Thirteen Steps -6- Pet
by Valyssia
The War Drums
[reviews]
12:30am and counting, Buffy thought to herself, looking down at her left hand turning her new ring to examine it. I really love handmade silver jewelry and this guy was good. She looked at the delicate wire-weave that formed an intricate, distinctly Celtic pattern. Turning it further to look at the open space that formed a small five pointed star. The knot design wove around the space and back on itself, leaving the area vacant and deeply tarnished. She wore the ring so the star pointed up, like Willow told her...banishing...protecting...
Glancing over she saw the same ring, but with a moon pattern instead on the redhead's hand. They had looked for something heavy, but not too heavy. So I wouldn't bend the hell out of it, she thought with a snicker. Spike quietly walked in the room. Vampiric grace in full swing, but Buffy heard him. I must've gotten the hearing upgrade too, she mused.
Leaning in to kiss Willow, she motioned to Spike and went to join him, to quietly talk. Willow sat still...she was obviously preparing...
"Thanks for coming Spike," Buffy said, giving him a warm smile. "Just like old times."
"Oh yeah... Bloody touching this is," he said, shooting her an evil grin.
"When you see the portal open, don't go in. Wait for Will and me to move. Stay with us and Willow says if you don't recognize it...don't touch it. They're liable to have all sorts of nasty stuff down there. She's going to go through and cleanse the place," Buffy said in a firm voice.
"Right...sounds easy enough and if I recognize it, smash the hell out of it unless it's breathing. Got it," Spike said with a firm nod.
"Sounds like the plan...need to prepare myself. See you inside," she gave Spike a quick wink and a hug, returning to where Willow was sitting.
Spike mumbled to himself as he watched the Slayer move, "Girl's definitely changed. Scary that."
Buffy resumed her station in front of Willow, taking the witch's hands, and beginning to relax. She spoke the words to open their thoughts and felt no resistance. I love you.
Willow replied, and I love you, remaining utterly still and placid. Relax precious...it's almost time...feel me...stay with me. The witch sent a gentle push to soothe her nervous partner. The Slayer was instantly calm and silent.
The portal opened. Willow guided Buffy out of body and into the middle of the large loading dock. They began the work of making all of the ammunition in the room useless. There was a lot of it, crates, skids, guns in the hands of men, and on their hips.
Buffy watched as Miss Hartness joined them, out of body herself. She floated, looking majestic with her hands over her head. Buffy looked up and saw the black clouds boiling overhead. A bit awestruck, she felt Willow redirect her.
Don't pay any attention to that...you'll lose focus and run if you do. Stay with me...I'll protect you...keep you safe, the witch directed.
Focusing outside the loading dock the Slayer began to work on the ammunition in the adjoining rooms with Willow.
Their job done, Willow nodded to the likeness of Miss Hartness, and the old witch made a slashing motion at one of the tanks. A bolt of lightning stuck floor to ceiling and the entire room erupted in a massive white flash, as the tank flew into the air. The phosphorus had exploded, blowing all of the glass out of the windows in the exposed offices that looked out onto the platform. The clear elevator shaft burst into a million tiny shards as the elevator car crashed to the ground next to the portal. All of the lights in the room shattered. There were light fixtures arcing offering tiny pulses of sparks as the only illumination.
An alarm sounded through the PA as warning lights flashed from the halls.
Here they come, thought Willow. Be ready...there's more for us to do.
Men came pouring out of every entrance, flooding the docks in a panic. They scrambled along the catwalk, looking bewildered, stumbling in the dark. The men that had been in the room at the time of the blast lay still, blood seeping out their ears. The new arrivals tripped over the bodies of their fallen comrades.
Quick now! Work fast, Willow instructed as she fevered to release all the phosphorus from the rounds. Buffy took up the hectic pace, adding to the speed and focus.
Come with me now. Willow nodded again to Miss Hartness and the old witch said, "Begin!" in a booming voice. Rain poured from the clouds in a fierce down pour. Water began to puddle on the floor. Buffy saw the first portal open as she made her way, following Willow.
Willow's eyes opened and she looked at Buffy, catching the Slayer's gaze she winked. They rose off the floor and Buffy pulled the scythe off her back. The energies started to arc around them as Willow began to charge for the coming conflict. Motioning Spike to them they set off for the portal.
