You Only Unlive Twice

Chapter 7

Buffy returned to HQ before her eight hours’ mandatory downtime was completed, figuring W would cut her some slack, given the circumstances. She’d managed a couple of hours’ restless sleep and had woken to find her limbs trapped in tangled bed sheets. The linen was fresh from the laundry but how she wished she hadn’t stripped the bed after William had left for the mission. It would have been soothing to have his scent surrounding her, in their bed. She was, however, wearing one of his black tees and the fabric was imbued with that essence of Spike that spoke to her on a fundamental and primitive level. She had buried her face in the cloth, taking deep breaths to calm herself before stripping it reverently from her body, laying it on the pillow with a lingering stroke, and then heading for the shower.

Now she was apprehensively entering HQ, unsure of what she’d find there. She didn’t think anything bad had happened to William, as her bite wasn’t doing the “red alert” thing. But still, something was off; why else was Miss Twitchy showing up instead of the Miss Efficiency she usually was? This whole two-bodies; one-will thing took some getting used to. Like driving with one person pressing the gas and the other turning the wheel – tricky.

Buffy slipped behind the counter of the Magic Box and logged on to the network. She could see from the monitors that the control room was almost deserted and heaved a sigh of relief. If there were any concerns, the room would be bursting at the seams. Selecting an alternate view, she discovered W was not at her desk and a momentary panic assailed her. Where was she? Why wasn’t she waiting, ready in case of emergency? Recognising the overreaction for what it was, Buffy took a deep breath. God, she wasn’t usually this hyper. She hoped William realised what she was going through, stuck here whilst he was doing who knows what with Faith Layer.

***************************

Spike hung his head in frustration as the door to the hut shut behind him. He had never wanted a mission to be over as much as he did right now. Looking up, he was faced with the nightmare of Layer striding through the seductively lit interior, shedding clothing in her wake. Tossing him a look over her shoulder, she grinned insanely and laughed to him, “Alone at last, darling! Wanna scrub my back?”

Spike groaned; he hoped Buffy realised what he was going through, stuck in a cheap bordello with a maniac.

******************************

Buffy felt William’s growing desperation through the bite-link; her pulse quickened and her breathing hitched as she clapped a hand to her neck. Here comes the panic again! The feeling remained at that level, however, and slowly she calmed herself from DefCon3 to Yellow Alert.

‘Hey, I can still do that… control ki!’ Buffy had dropped taekwondo after high school and had rarely thought of it since – must still be in there somewhere. Shaking her head and chuckling to herself, she softly spoke out loud. “Pull yourself together, Buffy. Your man’s just doing his job – he’s got to be a little freaked, battling evil. Chill, girl – he’ll soon be back loving and kissing you ‘til you’re all trembly. Now get with the typing!”

After inputting parameters for 00666’s mission, Buffy exited the system, pushed back her chair and gave her bite mark another caress. She couldn’t stop touching the wound; her tangible reminder that dreams really do come true. God, she sounded like an advert for Disneyworld! At the moment it was the only link she had with her lover and she was grateful for anything she could get.

Musing to herself as she organised the paperwork for the regular morning briefing, she froze, her outstretched hand hovering above the desk. Her mom! In all the months she’d been with William she hadn’t once thought to tell her mother about the relationship – and to all intents and purposes her eldest daughter had been wedded and bedded. Oh boy, what an explanation that would be – ‘Hey mom, this is my… husband, William. The wedding? Well, it was sort of…. *a night of unparalleled passion during which I learned the meaning of multiple orgasms, had ivory fangs buried deep within my neck and a cool mouth suckling my lifeblood, dehydrated to a dangerous level and uttered words I don’t even know how to spell; then I drank deep of a demon’s blood and relished the salty, ferric taste on my tongue as I arched against him in the orgasm of the century and hey presto! Mrs Demon!*

Hmm; maybe not. The introduction would be tricky, too – ‘Hey mom, this is the love of my life, William; he’s dead – well, un-dead. He’s got spectacular goods in the trouser department, his tongue is so long it should have its own zip code and he can go all night like a steam train in a tunnel. Oh, and he’s a vampire. Give him a hug!’ Definitely something to be put off for another day.

W’s voice over the intercom jostled her from her reverie.

“Summerpenny. Glad to see you’re back with us. Join me in Briefing Room A.”

“Will do, W,” Buffy replied, checking her appearance in her compact mirror. She grabbed the files she needed and walked briskly to join her colleagues. Buffy felt another tingle and slowed her pace; after a moment she continued, telling herself she had to get used to these small changes during his absence. Or she would go mad.

It was obvious as she hit the briefing room that there was some excitement afoot. The entire station staff was assembled and the room hummed with activity. W barely glanced up as she stepped through the doorway. Head down, studying a map and diagram, she addressed Buffy in even, emotionless tones, gesturing to sections of the map with a cheroot-laden hand. “Summerpenny, it appears there’s a complication regarding Layer. I need you to pull her dossier – she’s not quite what she seems.”

“What a surprise,” Summerpenny muttered.

“Sorry?”

“Nothing W. I’ll get to it at once.”

“Miss Layer may have been slipping us a Mickey Finn.”

At Buffy’s puzzled look W continued. “Her history goes no further back than four years ago. As she was on research until she requested an active role for this mission, it’s only just come to light. If I was a betting woman, I’d say it’s all been working towards this particular mission. She must have known that once activated as a field agent she’d be discovered. It would appear her target is Blond.”

Buffy’s face blanched, her legs no longer able to support her. As she fell backwards against the edge of the desk, W grabbed her arm.

“Summerpenny? Are you alright?”

Buffy’s ears were full of buzzing and her heart pounding in her chest; she was drowning. Gasping for breath, she closed her eyes to concentrate. Finally looking up, W’s steely glare brought her back to earth.

“Sorry, W. Just a bit of a shock you know – hearing that the man you love is in the claws of an evil bitchwoman from hell kinda takes your breath away.”

W was stunned at Summerpenny’s outburst. Her face showed it.

“Erm – I’ll just go and pull that file, W.” Buffy winced inwardly as she slunk away to the file room. God knows where that came from – she’d never even looked at W in a disrespectful way before. Maybe she’d got more of Spike than she bargained for with the bite. Yeah, that’s what it must be – Spikespeak.

******************************

Head in his hands, Spike tried to block out the sound of Layer in the shower as she murdered “Lady Marmalade” with a voice that could shatter concrete. When it was obvious she would be in there for a while, he silently rose to his feet and took the opportunity to search through her belongings. Noiselessly entering the horror of the heart-shaped bedroom that dominated the hut, he went straight to the shoes she’d been wearing and clicked open the secret compartment that concealed the transmitter. It was standard issue, MI13 style, and no markings identifying anything other. Clever, Miss Layer – but not clever enough. It was only a matter of time before he worked out what she was up to.

Swiftly, he checked through her other things. She had very little of her own, most of her wardrobe had been issued by HQ at G’s request so nothing was revealed by his trawl. No matter, he would have his proof soon. He suspected she was working with S.T.A.K.E. – she was obviously insanely sure of herself and that was a sure mark of a S.T.A.K.E. agent. He’d bet his un-life on it.

As the shower cut off, he exited the bedroom quietly, getting as far away from the potentially naked body of the cackling brunette as he could. His skin crawled at the thought of having to share a room with that woman, never mind a bed. The shudder of revulsion went right down from his neck to his toes. He didn’t think he could be more freaked than he was at that moment. He was wrong.

Layer swept out of the bedroom doorway wrapped in a pink fluffy towel, her hair dripping wet and swept up on top of her head in what she no doubt thought of as a seductive fashion. “William, William – what am I to do with you, darling? You haven’t even unpacked. Come now – off with those clothes and into the shower with you.”

Spike stared at her, mouth agape. Good lord, she intended to go through with the whole bloody charade even in private. She was insane! Thankfully, he was not.

As she started inching her way towards him, hands holding the towel together across her chest, she swished her hips suggestively and started humming “Lady Marmalade” softly. Spike’s eyes widened in horror as she sang out “Creole Lady Marmalade” and dropped the towel. Instinctively he backed away from her approaching naked form, feeling behind him for the door handle. Reaching his goal, he yanked the door open and backed out. He didn’t get far. In a split second his neck was gripped from behind by a black-gloved hand and he could feel warm breath tickle his ear as the owner of the hand chuckled against his skin.

