"I’m sorry," Willow apologised as she spoke to Tara over the phone. "Only Amy and I have made plans tonight. Tomorrow, I promise." Hanging up, she looked towards her girl-friend, stomach knotting. "You’re sure about this?"

Amy nodded. "Rack will show you avenues to power you can’t imagine."

"And I get a reward for going?" Willow pressed coyly, a blush rising in her cheeks.

"Oh yes," Amy leaned in to kiss her and then pulled away. "But afterwards. Come on!"

* * *

Captain Rogers led his four men patrol through the darkened cemetery, infra-red goggles cutting through the night like a knife through butter. With so much ground to cover, Walsh had instructed their unit split patrolling into three groups.

Suddenly a shape loomed out of the darkness in front of him, moving at an inhuman speed. Rogers attempted to raise his gun. Before he had time to squeeze the trigger, the blur passed him. Even as he turned to follow the apparition, he heard a crack, and saw one of his men falling, his neck snapped. The demon glided on, snatching the falling man’s assault rifle and turning it on the other two members of his patrol. Blood pounding, Rogers fired off his silenced weapon. Even though it was facing the other way, the vampire seemed to have supernatural pre-knowledge of his attack, swaying out of the way of most but not all of the bullets. Those that connected were enough to send the demon crashing to the ground. "Ye-," Rogers’ exultant cry died when the vampire bounded back upright.

"Now laddie," the vampire morphed out as it leapt towards him, hands outstretched and fangs ready, "that hurt. And so will this."

* * *

"Soldiers playing at vampire hunters?" Angelus chuckled as he let the bleeding corpse join its companions on the ground. Not his blood of choice, he preferred the blood of a screaming teen, but any port in the storm. "What will these Yankees think of next?"

His hunger sated, he turned towards the crypt ahead of him. It was a grey-slabbed monstrosity standing a good two storeys high with a statute of a cherub on its flat roof. He supposed that Liam would have found the cherub skilfully sculpted, he just felt repulsed.

Turning his attention to the door, he looked up at the engraved writing above the wooden double-doors. "Exsto Contra Malum," he muttered, taking a second to translate the Latin into ‘Stand Out Against Evil’.

Whoever had built this thing had a sense of the ironic that was for sure.

Grabbing a hold of the door’s padlock, he twisted and pulled simultaneously, muscles straining. The chain around the door’s silver handles cracked and split, dropping the chains on the ground, Angelus grabbed hold of the handle.

"Ahh!" Pain seared through his palm. Releasing his grip, he jumped back, eyes narrowed in anger. "Sanctified metal, bastards." Pulling his sleeve down over his burnt palm, he pulled the door open and hurried inside. "Owww!" he jumped up and down as he realised the ground was blessed, smoke smouldering from his feet.

Biting his lip against the pain, he looked around. He was in a small cavern, its walls covered in crosses and centre to the shadowy chamber was a tomb. He gingerly skipped across to the tomb, practically dancing on the spot in a largely futile attempt to prevent further pain. The marble tomb’s surface was dominated by a golden cross set in it, its left and right horizontal parts having indentions where someone was clearly expected to place their knuckles. Steeling himself, Angelus did just that.

"Owww!" he roared again as agony blazed through his knuckles.

Grrrrnd. He gasped in relief when the lid slid away, revealing a somehow torch-lit and dust-free staircase beneath. Leaping into the tomb and onto the staircase, he hurried down the six steps and into the underground chamber.

The moment his feet touched terra-firma, he felt the ground begin to shift beneath him. Moving with the instinctive quickness that only one of his kind could match, he flung himself forward. Hitting the ground in a crouch, he looked over his shoulder and down to see four foot of ground had disappeared, revealing a pit filled with upwardly-pointing stakes. "Nasty," he muttered. Seeing what he’d come for stuck in the wall, he rose and walked over.

The silver ring shone even in the semi-darkness, but its brilliance paled in comparison to its gleaming gem. After a second marvelling its beauty, he reached out and plucked it from the wall. Hearing a slight click, Angel dived to the ground just as a stake flew out of the wall, its point cutting through the air where his heart had been a split-second earlier.

Angelus smiled. According to the pictures he’d seen it looked to be just what he’d been searching for, but there was one test remaining. Reaching into his jacket, he pulled out a grey rag and gingerly dropped it on the ground. Kicking it open, he stared down balefully at the book lying in the centre of the rag before daring to pick it up. He smiled slowly as he stared at the bible, no pain, nothing. It seemed that W&H’s information had been correct, he had the Gem of Amara. Now he was invulnerable to most of the weaknesses that affected his type, only the problem of having to be invited into a residence remained. "I feel a wind of change, one that’s going to tear that Slayer and her friends rip to bits." He made towards the exit then shook his head. "No, I think I’ll wait ‘til morn. More impact," his smile widened, yes he had a sense of the dramatic.

One thing he did share with Liam.

* * *

"Ah!" Cordelia clapped her hands together as they pulled into the mall’s open parking lot, chosen for the safety offered by the complete lack of cover for vampires and their ilk. "Shopping, my favourite thing," Gunn coughed. Cordelia laughed at the hint. "Second favourite thing in the whole wide world. Let’s go."

"Oh happy joy," Gunn muttered. He reached for his pick-up’s ignition as Cordy opened the door.

"Oh Cordelia, as choice ever!" A deep voice commented from . "And I see you’ve changed from vanilla to chocolate. Maybe I can persuade you to change back."

Eyes narrowed Gunn turned towards the racist to be confronted by his paling girl-friend climbing back into the car, eyes wide as she stared at a towering hunk dressed in black. "Me and you need to have words-."

"Get out of here!" Cordy interrupted him with a scream. "Get out! Get Out!"

Compelled by the terror in his girl-friend’s voice, Gunn gunned his engine, backing the car out at speed, narrowly avoiding the laughing stranger. "What the heck is going on here?"

"That’s Angelus!" Cordy screamed, hysterical tears

"Isn’t he in hell?" Gunn queried. Cordelia nodded. "Isn’t he a vampire?" Cordelia nodded again. "Who’s changed the rules?"

* * *

Giles stared into the reception area where the police officer waited for another of their orientation into the demon world, a pleasant diversion that lightened his weekend. "Det. Lockley-."

"Please, Rupert. I’ve asked you to call me Kate."

"Sorry," Giles stumbled verbally, thrown off balance by the police officer’s dazzling smile, as he made his way through, carrying the books they needed for their lesson. "I was wondering what -," he paused and shook his head. Best to break the LA. native in gently. "There’s a film-noir festival going on at the cinema, four classics including LA. Confidential and The Maltese Falcon. While neither Hammet or Ellroy are Arthur Conan Doyle, their work is exceptionally well-structured, I was wondering if you’d consider accompanying me to see them. I’d value your opinion," he finished, colour rising in his cheeks as he realised just how ‘lame’ he sounded. Next time, no matter how humiliating would be, he had to ask Faith’s advice. Yes, she’d laugh, but bloody hell, she’d save him from this.

The police officer’s mouth opened.

Giles cursed inwardly when the foyer doors crashed open. "Giles! Giles!" Cordelia shrieked. "He’s back!"

His irritation dissipating at his house-guest’s evident terror, he rose. "Calm down, Cordelia," he soothed. "Who’s back?"

"Angelus!" the bulging-eyed former cheerleader screeched. "And he can walk in the light!"

Giles blinked. That was impossible, but how? Giles shook his head, the how was unimportant, warning the others was the priority. "Wesley!" he roared into the office. "Emergency." Grabbing his mobile, he began to call up Faith’s number, cursing when as usual during the day his daughter had turned it off. "Gunn, with me," he glanced towards Wesley. "Wes take your car and do the east side of town, I’ll do the west. Kate-."

"I’ll ring the girls and tell them I need help researching," the police officer finished for him.

* * *

"Why do I have to come with you?" Xander loudly bemoaned his fate as his girl-friend dragged him across the park, sun beating down on Dragged out of bed on a Saturday to go shopping. Life sucked.

"Cause," Faith spun around to face him, her hands in his, a seductive smirk playing on her rosebud lips, "I’m buying something for ya."

"Oh yeah?" Xander queried. "How does that work?"

"See," Faith’s grin widened. "Me and ya are going to ‘Victoria’s Secret’, and when I’ve modelled oh maybe ten outfits for ya, you’re gonna decide which two you’d like to undress me out of, and I’m gonna buy ‘em."

Xander gulped at the x-rated images running through his mind before goofily grinning into his girl-friend’s intoxicating brown orbs. "I have the best girl-friend ever!"

"Ach, lassie, you could do the same for me," the eerily familiar voice paused. "Of course you’d have to be dead at the time."

Xander turned towards the intruder, intent on telling him where exactly to go. And stopped, mouth dropping open at the sight that greeted him. "You?" dazed, he looked up at the sun.

"Yeah," Angelus smirked. "I’m back!" Xander grunted as the vampire backhanded him across the face, the force of the blow flinging him across the park and crashing into a trash can. "Gotta kiss for me, Slayer?"

Faith charged the demon, left foot lifting in a thrust kick. The demon slammed an elbow into Faith’s head, staggering the girl. Rallying quickly, Faith ducked under a right haymaker, grabbed the demon’s out-stretched arm at the wrist and twisted her body at the waist, flinging him over her shoulder.

The laughing demon hit the ground on his back, but even as Faith’s foot reared back to kick him, he rolled to his feet. Realising how near the vampire was to him, Xander jumped at the demon’s back. "Ahhhh!" he groaned as he caught a back-heeled kick to the crotch. Head swimming and legs rubbery, he fell to his knees, air coming in frantic wheezes.

