My thanks to Elisabeth, who began helping me half way through Rebirth and has agreed to continue to beta for me, even though she's bogged down with school work this year.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~Part: 21~
Standing up, Damon glared darkly at Connor. "You dare to speak to us in that way?" He growled menacingly. "Continue to do so, and you will see how this Half Blood can spank your ass."
Despite his puffed up attitude, Connor took half a step back from an angry Damon. "Are you threatening me? Because. . . ."
"It's Baby Poof." Spike interrupted as he came down the stairs, pulling a clean shirt over his head. "Did you take a shower this morning?" He asked as he studied Connor's grubby appearance. "Because our Sire requires at least two to three a day."
Connor scowled. All of the rules in his Father's lair were making him like it even less. "And you are?" Not having been formally introduced to anyone, he was still trying to figure out who was who.
"Your older brother." Spike said tucking in his t-shirt. "Your older, wiser, and better looking brother, so I want to see some obedience and respect."
Nic snorted. "And this coming from the Clan's number one brat. But I give you a point, William, for being able to say that with a straight face."
"This Childe does not know the meaning of respect." Expression irate, Damon was still eyeing Connor menacingly.
Further argument was brought to a halt as Angel and Wesley stepped out into the lobby. "Connor." Angel greeted his youngest son. "I'm glad you're back." Seeing Connor's grimy appearance, he looked over at Spike. "Take your brother upstairs. He needs a shower."
Giving Connor an 'I-told-you-so' smirk, Spike grabbed his younger sibling by the arm. "Come on, and afterward. . . ." He extended a peace offering. "I'll make us breakfast."
"Your new Childe is arrogant and disrespectful." Damon complained to Angel as they watched Spike lead Connor away. "He needs an obedience lesson."
"Yeah." Nic agreed. "He might even be brattier than William, which I didn't think possible. You know, Angelus." He observed. "Maybe you should consider family planning, since each Childe you have comes out more disobedient than the last."
No sooner were the words out of Nic's mouth, when an argument erupted upstairs. Connor, uneasy and belligerent in his new environment, took exception to Spike holding his arm. The shouting soon escalated into shoves and punches, and the hotel reverberated with thuds, thumps, and the grunts of the two combatants.
Nic gave Angel a triumphant grin. "As I was saying."
Closing his eyes for a moment, Angel had a pleasant vision of taking a Childe's head in each hand and knocking them together hard. "I guess I better go and break it up."
He had only taken a few steps toward the stairs, when the front doors of the Hyperion flung open, and a tall figure entered, protected by a large black covering. Two human slaves who flanked him, quickly removed it as soon as they were inside the hotel.
"Angelus." Regal as always, Judelin, the Ventrue High Master, greeted Angel, as a dozen or more of Venture warriors came rushing in, their protective covering smoking from the sunlight.
"He doesn't waste any time, does he?" Wesley whispered, as he found himself staring at the High Master, unable to turn away.
Body tensing, Angel mentally measured the distance to the weapons cabinet. Looking around, he noted that both his brothers' bodies were also posed to attack.
"*This* visit is not one of hostility." Judelin stepped closer as he studied the four Tremeren vampires and Wesley. "I come to offer homage to the new Childe, the one who is prophesized to be our savior and also to congratulate. . . ." Stopping, he looked up toward the Hyperion's mezzanine as a couple of loud thumps caught his attention. "Angelus, do you have some kind of problem?"
Grimacing slightly, Angel turned to Djoser. "Go upstairs and. . .and straighten things out."
Nodding his head at Angel, Djoser jumped down from his seat on the hotel front desk.
Judelin watched Djoser head for the stairs with interest. "So Angelus." He continued to study Djoser's back. "How is your oldest Childe taking being supplanted as your Successor?"
**
"Bloody twink." Spike snarled as he finally managed to restrain Connor in a headlock. "Thinking you can take me." He tightened his arm around his younger brother's head, trying to subdue the struggling and thrashing.
"Hmph." It was hard to speak with his head being squeezed. Taking hold of a belt loop, Connor had something to hang on to as he propelled himself toward the wall. Smashing Spike into it, he tried to get his older brother to loosen his hold.
"Knock it off, both of you!" Striding down the hallway toward them, Djoser kept his voice low.
"He started it." Spike said, still hanging on to a squirming Connor.
"Let go of him, William." Pulling the arm Spike had around Connor's head, Djoser separated the two. "The Ventrue Master is. . . ." He wasn't able to finish his thought as Connor, angry that Spike had gotten the best of him, started throwing punches.
"Son-of-a bitch!" Djoser swore as one of Connor's blows connected to the side of his head. Grabbing his younger brother by both arms, he swung him into the wall with another loud thud.
**
Arms folded across his chest, Angel scowled at Judelin. "I have not named my Successor yet."
"Named?" Judelin raised an eyebrow. "You now have a Pure Blood son, so why would you be naming a Successor?"
This time the thump was strong enough that it vibrated through the hotel, causing Judelin to once again look up questioningly toward the second floor.
Muttering curses to himself about disobedient and unruly Childer, Angel looked over at Nic. He hated to send him away, as he felt more secure with both brothers watching his back.
Reading Angel's thoughts, Wesley quickly volunteered his services. "Let me check on things upstairs, and I'll bring . . .err Connor down to meet. . . ." He nodded at Judelin. "Your guest."
"Thanks, Wes." Grateful, Angel forgot his grievances against Wesley for a moment.
"Tell my son to come down too." Despite their hostilities toward the Ventrue Master, Damon still wanted to display his new Blood-Childe.
"Of course." Wesley agreed, making his way to the staircase, just as Angel turned back to Judelin.
"I am honored that you came to pay your respects to our Clan's new Blood-Childer." Recollecting his days as the Clan's emissary, Angel began the usual diplomatic rhetoric. "But please remember that I am the High Master here, and I will run my Clan as I see fit."
Staring at Angel, Judelin couldn't help but admire his adversary's show of boldness. "Outnumbered and surrounded you still present defiance. I was never sure with you Tremerens if it was pure courage or courage laced with stupidity. But you do understand, Angelus, that *I* now control this territory, and you would be wise to keep in my good graces."
**
Racing up the stairs and through the mezzanine, Wesley came upon Djoser twisting both of Connor's arms behind his back. "Djoser! Let go of him." Wes ordered. "Angel ordered you to straighten out the situation, not participate in it."
"He started it." Spike pointed to Connor.
"I. . .your Sire doesn't care who started it right now." Wesley said with exasperation. "The Ventrue High Master is downstairs, and you know that you should all be on your best behavior."
"For that Poof!" Spike said with disdain, just as Connor managed to slip out of Djoser's arm lock.
"Both of you will pay for this." Connor angrily looked at Djoser and Spike. "You put your hands on a superior."
"Shut the fuck up." Spike snapped back. "The only thing you are is a superior bore."
Connor had no come back except with his fists. Lunging at Spike, he was stopped in mid swing as Djoser caught him by the back of the clothing.
"Stop it!" Wesley ordered. "All of you need to get ready, so you can present yourselves in a dignified manner to the visiting High Master. Now if you don't understand that, perhaps I need to go and fetch your Sire, so he can explain it to you."
The mention of Angel brought the hostility to an end, even Connor's.
"Fine." Sighing with relief, Wesley studied Angel's three Childer. It was going to take a miracle to make them presentable. Djoser was now spotting a lump on his left temple. One of Spike's eyes was black and blue from hitting the wall, and Connor's rag tag appearance was even more pronounced after his scuffles with Djoser and Spike. "I'll go and wake Christian, and you. . . ."
"His name isn't Christian anymore." Spike cut him off, as he and his brothers headed for the shower.
"Oh?" Wesley looked questioningly at Spike. "What is it?"
Spike shrugged. "Don't know. They haven't picked one out yet."
"Haven't picked one out yet?" Wesley frowned in confusion as he muttered to himself. "What kind of craziness is that?"
**
First eyeing Judelin who was looking around the Hyperion's lobby, Angel then turned to the army the Ventrue had brought with him. They were outnumbered by three to one. It would be stupid and suicidal to start a fight.
"What are you planning?" Angel couldn't play word games anymore. He needed to be direct. "To eliminate us? To take us over? To run us out of town?"
"To be truthful, I considered all of those." Judelin turned to face Angel. "But dark forces are at work. The prophets are saying that Beings more powerful than us are going to rise. And you do know that your new Childe is to play an important role in all of this?"
"What kind of role is he destined to play?" Angel asked curiously.
"Still unknown. But I do believe." Judelin, having finished checking out the Hyperion, stepped closer to Angel. "That it would be in our best interests to forget our differences for the moment and join forces."
**
Later that day, Angel sat at his desk, playing with a paper weight. He had banished his Childer upstairs and figured it best for everyone if he stayed downstairs. At the moment, if he got too close to any of them, blood might be shed.
"It could have been worse." Nic tried to console Angel. "Well, actually. . . ." He thought back to the fiasco of the presentation of the Clan's Blood-Childer to Judelin. "I guess it couldn't have been any worse."
"I have never been so humiliated in all my existence." Angel complained. "And in front of the Ventrue Master, of all people."
"Your new Childe needs to be disciplined." That was Damon's solution as he still had not warmed up to Connor. His suggestion, however, was not out of line considering the way Connor had presented himself to Judelin. His belligerent attitude had been obvious as he had declared more than once to the Ventrue High Master that his name was Steven, not Connor.
"Yes, he does." Angel agreed. "But remember he just got out of a hell dimension. He needs time to adjust. But William." He brooded a moment. "After he just promised to behave himself. That boy needs to be gagged permanently."
"Yeah, calling the Ventrue Master a nancyboy didn't help our cause any, did it?" Even though his face was perfectly serious, Nic was snickering inside.
"And are you going to follow his order regarding naming Connor your Successor?" Damon was still dwelling on that issue.
"Not now, Damon!" Groaning, Angel held his head in his hands.
"It's a subject we need to discuss."
"Or what?" Angel's head shot up. "What will you do? And why are you so against Connor? You hardly know him."
"I don't trust him." Damon stated flatly. "There's something not right about that Childe."
"Well how right would you be if you had been kidnapped into a hell dimension as a baby? Just give him time." Angel's tone had sharpened, conveying to his brother the message, 'the subject is closed.'
Standing up, Damon left the room abruptly. Angry that Angel refused to even discuss the matter, he began to make his own plans.
"Maybe what you need is a drink." Nic proposed, hoping that Angel might break out a bottle.
"A drink?" The thought hadn't occurred to Angel, but the idea of it was not unwelcome. "I think there's some Seagram Sev. . . ."
"Master." A minion stuck his head in, interrupting. "A Childe is missing from the lair."
"William." Angel hissed, standing up angrily. "Probably sneaking out for pizza or those chicken things he likes."
"No, Master." The minion's voice shook. Heads were going to roll. The second night in a row that one of the Childer had slipped out of the lair. "It was your newest Childe. He managed to get out through a window again, and. . . ."
"Don't give me excuses!" Getting up, Angel took out his rage on the poor minion, striking him so hard that he flew across the floor of the hotel lobby. "Nic, tell Damon to guard the lair, and then you and I will go bring back Connor. Perhaps Damon has been right all along. That Childe needs a lesson in obedience."
**
"So baby Poof escaped again?" Sitting in front of a television, Spike looked up at Djoser who had just come in with the news. He wasn't crazy about his younger brother, but he did admire the kid's resourcefulness. "Guess he is useful for something. Now the Poof will be pissed at him, and maybe then he'll forget about our performance this afternoon for the Ventrue Lord Muck."
"Our performance?" Djoser raised his eyebrows as he sat down next to Spike. "I don't recall that I was the one calling the Ventrue Master a nancyboy."
"Well you should have." Spike didn't regret what he had said to Judelin. "After what he did to you, shoving those metal skewers in you. Bloody bastard! Hey." He glanced over at Damon who entered the room. "Tell Chri. . .Gu. . .your Childe to come in here and join me for some telly."
"He can't now." Damon stated quietly. "He's busy packing."
"Packing?" Spike asked baffled. "Packing for where?"
"Packing for Africa." Hands in his pockets, Damon made his way over to his nephews. "And I want the two of you to get yourselves ready. We'll be leaving shortly for Phoenix. We'll catch a flight there to New York and then on to Europe."
Spike exchanged a 'what-the-fuck-is-going-on' look with Djoser. "Thought we were trying to get to Germany. Why'd it change to Africa?"
"Because there, your brother. . . ." Damon nodded his head at Djoser. "Will face the Trials and become the first vampire to successfully defeat them. That will give him the legal right to challenge the new Pure Blood for the position of Successor. "
**
Standing outside his motel room, Holtz swore that he could hear his son's running footsteps. "He's coming." He turned to the vampire who stood beside him. "I knew my Steven would find a way to come to me as I requested. He's a good boy who listens to his father."
Not knowing if the human really knew what he was talking about, Elder Snow sniffed the air. Although the boy was still some distance away, he could smell the Tremeren blood. It was time to put his plot into action.
"If he comes, then Angelus will not be far behind." Snow mumbled softly.
"Perhaps." Holtz shrugged. "But Angelus does not scare me, and I thought he didn't frighten you either."
"But you underestimate Angelus." Snow said as his face transformed to his demon visage. "Just as you underestimated me."
Holtz was old and weak. Taken by surprise there was nothing he could do as the vampire grabbed him and sank his fangs into his neck. Life draining away, the former demon fighter Daniel Holtz' last word as he looked up into the night sky was, "Steven."
~Part: 22~
"Hang on just a bloody moment." Jumping to his feet, Spike stared his uncle straight in the face. "Who said anything about Djoser having to face The Trials? My Sire promised me that after we got to Germany, he would choose the most worthy Childe to be his Successor."
"Even if he were to choose Djoser." Damon's voice was calm. "It would never be accepted. Judelin would never recognize Djoser over Connor, even with Angelus' sanction. The only way he can legitimately challenge Connor is to defeat the Trials. Something that has never been accomplished, not even by a Pure Blood."
"And why do we care what that arse bandit thinks?" Spike dismissed Judelin with a wave of a hand. "We're Tremerens, not Ventrue benders."
The corner of Damon's mouth twitched. Spike's unshakable impertinence during an unstable time was not just amusing, but rather reassuring. "Judelin and his clan are the ruling vampires now. We need to accept that."
Ri-ight." Spike wrapped his arms around himself, a sign of uneasiness. He didn't like the direction of the conversation. "So to prove himself to the Ventrue High Poof, Djoser has to face The Trials, something that has never been done by any vampire. So why are you so sure that he can succeed?" He glanced apologetically at Djoser. "If he doesn't, then Connor gets named the Successor. Whose side are you on?"
"Your side, my nephews." In an unusual gesture of affection, Damon stepped close to Djoser and Spike, placing a gentle hand on each of them. "If Connor becomes High Master of our Clan, I see suffering for both of you. That Childe is warped, but Angelus won't see it. He makes excuses for him. You must save yourselves and perhaps our Clan." Looking at Djoser closely, he continued. "You need to *do* this. And I, your uncle, have faith that you can."
"I know what I'm capable of." Djoser stood up to stand face-to-face with Damon. "The Trials don't frighten me. I will beat them."
"And our Sire?" Spike asked, still troubled. "What does he say about this?"
Damon's hands dropped to his sides. "Angelus would never allow this. That is why we need to leave now and quickly."
"Your screw is becoming looser." Spike told his uncle. "You're going to leave here without our High Master's consent, and you're going to take one of his Blood-Childer? Never thought you had a death wish, mate."
Again Damon's mouth twitched. He knew Spike's disrespect was more a defensive reaction than an attack on him. "Actually, I must have a rather large death wish, mate." He forced a smile, trying to reassure Spike. "Because I want you to come with us, which translates to kidnapping' two of our High Master's Blood-Childer."
"Africa?" Spike's thoughts were a twisted mass of confusion. He had never expected such a plan to come out of Damon's mouth. "I'm to abandon my Sire, just leave without his permission. No!" He moved backward a few steps away from his uncle. "I can't do it. I promised Him. I won't do it."
"You would be supporting Djoser." Damon said softly. "We won't be gone long, a few months perhaps. And really, it isn't such a bad thing because it will give your Sire time alone to. . .to bond with your new brother."
"I'd like you to come." Djoser's request was simple and sincere.
Conflict churned in Spike. He didn't want to refuse his brother, but he remembered all too clearly the promise he had made to Angel that morning. "I understand your ambitions, Djoser, and although I don't think this whole Trials thing is necessary, I wish you only success. I want you to be our Clan's next Successor, but I won't leave our Sire. I won't desert Him."
"You worry about our Sire." Disappointed, Djoser walked toward the door to leave. "But how easily you've forgotten that He worries about us only when it's convenient for Him. You won't leave Him, even though. . . ." His eyes met his brother's. "He's left us without looking back on more than one occasion."
**
Running hard through a dark alley in LA, Connor relied more on his sense of smell than sight. Like a bloodhound he traced his way back to the motel where Daniel Holtz, the man he considered to be his father, was.
