Somewhere I Have Never Travelled; Book Two
by Kirayoshi
A Beltaine Night's Tale
[reviews]
Chapter Six
A Beltaine Night's Tale
There's no time for us
There's no place for us
What is this thing that builds our dreams yet slips away from us
Who wants to live forever
Who wants to live forever?
There's no chance for us
It's all decided for us
This world has only one sweet moment set aside for us
Who wants to live forever
Who wants to live forever?
Who dares to love forever?
--Queen
"Who Wants To Live Forever?"
Buffy stared directly at the three vampires, daring them to make the first move, her hand gripped tightly around Mr. Pointy. She sized up her opposites, and didn't like the odds.
The one on the left, she knew all too well. Spike, AKA William Blood, AKA William the Bloody, AKA Jack the Ripper. Cocky, violent, bad tempered, interested only in self-preservation. He was tamed last year by the Initiative when they installed a chip in his head that prevented him from harming others. Now, he has informed her that the chip was removed.
The one on the right, she also knew. Faith. A slayer like herself. But so different. Darker, more concerned with herself than with her calling. So many long nights, she wondered if any single change in herself would have made her like Faith. All she knew in the end was that Faith was dangerous. And that was as a human. Now, she was a vampire.
The one in the middle, Buffy didn't have a clue. He called himself Mr. Beltaine, he seemed to know a great deal about herself and her friends. He claimed to be the leader of the Kalderash tribe, the home of her late friend Jenny Calendar, and Angel recognized him as the one who bound his soul to him. He also had claimed that he possessed his soul.
For many long moments, Buffy regarded the three vampires with an expressionless face, which in many ways was her most intimidating expression. Willow stepped up next to Buffy, her resolve face firmly in place. Giles, Xander, Tara, Sandra and Denise stood at the ready as well, prepared to follow Buffy's lead.
Finally, the leader of the vampires broke the stalemate. "I know that there is nothing I can say that you will trust, but I assure you that the three of us mean you no harm. And what I have to say to you is of vital importance to you all. Indeed, your very existence depends on it. But perhaps we can remove ourselves to a safer shelter. My residence is a few blocks away from here. Will you join us?"
Buffy glanced back at Giles, who regarded the three before them with the same caution that she demonstrated. "Confab, people. Any ideas on mystery guest Number One?"
"None, Buffy," Giles admitted.
"Cordy and I ran into him the other night," Xander offered. "He didn't do anything to us, he just asked us to tell Giles that he needed to talk."
Buffy looked back at Beltaine. "Is that why you're here, buddy? To talk?"
Beltaine nodded.
"What about your chorus line? Any reasons I shouldn't stake them now?"
"Only your deep-seated aversion to killing anything with a soul," Spike answered, and Buffy for the first time noted that his normal venomous attitude was missing. "Yeah, that's right Ducks, Beltaine came up to me a couple of months ago and offered to have the chip removed. Just like that. Of course, he forgot to tell me after he removed the chip that he provided a far more insidious substitute. My soul."
"Same here, B," Faith answered. "Mr. B here had my body taken out of the prison morgue just after those vamps took me out, then bound my soul to me. Nowadays, I go to sleep with memories of the mistakes I made, the people I hurt or killed. I'll be atoning for my crimes for a long time."
"Yeah, well boo-effing-hoo!" Willow shouted at the dark Slayer. Buffy felt her jaw tense as she heard the one she loved speak with such hatred. She glared at Faith herself, hating her all the more for causing such pain to Willow. "After what you did to Buffy and me the last time we met, don't be expecting any favors from us!"
"I told you, Mr. B," Faith said sadly to her leader, "they're not gonna wanna listen to us! They'll never forgive me."
"We are not here to seek forgiveness, Faith," Beltaine admonished her gently, "rather, to earn it." To Buffy, he said, "I ask again. Will you and your party join us?"
Buffy looked at Willow, again relying on her for support, for advice, for a moral compass. Willow's eyes narrowed, and she spoke with a dark tone; "If you go, you don't go alone."
Buffy asked Beltaine, "My posse goes with me. Agreed?"