“Oh dear, Faith,” the rich female voice spoke across his shoulder “having trouble keeping your man…again? Need a hand restraining him?”

Faith Layer stood unashamedly naked, hands on her hips and an amused glint playing across her face. “I was doing just fine, Miss Fellator – you tend to your own man-toys and let me play with mine.”

“Kat, please, Faithy – we can’t stand on ceremony now can we? Not when we’ve got such a tempting titbit to share.”

Spike was taking it all in; obviously the two females were known to each other and not in a best pals way. Maybe he could use that to play them off one against the other. If only he could summon up that Spike Blond charm he was famous for.

“I thought I made it clear...Kat. Not sharing, not this one. You broke the last toy we shared before I’d even got the wrapper off. Not fair. I want to play.”

“Well, you’ll have to wait. Grand Master Bates sent me to fetch your toy. He’s anxious to meet the famous Mr. Blond and see exactly what all the fuss is about.”

Pouting, Faith Layer whined out, “But I was just about to find out what all the fuss was about when you interrupted my game!”

Now Spike knew who he was dealing with. Master Bates was the faceless despot of S.T.A.K.E., renowned for his cruelty and fixation on fluffy white cats with questionable hygiene. Ah well; at least he would be the first MI13 agent to see his face. Even if it may be the last thing he saw.

‘Get a grip, Spike,’ he thought. ‘Where the hell did that come from?’ He never gave up without a fight; no matter how hopeless the situation he always managed to pull off a brilliant escape. As he concentrated he could sense Buffy’s agitation, her feelings of helplessness, and that feeling was coming through the link. Not now, he didn’t have time. But it did give him the impetus to get back on track and assess the situation. He had to get free and back to Buffy, to lie within her warm arms…and warmer legs.

The jerk of the hand around his neck jolted him back to his current predicament. Finally, he was released and pushed forwards into the room, the door being shut behind his as yet unseen assailant. Turning quickly and taking up a defensive stance, he was momentarily stunned to see a lithe figure clad head to foot in skin-tight black PVC. Her hair was raven-black, long and sleek; the suit was slit in the front down to her navel revealing pert breasts and toned abs. The well-muscled legs finished in spike-heeled boots, which could no doubt deliver a vicious kick if the lady behind the heels was so minded.

Spike smirked, “Nice paintwork.”

Slapping the bullwhip against her boot, she appraised the vampire at close range. “Well aren’t you just…delicious!” she drawled.

“Yes, I’m a nummy treat. What’s it to you, love?”

“Yes, Kat – what is it to you?” snapped Faith “I thought you got the message that this was a meal-for-one deal.”

“Listen girls, flattered as I am – what’s with all this food fixation? Not getting enough vitamins? Need a boost? I could probably satisfy your… protein requirements.” He affixed the trademark Spike Blond smirk to his words for added effect.

At the flicker of interest he spotted in Kat’s eyes, and the indrawn breath from Faith behind him, he considered his options. Faith Layer he could handle on his own, he was sure of it; but this new player was tricky. He would resort to his tried and tested sexual innuendo attack to keep them off centre, then when they were all gooey and helpless he’d move in for the kill, or the stun. Never failed.

At the crack of the whip wrapping itself round his legs and dragging him to the floor, he amended that thought. ‘Good plan, Spike. Make that never usually failed.’

Suddenly, the Kat-Woman was astride his hips and instead of the whip, she was gripping a pair of devilishly sharp blades, martial art sais, one in each hand. Faith gave a little jump of glee then skipped round to stand at Spike’s outstretched left hand; she was still naked and still turning his stomach.

“Oh, I so want to see your lily-white ass smeared all over this hut,” she cackled.

“Well, well, wifey dear, you’ve changed your tune. Have to say I’m surprised you threw the towel in so soon -- but then you can’t win them all. Or should that be any? Miss Fellator here seems to know how to make a connection. She your superior in all areas, then?”

“Think you’re something don’t you? Nobody does it half as good as you, baby you’re the best,” Faith spat at him. “Think you’re the best now, do you? We’re gonna take pleasure in guttin’ you… boy!”

“Too late. Your singing’s already done that.”

Snarling with rage, Faith launched her nude form at him, a biting and scratching banshee. Just what Spike was waiting for, one expert chop to the side of her neck and he was able to push her away, her unconscious body collapsing against the far wall. The whole while, Kat rocked backwards and forwards on his hips, eyes glinting and licking her lips with excitement, the twin knives glistening as she clashed the blades together in a metallic cacophony.

Now was his chance to overcome the nubile woman gyrating on his groin. Of course, pre-Buffy he would have played the scene for all it was worth before trying to extricate himself but now…he just wanted out.

Sitting up sharply, suddenly the roles were reversed – the assassin flat out on her back, the vampire above her supported on his arms and staring menacingly down on her.

“Enough foreplay don’t you think” he growled at her before vamping out and bending his fangs to her neck. He stopped mid-lunge as excruciating pain lanced his body.

“Oh, not nearly enough, pretty man. I want to carve my name into your flesh and make you scream for mercy. I’ve already made a start…”

Kat twisted the knife she had rammed in his gut and grinned at the gush of blood staining her hand and PVC cleavage crimson. She was all about the suffering and the sex being hand in hand and this was really getting her hot. Flipping him so that he was laying flat again, pain etched on his face, she straddled his hips wriggling seductively. With one knife still buried in his abdomen, she stroked the other down the side of his face, following its path with her tongue. Spike was too dazed to move; the sudden blood loss had him temporarily incapacitated.

“What’s the matter, lover?” she whispered in his ear, nipping his earlobe with sharp teeth and drawing yet more blood with her bite. “I know how much you love this; you’re a vampire – this is what you do. I have a very good friend – a mutual acquaintance you might say - who taught me all I know. Dru sends her best and asked me to give you this….”

Kat sucked his full bottom lip into her moist mouth and bit down hard again as she rocked against him. Another vicious twist of the knife caused Spike to roar with pain. This couldn’t kill him but it hurt like bloody hell. And yes – there’d been a time when this would have been the precursor to hard, violent sex and slaughter lasting nights at a time. But that was before – before Tara had been turned by Angelus; before he fell in love with Buffy. Now it just sickened him.

The thought of his pure soulmate and the contrast with this spawn of evil gave Spike a sudden surge of strength. In a blur of movement he had an iron grip on the wrist with the knife in one hand and her throat with the other.

Fighting to breathe, Kat released his lip, her face all bloodied: she thrashed about, trying to get free from the constriction around her neck. As he crushed the bones of her wrist, the knife dropped to the floor with a clang. She clawed at his hands; eyes bulging with panic, mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

“Have a break. Have a kip, Kat,” snarled Blond.

Finally, she lost consciousness and Spike shoved her limp weight away, tumbled against the still body of the crazy double agent Layer. Wrenching the knife out of his belly, he sat up, dizzy from the loss of blood. He needed to get out of there; Kat had said he was to be taken to Master Bates. It wouldn’t be long before the goon squad descended on the hut when he wasn’t dragged in front of the Mighty Wanker in locks and chains. He had to replace the blood loss.

And lookee, lookee – two handy bite size snacks just lying about going to waste….

Quickly binding up his middle with a ripped sheet, he staggered over to Faith and sank his fangs into her neck draining her enough to keep her unconscious. He dearly wanted to leave her dead but he just couldn’t. Not like that. If she was coming at him, yeah fine if there was no other way. But not like this.

Dropping her down, he moved on to the other girl; grabbing her hair in his fist he exposed the pale column of her throat marbled with the imprint of his fingers and quickly pierced the skin, gulping down the warm blood that would renew his strength, heal him. Feeling the blood rocket through his body, he rested on his hands and knees a while, then as the miraculous fluid worked its magic he jumped up and headed to the bedroom.

Gathering together a bundle of dark clothes and the stash of G’s ‘specials’, Spike stuffed them into a rucksack and shrugged on a new black shirt and trousers. He retrieved the mission Communikit from the secret lining of his suitcase and stuffed that in the sack too. A couple of stakes, binoculars and a Walther PPK pistol followed. Guns. Never his weapon of choice – but he was alone in enemy territory and he had to take everything he could get.

