Author: Alexandra Huxley
Email: alexandrahuxley@yahoo.com
Notes: Many thanks to Moe and Cynthia for beta-ing and to everyone who asked for more.

Not much happened for the first few hours, and once the choppers were in place, there wasn't much to do but sit and wait. The sensors continued to register the energy currents and it was clear they were slowly growing in intensity, but they were still below the levels they had been at earlier in the day.

"You ready to tell me exactly what's going on?" Graham asked Riley.

Riley looked up at the monitors and then at Graham. He nodded. "In my office. Paxton - as soon as you get someone, patch it through."

"So who's doing all this?" Graham asked as soon as they sat down. "Who's the 'she'?"

Riley hesitated. Saying her name felt like a betrayal, like if he didn't admit it, it might not be true. But he had to - Graham was putting a lot on the line here, he deserved to know why. "You remember Buffy's friend Willow? The redhead?"

"The cute one? Really sweet?"

"'Sweet' wouldn't be the word I'd use to describe her right about now," Riley said and proceeded to lay everything out for Graham.

When Riley was done, Graham said, "Wow. Is she really that powerful?"

Riley shrugged. "She brought Buffy back from the dead. I'm guessing it wasn't dumb luck."

"Dying, not dead. The doctor said they were still stabilizing her."

"No, not today. Last year."

Graham gave Riley a skeptical look. "Last year? Buffy was dead?"

"And buried. Four whole months, give or take."

"And Willow did that."

Riley nodded.

"How?"

"Haven't gotten the full story on that one yet," Riley answered.

Graham sat back and shook his head. "And I thought it was tough to be your friend. At least you never actually died." He was quiet for a few minutes. "You think she's really still in there? That Buffy can reach her?"

The million dollar question. "I hope so. I really hope so."

"Well, we need a contingency plan. In case Buffy can't."

"Yeah, I know," Riley said. A contingency plan. In case Buffy died trying to stop Willow. In case Willow killed Buffy. Unbelievable.

Graham looked through the office window at the sensors recording the energy levels. "Could you kill Willow if you had to?" he asked.

"Kill Buffy's best friend? Sure," Riley said bitterly. "You do what you have to do."

Riley's tone surprised Graham. Until that moment, Riley had been nothing but self-assured in how they were playing this and confident that Buffy would prevail. Or at least it had seemed that way.

"That wasn't Forrest," Graham said. "You couldn't have saved him. He was too far gone. There was nothing else you could have done."

Riley looked away. He said quietly, "I don't want to see that happen again. Not with Willow. Not if Buffy can get to her first." Looking back up at Graham, Riley's voice was stronger as he said, "Not sure if it matters, though. If Buffy can't do it, then I'd say our chances are about zero to none."

"Backing away from a fight? Doesn't seem like you."

"Just trying to be realistic." As though anything about this felt real - that this was Willow they were talking about. That Willow might actually be capable of killing someone. That Buffy might not be able to stop her. Riley was relieved when the phone rang. He picked it up.

"Freaks 'R Us on line one," Paxton said. "Anthropology professor at University of New Mexico. Albuquerque's used her as a consultant before, so she's already cleared for this op. Her name's Marta Oakdell."

"Thanks," Riley said, watching through the window. Could that actually be the ghost of a smile on Paxton's face? "Dr. Oakdell? My name's Riley Finn."

"Agent Finn, I'll tell you right now: I'm not interested in wasting my time with this phone call if you're not interested in what I have to say."

Riley smiled. "I see you've worked with the Army before. Believe me when I say that I am very interested in your opinion."

"Well, you appear to be in the minority. My experiences with your people have not been entirely positive."

"I'd be more than happy to commiserate with you about that at some point, but right now I need your help. If you're not willing, tell me now so I can find someone else. I don't have a lot of time."

There was dead silence on the line. Riley was about to give up when she finally spoke.

"So you're aware of what's happening."

Well that was an interesting way of putting it. When in doubt, repeat the question. "Of what's happening?" How did she know?

"Yes. You must know, or else you wouldn't have called me."

"Let's assume I don't. Tell me what you know."

She paused before saying, "Very dark magicks have been called. Very powerful. And getting stronger with each minute."

"Is there a way to stop it?"

She laughed harshly. "With what you have available?"

Well, that was helpful. "You didn't answer my question."

Another laugh, but less harsh this time. "You noticed that?" she responded.

"Ma'am, please." Riley looked up as the monitor on the wall caught his eye. The energy levels were spiking again.

"Very well. I'll be perfectly honest. There's nothing you can do right now; this witch is more powerful than anything we've ever seen, but although there's no one quite as powerful, there are a lot of people working to counteract her. If she can't be stopped, she might at least be weakened. That's the only shot you'll have."

"There are people in Sunnydale?" Who? He thought he knew most of the local players.

There was a smile in Oakdell's voice when she said, "You'd be surprised."

