dog with a sleek body and long ears.
"She is ours, mutt," said a deep, mean voice coming from the shadows outside of the oasis.
The dog started to morph, rising as its canine body became that of a human male in a white linen suit, just keeping the dog head.
"You! All your kind is dead! Only the old mummy…," said the mean voice.
"Yet I, Anpu, Master of Secrets, Lord of the Sacred Land, am here," cut in the dog-headed man, taking a curved sword from inside his coat. "Return to Apep's darkness, demons! This maiden is under my protection!"
Anpu… she knew that name. She had spent long enough in museums to hear about Egypt and its mummies. She could also feel the power coming from him… yes, there was no doubt at all in her heart. A god… a god had come for her, was protecting her. But why?
A rainbow fell on her, its light warm. Her hand went to her lips. There was something, a feeling, like a kiss. She felt the taste of life essence coming through the curse. She recognized this particular flavor. She had already felt it.
"No! Xander, please don't!" she yelled, rising and looking up inside the rainbow.
The energy continued to pour into her but… what had been a torturing trickle, tempting her to fall again, to yield to the curse again, became a torrent, rainbow light shattering the shackles on her soul. She started to rise in the sky of this antechamber of the afterlife, following the rainbow, going toward him.
Ten men would not have a quarter of what he just gave me! How…
- Chicago, at the same time -
Xander could feel the energy he was giving her. He remembered the first time she had done it, how drained he had been even if she had stopped before it was too late. Not this time. This time… he was giving her more than any mortal man could and yet it was a mere drop for him. He could feel his energy seep through her, guided by his dad's spells, healing the wounds in her soul, and restoring her body.
He could feel her desiccated mummy flesh regaining the suppleness of life, her hair finding back its shine. Her lips moved, kissing him back, their softness restored, and he felt her arms rise and hold him. He could hear the rapid thump of her heart as life finished spreading through her body.
"Xander?" she asked, breaking the kiss. "Is that really you? Your strength… no mortal can have such strength."
"I'll explain, promise, but not here."
"Jesus…," said a voice.
One of the museum's security guards was standing in the lab's entrance. Xander supposed that the light show had been too much for his dad's notice-me-not spell. He looked at the man's face, seeing a mixture of awe and terror.
"Eh… sorry, I know that appearances can be deceiving but I'm not him," replied Xander, feeling a little of his old, goofy self coming back.
He turned to face the man, standing in front of Ampata. He had two reasons for this. The first was that he was a lot more resistant to damage than her, now that she was human, and he wasn't. The second was to protect his princess's modesty, as the spell only resurrected her flesh and not her clothes.
"You… you…"
"We were about to leave Mister… Clearwater," he said, his eyes easily deciphering the man's badge despite the distance. "I know how you feel. You just saw something you have difficulty believing. Even if you call on his name, seeing something he could have done is different, right?"
"What are you?" yelled the guard, taking out his Taser.
"I'm a guy who came here to save his girlfriend," he said, smiling as he felt Ampata cuddle more against his back at these words. "All you have to do is to put this weapon away and turn back. You will then be able to go back to your life."
Xander could see that the man knew that he was out of his depth. He saw how much the man was shaking.
"We already took care of the cameras and there won't be anything for the police to find out. If you don't say anything, nobody will know."
"Like I could forget… you're going to take care of that too?" he said, starting to shake a little less.
"No. I trust you. I know you're a good guy and that you're just afraid. No shame in that with what you saw. You also have your duty, and you see that a priceless archeological artifact is being stolen… but the truth is that she is no one's property. I'm taking her with me to a place where she can have the life some bastards stole from her five hundred years ago, when they decided she was just a thing they could use to achieve their goals."
Frank Clearwater looked at the young couple in front of him, seeing adoration in the girl's eyes as she looked at the boy. He could understand that. He had seen a mummy being resurrected by the boy's kiss. With the rainbow halo around the boy when he did that… this was something right out of a fairy tale, the prince not letting a pesky thing such as death bar him from bringing his princess back home. He looked at the boy. He seemed like a good kid. He lowered his weapon and watched as the boy removed his Hawaiian shirt and handed it to the girl, always staying between him and her. Frank nodded at that.
"I'm ready," said Ampata, getting up from the table. "Thank you for your understanding," she added, looking at Frank.
"Hold tight," he replied, putting an arm around her waist. "I'm opening the Bifrost."
He called on his magic, having decided to show off a little. If he was to assume his godly position, he could as well play the part. A column of rainbow light fell on them, and they disappeared, a bulge of light racing upward inside the column.
Frank looked at the ground, remembering the Thor movie. He half-expected to find a Celtic knot circular motif burned on the floor the young couple had stood upon. Thankfully, there was nothing. He looked at the metal table and saw that the boy had been right. No imprint that would have told a human had touched the item. All the lab was probably clinically clean. He resumed his round and finally got on the building's roof. He looked at the sky, wondering what the weather was like in Asgard…
- Andes, an hour later -
"I must say that I am glad that things turned this way," said Joyce in Quechua.
She was sitting on air in a huge cave, feeling the warmth of the lava stream coming out of a nearby chasm. Buffy and Esteban were observing the scene from the entrance tunnel. Of course, the very place she was sitting was a statement of power, with the way the heat and the poison gases swirled around her without even disturbing her hair.
"Another cup of coca, Lady Asherah?" replied a deep, rumbling voice in the same language.
"Yes, please, Lord Sebancaya."
The huge, red-scaled shape in front of her wiggled a claw and the ancient cups levitated, filling hers with a yellow concoction. Another show of power, this time from him, to keep the beverage fit enough for the table of the Incan Emperor despite the local conditions.
"From what I see," she said, waving at the treasure hoard next to the dragon, "you had a modus vivendi with the people of the Tawantinsuyu. Why did they seal you?"
"The Inca used to come to me, asked me for guidance as the Pachamama's representative. Things changed… I suspect someone from outside the Empire."
"One of the Watchers?"
"No… I know of them, the Shadow Men, the one that created The Slayer," he said, tapping his chin with a claw. "I wonder how they will take your daughter devouring their creation, but that is not the point. They wouldn't' have done that. I will search. I will understand. I will get revenge. About the girl…"
"She is under our protection. This is non-negotiable."
"Good. Mother told me about the last great change, when the Old Ones were kicked out. It seems that I will witness the next one. We will meet again, Lady Asherah. It is too early for me to tell if it will be as allies or as enemies, though."
"I appreciate your directness, Lord Sebancaya. I hope that we will share another cup of coca when you come to visit us. To facilitate this… here is a gift, for you to use as you see fit."
She concentrated, finding the right spellware in Nidhogg and materializing its knowledge as a black diamond over her right palm and sent it floating toward the dragon. It was a transformation spell, one that would allow Sebancaya to take a human shape. She just hoped that… she smiled as she saw the greed in the dragon's eyes when he realized what was in the gem. She had guessed right.