REPOST: Darkest Before the Dawn (2/?)

[~~Kimber <kacoe@xxxxxxx>]

TITLE: Darkest Before the Dawn (2/?)
AUTHOR: Kimber (kacoe@xxxxxxx)
DISCLAIMER: All BTVS characters belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy.
PAIRING: Multi-Slash pairings
RATING: R or NC17. . .mostly for language but there might be a few naughty situations
thrown in there for my amusement.
SUMMARY: This is set in an alternate universe. Two Wiccans have been captured by the
Initiative (they?re evil) and it?s up to the chosen two to save them. Throw in a
not-so-wacky vamp on a deserted island and, well. . .read on to find out exactly what
happens!
SPOILERS: Everything is fair game, including season 5 speculations.
DISTRIBUTION: Pat Kelly, Rodrigo, Gary Thompson, Syrenslure, Serendipity and J&J Xena
Site. Anyone else, e-mail me please.
AUTHOR?S NOTES: This is in response to a challenge Shadowlander offered me. Be afraid,
be very afraid. See what happens when you put the two of us together for way too long?
I?ve been officially corrupted, but in a good way. Any complaints about my decent into
darkness can be directed to her. *rofl*
<. . .denotes thoughts. - ((. . .)) denotes dreams. - *. . .* denotes emphasis.

-----------

Outskirts of Sunnydale, CA ? Mid evening

A black Hummer with tinted windows rumbled down the one and only main street of
Sunnydale. Inside was a very pissed off Slayer. Not only had she gotten a flat tire, but
Drusilla?s damn minion forgot to fill the tank. <Friggin Morons.> She should have been
at Giles? over three hours ago. She called Buffy?s dorm room from the cell phone and
received no answer, so she assumed that the Scoobs were gathered at the Watchers. A
thought crept into her mind about the kind of ?experiments? the Initiative did on her and
she shivered at the thought of Willow and Tara enduring it.

Two short years ago, she found herself in the same position the Wiccans were in now.
She?d been captured and held in one of those antiseptic rooms. They feed her well, but
she refused after she discovered that her slayer strength was fading. After a while, they
began to do experiments on her and inject all kinds of shit into her system. It seemed
like their favorite little concoction had a glowing blue tint to it. She fought her
hardest when they tried to inject *that* into her veins. That?s when the dreams started.
Dreams of chaos and mayhem, blood letting and torture. She awoke in the middle of the
night screaming for a week, unable to close her eyes again to face it all. Only from
sheer exhaustion did she succumb to slumber ? then the dreams came again. She couldn?t be
sure how much time had passed ? later she was informed that it was about three months ?
but the one thing she was sure of was that they wouldn?t break her, she wouldn?t give in.

As suddenly as she was captured, she was freed. A dark haired woman hovered above her
like an angel and she knew, somewhere in the back of her mind, that she could rest again.
Three days passed before she had a coherent thought and was able to sit up on her own.
There had been no chaos or mayhem in her release ? the woman, the Eternal Vampire ? simply
slipped into the complex like a thief in the night and stole her away. No fuss, no muss
as Drucilla put it. Their time would come and they?d pay and pay and pay.

She pulled up in front of the apartment complex, grabbed her backpack and jumped out.
Images from the previous night?s dream still danced around in her head. She was now more
determined than ever to find the two Wiccans and put an end to the Initiative?s reign over
Sunnydale. It had gone on far too long.

-------

?How?s she doing??

Rupert Giles looked up from the mass of papers sprawled across his antique desk. He?d
been writing notes and reading over old ones he?d collected over the past two years or
so. What seemed like day was in reality only a few hours. <How is she doing?> He closed
his eyes for a moment. <She?s more frightened than I?ve ever seen her in her life. She
shaking, even in her sleep. She?s calling out the only name that?s been imprinted on her
brain since she walked through the door ? since the attack last night. I don?t know what
to do, I don?t know how to help her.> He opened his eyes and looked to where the question
came from. ?She?s fine.?

?Are you sure Rupert? She?s awfully restless.?