"Sorry about that, Slayer," the vampire leered at his girl-friend. "Lucky you’ve got a man to take the boy’s place."

"Not likely!" Eyes flaming, Faith came in fast, her hands and feet a blur. Angelus managed to block a right on his forearm, sidestep a left thrust kick aimed at his right knee, but Faith’s follow-up left hook smashed into his jaw, knocking his head to the side. Before the demon had chance to retaliate or retreat Faith launched herself into a graceful airborne pirouette, both feet smashing into the vampire’s face.

The force of the blow sent the vampire crashing down onto his back. Going with the momentum, the demon did a backwards roll over his shoulders and back to his feet. Even as he reached his feet Faith charged in, slipping under a straight right to attempt a knee to the groin that the demon managed to twist away from and block on his hip. The Slayer grunted as the demon grabbed a handful of hair, backhanded her across the face, and shoved her backwards. "Too frisky for me, girl. I’ll have to beat some of that life out of you!"

Faith didn’t reply, instead terrier-like she lunged back at the demon, palm-striking at his chest even as she glided beneath a left hook and swept at his legs with her left hand. The vampire grunted as he was knocked off-balance but kicked off as he fell, the point of his boot hitting the brunette bombshell in the shoulder. By the time Angelus had regained his feet, Faith had righted herself and drawn her stake. A grin on her face, the Slayer plunged her stake into the demon’s unprotected heart.

Angelus grinned back at her, unfazed and unhurt by the attack.

"How?" Faith stared down at her stake. Before she had time to react the vampire had kicked her in her left shin, knocking her to her knees. Laughing wildly, Angelus locked his hands around her head and pulled her head down onto his upcoming knee. "Shitttt!" Faith screeched as her nose exploded, blood gushing down her face. The demon laughed before repeating the move. Faith slammed her palms into the vampire’s wrists, knocking the demon’s hands from her. Before the Slayer had time to right herself, the vampire smashed a spin kick into the side of her head knocking her to the ground. The shaken beauty rolled up to an upright position, raising her hands to block a feinted right to her face only to catch a foot to the chest that knocked her on her back. The vampire walked over and started to kick the writhing beauty, his relentless barrage giving her no chance of recovery.

Angel shot him a grin before turning back to the crumpled Slayer. "And now it’s time for the screaming part of the-."

Suddenly a Citroen crashed into the vampire, lifting him off his feet and flinging him into a near-by tree. "Xander!" The car’s door flew open and Gunn leapt out, racing over to help him to his feet even as he looked towards the groaning demon. "Help me with Faith." Xander’s stomach hollowed as he followed the African-American’s gaze The two of them picked up the battered Bostonian and carried her into the car, Xander all too conscious of the blood smearing her face. Xander leapt into the back with his barely-conscious girl, cradling her head in his lap. Gunn jumped into the front, anxious eyes darting over his shoulder. "He’s up Giles! Let’s motor!"

* * *

Willow shook her head, tired eyes unable to focus on the text before her, weary from the night spent experimenting with Amy and Rack. He was so wise, and so giving, not like Giles and Wesley who insisted that she progress at a snail’s pace.

"Can I look at that book?"

Willow’s head jerked towards the honey-blonde beside her. "I haven’t finished with it!" she snapped.

Tara reared back. "S…sorry."

"Willow," Kate interceded. "Perhaps you could make us some coffee?"

Suddenly the police-officer’s cell rang. Face taut, the blonde lifted it up. "Giles," the blonde’s jaw dropped. "Right, okay. But she’s -," the blonde swallowed. "Okay," she nodded. "Well hurry."

"W…what’s wrong?" asked Tara.

The police officer hung up before replying. "Giles and Gunn found Xander and Faith. It seems Cordelia was correct," the detective looked towards the still pale cheerleader, "Angelus has found a way to survive in the sunlight and is also immune from staking."

"He’s a vege-," Cordy shook her head. "Sorry, shock. But Faith’s-."

"She was badly beaten but Giles and Gunn got there just in time. He and Wesley are heading back here now." The older woman looked at her, Cordelia, Amy, and Tara in turn. "They need answers not bickering. Let’s not be having anymore fighting."

Cheeks burning at the rebuke, Willow stared down at the book, forcing herself to concentrate. She looked up when the door crashed open and a pale-faced Wesley entered, holding the door open. "They’re coming," the Watcher announced. "Well it doesn’t look good."

Willow gasped as Faith was carefully carried in by Giles and Gunn, her face a battered crimson mask and her body hanging limply, Xander shuffling in behind, his face etched in shock. The two men laid the barely conscious Slayer on the couch, her boyfriend slumping beside her. "Do we have anything?" Giles asked once he’d torn his eyes away from the broken beauty.

"Nothing yet," Kate replied, tone terse.

"Very well, Charles, Xander," the middle-aged Watcher flung them a pair of crossbows. "Take up positions flanking the doors. You’re up to it aren’t you?"

Xander nodded. "I’ll manage."

"Good lad," Giles looked towards Wesley and then the books. "Shall we?"

Thirty minutes later and Cordelia let out a yell. "Got it! It’s something called the Gem Of Amara makes vampires immune to daylight"

"Oh bugger," Giles breathed. "I had thought that it was a myth."

"What is it?" Kate enquired.

"Amara was a childe of the first vampire, Sekhmet, some eight thousand years ago. Before his turning he was reputed to be an alchemist of some talent and a minor magician. After his turning his powers increased exponentially and he made a number of magical artefacts. Most famed of these was the Gem Of Amara, but in 6,000 BC, an army of warriors was despatched to kill Amara and although they lost dozens," the Watcher shuddered, "they succeeded in Slaying him and the Gem was lost forever, considered to be a myth."

* * *

"So how do we kill him?" Faith asked, her voice trembling in part from the beating she’d taken and in part from the task

"You don’t," she turned her head towards the smirking demon framed in the foyer’s portal. "You watch your friends scream their way to death, and then spend weeks being tortured and begging to die." Even as the vampire entered, Xander and Gunn fired their crossbows. The vampire laughed as he plucked the bolts out of the air. "Please, make it a challenge."

"How’s this!" Kate spun to her feet, automatic coming up at a blur. Bullet after bullet smashed into the demon, knocking him to one knee before he lunged back up, and back-handed the cop across the hall.

"Now you’re talking!" Wesley lunged at the demon, Angelus snatched a hold of the younger Englishman around the scruff of his neck, lifted him over his head, and threw him into Gunn and Xander as they charged him from behind. The moment Wesley left his grip, Angelus spun to face Giles, blocking a right uppercut on his forearm before head butting the Watcher in his face. Dazed, Giles stumbled backwards. "You I’ll keep around to watch as I defile your little bitch!" Angelus snatched a hold of the Englishman around the throat and threw him into the wall. Cordelia made to step in front of her. Angelus laughed. "Gotta love that Chase spirit, always fun to break it."

"Ahhh!" Cordy screamed as the vampire grabbed her by the hair and shoved her into the witches.

"And now for the main event." The moment Angelus reached for her, Faith attacked. Lunging forward, she bit down on his ring finger with all her might. "You fucking bitch!" the vampire screamed as he pounded blow after blow into her head even as Faith responded by repeatedly kicking at him.

Finally the demon stumbled backwards, disbelieving eyes fixed on his missing finger. Head ringing from the beating, Faith instinctively spat the ring out. Eyes hardening, the demon leapt forward as it dropped to the ground.

Only for the ring to fly into the air. Grabbing a stake from the weapons chest, Faith lunged at the vampire, Angelus easily sidestepped her attack, kneeing her in the crotch. Dazed, she stumbled backwards. "I’ll rip your lungs out, lassie," the demon declared as he stepped forward.

And reared back when a crossbow bolt slammed into his side. Angelus glanced around, a scowl on his face. Seeing the others rising, the vampire leapt through the foyer door, glass shattering, and onto the road. Hitting the tarmac rolling, the vampire instantly began to burn, but still managed to pull off a manhole cover and dive headfirst into the sewers.

Body aching, Faith tottered after the vampire. "Faith, no." She turned to her Watcher, the crossbow he’d fired at Angelus in his hand. "You’re too injured to risk a battle with Angelus. Just be glad we won this one."

* * *

"That was quite a day wasn’t it?"

"Yes," Giles nodded at Kate’s question. They were alone now, Gunn, and Cordelia having taken Faith home, an exhausted Xander retired to his room, the witches gone off to study, and Wesley disappearing to do his paperwork. "Even by our standards."

"Before everything started you were going to ask me something," the cop commented. "What was that?"

"Ah," Giles reddened. "I’m sorry. I can’t recall," he lied.

"Oh," Kate smiled. "That’s a shame. Because I thought you were going to ask me out. And if you were I’d have said yes."

Giles grinned. "Well in that case, would you like to go and see a movie?"

Kate’s smile widened. "Just as long as it doesn’t involve vampires!"

"Can't even shout. Can't even cry. The gentlemen are coming by." Giles looked up from his book. "Um, it sounds vaguely familiar. Have you heard of a group called the gentlemen?"

Wesley shrugged. "Other than the Watcher’s Academy theatrical group I don’t recall. I can’t believe I’m protesting about reading but do you really think all this research is necessary?"

Giles shook his head. "I don’t know. But we’re not going to be caught unprepared."

"Very well," Wesley sighed before picking up a well-thumbed copy of ‘Apocalyptic Prophecy’.

* * *

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Willow skipped hand in hand with Amy through the campus, ignoring those who stopped and stared at her. She didn’t care, the buzz from the night’s experimentation was running through her.

"W..Willow," she turned to see a concerned-looking Tara stood in the science block’s entrance. "You and Amy missed Dr. Walsh’s class today, she was handing out assignments-."

