"Calvary"
Wo-Pang sits on the floor amidst an array of candles and ritual artifacts, chanting. Sounds of a fight are heard outside. An unconscious body is tossed into the room. Wo-Pang casually notes he really needs to hire better security people.
Connor, Wes and Cordy enter. Wes tells the Shaman Angel's soul was stolen.
Wo-Pang says he has no need of it.
Connor asks where it is
Wo-Pang tosses a handful of small bones onto the floor, reads them, then says he can't discern where it is but it is "still viable within the Muo-Ping."
Connor asks what he's talking about.
Wes explains the soul is still safe in the container.
Cordelia figures this probably isn't the first time a soul has been misplaced. She wonders what the backup plan is to re-ensoul someone in case of such an occurrence.
Wo-Pang answers that he's not aware of any other way. "Without the Muo-Ping, you're screwed."
Connor asks what happens if the container gets opened or broken.
The shaman answers, like anything else, the soul can be returned or destroyed.
A gust of wind blows through the room.
Gunn fills a flame-thrower with gasoline as he and Fred keep watch on Angelus on the lobby monitor.
Angelus taunts them, saying he realizes being evil is bad, he wants to be good, he wants to be Angel again. He says he's ready.
Gunn tests the flame-thrower and assures Angelus he's ready as well.
Fred figures Angelus knows the soul is missing.
Gunn reckons he probably knew it before they did.
Fred hopes Wo-Pang can help them.
Gunn doesn't think the shaman should have been brought there in the first place, pointing out that they not only have the Beast to deal with now but "Darth Vampire living in the basement."
Fred believes bringing out Angelus was their best hope.
Gunn wonders if that's Fred talking or Wesley.
Fred reminds him he agreed to the plan as well.
Gunn concedes he may have been wrong.
Angelus notes Gunn's accidental punch on Fred earlier ("Soulless"), saying he's sure Wes wouldn't hit her. He's too "proper and English." He notes Wes also has the accent going for him, women like that, makes them all weak in the knees. He says he had an Irish accent "back in the day" and offers to use it if Fred would like "when I rape you to death."
An uncomfortable Fred silently casts her eyes downward.
Gunn has heard enough and shuts the sound off on the monitor.
Fred tells him they're just words, it's the only weapon Angelus has. He knows he won't get out of the cell.
Angelus turns to look toward a clanging sound. A disheveled Lilah enters the basement from one of the sewer tunnels and approaches the cell. She notes his presence with a flat, "The great Angelus."
He figures she could accentuate the awe a bit, suggesting "The great Angelus" would be a better delivery.
She points out he's locked in a cell, not much 'great' about that.
Angelus looks her over and notes that even locked in a cage, he's doing better with the personal grooming thing than she is. He observes she waited all these years to meet him but couldn't comb her hair or put on a little makeup? "Evil doesn't have to mean sloppy."
Lilah tells him to "Stop it."
Angelus figures he worked a nerve.
She tells him she wants him to stop the Beast.
Angelus isn't sure he wants to do that, saying he's not particularly a fan of the Beast but he does credit it for bringing on perpetual darkness.
An agitated Lilah asks if he can kill it or not as she reveals a crowbar she's brought with her.
Angelus wonders what she's so anxious about.
Lilah says the Beast took everything away; killed everyone at Wolfram & Hart.
Angelus notes he saw the Beast's handiwork, thought it was rather impressive.
Lilah adds that everyone was killed including field operatives, liaisons and even those who were at home, sick. She's the only one left, so far. She doesn't understand why the Beast chose to attack them considering they're the bad guys.
Angelus reckons they weren't bad enough but mentions there's a positive for Lilah, at least she has a loving, devoted boyfriend. He pauses briefly, then notes that's not exactly true anymore. Her life really is in the dumper.
Lilah reminds him she's not the one locked up. She wants the Beast killed and figures Angelus is the only one who can do the job.
Angelus offers that perhaps they can make a deal.
In the lobby, Gunn tells Fred that he didn't mean to hurt her when he accidentally punched her out, he would never do that.
Fred knows that but can't help but think if he hadn't "attacked" --
Gunn interrupts her, not liking her choice of the word. He asks if that's how she sees things, that he "attacked" Wesley, and wonders how Fred would describe what Wes was doing with her in the office before he came in.
Fred tries to deny anything was going on, Gunn knows better. He knows Wes was kissing her and tells her not to lie about it, she isn't good at it.
Fred tells him it wasn't planned, "It just happened."
Gunn responds, "Because you let it."
Fred looks away from him.
Gunn says he never felt for anyone the way he felt for her but he realizes it's not enough. He can't do it anymore, he's tired of her "looking everywhere but at me."
Fred starts to respond to that but she's interrupted by Connor, Wes and Cordy returning to the hotel. Fred turns to look and Gunn notes his point is proven. He walks away from her.
Wes approaches Fred and asks what's going on.
She looks toward Gunn, who's watching the basement cell on the monitor, then back at Wes. She says she can't figure out the Svear's banishing spell. She asks if they had any luck with Wo-Pang.
Connor says he didn't have the soul, doesn't know where it is, doesn't know who took it, doesn't know how to find it.
Cordy notes sarcastically that things are going well. She asks if Lorne had luck getting information from any of his contacts.
On the monitor, Gunn sees Lilah near Angelus' cell with the crowbar. He grabs a tranquilizer gun and heads downstairs. The others follow.
Gunn fires a tranquilizer dart into Angelus, knocking him out.
Lilah makes a run for it.
The others come downstairs. Gunn tells them Lilah took off through the sewer tunnel.
Wes rushes after her.
Connor starts to follow but Gunn stops him, suggesting he stay, just to be sure it's not a trap.
Lilah runs down the sewer tunnel with Wes hot on her trail.
In the basement, Gunn directs Connor to check the locks on the cage. He checks the locks then notices the crowbar Lilah had dropped on the floor and kicks it away from the outside of the cell. Gunn wonders how stupid Lilah must be to have been willing to let Angelus out.
Cordy wonders how Lilah knew Angelus had been brought back in the first place. Connor offers that perhaps Lilah is the one who took Angel's soul.
Gunn answers Cordelia's query, noting that Lilah was a higher up at W&H, it would be her job to know. Fred thought everyone at W&H had been killed by the Beast. Gunn wonders if Lilah made a deal with it. Connor asks if he thinks she has a connection to it.
Wes tracks Lilah to a rundown restroom in an abandoned subway tunnel where it appears she's been living. Wes recalls he did suggest she "go underground" but he didn't exactly mean it literally.
Lilah pulls her hand from her side, revealing blood soaking through her shirt.
Wes asks if that's where the Beast clawed her when it was rampaging through W&H ("Habeas Corpses").
She says it won't heal.
He offers to check it out for her as he moves toward her.
She pulls back, steels herself, and assures him she's fine.
Wes asks how she knew they'd brought Angelus back.
She answers it's big news, "taking a champion's soul". She picked it up on the grapevine. She figures it was Wesley's idea to bring him back, noting she was thinking the same.
Wes points out bringing him back in a controlled situation isn't the same as releasing him.
Lilah insists she wasn't going to let Angelus out.
Wes asks about the crowbar.
She claims she wanted Angelus to believe she was going to set him free, to think she was desperate.
Wes reckons that part was an easy sell, recalling she always wanted Angelus.
Lilah corrects him, saying it was W&H that wanted him but none of that matters anymore. She just wants to get her life back, her "pretty things", she's selfish that way. She figures that's why she and Wes never would have worked out.
Wes offers there are reasons beyond that.
Wes looks around the restroom and notices a book among Lilah's few possessions. He picks it up, noting it's a copy of "Rhinehardt's Compendium."
Lilah wants to find a way to make the Beast pay for what it's done.
Wes leafs through the book, telling her he's already checked his copy. There's nothing helpful to be found there. He stops when he comes upon an illustration of the Beast in the book.
He thumbs through the rest of the book, noting with surprise it's identical to his copy except for the passage on the Beast which seems to be missing from his.
Lilah tells him she called in some favors and got the book off the "pan-dimensional black market." It's not a local copy.
Wes thinks out loud on the matter, saying that the books should still be the same unless -- He realizes that there may have been references to the Beast in other dimensions that were somehow removed from this one. He needs to compare books from other dimensions to be certain. He wonders what something so powerful would need to conceal.
In the basement, Angelus lies on the floor of the cell, still apparently unconscious. Gunn opines whether it's Lilah or not something is in league with the Beast.