Great. Nothing like a nice, solid detail to help clear things up. "Dr. Oakdell - will you be at this number for a while? In case I need to contact you again?"

She gave him several numbers - cell phone, pager, and the house where she'd be taking part in a prayer circle. Just as they were about to hang up, she said, "One more thing - and I'm sure you've already considered this, but I can't in good conscience not say something."

"Go ahead," Riley said.

"It's not just the Glindas-"

"Glindas?"

"Glinda. The good witch. From *Wizard of Oz*?"

"Oh. O.k." Not exactly a favorite among the Finn brothers.

"It's not just the Glindas that know what's happening. I'd watch my back if I were you."

"You know of anything in particular?"

"No, but the dark forces tend to capitalize. If they know that resources are being devoted elsewhere, they tend to jump on the opportunity."

Well, that was an interesting point. One Riley hadn't actually considered. "Thank you, Dr. Oakdell. That's more up our alley. I appreciate your help," he said as he hung up.

Graham had gone back into the outer room while Riley was on the phone. Riley was about to follow when the phone rang again. It was Paxton, saying that a policeman Riley knew was on the phone. Something about a jailbreak.

Riley sat back down and grabbed the phone, noticing that the energy levels on the monitors were climbing faster now, higher than they had been earlier.

"Finn," he said, leaning back in his chair, but he sat up straight as the policeman started talking. "She tore the wall apart? And the bars were bent? Was anyone hurt?" He listened to the full rundown. A lot of damage, but still no one hurt.

"No. Don't go after them. I'll take full responsibility for the police car." Thank God for pickup basketball games, Riley thought. No way Jackson would be this lenient or forthcoming if it hadn't been for the hours they had spent on the court last week. They had killed the other team. Of course, it also didn't hurt that Riley had the weight of the U.S. government behind him. For the moment at least.

"The prisoners, too? What prisoners?" He closed his eyes and leaned forward, head in hand. 'Before the witch got to them.' So not Willow. Shit, Buffy. What the hell are you doing? "Don't suppose we could flip for it?. No, I didn't think so. O.k. Yeah. Them, too, I guess. We'll get you something in writing."

When he opened his eyes, he saw that Colonel Vaughan was standing in front of his desk. How the hell did she get here? Riley thought as he jumped to attention.

"At ease," she said. She gestured at Graham who was behind her, leaning against the wall. "Miller tells me you've ordered our men to stand down. He says you don't want us to fight. You know you're not making any friends here, don't you?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"You want to explain yourself?"

"Colonel, Will-" Riley stopped himself. It was one thing to tell Graham; anyone else was a different matter. "The threat is being contained."

"Funny, I thought I heard the word jailbreak. That doesn't sound much like containment. Just the opposite in fact," she said as she paced in front of the desk. "So this is a crowd you're familiar with. I hear they have quite a history with Sunnydale ops."

"Yes, ma'am."

She stopped pacing and looked at Riley. "I am not at all comfortable with this situation. And I'm sure you won't be surprised to hear that there is a lot of pressure to relieve you of command."

"Yes, ma'am," Riley said, looking straight ahead. "Permission to-"

"I'm not done yet," she said, silencing him. She looked at the monitors in the other room, watching as the levels began spiking again. "I've come to expect a lot from you over the past year. It hasn't always been pretty, but you tend to get the job done, and that goes a long way in my book." She turned back to face him.

"I don't need to tell you what's riding on this. And I'm not talking about careers - that seems to be a given where you're concerned." She gestured at the monitors. "If these readings are any indication, we haven't seen power like this in a long time. But you know better than anyone what this witch is capable of. There's a reason I put you in Sunnydale, much to Miller's dismay," she said, smiling at Graham as he looked away.

"This post doesn't just need someone who thinks outside the box; it needs someone who discards the box altogether. You may not be Command's idea of a poster child for the Army, but I'll stand behind you. Just remember - I worked incredibly hard to get where I am today and I will *not* be happy if that all goes down the drain. Understood?"

Riley nodded.

"So go ahead," she said. "Permission to speak freely."

"Umm, thank you," Riley said. That had been totally unexpected. Vaughan had always been supportive but he hadn't realized how far she was willing to take it. "O.k., then. We need to get to work."

Half an hour later Riley was standing in front of a room full of soldiers in uniform. "This is everyone?"

Paxton nodded. "Yes, sir. We called in the whole roster."

Riley adjusted the headset he was wearing and pushed the mouthpiece away. "And everyone in the choppers will be able to hear me, too?"

"I'll turn it on as soon as you say 'go'."

Riley looked up at the assembled men. They looked far too young to have already been through special ops training, but they wouldn't be here otherwise. He would have preferred to take them out on drills first, but he had to trust that they could handle themselves.

"Paxton?" Riley asked as his eye caught a face that seemed very out of place. "Is that Mrs. Kaplan? In camo?" Not looking like Mom's bridge partner anymore.

"Captain Kaplan. She served two tours in Vietnam. Left the Army to raise her kids but re-upped six months ago."

