Graile - Chapter 1 - Welcome to Hemry
by Connor_Mac
Chapter 1B - Welcome to Hemry
[reviews]
Continued From Chapter 1A
* * *
Merrick opened the passenger door and stepped out, keeping an eye on the tower's entrance. "All this time... Well, Fate always did have a sense of whimsy." shouldering his broadsword, he looked upwards through the rain to the peak of the tower. Pike walked over to stand next to Merrick.
"Tonight it ends. Either we win and avert an Apocalypse, or we die and the Earth is doomed." Merrick said turning to Pike. "You two can still leave."
Pike turned to the elder watcher. "Why is it every time we do something like this you say that? I'm not backing off."
Jack stepped to the right of Merrick. "Don't look at me, I've been doing this for a good long while now. Shall we? Or should we stand here like ponces in the rain while our Slayer has all the fun?"
* * *
Buffy braced her hands against the earth elemental as it shuffled over to the staircase. "Let me get this straight, Tall, Dark, and Ugly summoned you with an amulet, then trapped you here?"
"Correct... Slayer..."
"Ok, so how would you get home?" she asked, an idea coming to her mind.
"If... the... amulet... were... destroyed... The... Summoning... would... end..."
"So if I were to find and put the smashy on this amulet thingy, would you consider doing me a small favor?"
"To... go... Home...? Anything..." the Barry White-like voice took on a pleading tone. Buffy grinned and leaned down to whisper near the left garnet.
* * *
Reaching the door first, Jack tried the handle. "Of course it's locked..." The Irishman kneeled before the knob and reached into his black leather vest for a small roll of suede leather. Pausing, he looked over his shoulder and saw both Pike and Merrick return their own lock picks to their respective pockets.
"I don't think Master Ordniconii would appreciate visitors tonight." Sounded a voice form behind them. Jack opened the roll,
pulled out assorted lockpicks and began working on the lock. Merrick and Pike turned and brought their weapons to bear against five vampires. Two charged Merrick while three others advanced on Pike, who was shifting the crossbow from target to target. Merrick slashed one in the gut from the right and moved the blade up to slice the other across the eyes. The first recoiled from the attack and bumped into the now blinded vampire. They both fell to the ground as Merrick rushed in to finish them off. Meanwhile, Pike shot one of the advancing vamps directly in the heart; the other two vampires saw their comrade combust and grinned devilishly.
"You've got it cocked, have you got enough time to reload, lunch?" The lead vamp said sauntering forward. Pike grinned and fired a bolt square into the smirking vampire's chest, the third vamp looked in shock as his comrade combusted.
"You never reloaded!" The undead minion whined, as Pike drew the string back and fired again. "It's not fair..." were his final words.
Merrick had sliced the head off one vampire while the blind vampire crawled off in a random direction. Merrick walked slowly behind him and pulled a stake from his tweed coat. The vampire knew his end was coming. Determined to keep his dignity, he stood, brushed his sleeves off and opened his coat and shirt to bare his chest. "Go ahead, Watcher."
"Thank you." Merrick replied before stabbing his stake into the vampire's heart. "Finally, a Vampire with dignity." he said, looking down at the rapidly dampening ashes.
Jack coughed subtly to get their attention and gestured to the now open door. "Where exactly did you learn that?" Merrick asked as the trio descended the staircase within.
"Trust me Merrick, you'd never believe me if I told you." Pike simply grinned and turned to Merrick. "How'd he know you were a
Watcher? " he asked before following behind.
Jack stopped abruptly and turned to Pike, "An elderly man wearing tweed fighting vampires beside a Slayer? What do you want, a tattoo on the inside of his wrist?" he said this last bit with a wink to Merrick, who chuckled softly.
"Wrong branch of the family I'm afraid." Merrick whispered with a wry grin before following suit. Pike rolled his eyes and motioned for Jack to continue inward.
* * *
In the bottom level of the bell tower, Master Ordniconii added the final ingredient into the Cauldron of Ages. As the blood and powdered ruby mixed with the other components, he chanted the final verses.
(Spirit of War, summon the soul I call. Heed my tribute, send forth the warrior spirit, I invoke thee.)