Cordy agrees, pointing out that would explain how the Beast got past them at Gwen's to murder Manny ("Long Day's Journey").
Connor adds the same holds true for how it got to the priestesses ("Soulless").
Fred concedes Lilah is evil, but she doesn't see her as the type to chop people up.
Gunn suggests perhaps the Beast has "minions" doing its dirty work.
Angelus comes to and calls them "morons", saying the Beast doesn't have minions, it is the minion.
Fred doesn't believe that, telling him they've seen what the Beast is capable of.
Angelus says that's just the prelude to something else, something bigger and worse. He smiles as he adds "The Beast has a boss."
Gunn asks what could be worse than the Beast.
Cordy doesn't think it's possible.
Angelus asks, "How did you survive this long being so retarded?"
Gunn tells him to get to the point, he wants to know what Angelus knows.
Angelus gets to his feet, saying he knows quite a lot, maybe he'll tell them one day.
Connor wants to know how Angelus knows there's something worse.
Angelus doesn't reckon it takes a genius to figure it out. The Beast he knew was big on carnage, had the strength and power to be good at it, but wasn't much on the "big picture." But now with the rain of fire, the slaughter of the Ra-tet ("Long Day's Journey"), the sun being blocked, he figures that marks the plans of something that does see a bigger picture and the Beast doesn't fit that description, not being particularly bright.
Cordy offers maybe the Beast got smarter.
Angelus derisively notes it's more likely he'll sprout wings and fly. He tells them, "There's something else out there, more powerful, more vicious, pulling the strings." He shivers mockingly, telling them he's "just dying to find out what it is."
Wes and Lilah enter the lobby through the front door. Connor, Fred and Cordy are gathered around the desk. Fred asks where Angel's soul is.
Wes says Lilah doesn't have it.
Connor wonders how he knows that.
Wes says she told him so and he believes her.
Gunn enters from the back office, noting Lilah isn't all that credible considering lying is her job.
Lilah acknowledges that's true. She pulls her jacket open and asks if they want to search her.
Cordy notes the bloodstain on Lilah's shirt and asks what happened.
Wes answers Lilah was wounded in the Beast's attack on W&H.
Gunn wonders how Lilah managed to escape the firm when everyone else apparently died there.
Lilah reckons she was "lucky."
Cordelia wonders if it wasn't more than luck. She wants to know why Lilah was downstairs with Angelus.
Wes answers for her, saying she was looking to get information.
Gunn wonders how she was going to get it with a crowbar. He points out it's rather suspicious that Lilah was the only survivor of the massacre at W&H then she just happens to show up right after Angel's soul went missing.
Wes defends Lilah, saying she had nothing to do with it.
Connor offers maybe Lilah knows who did.
Fred thinks maybe she knows who's controlling the Beast.
Lilah seems genuinely surprised and asks about the "controlling" comment.
Gunn tells her what Angelus said, that the Beast is "just the muscle", adding that he doesn't trust Angelus anymore than he trusts Lilah.
Cordy adds that everything that's happened seems to be part of a bigger plan, with something else manipulating things.
Wes realizes that's what was being hidden, he thinks there may be something useful in the text they've recovered. He tells the others about Lilah's copy of the Compendium, which he's holding, having a passage that had apparently been excised from his copy along with any and all references to the Beast in this dimension.
Lilah notes that she got her copy "way out of town." She's surprised Fred didn't think of that.
Gunn figures that explains why Angel didn't remember the Beast.
Wes adds that his mind was erased just like the other references to it.
Connor asks why Angelus remembers then.
Fred wonders perhaps because "his mind wasn't here when the spell or whatever was cast, right?"
Wes suggests he and Fred should compare the passage in Lilah's book with the information W&H got from Lorne's brain.
Gunn notices Wesley's focus on Fred, curtly tells them good luck with that and arms himself with the flame-thrower. He heads downstairs to guard Angelus.
Fred calls after him.
Gunn says somebody needs to be on watch downstairs, to make sure nobody else gets in after the breach of security with Lilah. He leaves.
Fred starts to follow.
Cordy stops her, telling her to let him go. They need to stay focused on figuring out what's coming and trying to get Angel back before it happens because "If this is as bad as I think it is, we'll need him more than ever."
In the basement, Gunn keeps watch on Angelus as Angelus plays his mind games. He tells Gunn he admires him for knowing his strengths and sticking with that. It's a rarity nowadays. People who try to better themselves annoy him, he admires that Gunn doesn't try to change, "because you know your place." He suggests that will help keep Gunn alive longer than the others. He laughs as he lists the failures of the gang; LA burning, the sun blocked out, the demons pretty much ruling the city. He figures things aren't all bad for Gunn though, he has "the love of a good woman." Well, at least until she finds someone else more appealing.
Gunn quietly notes the decision is hers.
Angelus feigns surprise at that, asking if it's happened already. He figures it shouldn't have come as a shock, not after what happened with Professor Seidel ("Supersymmetry").
That mention gets Gunn's attention.
Angelus responds to Gunn's look by telling him even Angel isn't that stupid. He noticed how things changed between Fred and Gunn after the incident with the professor; the conspiratorial looks between them, the guilt. He reckons there's nothing that binds people like committing their first murder together. He tells Gunn not to worry, he won't reveal what Fred did.
Gunn steps into the trap, admitting Fred didn't do it.
An exuberant Angelus is pleased with himself, having gotten the confirmation he was looking for that Gunn was the one who did the actual killing.
Gunn says he did what was necessary.
Angelus reckons Fred must not have seen it that way. He rubs some verbal salt in the wound, saying he'd think she'd be grateful Gunn did her a favor but no, she goes for the other guy, adding, "I guess when you think about it, for the first time in your life, you just weren't dark enough."
Gunn shoots a stream of flame into the cell with the flame-thrower.
Angelus laughs, noting there may be hope for Gunn yet.
Wes works at the desk in the back office. Fred comes in with an open book, saying she's not been able to find any way to restore a soul other than using the Orb of Thessulah and that only works when the soul "has moved on into an afterlife or something", not when it's trapped in a jar somewhere.
Wes assures her they'll get Angel's soul back.
Fred doesn't see how.
Wes suggests they'll manage the way they always do, through hard work, research and luck.
Fred reckons luck is in pretty short supply.
Wes is sure things will work out. He brings up what happened between him and Gunn, telling her it's not what he wanted to happen. He asks if Fred could tell Gunn that for him.
Fred quietly tells him she and Gunn aren't together anymore.
Wes tries to be sympathetic, but it's obvious from his expression he's not displeased by the news. He asks if it's because of his actions.
Fred answers things haven't been right between them for a while.
Wes moves in closer to her, telling her he figures this is where he's supposed to say he's sorry, and he's trying to be but --
The moment is interrupted by the arrival of Lilah and Cordelia. Lilah asks if they've come up with anything.
Wes says he's made some progress in his cross-referencing materials but there's no way to know how long the process is going to take to complete.
Cordy observes he said he'd made some progress, at least that's good news.
Lilah notes "It sure looks like he's trying" as she smirks and looks at Wes, then Fred.
Fred shoots Wes a guilty look. He decides to relieve Gunn on guard duty, see if he can get any additional information out of Angelus. He leaves the office.
Lilah asks what's next, consulting a Ouija board?
Lorne enters the lobby, the others leave the office and meet him. Fred asks if he was able to discover anything.
He says he didn't, then sees Lilah and asks, "What in the hell is succu-bitch doing here?"
Cordy notes she's still trying to figure that one out too. She asks what Lorne picked up.
He says he spoke to the few contacts he has that are still in town but nobody has heard anything about Angel's soul.
Lilah suggests they forget about Angel. If they want to kill the Beast and get to whatever it works for, they have the answer locked up in a cell in the basement.
Cordelia asks her if she has any idea what Angelus would do if they let him out.
Lilah flippantly answers, "Kill you all in a shower of bloody violence, but hey, greater good!"
Cordelia figures there's a better way.
Lilah wonders if she's going to suggest they join hands and sing a hymn together. She reckons that might be difficult when "the Beast is ripping your guts out." She walks away and starts to head upstairs.
Cordelia calls after her, telling her she knows things look bleak --
Lilah cuts her off with, "Don't go all Watchtower on me Saint Cordelia, I don't think I could stomach it" as she continues up the steps without looking back.