Getting closer to the motel, an awareness that all was not right hit him. Rounding the corner, he ran faster. The scent of Daniel Holtz was stronger, but there was another scent. A scent of blood. Approaching the motel he saw a dark figure lying on the ground, and he knew immediately that it was Holtz.
**
Sitting on top of the hotel lobby desk, Spike listened to the silence. His uncle had left, taking everyone with him, except one very mean, very strong minion. The vampire underling stood stoically, watching Spike closely. He had strict orders to keep the Heir Apparent in his sights at all times and not let him leave the lair.
"Don't suppose you feel like nipping over to the nearest pub, and. . . ?" Spike started to ask his bodyguard, but stopped when the other vampire said nothing, just crossed his arms across his muscular chest.
"Guess not." Spike sighed, swinging his legs to bang on the front desk pedestal. He liked the sound of the thumping. It was better than the silence.
Nervously he waited for Angel and Connor to return with a taciturn minion his only companion.
**
"Dad!" Connor ran to the body lying on the ground. "Dad!" Lifting Holtz' head, he stared down at the old and beaten face of the man he knew as father. "Dad! Wake up." Denying the obvious for a moment, he shook the body. "Dad, it's not time to sle. . . ." Breaking off, his eyes widened as he noticed the two puncture wounds on Holtz' neck.
Quickly looking around, Connor surveyed the area, looking for a clue to the perpetrator. His sharp senses picked up someone near by. Vampire heritage emerging, he jumped up with a growl and took off like a flash.
It took mere moments to catch up the running figure. Grabbing him by the shirt, Connor swung him into a tree.
"Hey!" The vampire hit the tree so hard, he saw stars. "Watch it, bub."
"You just fed, didn't you?" Hands around the vampire's neck, Connor pinned him against the tree. "DIDN'T YOU?"
"So what if I did?" Not realizing who Connor was, the vampire was foolishly belligerent. Putting up his hands, he tried to pull Connor's arms away but was shocked to find he was unable. "Who the devil are you?" Fear was slowly replacing his belligerence, as he continued to futilely tug at the hands that imprisoned him.
"Your master." Connor snarled out as he pulled the vampire away from the tree by the neck. "Now, who did you just feed from?"
"Well. . .it was. . . ." Stammering, the vampire stalled. Since the Ventrues' take-over of LA, a stricter code of conduct for vampires was in place. No feeding from humans. Inhaling Connor's scent, the vampire smelled someone who was both human and demon. A superior hybrid, an agent of Judelin, he erroneously concluded, looking for vampires who violated Ventrue law.
Sniffing the vampire's breath, Connor smelled the human blood. "You fed from a man!"
"He did at that." A tall figure emerged from the shadows. "He fed from your father. I saw him leaving the scene."
Both Connor and the vampire turned to look at the newcomer, a man who wore sunglasses in the dead of night.
"Who the hell are you?" Connor eyed the stranger suspiciously. He immediately knew the man was a vampire, but vampire or human, he trusted neither.
"A friend of your father's." Snow held up a folded piece of paper. "Your human father, and I have a letter from him to prove it."
"Listen. . .friend. . .sir." The captured vampire knew he was in serious trouble. "The man I. . .err. . .fed from. I had no idea he was. . . ."
"Oh he knew." Walking up to them, Snow continued his set up of the unfortunate vampire. "Angelus put him up to it."
The vampire stiffened at the name. Angelus was a name he knew well, but for the life of him, he could not figure out how Angelus was involved in this.
Connor felt the body he held become rigid. Misinterpreting the vampire's body language as an admission of guilt, he squeezed with his hands.
With his throat being crushed, the vampire could only gurgle out unintelligible sounds while flailing his arms. He only suffered for a few moments though, as Snow quickly buried a stake in him. It was too risky for the renegade vampire to let the other live.
As the body he held turned to dust, Connor lashed out at Snow. "Did I ask for your help? I wasn't ready for him die yet."
"He comes, you know. Angelus." Snow spoke in a calm voice, unperturbed by Connor's anger.
Snow's words startled Connor as he quickly looked around, half expecting to see the massive form of Angel walking toward him.
"So what if He comes?" Connor asked, still wary of Snow.
"Look at this." Snow handed Connor the letter from Holtz. A letter that the shrewd Holtz had drafted in case he didn't get a chance to talk with his Steven. Deep down he had known that his time was short. "You do recognize your human father's handwriting?"
Walking away from the tree into a clearing, Connor held the paper out in the light of the moon. It was indeed Holtz' writing.
Steven,
Although it pains me to admit it, I know now that a person cannot deny his blood, his heritage. Your fate lies with your vampire family. I have learned that it has been prophesized that you are to become the Messiah of your people, and I certainly cannot be a barrier to this great destiny of yours.
My only concern is that Angelus might not be so understanding. He has the power now and will not want to give it up. But don't let him stand in your way. Despite the fact that you are his biological son, he holds no loyalty toward his family when times get tough. History has already shown that.
Discover your true purpose, my son and become who it is you are meant to be. My only prayer is that I have prepared you well enough for whatever lies ahead. I trust that I have. Be brave.
Lovingly, your father.
"He gave me the letter to give to you." Snow lied. In reality he had stolen it out of Holtz' motel room.
"You're a vampire." Connor couldn't deny the evidence in his hand, but he still did not totally believe Snow. "My dad didn't like vampires. Why would he give you this letter?"
"I'm a vampire yes." Snow smiled slightly. "But I'm not just any old vampire, I'm your family. And I promised your human father that I would look after you, teach you our ways, and help you take your rightful place as High Master of the Tremere Clan."
**
"I'm guessing this can't be good." Nic stared down at the dead body of Daniel Holtz.
"It's worse." Kneeling down beside the corpse, Angel gently turned the head, so the puncture marks were clearly visible. "It was a vamp."
"Judelin has prohibited the killing of humans, so who would be this bold?" Nic asked, scanning the surrounding area. "And to pick Holtz of all people. That's an odd coincidence."
"I don't believe in coincidences." An expression of worry crossed Angel's face. A feeling of foreboding was welling up in his stomach. "Connor was here." He sniffed the air. "His scent is still strong, so he can't be far. I'll go find him, and you pay a visit to Judelin. And take him. . . ." He waved a hand toward Holtz. "With you."
"What?" Angel's command surprised Nic. "Why the hell do I want to go see him? And with a dead, human body when Judelin has decreed that mortals are off-limits? Are you trying to get me killed?"
"No." Angel spoke calmly. "But someone needs to go and quickly make an explanation to Judelin, or we'll be the first to be blamed for this death."
"We'll be blamed, or you'll be blamed?" Nic couldn't help but say disagreeably. He wasn't relishing the idea of having to see Judelin a second time in a twenty four hour period.
"Take the car." Standing up, Angel handed Nic the car keys. "I'll get Connor, and we'll meet back at Hyperion before sunrise. Unless. . . ." He added, noticing the sour look on his brother's face. "You would rather go back to the lair and have Damon go instead."
"Oh, and go on babysitting detail?" Despite not wanting to see the Ventrue High Master, Nic didn't want to be thought of as less competent than Damon. "I'd rather kiss Judelin's feet than have to watch over my three nephews, or should I say the three stooges of the vampire world."
Angel's mouth twitched as he held back a grin. Nic and his William could be annoying as hell, but there were times when one couldn't help but be amused by how they called a spade a spade. Turning to leave, he began to walk away but not before giving his brother a wave. "See you back at the lair."
**
"It's your time." Snow whispered seductively to Connor. "The vampire world has been waiting for you."
Walking alongside Snow, Connor held Holtz' letter tight in his hand. "I didn't grow up in this world. I was taken to Quor-toth, a hell dimension, when I was a baby, so I'm still learning the ways of this universe and my people." He explained. "But I do know that I'm not of age yet."
"I will act as your Regent until then." Snow interrupted. "Don't worry, Childe." He draped a friendly arm around Connor's shoulders. "I promised Holtz that I would take care of you. Together we will take revenge against Angelus for your dad's death and rule the Tremere Clan."
"And why would you care about me and my problems?" Connor stopped walking to stare thoughtfully at Snow. "And better yet, why do I need you?"
"Like I told you." Snow's smile was snakelike. "Not only did I make a promise to your human father, but I'm your family, Childe. I too am a Bloodline descendant of the Old Master. I am your blood uncle."
"My uncle?" Connor frowned in confusion. "Angelus introduced me to two uncles back at the hotel; he never mentioned another."
"I was never recognized by. . .my family." Snow hissed bitterly. "It's a long story, but now is not the time. Your Sire comes, and we. . . ." He led Connor into a grove of trees, where a group of minions awaited him. "Need to be ready for him."
****
Thanks to Tremeregirl for her help!
~Part: 23~
Worried about Holtz' murder and intent on finding Connor, Angel was taken by surprise by Snow and his minions. He was only able to throw a few punches before they zapped him with tasers and had him down on the ground.
"Connor!" Lying on the concrete while being beaten by fists and various other objects, Angel saw his Childe standing a few feet away. "Connor, run! Go back to the lair and. . .ahh!" A blow to the face with brass knuckles interrupted his shout of warning to his son. Blood ran into his eyes as he looked into the face of Elder Snow.
"The Great Angelus." Snow sneered at him as he brought back his arm to strike Angel again. Rising up, he turned to look at Connor. "So what do you think of your noble Sire now?"
Walking up to a barely conscious Angel, Connor kicked him hard in the face. "That's how I feel about Him."
**
Pulling into the Hyperion's parking garage, Nic blew out a sigh of relief. He had gone to Judelin's lair and was still alive to tell about it. "My fucking nephews all better be here and behaving themselves." He mumbled to himself as he got out of the car and stomped his way into the hotel. "Because if I have to go chasing out after any of them tonight, I'm going to. . . ." Stopping his rant, he entered the lobby to find Spike and a minion, who had to have been a professional wrestler in his human life, the only occupants.
"Nic!" Seeing his uncle, Spike jumped down from the front desk. "And my Sire?" He looked hopefully behind Nic.
"He hasn't gotten here yet?" Nic threw himself into a chair. "Must still be chasing after Connor. Guess the kid's giving him the real run around. Angelus must be slowing down in his old age. Where the hell is everyone?" He asked looking around the hotel. "And why is he. . . ?" He nodded at the minion. "Standing around doing nothing?"
"I was ordered to protect the Heir Apparent." The minion stated. "And that's what I'm doing."
"Damon assigned you your own minion?" Nic gave Spike a humorous look. He was glad to hear that his nephews didn't behave any better for his older brother. "What did you do to warrant that?"
"Didn't do a thing." Spike scowled at his uncle. "Damon left him here for my protection and. . . ."
"Wait a minute." Nic interrupted. "Damon left him here? Why? Don't tell me that Damon went somewhere."
"Went to Africa." Spike balanced himself on the arm of the chair where Nic sat. "You see, he. . . ."
"Africa! Why the fuck did he go to. . .son-of-a-fucking-bitch." Jumping up, Nic headed for Angel's office. He needed a drink, and Angel had mentioned earlier that there was a bottle of Seagram Seven around.
"They all went." Spike followed Nic. "Except for me and," he pointed to the minion who now stood outside the office door, "Hulk Hogan there. Anyway, Damon took Djoser to Africa, so Djoser could face The Trials, and. . .what the bloody hell are you looking for?" He finally asked as Nic who continued to tear through Angel's desk.
"I know that stingy assed Angelus hides it here somewhere." Nic was muttering to himself. "Found it!" He exclaimed triumphantly as he picked up the Seagram Seven from a hidden compartment in Angel's desk. Uncapping the bottle, he took a big swig. Medicine for his nerves.
"Give me some." Spike held his hand for the whiskey. "Don't be hogging it all."
Handing the bottle to Spike, Nic wiped his mouth with his hand. "Ok, Damon took Djoser to Africa to face The Trials. What the hell for?"
"So Djoser could legally challenge Little Poof to be the High Poof's Successor or some such rot." Spike said between gulps of Seagram Seven.
"Oh for Christ's sake!" Nic fell back into Angel's desk chair. "We've got the Ventrues ready to take out our asses, and the two of them are worried about who's going to be the Crowned Prince around here. You know." He gave Spike a thoughtful look. "Is it just me, or do you think that this whole High Master, Successor shit is kind of outdated? We're in the twenty first century. Democracy is the thing now, right? We should be voting on who becomes our High Master and who becomes our Successor."
"Got no argument from me on that." Spike agreed, handing the bottle back to Nic.
The two sat quietly for a few minutes as they continued to pass the whiskey back and forth.
"Wonder if Angelus has his cell phone with him and if it's turned on." Nic finally broke the silence. "It might be wise of us to break the news to him about Damon and Djoser going to Africa while he's some distance away."
"Save us the trouble of having to buy more furniture." Spike agreed. "Phone's right there." He nodded at the telephone that sat on Angel's desk.
"So I'm the one who's going to make the call." Nic gave Spike a dirty look as Spike just grabbed the whiskey bottle again, not even bothering to answer.
**
Regaining consciousness, Angel's first perceptions were a raw, throbbing pain behind his right shoulder and the sound of a screw gun. Opening his eyes, he found himself imprisoned in a metal casket. Thick, steel cables were wrapped around his body, holding him motionless.
"Connor." Angel spoke his son's name softly, as Connor continued to tighten the screws on the metal cables. "Look at me. Why are you doing this?"
Not bothering to stop what he was doing, Connor's eyes met Angel's for just a moment. "I'm completing my destiny by getting rid of you and avenging my father. You had him murdered."
Angel couldn't help but jerk in surprise. How could Connor have linked him to Holtz' murder? "I had nothing to do with your. . .your foster father's murder. And as far as your destiny, you need me, your Sire, to fulfill. . . ." He broke off as another face came into his view. The face of Elder Snow.
"He doesn't need you, Angelus." Snow couldn't keep the glee out of his voice. It was so gratifying to see the Great Angelus in such a humbling position. "He has me now."
"Connor!" Angel began futilely struggling against his bonds. "Whatever he told you was lies. He's not your friend." Panic, anger, and guilt were all racing through Angel. Guilt because he had failed another Childe. "Someday you'll learn the truth about me, and you'll hate yourself. Don't. It's not your fault. I don't blame you. I love you! Never forget that."
"Don't listen to him." Snow whispered as he picked up the lid of the coffin. "He's the Prince of Lies."
Helping Snow with the lid, Connor could feel tears burning in his eyes. He hated his Father, so why did he have this terrible pain in his chest?
"Connor?" Angel continued to talk to his son. "Connor, never forget that I'm your Father and that I love you. Connor?" He pleaded for an answer as the lid of the coffin was lowered, closing him in even more. "Con. . . ."
"This is what your father would have wanted." Snow reassured Connor. "The man who was your true father."
**
"Ugh." Head resting on Angel's desk, Spike woke from a light, restless sleep. "Nic." He mumbled to his uncle, who was sleeping sitting up on the other side of the desk. "Wake the fuck up. It's morning, and my Sire's still not here."
"Oh, Christ." Nic opened one bleary eye.
"Come on!" Spike stumbled around the desk to shake his uncle. "He's not here, and. . . !"
"Jesus, kid." Opening both eyes, Nic found himself being violently shaken . "Angelus probably just got caught by daybreak. He's no doubt holed up somewhere, hopefully teaching your new brother a lesson in obedience."
"So why didn't he ring us?" Nightmarish thoughts and feelings were rising up in Spike, making him feel like he was suffocating.
"Because he probably forgot his cell phone. . . ."
"He's been very conscientious about taking his cell phone with him now." Spike interrupted as a claustrophobic sensation swept over him. Puzzled, he looked around wildly, not understanding what he was feeling. "And even if he didn't have it, he would have found a phone, and. . . ." Breaking off, he found himself rushing out of the office into the hotel lobby. He needed space.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Nic followed Spike out of Angel's office with a perplexed look on his face.
"I don't know." Spike began breathing hard. For some unknown reason, he felt like he needed air. "Something is wrong, really wrong. We've got to find my Sire!"
"Alright, alright." Nic raised his hands up, palms outward, an attempt to calm his nephew. "I'll. . .we'll. . . ." Rubbing his eyes, he tried to get his brain to work. Not easy after too much whiskey and just a few hours of sleep. "I suppose we could use the tunnels and make our way back to. . . ."
The entrance of an armed Connor through the front door and Snow and his minions through the back sewer entrance stopped any further planning. Instinctively stepping closer together, Nic and Spike said nothing as they backed away.
Smirking, Connor walked up to them. Holding up his right hand, he showed them his trophy, a square of flesh.
"Fucking hell!" Eyes widening, Spike swore as he recognized the tattoo on the piece of skin. "Fucking hell, you bloody bastard, I'll. . . !"
"William!" Grabbing Spike, Nic held him back as he watched Snow and his minions approach them.
"Angelus is dead." Snow stated matter-of-factly. "And. . . ."
"And I am the new High Master." Connor finished Snow's statement.
"Impossible." Nic had to use all his strength to hold Spike back. "You're not of age."
"I'll be acting as his Regent." Expression hidden by sunglasses, Snow smiled.