He rose to his feet and stretched. ?I can assure you Joyce, she?s fine. She?s had quite
the traumatic experience and it?s taken it?s toll. Let her have this time to rest now.
I?m not sure when she?ll be allowed the luxury again.? He tried to offer her a reassuring
smile.

She seemed sated for the moment. ?Thank you. For taking care of her I mean. When you
called, I couldn?t get away from the gallery and when I finally arrived, she?s sleeping.
Some mother I turned out to be.?

He gave her a sympathetic look. ?I understand your worry. I look to her as the daughter I
never knew. I?m afraid you are in a position that no other matriarchal figure has ever
knowingly been in before. You?re the mother of a Slayer ? You must be given allowances.
You do have your own life.?

Joyce glanced at her watch. ?Speaking of which.? She put her coat on and grabbed her
briefcase. ?I have to get going. I only had an hour for lunch and I?ve been gone for
two. Please keep me updated and thank you again.?

He smiled at her as she closed the door. He moved to the kitchen and put on a pot of
water. Just as he was about to sit down again, a knock came at the door. He opened it
and stood speechless for a few moments, then finally found enough composure to greet the
visitor. ?Faith. Hello. What brings you to. . .?

She pushed past him and set her backpack on the floor. ?No time for making nice G-man.
Where?s B?? She folded her arms across her chest and waited for a response.

?Can you, um, tell me what this is about??

?You know damn well what this is about.? She sat on the back of the couch and removed her
jacket. ?Dreams, Giles. And I?m not talking about the fluffy pink elephant romping
around the forest kind either. Slayer dreams. Big bad, piss in your pants, flee in
terror dreams.? She looked around the room. ?Where?s Willow?? She noticed his mouth
moving but there wasn?t any sound coming from it. Suddenly, she jumped up from the couch
and yelled. ?I knew it! I fucking knew it. Those bastards are using her and her little
witch friend as guinea pigs, aren?t they? When were they taken? Where?s B? Answer me
damn it!?

---------------


The Initiative compound beneath Lowell House - the exact same moment. . .

The first thought that came to her mind was to lay completely still. That way, if they
came back, maybe they?d think she was dead and they would leave her alone. That way, when
they were carrying her dead, lifeless corpse out she could spring up and run at the first
intake of fresh air. So much for plan A.

She chanced a peek through slit eyelids at her surroundings. She was in a completely
white room on what felt like a very large bed. It was your basic ?rubber room? set-up,
complete with two way mirror on one of the walls. She tried to normalize her breathing as
much as possible so as not to be detected. She heard some rustling come from behind her
and automatically stiffened.

A more-meek-than-usual, familiar voice whispered to her from behind. ?Willow. Are you
awake??

<Tara.> ?Yes. Where are we??

Tara breathed a small sigh of relief though you wouldn?t have detected relief in the tone
of her trembling voice. ?I don?t know.? Another sigh. ?I-I?m so scared.?

Willow reached her hand out slowly and found that the other girl?s hand met her half-way.
?It?ll be okay. Buffy will find us. We?ll be okay.? She said it for herself as much as
the girl trembling beside her.

Images that were once murky and unclear suddenly shifted into focus. Riley. Buffy was on
patrol and Riley came looking for her. Willow thought it was odd because they usually did
patrols together and he *knew* she?d be out. He charmed his way into the room, making
some excuse about leaving a weapon there. Willow began to look for it ? she didn?t even
know what she was looking for ? and the moment she turned her back he jumped on her. She
could tell he didn?t use all of his strength, probably because he expected her to give up
and go willingly. They struggled. She finally got her hands on the tweety bird alarm
clock Oz had given her back in high school and smashed him over the head with it. Before
she knew what was happening, she was being chased across campus by what looked like half
of the Initiative. She managed to cut through town ? very smart considering that they
were in fatigues and she knew they wouldn?t risk exposure. Her mistake came when she
decided to go find Buffy in the ?Peaceful Rest? cemetery. They cornered her. Buffy came
running at full tilt when she heard the commotion but it was too late, there were too many
of them. They knocked the Slayer around like a rag doll and dragged Willow away kicking
and screaming.