Looking back to the unconscious women, he noted that they were breathing slowly but steadily and their heartbeats were getting stronger. He’d probably regret not finishing them off but that’s what set him apart from other beasts, other demons. He chose to go against his nature. He wasn’t a slave to his bloodlust, not anymore.

After gingerly checking the tightness of his bandages, he covered his platinum hair with a black balaclava and slipped out of the doorway into the rapidly falling dusk, disappearing into the undergrowth silently like the predator he was.

*****************************

Buffy pulled Layer’s dossier from the cabinet and was making her way back to W in the briefing room when she began to feel weirdly uneasy in her skin. First of all her throat felt constricted, like she couldn’t breathe. She shook it off and continued walking but the sensation lingered in the background. This was crazy! How on earth was she going to function if every time William was away from her she spent the whole separation spooked and emotional? W would be on her case, on top of everything else.

Gritting her teeth, she pushed open the door and strode towards W, who had her back to her looking at the large-scale map on the wall.

“Here’s Layer’s file, W.”

“Fine, Summerpenny. Please make sure everyone has a copy before we begin.”

“Of course, it’ll just take me a…”

The rest of the sentence was cut off by a spine-chilling scream as Buffy crumpled to the floor, papers and photographs drifting around her from the dropped file. Every other occupant of the room stopped mid-sentence as heads whipped round, searching for the source of the unearthly sound.

Buffy could only hug her knees to her chest, as white hot pain seared through her abdomen and left her panting for breath. She couldn’t vocalise the feeling despite W’s stooping form and barked questions. Shaking her head, she felt herself falling into oblivion, the room fading out. As she sank into the dark, she gasped out the one word… “William…”

Chapter 8

Buffy came round to find herself on the couch in W’s office, her boss pacing the rug in front of her, smoking and carrying a glass of... was that vodka and coke? What happened?

“Summerpenny? How are you feeling? Here, drink this.”

It was vodka and coke, make that coke and vodka, as Buffy found out when she downed a healthy mouthful. Coughing and choking she jerked upright, spitting the dark liquid all down her front and onto the pale carpet.

“Sorry,” she mumbled, dabbing at the mess. “What happened, W? Did I pass out? WILLIAM! It’s William – W, something terrible happened to him, he’s hurt. I have to go to him.”

Buffy sprang to her feet, her head swimming from the gulp of vodka she’d had on top of her fainting fit. W steadied her, laying a restraining hand on her arm as she tried to leave the room.

“Be sensible, Buffy. 00666 is our best agent; if he is in trouble…well, what could you do?”

“Well I can’t just sit here! I’ve had the training, know the moves. W, I’m a black belt in karate, jujitsu, tae kwondo. I’ve been studying martial arts since I was three years old! You know I can handle myself. Check my records; I aced all the physicals when I first joined. I have to go! I can feel his agony…it’s killing me…”

Buffy’s raised voice tailed off at the end as she fingered the bite mark on her neck. Drawing in a breath, it hitched in her throat as her face crumpled, tears falling from her limpid green eyes.

“Please, W. You have to let me try. The nearer I get to him, the more we share through the link. I can find him, I have to find him. At least let me go with someone else, a retrieval unit or something.”

W walked round to the back of her desk and slowly sat down. Leaning forwards, she steepled her hands together and rested her chin on top of them. She was torn. William knew the risks, he was a double-0 agent; this particular mission was always one without backup. All usual search and retrieve directives were withdrawn on orders from HM Government, something to do with trade agreements. She hadn’t questioned beyond that, just obeyed orders as all agents did.

But now, looking over at the anguished face of her PA as she begged to go and risk her own life to save her best agent, she couldn’t justify the reason. Truth be told, despite W’s icy exterior and detached manner, the bleached blond vampire had sneaked in under the razor-sharp wire protecting her emotions and was firmly ensconced in her “those I care about” camp. Of course, the fact that she was wining and dining his sister may have reinforced that opinion.

Breathing in deeply, she made a decision. To hell with regulations – she wasn’t about to let the most breathtaking individual she’d ever met vanish without a fight. No; consequences be damned, she’d think about that another time.

Buffy didn’t take her eyes off W, praying that her boss would just give her the opportunity to get near to her lover. Nothing showed on W’s face, no emotion. Heartless bitch! God help anyone who tried to get close to her, they’d probably freeze before getting within a foot. Buffy always thought that W was a professional, detached and cold, but she’d never thought of her as cruel. Well, this was it. If she walked out of this room without W’s support, she was going anyway, and fuck the service too! She was done.

W dropped her hands to rest on the desktop, still laced together. Two sets of green eyes burned across the room as they met.

Buffy’s jaw dropped when W spoke, “How soon can you be ready to leave?”

Gathering her wits, Buffy replied “NOW! I’m ready now…I don’t need anything; I just need to go to him…”

She was completely floored, and humbled. She had utterly misjudged W and felt ashamed of her earlier thoughts. She was human after all. Who’d have guessed that Wireknickers Willow had a heart of mush below the ice?

Getting to her feet, W surprised her even further. “You’re not going alone, Buffy. There’ll be a retrieval team of four including you…and me.”

“You?” Buffy almost squealed. “You’re coming, too?”

The red-haired Commander In Chief laughed at Buffy’s incredulous look. “Yes, Buffy. You don’t think I got this job because of my looks do you? I designed most of the training procedures you went through and I’m as fully trained as you are. Also I’m due leave. Don’t be mistaken. This is not a mission that will be sanctioned by MI13; it’s completely off the record, volunteers only. I’ll ask, discreetly, for two others to accompany us. The jet will be at my disposal as I set off for my well deserved vacation – a little detour won’t hurt, and the pilot owes me a favour.”

Buffy was stunned; she looked it. Her eyes were round as saucers as she stared unblinking at her boss. Remembering to breathe, she let out a soft, “Wow.”

W chuckled. “It’s got to be better than two weeks R&R with the Head of Research, which was my actual vacation plan. This sounds like much more fun. Come on; let’s go clue G in on the subterfuge and see what he can let us have as going away presents.”

Buffy followed the redhead out of the door, shaking her head in wonder. Boy she’d been beyond wrong about her. Any more surprises to come?

***************************

Surprises there were aplenty. As W and Buffy entered G’s workspace, all activity ceased. It was very rare for the boss to venture this far inside the building, to the machinery that made it hum. She had daily contact with G, of course, but mostly in the form of e-mails or reports. So the fact that she’d walked down the corridor and braved scanners and security measures spoke volumes to the gadget meister. Something was most definitely up.

Dismissing his assistant, G cleared an area on his workbench so that he could lean back against it as W sat down gingerly on his ancient leather swivel chair. It squeaked alarmingly as she settled back and crossed her legs, revealing slim ankles and designer shoes. The flick of her lighter as she lit her ever-present cheroot illuminated the dim corner of the room. G’s work area was stuck away behind the door and seemed chaotic and disorganised in comparison to the sleek and modern test section. Buffy stood off to one side, almost bursting with her need to move, to get to William. She was moving her weight from foot to foot, restlessly rubbing at the bite mark on her neck, and was giving off vibes of impatience that managed to penetrate even G’s usually oblivious fog.

“Aaah, W, not that I’m unhappy to see you here, but why are you here? And why’s Summerpenny so edgy?”

W blew out a thin stream of smoke, her left hand cradling her right elbow as she held up the cheroot. She smiled enigmatically and quirked her eyebrow toward the back office, a silent request to move to somewhere more private. Buffy caught on immediately and virtually ran to the haven of the room, turning impatiently when W and G didn’t move as fast as she wanted. She wanted to scream at them, but instead clasped her hands together, wringing them nervously. Eventually all three of them were in the tiny corner room, the door closed and the blind drawn down. W spoke softly, outlining her plan.

“You want to do what?” hissed G, removing his glasses and running a hand through his hair. “Are you insane?”

“Au contraire, old chap. I think I’ve come to my senses. It was insane of HQ to consider sending in our best agent and abandoning him to S.T.A.K.E. In the words of the blond devil himself - ‘bugger that’. I’ve invested too much time and resources to throw him to the wolves just because of their precious trade agreements.”

G sat down heavily on the easy chair against the wall. Glancing up at Buffy, he replaced his glasses. “I suppose this was your idea, Summerpenny?”