Finally calming slightly, Spike stopped struggling in his uncle's arms. "Ri-ight. Since when does a one-eyed minion get to act as regent for the underage High Master? Not in this reality."
Growling softly, Snow took another step closer. Spike's insult had pricked his composure. "Disrespectful Childe. I'll have you know that I'm your better, boy."
"Better?" Pulling himself away from Nic, Spike had gained some semblance of control, even though he still gave Connor a hateful glare. "I'm from the Bloodline, mate, and you. . .you're just a. . . ."
"Blood-Childe." Nic interrupted with a whisper. Memories of Alex's warning along with old rumors flashed in his brain. The pieces of the puzzle fell together. "From the Old Master."
"Never recognized because the Old Fool didn't want to upset his Consort at the time because she had just given him a new Pure Blood son." Snow snarled out bitterly. "And He got everything, and I got nothing. . .until now."
"What the bloody hell is he talking about?" Spike turned to Nic, who had wrapped his arms around him again.
"Murdering the High Master. . . ." Nic gave Connor a long, hard look. "One's Sire is a serious crime."
"He deserved it!" Connor yelled. "He killed my father. He. . . ."
"Angelus was your Father, twit!" Spike spat out at Connor. "Don't know what kind of High Master you're going to be when you don't know your arse from a hole in the ground."
"Shut up!" Connor raised his arm in threatening manner at Spike. "As your Master, I command you to shut up."
"Fuck you!" Spike twisted his body, trying to pull away from Nic. "The day I obey a command from you is the day hell freezes over. . .bloody plonker."
Now totally enraged with Spike, Connor turned to Snow's minions. "Kill him."
"He's your brother and a Blood-Childe of Angelus." Nic quickly protested. "You just can't kill him."
Not knowing how to counter Nic, Connor looked at Snow for guidance.
"You have a point." Snow said, pretending to consider Nic's argument. "But I believe. . . ." He now addressed Connor. "That your brother is a serious threat to you and your position, so I agree, he should be eliminated."
"Over my undead body." Nic growled as he shoved Spike behind him.
"Oh, that can be arranged." Snow motioned his minions toward the two. "You're no use to us anyway."
Faces shifting, Spike and Nic raised their fists. They would go down fighting. Damon's minion who had been standing off to the side, unnoticed, loyally threw them two swords. His action distracted Connor and Snow for just a split second.
"Get him!" Snow ordered his minions, pointing at the muscular vampire.
Grabbing up the swords, Nic went for Snow, while an enraged Spike attacked Connor. "I may be going down, but you, little brother, are going down with me."
Bending backward, Connor evaded Spike's sword thrusts. "You don't scare me, brother." He sneered.
Spike lunged again, but Connor ducked sideways, and then hurtled himself at Spike. The two fell to the floor, fighting for control of the sword.
"Why doesn't this surprise me?" A voice entering the Hyperion interrupted the brawl. "Tremerens fighting each other." Judelin stepped down into the hotel lobby, his eyes staring at Connor and Spike. "Brother against brother."
The arrival of the Ventrue Master halted the violence. "Where's Angelus?" He asked, eyeing the occupants of the room contemptuously.
"He's dead." Standing up, Connor fearlessly faced Judelin. "And now I claim the position of High Master."
"He murdered my Sire." Spike pointed an accusing finger first at Connor and then at Snow. "They need to be punished."
"Angelus is dead?" Judelin couldn't keep the shock out of his voice. He and Angelus had been enemies for more than two hundred years, but the old Ventrue Master found it hard to accept that one he had hated, feared, yet admired was dust.
Connor didn't bother to answer; he just threw the square of flesh to Judelin.
"They committed a crime, right?" Eyes watering at the sight of Angel's skin, Spike looked at the Ventrue Master hopefully. "So twink here. . . ." He gave Connor a shove in the back. "Can't be High Master?"
Staring at the square of flesh in his hand, Judelin was silent. After a few long moments of consideration, he spoke softly. "Angelus is dead, then by our law, his Pure Blood son. . . ." He looked up at Connor. "Will succeed him."
"That's fucked!" Spike spat out. "I'm also Angelus' son. What if I were to challenge. . . ?"
"Don't question it, boy. You're not a Pure Blood." Judelin now spoke harshly. Five minutes with the Tremerens and he was already tired of them. "Accept your position."
"My position?" Tears of rage and sorrow were welling in Spike's eyes, as he angrily lashed out. "My position as dust because they. . . ." He pointed again at Connor and Snow. "Want to kill me."
"He threatens our new High Master." Snow quickly intervened. "And as you know. . . ." He reminded Judelin. "This new Pure Blood Childe has been prophesized to be the savior of our people."
"I have heard the prophecy." Judelin said abruptly. It was that prophecy which had the old and powerful vampire slightly fearful of Connor. "And you. . . .?" He asked Connor. "You ally yourself with. . .him?" He glared at Snow. "A traitor to our kind."
"Yes." Connor didn't hesitate in answering.
"I claim the right to act as his Regent, until he becomes of age." Snow continued. "As the Childe's eldest uncle."
"Is that so?" Judelin narrowed his eyes at Snow. He was aware of who Snow really was. "And Damon and Djoser, where are they?" .
"They went to Germany." Nic spoke up quickly. "The rest of us were to join them."
"Then I suggest the two of you. . . ." Judelin looked first at Spike and then at Nic. "Join them. I will grant you forty eight hours to leave LA." His mesmerizing eyes then turned to Connor and Snow. "They are under my protection for that time, so you will allow their departure ." Turning to go, he made one last order. "After that, I want the new Tremeren High Master and his Regent to present themselves to me."
****
Author's Notes: I had to really twist canon timeline to fit my au timeline. Warning! Spoilers for ATS S4 and BTVS S7.
~Part: 24~
Pulling out of the Hyperion's garage with a screech, Nic looked over at Spike with worry. Tears were running down his nephew's face while Angel's patch of skin was held tightly in his hands. "Our best bet is to take the first flight we can to London. We're not too far behind Damon and Djoser, so maybe we can still catch them there." He tried to smile reassuringly. "If Djoser, no when Djoser defeats the Trials we can return here and overthrow Connor and Snow."
"No." Spike whispered. "We can't leave LA."
Even though he heaved a loud sigh, Nic spoke quietly and with patience. "William, you heard the Ventrue Master. We have forty eight hours to leave. To stay would be suicide. But like I said." He attempted to inject a tone of optimism in his voice. "Defeating the Trials will legitimize Djoser, and when we oust Connor, Judelin will have no choice but to recognize Djoser as the Tremerens' lawful High Master."
"He's not dead." Still whispering, Spike acted like he hadn't heard anything Nic had said. "He's not dead. We have to find him."
"Not dead?" Nic frowned in puzzlement. "What the hell are you. . .oh fuck!" He suddenly realized who Spike was talking about.
"He's trapped somewhere, and we. . .we've got to find him!" Hysteria was evident in Spike's tone as he could feel Angel's horror through the blood bond that bound them.
Stepping hard on the brake, Nic brought the car to an abrupt halt. "Christ, you can feel him can't you?" He slammed his hands on the steering wheel, thinking hard. "Alright, alright, but we can't fucking stay here with both the Ventrues and now our own people against us. Sunnydale." The solution just popped in his brain. "We'll go to Sunnydale."
"Fuck Sunnyhell." Unable to think rationally, Spike just wanted to start searching for Angel. "He's somewhere here in LA, not Sunnyhell. Turn around so we can start. . . ."
"Start what?" Nic gave Spike a 'stop-being-such-a stup' look. "Search a city of more than four thousand square miles, while we fight Connor and his minions and run from the Ventrues? I believe the Slayer made a promise to Djoser that she would help and give sanctuary to any of us if the occasion arose. We'll stay in Sunnydale under the protection of the Slayer, and from there we'll conduct the search."
"How the bloody hell do we search for my Sire here in LA from Sunnydale?" Unconvinced, Spike's hand started to move to the car door. He'd jump out of the car if he had to, but Nic caught the movement.
"Don't even fucking think about it." He snarled as he grabbed Spike and pulled him away from the car's handle. "We get other people to do the searching. . .idiot. That way we can keep our asses hidden."
"You still have contacts here in LA?" Arguing made Spike forget his misery for the moment.
"Of course." Nic lied as he hit the gas pedal. "Human contacts." He said softly to himself.
**
His vampiric sense told him that it was daytime. He hadn't even spent twenty four hours in his watery prison, so there weren't any great hunger pains yet, but Angel could smell his own desperation and fear. Trying to keep any kind of hope, he pictured his brother Damon torturing the information of his whereabouts out of Snow.
"They'll find me. They'll find me." He repeated over and over to himself. "They won't be long. A couple of days, and. . . ." He smiled grimly. "I'll be out of here, and then I'm going to do something I should have done sooner." His hands, immobilized at his sides, itched as they longed to have Connor in them. "That boy will get a beating he'll never forget."
**
Sunnydale CA
Arriving back from the airport after dropping off Giles and Willow, Buffy sat down on the couch with a sigh. Looking around at Xander, Anya, and Dawn, she asked the question that everyone was thinking. "Will she be alright?"
"Well, if she's still evil, at least she'll now be in England." Anya said with her usual candor.
"An!" Xander raised his voice in protest.
"What?" As usual Anya never quite understood why everyone was offended when she just spoke the truth. "It's only fair, you know. We stopped Willow from destroying the world, so if she tries it again, let someone else stop her. England's got the Watcher's Council with all those Watchers; let them do something for a change."
Buffy couldn't help but smile slightly at Anya. "Maybe you're right because I'm sure tired of saving the world."
"Willow will be okay." Dawn chimed in with confidence. She was still on a high from battling the earth monsters the other day. "She won't turn evil again. Giles will see to that."
"Let's hope so." Buffy looked at her younger sister with envy. Her sister was still young and positive while she felt old beyond her years. "Because I could go for some nice quiet time with just your run-of-the-mill vamps. No goddesses, or super beings," she stopped herself from saying, or high powered witches, "trying to end the world."
"I second the motion for peace and quiet." Xander raised his hand. "Or we'll never get the new high school finished."
"Ugh." Dawn expressed her feeling for the new high school in one word.
"Well that's settled." Buffy said brightly. "Peace and quiet it is." A pounding on the door stopped any further discussion. "That better be the pizza guy." She muttered as she got up to answer the front door.
"Hey, Slayer." Nic greeted her as he held tight to a now babbling Spike. "I need your assistance, so you better have remembered the promise you made to Djoser about giving us help and sanctuary."
Her heart dropping to her feet, Buffy could only ask. "You need help finding peace and quiet. . .right?"
**
Los Angeles, CA., January 2002, Two months later
Studying a map of the waters around southern California, Wesley put his finger on one of the grids. "Today, I think I'll try this one."
Sighing, he looked over at his closet where metal bars had been installed converting it into a small prison cell. A minion of Snow who he had tortured the whereabouts of Angel had long turned to dust. For a split second he wished the vampire was back. At least then there would be someone to talk to.
Throwing some tools in a duffle bag, he readied himself to continue his search. A search that had begun two months ago with a call from Sunnydale. A search for the missing Angel.
**
Sunnydale, CA., January 2002
Down in Buffy's basement, Nic was lying on a narrow cot, pillow over his head trying to shut out the pounding and thumping that came from the upstairs. Squinting his eyes at his wrist watch, he saw it was the ungodly hour of 7:30 in the morning.
"Jesus fucking Christ! Don't these people ever sleep?" He finally lifted his head to ask Spike, who was sitting up on his cot, chains shackling him to the basement wall.
"Getting Bit off to school, I suspect." Spike got up from the cot. "Unlock these bloody things." He yanked at his restraints.
"Forget it!" Nic buried his head in his pillow again. "I'm not going to be wrestling around with you if you have one of your little 'spells'."
"Don't have them that much anymore." Spike sighed, staring up at the ceiling. The blood bond with Angel had weakened with time, so his crazy spells had become sporadic. "I want to go upstairs; Willow makes a mean breakfast."
"Vampires do not eat human breakfast, and they don't get up at this indecent hour." Nic said with emphasis. "Christ, hanging out with the Slayer and company has got you acting even more human. Angelus is not going to be happy about that."
"Pfft." Spike made a sound of disbelief, trying to keep his tone flippant. It helped the pain he felt whenever he thought of his missing Sire. "Like He can point any fingers. He's shagged a Slayer, helped a couple of Watchers, and kept human pets. . .now come on, undo these." He rattled his manacles.
"Alright, but you better not bother me until sundown." Nic grumbled as he groped under his cot for the key to Spike's chains. "And since you're going to be up, you can give Wesley a call. See if he knows anything more."
"If he knew something, he'd give us a ring." Spike pointed out the obvious as he shook off his chains.
"Just fucking do it." Nic covered his head with his pillow. "And tell those humans upstairs that they should take the fucking lead out of their feet."
**
At the beginning Angel had drifted in and out of consciousness, but now as time had past, he was drifting in and out of reality. Madness was taking over him. Hunger, desperation, fear, and the inability to move were wearing at the powerful vampire. His thinking was becoming more and more muddled as starvation began to erode his brain function.
**
"Hey." Entering the kitchen, Spike was greeted by Buffy, who was packing lunches for her and Dawn. "Looking for breakfast?" It was now no surprise anymore when Spike came to eat with them.
"Yeah, I've got a taste for some of Red's pancakes." Spike looked around for Willow, but besides Buffy, there were only Xander and Dawn in the kitchen.
"She's out running errands." Dawn licked her finger as she watched the pancake she was making bubble in the frying pan. "But I'm making pancakes, want me to make you one?"
"Err." Spike stalled a moment as he went and investigated Dawn's pancakes. He had tried her cooking before, and they hadn't been pleasant experiences. "What are those chunks?" He asked pointing to brown and yellow lumps which were sizzling along with the pancake batter.
"Peanut butter and banana." Dawn flipped the pancake onto its other side.
"I'll pass." Spike said with disappointment as he rubbed his stomach. "Isn't it a little early for chores? Red could have made breakfast first before. . . ."
"She's out getting blood from the butcher for you and Nic." Buffy interrupted.
"Oh." The wind was taken out of Spike's sails; there were no complaints he could make about Willow getting blood for them. "Right then. . .so is this all the cereal we have?" He held up a box of cocoa puffs. "Chocolate and blood don't taste good together, you know."
"Thank you for that piece of information." Xander said as he finished up his bowl of cocoa puffs. "And by the way, you have two legs and two arms. Make your own breakfast or go out and buy the cereal you want. You think we're all here to wait on you?"
Biting back an expletive retort, Spike counted to ten. He and Nic were 'guests' of the Slayer, and to remain her guests, they needed to play nice with her and her friends.
"So." Dawn plopped her pancake on a plate as she tactfully changed the subject. "Any news from LA?"
"Wesley's still searching, but the ocean's a big place, and he's only one man." Sitting down on a kitchen stool, Spike folded his hands on top of the counter. He refused to look any of the humans in the eye. His Sire, buried in the ocean, and here he sat, not doing a damn thing about it.
"I'm sorry Spike." Buffy was sincere in her sympathy. "I wish we could find someone to help Wesley, but Cordelia's missing, and she was our only other contact in LA."
"Wesley *will* find him. . .sooner or later." Spike squeezed his hands tighter together. "It's just that He's. . .suffering." His voice dropped to a whisper.
"Ah yeah, we kind of got the picture." Xander waved his spoon in Spike's direction. "When you have one of your crazy spells, you sort of give us a visual, complete with dialogue, about what Angel's going through."
"But he'll be alright after he's rescued?" Dawn had finished her pancake and was setting her dirty dishes in the sink. "He'll just need some blood and rest and then he'll be fine, cause he's a vampire and vampires can't die of starvation, right?"
"He'll be bloody peachy, pet." Spike said with false cheerfulness. He wasn't about to mention the fact that although starvation couldn't kill a vampire, it could strongly affect them mentally and emotionally.
"Wesley will find him." Buffy said trying to keep a confident spirit. She too hated to think about Angel suffering. "With any luck, it will be soon and then you. . . ." She looked at Spike. "Can go back to LA, and we can get back to normal around here."
Further discussion was halted as the front door opened with a bang, and Willow's voice shouted out to them."Buffy. Xander."
Grabbing the lunch bags, Buffy started for the living room, calling back. "We're here, Will. What's. . . ?" She broke off in surprise at the sight of Willow holding a guilty looking Andrew by the back of the collar.
"Look who I found at the butcher shop. . .buying mass amounts of blood." Willow gave Andrew a slight shove forward.
"So much for things getting back to normal around here." Xander said with a sigh, rolling his eyes up to the heavens.
**
"It was definitely solid and. . . ." Wesley mumbled to himself as he made his way wearily to his apartment. "Metallic. Could it be?" Eyes closed, he whispered the last question as he reached his apartment door. Inserting a key into the lock, he gave the door a push with his shoulder.
"Hey, big boy." He was greeted by Lilah, who had found a seat on his desk. "Keeping late hours, aren't you Wes?" She glanced meaningfully at the tools in Wesley's hands. "But I guess after working so long with Angel, you're finding some occupational habits hard to break."