"You're kidding. And we have her typing?"

Paxton shrugged. "We've mostly just got you answering phones. Sir."

Riley turned to Paxton. "Did you just make a joke?" This day was getting way too weird.

"Riley," Graham said, walking over with a list in his hand. "I've realigned the teams so that the Initiative guys are evenly distributed. There are twenty of them - including Taggart. He'll head up Gamma Team."

"And we have how many cars?" Riley asked Paxton.

"Seven."

"Eight," Vaughan said to Riley. "We had someone drive your car back this afternoon."

"Nine, then, when you add in Graham's. Good. Paxton - let's do this."

Paxton nodded. "You're live."

Riley pulled the mouthpiece back into place. "O.k. We've got three teams - Alpha, Beta, Gamma. Everyone's got the rendezvous points so that rookies can pair up with experienced men. No cowboys - this is not an attack. Use force, but only if absolutely necessary and only on demons and vamps - they need to know the Slayer's not alone tonight. You see anyone - anything - else, fall back and report it. I want six choppers in the air at all times - Colonel Vaughan will coordinate who's up and who's down from here. Once Beta and Gamma Teams are dropped, we'll have seven cars patrolling; the other two cars stay with Miller and Taggart. All communications will go through the Base. Keep the radios on at all times. Gamma Team patrols the woods; Beta Team takes the cemeteries; and Alpha Team - we've got the town. Any questions? O.k. Let's move."

He pulled the headset off and grabbed a radio and taser off the table beside him. "Colonel, you sure you're o.k. with this?"

Vaughan nodded. "I'm not sure if I agree with Dr. Oakdell's scenario, but you should be in the field. Just in case she's right."

As Riley and Graham walked out, Graham asked, "You really think they'll be out tonight?"

Riley shrugged. "Don't know, but it beats sitting around and waiting."

Graham laughed. "You just want to waste the government's money."

"I'm not the one who pulled twelve teams in," Riley said, smiling. "But as long as they're here, may as well get some use out of them. Besides, it's good training for the rookies."

"Train away," Graham said as they came through the doors that led them outside.

"Looks a little silly, don't you think?" Mrs. Kaplan asked.

"Excuse me?" Riley asked.

"The SUVs. All driving in one big line. It's like some bad movie about the mob or the president or something."

That was more than he'd heard her say since he had been in Sunnydale. "Yeah, kind of silly, I guess. But we'll be at the rendezvous point soon and then we'll split up."

"And then we'll see some action?"

Riley laughed. This was a completely different side of Mrs. - no, make that Captain - Kaplan. "Maybe. I'm not really sure if this 'open season on Sunnydale' theory has any weight behind it."

"Sounds good though."

He smiled as he brought the car to a stop. He rolled down the window and stuck his hand out. "Kevin. Good to see you."

"That's Major Taggart to you," Kevin said, laughing as he shook Riley's hand. "Hey, man - not bad for someone who was at death's door yesterday afternoon."

"You heard about that?"

"Who didn't? Brought back the old days - for a while it seemed like we were placing bets every other week."

"Bets?" Kaplan asked.

"Not sure I'd want to ride with him, ma'am. Finn tends to push things."

"*Tended* to," Riley said.

"Yeah, whatever," Kevin replied. "Odds against you keep getting higher, but so far that's just made me more money."

"Glad to be of help."

Kevin smiled. "So you stuck me in the woods again, huh? I couldn't even get the graveyards?"

"Sorry, Taggart, that's my territory." Graham said, coming up behind Kevin and slapping him on the back. "We're all set, Ri. I've got my guys. Final orders?"

Riley shook his head. "Just tell me if you see Buffy or Willow. And tell the men not to go looking for action where there is none. It's o.k. if it ends up being a slow night."

"I know, I know. This is all 'just in case.' Anything else?"

"Yeah," Riley said, pausing. He knew Graham wasn't going to like what he was about to say. "Remember Hostile 17?"

Graham and Kevin nodded.

Riley looked away. "He's off limits."

"You kidding?" Graham asked in disbelief.

"Wish I were."

Graham looked at Kevin and shook his head. He turned back to Riley. "What is it with you and Sunnydale? Someday you're going to have to explain this shit to me 'cause I still don't get it."

"You could always pull rank on him."

The three men turned to Mrs. Kaplan. They had forgotten she was there.

"Thanks, Mrs. Kaplan," Riley said.

"Captain," she replied.

"I know," Riley answered, starting to think he liked her better as the bridge playing old lady. At least she didn't outrank him, too.

Graham held his hand up and said, "No Hostile 17. I'm not in the mood to argue." He turned to go. "I'm outta here. Be safe, guys."

Kevin asked, "Which car am I in?" He turned in the direction Riley pointed. "O.k." He glanced back at Riley as he walked away, "Don't forget - big money."

"So, Mr. Finn-" Mrs. Kaplan asked as Riley turned on the engine and headed back to the road.