Buffy looked around, it was no longer raining. The temperature in the room had risen to over 100f. The air hung heavy with a smell that was distinctly Hellmouthy, brimstone. There was chaos all around as men lay wounded and bleeding. Others trying to fire their useless weapons in looks of confusion and horror... The second volley hit as she watched. More men fell. Nice shooting ladies...
The Slayer felt the temperature begin to drop rapidly. Thick fog began to form and her ears popped as she pushed off Willow's hand and flipped into the air landing gracefully next to Spike as he fought. She stuck the first soldier at hip level with the back of the scythe, feeling bones break; she carried the momentum to the next man. Better than half them were down when the teams started to pour through the portals.
Willow focused on the first pallet.
Buffy saw a green ball of light leave the witch's hand, out of the corner of her eye, as she dropped another soldier to the floor with a brutal downward blow to his legs...the pallet exploded in huge fireball, lighting up the fog.
Willow motioned Buffy to go. Clear the men from around that tank. The witch pointed, starting to draw current from around her as she send another ball of energy blasting across the room to hit a pallet that stood away from the frolic.
The Slayer took off in a sprint, using the scythe to wound the soldiers in her path. Taking legs out three men at a time in a broad sweep that cut the muscles tendons across the fronts of their knees. She vaulted over the last group of soldiers between her and her goal, landing on the deck of the tank. They turned to foolishly charge her as Faith pointed her team at them. Seven slayers behind and one in front, Buffy swept in a low roundhouse, catching four the charging men in the face. Faith and the Omega Team caught the remaining men removing them with sweeping blows to their knees.
Willow surveyed the room. The cries of the wounded echoed in the cavernous space. She had to work to block out the pain and steady herself. There was movement all around as she watched Beta Team, Giles girls, take down a group of ten soldiers, wounding but not killing. Beyond them Jade was moving with the Gamma Team to engage another group. Behind her she felt Andrew's Delta Team moving to do the same. A sea of wounded men...dozens of them...this must be what war is like... War. The witch shuddered at this sobering thought and refocused herself as she turned to watch Buffy.
"Faith!" Buffy shouted, "Pass me your tonfa!" as she heard Willow's disturbing thought. It'll be okay, love. We can fight this one our way, she offered trying to sooth the witch.
"You outta your mind, B? Sorta busy!" Faith said in a loud voice pivoting on one foot to watch her team's back.
Buffy shot Faith an annoyed glare as she tossed the scythe overhand at her saying in a loud voice, "Catch!"
Faith reflexively caught the scythe left handed, with a glance. Turning back to look at Buffy, she tossed the tonfa back underhanded saying, "What...huh, B?" with a confused look on her face.
Buffy jumped over the wounded men, flipping in midair and caught the tonfa in an underhand grip. "It's yours now Faith...keep it safe...it's precious," she said making eye contact with the other slayer. "Now help me move these guys!" she commanded in a firm voice.
Faith muttered to herself, "Sup with B?" taking in the change to her eyes and the way she moved.
"Nuthin much Faith...it's all of the good," Buffy said conversationally, turning to look at the other slayer again, as the women came to her aid tossing the wounded men aside.
Now! Buffy vaulted out of the way with the Omega Team running behind her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Satsu and the Alpha Team moving to the door to intercept a group of men, headed for Willow. Her team leveled them in one elegant sweep as she smiled proudly.
Willow let go a pulse of energy that made the Slayer's hair stand on end, as the tank exploded behind her, adding to the smoke, fog and state of panic in the large room. Red lights began to show through the fog giving the room an eerie glow.
Buffy looked over as Willow drifted up next to her. Thanks sweetie...I really needed to do that. She watched Faith and the Omega Team sprint to help the Beta Team who seemed to be losing ground.
Seeing movement above them on the catwalk Buffy took three running steps and leapt flipping over the railing in front of the charging soldiers. Will get the two in the back, the Slayer thought and for her effort saw the witch release two more green pulses of light. The two men in front attacked her in turn. The first fell screaming at Willow's feet with a compound fractured arm. The second was unceremoniously thrown, by his uniform front, onto the debris of the smoldering tank. Buffy grabbed the railing and flipped back down next to Willow. "Anything bad left in this room?"