"Some more than others." Wesley answered noncommittally.
"Speaking of Angel." Lilah slid off the desk to stand in front of Wesley. "Have you tried talking to him lately? Who knows, maybe by now he's forgotten and forgiven."
Wesley gave a short laugh, grabbing Lilah by the wrists as her hands had moved to his chest. He knew what she was fishing for. "I have no idea where Angel is or what happened to him. . .and I really don't care."
"Wow." Lilah pulled her wrists out of Wesley's grip and took a step backward. "That was cold. . .but come on, Wes. Doesn't it bother you just a little bit that Angel's disappeared?"
"Not at all." Wesley lied convincingly. "That part of my life is dead. Angel and his family don't concern me now."
Staring at Wesley intensely, Lilah tried to read him but failed. "No, I guess they don't." Leaning in she gave him a passionate kiss goodbye. "Bye for now, lover."
Watching her leave, Wesley let out a big breath while he took notice of the time. Too early to ring Nic. Heading for the kitchen, he decided that a little sustenance and a shower wouldn't hurt. He had barely poured himself a cup of tea, when his front door was kicked in.
"Battle plan changed, Lilah?" He asked, expecting the lawyer who was both enemy and lover to have returned with reinforcements.
"Invite me in mortal." But instead of Lilah, the Ventrue High Master stood outside his door. Two of his human servants stepped in quickly, their guns trained on him.
"I don't have a choice, do I?" Wesley stalled a moment as he measured the distance to a kitchen drawer where he kept a 9mm berretta.
"Do anything foolish, and they. . .," Judelin gestured toward his humans, "will shoot you down in a heartbeat, and I will have my first taste of living human blood in. . . ."
"Come in." Wesley cut the vampire off rudely.
"Thank you." Judelin stepped through the door gracefully. "I've heard rumors and gossip that you made a trip to Sunnydale last December to meet with two vampires, and that these same two vampires are now making their home there."
"Spike and Nic are there under the Slayer's protection." Wesley said quickly, emphasizing the words Slayer's protection.
"Why are they still here in California?" Judelin asked, his amazing eyes staring holes through Wesley. "I had ordered them to leave this area."
"They had nowhere else to go, and the Slayer. . . ." Wesley had the horrible feeling that the Ventrue Master could read his mind. "The Slayer had an understanding with. . .with Angel that she would give sanctuary to him or any of his family whenever it would be needed." He could feel himself breaking out in a nervous sweat while desperately trying to look calm and emotionless. 'Please God.' He offered up a prayer. 'Don't let the Ventrue know about Angel.'
Like Lilah before, Judelin studied Wesley intently for a few long moments. "Give them this message from me. If I catch either one of them outside of Sunnydale and the sanctuary of the Slayer, then I will claim them as *mine*."
And with a swish of his long coat, the Ventrue Master was gone.
~Part: 25~
"Just what are you doing back in town?" Crossing her arms across her chest, Buffy gave Andrew an impatient look. "And make it fast because I have to leave for work in a few minutes."
Straightening himself up to his full height, Andrew held himself with an air of defiance. "You'll get nothing out of me, you. . .you, Slayer, you."
Rolling her eyes, Buffy knew there wasn't time to play twenty questions with him. "Spike, get some rope and. . . ."
"I'm not bad. I'm not bad anymore." With a voice an octave higher with panic, Andrew interrupted, his defiance dissolving quickly. "I'm good. I do good things now."
"Uh huh." Buffy raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Tie him up." She finished her order to Spike. "I'll. . .we'll. . .," she amended to include Dawn, "take care of him after work and school."
"Can I slap him around a tad?" Spike asked as he turned to head for the basement. "It would give me a spot of entertainment for the day."
At Spike's threat, Andrew changed his strategy and immediately began to babble. "I'm bad. I'm bad, I'm evil, and I'm protected by powerful forces." Unfortunately for him, the quivering in his voice belied any menace he was trying to impact. "Forces you can't even begin to imagine. If you harm me, you shall know the wrath of he that is darkness and terror. Your blood will boil, and you will know true suffering. Now stand down for your defeat is. . . ."
"Shut up, Andrew." Buffy gave the young man a hard shove, which sent him sprawling in the chair behind him.
"Okay." He readily agreed.
"Spike, you can't hurt him," Buffy called out as she turned to leave, "yet." She added with an impish smile to herself. Let Andrew live in fear for a day.
**
"Damn." Wesley swore to himself, as he set his broken door up in its frame. "I'm never going to get my deposit back now." Stepping back, he surveyed the ruined mess, and with a shrug of the shoulders, turned away. "Didn't do me a bit of good." He mumbled. "Everyone in LA got in anyway."
Walking over to his telephone, he picked it up. Early or not, it was time to ring Sunnydale.
**
"You can't just. . . ," Andrew, now tied to a chair, protested as Spike went through his coat pockets, "search through my coat without. . .without a search warrant. I have rights, you know."
"Like I give a bleeding fuck about your rights." Cigarette dangling from his lips, Spike mumbled this back as he pulled out a wad of money.
"Hey, that money is mine!" Andrew continued protesting as Spike pocketed his money. "And careful with my coat. It's expensive."
"That so? Is it new?" Spike asked, widening his eyes with a false innocence, as he threw the coat on the floor and stomped on it.
"Sadist!" Andrew protested as he watched his pricey coat being stepped on.
"Of course I am." Spike gave Andrew a cocky grin. "Vampire, you know."
"This is cruel and unusual punishment." Andrew was still claiming innocence. "Because I haven't done anything wrong."
"Don't care if you did anything wrong or not." Spike told Andrew just as the phone rang. "The Slayer gave me permission to torment you, and that's all I need."
Misunderstanding, Andrew's mutterings began to grow to shrieks. "She did not give you permission to torture me! She clearly said you couldn't hurt me!"
"I am not torturing you." Spike enunciated slowly, ignoring the ringing phone. "But if you keep screeching like a nancyboy, I'm going to. . . ."
"For Christ's sake!" Throwing the basement door open with a bang, Nic came storming through. "William, stop making the girls scream and answer the fucking phone." Looking around to see whose shrieks were grating on his ears like fingernails on chalkboard, he spied Andrew tied to a chair. "Who the fuck are you?"
For some unknown reason the entrance of Nic calmed Andrew, so he was able to answer in a normal voice. "I'm one of the evil troika."
"Evil troika?" Nic stepped closer to Andrew so he could catch a scent. "You're not a demon." He sniffed the young man. "You're a fucking human!"
"I know I'm human." Andrew replied. "I never said I wasn't."
"You said you were an evil troika." Nic was not at his best when he was tired.
"An evil troika is not a demon." Instead of answering the phone, Spike had gone to the kitchen to warm up blood for Nic. "It's three nerds who banded together against the Slayer." He explained as he handed a mug to his uncle.
"You went up against the Slayer?" Nic looked at Andrew with disbelief. "And are still alive to tell about it? Fuck me, the Slayer must have been having a bad day that day."
"I-we had the Slayer on the ropes quite a few times." Offended at Nic's low opinion of him, Andrew had to brag a bit.
"Is that so, little man." His attention caught, Nic grabbed a chair and sat down across from Andrew. Being a vampire it never hurt to learn ways in which the Slayer could be bested. "So tell me about those. . . ." The phone, which had been quiet for a minute, began ringing again. "Who in the fuck keeps calling here this early in the morning?" He half turned in his chair to ask Spike, who was standing behind him.
"Point-in-fact," Andrew stated. "It's after nine in the morning which is not considered early in the. . . ."
"Shut up!" Both Nic and Spike shouted simultaneously.
"William, get the fucking phone." Nic ordered.
"You answer it." It was second nature for Spike to be difficult. "I don't want to talk to one of Buffy or Dawn's bloody mates."
Waiting a second, Nic hoped whoever was calling would give up, but the ringing continued insistently. "Goddamn it!" He swore as he finally got up and stamped over to answer the phone. "Yeah, what do you want?" He answered rudely.
"Nic?" Wesley asked in surprise. He hadn't expected the vampire to answer the Summers' phone. "Thank God I got a hold of you. I tried your cell phone, but it was turned off. Anyway, I do have news. I believe I may have found Angel."
**
Sitting at her desk in the new high school, Buffy was bored. Principal Wood's offer of a counseling job was a gift from heaven; it was just unfortunate she wasn't sure what she was suppose to be doing. So to make herself look busy, she rearranged her desk and sharpened pencils. After five minutes of doing that, the phone thankfully rang.
"Buffy Summers, counsel . . .Sunnydale Hi. . .Buffy Summers." She finally answered with a sigh.
"Slayer, it's me." Nic identified himself. "I heard from Wesley this morning. He's found something, which may or may not be Angel, so I've got to go to LA this evening. I need you to keep William busy. I don't want him tagging along with me. LA is too dangerous for him, but if he finds out we might have found Angel. . .well, there will be no stopping him from going."
"Not a problem." Closing her eyes, Buffy blew out a breath, praying that it was indeed Angel. "He can help with our interrogation of Andrew tonight, you know, be the bad cop so to speak."
"Ah huh." Nic mumbled back as he pulled his car up in the fast food drive through. "Now the trick is. . . ," he spoke his thoughts out loud, "to lean back out of the sun and shout loud enough so they can hear me." One hand still holding the cell phone to his ear, the other rolling his car window down cautiously.
"What?" Buffy asked with puzzlement. She had no idea what Nic was talking about.
"Two pancake meals, two sausage biscuits, four hash browns, and an orange juice." She heard the vampire shout.
"Nic, what's going on?" Buffy asked the question, even though she now had a pretty good idea of where he was.
"I'm ordering breakfast for my idiotic nephew and that idiotic prisoner of yours." Nic's tone was of pure annoyance.
"That's nice of you." Grinning, Buffy restrained herself from laughing out loud. The picture of Nic ordering food from a drive through for Spike and Andrew was too funny.
"Who's trying to be nice?" Nic answered crankily as he pulled on a long dark glove so he could reach out of the car. "If their mouths are full, then no sounds can come out, and I can get some shut eye."
That was too much for Buffy as she covered her mouth to stifle her giggles.
**
Los Angeles, CA
Looking over his shoulder, Wesley gave a sigh of relief as the shoreline receded further and further in the distance. The farther away they got from land, the safer it was for Nic.
"Couldn't Buffy or even Xander have come to help me?" Wesley asked. "I don't think that this is such a good idea for you to be here with the Ventures and. . .and Snow." He couldn't bring himself to say Connor. The mention of Connor brought forward his guilt because, after all, he was partly responsible for the boy being so twisted.
"They're busy with an evil troika." Nic said leaning back in the boat's seat, enjoying the night and the feel of skimming over the water.
"An evil troika?" Wesley frowned in concentration. "Funny, I'm quite familiar with most demons, but that one is not ringing a bell."
"It-he is not a demon." Nic smiled with satisfaction. He felt better now that Wesley had made the same mistake he had. "It's a nerd."
"A nerd?" Wesley was confused. "I'm not following you."
"Never mind because I don't quite get it either." Nic stood up as Wesley cut the boat's engine. "In fact, there are a lot of things that go on with the Slayer and her friends that I don't get. But I've come to the realization that I could live a few more centuries and still not have a clue. So I try to ignore them the best I can."
"I see." Wesley replied although he didn't see at all. "We're close now." He changed the subject while checking the boat's radar.
"Thank God!" Nic expressed his relief. "I just pray that it really is Angelus."
"Pray?" It was a question that Wesley had always wanted to ask. "May I ask, to whom do vampires pray?"
**
Sunnydale, CA
"Okay, Spike." Standing in the kitchen, Buffy whispered to the vampire so the prisoner in the other room wouldn't hear. "I want you to scare the pants off of Andrew. If you have to, you can even nip him a little, but *don't* hurt him. Got it?"
Rolling his eyes, Spike snorted with disdain. "I could scare the piss out of the little nerd without even trying. So. . . .," he asked as he started for the living room, "what are you going to give me for helping worm the information out of Mr. Evil Troika?"
"Give you?" Buffy couldn't believe Spike had the gall to ask that. "How about more *free* room and board?"
**
The former Watcher and vampire worked together quietly and efficiently. Hauling the coffin out of the ocean, they quickly cut through the metal bars, which locked the coffin lid in place.
"What are the odds. . . ," Nic asked as he grabbed one end of the coffin lid to lift it off, "that there are more than one coffin buried in the ocean off of LA?"
"Don't even joke about such a thing." Wesley was dead serious. Rescuing Angel would pay his debt for Connor, and then he could get on with his life.
"Who's joking?" Nic flipped his end of the coffin lid over. "There's mafia here in LA, and burying people in the ocean is a common. . . ." He broke off, as the body in the coffin came into view. "Angelus." He whispered.
Grabbing a bolt cutter, Wesley gestured to a small cooler. "I brought some pig's blood. I know he's starved and will need blood."
"Yeah, but not pig's blood." Nic kept staring down at Angel. He had never seen his older brother so vulnerable. "He needs the blood of. . . ." He was cut off abruptly as a strong hand reached up and seized Wesley by the throat. "Angelus!" Quickly biting into his own wrist, Nic held it to Angel's mouth. "Drink my Master. It's familial blood and will strengthen you immediately."
The bleeding wound on Nic's arm was not enough for Angel, as his fangs dropped, he bit deeper and harder into his brother's veins. His hand around Wesley's throat gradually relaxed.
"Cut him loose, Wes." Nic said softly as he looked down at Angel, who was greedily drinking from him. "My brother is back."
**
They had cajoled, bribed, and bullied Andrew, but all they had gotten was a lie about him falling in love with a beautiful vampire girl down in Me-hi-co, a request for water, and a plea to go to the bathroom.
"You think this is a game? People are dying." Buffy stared Andrew down for a moment, before turning to Spike. "Go for it." She said.
Vamping out, Spike slowly approached the still tied up Andrew. Growling loudly, he tried to make himself as menacing as possible.
Squeaking, Andrew tilted back in his chair. "I didn't do anything." He looked around Spike to Buffy. "You're the Slayer. You don't kill innocent. . . ." He was cut off as Spike lifted him and chair in the air.
"She may not kill innocent people, but I do." Spike threatened, as he started to go for Andrew's neck.
"I was at the butcher shop buying blood because we needed more blood to activate the seal of Danthaz." Andrew finally broke.
"The Seal of Danthaz?" Buffy looked around the room at her sister and friends with a baffled expression on her face. "What's the seal of. . . ?" She never finished her question, as at that moment robed men broke into the house, smashing windows and breaking down doors. Armed with wooden staffs and knives, their most notable trait was empty eye sockets.
**
"Easy." Nic said as he helped a still shaky Angel out of the coffin. "Just take it slow."
"Angel." Wesley looked on with concern. "How do you feel? I have pig's blood here."
"In a minute." Angel slowly lowered himself into one of the boat's seats. Gathering his wits, he checked his surroundings. "What took you so long?" He finally asked Nic.
"Had some major problems." Nic answered, his arm still steadying Angel. "The Ventrues, Snow, Con. . . ."
"Snow!" Angel spat out bitterly. "That bastard. And Connor? What has become of him?"
"He, with Snow's help, has taken over our Clan." Nic explained in a quiet voice.
"Took over the Clan?" Strong emotions began rising up in Angel. "And you and Damon just permitted that?"
"Ahh." Nic stalled a moment as he looked over at Wesley, who could only nod his head in sympathy. "While you were being captured by Snow, Damon took Djoser to Africa to face the Trials."
"Damon did what?" Forgetting his feebleness, Angel stood up fast, too fast as his knees immediately buckled.
"Sit down." Wesley counseled as he and Nic took hold of the unsteady Angel. "You're weak. You need to rest."
"Rest!" Angel said bitterly as he allowed himself to be lowered back down into his seat. "One son tries to murder me. Another deserts me, and. . .and what of William? Did he go to Africa too?"
"No, William has been true and faithful to you. He's been taking your absence hard." Kneeling down, Nic gave Angel a comforting smile. "I took him to Sunnydale. We've been living there under the Slayer's protection because Connor ordered his death. Fortunately Judelin intervened and gave us an opportunity to leave LA. We've been there waiting, while Wesley searched for you here."
Thoughtful Angel rested his head back, closing his eyes. "Take me to Sunnydale and my William." He made his request softly. "After that, we will. . .," he opened his eyes and gave Nic a meaningful look, "return here and take back our Clan."
Nic finally had something to smile about, as he gave Angel a big grin and then a salute. "Aye, aye, my Master."
Angel grinned back. "Thank you, my brother. And thank you." He looked up at Wesley.
"You're welcome." Wesley quietly congratulated himself. He had been successful. He had made his amends for Connor and helped put the Tremere Clan back on the right path. "You do realize. . .," he stepped over to the boat's steering wheel and started up the engine, "that I'm done now. I've repaid my debt to you."
**
The Harbingers attacked swiftly and with the element of surprise. Unprepared, Buffy and company fought back hard but with no organization. When the smoke finally cleared, the Slayer was surprised to see her sister and friends alive and well.