"We’ll catch up," she said airily before walking off, hand still gripped by Amy. After all, she was smarter than everyone else, so what if she took a few short cuts?

* * *

Tara stared after her two fellow witches, a hollow pit forming in her stomach. All her life she’d wanted other witches to share her powers with. And now she’d met two, but they weren’t interested in being with her. Her pop was right, she was worthless. "Hey Tara," Tara turned to see her hero stood behind her. "What’s the sitch?"

"I..it’s Willow and Amy, they’re cutting class."

"And that’s a capital crime all of a sudden?" Faith winked at her. "Ya worry too much." She shivered inwardly when the leather-clad bombshell looped an unfortunately just comradely arm over her shoulder. "Ya need to chill. And I was thinking that I’ve seen too little of my new friend recently. How about we get something to eat and you tell me how ya settlin’ in with Lady Fuzz?" Faith shuddered. "Living with a cop, must be hell on earth."

"I…I’ve got a class-," Tara began a weak protest.

Faith arched an eyebrow. "What was I just sayin’?"

Tara gave in gratefully. "Okay," she nodded.

Her acceptance was rewarded with a dazzling smile. "Wicked cool!" Faith looked down at her flat stomach when it made a protesting growl. "Let’s eat, girl!"

* * *

"Um," Faith pressed her lips to Xander’s, her boyfriend’s hands fixed around her waist.

"Oh good lord," Wesley muttered. "She’s eating him alive."

"Faith, there’s a stampede of vampires charging at that school bus."

Faith ignored her Watcher’s obvious diversionary tactic. "It’s twelve at night, G. There won’t be any kids on it. I’ll be there in a minute." She yelped when her Watcher looped an arm around her waist and dragged her away from X.

"Duty, Faith, duty."

"Sometimes," she glared up at her Watcher as he placed her back on the ground, "I think Watchers shouldn’t be allowed to talk." She grinned. "Even if Lady Fuzz thinks your accent’s sexy."

"And I frequently think Slayers should lose the capacity to speak once chosen," her reddening Watcher replied.

* * *

The Clock tower chimed as it hit one. Inside, an ornate box was opened by greyish, skeletal hands.

* * *

Faith yawned as she heard the sound of the toilet flushing. Rolling out of bed, she turned her radio on only to be met by silence. Shrugging slightly, she turned it off, and dragged her sweats on, a concession to her stuttering Watcher’s demands for modesty.

Rising she walked out onto the landing. Seeing her Watcher, she grinned and spoke. "Yo G." She stopped as she realised no sound had come out of her mouth.

Giles stared at her, his brow furrowed in puzzlement. Her Watcher’s mouth moved, but no sound came out. Faith knocked on the wall and heard the resulting sound. She tried to speak, no sound.

Cordelia’s door flew open and the curvaceous brunette strode out, mouth moving at Cordelesque speeds, but no sound came out. Faith glanced at her Watcher, noting his faintly amused expression. She just knew what he was thinking.

Whatever had caused their condition, it seemed there was at least one upside.

* * *

Wesley looked up as Xander and Gunn entered the boarding-house’s dining room and kitchen, surprised that the boys hadn’t already left for work. He opened his mouth to greet them. No sound came out. Alarmed, he stared at the youths. They nodded dejectedly.

* * *

Heart thumping, Riley walked down the stairs, Forrest and Graham following behind. Entering their frat house elevator, Riley leaned into the retina scan. A message came up confirming his scan had been accepted, and the doors closed behind them. Riley looked down at a crumpled note Graham passed him stating the problem appeared town-wide.

The elevator came to a smooth stop. Red writing appeared in the readout panel. ‘Vocal code not accepted. Please state your name for vocal identification.’ Riley leaned into the mike area and attempted to speak but to no avail. The writing blinked

‘Unauthorized beings will be considered hostile.’

Hands suddenly clammy, Riley opened a panel in the elevator. As he did so the writing changed again. ‘Please commence vocal identification in the next

20 seconds to avoid countermeasures.’ Riley slid a bar-coded card into an internal slot. The elevator beeped and the writing changed again. ‘Enter Override Code.’

Breathing slightly easier, Riley punched a code in on the control panel. The elevator beeped again. ‘Override code incorrect. Lethal countermeasures engaged.’ Riley’s mouth opened in a silent scream as gas began being pumped in through ceiling vents.

Suddenly the elevator door slid open, Riley and the others rushed out to be confronted by Walsh who pointed to a sign behind them. Riley turned to read the sign.

‘In case of emergency use stairway.’

* * *

Wesley looked up at the sound of the door opening to see Kate, Tara, Giles, Faith, and Cordelia entering. He opened his mouth in an instinctive greeting only to close it as he recalled their situation. Grabbing a notepad, he threw it to Giles. His fellow Watcher gave him an approving thumbs-up before nodding towards the rest of their group, Amy and Willow having arrived moments earlier.

Giles looked towards the open books on the reception counter and the foyer table, then back at him. Wesley shook his head. The older man grimaced.

Everyone turned at a sound of knocking to their right. Xander was stood beside the TV as the news came on. "Big news item from Sunnydale California. Apparently the entire town has been quarantined due to an epidemic of, as strange at this may sound,

Laryngitis. It seems the town has been rendered unable to speak there's no word yet what might have caused this or what other effects might be seen from this epidemic

local authorities has issued a statement, a written one, blaming recent flu vaccinations. A few sceptics call it a city wide hoax In the meanwhile Sunnydale has effectively shut down all schools and businesses will be closed for the time being and residents are advised to stay home and rest up. Centres for disease control have ordered the entire town quarantined. No one can go in or out until the syndrome is identified or the symptoms disappear. We'll bring you more on that as it develops." The click of Xander turning the TV off was almost deafening in the following silence.

Giles held up his pad. ‘Willow, check the computer for any records of this happening before. The rest of you start researching. Faith, you, Xander, and Gunn should be ready to go out and keep order tonight. Things could get rowdy.’

* * *

Walsh glared at her computer screen, hating what she was hearing through its speakers. ""Your troops will help keep order. Dress as civilians. A military presence would only increase panic. We are looking into what is causing this. Help maintain order. We will find an answer."

Walsh grimaced before typing a grudging acknowledgment. What did she care about civilians? Her focus were the experiments that would lead to the betterment of mankind, and her lauding as her generation’s finest scientific mind, not some idiots too blind to see what was happening around them.

* * *

Faith shivered as she walked down Sunnydale’s creepily silent streets, flanked by Gunn and her man. She started slightly at a crashing sound to their left. Turning her head, she saw a car had careered into a fire hydrant. She and the others continued on their way. Faith looked up at Gunn’s hand on her elbow. She followed the black man’s pointing finger to a guy trying to split up a fight, a pipe-wielding man sneaking up behind him.

Shaking her head, Faith sauntered up behind the man, grabbed his wrist and twisted it back. The man jerked backwards, mouth opening in a silent scream, the pipe clanging to the ground even as his wrist cracked. Faith allowed the man to fall.

The guy who’d been separating the fighter spun to face her. Recognising him as an attempted bar pick-up a couple of weeks ago, she pointed at Xander and then the man on his knee before hurrying off.

* * *

Kate couldn’t help but smile as she rolled out of Giles’ bed. Her boyfriend had picked an opportune, some might say cowardly, moment to invite her over to stay for the first time. Faith’s eyes had been spitting daggers but thanks for the curse, the teen beauty had been unable to give voice to her protests.

Although, Kate’s smile slipped, given the young girl’s past, it was hard not to emphasise with Faith’s distrust of the badge. Sliding on her robe, she walked downstairs to get a glass of milk, her father having always told her milk would make her sleep. Hearing a sound outside, she stepped fearlessly towards the window.

Her eyes widened at the grey-skulled creature dressed entirely in black formal wear, their feet six inches off the ground, and their lackeys with their pinkish, bandaged heads and loose-hanging straitjackets following dutifully behind, arms swinging apishly. Its head turned towards her, eyes coldly expressionless.

And she opened her mouth and screamed and screamed. But no sound came out.

* * *

Jeff Lankey yawned at the insistent sound of knocking on his door. Dragging himself out of bed, he rose, and stumbled over to the door, still struggling to wakefulness. Grabbing the door handle, he swung it open. He barely had time to open his mouth when the two monsters were on him, bundling him to the floor. And then the third entered, smile stretching his skull-like face and scalpel in hand.

* * *

Everyone jumped when he threw the folded morning paper on the foyer desk. After a glare at the headline proclaiming ‘Youth slain, heart missing’; Giles glanced towards the drawing that Kate had drawn of what she had seen the previous night. And glanced back as some memory stirred, he turned to Wesley to ask him to pass a book. Remembering that he couldn’t speak and realising it was quicker to simply get the book himself, he walked around his fellow Englishman and searched through the pile of books until he had it. He tapped on the desk. Everyone looked up at him. He lifted up a note. ‘I have it, every one bar Wesley go get some fresh air and come back in an hour. I’ll have some answers then."

It wasn’t wholly unexpected when Xander was first out of the door, running like the very hounds of hell were nipping at his heels. A good lad, but one with an allergy to academia. Once the others had followed their friend out, Giles turned to Wesley and passed him a note. ‘"The Gentlemen’. Wesley’s eyes widened.

Giles waited impatiently until the youngsters had sat down, their chairs arranged in a semi-circle around him and Wesley as they flanked their hastily unearthed overhead projector. Giles cracked his knuckles before nodding at Wesley. His assistant turned the overhead on with a flourish. Faith threw her head back in a soundless laugh and, eyes sparkling, pointed at the screen behind him. Giles turned and shook his head before glaring at his fellow Watcher. Eyes wide, Wesley turned the overhead around so it was the right way up. That accomplished, Giles pointed at the projection.