Lucius held a shrouded object in his hands while the Earth Elemental shuffled forth bringing the Slayer closer to the Master. Lucius' eyes widened as the grayish mist flowing from the cauldron thickened and coursed along the floor. "Truly my Master is incredibly powerful," he thought as the green flickering gray mist accursed along the floor and his Master's face split into a wide smile, baring his demonic visage to rune inscribed ceiling. Extending a hand to his servant, Lucius unwrapped the bundle and held an ancient Sumerian broadsword, handle first, to his master. The Master took the blade and stabbed it down into the thick reddish mixture. The mist grew thicker and coiled around the ancient blade, before tendrils of it coursed along ground like writhing snakes.
Ordniconii began chuckling devilishly and cast his hand in Lucius' direction. The mist instantly shot in Lucius' direction as the bald ebony skinned man recoiled in horror. Three sets of eyes watched from the stairwell as the mist flowed over the vessel.
"Should we help him?" Pike asked in a dead whisper to the older British man beside him.
Jack looked at him like he grew a third arm off his forehead. "I don't think it's going to kill him. Besides, one less person to fight."
Merrick nodded absently, listening intently as the Master began chanting again.
(Summoned soul I guide thee into thy vessel. Empower him. Enthrall him with your energy. Take his flesh and make it thine!) He ended in a cry.
Buffy watched enthralled as the mist seeped into Lucius' flesh. With a cry, the sharply tailored man fell to his knees. His screams echoed around the room as his coat and shirt ripped, his muscles enlarging to an inhuman girth. The muscles of his legs swelled and tightened, stretching his deep skin and reducing his trousers to shreds while his shoes nearly exploded from his feet. The now heavily muscled being ceased his screams and stood, long black hair cascaded down his back as he turned to face his Master. "You have summoned me Ordniconii. I, Gilgamesh, have answered."
Merrick's eyes widened. "Holy Mary Mother of God." Pike resolved to ask Merrick about this Gilgamesh guy afterward. Jack nodded. "Get ready."
Buffy tapped the elemental. The earthen being shuffled and its grip on the blonde loosened enough for to pull herself loose. The master approached his hulking servant feeling absolutely giddy. "Kneel."
Merrick watched with awe. "He's going to turn him. A Vampiric Incarnation of War, a virtual Super vampire. That's damned clever."
Jack whispered to the other two, "Wait until Ord lets Lucius feed. They'll both be disoriented." Seeing their confused nods, he drew both long daggers, made eye contact with Buffy, and winked.
Buffy nodded and watched tensely as Lucius knelt before his master. Slowly she crept off the mound and used every stealth skill she'd learned to slink over to the staircase. Leaning close, she kissed Pike deeply. "It's about time you guys showed up. Can we attack now?" she said, tuning to Merrick with her question. Jack handed her one of his long daggers.
The Watcher shook his head. "We have to wait until he turns Lucius. How on Earth did you escape the elemental? It looked like it just let you go."
"That's because it did just let me go. How'd you know he's going to turn him?" she asked. Merrick nodded his head at Jack.
Ordniconii looked at the incarnation of War kneeling at his feet. He gently guided his servant's head to the side, being at a slightly lower level then his own head; The Master didn't have to kneel. Smiling devilishly, He looked into his servant's eyes. "Prepare, my loyal servant, to receive the immortal gift." he leaned forward and sank his fangs deep into Lucius' thickly muscled throat.
"Now, we wait until he's finished, the new blood has made him too aware of his surroundings. If we attack now, he'll be ready." Jack informed the others, they nodded and collectively renewed their grip on their weapons.
A minute passed as a tiny spark of fear kindled within the Slayer. "Uh, Guys, what if he's not turning Lucius, but feeding off the super blood?"
Three sets of eyes widened in sheer horror at the thought of a Master Vampire with the blood of a War Spirit filling its veins.
"Oh... Bloody Hell..." Jack cursed then leapt to his feet. "Well? Who wants to live forever?" he called as he turned and charged the feeding vampire. Buffy and Merrick followed as Pike turned his head to a sound that caught his ear.
The Master dropped the nearly desiccated husk that used to be his servant and turned with glowing eyes at the three charging hunters. Jack leapt for the left arm and plunged his dagger into the Master's back as Buffy leapt for his right and mirrored Jack's actions. Meanwhile, Merrick slashed at his left leg. Ordniconii roared at the attacks and threw both teens across the room. Merrick scored another hit to the Master's left knee before being backhanded to the far corner. Stumbling to one knee, the Master screamed his anger. "I will grind your bones to paste!"