"Is this it?" Xander asked as he looked at the couple of harbinger dead bodies. "I thought there was more of them."
Looking around, Buffy too was confused. "They came so fast and were so organized." She did a quick head count and found everyone accounted for except for one. "Spike!" She ran through the house, searching. "Where's Spike?"
****
Author's Note: Count Orlock was the main character of F. W. Murnau's silent classic Nosferatu . The vampire was played by German actor Max Schreck, who was not the Hollywood sexual Dracula who came later, but a hairy, spindly, bald monster with protruding front teeth like a rodent's rather than fangs. The movie followed Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula, but the characters' names were all changed because Murnau never obtained the legal rights from Stoker's estate to make the movie.
~Part: 26~
"Ok, here's what we know." Buffy addressed her friends. "Those eyeless guys who attacked us were bringers or harbingers of the First. Remember Christmas a couple years ago when Sunnydale had that freak snow storm?"
"Oh, yeah." Xander stopped sweeping for a moment and leaned on the broom. There was glass everywhere from the windows the bringers had crashed through. "They were making Angel go loopy. I remember."
"No, it was the First who made Angel go loopy, not them. They're just the First's minions or high priests. And now the First is back, and there's no doubt that they came here specifically for Spike. Why they want him, we don't know. Will?" Buffy turned to Willow, who was busy doing a search on her laptop. "Anything?"
"My search isn't turning anything up." Willow looked up at Buffy. "Are you sure this thing called itself the First?"
"Pretty sure." Buffy wrinkled her brow, trying to remember word for word what the First had told her that Christmas. "I remember it claimed to be the original evil, the one that came before anything else. When I met with it, I could feel its power. It felt ancient and enormous. It was able to get Angel to nearly kill himself, and God only knows what the First will do to Spike."
"Well, Angel will be here soon." Anya said calmly as she picked up a text to begin researching. "Do you think the First took Spike to get to Angel?"
"Yes. . .no. . .maybe." Buffy couldn't think straight. They had called Nic on his cell phone and had gotten the good news. Angel had been found. They in turn broke the bad news that Spike had been kidnapped. Consequently, an enraged Angel, worse news, was now coming to Sunnydale to find out what exactly happened.
"Angel's not going to be happy that you let the First get Spike." Anya stated matter-of-factly, as she slipped on her reading glasses. "After all, you had promised to protect. . . ."
"I know what I promised." Buffy interrupted. "That's why we need to get cracking on the research so we can figure out how to this fight this thing. . .*before* Angel gets here."
"Hey! Hey!" Willow raised her hand in the air. "I got something here, the First, "she lowered her hand and frowned, "Bank of Delaware. Sorry."
"We've got to have something concrete by the time Nic and. . .and Angel get here." Buffy heaved a loud sigh, as she motioned to Xander. "Hand me the Watchers' Codex."
**
Regaining consciousness, Spike found himself being strapped to wooden beams.
"You'll have to excuse the spectacle." A voice in front of him said. "But I've always been a bit of a sucker for the old classics."
Eyes beginning to focus, Spike saw who stood in front of him. Angel.
"Sire." He began. "I wanted to stay in LA to look for you, but Nic said it was too dangerous."
"You've always been such a disappointment, William." The specter of Angel said as he nodded his head at one of his priests.
Picking up a knife, the harbinger began making bloody patterns on Spike's chest.
Panting heavily, Spike couldn't help but groan in pain as blood began to pour from his body.
**
Pacing the floor in the Summers' house, Angel clenched his hands tightly. He wanted to yell, break furniture, hit something or someone. "So the First has Spike." He reviewed the situation. "We don't know where or why."
"Yep, that sums it up in a nutshell." Anya said as she threw down a book she had been studying. She was the only one in the room who seemed oblivious to the tension since Angel's arrival. "There's no information on the First in this. And these two," she held up two other books, "also have nothing and nothing."
No one spoke for a moment, as Buffy and the Scoobies stared at each helplessly, and Angel's body took on an even more menacing stance.
"Take it easy, Angelus." Nic advised. "You're still weak and going off won't help William."
Whipping around angrily, Angel opened his mouth, his first impulse was to tell Nic to keep his opinions to himself, but a flash of rationality stopped him. He was slowly starting to learn that Nic was no longer the drunken wastrel of the past.
"Too bad Sleeping Ugly," Xander looked over at the unconscious and still-tied-to-a-chair Andrew, "doesn't come to. He was just starting to squeal when the spooky SWAT attacked. Said something about the First being held up at the Seal of. . .Seal of Danzar?"
"He knows something?" Angel eyed Andrew with a predatory interest.
"We're not sure." Buffy jumped up to get between Angel and Andrew, while giving Xander a dirty look. "He was knocked unconscious during the harbingers' attack. As soon as he wakes up, we'll see if he has anything to say."
"I think it's time he woke up." Angel growled, as he started to push past Buffy.
"Wait Angel!" Buffy grabbed a hold of his arm. "I won't let you hurt him. We don't know. . . ." Surprise stopped her from saying more, as her own sister threw a cup of cold water in Andrew's face. "Dawn! What are doing?"
"It didn't hurt him." Dawn defended herself. "And Angel is right, he needs to wake up and tell us what he knows. Besides I think he's just faking so he doesn't have to answer any questions."
"Try boiling water next." Anya suggested helpfully.
Whether it was the cold water, the idea of boiling water, or he just truly regained consciousness, Andrew woke with a cough. Looking around the room with bleary eyes, he spotted Buffy. "I'm. . .I was about to be dead by those priestly guys. You saved me."
"For the time being." Crossing her arms over her chest, Buffy kept herself between Andrew and Angel. "But if you don't tell us what we need to know, then I'm going offer you to the First on a platter and let it chop you into tiny pieces."
"The first what?" Andrew asked.
"The First." Buffy pronounced the name slowly and clearly. "The name of the original, first evil."
"The First is the name of the original evil? Not a very ominous sounding name." Andrew immediately became side tracked. "You would think the first evil would have a more wicked sounding name like Lex or Voldemort or. . . ."
Angel's patience snapped as he pushed Buffy aside and grabbed Andrew by the throat. "Tell me what you know, or I'll squeeze you so hard your eyeballs will pop out."
"Warren made me do it. He made me kill Jonathan because we needed blood to open the Seal of Danthazar, but it didn't work." Andrew managed to babble this out quickly, despite having Angel holding him by the throat.
"Where is this seal?" Demon visage in place, Angel hissed the question in Andrew's ear.
"In the basement of the new high school." Andrew squeaked out.
Buffy started to intervene, but found it unnecessary as Angel released his grip on Andrew. "And what happens if this seal is opened?" She asked.
"Umm." Andrew was staring at Angel with frightened eyes. "Umm." Fear was short-circuiting his brain. "Umm, I get to become a god."
Hands on hips, Buffy could only sigh and roll her eyes. "I want you to show us where this seal is." She turned to look at Angel who had reverted back to his human face. "My guess. They're holding Spike there. If they weren't able to activate the seal with Jonathan's death, maybe they think they'll be able to with Spike's. Let's go there *now*."
Eyes flashing yellow then red, Angel growled his assent.
**
The wooden beams had been part of a mechanical apparatus that could be raised and lowered. The First had Spike elevated so that he now hung over the seal, blood dripping down from his body.
Standing below him, the First continued to have his fun. "You're an embarrassment to our Bloodline." It said in the guise of Darla. "You should be destroyed."
"And what have you learned in your one hundred plus years, William?" It was the Old Master who now spoke. "All you have learned is that you are a pathetic schmuck. No self-respecting vampire would be hiding out in the Slayer's house, while. . . ."
The First morphed into Angel's form. "His Sire lies at the bottom of the ocean. Now. . .I think it is time that you see what a true vampire looks like."
The Seal of Danthazar had been absorbing Spike's blood, perhaps in a sense ingesting it. It began to glow and then open piece by piece. Watching from above, Spike first saw a hand as it climbed its way up from underground, then the monster appeared.
Despite all of his physical and emotional pain, Spike couldn't help but mutter. "It's the bloody Count Orlock."
**
They had found the seal, a lot of blood, but no Spike. Walking alongside Angel, Buffy found herself apologizing. "I'm sorry I didn't protect Spike better. The harbingers caught us by surprise, and I. . . ."
"Don't apologize." Angel cut in as he sniffed the area. He and Buffy were patrolling around the high school, seeing if they could find any clue to the whereabouts of the First and his kidnapped Childe. "Spike isn't your responsibility."
"Yes, but I feel like I've," Buffy thought back to the promise she had made to Djoser, "that I've not kept my word for a second time now."
"Your word?" Angel asked curiously.
"Yes, Djoser and I made a. . .a pact to. . . ." Stopping, Buffy found herself reluctant to tell Angel about her dealings with his Childer.
"You made a pact with Djoser?" The news didn't surprise Angel. He had known that there was a rather unusual rapport between Buffy and his Childer. "Are you aware that Djoser took off for Africa without my permission and hasn't been heard from since?"
"Yes." Buffy thrust her hands in her jacket pockets. "I heard."
"Worst case scenario." Angel looked up at the night sky. "He and my brother ran into something they couldn't handle. William is killed by the First. That would leave only myself, Nic, and. . .and Connor."
"Connor." Buffy repeated the name. "Nic did tell you what Connor did to them?" She asked, not sure how much Angel had been told.
"Yes." A flash of sadness crossed Angel's face. "Connor is warped, perhaps beyond healing." He paused a moment. "My Sire would not have thought twice. He would have put him to death immediately."
"You're not him." Buffy said emphatically. "A parent, any parent, even a vampire should not put his child to death."
"Even when they're flawed?" Angel asked.
"Yes." Buffy said with certainty. She was young, and most things were still black and white in her world. "Even when they're. . . ."
Buffy broke off as a monster suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Its face was grossly disfigured but with distinct vampire features. It moved so fast that even with her slayer powers she couldn't stop him. One blow and the monster knocked her across the lawn and into the wall of Sunnydale High.
"What the hell?" Buffy shook her head to clear the cobwebs. Looking up she saw the monster do the same with Angel.
Angel hit the wall even harder than Buffy. The monster's strength plus the size of Angel took a good chunk out of the school building.
"So much for its shiny new look." Buffy observed as she watched Angel pick himself off the ground. "What is that thing?"
"A Turok-Han." Angel answered as he got to his feet. "Didn't think they existed. We got to get out of here." Grabbing Buffy's hand, he began to lead her away.
"Wait!" Holding herself back, Buffy eyed the Turok-Han approaching them. "I can't just leave this. . .this turkeycan loose. I have to kill it." She pulled a stake out of her jacket pocket.
"Staking it through the heart won't kill it." Angel told her grimly. What he knew about the Turok-Han was sketchy, but he was pretty sure about that fact. "They're hard to kill, and where there's one, there's probably more."
"More?" That bit of information caused Buffy to have second thoughts, and then the Turok-Han was on them.
A round house right from Angel gave Buffy the millisecond she needed to bury the stake in the ubervamp's heart. The stake slowed the Turok-Han down for a moment as it took a step backward, but that was all. Giving Buffy a look of scorn, it slowly raised a hand to pull the stake out.
"Come on!" Angel again grabbed her hand to run, and this time Buffy didn't argue.
**
"So they needed blood to activate the seal, and then what?" Dawn walked through Sunnydale's basement with a shovel over her shoulder alongside Nic. They had just finished covering the Seal of Danthazar with dirt.
"Beats me." Nic shrugged as he pulled out a cigarette. "Never paid too much attention when I was being taught rituals and sacrifices. They're just excuses for a lot of boring, hot air."
"Not if you're the one being sacrificed." Dawn couldn't help but mumble as the two turned the corner and ran right into Principal Robin Wood, who appeared slightly harassed. "Oh, hey, Principal Wood." She greeted him with an awkward smile.
"Dawn?" Wood was taken by surprise. He hadn't been expecting anyone else to be in the school this late. "What are you doing here? And who's your companion?" He stared at Nic suspiciously.
"My uncle." Dawn quickly said, so Wood wouldn't get the wrong idea. "My uncle. . . ."
"Nic." Nic broke in before Dawn said anymore. "I'm her uncle. . .Nic." Exchanging looks with Dawn he realized how guilty they sounded.
"I see." Wood inclined his head at Nic. "There's no smoking anywhere on school property."
"I. . .err. . .of course." Nic immediately put his cigarette out.
"And what are you two doing here at this time?" Wood asked eyeing their shovels.
"A science project." The lie popped out of Dawn's mouth. "I buried a time capsule and had my uncle here help me."
"Time capsule." Wood repeated skeptically.
"Uh huh." Dawn nodded, now getting into her lie. "Hello people of the future. Kids of today like Red Bull and. . .uh. . .Jackass" She laughed nervously. "And what are you doing?" She turned the tables on Wood as she nodded at his shovel.
"Oh, yeah." Now it was Wood's turn to lie. "Apparently somebody left this in the courtyard, and I was just returning it."
"Must be tough having to work as both principal and janitor." Composure now regained, Nic gave Wood a mocking smile. "Let's go, Dawn."
"Yeah, Buffy will be wondering." Dawn said with a meaningful look at Nic. "See you tomorrow, Principal Wood."
"Yes." Wood replied. "See you tomorrow." He stood for a moment, watching the two walk away.
**
"What have I told you about breathing, boy?" The First, appearing as Angel, paced back and forth in an underground cave watching his upervamp minion work over a bloody and beat-up Spike. "Vampires don't breathe."
Spike, whose head was being held under in the cave's natural pool by the Turok-Han, couldn't help himself. Every time he was pulled out, his body kept gasping for breath, even though his brain kept telling him, 'you don't need any air.' He couldn't help it, force of habit.
"Couldn't beat it out of you." The First taunted. "So I guess we'll try drowning it out of you." He gave a nod at his minion. "Hold him under some more, until he learns."
****
Just heard that Fox is going to pitch Angel to UPN. I don't want to be overly optimistic, but if UPN picks up Angel, after also giving us two more years of Buffy, they will be my heroes.
~Part: 27~
Not until they had exited Sunnydale's main entrance was Dawn sure they were out of Robin Wood's hearing range. "Was it my imagination or did you think Principal Wood was acting kind of suspicious?"
"Don't know." Nic said as he lit a cigarette. "I was too busy trying to act unsuspicious to notice whether he was or not."
Nic's flippancy made Dawn grin. "You're too funny. You remind me of Spike."
"I what?" Nic stopped in his tracks. He was not amused by being told he was similar to his nephew. "*I* am nothing like. . .no, *he* is nothing like me."
"You're related." Dawn pointed out. "So it wouldn't be. . . ." She broke off as Buffy and Angel came charging toward them.
"Run!" Buffy shouted.
Nic and Dawn didn't have to be told twice as they immediately dropped their shovels and began running as fast as they could.
Waiting with Andrew outside his car, Xander saw the four dashing toward him. He didn't need to be told anything. "Get in the car." He hustled Andrew into the backseat.
"Who are we running from?" As the others piled into the car, Nic stopped to look behind him. Peering into the darkness, he saw a strange looking figure loping after them. "What the fuck is that?"
"It's a Turok-Han." Angel grabbed his brother and pushed him into the car.
"Yeah, right." Nic squeezed into the back seat with Dawn and Andrew. "What other fairytales do you have up your sleeve, Angelus? A Turok-Han." He scoffed with disbelief.
"A Turok what?" Caught up in the conversation, Xander looked over at Angel, who was sliding into the front seat, instead of starting up the car.
"Drive, Xander." Buffy ordered, looking out the back seat window. The Turok-Han was getting closer.
"Right, drive." Turning the key in the ignition, Xander gunned the engine and took off with a squeal of tires.
"If there are Turok-Hans here in Sunnydale, then it's even more imperative that I find William *now*." Angel was more than frustrated. His Childe's scent had still been evident at the school. They had missed him by so little.
"The First couldn't have taken him far." Buffy thought hard. "That Christmas when," she paused awkwardly for a second, "the First was. . .was after you. Its lair was in a hidden cavern under a Christmas tree lot."
"Let's go there then." Angel growled. It was a starting point at least.
"Xander." Buffy turned to her friend. "Go to the house first. Can these ubervamps enter a home without an invitation?" She asked Angel.
"I'm not sure of their exact powers, but to be on the safe side, I would guess they don't need an invitation." Angel was racking his brain trying to recall all the mythology he had heard about the Turok-Han.
"Holy fucking Christ!" Nic swore loudly. "I was better off in LA. There I only had to fight the Ventrues and that snot nosed Connor. Here it's the First Original Evil, its minions, and Turok-Hans."
"What are Turok-Hans?" Xander and Dawn asked simultaneously. Both of them were tired of not knowing what the others were talking about.
"An ancient vampire, so ancient that until tonight I thought they were just a myth." Angel explained. "They're primordial, ferociously powerful."
"I staked it right in the heart," Buffy added, "and barely fazed it."
"So staking it won't kill it." Hearing about the Turok-Han made Xander check his rear view mirror, just to make sure nothing was still chasing them. "So what does kill it?"
A long moment passed with no one speaking.