‘Question 1 - Who are the gentlemen?’.

‘Answer - They are fairy tale monsters’.

Giles moved onto the second question. ‘Question 2 – What do they want?’

Willow pointed at her chest.

Giles nodded again. He rolled his eyes when Xander cupped himself and mouthed the word ‘boobies’. It was easy to see why the boy was dating his daughter. Both were equally one-track minded. He shook his head as Wesley changed overheads to show a rather artfully drawn picture of three hearts. He sighed with relief when Xander nodded in understanding.

Wesley changed the overhead. ‘They come to a town’. ‘They steal all the voices so no one can scream’. Giles dug into his extensive theatrical experience to mime speaking. ‘Then’. Wesley changed overheads again. ‘They take hearts’

The others exchanged disturbed looks. Wesley changed overheads again. ‘They need seven. As we lost our voices two nights ago, it’s safe to assume they have two.’

Gunn raised a hand and in his pad with a note on it. "How do we kill them?!"

Giles reddened as Faith made a fist and began pumping it up and down. Death by masturbation, he was reasonably certain there was no demon who died by that method. Apparently Faith was even worse than Xander. The Slayer stopped when she realised everyone was looking at her, shook her head, and reached into her jacket to pull out a stake.

Face red, Wesley changed the overhead. ‘In the tales no sword can kill them. But the princess screamed once... and they all died.’

A smirking Faith held up a note. ‘Hate to break it to you, G. This is southern California, ‘sides from C there ain’t no such thing as a princess."

He was thankfully saved from risking the wrath of Cordelia by replying when Willow held up a cd, then held her hands over her ears, and pantomimed dying. Giles shook his head even as Wesley changed the overhead. ‘Only a real human voice’.

Willow threw up her hands. Faith held up a note. ‘How do I get my voice back?’

Giles shrugged. Faith held up another note. Giles winced at the unladylike language suggesting that he and Wesley weren’t exactly helping. A pout on her face, Faith held up another note suggesting she best read all the references to the Gentlemen.

* * *

Faith strode through the cold, silent town, her man and Gunn flanking her. Suddenly lackeys were all around them, one grabbing her by the throat. Faith flipped him over her shoulder. Another grabbed her from behind, she slammed an elbow into its face before backhanding it. She kicked at the first and ducked a roundhouse from the second before kicking it in the knee, bringing it down onto its knees. Grabbing a hold of its head, she twisted and was rewarded with the sound of its snapping neck.

The first lackey bolted. After a glance over her shoulder to check her companions were handling their situation, Faith charged after it. Maybe it would lead her to their base.

Of course what she’d do once she got there was another matter entirely.

* * *

Amy’s eyes widened as she started down the dorm corridor to find a Gentleman floating towards her, manic smile in place and knife in hand. Turning, she ran down the corridor, banging on the doors as she ran. As she reached her dorm, the door opened and Willow stepped out.

Amy hit the ground with a thud as she ran into her girl-friend. Gasping slightly, she pulled her girl-friend up and started up the near-by steps. Amy looked over her shoulder to see the Gentleman had been joined by another, this one with a heart already in hand.

* * *

Faith crashed onto the clock tower’s second floor to find three lackeys and two Gentlemen stood over a crumpled, balaclava-wearing man dressed in khaki. Shaking her head at the strange turn of events, Faith leapt forward, kicking one lackey in the stomach and palm-striking another into a shelf.

Another lackey leapt at her. Faith dropped into a crouch, allowing the demon to fly over her. Rising, she was grabbed by the shoulder by the lackey she threw into the wall. This time, she sent a crunching elbow into its face. The lackey stumbled backwards, Faith flowed into a spin kick, catching the demon on the side of its head and flinging it through the clock tower wall.

* * *

Willow jumped at a hand on her shoulder. Turning, she saw Amy pointing towards the laundry room. Nodding, she followed her girl-friend in, slamming and locking the door behind them.

Willow trembled at the sound of banging, the door shuddering under the impact. Amy pointed towards the soda machine stood by the wall. Willow nodded in understanding and joined Amy in attempting to push the machine over to barricade, but for all their puffing and heaving, the vending machine barely shifted an inch.

Willow pulled away and glared at the machine. After a second Amy joined her. The machine began to wobble under their intense concentration. An especially loud bang and Amy jumped. Willow grabbed her girl-friend’s shoulder, shook her head, and pointed back at the machine. Amy gritted her teeth and nodded, joining hands with her. After a brief look into her girl-friend’s eyes, Willow turned back to the machine.

They dived to the ground as the vending machine took off, flying over their heads and into the door. The door collapsed under the impact and the vending machine dropped on top of the stunned Gentleman, crushing him.

Willow grinned. It seemed that Faith wasn’t the only one with power now.

* * *

Suddenly the lackeys turned and raced up the stairs leading to the loft. A snarl on her lips, Faith charged after them. As she reached the top of the steps, a foot crashed into her back, knocking her facedown on the ground. Before she had time to react a trio of lackeys had her laid on her front, a Gentleman floating towards her.

Heart pounding, Faith worked a foot loose and kicked out, catching the Gentleman on his knee. Even as the Gentleman stumbled backwards, Faith roundhouse-kicked one of the lackeys in the side of his head, the force of her attack knocking him off her.

Faith smirked at the two lackeys holding her before flipping over, landing beside a fourth lackey, and backfisting him. Another lackey leapt at her, attempting a tackle at the waist, Faith grabbed the back of his strait-jacket and flung him into the two lackeys she’d just thrown off. Another swung at her with a roundhouse that she managed to block on her forearm before butting him in the face. Even as her opponent stared dazedly at her, she snatched up a stool and smashed her makeshift weapon into the side of his head.

Faith gasped as pain jolted through her left shoulder. Looking over her shoulder, she saw a Gentleman hovering there, her blood dripping from its weapon. A lackey grabbed her before she had chance to react, flinging her into a spool of rope. Even as she clambered to her feet, the lackey wrapped the rope around her neck and began choking.

Eyes blurring through lack of oxygen and blood loss, Faith noticed a box on the floor she remembered from one of the books G had shown her. Raising her foot, she stamped on the box. Wood splintered underfoot, the box collapsing under her frantic attack. The lackey reared back in horror, ropes around her neck loosening even as mist streamed out of the box and entered Faith’s throat. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Remembering what Giles had said, Faith screamed.

The Gentlemen spun around in a circle, their heads exploding, goo splattering everywhere. Faith looked down in disgust. "Gunk and a tear." She glared at her jacket. "And I paid $250 for this. I need a Council clothing allowance." Climbing down, she found the still unconscious soldier. Noting that dawn was breaking, she hefted the limp body over her shoulder, carried him outside, and dumped him on a park bench that wasn’t anywhere near any shade before hurrying off to find out how Xander was.

* * *

"Well done-," Giles’ praise died off as he registered the worried look on Faith’s face. After briefly checking that his daughter was alright, he spoke again. "Are Xander and Gunn alright?"

He was more relieved than he cared to admit by the Slayer’s nod. "They’re five by five. But we’ve got a big problem."

"And you have no idea what happened, or who rescued you?"

"No." One hand holding a bag of ice to his head, Riley struggled to keep his patience when Walsh asked the same question for the sixth time. "One second I was falling to the clock-tower’s floor, the next it was morning and I was waking on a park bench."

"Maybe when you fell, you hit something that broke the demons’ power source and that’s how they were defeated?" Forrest suggested.

Walsh shot the African-American soldier a withering glance. "And how do you suppose he got downstairs? Fell down all the way? Well," the scientist sniffed, "that would account for the headache I suppose."

"Oh," Forrest fell silent.

"But this is good," Graham put in. "There’s a powerful force out there helping us."

"Is it good?" Walsh shook her head. "They may well have inadvertently helped us for their own dark motives. We still have the murder of Rogers’ patrol to solve. Perhaps the same people or person who killed them, did this."

"But if that was the case why didn’t they just kill Riley?" asked Forrest.

"Thanks, no but really," Riley muttered.

"Perhaps they wished to announce their presence as a war-."

Walsh was cut off as the basement began to shudder and shake. "Earthquake!" Graham yelled as he grabbed the desk and held on.

* * *

"So then G starts bitching about me not taking the guy’s mask off to see if I recognised him. And I’m like, Jesus, I had to go and check on my buds -."

Suddenly the ground shuddered and the building shook, dust falling from the ceiling, Tara would have fallen but for Faith grabbing her elbow. "Hey, ya okay?"

Tara nodded and righted herself. "M…my first quake, thanks for-."

"Hey," she reddened when the sultry Slayer nudged with her hip and winked. "That’s what friends are for, right? Catching-," the east coast beauty’s face stiffened as if remembering something. "This isn’t my first quake. Gotta go!"

Tara opened her mouth to ask what was wrong, but before she could utter a word the Slayer had raced out of the corridor, leaping over fallen filing cabinets with a gazelle-like grace. Tara sighed, shoulders slumping. She’d never had friends before Sunnydale, dad’s reputation making her a pariah in her town, parents not wanting their kids to go around to her house. She loved how Faith and her friends had open-heartedly accepted her, but her shyness meant that aside from them she’d not made any other friends. Deciding it was best to head back to her class, she did just that, gingerly making her way around collapsed trophy cases and fallen filing cabinets.