Buffy recovered and helped the Irishman to his feet. "C'mon. We're missing the fight."
* * *
Pike turned to the sound and saw Britney Tyler coming down the stairs. "What the hell are you doing here? Run girl!" Britney stepped down another step and yet another, when he noticed her eyes. He brought the crossbow up to bear as Britney came within ten feet. Her eyes were twin pits of absolute oblivion. Firing a bolt, his eyes widened as the bottle blonde caught the bolt in front of her chest. "The Master said we could have her when he was done..." A rasping voice came from the possessed teen.
* * *
Buffy and Jack exchanged blows with the Master as Merrick stood up and looked into twin glowing garnets. "Need... Help...?" asked the Elemental. Seeing the Englishman's feeble nod, the Elemental turned and rapidly slid across the floor like quicksand. Almost completely engulfing the Master's left side. Buffy grinned and nodded to Jack before pulling a stake from her jacket. He grinned and stepped slightly behind the master and lunged. The Master shifted and caught the blade in his grip, leaving him wide open. The Slayer rushed in and stabbed the stake into Ordniconii chest. The Master laughed as he shot his hand through the elemental and caught the Slayer's hand in mid thrust. "That was a feeble attempt Slayer." As his hand took on a green aura, Buffy felt a sudden weakening feeling, as her very life force began seeping from her into the Master Vampires hand.
Jack's eyes narrowed and he ripped his blade up through the vampire's fingers severing the four digits cleanly. One of Buffy's favorite memories from her time in L.A. occurred then, The Master's face contorting in a mixture of agonizing pain, incredulity, and bewilderment. Pulling his mangled hand to his chest, The Master lashed out with his rapidly regenerating leg at the Irishman, catching him in the stomach. Buffy's field of vision was dimming when suddenly it cleared and she heard the Master roar in pain again. Looking down, she saw Ord's severed arm on the ground and Merrick in a down-slash directed at the vampire's chest.
Still weakened, Buffy fell to her knees. Jack saw her fall and tumbled over to her. As he grabbed her arm to steady her fall, the feeling came to Buffy again. Fleeting images flashed through her mind. A tall dark man with an aura of danger, an older man in tweed, who filled her mind with trust and support, a man with a perpetual smile, and finally a flash of ruby red hair and emerald green eyes. This last image brought a feeling of hope and an overwhelming desire to protect, almost a taste of things to come. The experience fueled Buffy, snapping her awake from the drain the Master put her through.
Her senses focused and she saw everything in slow motion, the gaping wound Merrick inflicted on the master's chest. Acting on pure instinct, Buffy shot her hand into the Ordniconiis chest and grabbed his blackened withered heart. With a loud snarl, the Slayer ripped the atrophied organ from his chest cavity causing Master Ordniconii to roar in unquestionable anguish. His eyes locked with Buffy's. "You... Bitch..." Were his final words before he crumbled to dust, a small granite orb falling from the remains of his robes.
* * *
Britney's corpse reached a rapidly withering hand out to Pike, each finger swiftly growing a blackened talon. "Her" skin turned a grayish pallor and her hair faded almost instantly to a harsh off white. "I will feast on your soul, Man-Child." It moaned as the Wraith glided closer to the revolted teen. He defiantly grinned and fired the crossbow; his grin dropped as the bolt passed harmlessly through the Wraith's throat and sank into the cinderblock wall behind it.
Pike pulled his gold cross necklace from his white button up and brandished it before the undead. The Wraith backpedaled from the holy symbol and hissed. The hiss was cut short as a pale hand gripping a glimmering sickle reached from behind the phantom and cut through her neck, a black shadowy substance began coursing from the gash. Clutching the throat wound, the Wraith shrieked and slowly liquefied into a black, brackish puddle, revealing the lady vampire from Caritas standing further up the stairs. "I was right to keep an eye on you." she whispered. "You can put that away now luv." Pike slipped the cross beneath his shirt as she stepped slowly down the stairs; she sauntered closer to Pike and draped her arms over his shoulders. Pike took a long moment contemplating his future, his close call, and grinned. He slipped his arm around her waist and brushed an arrant lock of hair back behind her ear.
"I'm gonna need two things."
"Name it handsome."
"First, some time; which I know you have in abundance. I'm just not ready for the nightlife yet."