"Riley."

"Riley. I'm Esther, but I'd rather you call me Kaplan. That's what the boys call me. Besides, Esther's such a grandmother name, don't you think?"

Definitely a weird day.

"So, Riley," she continued. "Where to now?"

"Now we patrol."

"Patrol?"

"Drive around and look for all things dark and sinister."

"I have a sixteen-year-old daughter. Everything looks dark and sinister."

Riley said, "Then I guess we're in for a long night."

The first few times around town they didn't see anything except a lot of other SUVs.

"It still looks silly," Kaplan said. "Even when they're not in a line."

Riley gave her a look. "Doesn't matter. All that matters is that it gets noticed."

She looked up at the sky. "Choppers, too. You don't think it's overkill?"

"Funny, I don't remember you being this talkative."

"Shame on you, Riley. Didn't your mother teach you to respect your elders?"

"Yes, ma'am," Riley said, looking straight ahead and trying not to smile.

She sighed. "If only I could get my son to fall for that." Her eyes scanned the road in front of them. "Riley. Ten o'clock. Demon?"

Riley looked where she pointed. "Definitely not human."

"It looks kind of.dejected. Not quite as scary as I imagined."

She had a point. The demon's shoulders were hunched and it was kicking at something as it trudged down the street. Riley pulled up alongside it slowly. As he rolled down the window, he could hear it muttering.

"Heading anywhere in particular?" Riley asked.

"Oh, man," Clem said in a tone that might be described as whining if it weren't coming from a demon, "this just isn't my night." He waved his hands. "Move along. I'm not the droid you're looking for."

"Nice try, Obi Wan," Riley said as he got out of the car. He heard the other door slam and noticed that Kaplan had come around from the other side. She stood apart from him - far away enough that anyone attacking couldn't get them both in one shot. Smart.

"No really, you're looking for Spike - right?"

Someday he'd have to figure out a way to not go cold whenever he heard that name. "Why would I be looking for Spike? What's he done now?"

"He warned me about you guys," Clem said, noticing Kaplan for the first time. "And girls. Women, I mean." He gave her a little wave. "I'm Clem. Pleased to meet you, ma'am."

Kaplan couldn't help but return his smile. "I'm Kaplan. This is Agent Finn."

Clem waved at Riley. "Hi."

Riley was trying hard not to laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation. He folded his arms across his chest and managed not to wave.

"Do you live around here, Clem?" Kaplan asked.

Clem laughed nervously. "Oh, no. This really isn't a very nice part of town."

"Can we give you a ride home?" Riley asked, not able to contain his smile. Unless this guy's weapon was killing with kindness, there didn't seem to be much of a threat.

"Really?" He nodded eagerly. "I'm staying at Spike's crypt. But could you try and avoid the Slayer if you see her? I think I might be in trouble."

Riley leaned back against the car. "And why is that?"

Clem kicked at the ground. "Not a very good babysitter. But in my defense, she is the Slayer's sister. She's crafty."

"Dawn? You were babysitting Dawn? Is she o.k.? Where is she now?"

"Ummm. See? I kind of don't know. She went in to see Rack, never came out."

"Never came-?"

"But Buffy was there, too. So that's o.k., right? I mean, wherever they are they're there together."

"Wherever they are. Did you try looking for them?"

Clem nodded. "The room was. Well, they weren't in there. And I've been wandering around, trying to find them, but." He shook his head.

"Can you take us-?" Riley was cut off by the radio crackling. He grabbed it through the window. "Finn. Go ahead."

It was Vaughan. "You know a place called the Bronze?"

"Yeah."

"We're picking up some 911 calls. Sounds vampire-like."

"O.k. We're on it. We'll need back-up."

"Affirmative. Out."

Riley turned to Kaplan. "We're up." To Clem he said, "You should come with us. It's probably safer for you not to be on the streets right now."

"You think Buffy's that mad?" Clem asked.

"No," Riley said. It was his own men he didn't trust - didn't know them well enough yet. "Get in."

On the way over he gave Kaplan as much of a run down as he could. "They'll be really strong. Stronger than they look. If we're there first, you're going to have to back me up. But use the taser, not just stakes. If you stake them in the wrong place, they'll just be really pissed."

"I know where the heart is," she said.

He leaned back in the seat. "O.k. Stake me."

"You're driving."

"I'm a good driver. Do it."

She held a stake loosely in her hand and brought it up to Riley's chest.

He grabbed her hand and pushed it down a couple of inches. "Try Clem."

"Be gentle," Clem said from the back seat.

Kaplan had a determined look on her face as she staked him.

"Ow," Clem said, rubbing his chest.

"Better," Riley said, watching in the rear view mirror. "Of course it'll need to be with a bit more force."

"Yes, sir," she said, smiling.

"And don't let go of the stake if you can help it. Otherwise it turns to dust. Ready?"

She nodded.