Tara stopped as she reached her class, noting with disappointment the lesson appeared to be cancelled. "Hey!" Tara looked up to see Willow and Amy behind her and smiled. She’d seen very little of her fellow witches in the last few weeks. Willow gave her an half-wave before continuing. "We were in the library during the quake, almost got buried under some 19th century literature.  And I don’t have to tell you how hard it is to dig through some of that stuff.  You okay?"

Tara nodded.

"Good," Amy smiled. "Well, Porter dorm is completely blacked out.  So naturally they are dealing with the crisis the only way they know how Aftershock Party! You wanna come?"

Tara hesitated. She wasn’t a real party person, but it had been so long since she spent quality time with her fellow witches. Finally she nodded. "S…sure."

* * *

Wesley groaned as he struggled to straighten an upended bookcase, arms burning under the weight. Hearing the door open behind him, he glanced over his shoulder, eyes widening at the sight of the beautiful Bostonian. "Ah, Faith!" he greeted. "Perhaps you could help me with -."

"Later Wes!" the teen hurried past him, raven-locks bouncing.

"You bloody girl!" Giving up the ghost, Wesley released his grip on the book case, allowing it to crash to the ground before following the Slayer into the back office. "Didn’t you see me struggling with that book case?" he demanded.

"Saw ya, figured ya needed the work-out," the teen beauty didn’t even deign to look at him, instead concentrating her attention on the other man. "G, we’ve gotta big problems."

"I’d say," his older country-man agreed in doom-laden tones, his eyes fixed on the counter. "The kettle’s broken."

"G!"

After shaking his head, the Watcher turned to face the supernatural warrior. "It was an earthquake, Faith.  A not uncommon occurrence in southern California.  No reason to think it was anything more."

"Last time we had an earthquake here, I died!" the Slayer snapped.

"Last time there was a sale at Bloomingdales, I spent $800, this time I spent nothing." They all turned to Cordelia. "Just using that as an example to show that just because something has happened once doesn’t mean it will happen again."

"Quite," Giles stared at the cheerleader for a long second before turning to the Slayer. "However convoluted Cordelia’s example was, she makes a good point. Unless evidence suggests otherwise, I think that we can assume that it’s shifting landmasses and not a portent of some imminent doom."

 
Faith shook her head. "What if the quake was a sign?  Ah, a bad omen and we just ignore it?  There is going to be a lot of red faces when the world ends!"

"Well actually no, as we’ll be….," Wes’ voice trailed off at the Slayer’s glare. He managed a weak smile. "But never mind me!"

"Faith," Giles broke in. "If the quake heralds some such catastrophe, I’m sure there will be other signs to follow, which will afford us plenty of time to avert it.  Now, I believe that the commando installation is either very close to, or directly underneath the town, now if that is the case I’m convinced that one or more of them may be in your very midst."

"At college ya mean?" Faith asked.

Giles nodded. "Wouldn’t their uniforms stand out? Khaki is so not in."

Giles turned to Cordelia, an exasperated look on his face. "Undercover, Miss. Chase. They’d be undercover."

* * *

Tara sat uncomfortably on a couch watching as every one partied around her, Amy and Willow almost immediately leaving her to join in the dancing. Why couldn’t she just let her hair down? Sighing, she stood and moved through the dancing throng to one of the bedrooms.

Closing the door behind her, she walked into the darkened room. "Oww!" she stumbled and looked down when she kicked something. She felt around the floor. Her blood chilled as her fingers came away sticky with blood. "AHHHHHH!"

* * *

Faith looked around as she entered the dorm. Seeing Tara sat on a couch being comforted by Willow and Amy, she made her way over and crouched down before her. "Wow.  I wasn’t sure where the party was, and then I saw the flashing lights and the ambulance, and I was like right, of course! Death, carnage? It’s a Faith party!"

Tara smiled weakly. "What happened?"

"I…I f…found h…him," Faith waited patiently, noting the witch’s stutter was in full flow. "I…I went into the back room to rest and fell over his body."

"But you’re okay?" Tara nodded. Faith leaned in and lowered her voice to a whisper. "Vampires?"

Tara shook her head:  "There was so much blood, and there, there was a symbol, of a pyramid with an eye cut into it."

Willow spoke up. "Giles will know what to do."

* * *

"We have an alpha code blue situation."

Both Riley and Forrest got up as Graham hurried into the base changing room.
"One of ours?" Riley asked.

Graham shook his head. "Negative.  Civilian at the Porter hall party"

"HST attack?" asked Forrest.

Graham shrugged. "Unconfirmed.  I couldn’t get close without drawing attention to myself."

"Should we mobilize?" Forrest asked.

Riley shook his head. "No, I’ll go.  Do a little recon.  See if it falls in our domain.  You alert Prof. Walsh.  Tell her we have a casualty of an indeterminate nature.  Lets not make a move until we get the whole story."

* * *

"Please, Tara," Giles passed the shy witch a cup of tea, "tell us what you saw?"

Tara nodded meekly before beginning. "T…the dead guy, was-was propped up, like whatever killed him wanted to drain the blood out of him.  I think the demon took a bunch of the guy’s blood with it."

"You mentioned a symbol?" Faith prompted.

"Y…yeah," the quiet girl nodded before drawing something onto the pad before her. "It was carved into his chest, like a big creepy eye."

Xander glanced at the drawing. "It’s kind of the CBS logo.  Mom always said TV was evil."

"I’m surprised you stopped watching the idiot box long enough to hear her," Giles rejoined.

"I’m telling ya I’ve seen this symbol somewhere before, I just can’t remember where!  I mean, it’s like..." Faith shook her head.

"It’s the end of the world," Wesley announced in doom-laden tones. "I’ve read something about the symbol in the past. I can’t remember what exactly but it’s nothing good."

"Oh that’s right," Giles shot his fellow Watcher a disgusted look. "Drop me right bloody in it." Giles glanced at her. "Go on," he sighed, "I know you’re dying to."

Faith beamed. "I told you.  I said end of the world and you’re like poo-poo southern California, poo-poo."

"Yes, because that’s precisely how I talk." Giles sniffed. "I’m so very sorry.  My contrition completely dwarfs the impending apocalypse."

"Sarcastic English -." Faith’s voice trailed off at Giles’ glare. "Never mind, everyone makes mistakes." She paused before smirking. "Especially Watchers."

"What are we going to do about it?" asked Gunn.

"Same as always, we stop it, saving the world for truth, justice and the American Way." Everyone looked at her. "Hey, I was bored, picked up one of X’s comics, my bad." Faith shook her head as she rose, eyes fixed on Tara’s drawing, and picked up a crossbow. "Where have I seen that symbol?  The place I spend most of my waking hours memorizing stuff on the sides of mausoleums, big freaky cereal boxes of death."

* * *

Faith stopped as she heard a sound. Taking a breath she crept down the crypt’s dusty steps. Her blood chilled at the sight of a green demon picking up the bones of a child’s skeleton and putting them into a burlap sack. "Door was open."

A roar erupted from the demon’s deep chest as it turned and charged her. Faith’s crossbow blurred up, her bolt slamming into its shoulder. And then the demon was on her.

Faith grunted as it caught her with a right to the forehead. Shaking off the pain she ducked a follow-up left before crashing a heel into its stomach. The demon stumbled backwards. Faith took the opportunity to leap back onto the steps, leaning away from the demon’s pummelling haymaker. Snatching a hold of its thick wrist, she pulled it towards her, and onto a roundhouse kick to its face. "GRRRRR!" the monster howled as blood spurted from its mouth, splattering the wall.

"Yea-," Faith gasped as the monster grabbed her around the throat and threw her out of the crypt. Landing on her shoulders, she immediately kicked off, making her feet in a smooth motion that would have made an Olympic gymnast green with envy.

And then she was airborne when the demon grabbed her by her denim shirt and pants crotch, lifted her into the air, and slammed her onto the crypt top. "Owwww!"

Before she had time to rise, a shadow fell over her. She swung a foot up at the shadow who jumped back. "Is that any greeting for your boyfriend?"

Faith laughed at Xan’s injured tone. "Sorry hon, I’ll make it up to ya later."

* * *
 

"Oh good lord," Wesley looked up from his book and passed it over to her. "Was that it?"

Even as Faith nodded, Giles snatched the book from her. For an English gentleman, he sure wasn’t gentlemanly sometimes. "A Vahrall demon?" Giles shook his head. "Oh dear, oh dear."

"Ew!" screeched Cordelia from over Giles’ shoulder.

"I second that revulsion," Xander shuddered.

"Don’t worry baby," Faith cooed. "I’ll protect ya."

"Slick like gold and gird in moonlight, father of portents and brother to blight." Giles began to read from the book. "Limbs with talons, eyes like knives, bane to the blameless, thief of lives."

"Damn, you guys are like a party every night of the week aren’t you?" commented Gunn.

* * *

"The hostile is nine feet tall, approximately three hundred pounds in weight, based on my visual analysis," Riley reported.

"Special hazards?" Graham queried.

"Unknown.  Probably nothing we haven’t handled before.  There is no pattern we can discern yet, so we got to assume that it is on a basic kill-crush-destroy. Oh," Riley paused, unwilling to admit the next part, "and I think I know my mystery rescuer. It’s a Faith Lehane, I’ve seen her around college."

"The hot chick who blew you out?" Forrest put in.

Riley counted to ten before replying. "Yes, Forrest. I saw her fighting the demon and doing pretty well too, it had to be her."

"But how?" Graham queried.

"I don’t know," he shook his head. "She’s not a demon, I’ve seen her in light plenty of time."

"Well," Riley looked towards Professor Walsh. "Once this crisis is over with you’ll have to make finding out your priority."

* * *

"This thing isn’t digging up the bones of a child for fun!" Faith proclaimed as she stalked around the room.

