Simple Choices
by rebelrsr
Chapter 8
[reviews]
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, and lots of people in expensive suits. I'm not making any money here, just trying to create a happier Buffyverse for my favorite characters.
Spoilers: Big alterations for S4 after "The I in Team."
A/N: Thanks to the best beta crew: Zigpal and Zenithar. There would be no writing without you guys.
"You must be Adam," Buffy stated. "Nice. Definitely different from the usual run-of-the-mill demons we see." She prayed her unease wasn't too apparent. The thing on the catwalk was huge and looked straight from a science fiction special effects project.
A smile stretched the green skin on the left side of the monster's face. "Indeed. I am Adam." He stepped off the walkway and dropped to the floor. His feet rang metallically when they hit the floor. Not fazed by the twenty-foot drop, the hybrid stood calmly regarding the four humans. "Maggie Walsh created me."
Buffy nodded, sliding slowly to her left, hoping to get between the creature and the Scoobies. "Yeah. The good professor had some issues. So, you planning on taking over the world? Cause you might want to rethink that plan."
"Why?" Adam regarded the Slayer curiously.
The blonde struggled for an answer. *Do I look like Answer Girl?* Luckily, Willow stepped in to give her friend a hand. "Because trying to take over Sunnydale leads to you being dead. Simple, really." Her light, girlish voice was swallowed in the large room.
No one was prepared for the laughter that rumbled from Walsh's creation. "Magnificent. You think you can beat me." It wasn't a question. Adam cocked his head, eyes boring into the novice witch. "You feel familiar. Why?"
"No reason," Willow squeaked. "I mean, I'm not anything special; just me. Maybe you're confusing me with someone else."
Unfortunately for the redhead, the demon made the connection. "Ah. You use magic. I can feel your power." Red eyes bored into the redhead. "It is minimal, but surprising. Mother did not know humans could do magic." He moved forward a step.
That was enough for Buffy. The time for talk was over. Leaping in front of her best friend, she grabbed the hybrid's outstretched arm and launched a kick. She made solid contact with Adam's chest, but it didn't even slow his movement. A clawed hand grabbed the Slayer by the shirt, hurling her into the air. The blonde crashed into a research station, tearing through the table and landing on the floor. She lay there, stunned, as Adam stroked Willow's face with his human hand.
"Xan!" she called. Shaking himself out of his shock, the male Scooby drew his handgun and fired at Adam. The bullets bounced off the energy shield suddenly surrounding the demon.
"Your pathetic weapons cannot harm me." Adam smirked. "Maggie Walsh was a brilliant woman. She made sure I was protected from all manner of attack."
Willow was terrified. She felt the power surrounding the man/demon/machine standing so close. But the witch wasn't willing to watch the destruction of her family. Thinking furiously, the redhead pieced together a spell and reached out with astral hands, tapping into the enormous power source in front of her. The magic flooded through her and she channeled it into the words she chanted. Fearing a direct attack would also be deflected, she merged with the shield surrounding Adam, disrupting the harmony of the energy. Intermittent holes appeared. "Xan, try again," she ordered.
The report of the weapon rang through the room. Although most of the shots were stopped by the barrier, a few managed to find the gaps in the magic. Adam staggered. Blood and ichor oozed from the wounds. "You annoy me," he growled.
"Damn. And here I thought we could all hold hands and be friends," Willow chirped. Still flushed with her borrowed power, she tried a different spell. Continuing to disrupt the shield energy, she sent a tendril of magic around the demon, looking for a point of entry. The witch grinned, feeling the data drive mounted in the hybrid's chest. Her energy streaked into the port, widening as it flowed through the circuitry.
Her infiltration finally caught Adam's attention. He tried to grab the redhead, but his mechanical servos were frozen. Howling, he leveled a blast of raw power at Willow. Unprepared for the attack, the novice witch screamed in pain and dropped to the floor. "We will meet again, humans." With a powerful movement, the demon leapt up to the catwalk and disappeared through a doorway.