Absentmindedly, she reached for the pentagram necklace Tara had given her as a gift. It
was gone. She must have lost it in the struggle. The next thing she remembered was cold
tile, probably the floor of the room she was in now. That changed quickly when more
Agents of the Initiative came to drag her away. Again she put up a fight but was only
knocked unconscious for her trouble.

Now she lay here, her hand clasped with her equally frightened Wiccan friend and they were
in a heap of trouble.

?Are we being watched?? Tara whispered.

?Probably. That?s a two way mirror over there.? Willow pointed to the wall opposite
them. ?And there?s a security camera over there in the ceiling.?

Tara sighed again. ?So it doesn?t matter what we do or say. They?re gonna hear and see
us anyway.?

Willow nodded. Which, in hindsight, probably wasn?t a good idea considering the screaming
protest that came from lump on the back of her head. ?Ouch!?

?That?s a nasty bump. I saw you put up a fight with them.? Tara squeezed her hand. ?You
were, um, very brave.?

Willow smiled despite the gravity of the situation. ?Remind me how much brave hurts next
time I try to be brave.?

The minutes ticked by in silence.

?Um, Willow??

?Hmm??

?Would you. . .look at me? I?d feel better if you, I mean if I could. . .?

She stopped speaking when Willow began to turn over to look at the other girl. Once
positioned somewhat comfortably she smiled. ?Better??

Tara stared at her for what seemed like an eternity. She slowly shook her head and a tear
escaped from the corner of her eye. ?Oh, Willow.? She reached her hand out and lightly
touched the redhead?s cheek. ?What did they do to you??

Willow scrunched her eyebrows and felt a tightness in her skin. She reached up and felt
around her face, wincing slightly every inch or two. ?How bad is it??

?Not that bad. I guess.? Was all Tara managed to squeak out, albeit unconvincingly.

Willow brought her free hand down from her face and studied it, turning it around and
around for inspection. There were bruises and cuts all over her hands. . .her wrists had
taken on what would have been a pretty shade of purple had it been anyplace *but* on her
body. She closed her eyes in pain when the salty tears began their decent down her face.
?Ouch. . .again.?

A trap door in the ceiling suddenly opened and a small white package was dropped into the
room. Tara got up to retrieve it and sat down next to Willow.

She didn?t even bother to open her eyes. ?What is it??

?It?s ay-a first aid kit.?

Willow opened her eyes and was almost physically pained by the expression on Tara?s face.
<Be brave, Rosenberg. You?re not the Slayer?s best friend by chance.> ?Hey, I?ll be
okay. Yeah, it kind of hurts but. . .I?m sure I?ll feel much better after you clean me
up.?

Tara put her head down and shook her head in protest. ?N-No. . I might hurt you. I
couldn?t.?

?Tara.? Willow forced herself to a sitting position. ?You have to, I can?t see what I?m
doing and if you don?t then the cuts are sure to get infected. I know you would never
hurt me intentionally.? She placed her hand on Tara?s.

The blond witch thought about this for a few moments and finally relented. ?Okay, but I?m
sorry. . .because I *know* I?m going to hurt you and. . .I just wanted to say that right
up front.? She opened the kit and rummaged around until she found what she was looking
for. ?How about I start with your hands first??

Willow nodded. She watched as Tara opened the bottle of iodine and placed the first drop
on her hand. She watched as it seeped into the first of many splits in her skin. She
winced and clenched her teeth. ?Ooooooh! I *so* felt that!!!?

----------

Back at Giles' apartment

?Son of a bitch!? Faith was pacing around the room, unable to contain her anger or
frustration any longer. ?When I got a hold of that Finn bastard he?s not gonna know what
hit him!?

?Faith, as much as I can appreciate your frustration, profanity isn?t going to help the
situation at all.? Giles? rubbed his temples. ?And your giving me a terrible headache.?

Buffy walked down the stairs quickly at the sound of the other Slayer?s voice. ?Faith.?

?Nice to see you up and adam, B. What the hell took so long? I?ve been ranting and
raving down here for about an hour.?