As he pulled into the alley, he could see four vamps taunting two girls. Riley pulled the car in as close as he could get.

"Here we go," he muttered as he jumped out of the car, vaguely registering that Kaplan wasn't too far behind.

The first one was easy - it usually was when the vamps traveled in groups. They tended to get cocky. And this group seemed to be taking advantage of the fact that the Slayer was otherwise occupied - usually they didn't play with their victims quite so much, at least not in a public place like this.

By the time the dust fell to the ground, the other vampires noticed that they weren't alone. Two of them turned in shock as the third came running at Riley, growling and leaping in the air. Riley braced himself for the impact, but he still went down, the vampire rolling on top of him and going for his neck.

Riley was trying to shift his weight when the vampire suddenly recoiled and hissed as he whipped his head around. Riley saw Kaplan standing over them, looking at the middle of the vampire's back. She lifted her foot up and stomped down on something. The vampire turned to dust.

"I see what you mean by more force," she said, pulling another stake out of her vest. "Next time I'll get it right."

"Takes practice," Riley said as he turned. The other two vamps were coming at them. The female one went at Kaplan, throwing a punch that whipped her head back. Kaplan came up swinging, though, and seemed to be holding her own.

Riley didn't wait for the last vamp to reach him. He stepped forward and brought his fist in for a gut punch. The vampire doubled over and stumbled. Riley caught him and pulled him up, throwing another punch. And maybe one more just for the hell of it, Riley thought as the vamp fell back against a brick wall, sinking to the ground. Staked. Three down.

Turning, Riley saw that Kaplan was losing the fight. He pulled at the vamp's collar and threw her against the wall. To Kaplan he said, "Take care of the girls. Get them inside." He nodded towards the two women who were huddled on the ground.

He approached the vamp who was now sitting on the ground. He crouched down to stake her, his eye still on Kaplan - she was looking a little shaky. Dumb move. He was caught off guard when the vampire jumped up at him, grabbing his wrist with both hands, sinking her teeth into his arm, and knocking him totally off balance.

They fell to the ground. Riley was on his back - again. Great. Twice in ten minutes. Good example for the new troops who, luckily, weren't around to notice. The vamp's body was pinning his so that he couldn't shake her off. She started to drink deeper and he could feel the pull throughout his entire body. And that voice - so hard not to give into that voice.

Not good. *So* not good.

Twisting his head, he looked around for the stake that had dropped out of his hand when the vamp grabbed him. He couldn't see it, but he did see a beer bottle. Knew what one of those could do. He strained to reach it, taking advantage of the fact that she was now focused on the drinking and not the fighting. Almost.got.it. There.

He grabbed the bottle and slammed it down on her head. That got her attention. He twisted and pushed her off him, scrambling up. Total head rush and he almost dropped back down. He had forgotten about that part. Shit. He leaned back against the car to steady himself, his hands resting on his knees. He was reminded once again of how lucky he was that none of the vampire girls had ever tried to finish off the job. He had always had his stake nearby, but still. It would have been so easy.

Where was the damn stake?

"Duck!" came Clem's voice from inside the car.

Riley looked up to see the vamp coming at him again. A bit of a drunken stagger to her gait, but still fast. Riley dropped to the ground, noticing the stake under the car and reaching for it as he rolled. He came up to his feet as the vamp was pushing off the car, practically flying at him. She caught him before he was fully standing and pushed him back against the wall.

"I always wanted to taste you," she said slamming his head against the brick. "Such a pretty boy, but you had your favorites." She punched him in the stomach, smiling as he doubled over. She pulled his head up so it was level with hers. "It's o.k. You were worth the wait." She leaned in for the bite.

Just what he had been waiting for - everything was still spinning too much for him to have been able to fight her. But once her guard was down? No problem. He brought his hand up to her chest, smiling faintly at the shock on her face as she looked down at the stake and turned to dust.

"Shouldn't talk so much," Riley muttered as he slid down the wall. "Should've just bit me," he said, fighting the urge to throw up. Or pass out. Take your pick.

The car door slammed. "You o.k.?" Clem asked, crouching down.

Riley looked up, glaring.

"Hey," Clem said, holding his hands up, "Demon. I make it a point not to kill my kind. Especially now that I hang with Spike. No one likes him much anymore. You wouldn't believe how hard it's been to get into the poker games. And that was before everyone knew he was seeing the Slayer. Hoo-boy. Aren't enough kittens in the world."

Clem stood up. "So - you're not looking that great. You want to just sit there a little while? That's o.k. I can be lookout." He turned back toward the Bronze. "Uh-oh."

"Don't say uh-oh."

"Um, o.k. Company."

Riley cocked his head to the side so he could see around Clem. Six more coming their way. So not good. Hadn't fared so well with four and that was with Kaplan.

"Where's Kaplan?" he asked.

"Inside. Oooo - I'll go get her. See? I'm helping." Clem ambled around the side of the car. "Don't want to attract their attention," he whispered.