Gunn shrugged. "Demons have some pretty hilarious ideas about fun."

"Bones of a child though.  I saw that!" Willow pulled a book over and flipped pages.  "An ancient ritual Uses the blood of a man, the bones of a child and something called the word of Valios?  It’s all part of the sacrifice The sacrifice of three."

"Let me guess, it ends the world?" her boyfriend shook his head. "Demons are so cliché."

Willow nodded. "Well, yeah, - It’s not big with the details, though.  It doesn’t say how the world ends or what the ritual entails exactly."

"Wait!" Everyone turned to Cordelia. "The sacrifice of three... Three people are going to die?"

Faith’s eyes narrowed. "Not going to happen.  Because claw boy is not getting all of his ingredients.  We have to find that third one, the Word of Valios, keep him from getting it."

"If he doesn’t already have it.  I mean, who knows where he’s been?" Willow pessimistically pointed out.

* * *

"Here is one for the good guys: this thing has a pheromone signature a mile wide," Riley reported, eyes fixed on his listening fellow agents.  "Agent Gates has been working with the detection system the lab’s developing."

Forrest stood and walked over to him.  "Can’t tell where it’s going, but I’ve got a bead on where it’s been.  Residual traces showing up in populated areas.  The thing’s not shy."

Riley looked around. "We’re going out in civies, day clothes only guys.  Weapons stowed in packs, keep them out of sight ‘til nightfall.  Remember this isn’t a capture, it’s a kill."

Forrest spoke at the meeting broke up:  "Get your quadrant assignment from me.  We’ll blanket the town."

* * *

"I’ll check the magic shop.  See if they’ve heard of a book called ‘The word of Valios’. 

"I’ll come with you," Xander volunteered as she began to drag on her jacket.

"K," Faith smiled at her man before turning to Cordy and Gunn. "How about you two try the book archives at the museum?"

"Sure," Cordy sniffed as she rose. "An afternoon spent with a bunch of dusty old books and boring old librarians."

"Thank you for that Cordelia, one is always assured of a most pleasing ego massage when in your company," Giles sniffed.

"What did he say?" Cordelia asked.

"He was just saying how much he appreciates you, hon," Gunn soothed.

* * *

Giles felt the blood drain from his face as he stared at the engraving. It was unmistakable. "Oh, as usual dear."

"What’s up, Giles?"

Giles glanced across at his girl-friend. "It seems we have a problem, the Word Of Valios is not a book."

"Oh, that’s splendid. Then you have some idea where and what it is," Wesley commented.

"Oh I’ve some idea," Giles dragged out a box filled with necklaces and talismans he kept hidden for fear Cordelia might get distracted by the sparkles. Finally he pulled out a chain with an engraved pentagram medallion hanging from it. "Here it is."

"Oh good lord," Wesley said.

"Yes, I know," he shook his head at the younger man’s paleness. This wasn’t good news but it was hardly the end of the world. "At least we have it-."

"Grrrr."

Giles turned at a growling behind him, paling at the three hulking demons stood in the office’s entrance. "Oh soddin’ bollocks."

* * *

"Shit! What happened!" Faith dropped her newly-bought books to rush over to the battered trio sat on the couch.

Giles smiled wanly. "It’s my fault.  I should have known…"

Faith crouched by her Watcher’s side. "You’re five by five, right?" After a second Giles nodded. "Then any problem’s got a solution. What happened?"

Giles grimaced. "The Word of Valios is the name of a talisman not a book.  I blame myself entirely.  I had it here."

"You had it here?  Okay, first I thought you were being too hard on yourself, but..." Xander’s voice trailed off at her warning glare.

"I bought it at a sorcerer’s estate sale.  I really only glanced at it once.  I thought it was a knock off."

"Well, they have it.  And they probably have their sacrifices by now, too," Faith looked over her shoulder to see Gunn and the others stood in the doorway.

"And we still don’t have any idea what they need it for," Faith commented.

"That’s not true," Wesley winced. "I’ve done some reading up on the Vahrall demons. Their entire clan is built around worshiping the Hellmouth, they’ll be intending to open it up."

Faith shook her head. "I can’t believe I’m saying this. Looks like we’re going back to high school."

"’Cause last time was so much fun," Xander muttered.
 

* * *

Faith stared at the moonlit ruins of Sunnydale High as they approached. "Be careful peeps, the place doesn’t look too stable."

"Don’t worry about me," declared Gunn. "I dine on danger and snack on death."

"What are you babbling on about?" Giles queried.

Gunn shrugged. "I borrowed some Road Warriors’ tapes off Xander."

"Ah, wrestling. How delightful," the Watcher murmured.

"I never said they were wrestlers, Watcher Guy," Gunn grinned at the Englishman’s reddening. "Guess I weren’t the only one watching."

"Yes, well, I believe the route’s this way," cheeks still crimson, Giles led them to the library.

"Ahh, the memories, the evils foiled," Xander said.

"The place where I got my first geek friends," reminisced Cordelia.

"Cordy," Willow sighed. "We’re standing right here."

"Oh don’t worry, Will," Cordelia patted the red-head on the shoulder. "I’m glad you’re in touch with your inner nerd."

Faith snorted before stepping towards the huge crater in the middle of the floor, skin crawling at the growling coming from the hole. "Whoa.  Check out the new floor plan," Faith commented as she started to climb down, her friends following.

Below was a candle lit chamber, three Vahralls stood around a fissure. "I don’t see any sacrifice people," Willow whispered.

"They must be around here somewhere.  The ritual is not finished," Wesley pointed out. 

"It’s not gonna be." Faith charged the three demons, one of them dropping the bottle of blood.

Instantly Xander snatched it up. "Without it they can’t finish the ritual!" he shouted.

"Good idea!" Wesley snatched the bag of bones out of the hands of one of the demons as Faith roundhouse kicked him in the face. Unfortunately, the demon backhanded the Watcher, knocking him to the ground. Gunn jumped for the bag of bones, but the demon snatched it first and leapt into the hole.

"Oh bugger!" Giles yelled as the ground began to shake. "The demons!  They *are* the sacrifice!"

Even as Giles spoke, the demon with the amulet punched Faith in the jaw, knocking her to the ground, the demon lurched for the fissure, only for Xander to tackle it around its knees, knocking it to the ground. "Don’t let it jump into the Hellmouth!"

"What do you think I’m trying to do!" Xander gasped as the demon kicked him off.

Gunn leapt onto its shoulders but was knocked off, the demon picking up the bottle of blood Xander had dropped and leaping into the crevice.

"I’m going in!" Faith declared.

"Faith, no!" Giles yelled. Ignoring her Watcher’s yells, Faith leapt over the edge. One hand around the demon’s arm, the other hanging onto the edge. Faith looked up when she felt a hand grabbing her own arm. His face drawn with the effort, Giles looked down at her. "You’re going nowhere, you bloody girl." The Englishman looked behind him. "Form a chain, Faith’s been putting on weight-."

"Hey!" Faith was moved to shout even as she kicked at the struggling demon.

"I’ll need help pulling her out." A tense minute or so later, they made the surface, the demon slumping dead the moment it touched the ground. Giles grinned at her. "We did it."

Suddenly the chamber filled with soldiers. "Wow," commented one of the soldiers, a powerfully-built African-American, his eyes looking around the devastation. "Do you do this a lot?"

"Save the world? All the time," Willow said. "First there was Moloch. He was gonna end the world by causing a nuclear war."

"And then there was the Master, he planned to open the Hellmouth," added Amy. "Kicked his ass though."

"Angelus tried to resurrect the Judge, a demon who could kill by touch, would have killed all humans." Xander beamed. "I blew him up."

"Then Angelus tried to suck the world into hell," Cordelia added. "We sent him there instead."

"And last year there was the Sisterhood of Jhe," Faith added. "They tried to open the Hellmouth too."

"But they don’t like to boast," Wesley muttered.

"Or even talk about it really," commented Giles.

* * *

Walsh listened through lidded eyes as Finn and his cohorts excitedly reported on the afternoon’s occurrences. The Watchers sounded like a real repository of demonic information, far out-stripping her meagre files. But the real prize was the Slayer. She’d heard of the Slayer of course, the girl was a veritable bogeywoman of the demon world, but she’d always thought it was a myth.

"Apparently not," she muttered, her blood quickening. If even half the tales she’d heard or read were true, securing the Slayer could result in a tripling of her program’s funding at least. No longer would she have to beg for scraps from Congressional over-bodies. And the possibilities were endless. Breeding super-soldiers from the girl, cloning her DNA to grow babies from test tubes, splicing her DNA on fully-grown subjects, and perhaps when she’d out-lived her usefulness, finding a way to direct her Calling into a specific, chosen subject at the moment of execution.

After all as an American citizen, she was property of the American government.

"Come on, Tara," Willow giggled. "You won’t believe it when you meet Rack! He’s the best!"

"Oh, the things he can teach you!" Amy said from the other side. "He’s just so knowledgeable."

Tara smiled at her friends’ enthusiasm as they herded her through Sunnydale’s busy streets. Despite it being early winter the sun was shining, she was safe, and had friends. What more could she want?

Her stomach hollowed as she felt something black and cloying in the mana around her. She missed a step and would have fallen but for Willow grabbing her elbow. "Are you alright?"

She shot the red-headed witch a horrified glance. "C…can’t you feel it?"

Willow looked towards Amy before shrugging and smiling disarmingly. "Feel what?"

Tara’s mouth dried as she realised the infection must be near-by, and had already infected her friends. And was probably caused by the very person who they were taking them to see. "I…I have to go," she blurted out. "I realised I’ve forgotten to do something."

"But-."