“I can’t leave him there, G. He’s in pain, I can feel it.”

G looked at Buffy then W then back to Buffy. “How exactly can you ‘feel’ it? He’s completely without communication devices that work from the island and as far as I know he isn’t an adept at ESP.” G chuckled at his own feeble joke. Getting no response, he cleared his throat and continued.

“Yes, well. Ahem. Maybe you could fill me in on the latest?”

Buffy didn’t know where to begin. W did it for her. “It appears that Miss Summerpenny and Mr Blond are karmicly linked. She feels strong emotions emanating from him – pain, pleasure, that sort of thing. She felt just such intense pain earlier when she collapsed on the floor of the briefing room. It’s clear he’s in deep trouble, G.”

“How on earth is that link achieved? I only ask because it could be invaluable for future missions.”

Silence. Uncomfortable shuffling.

“He bit her, she bit him.”

“Oh! I see. Erm, and that’s it? That’s all it takes? Hmm; do you think Blond would be willing to do that again for the next...”

“NO! He bloody well would not be willing!”

G was completely flummoxed now, floundering about for a safe haven in which to moor his drifting mind.

“But…it would be for the good of the service…..surely a little sacrifice…”

“NO, G! Just forget it, alright?”

W took pity on him, the sight of him owlishly blinking behind his spectacles proof that he had absolutely no clue as to why Buffy was so vehement in her objections. Biting her lip to stifle a giggle, she got up and leaned in close to his ear. G blushed from his hair downwards, casting horrified looks Buffy’s way.

“Ahem, yes…of course……..that would be most…….inappropriate. Ahem.”

Buffy was not happy. Just the thought of William being that intimate with anyone else brought forth thoughts so violent they shocked her. She glared at G, her eyes venomous and narrowed.

“No biting. Am I clear?”

“Crystal. I totally understand.”

“Ok. Then can we move on? I need to get to William now!”

W outlined her plan. The pilot would be putty in her hands and the time off they needed was just a matter of a couple of e-mails to Personnel. Equipment wise, they needed some assistance from G’s bag of tricks and were still short two volunteers.

“Make that one volunteer, W.”

“G, I couldn’t ask you to do this. If it works out…well, we’ll probably be able to lose the details in the report; but if it blows up in our faces…it’s the end of the road. You’ve too much to lose.”

“Nonsense! It’s high time I got out of this place; I’m starting to look like a crusty old man and there’s years left in me yet. About time I let Ripper out to play.”

“Ripper?” queried Buffy. W and G exchanged a look. The redhead was well aware of G’s chaotic past but not many other people in the service knew that in his youth, G was quite the tearaway. No, not tearaway – psychotic juvenile delinquent with a penchant for the dark arts more like. It would be difficult to guess that now looking at his usual apparel; more Zimmer than Ripper!

W answered Buffy’s query, sort of. “Suffice to say, Summerpenny, that G here may look like mild mannered Clark Kent but in reality he’s more Superman on speed. Trust me; if you need someone to watch your back, he’s your man.”

Surprises. That’s the thing about them; they’re always unexpected.

Buffy blinked. “If you say so, W. Okay, we’ve got us two and G. Can we go now? Please? I feel like my gut’s on fire, my head’s pounding and I want to kill something. I need to be there.”

W and G exchanged another glance, W nodding slightly to the gadget man. “When can you be ready, G?”

“Well, let’s see. Give me an hour and I’ll have everything packed up. I’ll need to grab some equipment from the beta testing suite, a few tricks that might come in useful. Any special requests?”

“Some frigging huge knives!”

Buffy clapped her hand over her mouth in horror. A beat and then W breathed, “What she said.”

Leaving G to gather his tools, W and Buffy headed off to recruit the next likely candidate for the near-hopeless mission.

*******************************

“W!” Buffy hissed; “where are we going?”

“To see a friend. Don’t worry. It’ll be fine, I promise.”

Buffy was walking alongside her flame-haired boss and stealing glances sidelong at her. She’d never seen this side of the woman before. She looked younger, softer somehow. It occurred to Buffy that W was the same age as her. She usually thought of her as older and wiser but in reality it was probable that they graduated at the same time. No doubt she was fast-tracked to management when she joined. She was brilliant, good with computers and had access to magic: useful skills in this job. Strange to think that W probably went through the same boy-band crushes at the same time she did.

They’d left the Magic Box by the rear door and were on their way to W’s SUV in the underground garage. W had informed the desk that she was taking her leave of absence early and the Summerpenny had a family emergency to attend to. By the time everything filtered through to Personnel and back to HQ in London they’d be well gone and there’d be little that could be done to stop them. W suspected that it wouldn’t take much figuring out as to where they’d be. Her heated defence of Mr Blond on the occasions when his unorthodox methods had caused the suits in charge to choke on their foie gras had raised more than a few eyebrows. Well, in his words, ‘sod ‘em’.

Zooming out from the darkness of the garage, dark glasses covering her eyes, W’s face bore an unfamiliar grin as she revelled in the unaccustomed freedom she felt. The vehicle bounced over the last lip of the ramp, crashing down heavily on its suspension before speeding off. A fly on the window would have seen Buffy Summerpenny gripping the dashboard for dear life and gulping nervously.

********************************

The SUV pulled into the parking area of a building not unfamiliar to Buffy. She looked round at W in shock.

“Please don’t tell me we’re here to see who I think we’re here to see.”

“Summerpenny, didn’t I tell you to trust me? He’s the best agent we have after Blond. And he owes him, remember? He’s ideal.”

“But William would hate to be ‘rescued’ by him. They’re not bosom buddies you know. Isn’t there someone else?” Buffy was almost whining.

W engaged the parking brake and turned off the engine. “No, Buffy. There isn’t. Agent 0013 is our best bet at getting Blond back in one piece. Now move your tush.”

Buffy rubbed her hands over her tired eyes. She hated that she had to ask this man for a favour. He would be gloating about it for years. But W was probably right. William and he had a history of rivalry and there’d been a time when agent 0013 wouldn’t have made it back from a disastrous mission without William’s quick-thinking and vampire speed reaction. Maybe that would be enough to tempt him to help. She unbuckled her seatbelt and followed W into the building.

Buffy stood nervously behind W as she rang the doorbell. It galled her to have to ask for help at the best of times, and right now it made her sick to her stomach. After what seemed an eternity the door opened to reveal the towel clad form of Xander Harris leaning nonchalantly against the doorjamb, hair ruffled, black patch rakishly over his damaged eye.

“Well, well. To what do I owe this pleasure, W? You don’t usually make house calls…I’m a little…busy…just now.”

The accented voice that called out from behind him left them in no doubt as to what he was busy with.

“Darlink…ven are you coming back to bed……you promised me so many orgasms and I’m only up to five…..hardly plural…come to me, my little shashlik…”

Buffy peeped from behind W to see who the voice belonged to, her face a mask of disgust. Harris smiled widely as he spotted the petite blonde in his hallway.

“Buffy Summerpenny! I thought you’d never accept my invitation – come on in. I just need to do some…tidying…before I can entertain you properly.”

Buffy grimaced, suppressing an “ew”. Harris never seemed to give up. He’d been asking her out since she joined the service and she’d turned him down every time. At first she’d been grateful for his proffered friendship and had been happy to join him for coffee at the Espresso Pump during her breaks. But it soon became clear that he wanted more than friendship and that was never on her agenda. When she’d politely advised him that she thought of him as a friend only, he’d stropped about like a teenager and hadn’t spoken to her properly since, except to throw sarcastic comments in her direction along the lines of “Little Miss Icebox” and “thawed out those panties yet, Summerpenny?” She could barely stand to be in the same room as him.

W swept into the apartment past the semi-naked spy and Buffy followed her, determinedly ‘eyes front’. The last thing she wanted to see was Xander-flesh, thank you very much. The door clicked shut behind them as they entered the living area. Buffy looked up as she spotted scarlet toe-nailed feet come into her line of vision. Standing in front of her was a woman, naked except for a black velvet ribbon at her throat, hands on hips, entirely unashamed at her nudity. The owner of the mystery voice, no doubt.

“Xander, vat is going on here? Are ve playing another game, because I told you…….no more peoples unless it’s more boys zan girls…….or Michelle from ze American Pie.”