Beltaine smiled warmly. "What I have to say is for all of you." Buffy nodded, and murmurs of agreement were heard from those behind her.
"Hey, Bossman," Spike commented, "we forgot something. Look," he pointed to the three Harley Davidson motorcycles that were left behind when Hell's Belles scattered. "We can't leave three Harley hawgs lying around. You want someone to start asking questions?"
Beltaine noticed the three bikes. "Good point, William. I'll make arrangements for my people to pick them up. We'll have to check the serial numbers, assuming they weren't filed off, to make sure they weren't stolen. If we can't find their rightful owners," he smiled at Buffy, "well, we have three slayers, maybe they could use them."
"No one claim the blue one, no one claim the blue one, no one claim the blue one," Faith chanted to herself. Buffy and Sandra admired the bikes briefly, then Buffy said to Mr. Beltaine, "Let's just stick to the subject for now before you start playing Vampy Claus."
"Fair enough," Beltaine agreed.
The party left in silence, and soon arrived at an attractive townhouse a few blocks north of the park. Willow admired the ornate brass-inlayed oak doors, and the size of the bay window that overlooked the front lawn. Much larger than the place she and Buffy shared. Beltaine opened the door, and ushered the others inside. All filed in silently, except for Angel, who stood outside the door impatiently. Beltaine looked at Angel, and suddenly remembered. "My apologies, Liam," he chuckled. "Enter freely, and of your own free will."
As Angel entered the house, Willow glanced around the living room, looking uncomfortably at the surroundings. She was about to sit down, when an all-too familiar voice greeted her; "Hey, Willow. Long time."
Willow spun on her heel, at the person who greeted her. A thin, lanky young man with sandy brown hair walked down the stairs, his familiar unassuming air still apparent. Willow growled with rage and fear, as she recognized him. "OZ!" she shrieked. "But you're dead! I killed you!" Buffy promptly rushed to Willow's side and held her in her arms as Willow trembled at the sight of her once-lover and later betrayer.
Daniel Osbourne stood silently, checking the pulse of his left wrist with his right hand, and said, "Uh, I beg to differ. I was told about what happened--"
"SHUT UP!" Willow commanded. "Just don't speak to me, ever! I don't know how you got out of Hell, but one more word out of you, I'll send you back!"
Oz looked sadly at Willow and Buffy, who both looked at him in undisguised contempt, and sighed. "I guess we know what my evil twin's been up to, Mr. Beltaine."
"Indeed," Beltaine said sadly. "My apologies, ladies, I should have warned you. I--"
"WARNED US?" Buffy shouted. "Warned us that the man who tried to killed me is your houseguest? Yeah, you bloody well should have told us!"
"This is not the Daniel Osbourne who sent you into hell," Beltaine raised his voice to be heard above Buffy's tirade. "Please, Slayer, bear with me for the duration. I have much to explain to you, and I will gladly answer any questions you may have when I have finished."
"Please, mates," Spike requested. "The man's telling it straight. Listen to him."
"Oh, yeah, like you're a fine character witness," Angel spat out.
"Back off, Peaches," Spike growled at his former partner in mayhem. "Just because I've got a soul doesn't mean that I like you any better, Angst-boy!"
"Oh, shut up, Jack!" Buffy shouted at the blond vampire. "Yeah, that's right, we know." To the others, she announced, "Did you guys know that he was Jack the Ripper?"
Before Spike could respond to Buffy's accusations, Beltaine held up his hands. "Please, please, we have plenty of enemies without fighting among each other. Sit down, let me speak my peace."
Buffy and Willow glowered at Oz, who just sat on the stairs, away from the group. He recognized that he wouldn't be welcome among his old friends for the time being, and hoped simply that once Mr. Beltaine told his story, they would accept him again. He watched as Buffy sat next to Willow on the sofa and draped her arm protectively around Willow's shoulders. He caught a glint on Willow's finger, and when he got a better look, he saw the engagement ring on her finger. One look at the way she leaned into Buffy's embrace and Oz knew that Buffy and Willow had indeed found each other. He was glad of that. He was glad that Willow had found happiness with someone who could love and protect her. He silently wished them good fortune.