Wonderful. Thanks so much. Riley got to his feet slowly. A little better. The dizziness wasn't so bad this time and he could feel the rush kicking in - blood coursing through his veins, senses heightening, nerves tingling. Usually it started as soon as the bite did and lasted for a little while afterwards - the only reason he had ever been able to walk out of that place without hanging his head in shame. Not that the shame wasn't there, it was just that the high held it at bay.

This was different, though; he hadn't wanted this bite. Wasn't sure if it would still affect him the same way. Wasn't even sure if that all-powerful, invincible feeling was possible any more, even if only for a few minutes. But it seemed that it was, which was a damn good thing - it would probably get him about 15 minutes of pure adrenaline; not nearly enough to take on six vamps single-handedly, but maybe enough to stay alive until the reinforcements came. Maybe even take out another vamp or two.

The six vamps fanned out and one of them spoke. "At first I was just going to kill you, but now I'm thinking I might want to play."

"Always up for games," Riley said, glancing over the vamp's shoulder.

"You looking for the cavalry? Sorry, they're otherwise occupied. We've got your boys running all over town. Even the Slayer couldn't have taken us tonight."

Riley nodded toward the Bronze. "Picking on drunk high school kids? That's your idea of a good time? Isn't that a bit pathetic?"

The vamp shrugged. "Blood's blood. I was just about to have myself a fresh one when your friend came in. But the kids can wait. I do prefer the challenge. I am a little disappointed though - thought there'd be more of you out here."

"Sorry, but I'll do my best 'til they get here." Riley's heart was pounding. Enough talk. Let's do this.

"Don't you listen? I already told you they're busy. Might be a while before they show up."

"Or not," Riley said looking past the vamps. "Guess we won."

Riley started running as all six of the vamps turned to look behind them. "Oh, come on," Riley muttered. "Oldest trick in the book."

He reached the one farthest to his left and used the taser. Turning to his right, Riley staked the vamp who had just realized he had been duped. As the vamp on the left came out of his shock, Riley staked him, too.

But he didn't even have time to turn around before another vamp grabbed him from behind and slammed him into the car. Even an adrenaline high wasn't enough to take on four of them. They spun him around and two pinned his arms back while a third punched him in the jaw.

"Told you this would be fun," said the lead vamp. He bent down and picked something up from the ground. He looked at it and flipped a switch. "Always wondered how these things worked. So," he said to Riley, "would you rather I shock you first? Or should I just go ahead and stake you?" The vamp held the stake in his other hand. "You've done it enough - it's only right you get to see what it feels like."

"Are you really that stupid?" Riley asked. "Anyone every teach you guys about tactical positioning?"

The vamp who had punched Riley was still standing directly in front of him. He looked at Riley quizzically. Riley kicked at him and he fell backwards into the lead guy, getting not only shocked, but staked in the process.

"Now *that* was fun," Riley said, laughing as the lead guy shocked himself while scrambling up.

"You're laughing?" the vamp asked incredulously. "Are you kidding me?" His punch showed exactly how pissed he was. "That smile is coming off your face if it's the last thing I do." Another punch to Riley's jaw. And ribs. Side. Side. Jaw. After another few punches, Riley stopped keeping count.

It seemed like forever, but it couldn't have been that long before Riley saw a pair of headlights in the distance. "Finally," he mumbled, clearly in pain but still smiling. "I win."

"Not." Jab. "Falling..." Jab. "For that." Jab. "Ag-"

"Warned you," Riley said as the vampire turned to dust.

Riley staggered forward as the soldier with the crossbow - kneeling on the ground from about thirty yards out - took out the vamps pinning Riley's arms. Five more soldiers came running towards Riley from further down the alley.

"Inside," Riley said, weakly gesturing at the Bronze. "I think there are more inside." He bent over and spit out a mouthful of blood. Ran his hand down his side. Not broken. That was something.

He really should go inside and see if they needed help, he thought. In a minute. As soon as he could see straight again. Maybe two minutes. O.k., three.

Didn't even take that long before people started pouring out. Kaplan came running - practically jumping. Clem followed right behind smiling, but keeping really close to her as he eyed the five men bringing up the rear.

"Riley!" Kaplan yelled as she approached him, excitement written all over her face. "Riley! I got two! Two!"

Clem cleared his throat.

"O.k. One and a half. Clem got the other half. He kind of pushed the guy into my stake. We-" she broke off as she noticed the blood on Riley's face. "Oh my. Are you o.k.?"

Riley was still trying to shake it off. "Probably time to switch drivers."

A soldier in a black uniform came up behind them. "Sir - what do we do with the civilians?"

An Initiative guy. Riley couldn't remember his name. Could barely remember his own name right now. "Let them go. Or call ambulances. Or whatever."

Kaplan looked at Riley with concern and then back at the soldier. "Put away the guns first. Then tell them to go home. And there are two that got hurt - see if they're o.k." She turned back to Riley. "You need a doctor. Don't shake your head at me. You look terrible."