Buffy and Xander scrambled to Willow's side. "Doctor!" the Slayer snapped. The white-coated scientist ignored the panicked command and fled. "Fuck." The blonde pulled Willow into her arms. "Come on, Will. Wake up, please."
"Don't wanna," the slim redhead mumbled. Green eyes blinked up at the Slayer before widening. A blush raced across her cheeks, highlighting her freckles. "Whoo boy! What a rush." She grinned maniacally. "Now I know what Faith meant. Hey, Buffy, you get like this after patrol every night?"
The blonde scrambled to her feet, nearly tossing the witch onto the floor in her haste. "Let's get out of here," she said, avoiding the question hanging in the air. The other two teens shared a smile at Buffy's typical evasion of the question regarding the "HH Factor." "We need to fill Giles in. I don't think his precious books are going to be much help with this one."
They exited the lab. Soldiers swarmed the vast underground complex. "Looks like Engelmann alerted the troops," Xander commented. The three Scoobies ran through the organized confusion without challenge. The elevator ride passed in silence, each teen trying to come to terms with their battle with Adam.
"OK, guys. We need to get to the Council safe house. With Walsh dead, I don't think we need to hide from the Initiative, but Adam's on the loose." Buffy took the lead as the trio ran out of Lowell House. The sun had set.
Willow grabbed the blonde's arm. "Buffy, wait. We can't go charging through downtown Sunnydale in uniform. You and Xander are armed, for Goddess' sake."
"She's got a point, Buff."
Nodding reluctantly, the Slayer looked at the redhead. "Got a plan?"
"I'm working on it." The witch flashed an impish grin. "It isn't much, but it should keep us from getting too much attention. It's Thursday."
The 'and your point is' looks from her friends caused the grin to widen. "ROTC day, guys. Come on. It's the one day all the military students come out in uniforms. Ditch the guns inside Lowell House and we'll just be three college students out for a walk."
Xander didn't like the idea of leaving the weapons behind. "I don't know if we can get anymore guns, guys. This is the last of the supply we stole." He looked at Buffy. "We may need them."
"OK, Will. Plan B?"
Frowning in thought, Willow finally said, "Maybe. Don't move, 'k?" She was tired, but there was just enough power. Muttering a quick incantation, she waved her hands in front of the two 'Marines.' The air rippled and thickened around them. "As long as we don't walk in front of any mirrors, we're good." She rubbed her forehead. A reaction headache threatened.
"What did you do?" Buffy wanted to know as they resumed their trek for Sunnydale's residential area.
"I put a glamour on the guns." Willow struggled to keep up with the other two. It had been a very long time since she'd slept and the magics had wiped her out. "It's not a complicated one, so if you're in front of a mirror, the guns will show."
"Cool. Way to go, Will." The blonde smiled. "Looks like you just might be able to take my job after all. First you managed to freak out Adam and now the glamour. I think I'll retire."
"Goof." If she only had the energy, the witch would have smacked the grinning Slayer.
They slowed to a walk when they reached downtown. Throngs of people hurried down the sidewalks, intent on getting to their destinations as quickly as possible. The two BDU garbed teens got a few looks, but no one seemed overly interested. Finally, the Scoobies reached the edge of the business district. Buffy opened her Slayer senses, looking for possible threats. The night was quiet. "Think we're good, guys. No skulking required."
Still, they moved cautiously down the dark street to the Council's safe house. Entering through a back door, Buffy let her guard down and called out. "Hey, Giles? Mom?"
"In here, Buffy," Joyce Summers answered. The remaining members of the gang sat on couches around a long, low table. Dim lamps fought to provide lighting in the vast room. "Everything go OK?"
Ever the clown, Xander jumped in, "Not so much, Mrs. Summers. We met the demon and he pretty much laughed at us. Will managed to get off a few good shots, but me and the Buffster struck out."