"Tara!"

Ignoring the others’ shouts, Tara stumbled away from the shop, a cold, empty pit forming in her stomach. Just what were her friends getting themselves into?

And how could she tell the others? Wouldn’t Willow and Amy hate her for it?

* * *

Jenoff smirked as he looked around his casino. His very exclusive place was booming, full of demons playing the dice, using the slot machines, and wagering on cards. But then every hellspawn loved a good gamble, it was after all a vice.

"Tony, Tony, Tony," he looked in front of him, shaking his head in disappointment at the human dealer who’d just been dragged in front of him by one of the suited security. "You think you can cheat me?" The terrified human opened his mouth to speak only to double up when the demon behind him punched him in the stomach. "Thank you, Clutus," he smiled at the security thug. "You’ve been palming cards. That makes my club look bad. Clutus," he paused for a second. "Take his left hand, just his left hand, we can still make money off the right."

Ignoring the human’s wails as he was dragged off to the back, Jenoff turned to the flash-suited demon stood waiting behind. "You. About time." He reached into his jacket. "I’ve got a job for you out of town." He passed the card over. "Joker thinks he can just walk away from me. Bring him in. His marker's up." Jenoff smiled. "It's time to collect his soul."

* * *

Walsh looked up at the knock on her door. "Yes?" she snapped.

"It’s Agent Finn, ma’am."

"Come in," she grunted. The agent entered as ordered, saluted, and stood to attention. She looked towards the seat the other side of her desk. "Sit." Once the special forces operative had sat, she spoke again. "Is there something bothering you, Agent Finn?"

The soldier started at her voice, almost as if he’d forgotten she was there at all. "Yes, I was wondering," the agent paused. "I was wondering if we were going to have any further contact with the Slayer and her group."

"I’m considering our options," Walsh slowly replied.

"Ma’am?" Riley stared enquiringly at her.

"I want more information before deciding on a course of action," she obliquely answered. She wasn’t sure how yet, but she’d have those Watchers’ knowledge, and that Slayer to experiment on. She had just the project where her DNA would come in very handy, very handy indeed.

* * *

Xander yawned, bored beyond belief. How he’d ended up doing the Saturday shift at the office he had no idea. "Hey," he muttered. "I wonder if I get paid?" Deciding being in his girl-friend’s guardian’s good books was perhaps more important, he sighed and looked down at his comic. Hearing the sound of the front door opening, he looked up, tensing as he saw the demon there. Xander took a breath, reminding himself that not all demons were bad. Forcing a smile he stood, hand reaching under the counter to grab the short sword located there. "Watcher Securities, your safety is our business."

The demon eyed him for a second. "You’re not Gunn are you?"

"My general pastiness and rampant follicles give it away then?" Xander’s chuckle trailed off at the demon’s expression. "No I’m not, what’s your business with Gunn?"

"Back in LA, I did some work for Gunn," the demon explained. "I’d like to do a follow-up, sort of professionalism thing."

"Okay," Xander shrugged. "Well he’ll be at the church on Goldust Avenue, he’s earning some extra money working there. Expensive girl-friend."

"Women," the demon half-smiled, "root of all evil. Thanks for the help. If you’re ever in town," the demon passed him a card, "come to Jenoff’s."

* * *

Gunn stepped back and smiled, the window fitted perfectly, he’d done a great job. All he needed to do now was clear up the garden and he’d get 50 bucks. "Hello, Charles." His blood chilled as he turned to face the demon stood behind him. "Time’s up, Mr. Jenoff sent me to collect. You signed a blood oath trading your
soul. You think that's an arrangement you can get out of? This ain't some
D.V.D. club -- although the one I'm in plays pretty rough, too."

Swallowing his fear, Gunn stared back at the demon. "Who said I'm trying to get out of anything?"

The repo man smiled. "You're planning on giving your soul to another, aren't you?"

"What are you talking about?"

The repo man leered. "Some broad, you're fallin' for her hard..."

"Cordy?"

The repo man shrugged. "I don't know, we don't get a name, just an image. Well-stacked white girl? Kinda chick you’d cast as Xena if the show had come along ten years later. We're professionals, we keep an eye on the Akashic records, think we wouldn't know when one of our souls was about to be transferred? You broke the contract. Your soul ain't yours to give, it's Mr. Jenoff's to take."

Gunn swallowed. "I gotta see him."

The demon shook his head. "What you gotta do is pay up. He's not happy."

"I'm not... I'm not the same person I was back then --."

"I officially don’t care," the demon interrupted. "We all pay our debts to Mr. Jenoff."

"There must be something else. Something else he can take," Gunn attempted to bargain, hating the note of desperation he heard creeping into his voice.

"Gee, I never heard that before -- except every damn time the bill comes due. Now listen good: you got twenty-four hours to get your ass on down to that casino. If you're thinkin' about runnin', don't. Cause then we take your soul and the girl's."

Gunn’s eyes hardened. "She's got nothing to do with this."

"Well, you can keep it that way or you can get her killed. It's up to you
now, Slick. See ya' tonight."

* * *

"Hey, Gunn!" Xander greeted as the African-American crashed through the door. "A demon buddy of yours turned up earlier. Has he caught up with you yet?"

"That was you who sent him after me?" Gunn snarled. "Oh that’s just great!" The African-American stomped his way upstairs.

"Try and help a guy," Xander shook his head before sitting down. "That attitude, someone’s been spending way too much time with Cordy," Xander mused before putting his feet back up on the desk.

* * *

Faith smirked as she sauntered into the foyer flanked by her two Watchers and saw her man sat behind the counter. "Hey, boy-toy," she greeted. "Missed ya. Can’t wait ‘til we’ve finished getting hot and heavy with demons, then I can get hot and heavy with ya."

"Oh please, no flirting," Giles groaned. "It’s only two hours since you saw him last."

Faith smirked at her guardian as she strode over to her man. "Hey, you stop lip-locking cops and we’ll talk, ‘til then…."

"Oh no!" Faith joined the others in turning as she was interrupted by the hotel doors crashing open and a tear-streaked Cordelia entered, wearing a sleeveless black dress its daringly low-cut v-shaped neckline causing Wesley to turn an entertaining red. She wondered if Wes had ever played doctors and nurse with a female-shaped person. Like ever. "It’s a disaster! Something terrible’s happened to Gunn! I’ve been waiting at the restaurant for an hour and he never turned up!"

"Gee, Cordelia. This is hardly a natural disaster," Xander scoffed. "Maybe he forgot."

"Forgot!" Cordelia shrilled. "No-body forgets me, Harris!"

"Or maybe he got his hearing back and realised what a harpy you -, owwww!" Xander yelped when Faith back-heeled him in the shin. "That hurt!"

"Good," Faith looked over her shoulder and muttered through gritted teeth. "Now get off your lazy ass and get upstairs and see what the hell he’s playing at!"

"Gee," Xander muttered as he limped away. "One’s a harpy, the other’s an ogre. We got ourselves a right pair Gu -."

"Slayer Hearing, Harris."

"Sorry dear."

"Cowa-," Giles coughed when she turned her stare on him. "Perhaps Cordelia would like a cup of tea."

"Okay," Faith looked up when Xander appeared back on the landing, his face drawn, "I can’t believe I’m saying these words, but Cordelia might be right. His stuff’s gone and there’s a note."

* * *

Gunn swallowed as he entered the expensive club, the gleaming furnishings and elaborately-attired clientele and staff mocking him with their riches. Ignoring any feelings of inadequacy, he shoved his way through to the thug who’d been sent to round him up. "I'm here to pay my bill."

* * *

"Well the note doesn’t give us any clue to where he’s gone," Giles put the crumpled note down. "Perhaps things weren’t working out here and he decided to-."

"Without telling me!" Cordelia wailed. "But why!"

"Fear of perforated eardrums perhaps?" Wesley suggested.

"No, that doesn’t make sense," everyone looked towards Xander. Xander shrugged. "Well the perforated eardrums thing does, mine are ringing right now." Faith growled warningly. "There was this demon in earlier to see him-."

"What demon?" Wesley demanded. Xander described the sharp-suited demon who’d dropped off his business card.

"Oh you thundering pillock!" Giles thundered as he finished. "That’s an Argooth. Low-level enforcer demon!"

"Good demon, bad demon, how’s a guy supposed to tell?" Xander feebly protested. "Here’s his card." Xander passed the card over to Giles.

"Oh good lord," Wesley peered over Giles’ shoulder. "That is not a good place for Gunn to be. I read reports about this back at the Council before coming here. We better move and fast!"

* * *

Jenoff looked up at his approach. "Charles Gunn. I'm impressed. Not a lot of guys come in through that door of their own free will -- not the second time, anyway.
She must be pretty special, this girl you were gettin' ready to give my merchandise to."

"I'm here to make good on my debt." Gunn leaned towards the demon. "You don't even talk about her." Jenoff smiled. "Once we're square, you don't even think about her –"

"Cool it stud," Jenoff interrupted. "Now you’re here, she’s off the table." The demon looked towards the muscle stood behind him. "Hold him."

The repo man stepped towards him. "I'm not gonna run. But he touches me, and he better." The demon stepped back. Gunn looked towards the casino owner. "Are we gonna talk all night, or are you gonna do the deed?"

Jenoff lifted his hand, index and middle finger pointing.
 

Suddenly the door crashed open, Faith walked in, her sword in hand, Xander to her right, and Giles to her left, Wes and Cordy behind. Demons charged them. One lost his head to her right handed slash which she reversed into a back handed slash taking down another. "Gunn!" Cordy cried.

Gunn stepped forward only to be grabbed by a pair of bouncers.