"Not spending the rest of the night in the ER. Not over yet."

"Damn right, it's over." She reached in the car and pulled out the radio. "Base, this is Kaplan."

"Go ahead."

"Bronze is secure. Two injured civilians, one injured soldier."

"Who and how bad?"

"Finn and he's standing, but just barely."

Riley tried to glare at her, but it hurt too much.

"Finn. There's a surprise," Vaughan said. "Well, tell him Oakdell was right. It'll make him feel better."

"Won't," Riley mumbled.

"Orders, ma'am?" Kaplan asked.

"If it's really bad, the guys in black have combat medical training, but if it's manageable, wait for the ambulance. Tell Finn that's an order. To at least let the EMTs look at him. If they say he's good, keep patrolling."

"And the others?"

"Get them back out on the streets as soon as possible. The calls are slowing down, but I'm not ready to call it a night. Let me know when you're up and running. Out."

"Hear that?" Kaplan asked. She pointed at the ground. "Sit." She assigned one of the rookies to stay with the injured civilians and dispersed the other soldiers. She sat down across from Riley. Clem sat down next to her. "You want to wallow or you want the story?" she asked Riley.

"Story," he said, smiling. Or trying to.

She grinned. "O.k. So I go in and I got one by surprise, but then they grabbed me. And then five, maybe six of them went outside - sorry, I told them there were a bunch of you. I figured you'd think the civilians' safety was more important. You would, right?"

Rhetorical question. Good thing.

"Then we sat there for a while. There were three left."

"Four," Clem said.

"Four," she continued. "So we were just sitting there and they were looking evil. And then Clem came in and he pretended he was on their side. He kept them busy until the other soldiers came in. That's when he pushed the guy into my stake. Those guys in black are pretty good; the other three were dead in no time."

"Technically, they were already dead," Clem corrected, and the two of them continued to discuss their exploits until the ambulances arrived.

A couple bruised ribs, a lot of cuts and bruises, and a slight concussion. Before letting him go, the EMT made sure Riley knew the signs of a concussion gone bad and said it wouldn't be a bad idea to try and stay awake for the next few hours.

Like that was going to be a problem. "Yeah, I know the drill," Riley said, handing the keys over to Kaplan. "Your turn to drive."

As soon as they were back on the road, Riley opened the glove compartment. He dug around a bit and pulled out a bottle of pills.

"What is that?" Kaplan asked as he popped one into his mouth.

He showed her the bottle. Black Ops standard issue. Didn't matter if you were almost dead - if you could stand, your job was to keep fighting. Riley had learned to live with a hell of a lot of pain - he hated the idea of ingesting anything that the government told him to. But this night could just be getting started and there was no way in hell he was getting benched.

"One of the perks of this job," he said. "An unlimited supply of pain medication."

"One of the perks of most jobs is that they don't require such a thing," Kaplan responded as Riley grabbed the radio.

"Base, this is Finn."

"Good to hear your voice," Vaughan said. Her tone was clipped and impersonal, but Riley could hear the undercurrent of amusement in her voice. This was a conversation they had repeated countless times over the past year. "So how many did you get? Miller wants to know - he says he's got three so far."

Riley smiled and said, "Six. And tell him there's no way he's going to catch me." They had started keeping track around month four; Riley maintained the only reason Graham was even close was because of Riley's two-week stint in a hospital in Scotland. "So where do you want us? Still driving around? Or should we be heading somewhere in particular?"

"Just patrol. But steer clear of the magic shop - on Miller's orders."

"Really?"

"Really. Cursing you every step of the way, but that's what he said."

"What - did he have a vision?"

"He ran into your friend," Vaughan said. "Or, rather, she ran by him. Told him to stay out of her way and stay away from the magic shop."

Definitely sounded like Buffy. "When was this?"

"Just came in."

Well that was good. Buffy and Graham still o.k. enough to be snapping at each other. At least something about the world was normal. "How are the teams doing?"

"Rookies are learning fast. They've already picked up some kills. Two broken arms. One guy recovering from taser blast."

"Got his weapon turned?"

"Umm, no. Friendly fire. Someone was a little too eager."

"Understood," Riley said laughing. Not the first time that had happened. "Let us know if we're needed. Out."

Kaplan waited until Riley was done on the radio before saying, "You always talk to her like that?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know - so. familiar."

"Oh. Only when I'm not in trouble."

"Do you get in trouble a lot?"

"Not as much as I used to."

The rest of the night - the little that was left - was quiet. Twice they drove by teams right after the kills had been made. They helped with the remains of one particularly large demon, but that was it.

"So how long do we keep this up?" Kaplan asked.

"Until it's over," Riley said.

"And we know that how?"

Riley shrugged. "Usually you just know."

"Aren't the vampires all in bed, now that the sun is up?"

"Vampires are; no one else is."

Kaplan jerked her head toward the back seat and said, "What about him?"