"I take it you had no luck, then?" Giles tried to rephrase the teen's words.
"Right. The thing Tara saw last night has a name: Adam. It's some kind of hybrid." Willow went into lecture mode. "I'd guess Professor Walsh combined pieces of the demons the Initiative captured with a human body and then added some mechanical parts just to make sure she didn't miss anything."
"That's not good." The Watcher looked pained.
"Exactly. Add to that his penchant for random violence and a completely evil personality and you have an end of the world in the making." The Slayer's voice was tired. "Walsh outdid herself with this one. She screwed up big time with his programming or whatever. He's out of control."
Joyce joined the discussion. "Could you talk to her, honey? Maybe-"
"Too late, Mom. Her evil monster killed her." The younger Summers shrugged. "At least, that's the impression I got. She's definitely dead."
"Good Lord." Giles stood and paced. "Girls," he addressed the two witches, "do you remember which demons the faeries pointed out in the book?"
"Yes, Mr. Giles, but I don't think it was a complete list." Tara sat forward. "I don't think we can plan any magical offensive without a better idea what we might be facing."
The Briton removed his glasses and started chewing thoughtfully on the earpiece. "Perhaps we could try the spell a second time."
"Oh, no, Giles." Willow was quick to end that plan. "He's way powerful. I got a taste of it at the lab. We aren't trying that again." She described the demon's magical strength in detail. "I got lucky. He wasn't expecting me to try anything. Now that he knows we have magical capability, he'll be on guard."
No one seemed to have any more ideas. An uncomfortable silence grew in the room. Finally, Tara asked, "Do w-we ha-have any idea what Adam's mission is?"
"Based on the clues," Xander answered, "I'd say killing. He's a killing machine."
"That's probably a best case scenario," Buffy gloomily added. "He's unbelievably strong and he's a warlock to boot. Kinda got the best of it all, if you're on the Evil side of the game."
Willow tried to cheer up the Slayer. "Well, that's true. But, I'm betting since Professor Walsh designed Adam she left notes and stuff."
"Those are probably in the Initiative," Giles pointed out. "I don't think they are likely to let you walk back in and we certainly aren't in a position to mount a major offensive."
"No, but I did get into the system last night. I could go back and do some more digging." The redhead wasn't going to be brushed off. Giles never took her hacking seriously. "Maybe I can find her notes, or just a list of the demons they studied. It could help us identify all of Adam's parts."
"If you can do that, Willow, I'm sure we could do some magical research." Tara smiled crookedly at her student.
Buffy narrowed her eyes. She wasn't sure she liked the other blonde. After all, it took more than just one close call with demons to become a full-fledge member of the Scooby gang. "OK, Will. We'll turn you loose on the computers. Giles and Tara can start combing the magic books. Mom, Xander, and I will be the food and clothing getting crew. I think it's safer if we stay here for a bit."
"What about classes?" Everyone smiled at the redhead. "Hey, it's a valid question. Midterms will be here before you know it."
Knowing her friend's need to go to school, Buffy said, "Call a friend in one of your classes. Have them take notes and get assignments for you. I just don't want the Initiative or Adam waiting for us in regular spots." She walked over and hugged the despondent witch. "Come on, Will. It'll be like a big slumber party. Only without the movies, popcorn, and other goodies."
Willow brightened. "It has been a while since we got to spend quality time together. OK. I'll —"
A shrill ringing startled her into silence. "I'll get it." Giles moved across the room and picked up the phone. "Hello?...When?" Everyone looked at the older man. Something was wrong. His expression was worried. "OK. Thanks for calling."
The Scoobies waited for her to fill them in. "That was the hospital. I asked them to call if Faith's condition changed."
Swallowing hard, Buffy choked out, "She's dead?"
"No." The Watcher looked at his charge sympathetically. "She's awake, and she's disappeared."