She nodded. "As long as I have some help avoiding the Slayer. What's the second?"
"Your name."
She leaned forward and kissed him. "Deanna."
He kissed her, "Pike."
* * *
Jack helped Merrick to his feet and grinned his half grin. The watcher's brow furrowed in thought. "How odd..." Buffy froze.
"Merrick, when you say that, I have a massive case of the wiggins."
Jack stage whispered to the elder Watcher, "What's a Wiggin?"
Merrick returned the stage whisper, "No earthly idea."
Buffy glared at them both with crossed arms. "Well Buffy, If Ordniconii was a Master vampire, then why is there no skeleton?" Merrick asked, looking in frustration at the slight scattering of ash on the floor.
The Slayer's eyebrows rose nearly into her hairline, "Do I have to ask you for more information?"
"No. Master Vampires are old enough that they leave behind their bones. It's theorized that this is so their minions may reanimate and possibly restore the Master from death."
"Then he wasn't the Master? There's another Vampire around here? Oh, that's just Fucking wonderful." Buffy cursed then started to look around the room for possible hiding places.
"Buffy that language was uncalled for. However, we should begin to search the tower for the Master." Merrick said shouldering his
broadsword.
"Sorry Merrick." Buffy ducked her head in apology.
Jack, having noticed that the Elemental was standing behind Buffy, he tapped the blonde on the shoulder and nodded to it. Then it spoke. "Slayer... Our...deal..." it's deep voice echoed from the shard filled maw.
"Oh... right. Sorry." She bent down and picked up the small orb. "This it?" When the earthen being grumbled in an affirmative tone, she made to shatter the talisman then stopped, causing the soil mass to growl. "One question, then you're free. Where's the Master Vampire?"
The Earthen Elemental shuffled over to the Slayer and the twin garnets glittered in the candlelight. "You... just... killed... him... He... called... himself... Master..."
Buffy laughed and patted the elemental roughly on the shoulder. With every ounce of her Slayer strength, she threw the orb at the wall, and grinned as the talisman shattered to a very fine dust.
The Earth Elemental slowly began to collapse and fall to a pile on the ground.
"Ok, THAT was cool." Buffy remarked to the suddenly quiet room.
Jack grinned and began looking around. "Where's Pike?"
Buffy suddenly remembered she had a boyfriend. "Yeah, uh, where is he?"
"Over here." Came the reply from the crossbow wielding teen. "There was a ghost thing coming downstairs. It left a big puddle of Casper goo."
Merrick, intrigued, headed up the stairs to investigate its remains.
Jack followed and peaked over the elder Brit's shoulder. "Wight?"
Merrick shook his head. "No, Wights don't leave um... goo. They leave a web like mist. This is or rather was, a Wraith."
"And Pike killed it with a crossbow... with steel tipped quarrels?" he thought, a measure of suspicion creeping into his mind.
"I agree. How could Pike have killed this beast without an ounce of silver though is beyond me." Merrick mumbled to himself before stepping back down the stairs. "Oh well, now for my favorite part of a nest cleaning. Looting."
Jack grinned at the nearly giddy Brit and walked up to the exit, pulling a cigar and his Zippo from his black leather vest. Stepping into the doorway, Jack looked up through swiftly clearing skies into a full moon. "That was fun." inhaling sharply on his cigar, he blew a large smoke ring then quickly inhaled again, blowing a thin stream through his nose that slid right through the smoke ring.
In time, Buffy and the others strolled up the stairs laughing. Pike and Merrick carried two boxes of books, Magic paraphernalia, and miscellaneous herbs, while Buffy clutched an armload of weaponry.
As Jack took Merrick's box, and headed for his convertible, Buffy hurried up alongside him and strolled in companionable silence. "I have to ask. During the fight, you grabbed my arm to steady my fall."
"Yes. I remember that," he said.
"Did you feel anything odd?"
"Aye, I felt a little weary from whatever energy drain the Master used on you. Why? What did you feel?"
Buffy shrugged, feeling a little foolish, "Just a few hallucinations."
"Oh...? Like what?" he asked, his lips twitched as he brushed his bare forearm against her bare shoulder.
"Well one was... Damn... I forgot." her eyes narrowed in concentration.