"Now then," Beltaine said civilly as Faith emerged from the kitchen carrying a tea tray, and offering tea, coffee or cocoa to the guests, "Perhaps I had better explain who I am, and why I am here. I was born Janus Pyotr Kalderash, in the Year of our Lord 1077. I was the heir to the dominion of the Romani clan, and had been trained in the skills I would need to fulfill the demands of leadership. Warrior skills, as well as healing magic. Our people were well versed in the ways of magic, and possessed many artifacts, a few of which we still hold fast to. Giles, if you would open the wooden case on the table in front of you?"
Giles looked warily at Mr. Beltaine, who nodded solemnly. Guessing it was safe, Giles examined the small, ornately carved, red lacquered wooden chest that sat in front of him. He loosened the catch, lifted the lid, and sat back as he beheld its contents, his eyes big as baseballs. On the sofa next to his chair, he could hear Willow gasp. "My dear lord," he whispered. "Is that--"
"The Greater Orb of Thessula," Beltaine acknowledged. "I understand that you, Willow Rosenberg, used a smaller Orb to re-bond Angel's soul."
"Yeah, me and the others," Willow answered sheepishly, recalling the harrowing experience. She had never before taken on such a monumental task in magic, and was both relieved that it worked, and saddened that it was too late to save Angel once Acaltha had been awakened.
"This is the source of that magic," Beltaine stated. "The source of my own soul. I had ascended to the role of chieftain of my tribe when I was twenty, and had for ten years led my tribe, protecting it from the slowly encroaching conquerors and crusaders. It was then when an ancient vampire had chosen to Turn me. I was Born to Darkness...I believe that's how Anne Rice described it, I rather liked that turn of phrase...in the year 1109. My very first thought as a vampire was to destroy my wife, Magda, and our children. But Magda was well versed in the ways of magic, and had cast a spell to restrain me. She then led the elder mages of the tribe to invoke the Orb, to use its powers to restore my humanity. They hadn't quite succeeded, but she had managed to bind my soul to me. The price was great, however; my Magda had died to invoke the spell, sacrificing herself to save me, to save our people from me.
"I felt great guilt over my condition, and how it had cost my Magda her life, but in time, I saw the rightness of her actions. The vampire who had taken me from the daylight sought to use me to destroy my tribe. Some unspoken insult, some redress of grievances. By some strange irony, that vampire had insured my tribe's survival, by granting me the means and the power to defend it, literally forever. I made sure to thank my unwilling benefactor before I slew him.
"For the next few centuries, I protected my tribe from all threats; barbarian conquerors, crusaders, those who simply sought to destroy us because we existed. Through the centuries, I watched as my two daughters had children of their own, and their children had children, and they had children of their own, from generation to generation. Janna Kalderash, whom you know as Jenny Calendar, she was a direct descendant of mine. I don't recall how many generations removed." Beltaine regarded Angel with a gimlet eye, causing the younger vampire to squirm in his seat. "As was the child who's life was taken by a vampire named Angelus."
Angel bowed his head low, saying, "I know, Janus Kalderash, and I regret my crimes."
Beltaine smiled at Angel. "Do not blame yourself for your demon's actions, Liam. You have been punished long enough." To the others, he explained; "You see, I used the Greater Orb of Thessula to restore Angel's soul, with the clause that should he not be tormented by the crimes of his past before he succeeded in atoning for them, his soul would be lost and the demon would retain control. It was meant as a punishment, true. But not an eternal punishment."
"So you're saying that Angel has the potential for his own salvation?" Giles asked.
"I am. As he traveled the world after our encounter, I sent my spies after him to monitor his progress. The last spy I sent was Janna. She reported back with the news that Angel was no longer living a furtive and solitary life, doing nothing but reflecting on his own self-pity. Instead he chose to join with others, with one called the Slayer, to aid her in her battle with evil." Leaning forward, Beltaine captured Buffy's eye with his own. "You, my friend, were the catalyst of his salvation. Through you, because of his love for you, Angel stopped brooding and began to act, to atone for his past by undoing evil instead of spreading it. In retrospect I should have kept Janna better informed, or allowed her greater leeway in revealing her mission to you. Perhaps the knowledge of what would have happened if he ever experienced a moment of pure happiness before his time would have saved her life."