Cordelia starts up the stairs after her, saying she'd like to punch Lilah out.
Lilah stops and turns toward her, asking, "Are you trying to turn me on?"
Cordy figures it's all about fear for Lilah.
Lilah isn't interested in the opinion as she turns and starts back up the stairs.
Cordy's not ready to give up the pontificating just yet. She tells Lilah she's too afraid to believe in anything because she's too afraid to hope, she refuses to even see the possibility.
Lilah stops on the stairs and once again turns to face Cordelia. Lilah tells her she doesn't get it. The thing Lilah believes in is herself. She didn't get as far as she has by ignoring or missing what's going on. She says the Beast that tried to gut her has a "boss" and that "boss" is going to obliterate life as they know it and nobody is going to ride to the rescue and save the day; not The Powers, not Angel, nobody.
Cordelia suddenly tips her head back briefly, her eyes turn milky white. She says she knows how to bring Angel back.
Fred comes downstairs where Wes is guarding Angelus with a crossbow. She says Cordy had a vision, she knows how to re-ensoul Angel.
Angelus laughs, "I guess The Powers saw how bad you guys suck."
Fred reckons they're doing better than he is.
Angelus appreciatively notes she's showing a bit of pluck these days, she's "not the same, shy bitch-cow we pulled out of Pylea."
Wes looks toward Angelus.
Fred says there's only one bitch in the room and she's looking at him as she glares at the vampire in the cell.
Angelus is only encouraged to take things further. He notes it's a good thing she's changed, now she can go "for the real prize." He walks up to the cell bars, looks at Wes and tells Fred he gets it, "If I swung that way ... look at him, all rugged and handsome and brains ... Man, he's damned near perfect."
Wes offers a curt thanks as he and Fred head upstairs.
Angelus adds Wes has been shagging Lilah the past six months. He figures that tends to tarnish the perfection a bit.
Fred laughs in response to that but the laughter is abruptly cut short when Wesley's expression reveals Angelus isn't lying.
Wes starts to attempt an explanation.
A clearly wounded Fred tells him it's not her business as she goes on upstairs.
Wesley watches her go.
Angelus chuckles, appreciating the results of his efforts.
Connor and Gunn are at work with shovels, digging up a burial ground. A sword is staked in the ground nearby. Connor wonders if they're digging in the right place.
Gunn observes the landmarks are the same as Cordy described from her vision.
Connor notes with anticipation he's never fought a "Soul Eater" before.
Gunn isn't planning on doing so now either. Cordy had said it was buried by the Chumash a "couple hundred years ago." Gunn doesn't expect it's going to put up much of a fight.
Connor asks what happens if they can't find it.
Gunn says they're "screwed." According to Cordy's vision, the head of the Soul Eater is the important part of the ritual. Gunn digs in and hits something with the shovel. He directs Connor to clear it.
Connor brushes aside the dirt, revealing a box.
Gunn is happy they finally found what they were seeking. He jumps into the hole to retrieve it.
Connor asks if Gunn would prefer he do it.
Gunn assures him he's got it as he reaches for the box. An arm shoots out of the box, the hand locks on Gunn's throat.
Connor quickly grabs the sword and drives it into the box. The hand lets go of Gunn. Gunn jumps out of the hole. He and Connor put a bit of distance between it and them before stopping.
Gunn gasps for air.
Connor asks if he's okay.
Gunn suggests they chop the demon's head off and get out of there.
They return to the hole to find the box empty. Gunn is beginning to get annoyed with it all.
The demon appears out of thin air behind Gunn. Fight ensues.
Gunn gets knocked to the ground.
Connor attacks it but ends up on the ground as well. The Soul Eater disappears.
It reappears again and attacks Gunn. He tries to punch it, but his blows simply move through the shadowy form as the demon alternates between solid form and that of black mist. Gunn gets knocked down.
Connor charges the demon with the sword, but the blade only passes through it as it again shifts form.
The demon grabs Connor's chest. A bright yellow-green glow begins to stream from Connor into the demon as Connor sinks to his knees, gasping for breath.
Gunn retrieves the sword and chops the demon's arm off, releasing Connor, then decapitates it.
As Connor starts to get up, the demon's body begins flailing about. Gunn chops it to pieces with the sword, finishing it off.
Connor compliments him on the job well done.
Gunn accepts the compliment with, "Yeah, sometimes ya just gotta keep whackin'".
Connor wonders if the ritual is going to work.
Gunn retrieves the severed head and notes it had better work, they'll need Angel if there's really something worse than the Beast yet to be dealt with.
In a cave somewhere, the Beast meets with someone, or something (whatever it is isn't shown). It exhibits great respect for whatever it's addressing as it presents a dagger made from its own bones, "A tribute to your power", as an offering.
At the hotel, Cordy and Fred enter the back office, noting they have seven talismans built to the specifications of the vision. Fred says she hates the job sometimes.
Cordy agrees digging through dumpsters for week old Buffalo Wings isn't high on her list of fun things to do.
Fred holds up a set of claws and suggests Cordelia try scavenging road kill for "three sacred talons."
Cordy notes she never has "happy puppy visions", it's always "bones and death and --"
Connor and Gunn arrive. Connor lays the Soul Eater's head on the desk. Wes looks at it, noting it appears to be "fresh."
Gunn answers they "moved up its expiration date" as he nudges Connor. They both chuckle at the private joke.
Wes asks Cordelia about the demon's head. She closes her eyes, thinks on it a moment, then offers she just sees the skull, not the extras on it.
Wes instructs Gunn and Connor to take the head into the kitchen and remove the stuff they don't need.
Connor picks up the head, he and Gunn depart. Fred and Cordy return to the back office.
Lilah comes downstairs and notes things are a lot like being at W&H. She adds, "except suits by Liberace" as she looks at Lorne sitting behind the lobby desk.
Lorne asks Wes to remind the "walking infection" he hasn't forgotten she had a hole drilled in his head, and though he can tolerate her presence, he'll "smack her down" if necessary. He leaves.
Wes tells Lilah he figures she'd have left by now.
Lilah says she would have, but since it's Thursday and everyone who would have been in the weekly meeting is dead --
Wes realizes Lilah has nowhere to go.
She scoffs at that, saying she's sticking around just to see it proven that The Powers are "all hat and no cattle" and if not, then "braid my hair and call me Pollyanna." She informs him the positive to being in it for herself is that she's always on the winning side.
Fred enters from the back office, her discomfort with Lilah evident as she avoids eye contact and tells Wes Cordelia has a question.
Connor, Wes and Fred lay the objects necessary for the ritual on the basement floor outside of the cage. Lorne, Cordy and Lilah look on. The Soul Eater's skull is placed in the center of a large circle of branches and candles.
Angelus wonders if he's the only one that's not insane, noting they are planning to restore his soul with black magicks, "People, this never goes well." He wonders if anyone is listening.
Lilah offers her opinion that odds are the hotel will end up sucked into a hell dimension as a result of the ritual.
Gunn comes in and wishes both Lilah and Angelus would shut up.
Angelus reckons they must be pretty desperate going to these measures with no jar, no soul.
Connor figures Angelus sounds pretty desperate himself. Angelus tells them they can't stop the apocalypse, they'll lose.
Cordelia begins the ritual by pouring some liquid from a small vial onto the skull.
Angelus continues his ramblings as Cordy asks everyone if they have their talismans. Everybody retrieves one.
Angelus tells them Angel allowed them to bring him out because he gave up on them, knowing they were too weak and selfish to stop what's coming.
Cordy bids him farewell as she tosses something toward his feet.
Angelus goes flying across the cell, slamming into the opposite side."
Wes begins the incantation.
Angelus gets up and suggests they not fool themselves.
The candles arranged in the circle ignite as Angelus assures them he'll be around "long after your corpses rot." The hotel begins to shake and rumble.
Wes pauses a moment, then continues the incantation.
Streams of white light pour from the Soul Eater's skull, snake toward the cell and envelop Angelus, lifting him off the floor.
The light swirls around him, the skull shatters, the light disappears, dropping him back to the floor in a heap.
Cordelia calls, "Angel?"
He looks weakly at the gang and says he's sorry.
Lorne figures the spell worked.
Connor isn't so sure.
Angel hesitantly tells Fred he remembers attacking her when she brought the blood.
She nervously tells him she's fine.
Cordelia says the spell worked, she can "feel it."
Wes wants to be sure.
Gunn suggests they get Lorne to read him.