* * *
Jack leaned against the hood of his jet-black Oldsmobile Cutlass convertible and grinned. He watched as the Mansion door opened and Buffy walked out in a sheen of sweat. "You coming in? We can train some more," she hinted, making soft jabs at his abdomen.
"I would B. Really, I would. But I've got to get going. My crew is waiting for me to come back and it's a long drive."
"Why not fly?" she asked, leaning against the hood beside the sharply dressed young man.
"I don't like to fly. I prefer to drive." Jack said. "Or ride, when I have my bike."
Buffy grinned. "I can easily picture you on a bike."
"You know B, you never answered my question. When did you realize?"
"I know. I'll tell you the next time you're here."
"Deal... I've gotta go B. I'll see you around." Smiling softly, he removed his left black leather glove and touched Buffy's bare shoulder. Turning he slipped his glove back on, climbed into his auto and started the perfectly tuned engine. Buffy stood at the Mansion gate as he drove away, a mental flash of ruby red hair and emerald eyes running through her mind.
* * *
Sunnydale, California
Rosenberg Residence
1983
Ira Rosenberg watched his daughter play with her dolly on the porch of their home and smiled as he thought about her future. "She'll graduate high school, marry, and give Sheila and I beautiful grandchildren. A beautiful house, and a doctor or lawyer for a husband." His ruminations were interrupted by a subtle cough. He looked up at his visitor, a muscular young man in a very expensive suit. "Mr. Rosenberg?"
"Yes? Can I help you Mr.?"
"Covington. Martin Covington." he said, grinning a simple half grin. He pulled a card from a silver card case from his breast pocket.
Mr. Rosenberg examined the card as Mr. Covington returned the case into his pocket.
Covington, Lafeyette, & Warriner.
1020 7th avenue, Manhattan, New York.
10010-5424
"Yes Mr. Covington, is there something you needed?" Mr. Rosenberg asked.
"Actually Mr. Rosenberg, I am the executor of your Aunt Alexandrea Ravencroft's Estate."
"Aunt Alexandrea? When did that old heathen croak? Unnatural godless woman." he thought as he struggled to keep a properly mournful face. "I didn't know she had died." He stated with a suitable amount of sadness. "Wonder what the old bat left me," His thoughts decidedly unmournful.
Martin raised an eyebrow subtly. "The terms of your Aunt's will were both simple and crystal clear." He turned slightly and smiled sweetly at the two year old. He winked and turned back to Ira. Martin pulled a bundle of papers from his briefcase. "They basically name your daughter as the sole beneficiary of a considerable estate. At the age of twenty, she'll be notified of her inheritance, on the strict stipulation that until that date, she be kept completely oblivious of this matter. It was her Great Aunt's desire that she have a childhood free from the "problems that money is prone to cause." Her quote exactly."
Hearing a tiny sneeze, he looked down at a small auburn headed cupid who was wiping her button nose on the back of her tiny hand. Crouching down, Martin pulled a monogrammed handkerchief from the pocket of his suit and gently wiped Willow's cute little nose. After losing a tug-of-war match with the little girl over the hankie, He grinned a half grin and stood, turning back to the cherub's father, who was engrossed in the Will of his late Aunt Alexandrea. "That is your copy of the will, Mr. Rosenberg. Feel free to have your lawyer go over them, explain anything you might have trouble with. If you have any questions, my office number is on the card. Again, I'd like to extend my deepest condolences, I happened to take over for my Father as Rea's lawyer and I enjoyed working with her immensely." The young man said with genuine regret in his voice while mentally wincing at the slip of using her nickname. Turning away from the nearly catatonic adult, he turned and looked down at the red headed toddler.
"Hello there Willow." he said as he crouched down in front of her.
"Huwwo. Who aw you?" she said in an innocent child's voice.
"I'm a friend, someone who'll protect you forever and ever. That sound ok to you?" He asked, pushing a red curl behind her tiny ear.
"Yeah. This is Betty," she said, holding out her dolly, a blonde cowboy doll with pale blue eyes.
"Is Betty short for Elizabeth?" he said, straightening the dolly's hair.
"Uh huh. It's short for Lizzybit" she said, struggling with the word.
"Unbelievable..." he said and nodded to Mr. Rosenberg who absently nodded to the departing young man, Slipping on a fedora, he slipped back into his black convertible and drove away, an image of a cute little redhead child fresh in his mind.
FIN