Buffy nodded silently, feeling that familiar grief and guilt build up in her soul. Willow must have sensed her beloved's unease, because she started to caress her shoulders gently with her hand. "Don't go there," she whispered to Buffy. "It isn't your fault. What happened isn't anyone's fault. It just happened."
"Your love speaks truth," Beltaine assured Buffy. "I have lived no small years, and have seldom known of greater love or greater sacrifice than that which you experienced. I have known many Slayers over the years. I have been a silent partner to the Watcher's Council for over five centuries, until recent years when their desire for control outstripped their duty to the cause. And in all that time, I have never known a more capable fighter than you, Buffy Anne Summers."
These words of praise, from someone who should be an enemy, somehow caused Buffy to feel a great weight lift off of her shoulder. The knowledge that this man, the oldest relative of Jenny Calendar, did not blame Buffy for her death, caused Buffy to feel a lightness in her soul that she seldom experienced, outside of Willow's arms.
"I'm still at a loss to understand this," Denise spoke up. "I had always understood that once a person was turned into a vampire, the soul fled the body, allowing the demon to take over."
"It is not so simple, my lady," Beltaine said, nodding to the younger Watcher. "The soul remains dormant within the body, where it remains a prisoner, but if the soul is strong enough, it may be allowed to retain control, albeit only with some magical assistance. I have made an extensive study of vampires, and I learned a few things that your Watcher's Council had not discovered. I learned that it is not the act of Turning that shocks a soul into dormancy, but the first kill. The Demon that enters the body of a newly-sired vampire will lose its power quickly unless the soul can be quickly corrupted. That is why, Liam, that the moment you were turned your first act was to kill your parents. The demon drives its host to murder, thus forcing the soul to recoil from what it has become. The demon then has free reign, to kill and devour as it pleases."
"But the soul may be restored," Angel continued the thought, "by a powerful spell, like the Orb of Thessula?"
"You got it," Spike answered. "Of course, if you've been a naughty vamp, the process of getting your soul back takes a long time, and hurts like Hell, literally. Y'see, mate, I'm about where you were before. My soul's a loaner, and if I get the happies once, it's gone. I've done some terrible things in my unlife; like Buffy said, I operated in the Whitechapel area during 1888, and the dumb coppers never found half of the women I killed. All their faces, and all the others I killed, they visit me every night now. But I got hope now. It's a matter of atonement. I hate to say it, Ducks, but you were on to the right idea all along."
"Yeah, what peroxide-boy said," Faith added. "I mean, I wasn't a prize when I was alive, who knows what kinda psycho vamp I'd have been if Mr. B hadn't claimed my corpse from stir. I owe him for the second chance, and I owe the rest of you for all the crap I put you through." She bowed her head, and Buffy searched Faith's manner and her voice for any sign of pretense, of guile. She found none. Faith was laying her soul bare before them, not caring what they thought of her. "I don't expect any forgiveness, and I wouldn't accept it if offered. Not yet, anyway. I'm as far from five-by-five with you guys as you can get. All I ask is the chance to prove myself. The old Faith is dead. Let her rot. 'Cause no matter how much you guys hated her, I will always hate her more."
Buffy and the others sat in silence, digesting Faith's words. Buffy looked into Willow's eyes, again relying on the red-haired wiccan as her moral compass. She could see anger and resentment still flaring in those jade-green orbs, but somewhere beyond that, she could see something resembling compassion. Willow nodded at Buffy, silently indicating her willingness to trust the two vampires.
"Okay," Buffy stated, crossing her arms. "We'll give you that opportunity. But," she added, her eyes narrowing to angry slits, "what about THAT?" She pointed to Oz, who sat quietly on the stairs, watching the debate. "He still betrayed us, is he trying to redeem himself too?"