Wes asks Angel if he knows what's happened.
Angel says he's back, he remembers something else, something worse --
Wes confirms there is something worse than the Beast and they'll need to fight it but first he has to sing for Lorne to prove he's really back.
Angel appears apprehensive about that a moment, then agrees to it, clears his throat and sings a few notes of "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head."
A very excited Lorne verifies that yes, Angel is indeed back, the aura is completely different and "the vibes scream soul."
Gunn asks if he's sure.
Lorne answers he is. He fervently thanks Cordelia for her connection to The Powers and the spell that worked as he embraces her and gives her a kiss on the head.
Connor flatly notes, "He's back."
Fred wonders if they can let him out.
Angel would prefer to stay in the cell, telling them they don't know if the spell is permanent. He prefers to remain locked up until they're sure, to keep the others safe. He reckons he can give directions from there starting with "No more back-biting, fist fighting, fraternizing or vengeance." He expects everyone to focus on what's important, getting out alive. He says everything Angelus told them was a lie, he hasn't, and won't, give up on them. They'll get through it together.
Lilah laughs to herself at the corniness of his comments and wonders why W&H didn't crush them years ago.
Angel instructs Wes and Fred to see what they can find in Lilah's books, Lilah to earn her keep and make coffee, Lorne to check out real estate considering whatever is coming may be looking to lay down roots, Connor and Gunn to patrol, save who they can.
Everyone departs leaving Angel and Cordelia in the basement. He says her name, she answers, "no".
He points out he hadn't said anything yet.
She responds she doesn't take orders from "guys too afraid to step out of their cages."
He feels he made the right decision, everybody stays safe this way.
Cordy observes it keeps him from having to look anyone in the eye as well.
He says he hates she saw him that way.
She figures it's fair, Angelus mentioned he saw her in "one of my not-most-shining moments." It doesn't matter to her, Angel isn't Angelus. She doesn't think Angel believes they understand that, but they do.
Angel is worried the spell may not hold.
Cordy tells him he's needed badly the way things are going. He might be the only hope they have.
He wonders how he faces the others.
Cordelia starts to unlock the cell door and tells him to go upstairs and leave Angelus and what was said and done behind, inside the cage. She puts the key in her coat pocket and opens the door.
Angel steps out of the cell.
Cordy tells him he's not Angelus. She reaches out, takes his hand and starts to lead him upstairs.
Angel morphs into vamp face and tells her to "Guess again."
Cordy kicks and punches him, staggering him back into the cell, but before she can get it locked he reaches through the bars, grabs her and jerks her forward, slamming her head into the bars, knocking her out. He shoves her unconscious form to the floor and tells her to "Stay down!" as he exits the cell and strolls up the stairs.
He pauses a moment to morph out of game face and continues up into the lobby.
Angelus finds Fred, alone in the back office. She turns, startled.
He apologizes for that.
Fred thought he was going to stay in the cell for a while.
He says Cordy let him out, he asked her to. He tells her "never mind" and starts to leave.
Fred stops him, telling him she's sorry for being nervous. She knows he's been through a lot as well.
Angelus understands it's been stressful, he says he could "use a drink."
That unnerves Fred.
He notices and tells her that's what he was afraid of, that forever more when she looked at him she'd only see an "evil thing."
She assures him he's her friend, what's done is done. He appreciates that and asks for a hug.
A wary Fred is momentarily distracted by a clattering noise. When she turns back, Angelus is gone.
In the lobby, Wes looks down at the remains of a tray of coffee cups, broken, on the floor (explaining the sound that had distracted Fred).
Lilah looks on and sheepishly admits her tendency to rebel when required to make coffee.
Angelus enters the lobby to find Wes, Lilah and Connor. Wes says he thought Angel was going to stay locked up for a bit.
Angelus says Cordelia talked him into coming out, he has a mission.
Connor wonders what that might be.
Angelus grabs a coat and rushes for the door. He tells Connor he can't come along. He pauses at the door and tells the others, in a rather melodramatic way, he has to go "save the world." He leaves.
Fred comes into the lobby from the back office and asks if anyone has seen Cordelia.
On the monitor, Cordelia is seen lying on the basement floor.
In the lobby, Wes, Gunn, Connor and Fred stock up at the weapons cabinet as Cordelia holds an ice pack to her head. Cordelia doesn't understand why the spell didn't work.
Gunn wonders if she'll be okay there.
She assures him she and Lilah will be fine, the others should go.
Fred reckons Angelus will be looking to feed.
Wes thinks the only advantage they may have is that Angelus might think they need to capture him alive. He doesn't see that as an option any longer.
Gunn notes Angelus is loose because they brought him back, it's their job to fix the mistake.
Wes tells the others to take whatever shot they get.
Lilah likes the sound of that as she loads a clip into her gun.
Fred isn't sure she'll be able to kill him if it comes to that.
Gunn is sure she can do what's necessary.
Connor anxiously urges the others to get moving, while the trail is fresh.
Cordelia and Lilah remain behind as everyone heads out on the hunt.
Angelus stalks the streets amongst the darkness and chaos, looking for a meal. He finds more vampires than anything else.
He grabs a young vamp girl and asks what happened to all the human pedestrians. He wonders if there isn't any "fast food left in Los Angeles."
At the hotel, Cordy continues holding an ice pack to her head. She tells Lilah Angelus let her think setting him free was her idea.
Lilah sarcastically notes the genius of evil.
Cordelia says first the Beast, then Angelus, now something worse. She thought the spell was --
Lilah offers, "Divine intervention?" She assures Cordy her odds are better at winning the lottery six times in a row. She knows, she had the numbers calculated.
Cordelia says it all just makes her question --
Angelus interrupts from the balcony above the lobby and offers an ending for Cordy's question, "What it's all for, huh?" He reckons he'd be asking that as well if he was the one about to die.
He jumps down onto the lobby floor.
Lilah takes several shots at him on the way down, until her clip is spent. She grabs an ax.
Cordy grabs a crossbow and fires it.
Angelus catches the bolt in midair and throws it back at her, embedding it in her leg.
Cordelia falls to the floor.
Angelus directs her to stay down this time.
He tells Lilah he'll give her a ten second head start because she was willing to let him out of the cell before. He laughs and begins counting down from ten while Lilah runs.
Cordelia reloads the crossbow and fires another shot at Angelus, but misses, hitting the wall instead.
He tells her not to be jealous, he'll "save the good stuff" for her. He continues his pursuit of Lilah.
Connor, Fred, Gunn and Wes get out of Gunn's truck, searching for Angelus. Connor notes Angelus' scent ends there but he can't understand that. He knows he'd want to feed but it isn't a highly populated area.
Gunn wonders how it is the scent ends there, perhaps someone picked him up.
Connor observes he'd go where he could do the most damage.
Wes realizes that doesn't necessarily equate with densely populated.
They all realize it when Fred does, Angelus doubled back to the hotel. They rush to the truck.
Angelus stalks Lilah through the hallways of the Hyperion, calling her name in a sing-songy fashion.
Lilah, armed with an ax, hides in one of the rooms as she hears Angelus approach. She stays still as he whistles and walks past the room, on down the hallway.
Lilah exits the room and tries to sneak down the hall, in the opposite direction.
Angelus jumps out behind her and startles her. She tosses the ax, he catches it and punches her, knocking her to the floor. He tells her he had high hopes for her, they could have been a great team.
Lilah offers that's still a possibility.
Angelus is more interested in the new "big scary" in town, figuring Lilah is irrelevant now. He notes he's a "winning team" kind of guy and with the shortage of human food, she's lucky he's let her live this long.
Angelus reaches out to grab Lilah who manages to flip him down the steps. He loses the ax as he tumbles. She shoves some furniture down the staircase after him and runs in the opposite direction.
As Lilah runs down the hallway, a hand reaches out and grabs her by the throat, pulling her inside one of the rooms and shoving her against the wall. Lilah sees it's Cordy who's grabbed her. She tells her Angelus is going to kill them.
Cordy pulls out the dagger the Beast had earlier offered to whatever it met with and tells Lilah, "I know." She rams the dagger into Lilah's neck and pulls it back out.
Lilah slumps to the floor, her eyes open, unseeing. Blood flows from the wound and pools on the carpet.
Cordy looks over the lifeless body, expressionless, and coldly says, "Why do you think I let him out, you stupid bitch."
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S4/EPISODE 12
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Written by: Jeffrey
Bell,  Steven S.