W raised a quizzical eyebrow, turning her green-eyed gaze on Mr Harris.

“W, Buffy – I’d like you to meet Miss Anyanka Jenkinskovitch. She’s an attaché with the Russian Consulate. I’ve been showing her the ropes.”

“Oh, and the chains also……….he’s quite an adventurous leetle babnik, aren’t you Xanderkins?”

“Anya – don’t you have to go to that meeting now? Let me help you.”

As he ushered the nymphet back into the bedroom, he flashed an apologetic yet slightly smug grin at W and Buffy before closing the bedroom door.

W sat down on the cream leather couch, lighting another cheroot and inhaling deeply. Buffy remained standing, pacing to show her impatience.

“W, I’m not sure this is such a good idea. I mean look at him? He’s a fool; he has no discipline, plus he gives me the creeps. There must be someone else. Let’s go, before he comes back.”

“Relax, Buffy. He’s the right man for the job. He can’t follow orders and he takes insane risks. He’s exactly what we’re looking for. And the fact that it’s Blond – he’ll lap it up. Trust me. Now sit; you’re making me dizzy.”

Buffy sat, heavily, crossing her arms and pouting. Eventually, after some very dubious sounds had drifted through the closed door, it opened to reveal a flushed and radiant Anyanka, swathed in white furs, and a smug and fully clothed Xander Harris. Briskly, he escorted the Russian to the door, his promise to call her following her departing back.

“So, W. What does bring you here?”

Quickly, W outlined the problem. Before she got to the bit where she asked him for his help, Xander fell about laughing.

“Oh man! This is too much! Super Spy finally met his match, huh? So now poor little William needs to be rescued before he gets a boo-boo? This is just great. Hey, count me in, whatever you need. I wouldn’t miss seeing him all needy for all the coconuts in Cambodia!”

He was unprepared for the hellcat that jumped him, knocking him to the floor and snarling as she gripped him round his throat. W sprang to her feet as Summerpenny spat angrily at the decked spy.

“Let’s get this straight, Harris. I don’t need any help from you. William doesn’t need any help from you. I despise you. I’d like to see your throat ripped out and your bloody cream couch made red with your life-blood. Don’t push me.”

Xander Harris was floored in more ways than one. What the hell had come over shrinking violet Buffy Summers? Was she possessed?

“Is she possessed?” he asked W.

“Not quite, Harris. Let’s just say that Summerpenny and Blond have a link that seems to imbue them both with some of each other’s attributes. It appears that Buffy here may be feeling his anger and frustration, and you were in the way.”

“Oh. Right. Well, I’ll play nice then. Erm, Buffy? Could you get off of me?”

Buffy snarled at him, leaving him in no doubt that any further teasing would leave him maimed. When she thought she’d made her point, she got up, offering him her hand. He took it warily and got to his feet.

“So, we’re all set then. Harris, be at the airfield in 45 minutes. Minimal kit – just standard retrieval. We can’t afford to be overloaded. We’ll be parachuting in so bear that in mind. Come Buffy. We need to collect our own gear.”

Shooting a parting venomous glare at Harris, Buffy followed W out of the apartment and back to the SUV.

“Oh this is going to be fun…yeah, right,” Xander whispered to himself, fingering his bruised neck.

********************************

Spike Blond had finally settled down to rest for a couple of hours. Since he’d left the hut he’d been familiarising himself with the jungle surrounding the compound. It was very dense, the overhead foliage sufficiently interwoven to allow him protection from the sun during the daylight hours. As he made a mental inventory of his arsenal he remembered that he was still wearing the gossamer-thin sheath over his skin that G assured him would allow some sun exposure without the whole spontaneous combustion thing.

He’d set traps fashioned from vines and branches to alert him of anyone approaching before they got too close for him to escape. His present vantage point allowed him to view almost 360 degrees as he’d climbed about 20 feet up into a sprawling tree of unknown genus. There was a natural cradle concealed by the large, waxen leaves in which he’d bedded down. It wasn’t silk sheets and down comforters, but it would do until he formulated a plan. He couldn’t rely on a rescue team since he’d agreed to the mission on those terms; he could only rely upon himself, fists and fangs. Back to the good old days when rending and ripping was his main joy and raison d’être.

Drifting off into sleep he held to the mental image he had of his love, back in Sunnydale, her glorious blonde locks and simmering green eyes making his lips curl into a smile even as he slept.

***********************************

They’d finally got on board the jet, the pilot not even batting an eyelid as W asked him to file a false flight plan. She gave him the correct coordinates of the island where he had recently dropped Spike Blond and Faith Layer and he smiled knowingly, nodding his consent to be a part of the rebellion.

There’d been no untoward happenings so far; it was just a matter of waiting until they arrived then hopefully Buffy’s link with William would give them a heads up on what to do next.

With nothing else to be done, and the events of the past few days catching up with her, Buffy had retired to the bedroom, which still held a lingering scent of William’s cologne, and was now deep in sleep.

*************************************

Spike Blond murmured in his sleep; “that’s right, kitten……mmmm, lower, harder……”

*Buffy was nibbling at his pale flesh, biting hard enough to bruise but not to break the skin. She’d started on his left ear-lobe, licking at first and sucking it into her hot little mouth until he’d begged her to touch him. She’d smirked at him, shaking her head and darting her tongue out to lick her lips as she moved further down his body. His neck was stretched out, the cords at the side standing out against the smoothness of his skin. She mouthed down along their length, running her teeth along nipping and licking as she slid across to the swell of his shoulder. Her bare nipples burned a path along his chest as she rubbed against him. His cock ached to feel her warmth but she arched away from his bucking groin, standing up from the bed to look at the form of her vampire lover as he writhed and pulled at the chains binding his hands and feet to the bedposts.*

Buffy was sighing with pleasure as she dreamed of William, her body writhing on the bed in ecstasy as she became aroused.

Spike was bucking his hips in his sleep as he ached to get some release for his painful erection.

Both were panting, unknowingly synchronised, as the jet got closer and closer to the island.

*Spike almost begged as Buffy brought her mouth near to his cock, blowing gently on the tip as it bobbed in front of her face. Still she refused to touch him! She turned her back to him and straddled his torso, her butt jiggling in front of his face, just out of reach. She bent over so that her breasts brushed his thighs and he moaned as his tender cock briefly had the pleasure of skin on skin before she sat up and tossed her hair back to brush his face. The vixen glanced over her shoulder at his anguished face, laughing at the way he strained his hands against the chains. “Buffy! Bloody well get on with it…I’m dying here!” She placed her finger on her lips and shushed him. “Bad Spike! Now I’m going to have to make you pay a penalty….”

She leaned forwards again, inching backwards so that her ass was right in front of Spike’s face, the scent of her arousal driving him crazy and causing his mouth to water. “For being a bad boy, you need to wash me……because I’m dirty…..”

Spike needed no second asking; as she pressed herself further towards him he plunged his long, cool tongue deep inside her pussy, stabbing it in and out as she wriggled against his mouth. Her sounds of pleasure ricocheted off the walls as he brought her to the brink of orgasm and as he withdrew his pink weapon to flick at her clitoris she screamed his name, arching her back so she covered them with a curtain of blonde tresses. It was too much for him, he gave up pretending to be shackled and ripped the manacles from the bedposts with a resounding crack, throwing her forwards on her hands and knees as he raised himself to kneel between her thighs, kicking off the remains of the shattered chains from his ankles as he did so. With no warning he rammed his cock deep inside her body, the fluttering of her inner walls gripping him as he did so. He wasn’t in the mood for gentle – he wanted to possess her utterly, dominate her. He started up with a pounding rhythm as he kept one arm wrapped around her waist, the other fisted in the hair at the back of her neck as he forced her to submit to him. His demon gloried in the feeling, his vampire visage coming to the fore as he roared his pleasure.

Buffy pressed hard back against him as he thrust into her, little cries of pleasure falling from her lips as her greedy pussy engulfed the swollen length of him. “More; I want more,” she panted at him. Keeping up the torturous rhythm, he raised her upper body and lifted the hair away from her neck. As he bit down into her flesh, he snaked the hand around her torso down towards her mound and slipped his finger inside her moist folds to pinch her sensitised clit. Buffy erupted around his dick as she came again, fiercely, milking him as her muscles clenched without mercy. The iron grip of her channel and the ripples coursing through her tipped him over to spill spurts of cool, salty semen deep inside her warmth as he drank from her neck.

