Buffy & The Exiled Ch. 04

NOTE : This story is set within an alternate Buffyverse. Faith has stayed with the Scooby gang and is Buffy's secret girlfriend. Dawn is now nineteen and at college. Willow and Tara are still together.

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Willow watched as the lead singer of Shy rolled her head and stretched her neck. It was an animal like gesture that reminded the witch of how Veruca had moved toward her in the science lab, intending to eat her. The redheaded Wiccan didn't trust the blonde as far as she could throw her, and that wouldn't be very far. Well, not unless she used magic, anyhow. As tempting as that thought was, she needed the girl's help, for now.

Standing in the courtyard of the old hilltop monastery, Veruca closed her eyes and breathed in the lingering traces of Tara's scent. It was now so faint that not even a bloodhound could have followed it. Not much of a problem for someone who had been a werewolf as long as she had, though.

"They took her in there," she said, pointing at a side door to the huge building.

Willow hated to even talk to Oz's new girlfriend, but she had to know. "Is Dawn with them?"

The lycanthrope ignored her. Willow tried again. "Veruca? Was Dawnie taken in there, too?"

The blonde sunk her hands into the pockets of her large black leather coat. "Maybe. Maybe not. Why should I tell you? I've done my bit and found your dikey girlfriend."

Faith stepped between them, looking at Veruca. "Okay, then. Tell me. Was Dawn with them?"

"Drop dead. If you want to know, why don't you just walk your cheap slut ass in there and find out?"

Faith shook her head and laughed. "I like you, girl. You've got balls. But, a word to the wise," she leant in close and lowered her voice. "Snipe at Willow and she's probably just going to get pissy and not speak to you." Her tone developed a deadly edge to it, "Raise your hackles my way once more and I'm gonna rip 'em off and shove them down your throat. Got that?"

They held each other's gaze for a moment until the blonde girl looked down. "Yeah. She's in there, too."

Faith reached out and patted her shoulder, "Good doggy." She turned her back on the singer and looked at Willow. "Ready to go and get our girls?"

The redhead looked surprised. "What? I thought the plan was to find them and then get Buffy and the others?"

"Sure. We could do that. But remember this, Red. The last girl the disciples got their hands on was gangbanged almost senseless and then they tried to carve her up with a dagger. Want them to play with your squeeze while we wait for backup?"

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Buffy looked at Oz. He shook his head, indicating the scent had petered out, and they began to return to where they had split from the others.

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The monastery door flew inward and was immediately followed by the diving form of Faith. Executing a perfect forward roll, she sprang to her feet in the middle of a mixed group of vampires and disciples. They had been waiting for her, but the ferocity of her attack took them by surprise. In their book, one unarmed woman had no business attacking nearly twenty large men. That was just not how things were done.

Evidently nobody had bothered to explain this to Faith. Her fists and feet began a whirlwind of deadly blows. Several men were disabled before the rest of them were quick enough to respond, then a sea of bodies closed around her.

The light from the shattered doorway reached only a small way into the dim room. The vampires were able to attack without fear of the sun. Outside in the courtyard, the witch planned to change that.

"Thespia gather unto me the gift of the heavens. Bind it upon my command; Vitreus Repercussus Sol!"

A patch of air above Willow's head shimmered and turned to a sphere of glass. Like a lightning rod it seemed to attract the sunbeams from the area around her and trap them inside itself. The witch lowered one arm to point into the gloom, "Light the Darkness!"

A foot wide beam of pure sunlight shot from the mystical globe and lanced into the room to illuminate the fight. The human disciples barely noticed it as they battled with the Slayer. The vampires were not so lucky. Five of them that were near enough to Faith to be caught by the beam screamed with unholy agony as their flesh burst into flame and consumed them.

On a balcony over-looking the fight, Spike turned to Angelus and the Shepherd. "Bloody Hell! That's not cricket! The bleedin' wench is cheating! Better get some of the lads to block the doorway with a table!"

Angelus put a hand on his arm to stay him. "Not yet. The Witch hasn't walked into the trap. We need her to step between the sigils. Give it time."

"Give it time? Between that Wiccan bitch and the brunette bint we're not going to have any vamps left! And the disciples are getting their arses kicked without her breaking a sweat!"

"Yes, but you know the good thing about vampires?" Angelus smiled. "We can always make more. All that matters is that we have two of the ingredients. I'm disappointed it's not Buffy, but Faith's blood will work just as well. A Slayer's a Slayer."