DeKnight,Mere Smith |
Original Air Date: February 12, 2003 |
Wo-Pang sits on the floor amidst an array of candles and ritual artifacts, chanting. Sounds of a fight are heard outside. An unconscious body is tossed into the room. Wo-Pang casually notes he really needs to hire better security people.
Connor, Wes and Cordy enter. Wes tells the Shaman Angel's soul was stolen.
Wo-Pang says he has no need of it.
Connor asks where it is
Wo-Pang tosses a handful of small bones onto the floor, reads them, then says he can't discern where it is but it is "still viable within the Muo-Ping."
Connor asks what he's talking about.
Wes explains the soul is still safe in the container.
Cordelia figures this probably isn't the first time a soul has been misplaced. She wonders what the backup plan is to re-ensoul someone in case of such an occurrence.
Wo-Pang answers that he's not aware of any other way. "Without the Muo-Ping, you're screwed."
Connor asks what happens if the container gets opened or broken.
The shaman answers, like anything else, the soul can be returned or destroyed.
A gust of wind blows through the room.
Gunn fills a flame-thrower with gasoline as he and Fred keep watch on Angelus on the lobby monitor.
Angelus taunts them, saying he realizes being evil is bad, he wants to be good, he wants to be Angel again. He says he's ready.
Gunn tests the flame-thrower and assures Angelus he's ready as well.
Fred figures Angelus knows the soul is missing.
Gunn reckons he probably knew it before they did.
Fred hopes Wo-Pang can help them.
Gunn doesn't think the shaman should have been brought there in the first place, pointing out that they not only have the Beast to deal with now but "Darth Vampire living in the basement."
Fred believes bringing out Angelus was their best hope.
Gunn wonders if that's Fred talking or Wesley.
Fred reminds him he agreed to the plan as well.
Gunn concedes he may have been wrong.
Angelus notes Gunn's accidental punch on Fred earlier ("Soulless"), saying he's sure Wes wouldn't hit her. He's too "proper and English." He notes Wes also has the accent going for him, women like that, makes them all weak in the knees. He says he had an Irish accent "back in the day" and offers to use it if Fred would like "when I rape you to death."
An uncomfortable Fred silently casts her eyes downward.
Gunn has heard enough and shuts the sound off on the monitor.
Fred tells him they're just words, it's the only weapon Angelus has. He knows he won't get out of the cell.
Angelus turns to look toward a clanging sound. A disheveled Lilah enters the basement from one of the sewer tunnels and approaches the cell. She notes his presence with a flat, "The great Angelus."
He figures she could accentuate the awe a bit, suggesting "The great Angelus" would be a better delivery.
She points out he's locked in a cell, not much 'great' about that.
Angelus looks her over and notes that even locked in a cage, he's doing better with the personal grooming thing than she is. He observes she waited all these years to meet him but couldn't comb her hair or put on a little makeup? "Evil doesn't have to mean sloppy."
Lilah tells him to "Stop it."
Angelus figures he worked a nerve.
She tells him she wants him to stop the Beast.
Angelus isn't sure he wants to do that, saying he's not particularly a fan of the Beast but he does credit it for bringing on perpetual darkness.
An agitated Lilah asks if he can kill it or not as she reveals a crowbar she's brought with her.
Angelus wonders what she's so anxious about.
Lilah says the Beast took everything away; killed everyone at Wolfram & Hart.
Angelus notes he saw the Beast's handiwork, thought it was rather impressive.
Lilah adds that everyone was killed including field operatives, liaisons and even those who were at home, sick. She's the only one left, so far. She doesn't understand why the Beast chose to attack them considering they're the bad guys.
Angelus reckons they weren't bad enough but mentions there's a positive for Lilah, at least she has a loving, devoted boyfriend. He pauses briefly, then notes that's not exactly true anymore. Her life really is in the dumper.
Lilah reminds him she's not the one locked up. She wants the Beast killed and figures Angelus is the only one who can do the job.
Angelus offers that perhaps they can make a deal.
In the lobby, Gunn tells Fred that he didn't mean to hurt her when he accidentally punched her out, he would never do that.
Fred knows that but can't help but think if he hadn't "attacked" --
Gunn interrupts her, not liking her choice of the word. He asks if that's how she sees things, that he "attacked" Wesley, and wonders how Fred would describe what Wes was doing with her in the office before he came in.
Fred tries to deny anything was going on, Gunn knows better. He knows Wes was kissing her and tells her not to lie about it, she isn't good at it.
Fred tells him it wasn't planned, "It just happened."
Gunn responds, "Because you let it."
Fred looks away from him.
Gunn says he never felt for anyone the way he felt for her but he realizes it's not enough. He can't do it anymore, he's tired of her "looking everywhere but at me."
Fred starts to respond to that but she's interrupted by Connor, Wes and Cordy returning to the hotel. Fred turns to look and Gunn notes his point is proven. He walks away from her.
Wes approaches Fred and asks what's going on.
She looks toward Gunn, who's watching the basement cell on the monitor, then back at Wes. She says she can't figure out the Svear's banishing spell. She asks if they had any luck with Wo-Pang.
Connor says he didn't have the soul, doesn't know where it is, doesn't know who took it, doesn't know how to find it.
Cordy notes sarcastically that things are going well. She asks if Lorne had luck getting information from any of his contacts.
On the monitor, Gunn sees Lilah near Angelus' cell with the crowbar. He grabs a tranquilizer gun and heads downstairs. The others follow.
Gunn fires a tranquilizer dart into Angelus, knocking him out.
Lilah makes a run for it.
The others come downstairs. Gunn tells them Lilah took off through the sewer tunnel.
Wes rushes after her.
Connor starts to follow but Gunn stops him, suggesting he stay, just to be sure it's not a trap.
Lilah runs down the sewer tunnel with Wes hot on her trail.
In the basement, Gunn directs Connor to check the locks on the cage. He checks the locks then notices the crowbar Lilah had dropped on the floor and kicks it away from the outside of the cell. Gunn wonders how stupid Lilah must be to have been willing to let Angelus out.
Cordy wonders how Lilah knew Angelus had been brought back in the first place. Connor offers that perhaps Lilah is the one who took Angel's soul.
Gunn answers Cordelia's query, noting that Lilah was a higher up at W&H, it would be her job to know. Fred thought everyone at W&H had been killed by the Beast. Gunn wonders if Lilah made a deal with it. Connor asks if he thinks she has a connection to it.
Wes tracks Lilah to a rundown restroom in an abandoned subway tunnel where it appears she's been living. Wes recalls he did suggest she "go underground" but he didn't exactly mean it literally.
Lilah pulls her hand from her side, revealing blood soaking through her shirt.
Wes asks if that's where the Beast clawed her when it was rampaging through W&H ("Habeas Corpses").
She says it won't heal.
He offers to check it out for her as he moves toward her.
She pulls back, steels herself, and assures him she's fine.
Wes asks how she knew they'd brought Angelus back.
She answers it's big news, "taking a champion's soul". She picked it up on the grapevine. She figures it was Wesley's idea to bring him back, noting she was thinking the same.
Wes points out bringing him back in a controlled situation isn't the same as releasing him.
Lilah insists she wasn't going to let Angelus out.
Wes asks about the crowbar.
She claims she wanted Angelus to believe she was going to set him free, to think she was desperate.
Wes reckons that part was an easy sell, recalling she always wanted Angelus.
Lilah corrects him, saying it was W&H that wanted him but none of that matters anymore. She just wants to get her life back, her "pretty things", she's selfish that way. She figures that's why she and Wes never would have worked out.
Wes offers there are reasons beyond that.
Wes looks around the restroom and notices a book among Lilah's few possessions. He picks it up, noting it's a copy of "Rhinehardt's Compendium."
Lilah wants to find a way to make the Beast pay for what it's done.
Wes leafs through the book, telling her he's already checked his copy. There's nothing helpful to be found there. He stops when he comes upon an illustration of the Beast in the book.
He thumbs through the rest of the book, noting with surprise it's identical to his copy except for the passage on the Beast which seems to be missing from his.
Lilah tells him she called in some favors and got the book off the "pan-dimensional black market." It's not a local copy.
Wes thinks out loud on the matter, saying that the books should still be the same unless -- He realizes that there may have been references to the Beast in other dimensions that were somehow removed from this one. He needs to compare books from other dimensions to be certain. He wonders what something so powerful would need to conceal.