"Buffy, you don't know half of the truth," Oz said sadly. "I haven't set foot in Sunnydale since I first left two years ago. I'd been studying in Tibet, learning how to control the wolf within." The others gaped at Oz, disbelieving.
"He speaks the truth," Beltaine defended the werewolf. "I ventured to the lamasery where he was staying three months ago, and recruited him to my cause. I knew I had to find him when I heard what had happened to Buffy last year." He opened a drawer beneath the coffee table, and withdrew a leather-bound journal. "Perhaps this will explain it more eloquently than I could," Beltaine presented the book to Giles. Giles examined the binding, looking for a title or any identification. He opened the book, took one look at the first page, and dropped the book immediately.
"My dear Lord," he whispered. "That--that's my handwriting. I'd know it anywhere. But I never wrote in this book before in my life!"
"You didn't," Beltaine agreed. "But Rupert Giles did."
"And the contradictory award goes to--" Xander commented.
"You are aware of the idea of alternate realities, Xander," Beltaine said impatiently. "I understand that your fiancee, Cordelia, witnessed one such reality, one where Buffy never came to Sunnydale?"
"Don't remind us," Willow rolled her eyes. "I still have nightmares about my vampiric twin." Although, she did admit to herself, that her other half did make her think about a few things. 'Kinda Gay', she said at the time. She glanced at Buffy, feeling a mischievous grin tug at her mouth.
"You say, then," Giles nodded, "that this diary comes from an alternate reality?"
"It does," Beltaine answered. "One where you made a terrible mistake, Rupert Giles, a mistake you were able to correct in your own world. But the consequences for your rash acts were much more dire in this other world. As you shall see when you read the text. Please, read the first few entries now."
Giles turned the page, and scanned through the first few paragraphs. His breathing grew more labored as he read, and sweat formed on his brow. Buffy glanced at her Watcher, worried about what she was seeing. Whatever was in that book, it was having a nasty effect on Giles.
"My God--" he stammered when he could not read any more. "In this world," he said, displaying the book, "I never told Buffy the truth of the rite of passage on her eighteenth birthday. Buffy went to face Kralik alone, not knowing what had happened to her, how I had--" his voice started to catch, as his normally dignified, stuffy attitude was replaced by anger, self-loathing and despair. "How I had betrayed the Slayer."
"Hey, don't go there, Giles," Buffy assured her Watcher, placing her hand on his. "We've had this conversation before. When it came down to crunch time, you did what was right, not what the Council ordered. I don't blame you for what happened. Not anymore."
"Yes," he said, flustered. "I was able to correct my error. But my counterpart, he went along with the Council. As a result, Buffy didn't know what she was getting into." He sipped his tea in an attempt to calm his nerves. "In his world, Kralik won. He Turned Buffy, and she then killed Joyce." A collective gasp could be heard from the others, and Willow's grip on Buffy's arm tightened. "Buffy took the name of Lady Bathory, a noblewoman of Sixteenth century Eastern Europe who was reputed to be a psychotic killer of young virgins. Buffy, or Bathory, then turned Willow, Xander and Cordy, had Willow cast a spell to corrupt Oz, and then they tormented her Giles."
"Whoa," Willow interrupted. "You're saying that my other self in this world turned Oz evil?"
"That's exactly what he's saying," Beltaine said solemnly. "He was the one who betrayed you, who sent you to hell. He was sent here by Lady Bathory to take out her greatest threat to her plans. She is coming to your world. Soon.
"And unless we band together to stop her, we are all doomed."
No one said anything for over a minute. Willow looked darkly at Oz, looking for the man who betrayed her last year, and only finding the sad, silent young man who gave her up for her own safety. And perhaps for the opportunity to find her true love. She still didn't trust him, perhaps she never would, but she no longer hated him. She didn't have the time or energy to hate him.
Buffy, for her part, allowed Beltaine's words to roll around in her head. If Beltaine was right, then she and the others were about to face a threat even greater than Mayor Wilkins, Angelus, or Adam.
They were going to face themselves.