"Nope...pretty much got it all," Willow said with a smile. "And no deaths..."
"Good then do something for me please, dear. Hook this up to the PA. I'm sick of that stupid alarm," she reached into her back pocket and pulled out her iPod. The earbuds were clipped off and the wires exposed. "Make it so they can't turn it off and crank it."
Willow went over to the nearest PA speaker and yanked it off the wall. She back fed the signal with a few tweaks both magickal and technical. Noticing the double-faced tape, she pulled the protective strip and stuck the device in place. Turning the iPod on, she smiled to herself as 'The Ministry — Bad Blood' poured out over the PA. The witch dutifully turned the music up and froze the device.
Made a little playlist for our general rodent friend... Thought he might appreciate... Buffy collapsed the knees of one of the few remaining soldiers. She looked around approvingly. The other teams were making their way down the halls as Satsu came up behind her. Buffy turned, feeling the presence of the young Asian woman. "Nice of you to join...good to see you," she said with a smile, taking Satsu's hand.
Willow, Spike and the rest of the Alpha team joined them.
"Nice work... Let's make with the sweep and clear." Buffy said, setting off down the opposite passage Faith had traveled. "Will you lead..." she said holding back, "If Willow says it, do it. Goddess knows what we're going to find."
The first room looked to be a lab. No one inside, but there were all sorts of strange looking machines.
"Willow surveyed the devices and said in a firm voice, "Behind me."
They obeyed and the witch sent out another pulse of green light then quickly put up a shield. The room exploded in a torrent of multi-colored light, sending a shockwave out that rippled the barrier.
"We may be at this for awhile," Willow said with a sigh as they made their way down the hall. The witch reached out with her mind to try to find icky objects of interest as they moved. As promised there was a cloud of fog and red light that followed the team in. The music changed and 'Nine Inch Nail — The Wretched' resonated out over the PA as the screams of wounded men mixed with the din. The effect was chilling. Home again, she thought, feeling Buffy shudder too.
As they went there was an explosion in the distance and the few remaining lights flickered out. Buffy chuckled, hearing crashes issuing from all around them. Good girls...guess one of the teams hit the power station. Hey, why's the music still playing?
Magick. Willow laughed softly, taking her partner's hand, causing her to rise off the floor as the arcing current encircled the Slayer too. With a slight wave of her hand she conjured an orb of glowing light and commanded it to follow Satsu as they moved.
Buffy chuckled saying, "You girls can fan out and see if you can find the fun again...Will and I'll be fine... You too Spike. Place feels dead to me though...destroy everything...unless it looks of the bad...then leave it to me and Wills..." She winked at Spike as she concluded, "Trash the place."
"In here, Buffy," Willow said in a gentle voice, pulling the Slayer along. The small office lit with a soft blue/green glow when they entered. The witch conjured another small ball of energy to light the area by. Willow dropped to the floor and pulled up the office chair. She placed her hands over the keyboard and the machine sprang to life. "It'll just be one second," the witch said as her eyes glazed over black. "I just need to poison the system. I'll have to magickally start up the network so I can get out onto the WAN."
"I'll watch the door...you work...do what it takes," Buffy said, taking a post at the entrance. In truth Willow's eyes still made her uncomfortable and she needed to move away and purge the unwanted emotion.
Willow stood up when her work was done. Sending a pulse at the computer, it exploded in a shower of sparks. She came up behind Buffy and put her arms around the Slayer's waist, saying in a gentle voice, "I'm sorry this makes you uncomfortable, love. Turn and look at me."
Buffy obeyed, turning she saw Willow's eyes and quickly averted her gaze.
Willow thought, look at me love...I would never hurt you...I love you, as she placed and hand on Buffy's cheek and turned her face back gently, working to sooth her.
Buffy looked deeply into the witch's black eyes. She watched as they returned to the soft hazel color she adored. She placed her hand around the back of Willow's neck and gave her a soft, loving kiss. Reaching to open the door, she the witch led along with her.
"I think there's something bad this way," Willow said taking the lead and starting to recharge. The couple drifted up off the floor again, as the witch collected energies. "In here," she said in a cautious voice.