"Umm." Angel cleared his throat. "Sunlight. . .ah, fire. . .probably." He tried to inject an I-know-what-I'm-talking-about tone in his voice.
"Probably?" Buffy frowned at the answer. "That's not any help."
"So Slayer, all you have to do is entice it outdoors in the sunlight and hit it with a flamethrower." Nic said. "Then let us know if that works."
Buffy ignored Nic. After two months of living with the vampire, she had learned that was the best way of dealing with him. "This calls for some serious research. As soon as we get home, Xander, you and Dawn have Willow cast a protection spell around the house, and then start finding anything and everything about. . .about those Chaka Khans. In the meantime, I'll go with Angel and Nic to check out the Christmas tree lot."
"And what should I do?" Andrew asked in a helpful voice.
"We're going to tie you back up in a chair." Buffy turned to give him a threatening look. "And you're going to sit there and keep your mouth shut."
"Okay." Andrew was immediately intimidated by Buffy's glare. "But I could help, you know." He mumbled softly. "Evil genius here."
**
His head being held underwater by an ubervamp, Spike thrashed and struggled, instead of just going limp. The old human fear of drowning kept him fighting.
The First, still in Angel's form, stood off to the side watching nonchalantly. A slight nod at his minion, and the Turok-Han pulled Spike from the water and threw him on the ground.
"Boy!" The First said. "Not only are you a huge disappointment, but you're stupid as well. How could someone like you come from my loins?"
Lying on his back in the dirt, chest heaving unnecessarily, Spike coughed up water. He was too weak to answer or move.
Walking up to the battered body of Spike, the First looked down at him with scorn. "Here lies my Childe, a useless waste of existence who will never amount to anything."
**
"The entrance to the cave is somewhere around here." Buffy walked in circles clockwise around the empty lot.
"So the First has its lair under a Christmas tree lot." Nic mumbled to himself as he walked in circles counter-clockwise, looking for the cave opening. "Something not right about the First Evil living under Christmas tre. . . ." He never finished his thought as stepping on some rotted wooden planks, his foot broke through and he found himself falling. Landing hard on a pile of rubble, he saw stars for a moment.
"Nic!" Both Buffy and Angel rushed over to the hole.
"Goddamn." Nic rubbed the back of his head as he slowly sat up.
"You okay?" He heard Angel call down.
"No." He answered. "I cracked my head, and my brain just leaked out. But on the upside, I found the entrance."
As if they practiced together, Angel and Buffy jumped gracefully down into the cave, landing on their feet.
"Christ!" Nic was still rubbing the back of his head where it had hit a rock. "I swear there's a hole in my head. Slayer," he turned to show Buffy the back of his head, "what do you see back there?"
"Wait a minute." Angel had been surveying and sniffing out his surroundings. "Do you smell him?" He looked over at Nic.
Not sure what Angel was talking about, Nic took a couple of cautious sniffs. "We're not alone." He concluded, but there was such a mixture of smells, he couldn't pin down anything definite.
"William." Angel whispered his Childe's name. "William is down here somewhere."
"You sure?" Nic asked while giving Buffy a meaningful look that said, wishful thinking on Angel's part. "Because I'm just smelling. . .oh fuck!" He swore as two Turok-Hans came into sight. "Those things." He pointed to the ubervamps.
"Don't suppose you thought to bring a flamethrower?" Buffy asked Nic as she moved closer to him.
"No, but I brought this." Nic pulled out a .50 caliber desert eagle handgun from a shoulder holster he had hidden under his jacket. "Might not kill the bastards but will definitely slow them down." Taking aim, he began filling the Turok-Hans with lead, while Buffy pulled out a couple of bottles of holy water.
Handing one to Angel, she watched the ubervamps' bodies jerk as they were hit with bullets. "I have a couple of stakes, but they won't be much help to us."
"Go for the heads." Angel growled the order; his demon side already emerged. "We need to decapitate them."
**
The torture had stopped for a time. Spike lie on his back in the dirt, still too weak to move. Searching for any reserved strength, he managed to lift his head and look around. "No one's here? Where the bloody hell did they. . .need to get out of here."
Willing himself to get up, he closed his eyes, concentrating on moving his body, but it would not cooperate, falling back into the dirt.
**
Nic's .50 caliber handgun slowed the Turok-Hans down enough that Angel, Nic, and Buffy managed to destroy one and were working on the second.
"Hurry the fuck up!" Nic and Buffy struggled to restrain the last Turok-Han, as they waited for Angel to grab it from behind. Swinging his right arm, the ubervamp smashed Nic hard against a cave wall. "Ooomph!" Head bouncing off the hard surface, he still was able to hang on to the arm he held.
Throwing his body against the Turok-Han, Angel pinned him to the wall. With his, Nic's, and Buffy's combined strength, they held it in place long enough for Angel to give its head a powerful twist, snapping its neck.
"Hold him tight." Angel ordered, as he yanked hard on the ubervamp's head. A couple of violent tugs, and he separated the head from its body.
Watching the Turok-Han dissolve into dust, Nic sighed with relief. "Didn't think that fucker was ever going to die."
"Come on." Angel said with impatience. He could feel his Childe nearby. "William's close."
Tired and sore, Buffy stumbled after him. Looking over at Nic, she saw him draw out his gun again. "You've got more ammo for that thing, don't you? Because if we run into another one of. . .of those things, we won't be able to take it, unless you slow it down again."
"Meet the first vampire boy scout." Nic grinned as he released the gun's clip, and pulled out a handful of bullets. "Always be prepared."
**
The sound of footsteps alerted Spike to the entrance of others. Opening his eyes, he looked up into his tormenter's face. "Bloody Poof." He managed to spit out.
"William." Face cut up and bruised, Angel knelt down on the ground next to Spike. "My Childe." He began, reaching out a hand.
"No!" Fear gave Spike enough strength to push himself away. "Going to finish the job your pets started?"
"William, it's me." Confused, Angel reached out a hand again.
"No!" The First had broken Spike, and he now equated pain and torture with Angel's face.
"Spike!" Buffy grabbed him by the shoulders. "It's me, Buffy. I'm here. You're going to be alright now."
"Slayer." The sight of Buffy calmed Spike. "Is it you, or are you just another hallucination?" He asked. "And uncle." His eyes focused on Nic. "That's bloody odd. Never had three figments at the same time."
"Come on, William." Nic reached down to pull Spike up. "We need to get out of here, before more vampire boogey men return."
Spike stood shakily with Nic supporting him on one side and Buffy on the other. "He's their master, you know." He jerked his head at Angel. "He's. . . ."
"He's Angel." Buffy said calmly. She hoped to talk some sense into Spike. "The person or thing that was torturing you was the First. It can take on different forms, so it can appear to people as. . .as. . . ." She looked over to Angel for help with an explanation.
"It appears in the guise of people who. . .who are dead or undead." Angel was staring at Spike with concern.
"That so." Spike was suffering from pain and exhaustion. His brain couldn't comprehend much at the moment. "You three are awfully pummeled." He observed, redirecting the conversation.
"We took on two ubervamps." Buffy held tighter to Spike as his knees buckled. "Three against two; we won, but they still gave us a fight."
"I don't suppose you know how many of them the First was keeping here?" Nic asked.
"Don't know." Spike found it a great effort to speak, but it helped him to ignore Angel. "The bloody Count Orlocks all looked alike to me."
**
"So the First wants to erase all the Slayers in training and their Watchers?" Sitting in her living room, Buffy asked the rhetorical with a big smile plastered on her face. Despite the First, the Turok-Hans, and her bumps and bruises, she felt a huge sense of relief. Giles had returned.
"Yes." Leaning up against the fireplace mantel, Giles looked around at everyone in the room. It was quite an assortment: Buffy and the Scoobies, Angel, Spike, and Nic, the three potential slayers he had brought with him, and a young man tied to a chair. "And after they're eliminated, then Faith, and then you. With the current Slayers and all the Potentials gone, it would be the end of the line. No more Slayer."
"We've been researching the First." Willow said with discouragement. " No documentation."
Pushing his hands into his pockets, Giles looked down at the floor for a moment. "That's because the First predates any written history, and it rarely shows its true face. The only known record was in the Council Library."
"And what does the Council say about this?" Anya asked. Squeezed together with Xander, the two were sharing a chair.
"Not much." A shadow passed over Giles' face. "They're gone, obliterated. They were in session, and. . .uh, there was an explosion."
A moment of shocked silence as everyone digested that piece of information. "So, that means all the Council's records are. . .are destroyed?" Willow was the first to speak.
Giles looked over at one of the Potentials named Annabelle, who took two books and a stack of files from her book bag and laid everything on the coffee table. "I'm afraid that's what's left. When I learned what was happening, I. . .um, I stole them."
"And you blew the Council up!" Anya erroneously concluded. "See, this is what happens when you're all stuffy and repressed. You overreact."
"No. . .I didn't!" Giles said with a mixture of anger and disbelief at Anya's wild accusation. "It probably was an agent of the First, who did it after my little burglary session. But I had to protect the knowledge contained in these files, and there wasn't time for. . .for bureaucracy or debate."
"And it cost them their lives!" Andrew shouted from across the room. As everyone present turned to stare at him, it occurred to him that he probably shouldn't have said anything. "Go on." He told them with a weak smile.
"Can we gag him?" Buffy turned to look at Xander who immediately grabbed a roll of duct tape.
"Buffy." Angel was sitting on the couch with a curled up, resting Spike. He had used his power as Sire to put his Childe into a peaceful sleep. "I have to get back to LA. Connor and my Clan need my attention, and. . . ." He stroked the blond head that lay in his lap. "I have a demon friend who can perhaps give Spike some. . .some therapy for his experience with the First."
Giving Angel a small smile, Buffy understood. Sunnydale's problems were not his. He had his own. "Sure. I hope," she gestured toward Spike, "he'll be okay."
Standing, Angel lifted Spike up with him. "The first chance I get, I will have a discussion about everything that is going on here with the Ventrue High Master.
"Judelin?" Giles looked at Angel with great interest. "Although the Council doesn't have an exact age for him, it could very well be that he is one of the oldest creatures that still walks this earth. Perhaps he knows something of the First."
"I believe he does." Angel said as he glanced over at the three Potentials, who had been gaping at him the whole time. They had all read about the Scourge of Europe, and it wasn't everyday they got to meet such an infamous, historical figure. "I'll keep in touch." He nodded at Buffy. "Thanks for protecting my family."
Jumping up to open the door for the departing vampires, Buffy touched Angel's arm. "I'm just glad that I was able to keep my promise this time."
~Part: 28~
The Hyperion Hotel, LA, California
"You sure that parking right in front of the Hyperion was a smart move?" Looking up at the hotel, Nic was sure that they had been spotted already. "Not too stealthy of us."
"I don't want to be stealthy." Angel replied as he gently transferred a sleeping Spike into Nic's arms. "Let them see their Master and tremble."
"Uh huh." Nic couldn't keep the incredulity from his tone. "Connor, Snow, and an army of minions are going to tremble at the two of us and," he looked at his nephew's face, "him."
"Just watch over William." Angel ordered as he strode purposely toward the hotel's front entrance. "I'll take care of Snow and *Connor*."
Holding Spike easily with one arm, Nic felt for his desert eagle handgun. "Well, baby." He spoke to it. "You helped take out two Turok-hans, think you can manage, a Blood-Childe, his Clan, and a traitor?"
**
"I said I wanted something to eat and this is what you bring me?" Connor looked disgustedly at the plate with the bologna sandwich the minion held. "You should know that isn't good enough for your High Master." Backhanding the minion, he stomped around the Hyperion's lobby.
Anger and hate made Connor an irrational, bad-tempered master, not unlike a young Angelus. "Bring me something that's edible, and where's Snow?" He yelled. Young and confused, Snow was now the person he clung to.
"Yes, just where is Snow?" A voice asked from across the room.
Turning, Connor found himself staring at the one person he never thought he'd see again. Angel. Pointing a finger, he yelled an order to his minions. "Kill him!"
"On your knees!" Stepping further into the lobby, Angel roared out the command at the minions, but his eyes never left Connor. "Kneel before your true master."
Baffled the minions looked at each other with confusion. They weren't sure whom to obey.
Hands balling into fists, Connor started for the minions. Punishment was their due for not obeying him. He had only taken a step, when he was grabbed by the back of the neck and thrown into the base of the hotel's front desk.
"Daddy's home." Angel stood over Connor menacingly.
Slowly getting to his feet, Connor stared at his Sire with hate filled eyes. "I should have killed you. It's what you deserve."
"Missed your chance, boy." Angel hauled Connor up by his shirt collar. "So now the question becomes, what do you deserve?"
Panicked, Connor began lashing out with his fists. "You murdered my father. You. . . ."
Moving his head backward and sideways, Angel deftly dodged Connor's blows. "I did not kill Holtz. I was set up." Grabbing his son by the wrists, he held him still. "*We* were set up. Set up by your buddy Snow."
"Liar!" Wrenching his arms free, Connor stood before Angel, eyes reflecting his mass of conflicting emotions.
Staring at Connor, Angel felt like someone threw a bucket full of cold water on him. There wasn't just hate and anger in his son's eyes, but hurt, anguish, and immense pain. "Connor." He spoke softly. "What you did to me was. . .was unbelievable. What you did to your family," he glanced over at Nic and Spike, "is unforgivable. There's a part of me that will always love you, but you need to get out of my house now and take your minions with you."
**
Walking up to Gunn's truck, Fred, Lorne, and Gunn all hesitated a moment before getting in. "Are we doing the right thing?" Fred asked her two companions.
"Don't know." Gunn shrugged. "But this may be our last hope to find Cordy."
"He only wants me to read his Childe, who I guess is in a traumatized state because he was tortured by the First." Lorne tried to be reassuring, but his smile was still uncertain. "Nothing major, and then we can ask him for a favor."
"The First?" Fred opened the truck's passenger door.
"The First Original Evil." Lorne held the door while Fred climbed into the truck. "That's how Angel explained it to me."
"O-kay." Fred scooted over next to Gunn, so there would be room for Lorne.
The three were silent as Gunn started up the truck and began to drive to the Hyperion. They had gone a few miles when Fred finally voiced another doubt. "And if he agrees to help us, can we trust him?"
"Course not, sweetie." Lorne was his usual realistic self. "He's a vampire."
**
Making themselves comfortable in the Hyperion's lobby, Angel was tucking a blanket over a still sleeping Spike. "I know what you're thinking." He said to Nic, who was lounging in a chair next to the couch, legs stretched out in front of him, and a shot glass dangling from his fingers.
"That's a good trick." Nic raised the shot glass and downed it. "Since I'm not thinking anything."
"I couldn't kill him." Angel was brooding over what had happened with Connor. "What he's become; it's not his fault."
"He'll meet up with Snow; they'll regroup and then come for us." Setting the glass on the coffee table, Nic watched Angel pour a shot for himself.
"If any of them enter my home without my invitation, I'll kill them, and that includes Connor." Angel was dead serious. He had shown mercy once for Connor, and that was all that boy would get.
Nic shrugged and then reached over for the whiskey bottle. "You're the boss. . .err. . .Master." The sound of people walking through the hotel's front entrance had him moving his hand quickly from the whiskey bottle to his handgun, which was also lying on the coffee table.
"Calm down." Angel smiled slightly. It was unusual for him to be telling his brother to settle down. It was usually the other way around. "It's just Lorne, and. . . ." Turning around, he frowned at the sight of Fred and Gunn. "I thought you were coming alone." Disapproval was evident in his voice.
"We're a team." Lorne spoke quickly. "We don't go anywhere without each other. Kind of like the three musketeers."
"We work together." Gunn said grimly, not at all intimidated by Angel. "You want Lorne to do a favor for you, and then we want something from you."
"Is that so?" Angel crossed his arms over his chest. The testosterone in the room began to rise. "My business is with Lorne and only Lor. . . ."
"Cordy's missing." Fred interrupted quickly. "For about two months now. We can't find any trace of what happened to her."
"And you think I know something?" Angel asked darkly, feeling like they were accusing him. "For the last two months I've been trapped at the bottom of the ocean."
"Yes, we just heard from Wesley about. . .about that." Guilt that they hadn't done anything to help had Fred looking everywhere but at Angel.
"Listen, Angel-cakes." Lorne stepped up to the vampire and touched him ever so lightly. "We know that you have no information about Cordy's disappearance, but you're the one person we know, who has a slight acquaintance with the Ventrue High Master."
"Judelin?" Slightly mollified by Lorne, Angel's tone became slightly less hostile.
"He's the big cheese here in LA." Lorne explained. "All demons, not just vampires, are paying him tribute. If there's been any demon or mystical activity, he would know about it."
"And you suspect that Cordelia's disappearance was caused by either demons or mystical forces?"
"We've ruled out everything else." Gunn stated.
Stepping backward, Angel sat down on the arm of the couch, considering for a moment. "I plan to discuss a couple of issues with Judelin, so I guess asking him about Cordy won't be a problem."
Fred, Gunn, and Lorne exchanged relieved smiles.