Willow had incinerated all the undead that were stupid enough to get in a line with the doorway; now she needed to get closer to help. Casting a black look at Veruca, who was just hovering near the entrance watching, the witch walked through the threshold with smoke beginning to coil upward from her clenched fists. When she took the first step into the room, a vampire leapt toward her. She lifted her hand and a column of flame blew him against the far wall, leaving nothing but a sooty mark.

If she had stood where she was, she would have been okay. But she took one more step. As her foot touched the floor, a mark that was drawn in faint charcoal erupted with a blazing blue light. One the ceiling above, its twin did the same and a spiral of lightning leapt between them. Willow screamed in agony as the mystical trap short circuited her powers. Blazing energy crawled all over her body and she crumpled to the floor. A vampire snarled and pounced upon the fallen woman.

"Dammit!" hissed Veruca.

She didn't care if Willow got torn apart, but she knew Oz would. Against her better judgement, she found herself racing forward and barrelling into the blood sucker. They tumbled across the floor in a flurry of flailing arms and legs. As she rolled free, she wished she had the werewolf's strength whilst human.

Angelus clapped Spike on the back. "Spikey, my boy, you amaze me! You told me you'd capture the She-wolf, but I didn't think you'd lure her here to do it!"

As his face morphed into the vampire, Spike sneered at the sarcasm. "Sod off, you bloody prat! I'm not letting the lads have all the fun!" With that, he vaulted the railing and dropped the twenty feet to the fight below.

The L.A. vampire turned to the Shepherd, "Get rid of the trail and then feel free to join in." He leapt down to follow Spike.

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Oz came to a halt. Worry etched itself onto his usually stoic face. Buffy knew instantly that something was wrong. "What is it?"

"The scent's gone."

"Oh, okay. We'll backtrack again."

"No, not run out. Gone. Suddenly." He closed his eyes and sniffed the air. "Not just Dawn's. I can't smell Ru, either. That's almost impossible."

"Magic would do it," said the Slayer. "If it's gone completely then we better head back and see what Giles can come up with."

"Maybe Willow and Faith have already rescued them and they are there waiting for us," she added, hopefully.

Neither of them believed that.

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Faith spun a kick to a vampire's head that sent it crashing back into a couple of its allies, even as she staked another. When she rounded on the next attacker, she came face to face with Spike.

"Hello, darlin'. Fancy trying some of them moves out on the big bad?"

"Gladly!" she responded, as she followed up with a combination of kicks and punches. The peroxide vampire was driven back, but was laughing as he went.

"You're a feisty minx, aren't you, Pet? I'm gonna enjoy taking you down."

The Slayer connected with a mule kick and Spike was flung across the room. Angelus replaced him.

"Ah, Faith. Such a sweet morsel. I think I'll turn you into a vampire when I've had my fun with you."

Her fist crashed into his jaw, "What is it with you leeches? If you want to talk, join the debate team. If you want to fight, bring it on!"

He snarled as his head snapped back to face her. His tongue slithered out and licked at the trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth. Pressing her advantage, Faith attacked again. With amazing skill, he caught first one fist and then the other. Before she could kick him in the balls, Spike charged into her and they all went down in a heap.

Veruca cracked a broken table leg over the head of a disciple. The man staggered backward as a vampire loomed before her. She was stood with Willow lying between her feet and so could not retreat. With his inhuman strength, the vampire snatched the wooden club from her and his fist ploughed into her stomach. As her breath blasted out and she doubled over, she heard him curse. "Damn primal! You're lucky the boss wants you alive, or I'd rip your head off!" His foot smashed into her face and she blacked out.

Faith bucked her body and threw Angelus to one side. Slamming Spike hard on the back of the head, she made him loosen his grip. When she was only part way to her feet, a bolt of purple energy leapt down from the balcony and blasted her back to the floor. Her head swam as the magic took effect and she became too dizzy to stand. Through her swirling vision she saw Angelus stoop over her, grinning.

"Sorcerer's have their uses, don't they?"

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Buffy rested her hand on Giles' shoulder, "Any luck?"

He looked up into her eyes. "Unfortunately yes, and all of it bad. Where is Faith?"