Buffy stepped down, releasing Willow's hand and kicked the door off its hinges. She grasped the witch's hand, rising up into the protective energies as Willow focused on the offensive item and it exploded in another ripple of light.
Willow began to concentrate, looking for the next item as the Gamma Team moved past them in a tight clump, turning back for the exit. "They must've made the full circuit. We shouldn't meet any more soldiers at least. Found the next one..." she said in a soft voice as they began to move purposefully once again.
When the witch stopped Buffy hopped down to open the door with a blow from her shoulder. "That thing's weird...what is that, a cannon?"
"I think it might be used to open portals. Take my hand, dear," Willow said, reaching down and beginning to focus her power again. When she felt Buffy at her side she sent out another pulse. The machine burst in a cascade of orange light and red sparks.
"That one was pretty," Buffy said appreciatively.
Willow laughed as she said, "I suppose it was." She reached out again and found nothing troublesome for the effort. "I think we have it...let's continue down this way just for a look and then we can leave," as she spoke she started to drain the energies off and they settled to the ground.
"Left I think," Willow said touching her chin. "I didn't feel or see any of our people come from this direction." About halfway down the passage they came across a door marked with the number thirty. Willow stopped to point and say, "Whatcha think? Triple-X...?"
"I think Ethan might have gotten a get out of jail free card. But if I hear the words 'my' or 'love'..." the Slayer put a shoulder into the door. It popped open and they both saw a horrible sight. Slumped over in a pool of blood, lay the body of Ethan Rayne. He'd been shot in the head.
Out of the corner of her eye Buffy caught a flourish of movement. Reflexively, she struck, knocking the gun from the hands of her attacker. It discharged. She grabbed the man by his shirt and threw him against a wall in a fury. She heard a crack as his body hit the wall with brutal force. His shirt tore revealing the symbol she'd seen before, "The mark," she said, looking at the older man. That mark Wills...the horizontal line with the arched line crossing it and the star...I saw that a few weeks back before you came to see me, on a mission with the girls, she offered as a look of shock crossed her face.
The Alpha Team ran up to see where the gunshot had come from. Satsu and Leah poked their heads in the door, silently taking in the scene.
"Twilight," said General Voll, pausing to choke, he continued in a weak voice, "...is coming for you, for all of your monstrous spawn...It all ends very soon."
Buffy looked down at the man with rage in her eyes, "Are you talking about the girls who are protecting the world from..."
General Voll interrupted, cutting the Slayer off, "Evil? Demons? Where do you think your power comes from? Oh wait; you already know. You've upset the balance girl. Do you really think we are going to sit by and let you create a 'Master Race'?"
Oh boy, Will...this guys a total whack job... Buffy felt the witch move in behind her, taking her hand to make room for the Alpha Team to file in. Buffy spat in a cold voice as she felt her girls draw around her, "This isn't about demons at all is it? It's about women. It's about power and it's about women and you just hate those two words in the same sentence, don't you?"
General Voll choked and hissed in a failing voice, "You think its only men that want to bring you down? You're not human. You've been to war with the demons, with the First, but believe me you picked the wrong side 'cause God help us, if you win then you'll decide the world isn't the way you want it and the demon in you will say just one thing, 'Slay'."
I picked the wrong side? Was I supposed to invite the First in for a mocha? Wow...this guy's giving me a serious wiggins, Will. Nothing scarier than a fanatic... Buffy thought nervously.
Willow put her arm around Buffy waist and tried to sooth her.
"We're not waiting for that to happen. We'll wipe you out." General Voll continued getting obviously weaker for the effort, "Not just the monsters anymore. It's you against the world. You're at war with the human race." He breathed in deep, shaky breath as a faint trickle of blood appeared in the corner of his mouth.
Yeah he missed my resume...totally. Buffy snickered slightly, looking briefly over her shoulder at Willow she said, "Oh." Then turning to face the General, giving him a look of complete contempt, she finished the word, "Kay."
Buffy reached down, taking the badges on the General's coat into her hand, she ripped them off the garment. Tucking the items into her back pocket, she left the room with her Willow beside her and the Alpha Team on her six.