"Well then, we have an agreement." Lorne rubbed his hands together as he walked up to an unconscious Spike. Placing his fingertips on Spike's temples, he closed his eyes and concentrated. "Let's see what's going on inside of your noggin."
**
Naked and huddled in a corner, he could hear them talking about him.
"It's been months, and he still acts like a wretched human! He's my Childe. . .my Blood-Childe. . . ."
"Listen, Angel, the First really did a scramble job on him. I don't think he can tell the difference between reality and. . . ."
"What have I told you about breathing, boy? Vampires don't breathe."
"I remember when the First tormented me. Drove me to near suicide, and it only used mental torture. I didn't have the 'pleasure' of having its minions afflicting physical pain on me."
Jumping up, he couldn't stand it anymore. He needed to end the agony. He needed to cut *it* out of him.
"I'm telling you Angel, your Childe needs some kind of powerful. . .something. I would say a healer, but healers deal with broken bodies, not broken minds. "
"If he has a broken mind, then it's not a healer he needs." A female voice said. "He needs a psychotherapist or. . . ." Fred trailed off as Gunn gave her an incredulous look.
"What kind of therapist would treat a vampire, who was fucked up by the First Original Evil? Hannibal Lect. . .hey!" Gunn glanced up to see Spike suddenly jump up off the couch. "Junior's up." He yelled a warning to Angel.
"Gotta cut it out of me. Gotta cut it out of me." Spike mumbled to himself, as he looked wildly around. "Then my Sire will be proud." A leap over the couch, and he was running toward the kitchen.
Nic tried a diving catch from his post on the chair, but missed, as Angel took off after Spike with Gunn, Fred, and Lorne on his heels.
"Gonna cut it out." Reaching the kitchen, Spike grabbed a butcher knife off the counter. "And I'll be rid of it."
"William!" Angel threw himself at his Childe but wasn't fast enough to stop Spike from plunging the knife into himself. "William, stop!" He lunged forward, but Spike stepped backward, causing him to lose his balance. Going down in a heap, they fought for the knife.
Entering the kitchen, Nic ran over to them. Hauling Spike up, he held on tight to his nephew's squirming body. Reaching for the now bloody knife, Angel pulled it out, as Spike screamed. "Cut it out of me. Cut it out of me."
"Put him out, Angelus." Both Nic and Angel were finding it hard to keep a hold of a struggling Spike.
Fangs dropping, Angel bit into Spike's neck, bonding them, so he could 'push' his Childe into unconsciousness.
"Jesus fucking Christ." Nic stared at Spike's blood covering his hands. "If Childer aren't a pain in the ass. No wonder our Sire was such a mean, old bastard. Five Blood-Childer drove him over the edge."
Swinging Spike into his arms, Angel gave his brother a quizzical look. "Yeah, and if I'm remembering correctly, you were the most disobedient."
"I'll get some bandages and. . .stuff." With her usual nervous smile, Fred scurried from the kitchen.
"Yeah and if I remember correctly," Nic muttered quietly as he followed Angel, "you were the most pompous."
**
The Ventrue Lair, LA, California
He had disarmed and had one of the sentries around the neck before they even knew he was there. "I'm here to see your Master." Twisting the minion's arm hard, Angel heard the satisfactory snap of bone. "Take me to him now."
Weapon raised, the second sentry knew the request was impossible. They would die rather than betray their Master. Aiming carefully, he shot his partner in the heart.
To Angel's surprise the minion he had a hold of dissolved into dust. Wood slivers in the bullets. Unnatural quickness even for a vampire gave Angel the split second advantage to knock the gun out of the minion's hand before another shot could be fired. Snarling, he grabbed the sentry by the throat and threw him against the wall. "I guess you didn't hear me the first time, so I'll repeat myself. I'm here to see your. . . ."
"Angelus." Judelin stepped through the main entrance. "Good minions are rare these days. If you insist on killing another one of mine, I will not be pleased."
Shoving the sentry away from him, Angel faced the Ventrue High Master, eyes glittering gold, fangs showing clearly. "It's been my philosophy that a show of force will always get people's attention."
"Yes," Judelin turned to re-enter his lair, "I do remember other instances of you demonstrating your. . .philosophy."
"There are things I need to discuss with you." Giving the minion one last intimidating glare, Angel followed Judelin inside. "As you can see, I'm back now, and. . . ."
"I was told you were dead." Judelin interrupted as a wide, double door was quickly opened for him by minions. "But I'm not surprised that you're still with us. You always did lead a charmed life."
"Connor and Snow locked me in a coffin and threw me into the ocean." Angel did a quick head count of body guards. He was confident he could take all of them, but the unknown factor was the Ventrue High Master. "I have yet to decide the proper punishment for the two."
"So Connor hasn't been put to death?" Judelin turned quickly to face Angel. "His actions certainly warranted it."
"No." Angel eyed Judelin with curiosity. The Ventrue Master seemed entirely too interested. "He is currently on the streets of LA with Snow and some minions. I wanted to advise you of that because it might be. . . ."
"Angelus." Judelin broke in with a sigh. "Could you please make yourself more presentable? If I must meet with you, at least do me the courtesy of letting me look at your 'better' side."
Reverting back to his human face, Angel gave the Ventrue Master a mocking smirk. "You've always accused the Tremerens of not accepting their human side, but I wonder if you have problems accepting your demon side."
Angel's comment drew a smile from Judelin. A smile with fangs. "Don't underestimate me. I've lived more years than any other vampire alive, and in that time I have accepted all of who I am. Now getting back to Connor, give the boy to me."
The growl escaped before Angel could stop it. "He's mine. I won't make the same mistake twice. Giving another one of my Childer to you."
"You failed him." Judelin stated matter-of-factly. "Throwing you in the ocean proves that he's not about to forgive you, so your choice is to either put him to death or to give him to me."
"And what will you do with him?" Judelin's logic was sound, but Angel was having a hard time accepting it.
"It's been prophesized that he is to be the savior of our kind, which is another reason he should *not* be killed. Give him to me." Judelin's tone was sincere. "And I will treat him as one of my own."
"I remember you making that promise before, and you weren't totally honest." Despite his initial misgiving, Angel was starting to seriously consider Judelin's offer. "And what of Snow? I want a slow, painful death for him."
"I will also take care of Elder Snow." Looking around at his minions and bodyguards, Judelin barked out an order. "Leave us, *all* of you."
Immediately all dropped down to one knee and then began heading for the door. One large, ferocious looking minion had the nerve to make a small protest. "But, Master. . . ."
"Out!" Judelin dismissed the minion with a wave of his hand. Pacing the floor, he waited until the door closed behind the last minion. "Elder Snow is your brother."
"My bastard brother." Angel said through gritted teeth. He had already been told by Nic about Snow.
"Not anymore of a bastard than Damon or Nic." Judelin pointed out. "And for you to kill a brother would not be a wise move in these unsettled times. Trust me. When I get a hold of Snow, he will suffer."
"You'll put him to death then?"
"No." Judelin watched Angel carefully. "He'll be held prisoner until he stands trial in front of the Camarilla."
"The Camarilla?" Angel straightened up in surprise. "There hasn't been a Camarilla for. . . ." He wasn't even sure the exact length of time. "For centuries."
"I plan to reinstate it." Judelin spoke quietly. "And I want you to hold a seat on it."
"Me?" Since being ostracized by his Sire, Angel had not involved himself in any vampire politics, and part of him wanted to keep it that way.
"You're still respected and feared among our kind. I need you to be there."
Angel contemplated for a few moments, before answering. "If I agree to your. . .your requests, I want some things in return."
"Of course." Judelin smiled slightly. He knew then, he would get what he wanted.
"In Sunnydale, William was captured and tortured by the First. Do you know of the First?" Angel asked, studying the Ventrue Master intently, looking for his reaction.
"Our paths have crossed." Judelin's answer was guarded.
"He was so traumatized by the experience that he's confused now. He can't tell the difference between reality and the First's lies."
"I'll send someone to help him." Judelin reassured Angel. "Someone who's had experience with victims of the First."
"Someone. . . ?" Angel stopped himself from asking anything more. He desperately wanted help for William and had no one else to turn to but the Ventrue. To question Judelin's generous offer was pointless. "I also want you to send a few competent minions to Africa for me. Damon took Djoser there to face the Trials, and I want them back. I, at present, am without any minions. "
Inclining his head, Judelin quickly agreed. "Done."
Realizing that his concessions had the Venture Master in an agreeable mood, Angel pushed for more. "Myself and my family will be allowed to live here without hostility or interference."
"You have my word."
"Then we have an accord." Angel nodded his head and turned to leave. "Oh, and one more thing. A young woman, who was in my employ, disappeared a couple of months ago. I want to know what happened to her."
"I'm to look for your human pets?" Judelin raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"She's. . .she's important." Angel didn't want to give anymore of an explanation.
"I'll need more information than that."
"I'll send Nic over with some of my. . .my. . . ." Angel stammered. "My other human pets with the details."
"Send them over later. Make it around midnight." Judelin choked a bit. Part of him couldn't believe he was reduced to giving appointments to Angel's human servants. "I'll grant them an audience then."
****
Author's Note: If you're reading this series, you're probably already aware that in Bloodlines I use actual scenes and dialogue from both Buffy and Angel. Since I'm almost at the end of this series, I should take a moment to thank BuffyWorld, http://www.buffyworld.com/. Their transcripts helped me immensely and saved me time and wear on my VCR (before I knew about transcripts, I used to watch my Buffy/Angel tapes, and transcribed the dialogue myself using the rewind button a lot).
~Part: 29~
Returning to the hotel lobby, Fred wasn't sure if bringing Spike another blanket would be helpful or not, since she had no experience with nursing sick and wounded vampires. "I brought another. . . ." Holding the blanket up, she looked uncertainly at Nic, who was perched on top of an unconscious Spike. "Is that comfortable?"
"No." The vampire answered bluntly. "But I'm not taking any chances that he," Nic bounced ever so slightly on top of Spike, "gets up and starts stabbing himself with sharp objects. It's my duty as his uncle and sponsor to watch over him."
"By sitting on top of him?" Fred asked, frowning in puzzlement. "I can't think that that's helping him."
Nic shrugged. "Got any better ideas?"
Fred considered a moment. "Cordy told me about a time that they had to. . .to restrain Angel. They wrapped him up in chains and shackled him to the bed."
Gunn, who had just returned from a food run, caught the last part of the conversation. "Who you planning to chain to the bed?" He asked as he handed Fred a bag of fast food.
"We're trying to figure out a way to keep Spike from. . .from," Fred stammered, "hurting himself more."
"Got some chains in back of my pickup." Gunn offered helpfully.
"Sold." Nic didn't need to hear the offer twice. Looking down at his sleeping nephew, he had one more request. "Got a straight jacket in the back of your pickup too?"
**
Returning to the Hyperion, Angel entered the hotel lobby and was relieved to see everything peaceful. "Judelin and I have come to an understanding on several iss. . . ." He started to say but the sight of his beloved Childe wrapped in chains stopped him. "What the hell is that?" He snarled the question out to Nic.
"We secured William, so he can't play with knives and things." Nic said as he calmly sipped his animal blood. "Be glad. Your looney toons Childe has no new injuries."
Frowning darkly, Angel held his hand out. "Give me the keys."
With an exaggerated sigh, Nic dug in his pants' pockets for the keys.
"And is Judelin going to help us find Cordelia?" The question just fell out of Fred's mouth. Concern for her friend had made her more blunt than usual.
"He's giving you an audience tonight at midnight." Angel bent down, peering at the mass of chains around Spike, looking for the locks. "I suggest you write a concise report of what you know about her disappearance. The Ventrue Master doesn't like his time wasted. Also, take a picture of her with you. And you," He turned to look at Nic, "will accompany them."
"I'm fucking thrilled." Nic muttered grumpily. "Send me back to Sunnydale; I rather face the Turok-Hans than that pretentious bastard, Judelin." Standing up, he started for the stairs. He didn't have to be told that it was mandatory that he make himself presentable for the Ventrue Master.
"And remember the protocol." Angel called after him.
"Of course I'll remember the proper protocol." Nic lied through his teeth. "Who do you think I am, William?"
"Protocol? There's proper protocol?" Fred whispered nervously.
Shrugging his shoulders, Nic made an I-have-no-fucking-idea face at her.
"Oh, this is going to be good." Standing next to Fred, Gunn also saw Nic's expression. "Going to meet a powerful master vampire with a clueless escort."
"We'll be back in a few hours to pick you up." Fred turned to yell over at Nic, who had started up the stairs.
Raising a hand without turning around, he acknowledged what she said.
"We should go." Fred tapped Lorne, who was making himself at home at the Hyperion. He had snuck a brief nap earlier and was now enjoying a soothing cocktail. "Get all the paperwork we have on our Cordy investigation and stop by her apartment and pick up a couple of pictures."
"I'd like you to stay." Angel spoke up, addressing Lorne. "Judelin is sending someone here who supposedly has experience with treating the First's victims. I would appreciate your presence when this. . .this person gets here. Your eyes, ears, and extra talent would be most helpful."
Exchanging a quick look with Fred and Gunn, Lorne agreed. "No problemo, Big Guy. Is this. . .err person coming tonight?"
"Maybe." Angel answered as he began unwrapping the chains from around Spike. "I suppose it depends on when Judelin is able to contact him, or her, or," he frowned thoughtfully, "it."
A moment of silence and then Lorne spoke up. "Ah, Angel baby, just how much do you trust this Judelin?"
Throwing the shackles in a heap on the floor, Angel's mouth turned up in a slight smile. "As far as you could throw him."
**
Later that evening, Fred and Gunn returned for Nic, and the three left for the Ventrue lair with mixed feelings of hope and trepidation. Still camped out in the Hyperion's lobby, Angel and Lorne were enjoying happy hour.
"Make you another?" Lorne stood up, bottle in hand.
"No." Angel held up a hand. Sitting on the couch, he was cradling Spike in his lap.
"So, you don't trust this Judelin, but you're willing to. . . ." Lorne was interrupted by the sound of people entering the hotel. Turning in his chair, he saw two ordinary, human men. "We're not open for business, but I believe there's a nice Motel Six just a few miles from here."
"Not looking for a room, or anything else you can offer." The older of the two answered while he looked around the Hyperion. "I'm here as a favor for an old friend. He asked that I assist someone who had a run in with The First."
Carefully moving Spike off of him, Angel stood up, eyeing the newcomers with curiosity. The two men looked very human, very normal, and very harmless. "You were sent by Judelin?"
"I thought that was obvious." The older one spoke again, raising an eyebrow while studying Angel thoroughly. "Not too bright, are you? But then vampires aren't known for their high IQ."
Growling menacingly, Angel took a step toward the newcomer but was quickly held back by Lorne. Nostrils flaring, the scent that assailed him was pure demon. "What are you?" He asked, consciously relaxing his body. Years of living had taught him that appearances were deceiving. Angel sensed that despite the demon's innocuous look, he was seriously dangerous.
"In all my lifetimes, I've been many things." The demon flashed a toothy grin. "Now, do you want my help or not?"
"Yes, but you don't touch my Childe, until," Angel stepped closer until he was nose-to-nose with the demon, "I know something about you."
"Ah. . . ." The demon looked past Angel to the unconscious Spike. "A Blood-Childe. Your Blood-Childe." Turning to his companion, he explained. "Vampires are very protective with their Blood-Childer."
Saying nothing, the second man just nodded his head as if he understood, although his knowledge of vampires was little to none.
Angel's attention turned to the demon's companion. This time his sense of smell told him mortal. "He's your human slave, isn't he?" He nodded toward the young man. "Judelin has forbidden the killing of human beings, so I'm surprised he allows you to own one as a slave."
"Human servant, if you please." The demon protested. "I prefer the term human servant."
"Whatever." Angel stared at the young man. He had beautiful features and looked to be no more than sixteen years old, similar to his Connor. Turning his attention back to the demon, he once again stood nose-to-nose. An aggressive stance on his part. "Your human servant has told me something about you. You like them young. I wonder if Judelin knows that about you."
"Young, you say." The demon was taken by surprise for just a moment, before he threw his head back and laughed. "O," he nudged his servant, "tell the nice vampire how old you are."
"I'm. . . ." The young man furrowed his brow. He had barely gone to school in his lifetime, so doing math in his head was not within his capacity. "I'm over one hundred." He spoke softly with an English accent. "I was born in 1884, so that makes me. . . ."
"You were born in 1884?" Angel asked with disbelief. He took a step close to the young man, so he could get another good sniff of him but was immediately stopped by the demon.
"Oh no." Despite his smaller size, the demon had no problem pushing Angel back. "Keep your distance. I'm as protective of him as you are of your Childe. Now I'll ask this just one more time, do you want my help or not?"
"Ah, if I may make a suggestion." Lorne stepped between the two men. "Could you," he addressed the demon, "and your. . .human servant sing a few bars of. . .oh, I don't know. . .God Save the Queen?" Lorne had noted the young man's British accent.