Riley turned to look at Clem who was stretched out across the seat, snoring. "We can take him home when he wakes up."

"Base to Finn." Vaughan's voice came over the radio.

"Finn."

"Riley - I'd prefer not to use the term 'panicking,' but things are getting a little hairy."

"Demons?"

"No. The readings are off the charts. I want you back here and I want you to reconsider your previous orders. It's been bad all night, but this is getting out of hand."

At least she wasn't overriding him altogether. "Yes, ma'am. We're on our-"

"What the hell was that?" Kaplan asked, pulling the car to a stop.

Riley spoke into the radio. "Did you just feel that? Colonel Vaughan - are you there?"

"Affirmative. We're checking on it. Stand by."

Riley turned to Kaplan. "Campus."

"Yes, sir," Kaplan said, nodding and turning the car towards campus. She slammed on the breaks as the ground shook again. She looked at Riley. "Am I supposed to drive through those things?"

"Don't know much about earthquakes. But I suggest you try and avoid any big holes in the ground."

"Thanks," she said. "That was very helpful."

"Anytime."

She decided to drive through the subsequent tremors and they reached the building just as the radio sounded again.

"This is Finn. We're here. Give us thirty seconds," he said, already out of the car.

He could hear the alarms sounding from two security checkpoints away. By the time he got to the door, though, everything was silent. As he ran in, Vaughan turned to him, a puzzled look on her face.

"What just happened?" Riley asked. "Did the monitors go down?"

"No," Vaughan said. "They just stopped."

"Stopped? Just like that?"

Vaughan nodded.

"That's a good thing, right?" Kaplan said from right behind Riley.

"Um, don't know," Riley replied.

"So what next?" Kaplan asked.

Riley looked at Vaughan.

"Your call," she said.

He looked up at the monitors again. Nothing. "Guess we'll head back out," he said. "Try and figure out what just happened."

Vaughan nodded.

Kaplan followed Riley out of the building. "So how exactly do we do that?"

Riley climbed back in the car. "I'm not totally sure, but I know where to start."

"We bringing him?" Kaplan said, gesturing at Clem who was still asleep in the back seat.

Riley shrugged. "Sure. Why not?"

He gave her directions and a few minutes later they pulled up in front of the Magic Box. "I'll be right back," Riley said to Kaplan as he got out.

He looked in the window, completely unprepared for what he saw inside. He opened the door slowly. Holy shit. He walked through, ducking beams and stepping over piles of debris. There was too much junk everywhere to be absolutely sure, but it didn't look like there were any bodies anywhere.

He headed back out and got in the car, shaking his head at Kaplan's question. "Nothing. One more place I can think of and then we have to get creative. Take a left up ahead."

They were barely off Main Street when he saw Anya walking along the side of the road, supporting a man who did not look to be in good shape. Riley told Kaplan to stop the car; he got out.

"Anya," he said, his mouth dropping as she and the man stopped and turned. "Giles. You're. But I thought."

Riley rarely got flustered, but seeing Giles was totally unexpected. And more than a little nerve-wracking, considering Giles was more of a father to Buffy than her real dad. The shame came rushing back in spades.

Riley stepped forward to help Anya support Giles' weight. "Here - let me help. Where are you going? Can we give you a ride?"

Giles smiled. "That would be very much appreciated. Yes, thank you."

"We're going to Buffy's," Anya said. "Giles refuses to go to the hospital."

Kaplan jumped out of the front seat and helped them get Giles in. She opened the back door for Anya.

Anya pushed Clem over. "Oh, Clem, wake up. You couldn't possibly have slept through all this."

Clem protested as he stirred, but he sat up straight. "Is it over?" he mumbled.

"Yes. Finally. And I'm tired. So move over."

Clem moved over so that Anya and Kaplan could climb in.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Anya said as soon as Riley closed his door. "Go now. Please."

"Yes, ma'am," Riley said as he pulled back on the road. "Anything else?"

"No," Anya said. "Oh, wait. Yes." She leaned forward and punched him in the shoulder.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?" he said whirling around.

"*That* was for what you did to Buffy. It made her very unhappy. And then you go and get married. Why are you back?" she asked, moving to punch him again.

Giles caught her hand. "Anya - could we perhaps do this another time? I'd like to get to Buffy's house in one piece."

Anya sat back with her arms folded against her chest. "Fine," she said. "I guess I'm glad you're not dead," she said to Riley. "And I'm sorry I didn't meet Sam; Xander said she was very nice."

"Um, thank you. I think," Riley said, glancing in the rear view mirror and seeing Kaplan turn to look out the window with an amused smile.

Giles cocked his head at Riley. "Congratulations," he said, his face unreadable. "Is your wife here, too?"

"No. It's kind of complicated." Riley looked at Giles and was surprised to see a warm smile come over his face.

"I'd think so," Giles said. He put his hand on Riley's shoulder and squeezed. "Welcome home."

The End

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