The blonde Slayer took the empty chair between Giles and Cordelia. With a worried face, she shrugged. "Someone used magic to get rid of the scent trail. Oz can't find any trace of the others. I'm only guessing, but I reckon a certain monk-wannabe is out of jail and this time he's doing more than chucking red lightning about."

Wesley sat forward, suddenly animated, "That's it! Of course!" At the surprised expressions of the group, he explained. "If we can't trace Angelus or Spike, then perhaps we can trace the disciples. Someone must have arranged bail for them, and if we find that someone, then we may be able to find the vampires!"

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"NO! STOP IT!" screamed Dawn.

Spike just sneered and blew her a little kiss. He turned back to Faith who was swaying limply in a pair of manacles fastened to the wall opposite Dawn and Tara. She was slumped toward the floor and her whole body was only held up by the chains on her wrists. Her brown hair hung in a curtain around her face which was about waist height on the vampire. He had been beating the bound girl for nearly a half an hour.

Pausing to take a drag on his cigarette, the white haired man twisted one hand in the Slayer's hair and lifted her face up. Blood ran in streams from her mouth, nose and also a cut above one swelling eye.

"Not so cocky now, are you darlin'?"

Faith's eyes swivelled up to pierce into his. When she spoke, her voice was halting and wracked with pain. "There's...huhk...two things you...huhk hunh... should know, Spike."

He gave her a vicious smile as he flicked his stub across the room, "And what are they, Pet?"

Spitting out a mouthful of blood, the brunette smiled up at him, "One; I'm gonna hurt you really...huhk...bad."

Her whole body jerked under the force of his blow as he pummelled his fist into her face. Grinning happily, he grabbed her hair and once more looked into her eyes, "And the second?"

"You hit like a girl."

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"I'm impressed, Wesley!"

He held the door open for her as they both left the police station. She was dressed in a smart skirt suit, with her blonde hair up in a bun and a pair of glasses rested across her eyes. In her hands she carried a clipboard and she had a pencil pushed behind her ear. He was sharply dressed in a dark blue suit and tie that he had worn when he first came to Sunnydale to be Buffy's watcher. In his hand he carried a briefcase that he had borrowed from Giles.

"It was nothing really," he said, pleased with himself.

Cordelia was leant against the driver's door to Angel's convertible, "Did it work?"

The Slayer nodded, "Sure did. Ol' Wes here convinced them that he was part of the legal team for the disciples. They thought he was a right idiot when he didn't know that someone had already been by to bail out the clients."

Cordelia flashed a dazzling smile at her friend, "Not much acting required, then?"

"Most amusing," he said, tossing the briefcase into the car and walking round to the passenger door. Buffy vaulted onto the backseat while Cordy slipped behind the steering wheel. As the brunette started the engine, she turned to Wesley.

"So, who is it we have to find?"

His handsome face darkened as he looked back. "The man at the desk said she had a room at the hotel. An old 'friend' of ours. Lilah Morgan."

"You know this Lilah, then?" asked Buffy.

Cordelia nodded, "Oh, yeah." There was an edge to her voice that promised violence.

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Angelus stood on a table so that he could be seen by all twelve of the disciples. "First of all, let me congratulate you on your faithful service to Lord Mobadon. It has not gone unnoticed and you will each receive the reward that you deserve."

There were murmurs of approval from the gathered men. He held out his hand to quieten them.

"Today we have gathered two of the ingredients that are needed to initialise the spell to free your master!" He casually pointed to Faith and Willow. The witch was chained beside the Slayer, but had not received the beating that the other girl had. She looked fine, except for a small mystic symbol that had been drawn in blood on her forehead.

Sat on a table away from the group, Spike frowned. He couldn't help but wonder what Angelus was playing at, now. They had three of the ingredients, didn't they?

"Your dark master will be pleased with your efforts so far. The releasing ritual cannot be performed until after dark, so we have a couple of hours to kill. We need only one more ingredient to complete the spell; we need the blood from an angry woman."

He pointed to a heavy barred door in one corner of the cellar. "There's a young woman waiting in there that should do nicely. Care to make her angry for me?"

Brother Peter stepped forward from the disciples, "How do you want us to do that? Isn't she angry enough at being kidnapped?"

The handsome vampire smiled down at him, "Technically, I suppose so. But I though that you guys had done such a good job so far that you may want to relax a little. Serving your master has all kinds of fringe benefits, doesn't it?"