Slowly spiralling down from the heights of ecstasy, Spike collapsed forwards onto his woman’s limp and panting body, caressing her and wrapping her in the embrace of his arms, his legs, his lips.*

“Buffy, I love you…..” he whispered in his sleep, the damp patch on his trousers and coating his hand testament to how real the dream had been.

“I love you too…so much…” Buffy murmured, eyes still closed in slumber, as she settled down further into the mattress, the beat of her heart slowing as her thighs unclamped from around her sticky fingers.

Chapter 9

“We’re approaching the outer marker, W. Happy landing time!” The pilot’s voice over the intercom spurred the travellers into action. It had been ages since W and G had parachuted anywhere, and Buffy had only jumped a couple of times. In fact, the only person not nervously fiddling with parachute straps and double-checking the harness was Harris. He was leaning nonchalantly in the open doorway of the jet as it descended to optimum altitude for the drop.

When the engine noise deepened, Xander flashed a bright smile at the rest of them and stepped out of the hatch. G gave a silent ‘thumbs up’ signal and followed him. Buffy turned to W to say she would go next but before she could do so, the red-head hugged her and launched herself out of the ‘plane to start her freefall.

“Oh well, Buffy. Can’t miss the party,” she muttered as she tentatively peeked over the threshold before closing her eyes and leaping. The wind rushing past her face buffeted her cheeks and the black jumpsuit she was wearing, tugging at the small rucksack strapped to her front. The figures of G, W and Harris were below her as they proved that gravity was alive and well. Checking the dial on her wrist, Buffy figured another 6 seconds and she could pull the ripcord. She saw Xander’s parachute open, its black silk exotic against the clouds surrounding him. Next G and then W, jerked up and away from her as she continued falling. A final check, then she pulled the cord and joined them in the graceful spiralling towards the ocean.

As the most experienced parachutist, Harris was toting the bulk of their equipment, including the ingenious dinghy that G had supplied from the beta testing suite back at the Magic Box. It was minute and certainly didn’t look as though it would inflate to anything bigger than a beach ball. G had assured them however that they would be astounded when they saw it in action. He rarely disappointed; the man was a genius with a gadget.

They all splashed down safely, congregating around the rapidly inflating dinghy. Or wait; it had been there a second ago…wow. Buffy sank a little in the water as she forgot to swim, unable to believe what she was seeing … or not. One minute – bright orange PVC or some such – next, a gap in the horizon where the dinghy should be. Invisible? G had an invisible dinghy? Got to hand it to him – the man was a maestro, no mistake. When brains were being issued, he’d got supersize.

By the time she reached the vessel, the other participants in this crazy mission were already inside the covered dinghy and gleefully ridding themselves of their parachute gear to weight it down and dump overboard. W had already retrieved a cheroot from god knew where and lit up and G was passing round a hipflask; Buffy doubted it contained buttermilk. Didn’t stop her chugging a good swallow when it came her way, though. She still gagged, still stuck her tongue out and went “bleaaargh” – she didn’t mix well with alcohol. William always chuckled when she…

W noticed the anguished expression on Buffy’s face and squeezed her arm in sympathy.

“We’ll find him, Summerpenny. I promise you that we are not leaving here without him.” Her smile was gentle, her eyes earnest. Buffy believed her.

********************************

Spike snapped awake from dead asleep in 0.1 seconds, vampire senses on overload with information – gender, numbers, species. He figured he had about two minutes to clear out of there. And then the hunt would begin…

Gathering his meagre kit together, he dropped the 20 feet to the floor and took off at a ground-eating run to disappear into the deep vegetation of the jungle. He glanced back as he hurtled along the densely packed floor, dodging hanging vines and overloaded branches as he ran. When he felt he’d put enough distance between himself and the immediate danger, he stopped, considering his options.

He couldn’t run forever, he knew that. And he was one against many – the odds weren’t good. Nobody was coming to his rescue; he had to rely on his own resources. This mission had always carried the highest risk; of all the times he’d donned Spike Blond’s persona, entered the lion’s den and come out the other side with the lion’s head under his arm, this time he wasn’t so sure it wouldn’t be the lion strutting about with a full belly. Ordinarily, it wouldn’t bother him. Hell, he’d been alive forever…well, technically not alive…but he’d go with the analogy. He held nothing back, threw everything into the pot – a gumbo of life as it were. But now a hot, sexy, smart and sassy blonde had overturned his entire existence, and she meant more to him than success of the mission, world peace, instant happiness. He would fight, fang and claw, to get back to his mate’s side.

The image he held in his head of his last view of her, sitting in W’s limousine, her eyes overflowing with unshed tears but still managing a beaming smile, urged him on. The dream he’d had where he felt her tongue upon him, her heat engulfing his straining cock, only served to whip him into a frenzy of survival. He would go home to her. Nothing could keep them apart. And strangely, as he made his mind up to veer left towards the coast, he did feel closer to her…as if she was nearer somehow. Must be the lack of blood.

_{***************************************}

Buffy smiled; she could feel him. She’d had a momentary wiggins when they’d reached the shore and beached the miraculous inflatable; she’d thought that the nearer she was to him physically, the more intense the feelings would be. All she’d felt though was a resignation, an acceptance of kismet. It disturbed her; it wasn’t her William. But then, just now, she’d sensed an upsurge in his emotions; it shone like a beacon, pulsed at her jugular. Her lover was fighting, he wasn’t dust. Her emotions swamped her and she cried, fat droplets running down her pale face.

W cocked her head in silent question.

“He’s okay, W. He’s fighting. We’re not too late.”

The red head smiled in response, covering Buffy’s shaking hands with her own. She didn’t need to say anything; the relief was plain in her eyes. The Ice Bitch had melted so far as William was concerned and she was as determined as Buffy to bring him home.

“G. Any news on the chip? Can you get a fix?”

“Sorry W. There must be a dampening field around the island. The communication device itself isn’t active but there’s still a residual trace that I should be able to pick up…but sorry, nothing. It’s interesting, in any saline structure there’s always the…”

“G, man. Give it up. We don’t need Spies-R-Us 101; twiddle a dial, plug in a meter or something. Just find him.”

Buffy shot the spy an incredulous look, as he sounded almost concerned. Harris recovered quickly.

“I mean, the sooner we get to his undead ass, the sooner I can start telling him what a piece of piss it was rescuing him, and then doubting his masculinity,” he blustered, “I have needs, you know.”

Way to cover; Buffy gifted him with a small smile. Maybe he wasn’t the ass he came across as. Xander nodded in recognition of her gesture then turned to grab the kit and get ready to leave.

“Come on, G? Do we have him or not?” W was pacing, cheroot in hand, looking for all the world as if she was striding about her office at HQ and not knee deep in jungle undergrowth.

“Yes, yes…a moment…dammit, I had a blip but it’s gone now.”

“Well, let’s head for the blip, see what we come across. Agreed?”

Buffy, W and G bowed to the more recent field experience of the one-eyed agent. Letting him take the lead towards the area pinpointed by G, the quartet disappeared into the dark depths of the jungle.

******************************

Kat Fellator lashed out at the inept and presently prostate form of the idiot tracker. The whip uncurled, its tip singing as it sliced through the skin of the girl cowering at her feet.

“You’ve lost him?” Crack! “Find him again.” Crack! “I owe him pain” Crack! “Would you rather I gave it to you?”

The girl tried to back away, holding her bloodied hands in front of her face in a vain attempt to ward off the blows.

“Miss Kat…I’m trying…please…don’t...” She stopped, her back hard up against a tree. She cried out in pain as her hair was grabbed and pulled back to turn her face upwards.

“Try harder!” Faith Layer spat, her eyes murderous.

“Girls, girls…play nice. There’ll be mayhem for all once we corner our quarry.”

Suddenly the clearing seemed to shrink as the tall bulk of Master Bates stepped from the cover of the trees. Four bronzed male slaves flanked him, each wearing nothing but a solemn expression and a leather posing-pouch. They supported a large fringed canopy to shield his sensitive skin from the sun’s glare. The pale features of the Head of S.T.A.K.E. were unreadable as he fixed his eyes on the cowering figure at Faith Layer’s feet, his arms cradling a fluffy white pussy that he stroked, rhythmically.