Head cocked, the demon stared at Lorne for a moment, considering. "You think you can read me? I'm. . . ." He stopped, letting out a short laugh. "You know what? I'm feeling in a generous mood, and Judelin is going to owe me big for this one." Giving his servant a poke with his elbow, he began singing a dirty ditty with O joining in after the first verse.
"That's good." Lorne flashed them a friendly smile. Turning to Angel he gave a slight nod, indicating that the two were okay.
Staring at Lorne, Angel prayed that the Anagogic demon hadn't made a mistake. "I would like your help. My Childe needs. . . ." Breaking off, he looked over at Spike.
"At last." The demon rolled his eyes up to the heavens. "The vampire finally makes a decision." Giving O a small push in the back, they made their way over to where Spike lay.
"Before you start," Angel still had reservations, "tell me your name."
"Sion." The demon answered as he began pulling out different mystical items from a backpack O had been carrying.
Taking Lorne by the arm, Angel led him behind the Hyperion's front desk. "Well, what did you read on. . . ." He looked over at the two men, who were now arranging the mystical items on the coffee table. "Sion and. . .O."
"The young man," Lorne gestured at O, "was telling the truth. He's over one hundred years old."
"He's demon then?" Angel said with confusion. He was sure he had smelled human on the boy.
"No, he's human." Lorne shrugged his shoulders. "He has memories of older times, but his. . .his mental and physical state is that of a teenager."
"How is that possible?" Angel asked the question out loud, but then dismissed O. The young man was not his problem. "And what about Sion? I sense pure demon, even though he looks human."
"Demon alright." Lorne rested his elbows on the front desk. "I couldn't read much about him. I did sense that he has a lot of power and is as old as dirt."
Looking across the room, Angel noticed that Scion had started painting something on Spike's face. "Just as long as he's powerful enough to help William." He commented to Lorne as he made his way to his Childe's side. "That's all I care about."
**
Sitting between Gunn and Nic in the truck, Fred fidgeted apprehensively. She had never had an audience with a formidable, master vampire before. "So Angel mentioned proper protocol." Talking helped her nerves. "So tell us, what should we do or not do?"
Reaching for a cigarette, Nic considered a moment. "Since you want a favor from Judelin, a little groveling probably wouldn't hurt."
"Groveling?" Gunn couldn't imagine himself groveling before anyone, especially a vampire. "What kind of groveling?"
"When we're called in front of him, we should probably kneel."Not being able to remember a time in his unlife that he had come before a High Master, Nic made an educated guess. "Probably kiss his ring too." He guessed again.
"Kiss his ring?" Gunn exclaimed. "The only person whose ring I'm going to kiss is the Pope, and this Judelin guy is far from being the Pope."
"Are you sure about the kneeling and the kissing of the ring?" Fred asked.
"No." Nic answered truthfully and then wondered thoughtfully. "Maybe we're suppose to kiss his feet." Looking over at Fred and Gunn, he saw their disgruntled expressions. "Hey, I'm doing my best here, and just remember," he rolled the window down a crack so he could flick the ash off his cigarette, "I'm not the one whose friend is lost."
**
"All done." Sion ran his hand lightly across Spike's forehead. "He'll wake up in a minute or two."
"And he'll be," Angel struggled for an appropriate word, "less confused?"
"Well," Scion gave Angel a mocking look, "I don't know if he'll be less confused, but he'll now be able to understand who exactly The First is, and what it did to him. But The First's uses truths to manipulate, not falsehoods, and therein lies its real power."
Staring Scion straight in the eye, Angel heard the accusation in the demon healer's voice. "The First appeared to him as me. Used my words and past actions to hurt," he looked over at Spike, "him."
"Give the vampire a gold star." Scion grinned triumphantly. "I guess there is a small brain under that caveman appearance."
Ignoring the insult, Angel turned away. His Childe was starting to awake.
Eyes flickering open, Spike awoke with a groan. "Bloody hell." He mumbled as he rubbed his head. He felt like someone had beaten him with a club.
"William." He sensed more than saw Angel kneel down beside him. "William, my Childe, look at me."
Vision blurry, Spike stared at the concerned face of his Sire. Hands were placed gently on either side of his face. "How do you feel?"
"Like shit." Without thinking, Spike sat up quickly and then was immediately sorry as it caused the knife wound in his abdomen to throb. "Fuck!" He swore as he instinctively reached to feel his injury.
"Don't!" Angel grabbed Spike's hands quickly. His Childe had a bad habit of picking and poking at any of his wounds. "You'll cause the bleeding to start again."
"Did a dumb ass thing, didn't I?" Spike looked down at the bandage around his stomach.
"What did you do?" Angel asked, trying to ascertain his Childe's mental state.
"Tried to cut out anything human in me." Embarrassed, Spike looked around the hotel lobby. It kept him from looking at Angel. Spotting Scion and O, he stared at them a moment. "Who are th. . . ?" He started to ask, but then O's face made him look closer. "I know you, don't I, mate?"
O immediately looked at his master for guidance. He rarely spoke or did anything without checking with Scion first.
"Yeah." Slowly sitting up straighter, Spike continued to look intently at O. "It was a while ago, but I remember. . . ."
"I don't recall ever meeting you, vampire." Scion interrupted. "So it must have been before he was with me, and we don't acknowledge that part of his life."
"Ok-ay." Spike did an eye roll. "Guess you're another domineering, over protective Po. . . ."
"So what do I owe you?" Angel hastily broke in. Insulting a powerful demon, especially one who had just helped you, was never a good idea.
"Nothing." Scion picked up his backpack and handed it to O. "Judelin has already taken care of your bill. I believe you gave him something of *yours* in return."
Flinching ever so slightly, Angel knew Scion was referring to Connor.
"But if you need my services again, vampire," Scion, with his arm around O, started for the door, "I'll be around, but next time you will be billed."
Arms folded across his chest, Angel watched Scion leave, but not before he responded to the demon's subtle challenge. "The name's Angelus, and I always pay my debts."
****
Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who took the time to send feedback. Special thanks to Souless_Angel85 for the TONS of fb she sent me. Keeps me inspired.
~Part: 30~
With Angel holding him up, Spike slowly shuffled from the bathroom into the bedroom. Despite the throbbing in his head and stomach, he felt better after a shower. "Fucking First! Hope the Slayer kicks its arse." He grumbled as he carefully sat down on the bed. "So, any news from Sunnydale? What have Buffy and the Scooby Squad done about The First and its plug-ugly minions?"
"I haven't talked to anyone from Sunnydale yet." Angel lifted Spike's legs and lay them carefully on the bed. "I've been busy taking care of business here in LA, but I did promise the Slayer that I would ask Judelin about The First. I did, but he had nothing much to say."
"Nothing much to say?" Spike lie back on the pillows with a groan of contentment. "The Ventrue blowhard had nothing to say? Must be a first."
Spike's disrespect caused Angel to heave a sigh. "Childe, he's the most powerful master vampire alive; you should be careful what you say about him."
"He's a Poof, and he's not the most powerful master vampire alive." Closing his eyes, Spike stated this matter-of-factly. "You are."
Angel's eyebrow raised in surprise. "I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said about me."
"I'm not being nice." Eyes still closed, Spike spoke softly. "I'm being realistic. He's lived a life with bodyguards and minions surrounding him. You've lived a good portion of your life alone, but you survived and will continue to survive."
Angel stared thoughtfully down at Spike. It wasn't the first time that a gem of wisdom came out of his usually immature Childe's mouth. "I could say the same for you." Sitting down on the bed, he stretched out beside Spike. "I guess we're survivors."
A few minutes of silence passed before Angel spoke again. "For every bad thing I've ever done to you, I'm sorry. You've suffered so much in your life, and it's all because of me. I wish. . .wish I could do it over, take back. . . ." Breaking off, he gazed at the wall, his past misdeeds flashing across his eyes.
"It's okay, Sire." Spike laid a hand over Angel's. "You made mistakes. Everyone does. I think I've made at least one every day of my existence."
His Childe's humor made him smile. "I won't make the same errors again. My life now revolves around you and Djoser. My goal is to protect, cherish, and ensure your futures."
"Me and Djoser? You forgot Connor."
"He's not my son anymore; I gave him to Judelin. . .don't!" Angel admonished as Spike, in surprise had started to sit up. "Lay back and relax. You've been though a lot today."
"Gave *him* to Judelin? The bloody git threw you into the ocean and left you ther. . .well, actually," Spike reconsidered, "giving him to that tosser perhaps is punishment enough. He'll grow up to be one big Ventrue Poof. That's a fate worse than death."
"He's not totally responsible for his actions." Angel said while stroking Spike's head, which was now lying comfortably on his chest. "He's suffered too and deserves a new start."
"With the Ventrues?"
"There is a prophecy that has Connor being the savior of our people. Judelin seems to put quite a bit of stock in that prophecy, and therefore, seems to be slightly in awe of Connor. Perhaps," Angel shrugged slightly, "Connor will become his Successor."
"Did you stop and consider that Judelin might want Connor as another weapon for himself? If a war is waged between them and us. . . ?"
"If Connor raises a hand against anyone of us again, I *will* kill him." Interrupting, Angel's tone was resolute. "And as you know, I don't make idle threats."
**
A couple of days later, Spike was feeling much better but continued to milk the sickly invalid routine. Besides getting a lot of attention from Angel, it had also netted him plenty of junk food, another television, and a video game system. Unlife was good.
Sitting in the Hyperion's lobby with Angel and Nic, he was doing his best to explain the mechanics of playing his new game system to Angel. "This button you use to move; this one is for reloading your weapon, and the trigger button is for fighting."
"Fighting?" Angel looked down at game control in his hand. It had more buttons than his cell phone. "Who am I fighting?"
"The monsters."
"Monsters?" Angel exclaimed. "Why am I killing monsters in a game? I could do that just by stepping outside on the streets."
Angel's obtuseness caused Spike to sigh and Nic to snicker.
"Yes, Sire." Spike said with uncharacteristic patience. "But in a game, you don't bleed real blood, and you only die pretend deaths. It's for fun."
"Fun?" It never ceased to amaze Angel what other people considered fun. "I've been killing demons and monsters all my life, and to simulate killing more is not my idea of relaxing."
Nic rolled his eyes to the heavens. "Oh for Christ's sake William, don't you have any other kind of game he can play? Like the one with the monkeys and the barrels, or the one with the little circles eating each other?"
"No, didn't think to buy such poofy gam. . . ." Spike stopped himself with a sideways glance at Angel. "I guess we could go to the store tomorrow and. . . ."
"Hello, hello." He was interrupted by the arrival of Lorne, Gunn, and Fred. "We received a message from Judelin." Lorne quickly explained. "We were told to come here, where a Ventrue envoy would meet with us and explain what was found out about Cordy."
"An envoy is coming here? Tonight?" Angel frowned with displeasure. He had not been told anything.
"Yes, sweetness, and to help us all get through it, I brought the makings for some refreshing seabreezes." Lorne triumphantly set down a grocery bag of juices, vodka, a couple of limes, and a bag of ice. "I know that diplomatic meetings can be rather trying, so I thought a few drinks would ease the pain."
"Got any Jack Daniels in there?" Spike was peering over, trying to see what was in the grocery bag.
"No, sugar pie, because seabreezes are made with vodka." Lorne never looked up at Spike as he busily pulled bottles out the bag.
"Fine." Spike shrugged. He wasn't picky when it came to booze. "I'll take one."
"I could use some glasses. . .clean ones." Lorne requested.
"I'll get some." Nic volunteered. He, like Spike, wasn't picky about his alcohol and was anxious to try a seabreeze.
"You're a helpful dear." Lorne threw Nic a smile.
"Yeah, he's helpful, alright." Gunn muttered darkly. "Made us look like fools in front of Judelin."
"What did he do?" Angel asked, as Nic left for the kitchen.
"Kneel down, no, stand up." Gunn imitated Nic. "You can sit; no you can't. We were bobbing up and down like we were spastic puppets."
Eyes now glued to the TV set as he had started playing his video game, Spike snorted with laughter. "Would have liked to see that."
"Hey." Nic returned from the hotel's kitchen, carrying six glasses. "I got you in to see Judelin, and he agreed to look into your friend's disappearance. What more do you want?"
"To not look like a jackass in front of a master vampire." Gunn shot back, expression disgruntled.
"Okay, okay." Lorne began mixing the cocktails. "Let's everyone have a seabreeze. Trust me, you'll all feel better for it."
The argument ended as the drinks were handed out. "Cheers." Lorne held up his glass. "Here's to us finding Cordy, and you?" He looked directly at Angel.
"That my family be reunited and safe." Angel said quietly as he looked down at his seabreeze. "Judelin agreed to dispatch minions to Africa to bring back Djoser and Damon. I sent word to him yesterday to ask if they had left yet. I'm anxious to know about my Childe and brother."
"Then here's to your family being reunited." Lorne finished his toast just as the Hyperion's front door opened and four vampires walked in. "And I do believe, our guests have arrived.
Walking up to Angel the Ventrue envoy motioned for the minions to get down on their knees. "Angelus, High Master of the Tremere Clan." He said formally, as he took Angel's hand and briefly knelt. "I bring you word from our Master."
"See, that's all we would have had to do." Gunn whispered in disgust while elbowing Nic in the ribs. "Not all the gyrations you put us through."
"Minions have been sent to Africa with instructions to report as soon as they know anything." The envoy continued to address Angel. "And as far as. . . ," he paused, not sure how to refer to two humans and an Anagogic demon, "the other matter, we believe your human. . .err friend is not dead, but in another dimension."
"In another dimension?" Fred exclaimed. "What kind of dimension? Not a hell one, like I was in?"
The Ventrue envoy turned and stiffly acknowledged Fred. "We don't know what dimension she's in. You'd have to ask Dinza."
"Who's this Dinza?" Gunn asked.
"I was told that she is one of the Eleusian Mysteries." The envoy explained. "A dark demi-goddess of the lost. Only the dead can enter her presence, and those that do, she often traps for eternity."
"Who told you this?" Angel inquired, wondering who supplied Judelin with such information.
Hesitating, the envoy was reluctant to name his source but knew he could not refuse to answer Angel. "An old friend of our Master was knowledgeable about. . . ."
"Scion." Angel interrupted, not surprised. "This old friend of Judelin seems to know a lot. Makes me curious about him."
Bowing his head, the envoy said nothing more. He was caught in the middle and being a good diplomat, he knew when to keep his mouth shut.
"And where is this Dinza's lair?" Angel asked softly.
"I do not know." The envoy couldn't help but take a step backward. He knew it was an answer that Angel would not like. "The request was to find out about this human woman, not where the Dinza's lair is."
"I want to speak with your Master." Angel stated abruptly. "Go back and tell him I'll be there within the hour."
"Bu. . . ." The envoy started to protest but was cut off immediately.
"Now!" Angel snarled out, which had the vampires backing up toward the door, genuflecting as they went.
"As you wish, High Master of the Tremere Clan." The envoy remembered his manners as he and his minions quickly took their leave.
"Bunch of wankers." Spike commented, still busily playing his video game.
"See what you can find out about this Dinza, and where her lair may be." Angel ordered the group as he looked around for his coat. "I need to have another talk with Judelin."
****
~Epilogue~
Lying on his stomach in bed, Angel didn't need a blanket; Spike was blanket enough as he felt the weight of his Childe on his back. "Judelin has promised to try and persuade Scion to meet with me. I believe that this Scion not only has information about the Dinza's lair, but can also give us information about The First. If we can get him to help us, we can kill two birds with one stone." He had come back from the Ventrue lair and was now telling Spike what had transpired.
"I understand why you want to help Buffy, but why continue to help the human twits here in LA?" Spike asked.
"Help them and you're guaranteed their loyalty. Don't you think we should have someone here we can truly trust, when we're living in a city controlled by the Ventrues?" It was awkward, but Angel turned his head to look Spike in the eye.
"Smart move." Spike conceded. "Covering all your bases, aren't you?"
"It's something I taught you, remember?"
"Yeah, but I wasn't listening that day." Spike joked and then turned serious. "And what about Connor?" Without being told, he knew that one of Angel's reasons for seeing Judelin was to ask about his youngest Childe.
"Judelin hasn't been able to bring Connor in from the streets yet." Angel said quietly. "Snow's a slippery one, and the two have managed to keep themselves hidden."
"The Ventrue Poof owns LA." Spike said with scorn. "How can he not find one renegade vampire, his minions, and one bratty git?"
"It's only been a few days; Judelin will find them." Angel stared at the opposite wall. He had confidence in the Ventrue Master. Connor would soon be safe with the Ventrues, and Snow would be imprisoned.
Spike sensed Angel's disquiet because of his younger brother. "He's still your son. You could. . . ."
"No." Angel broke in, voice firm. "We can live here safely, and Judelin will help me get Djoser back. It's the deal I made. I won't go back on it, and I don't regret it."
Resting his cheek on Angel's broad back, Spike was silent. Tightening his arms, he hugged Angel tighter. "I'm sorry about Connor, Father."
"So am I, Childe." Angel whispered softly. "So am I."
****
Finis