The assembled men cottoned on and began to whisper excitedly amongst themselves. Once more the vampire silenced them. "Enjoy yourselves with her. Do whatever you desire. When it has gone dark and is time for the ritual, I will come and get you."

At his gesture, the men all filed into the back room. The Shepherd watched them enter and then turned and disappeared up the steps to the monastery's main chambers. Closing the door behind the men, Angelus quietly turned the key and slipped it into his pocket before hopping onto the table beside the English vampire.

After a minutes silence, Spike turned to his grand-sire, "You're a right treacherous bastard, you know that?"

"Call it a gift."

They grinned at each other.

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"Swe.tie, can y.. .ear me?"

Willow looked across to Tara when she heard her girlfriend's voice in her mind. She was surprised that the blonde girl could manage to exert her will enough to focus the communication spell. It took a level of power that she didn't think Tara had.

Concentrating, she sent her thoughts back in reply, "Yes, I..." There was a sizzling noise like meat on a grill and a wisp of smoke drifted up from the mark on her forehead. She gasped in pain and bit her lip so as not to alert the vampires. She saw the concern in Tara's eyes. This time her girlfriend's words came through clearly.

"Don't try and do any magic. They have painted you with the mark of Colos. It stops a witch from being able to concentrate enough to cast and its effect will get worse each time you try. Dawnie didn't tell Angelus that I'm a Wiccan and I don't think he has bothered to asked Spike. When they leave us alone, I'm going to try and float the keys over and unlock Faith."

Willow glanced to the side wall. A ring of keys was hung on a hook about fifteen feet away. Turning back to her girlfriend, she nodded.

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Veruca had come round in the large back room of the cellar. It was completely empty apart from some straw scattered across the floor. The door was a very sturdy oak that was bound with straps of metal and had a tiny barred window in it that had a shutter on the other side. After spending sometime checking that the room was indeed escape proof, the singer crossed her legs and sat down in the centre to wait.

That had been two hours ago. Now the twelve disciples were standing around her in a circle. She looked up at the biggest of them. He could easily have been either a professional footballer or a wrestler. He was huge.

"You know boys; this is no way to book me to sing at your ceremonies."

The big guy removed his hood, "I'm Brother Bartholomew. Your gonna be doin' some entertaining of a different sort."

"Oh, really? Well, Bart, in that case I think there is something you need to know about me, and I think I should give you fair warning," she paused and looked around at the ring of men.

"My juggling really sucks."

"Smart mouthed bitch!"

He stepped forward and slapped her with the back of his hand. She felt like she had been hit a glancing blow by a truck. Rocking back upright, she rubbed her sore cheek, "Okay then. I got that message loud and clear. No jokes."

He grunted. After a pause, she added, "So, how do you feel about dirty limericks?"

This time he slapped her other cheek so hard she thought her eye would pop out of its socket. At a nod from him, the twelve cultists cast off their robes and stood before her naked. She glanced around at the thugs.

"Don't worry guys. It's probably just the cold that's making them all that tiny."

She squealed as Bart twisted his hand in her hair and pulled her to her feet. His ugly face lowered to within and inch of her nose. "Let's see how smart your mouth is when I shove my nine inches right up your fucking ass!"

"Yeah? To do that wouldn't you have to get a surgeon to remove it from the vampire's, first?"

He punched her in the stomach and watched her drop to her knees, gasping.

With one arm supporting her, and one hand clutching at her stomach, Veruca raised her face to the man and glared at him from under the fringe of her blonde bob. "You're a real amateur, aren't you, Bart? Old Doc Gordon could really show you a thing or two about torture and rape."

"Who the fuck is Doc Gordon?"

She ignored him and just knelt there trying to regain her breath. She had a major problem and she knew it. But what worried her far more than the prospect of the sex was what was going to happen to her in just under two hours. Tonight was the first night of the full moon and if these bozos were still in the room when she changed, she didn't think she would be able to stop the wolf from feeding. It made her smile to herself that the notion of slaughtering these men didn't bother her, but the thought of breaking her promise to Oz did. Very much.

Veruca was almost fanatically practical. If something caused her a problem she decided on a way to get rid of it and acted; as Willow had almost found out at the cost of her life. Wincing when she stood, she sighed and looked around at the eager men, "Okay then, let's do this. One thing though, if I get you guys off, you leave as soon as we're done, right?"