In the basement, Angelus lies on the floor of the cell, still apparently unconscious. Gunn opines whether it's Lilah or not something is in league with the Beast.
Cordy agrees, pointing out that would explain how the Beast got past them at Gwen's to murder Manny ("Long Day's Journey").
Connor adds the same holds true for how it got to the priestesses ("Soulless").
Fred concedes Lilah is evil, but she doesn't see her as the type to chop people up.
Gunn suggests perhaps the Beast has "minions" doing its dirty work.
Angelus comes to and calls them "morons", saying the Beast doesn't have minions, it is the minion.
Fred doesn't believe that, telling him they've seen what the Beast is capable of.
Angelus says that's just the prelude to something else, something bigger and worse. He smiles as he adds "The Beast has a boss."
Gunn asks what could be worse than the Beast.
Cordy doesn't think it's possible.
Angelus asks, "How did you survive this long being so retarded?"
Gunn tells him to get to the point, he wants to know what Angelus knows.
Angelus gets to his feet, saying he knows quite a lot, maybe he'll tell them one day.
Connor wants to know how Angelus knows there's something worse.
Angelus doesn't reckon it takes a genius to figure it out. The Beast he knew was big on carnage, had the strength and power to be good at it, but wasn't much on the "big picture." But now with the rain of fire, the slaughter of the Ra-tet ("Long Day's Journey"), the sun being blocked, he figures that marks the plans of something that does see a bigger picture and the Beast doesn't fit that description, not being particularly bright.
Cordy offers maybe the Beast got smarter.
Angelus derisively notes it's more likely he'll sprout wings and fly. He tells them, "There's something else out there, more powerful, more vicious, pulling the strings." He shivers mockingly, telling them he's "just dying to find out what it is."
Wes and Lilah enter the lobby through the front door. Connor, Fred and Cordy are gathered around the desk. Fred asks where Angel's soul is.
Wes says Lilah doesn't have it.
Connor wonders how he knows that.
Wes says she told him so and he believes her.
Gunn enters from the back office, noting Lilah isn't all that credible considering lying is her job.
Lilah acknowledges that's true. She pulls her jacket open and asks if they want to search her.
Cordy notes the bloodstain on Lilah's shirt and asks what happened.
Wes answers Lilah was wounded in the Beast's attack on W&H.
Gunn wonders how Lilah managed to escape the firm when everyone else apparently died there.
Lilah reckons she was "lucky."
Cordelia wonders if it wasn't more than luck. She wants to know why Lilah was downstairs with Angelus.
Wes answers for her, saying she was looking to get information.
Gunn wonders how she was going to get it with a crowbar. He points out it's rather suspicious that Lilah was the only survivor of the massacre at W&H then she just happens to show up right after Angel's soul went missing.
Wes defends Lilah, saying she had nothing to do with it.
Connor offers maybe Lilah knows who did.
Fred thinks maybe she knows who's controlling the Beast.
Lilah seems genuinely surprised and asks about the "controlling" comment.
Gunn tells her what Angelus said, that the Beast is "just the muscle", adding that he doesn't trust Angelus anymore than he trusts Lilah.
Cordy adds that everything that's happened seems to be part of a bigger plan, with something else manipulating things.
Wes realizes that's what was being hidden, he thinks there may be something useful in the text they've recovered. He tells the others about Lilah's copy of the Compendium, which he's holding, having a passage that had apparently been excised from his copy along with any and all references to the Beast in this dimension.
Lilah notes that she got her copy "way out of town." She's surprised Fred didn't think of that.
Gunn figures that explains why Angel didn't remember the Beast.
Wes adds that his mind was erased just like the other references to it.
Connor asks why Angelus remembers then.
Fred wonders perhaps because "his mind wasn't here when the spell or whatever was cast, right?"
Wes suggests he and Fred should compare the passage in Lilah's book with the information W&H got from Lorne's brain.
Gunn notices Wesley's focus on Fred, curtly tells them good luck with that and arms himself with the flame-thrower. He heads downstairs to guard Angelus.
Fred calls after him.
Gunn says somebody needs to be on watch downstairs, to make sure nobody else gets in after the breach of security with Lilah. He leaves.
Fred starts to follow.
Cordy stops her, telling her to let him go. They need to stay focused on figuring out what's coming and trying to get Angel back before it happens because "If this is as bad as I think it is, we'll need him more than ever."
In the basement, Gunn keeps watch on Angelus as Angelus plays his mind games. He tells Gunn he admires him for knowing his strengths and sticking with that. It's a rarity nowadays. People who try to better themselves annoy him, he admires that Gunn doesn't try to change, "because you know your place." He suggests that will help keep Gunn alive longer than the others. He laughs as he lists the failures of the gang; LA burning, the sun blocked out, the demons pretty much ruling the city. He figures things aren't all bad for Gunn though, he has "the love of a good woman." Well, at least until she finds someone else more appealing.
Gunn quietly notes the decision is hers.
Angelus feigns surprise at that, asking if it's happened already. He figures it shouldn't have come as a shock, not after what happened with Professor Seidel ("Supersymmetry").
That mention gets Gunn's attention.
Angelus responds to Gunn's look by telling him even Angel isn't that stupid. He noticed how things changed between Fred and Gunn after the incident with the professor; the conspiratorial looks between them, the guilt. He reckons there's nothing that binds people like committing their first murder together. He tells Gunn not to worry, he won't reveal what Fred did.
Gunn steps into the trap, admitting Fred didn't do it.
An exuberant Angelus is pleased with himself, having gotten the confirmation he was looking for that Gunn was the one who did the actual killing.
Gunn says he did what was necessary.
Angelus reckons Fred must not have seen it that way. He rubs some verbal salt in the wound, saying he'd think she'd be grateful Gunn did her a favor but no, she goes for the other guy, adding, "I guess when you think about it, for the first time in your life, you just weren't dark enough."
Gunn shoots a stream of flame into the cell with the flame-thrower.
Angelus laughs, noting there may be hope for Gunn yet.
Wes works at the desk in the back office. Fred comes in with an open book, saying she's not been able to find any way to restore a soul other than using the Orb of Thessulah and that only works when the soul "has moved on into an afterlife or something", not when it's trapped in a jar somewhere.
Wes assures her they'll get Angel's soul back.
Fred doesn't see how.
Wes suggests they'll manage the way they always do, through hard work, research and luck.
Fred reckons luck is in pretty short supply.
Wes is sure things will work out. He brings up what happened between him and Gunn, telling her it's not what he wanted to happen. He asks if Fred could tell Gunn that for him.
Fred quietly tells him she and Gunn aren't together anymore.
Wes tries to be sympathetic, but it's obvious from his expression he's not displeased by the news. He asks if it's because of his actions.
Fred answers things haven't been right between them for a while.
Wes moves in closer to her, telling her he figures this is where he's supposed to say he's sorry, and he's trying to be but --
The moment is interrupted by the arrival of Lilah and Cordelia. Lilah asks if they've come up with anything.
Wes says he's made some progress in his cross-referencing materials but there's no way to know how long the process is going to take to complete.
Cordy observes he said he'd made some progress, at least that's good news.
Lilah notes "It sure looks like he's trying" as she smirks and looks at Wes, then Fred.
Fred shoots Wes a guilty look. He decides to relieve Gunn on guard duty, see if he can get any additional information out of Angelus. He leaves the office.
Lilah asks what's next, consulting a Ouija board?
Lorne enters the lobby, the others leave the office and meet him. Fred asks if he was able to discover anything.
He says he didn't, then sees Lilah and asks, "What in the hell is succu-bitch doing here?"
Cordy notes she's still trying to figure that one out too. She asks what Lorne picked up.
He says he spoke to the few contacts he has that are still in town but nobody has heard anything about Angel's soul.
Lilah suggests they forget about Angel. If they want to kill the Beast and get to whatever it works for, they have the answer locked up in a cell in the basement.
Cordelia asks her if she has any idea what Angelus would do if they let him out.
Lilah flippantly answers, "Kill you all in a shower of bloody violence, but hey, greater good!"
Cordelia figures there's a better way.
Lilah wonders if she's going to suggest they join hands and sing a hymn together. She reckons that might be difficult when "the Beast is ripping your guts out." She walks away and starts to head upstairs.
Cordelia calls after her, telling her she knows things look bleak --
Lilah cuts her off with, "Don't go all Watchtower on me Saint Cordelia, I don't think I could stomach it" as she continues up the steps without looking back.