?An hour and forty six minutes.? Giles mumbled under his breath.

Buffy crossed the room and stopped in front of the dark Slayer. ?So you know then. Did
Giles call you?? She glanced over at her Watcher.

?Hell no, B. I woke up bathed in sweat from head to toe. . .and it wasn?t from screwin.?

Buffy was used to Faith-speak by now, so she was non-pulsed by the reference. She did
however chuckle when she saw the shade of red Giles was turning. ?Let?s go grab something
to eat and I?ll fill you in.? She grabbed her jacket and turned to Giles. ?Give us about
an hour and we?ll be back. You gonna keep going through the notes??

He nodded. ?Yes, I?m glad I saved everything from our first suspicions of the commando?s.
And Buffy??

?Hmm??

?Thank you for um. . .taking Faith. Away.? He rolled his eyes.

She smiled. ?No prob. I know how abrasive she can be. She almost put Will into a coma
when she told the story about the alligator.?

?Alligator?? He shook his head. ?Never mind. I?m much better off not knowing.?

---------------

The Initiative Compound ? two hours later.

?Status report soldier.?

?No change. Minimal conversation. They did use the first aid kit. Other than that
there?s been no activity.?

?Carry on.?

Riley walked down the corridor and stood outside room three. He needed to get them to
communicate with each other. . .but how? He was now an obvious threat to them, he knew
they?d never trust him again.

He watched for a few more moments then a thought struck him and he smiled. He strode over
to the phone on the wall and punched in an extension.

?This is Agent Finn. Send Miller down here. Immediately.? He hung up the phone and
waited.

To be continued. . .


--
Your humble bard and Rodrigo's dedicated love slave,
~~Kimber

Shadowlander's #1 fan and her 'Official Un-Official Idea Bouncer Offer'
Pat Kelly's #1 fan and his 'Offical scene runner-by-er'

'Exquisite Coalescence'. . .your source for BuffySlash fiction on the web. Comming soon!

- - - - - - - - - - - -
QUOTES OF THE MOMENT
- - - - - - - - - - - -
"One out of every ten people is born to give the other nine trouble. Guess what number I
am."
* *
"I tried sniffing Coke once, but the ice cubes got stuck in my nose."
* *
"Toast lands butter side down, Cats land the right way up, So what happens if you butter a
cat?"
* *
"Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear
them speak"
* *
"Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty
girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. That's relativity."
* *
"Why does Sea World have a seafood restaurant? I'm halfway through my fish burger and I
realize, Oh my gosh....I could be eating a slow learner."
* *
"I feel like I'm diagonally parked in a parallel universe."
* *
"They say that love hides behind every corner... am I walking in circles?"
* *
"I don't have a big ego, I'm way too cool for that. "
* *
"I thought I had a great idea today, but it never really took off. In fact, it didn't
even get on the runway. I guess you could say it exploded in the hangar."
* *
"I'm not cheap, but I am on special this week."
* *
"The only reason some people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory."
* *
"There's too much blood in my alcohol system."
* *
"GUYS: No shirt, no service. GALS: No shirt, no charge."
* *
"Optimists say the glass is half-full, Pessimists say the glass is half empty, I says
it's time for a beer run."
* *
"It might look like I'm doing nothing, but at the cellular level I'm really quite busy. "
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
NONE OF THE IDEAS EXPRESSED ABOVE ARE ACTUALLY MINE. THEY ARE TOLD TO ME BY LUTHOR AND
FERDINAND, THE FIVE INCH TALL SPACE ALIENS WHO LIVE UNDER MY DESK. IN RETURN FOR THESE
IDEAS, I HAVE GIVEN THEM PERMISSION TO EAT ANY DUST BUNNIES THEY FIND UNDER THERE. IN
ADDITION, THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE NOT THOSE OF MY LAWYER, EMPLOYER, GIRLFRIEND,
CHURCH OR MYSLEF. . .BUT THEY ARE THE OPINIONS OF ELVIS AS REVEALED TO ME THROUGH THE
MEDIUM OF MY PET HAMSTER, LEE HARVEY OSWALD. . .