“Leave.”

The girl wasted no time, scrambling to her feet and running off into the bushes, casting a fearful glance over her shoulder as she disappeared.

Kat and Faith immediately sidled up to him, taking up positions on either side, caressing his cool skin and murmuring compliments on his strength and masculinity, the size of his love muscle and the varied uses to which they’d like to put it. The only way up in the evil organisation was to curry the boss’s favour; displease him and you might as well ring in the sizes for your coffin, amuse him and you’d be knee-deep in evil plots and arnica-covered bite marks.

Few people met him; fewer still knew he was a vampire. He didn’t advertise the fact as it meant he could use his enhanced senses to his advantage without letting them know he was doing so. He wasn’t so pale that he couldn’t pass as human and as nobody would risk touching him without a direct invitation there wasn’t much chance of his secret being discovered inadvertently. He knew from Faith Layer’s stay at MI13 that they had no idea of his undead status; he’d like it kept that way. But the situation with Spike Blond had escalated and he needed to be taken care of. Not to mention the history between the two of them; he was looking for payback – big time.

The whole situation on the island had been engineered for the sole purpose of luring Blond into a situation he wouldn’t be able to worm his way out of. He’d waited over a century for this chance; he wasn’t going to let him slip through his fingers this time. His most vicious agents had failed to capture the younger vampire and had nearly been killed by him. Master Bates shuddered, curling his lip in disgust at the weakness this showed. To leave a victim alive…it was just…wrong. Unless it was to tease and taunt, cause pain to their relatives. That particular kink was kind of his trademark, being able to drain the victim just enough so that they’d still be clinging to life when discovered but without having any hope of recovery. The thought of past kills brought a wistful snarl to his lips.

Blond had even dared to mess with one such gift he’d left for him. He was supposed to find his sister dying and then be lost in an agony of grief. It was a masterpiece of evil. But then he’d done the unexpected – he’d turned her. Now why hadn’t he thought of that? The agony was even worse, the pain even more acute. The bastard had taken his idea and honed it to perfection. Everything Spike Blond did took things just that one step further, made it just that little bit better. He loathed the bleached blond vamp with all the venom his demon possessed. And this was his master plan to rid the world of his despised presence once and for all.

Disentangling himself from the fawning females, he led the way deeper into the jungle, concentrating his senses to track his errant grandchilde.

*****************************

G was scanning as he led the way, closely followed by Harris. W and Buffy brought up the rear, Buffy barely holding it together as she could sense she was drawing ever closer to her lover. She was growing impatient with G’s progress. He’d insisted on tracking Blond, putting every faith in his gadgets. He was leading them in the right direction, her claiming mark itching and burning with every step she took after him. The scanner he was using was only picking up the residual signature every now and then and he kept stopping and twiddling to realign the sensors. When he stopped for the fourth time in ten minutes, she’d had enough. She rushed forward to stand in front of him, her hands on her hips.

“G, give it up. This is taking forever. Let me lead. I can feel him. We’re getting closer. Just let me, okay?”

G nodded; there didn’t seem much sense in having such an accurate gadget as Buffy Summerpenny and not using it to their advantage. Buffy turned, her blonde ponytail flicking out behind her, and set off further into the jungle setting a furious pace. She knew where she was heading – straight into the arms of her soulmate; the anticipation made her pick up the pace further leading a gasping and red-faced trio behind her.

Suddenly, Buffy stopped dead, G crashing into the back of her.

“What is it, Summerpenny?” W questioned.

“He’s near” she hissed, “but he’s edgy. Stay quiet.”

The four of them started to inch forwards, taking up the ridiculous hunched position favoured by those trying to be furtive. A shout to their left made them whip their heads round and stop, searching for the source of the noise. It came again, louder, nearer. Spooked, Harris grabbed hold of Buffy’s hand and dragged her towards an overhanging vine – she wrenched her hand from his, not wanting the contact but then hurtled forwards into the undergrowth, as the noise grew. W and G scurried into the shelter too.

The crashing and shouting seemed to be right by them but they didn’t dare risk a look. Buffy could sense that William was becoming anxious – they must be very close to him now.

‘Hold on, baby – we’re here’ she tried to send to him across the link. She felt him calm a little; maybe he felt her, maybe he knew they were coming to rescue him. If anyone hurt him…

The noise lessened as it moved away from them. Buffy shrugged off the restraining hand of W and peeked out from beneath the leaves. “They’re tracking him! We’ve gotta move, now.”

“Buffy, we don’t know how many of them there are, what weapons they’re toting. We need to carry out some reconnaissance first before we…”

“Xander! There’s no time for all that. I’m going to William. He’s all alone, outnumbered. He thinks there’s no escape. He won’t give in but if there’s so many of them…I’m not waiting for your say so. I’m going. Come with me if you want, if you don’t…I’m going anyway.”

She emerged from the hiding place and followed the trail of crushed vegetation, her throbbing neck testament to the fact that she was going in the right direction. Despite her bravado she was beyond grateful to hear the sound of three sets of footfalls running behind her to catch up. She flashed a quick, tight smile at them and carried on, her focus never shifting. She needed to get to William.

After a few minutes Buffy slowed, waving her arm to warn the others to keep quiet. She was almost on William’s position, the mark on her neck burning hot in its intensity. Crouching, she parted the fronds of the vegetation to peer between them. What she saw chilled her to the marrow. Faith Layer was tiptoeing forwards, her right hand gripping a scythe; there was another woman – clad in black PVC and oozing menace in her stance –martial arts sais clasped in each hand, throwing them into the air and twirling them in a chilling manner. A tall man -- sticky-up dark hair, pale skin -- stood off to one side under a canopy supported by four obscenely underdressed males. All of them were focused on a cavern entrance, almost obscured by greenery. They’d found him. Buffy could feel him. He was trapped inside, no escape. The only way out was to fight. And he was getting ready to do just that.

She surged forwards but was dragged back forcibly by a meaty hand.

“Get your hands off me,” she hissed at the one-eyed agent. He retained his grip.

“Buffy, think! We need to make a concerted attack – you go in like this, you’ll get killed and how will that help anyone? Just wait, watch. We’ll go – but when we have the advantage.”

Eventually, she calmed. She fixed him with a venomous stare – just because he was right, she didn’t have to like it. Nodding once, she returned to her vigil.

“Master Bates? What shall we do?” the woman in black PVC purred at him, flicking her knives expertly.

“We wait, Kitty. We wait.”

Silence descended over the scene. Buffy’s nerves were screaming at her to move, do something, her head bowed as she held herself tight, rocking. G, W and Harris were deep in a frenzied conversation behind her, the words rolling over her unheeded.

“Master Bates. It must be him, Harris – that’s what she called him!”

“I thought he’d be taller, didn’t you, G?”

“What? Oh, yes…I’m sure that’s right…but…what do we do? Doubtless he’s sent for reinforcements, this area will be surrounded shortly. I have a few tricks up my sleeve but…”

Buffy was concentrating on her senses, willing her presence to be noted by William. She closed her eyes, seeking out his essence. Why was it so…unclear? She was almost in touching distance; she should be able to almost talk to him through the link? It was as if there were two vampires there…one essence stronger to her than the other but still…

“Master Bates is a vampire.”

“What was that, Summerpenny?” W enquired.

“He’s a vampire; I can feel William but I can also sense another. I don’t know why that is – I can’t usually – but I can feel him. Maybe there’s some history between him and William? Oh I don’t know! But it helps us, right?”

She turned scared green eyes on G.

“Well, yes…I suppose it does. At least we know that there are a number of ways to kill him. And it explains the canopy. But not the cat…”

“What?”

“Nothing…. just ignore me…. babbling. Yes, as you say…we can make plans to deal with this new information. I brought things to protect vampires more than to harm them… let me see what I can do…”

G was off in a world of his own, tinkering and muttering under his breath. W was dangling a cheroot between her fingers, not able to light it in case it alerted the bad guys to their presence. Xander was as anxious to get into the fray as Summerpenny, but his training kept him levelled.