Cordelia starts up the stairs after her, saying she'd like to punch Lilah out.
Lilah stops and turns toward her, asking, "Are you trying to turn me on?"
Cordy figures it's all about fear for Lilah.
Lilah isn't interested in the opinion as she turns and starts back up the stairs.
Cordy's not ready to give up the pontificating just yet. She tells Lilah she's too afraid to believe in anything because she's too afraid to hope, she refuses to even see the possibility.
Lilah stops on the stairs and once again turns to face Cordelia. Lilah tells her she doesn't get it. The thing Lilah believes in is herself. She didn't get as far as she has by ignoring or missing what's going on. She says the Beast that tried to gut her has a "boss" and that "boss" is going to obliterate life as they know it and nobody is going to ride to the rescue and save the day; not The Powers, not Angel, nobody.
Cordelia suddenly tips her head back briefly, her eyes turn milky white. She says she knows how to bring Angel back.
Fred comes downstairs where Wes is guarding Angelus with a crossbow. She says Cordy had a vision, she knows how to re-ensoul Angel.
Angelus laughs, "I guess The Powers saw how bad you guys suck."
Fred reckons they're doing better than he is.
Angelus appreciatively notes she's showing a bit of pluck these days, she's "not the same, shy bitch-cow we pulled out of Pylea."
Wes looks toward Angelus.
Fred says there's only one bitch in the room and she's looking at him as she glares at the vampire in the cell.
Angelus is only encouraged to take things further. He notes it's a good thing she's changed, now she can go "for the real prize." He walks up to the cell bars, looks at Wes and tells Fred he gets it, "If I swung that way ... look at him, all rugged and handsome and brains ... Man, he's damned near perfect."
Wes offers a curt thanks as he and Fred head upstairs.
Angelus adds Wes has been shagging Lilah the past six months. He figures that tends to tarnish the perfection a bit.
Fred laughs in response to that but the laughter is abruptly cut short when Wesley's expression reveals Angelus isn't lying.
Wes starts to attempt an explanation.
A clearly wounded Fred tells him it's not her business as she goes on upstairs.
Wesley watches her go.
Angelus chuckles, appreciating the results of his efforts.
Connor and Gunn are at work with shovels, digging up a burial ground. A sword is staked in the ground nearby. Connor wonders if they're digging in the right place.
Gunn observes the landmarks are the same as Cordy described from her vision.
Connor notes with anticipation he's never fought a "Soul Eater" before.
Gunn isn't planning on doing so now either. Cordy had said it was buried by the Chumash a "couple hundred years ago." Gunn doesn't expect it's going to put up much of a fight.
Connor asks what happens if they can't find it.
Gunn says they're "screwed." According to Cordy's vision, the head of the Soul Eater is the important part of the ritual. Gunn digs in and hits something with the shovel. He directs Connor to clear it.
Connor brushes aside the dirt, revealing a box.
Gunn is happy they finally found what they were seeking. He jumps into the hole to retrieve it.
Connor asks if Gunn would prefer he do it.
Gunn assures him he's got it as he reaches for the box. An arm shoots out of the box, the hand locks on Gunn's throat.
Connor quickly grabs the sword and drives it into the box. The hand lets go of Gunn. Gunn jumps out of the hole. He and Connor put a bit of distance between it and them before stopping.
Gunn gasps for air.
Connor asks if he's okay.
Gunn suggests they chop the demon's head off and get out of there.
They return to the hole to find the box empty. Gunn is beginning to get annoyed with it all.
The demon appears out of thin air behind Gunn. Fight ensues.
Gunn gets knocked to the ground.
Connor attacks it but ends up on the ground as well. The Soul Eater disappears.
It reappears again and attacks Gunn. He tries to punch it, but his blows simply move through the shadowy form as the demon alternates between solid form and that of black mist. Gunn gets knocked down.
Connor charges the demon with the sword, but the blade only passes through it as it again shifts form.
The demon grabs Connor's chest. A bright yellow-green glow begins to stream from Connor into the demon as Connor sinks to his knees, gasping for breath.
Gunn retrieves the sword and chops the demon's arm off, releasing Connor, then decapitates it.
As Connor starts to get up, the demon's body begins flailing about. Gunn chops it to pieces with the sword, finishing it off.
Connor compliments him on the job well done.
Gunn accepts the compliment with, "Yeah, sometimes ya just gotta keep whackin'".
Connor wonders if the ritual is going to work.
Gunn retrieves the severed head and notes it had better work, they'll need Angel if there's really something worse than the Beast yet to be dealt with.
In a cave somewhere, the Beast meets with someone, or something (whatever it is isn't shown). It exhibits great respect for whatever it's addressing as it presents a dagger made from its own bones, "A tribute to your power", as an offering.
At the hotel, Cordy and Fred enter the back office, noting they have seven talismans built to the specifications of the vision. Fred says she hates the job sometimes.
Cordy agrees digging through dumpsters for week old Buffalo Wings isn't high on her list of fun things to do.
Fred holds up a set of claws and suggests Cordelia try scavenging road kill for "three sacred talons."
Cordy notes she never has "happy puppy visions", it's always "bones and death and --"
Connor and Gunn arrive. Connor lays the Soul Eater's head on the desk. Wes looks at it, noting it appears to be "fresh."
Gunn answers they "moved up its expiration date" as he nudges Connor. They both chuckle at the private joke.
Wes asks Cordelia about the demon's head. She closes her eyes, thinks on it a moment, then offers she just sees the skull, not the extras on it.
Wes instructs Gunn and Connor to take the head into the kitchen and remove the stuff they don't need.
Connor picks up the head, he and Gunn depart. Fred and Cordy return to the back office.
Lilah comes downstairs and notes things are a lot like being at W&H. She adds, "except suits by Liberace" as she looks at Lorne sitting behind the lobby desk.
Lorne asks Wes to remind the "walking infection" he hasn't forgotten she had a hole drilled in his head, and though he can tolerate her presence, he'll "smack her down" if necessary. He leaves.
Wes tells Lilah he figures she'd have left by now.
Lilah says she would have, but since it's Thursday and everyone who would have been in the weekly meeting is dead --
Wes realizes Lilah has nowhere to go.
She scoffs at that, saying she's sticking around just to see it proven that The Powers are "all hat and no cattle" and if not, then "braid my hair and call me Pollyanna." She informs him the positive to being in it for herself is that she's always on the winning side.
Fred enters from the back office, her discomfort with Lilah evident as she avoids eye contact and tells Wes Cordelia has a question.
Connor, Wes and Fred lay the objects necessary for the ritual on the basement floor outside of the cage. Lorne, Cordy and Lilah look on. The Soul Eater's skull is placed in the center of a large circle of branches and candles.
Angelus wonders if he's the only one that's not insane, noting they are planning to restore his soul with black magicks, "People, this never goes well." He wonders if anyone is listening.
Lilah offers her opinion that odds are the hotel will end up sucked into a hell dimension as a result of the ritual.
Gunn comes in and wishes both Lilah and Angelus would shut up.
Angelus reckons they must be pretty desperate going to these measures with no jar, no soul.
Connor figures Angelus sounds pretty desperate himself. Angelus tells them they can't stop the apocalypse, they'll lose.
Cordelia begins the ritual by pouring some liquid from a small vial onto the skull.
Angelus continues his ramblings as Cordy asks everyone if they have their talismans. Everybody retrieves one.
Angelus tells them Angel allowed them to bring him out because he gave up on them, knowing they were too weak and selfish to stop what's coming.
Cordy bids him farewell as she tosses something toward his feet.
Angelus goes flying across the cell, slamming into the opposite side."
Wes begins the incantation.
Angelus gets up and suggests they not fool themselves.
The candles arranged in the circle ignite as Angelus assures them he'll be around "long after your corpses rot." The hotel begins to shake and rumble.
Wes pauses a moment, then continues the incantation.
Streams of white light pour from the Soul Eater's skull, snake toward the cell and envelop Angelus, lifting him off the floor.
The light swirls around him, the skull shatters, the light disappears, dropping him back to the floor in a heap.
Cordelia calls, "Angel?"
He looks weakly at the gang and says he's sorry.
Lorne figures the spell worked.
Connor isn't so sure.
Angel hesitantly tells Fred he remembers attacking her when she brought the blood.
She nervously tells him she's fine.
Cordelia says the spell worked, she can "feel it."
Wes wants to be sure.
Gunn suggests they get Lorne to read him.
Wes asks Angel if he knows what's happened.
Angel says he's back, he remembers something else, something worse --
Wes confirms there is something worse than the Beast and they'll need to fight it but first he has to sing for Lorne to prove he's really back.
Angel appears apprehensive about that a moment, then agrees to it, clears his throat and sings a few notes of "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head."
A very excited Lorne verifies that yes, Angel is indeed back, the aura is completely different and "the vibes scream soul."
Gunn asks if he's sure.
Lorne answers he is. He fervently thanks Cordelia for her connection to The Powers and the spell that worked as he embraces her and gives her a kiss on the head.
Connor flatly notes, "He's back."
Fred wonders if they can let him out.
Angel would prefer to stay in the cell, telling them they don't know if the spell is permanent. He prefers to remain locked up until they're sure, to keep the others safe. He reckons he can give directions from there starting with "No more back-biting, fist fighting, fraternizing or vengeance." He expects everyone to focus on what's important, getting out alive. He says everything Angelus told them was a lie, he hasn't, and won't, give up on them. They'll get through it together.
Lilah laughs to herself at the corniness of his comments and wonders why W&H didn't crush them years ago.
Angel instructs Wes and Fred to see what they can find in Lilah's books, Lilah to earn her keep and make coffee, Lorne to check out real estate considering whatever is coming may be looking to lay down roots, Connor and Gunn to patrol, save who they can.
Everyone departs leaving Angel and Cordelia in the basement. He says her name, she answers, "no".
He points out he hadn't said anything yet.
She responds she doesn't take orders from "guys too afraid to step out of their cages."
He feels he made the right decision, everybody stays safe this way.
Cordy observes it keeps him from having to look anyone in the eye as well.
He says he hates she saw him that way.
She figures it's fair, Angelus mentioned he saw her in "one of my not-most-shining moments." It doesn't matter to her, Angel isn't Angelus. She doesn't think Angel believes they understand that, but they do.
Angel is worried the spell may not hold.
Cordy tells him he's needed badly the way things are going. He might be the only hope they have.
He wonders how he faces the others.
Cordelia starts to unlock the cell door and tells him to go upstairs and leave Angelus and what was said and done behind, inside the cage. She puts the key in her coat pocket and opens the door.
Angel steps out of the cell.
Cordy tells him he's not Angelus. She reaches out, takes his hand and starts to lead him upstairs.
Angel morphs into vamp face and tells her to "Guess again."
Cordy kicks and punches him, staggering him back into the cell, but before she can get it locked he reaches through the bars, grabs her and jerks her forward, slamming her head into the bars, knocking her out. He shoves her unconscious form to the floor and tells her to "Stay down!" as he exits the cell and strolls up the stairs.
He pauses a moment to morph out of game face and continues up into the lobby.
Angelus finds Fred, alone in the back office. She turns, startled.
He apologizes for that.
Fred thought he was going to stay in the cell for a while.
He says Cordy let him out, he asked her to. He tells her "never mind" and starts to leave.
Fred stops him, telling him she's sorry for being nervous. She knows he's been through a lot as well.
Angelus understands it's been stressful, he says he could "use a drink."
That unnerves Fred.
He notices and tells her that's what he was afraid of, that forever more when she looked at him she'd only see an "evil thing."
She assures him he's her friend, what's done is done. He appreciates that and asks for a hug.
A wary Fred is momentarily distracted by a clattering noise. When she turns back, Angelus is gone.
In the lobby, Wes looks down at the remains of a tray of coffee cups, broken, on the floor (explaining the sound that had distracted Fred).
Lilah looks on and sheepishly admits her tendency to rebel when required to make coffee.
Angelus enters the lobby to find Wes, Lilah and Connor. Wes says he thought Angel was going to stay locked up for a bit.
Angelus says Cordelia talked him into coming out, he has a mission.
Connor wonders what that might be.
Angelus grabs a coat and rushes for the door. He tells Connor he can't come along. He pauses at the door and tells the others, in a rather melodramatic way, he has to go "save the world." He leaves.
Fred comes into the lobby from the back office and asks if anyone has seen Cordelia.
On the monitor, Cordelia is seen lying on the basement floor.
In the lobby, Wes, Gunn, Connor and Fred stock up at the weapons cabinet as Cordelia holds an ice pack to her head. Cordelia doesn't understand why the spell didn't work.
Gunn wonders if she'll be okay there.
She assures him she and Lilah will be fine, the others should go.
Fred reckons Angelus will be looking to feed.
Wes thinks the only advantage they may have is that Angelus might think they need to capture him alive. He doesn't see that as an option any longer.
Gunn notes Angelus is loose because they brought him back, it's their job to fix the mistake.
Wes tells the others to take whatever shot they get.
Lilah likes the sound of that as she loads a clip into her gun.
Fred isn't sure she'll be able to kill him if it comes to that.
Gunn is sure she can do what's necessary.
Connor anxiously urges the others to get moving, while the trail is fresh.
Cordelia and Lilah remain behind as everyone heads out on the hunt.
Angelus stalks the streets amongst the darkness and chaos, looking for a meal. He finds more vampires than anything else.
He grabs a young vamp girl and asks what happened to all the human pedestrians. He wonders if there isn't any "fast food left in Los Angeles."
At the hotel, Cordy continues holding an ice pack to her head. She tells Lilah Angelus let her think setting him free was her idea.
Lilah sarcastically notes the genius of evil.
Cordelia says first the Beast, then Angelus, now something worse. She thought the spell was --
Lilah offers, "Divine intervention?" She assures Cordy her odds are better at winning the lottery six times in a row. She knows, she had the numbers calculated.
Cordelia says it all just makes her question --
Angelus interrupts from the balcony above the lobby and offers an ending for Cordy's question, "What it's all for, huh?" He reckons he'd be asking that as well if he was the one about to die.
He jumps down onto the lobby floor.
Lilah takes several shots at him on the way down, until her clip is spent. She grabs an ax.
Cordy grabs a crossbow and fires it.
Angelus catches the bolt in midair and throws it back at her, embedding it in her leg.
Cordelia falls to the floor.
Angelus directs her to stay down this time.
He tells Lilah he'll give her a ten second head start because she was willing to let him out of the cell before. He laughs and begins counting down from ten while Lilah runs.
Cordelia reloads the crossbow and fires another shot at Angelus, but misses, hitting the wall instead.
He tells her not to be jealous, he'll "save the good stuff" for her. He continues his pursuit of Lilah.
Connor, Fred, Gunn and Wes get out of Gunn's truck, searching for Angelus. Connor notes Angelus' scent ends there but he can't understand that. He knows he'd want to feed but it isn't a highly populated area.
Gunn wonders how it is the scent ends there, perhaps someone picked him up.
Connor observes he'd go where he could do the most damage.
Wes realizes that doesn't necessarily equate with densely populated.
They all realize it when Fred does, Angelus doubled back to the hotel. They rush to the truck.
Angelus stalks Lilah through the hallways of the Hyperion, calling her name in a sing-songy fashion.
Lilah, armed with an ax, hides in one of the rooms as she hears Angelus approach. She stays still as he whistles and walks past the room, on down the hallway.
Lilah exits the room and tries to sneak down the hall, in the opposite direction.
Angelus jumps out behind her and startles her. She tosses the ax, he catches it and punches her, knocking her to the floor. He tells her he had high hopes for her, they could have been a great team.
Lilah offers that's still a possibility.
Angelus is more interested in the new "big scary" in town, figuring Lilah is irrelevant now. He notes he's a "winning team" kind of guy and with the shortage of human food, she's lucky he's let her live this long.
Angelus reaches out to grab Lilah who manages to flip him down the steps. He loses the ax as he tumbles. She shoves some furniture down the staircase after him and runs in the opposite direction.
As Lilah runs down the hallway, a hand reaches out and grabs her by the throat, pulling her inside one of the rooms and shoving her against the wall. Lilah sees it's Cordy who's grabbed her. She tells her Angelus is going to kill them.
Cordy pulls out the dagger the Beast had earlier offered to whatever it met with and tells Lilah, "I know." She rams the dagger into Lilah's neck and pulls it back out.
Lilah slumps to the floor, her eyes open, unseeing. Blood flows from the wound and pools on the carpet.
Cordy looks over the lifeless body, expressionless, and coldly says, "Why do you think I let him out, you stupid bitch."
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