There was a commotion by the cave mouth. Buffy’s heart stilled as she saw William emerge from the darkness. He flicked his eyes briefly in her direction. He must sense that she was there! Her entire body zinged with his nearness, her instinct telling her to run to his side, to be with him. She made a guttural noise in her throat, almost a growl. Despite the danger, her erogenous zones were going into overdrive. If she got within a foot of him he’d melt with the heat her body was throwing off.

“Okay, you got me...” Blond gawked when he saw who was standing beneath the canopy. “Bloody hell! You might have warned me it was a fancy dress do, you big poofter. How can I compete with the Sheik of Araby look?”

“William…or should I say, Spike Blond…as I live and breathe…well, not really. Welcome to my island. I hope you’ve found your stay here enjoyable, especially as it’s the last thing you’ll ever experience. I believe you’ve met my colleagues.”

“Yes…I should have remembered your taste in slappers…didn’t fancy staying around for dessert…”

“You bastard! I’ll make you pay for what you did to me!”

Kat rushed at him, only stilling when her master shouted, “No!”

She whirled at him, a dervish in black PVC, spiked heels and razor sharp nails at the ready together with her sharp, sharp knives.

“But you promised,” she pouted, entwining herself around the heavy browed vampire, licking up the side of his cheek as she snaked her gloved hand inside his shirt.

“And you’ll have your fun, but later…when I’ve got the information I want from Mr Blond. Then you can do what you want with his carcass. So long as it’s painful…and I can watch.”

“I always like painful…” she nipped at his earlobe, biting down hard enough to draw blood. Master Bates grabbed his protégé to him ravaging her mouth with his, his fangs descending as he tasted his blood on her tongue. He stopped, abruptly, as he felt a sharp rap on his shoulder.

“Much as this scene has certain attractions…. can we fight now?”

The larger vampire growled, deep within his chest, knocking Kat away from him with the back of his hand in his haste to claw at the blonde upstart.

The two otherworldly creatures fell to the floor in a flash of fang and claw; Master Bates’ skin beginning to sizzle as the sun’s rays hit them. Spike voiced a silent thank you to G for his ingenious membrane as his grandsire struggled to escape into the haven of the shade. It gave him an advantage. He wasn’t going to let it go to waste.

He pinned his opponent to the floor, delighting in the fear scooting across the darker male’s face as his hand caught fire. The fluffy white feline had leapt from the Master’s arms as he was shoved backwards, scurrying away into the undergrowth with a hiss. It would be only seconds before the monster that had sentenced his beloved sister to a life of darkness would go up in flames, writhing in agony. Shakespeare was right – revenge is a dish best served cold. Or maybe in this case – hot.

His rejoicing was cut short however when his head snapped back, the pointed boot of Kat Fellator connecting with his temple. The searing pain shot through his head and he momentarily slumped forwards. Kat grabbed his shoulders hauling him off her mentor and throwing him to the floor. As he hit the deck he was immediately enveloped in a seething mass of enraged female flesh, Faith Layer biting and clawing at him as she spat out words of hate.

Master Bates rose to his feet, scurrying back into the shade of the canopy and extinguishing his burning hand by smothering it against the body of one of the slaves.

“You will pay for that disrespect, Childe!” he roared. “Kat, Faith…restrain him. I grow tired of his disobedience.”

Kat cackled, leaping towards the maelstrom of limbs where Faith and Spike were attempting to overthrow the other. Eventually, the combination of the two hellcats was too much for the prone vampire and he was at their mercy. He was racking his brain, seeking a way out, his arms pinned to his sides as Kat once again straddled his hips, wriggling against him, her ever-present sais glinting in the sun and Faith repeatedly punching his face.

The sunlight was blotted out by the hefty figure of Master Bates, shaded by his canopy. The brooding pillock looked just as he remembered him, except that he was now cradling the newly found spitting and hissing white cat that had obviously had an altercation with some greenery.

“Enough! I want to see his eyes, see his surrender.”

The two panting women stilled their assault, bowing to their Master’s will in all things. Two sets of eyes glittered with madness as they waited for the signal to rip their victim apart.

“So, William. It’s come to this. And we could have done so much more, bathed in the blood of innocents, feasted on their fear. But you had to rebel, had to empathise with your victims. Do you think I don’t know about the children you allowed to live, the families you took pity on? You are pathetic, to think that my issue sired one such as you. You’re beneath me. You will tell me what I want to know, the inner workings of MI13, the codes, the agents. You will tell me what I want to know or you will die.”

“You expect me to talk?”

“No, Mr Blond…I expect you to die. I just thought it might prolong the moment a little if you had false hope…Still, you being dust works for me. Drusilla will mourn you; she’ll kick against me for a year or two. But she’ll soon be back in my bed, as she always was.”

“Angelus. Still in love with the sound of your own voice, you always were a pontificating git. Get on with it, you pillock. And what’s with the Master Bates? You do know that makes you a tosser, don’t you? And your pussy stinks.”

The Head of S.T.A.K.E. snarled as he bent down to kiss the fluffy head of the white cat. Insane, deadly and insane. With a nod of his head he gave his consent for his female tag team to take his grandchilde apart.

Kat giggled as she sliced into his left forearm with her knife, the blood flowing freely onto the dusty ground. She dipped her PVC covered fingers into the liquid then brought them to her mouth to lick the tips. Faith keened, wanting a taste too, so the fingers were dipped again then brought up to the double agent’s avid mouth to be sucked inside and licked clean.

If Spike hadn’t been in such a precarious position, and had it been a lifetime ago, he would have found that sight rather titillating. His grandsire’s growl told him that at least one vampire liked what he saw.

A tingle at his neck drew his attention towards the edge of the clearing. There it was again, the sensation that Buffy was near. But she couldn’t be…

Then there she was…bowling towards him, her blonde hair flaring out behind her as she sprinted with murderous intent towards the prone figure of her lover, snarling and screaming like a banshee.

“Buffy! Wait!” Xander Harris was pounding the ground after her, his attempts to restrain her having failed when she felt the pain of the knife cutting into William’s pale flesh. G and W followed soon after, the gadget meister toting a large sack, no doubt full of handy toys.

Spike was glorying in the sight of his golden girl as she drew ever nearer, the mark at his neck throbbing more with every step she took. And there was Harris…and G and…W? What the fuck?

Strength surged through him and with a roar he bucked his hips throwing Kat Fellator off him and knocking Faith over as she did so. He leapt to his feet, immediately battle ready, vamping out to enhance his reaction time. Thankfully, the sky was darkening so he wouldn’t have to worry about how long the thin sliver of membrane protecting him from a fiery ball of death was going to hold up.

Buffy reached his side, throwing her arms around his neck and her legs around his hips. She kissed his face: his lumpies, his lips, his eyes, his chin. As he opened his mouth to speak, she thrust her tongue inside to lap at his fangs, the coolness meeting her heated and eager exploration but failing to quench it. Eventually, William drew back his head, reluctant to leave the nectar of her kiss but having more pressing matters at hand. As it was, he wasn’t sure he could bend from the waist, his cock pressing up against the waistband of his pants as it recognised home and wanted in.

“Buffy,” he groaned, “My love…missed you so much… but I need to take care of things before I can take care of things…shouldn’t take long.”

“You got it. And I’m here to help, we all are.”

She slid down his body, her scorching crotch brushing against his tortured erection and causing him to moan. She caught his eyes and flashed him a bright smile, raising an eyebrow in unconscious imitation of his trademark look.

Without further words, the two blondes turned, back to back, and dared the combined forces of S.T.A.K.E to take them on. As one, they reached out their hands, Spike’s left, Buffy’s right, and gestured their enemy to bring it on.

An enraged Kat and Faith rushed them, screaming abuse as Master Bates was busily radioing back to base for assistance. G and W sank to the ground to search his bag of tricks as the battle commenced.

**********************

So, the reunion…hope you liked it. Next up…battling and smoochies……….

CUT TO: Silhouette of naked dancing girl, twirling sais and doing cartwheels; as she spins across the screen another naked girl – no sais, a whip – does the same from the other side.

Spike Blond voiceover: “Ladies…….here we are now………entertain us.”

Wild banshee shrieks as the two rush towards the camera – stopped dead with karate kicks and chops from another girl. As their bodies fall limply to the floor, female voiceover…

“Honey………I’m hoooome!”

Dooo – doooo –dooooooooooooooooo; doo – doo – dooooooooooooooooooo……………