* * *

Faith cursed as the demons began circling them. "Um, Faith we seem to be a tad out-numbered," Giles warned.

"I know." Faith replied.

"We are surrounded," Wesley said.

"I know," Faith replied.

"We have to save Gunn!" Cordy hectored.

"Jesus," Faith snapped. "Will everyone stop stating the freakin’ obvious! I’m tryin’ to think!"

"Oh god," Xander muttered. "It’s worse than I thought."

"My, this is entertaining," the crowd parted to allow Jenoff through, followed by Gunn and his escort. "Mind telling me why you're disrupting my business?"

"Actually, it's you who's disrupting my business -- you're about to deprive me of a very valuable employee. Charles Gunn there – he works for me," Giles stated.

The sharp-suited demon chuckled. "Good business man looks into the backgrounds of potential employees. Had you done that, you might've learned he was strictly short-term material."

"Then I'll make a deal with you –," Faith thought quickly. "You release him, forget what he owes you -- and I'll let you live."

Jenoff’s mouth parted in what she supposed was a smile. "Thank you." The demon looked towards his henchmen. "Kill 'em!"

The demon turned away, the thugs lunged forward. "Double or nothing!" Faith shouted.

Jenoff stopped in his tracks, turned and raised a hand, stopping all demons. "You offerin' me your soul?"

Faith ignored the others’ protesting mutters to nod. "A chance to win it, anyway."

"How stupid do I look to you?" Faith smirked, did he really want an answer. "I’ve already got one, why risk it? You’re a pretty little thing for a human but flesh is flesh, one soul’s much the same as another."

"Not mine, I’m the Slayer."

"Oh," Jenoff’s mouth dropped an inch. "That’s different."

"I choose the game. I win, we walk outta here. Gunn's debt disappears. You win. You get us both."

* * *

Faith shuffled the cards, staring at the motionless demon sat opposite. "Brilliant stall tactic, bought us some time. Now what's the plan?" Giles asked.

"This is the plan." Faith replied.

"Really?" Faith nodded. Giles sighed. "You bloody idiot."

"Thanks for the confidence, G," Faith smirked.

"This is so wrong in so many ways. I mean, it isn't money or a stuffed bunny Faith's playing for. It's my boyfriend." Cordelia said.

"I understand you're nervous." Faith said. "Don't be. I’ve been playing cards since before I hit ten."

"I don’t think snap counts," Xander mutters.

"We’ve got to have a back-up plan, old bean," muttered Wesley.

"I’m thinking," Giles replied.

"Thanks for the confidence," Faith snarked. "Well what have you got?"

* * *

The Demon crowd parted for Faith and the gang as they made it over to Jenoff’s table, Cordy, Wes, Giles, and Xander forming a circle behind the Slayer as she sat down beside Jenoff.

"Y'know, Jenoff lets me have the bodies when he's done with 'em." The repo man chuckled into Gunn’s ear. "Gonna have me a time with the piece."

Jenoff held up a hand, the noisy room instantly fell silent. "One hand of cards. If you win, this man," the demon thumbed at him, "walks free, all debts paid. If I win, I keep his soul, and yours." Faith nodded, the Slayer’s eyes stony. "Name your game. Omaha, Texas Hold 'Em, Seven Card Stud...?"

Faith looked from Jenoff to the dealer and back again. "How 'bout a simple cut of the deck? High card wins."

"Oh yes," Giles groaned. "You silly bint."

"Gutsy, I like that." Jenoff nodded to the Dealer, who shuffled the cards then set it on the table. "Feeling lucky?"

"After you." Faith replied, her usually expressive voice a tight monotone.

Jenoff smiled, reached out, hand hovering over the deck for a long moment before cutting and turning the cards over. "Five of Clubs!" the dealer announced. Gunn beamed as a murmur rippled through the tense room. Jenoff’s smirk faded. Faith grinned before blowing on her fingers, reaching down and cutting the pack.

"The three of hearts?" Gunn gasped, the repo man chuckling into his ear.

"You lose." Jenoff gloated even as Faith shot a despairing glance at Giles. The Watcher smashed a stake into Jenoff’s hand. "Oh god!" the demon screamed even as the other Englishman threw Faith her sword and she lopped the demon’s head off. The head rolled across the floor as Jenoff's body slumped onto the table, yellow blood spilling onto the green felt.

"Come on Chuck," Faith stood in the silent room. "Party over. We’re blowing this joint."

Gunn gulped. "Faith-."

"Let’s go, no need to say thanks," Faith said, a familiar impatient look in the Slayer’s eyes.

"You're right. If killing him was that easy, I would've done it myself." Gunn retorted.

Faith looked towards the table to see the yellow viscera begin to gurgle and something begin to grow out of Jenoff’s severed neck. "Oh man," Faith muttered as a new head popped out. "That is just so wrong on so many levels."

"Looks like we’ve got a demonic battle royal," Faith commented as the demons began to press in on them.

"I say," Wesley chipped in. "Who else in here owes this gentlemen?" The demons turned en-masse and looked at Jenoff and his cronies before diving forwards and pummelling the group.

"Wicked tactic, Wes," Faith complimented as she led the others outside of the casino and towards their van. "And Gunn?"

"Yeah?"

In a second she’d spun around, grabbed the big black man by the front of his shirt and lifted him off the ground. "Ya got a problem ya don’t try and John Wayne it, ya come to us, ya’re part of us now, ya dig?" Gunn nodded. "Good," she placed the African-American back on the ground. "Let’s blow this hole."

"Subtle little thing isn’t she?"

"Shut up, Wes."

* * *

"Ah, good day," Giles beamed at her as he opened his front door and stepped aside, "come in, Kate. And how are you this fine Sunday morning?"

Kate smiled back at her boyfriend as she walked in. "Fine, thank you, Giles. I’ve completed that search you asked me to do," she reported as she allowed the Englishman to herd her into the kitchen.

"Oh?" The Watcher’s smile disappeared in a half-second. "And what did you find?"

Momentarily disconcerted by the man’s half-scowl, it took Kate a moment to gather herself. "I’m afraid I didn’t come up with a lot. There’s no record of a Tegan Austin-Meadows in any of the private facilities in the town. Either she’s out of town, she’s dead, or she’s under an assumed name."

"Damn it," Giles grunted. "She’s not dead, no other Slayer has been Called. Well, thank you for looking."

"Giles," Kate paused, not particularly wanting to ask this question, but compelled to do so by her inner cop, "what were you planning to do if you found her?"

A chill ran through her at the sudden look in her boyfriend’s eyes. "I really think it’s best you don’t ask that question."

"Giles-."

"She murdered one of Faith’s friends and tried to kill her," the man growled. "What do you think I was going to do, buy her a bloody scone?"

A/N: This idea is nicked from the synopsis of an unaired Season 1 Angel episode which had Kate Lochley as a much harder char (drug addicted). Plus, as an added bonus, I get to write Giles and Wes in a stripper bar. And I also got to paraphrase a Babylon 5 quote in here. See what you think.

Libby sighed as she struggled into her one bedroom apartment, body aching from a rough trick. Groaning slightly, she started to undress, her midriff top hitting the floor.

"You got enough money to make the rent?"

Her blood froze at the voice that came out of the darkness, recognising it as belonging to her pimp. "Hey Jag," her voice cracked. Jag had always been hot, volatile. Until six weeks ago when he’d changed, become colder. She wouldn’t have thought it possible, but she preferred the old Jag.

The huge black stepped out of the shadows, chains swinging from around his trunk-like neck and rings gleaming on his gold fingers. The tattooed African-American chuckled, the sound rasping around the suddenly seemingly even smaller than usual apartment. "I asked you a question, Libby."

"Yeah, sure," Libby reached a clammy hand into the front of her skirt, pulling out the six twenties there. "Here’s what I got."

Jag shook his head. "That ain’t even close."

Libby felt sweat form on her forehead. "I’m not feeling too good."

"No excuses," Jag smiled. "The wheat must be separated from the chaff."

Her eyes widened as Jag lunged at her, his face contorting into something impossible. She knew that when she died, no-one would care. But she didn’t expect the end to be so soon.

* * *

Kate stared at the report for long seconds, a feeling of dread settling on her chest. Turning to her computer, she typed in three names. And then looked back at the report. Grabbing the papers, she hurried to the chief’s office and knocked on the door. "Come in!" came the brusque shout.

"Chief, we have a problem. Some one’s been killing hookers. Four of them." Before the chief had chance to take his half-chewed cigar out of his mouth and speak, she continued. "Four girls, all who list their employment as strippers working out of," she felt her eyes roll, "The Beaver Hunt’, and who all, according to their autopsies were dying at the time of death anyway, from an unidentified poisoning."

After a few minutes the senior officer looked up. "This is Sunnydale," the chief looked bored. "Strange things happen all the time. With this town, we don’t have the resources to put into a concerted search for the murders of whores. Especially unconnected murders." Kate opened her mouth. "Unconnected Kate. One died of strangulation, two from beatings, and the fourth from knife wounds. This is a non-story, pimps in a turf war. We’ve got too much to do to deal with this."

Kate stared at her boss, unable to believe his complacent callousness. There was one other place she could go for help.

* * *

"And we should care about this why?"

"Well," Kate thought quickly. "I thought given your background you might be interested in helping the girls."

Kate could have heard a pin drop as the others seemed to pull away from the suddenly bristling Bostonian. "I meant what’s this gotta do with supernatural? But hey," the Slayer turned her eyes on Giles, "what the hell have you being saying about me?"

"Rupert was only explaining why you have issues with authority figures," Kate hurriedly butted in.

If looks could kill, Kate was sure she’d be six foot under. "Was I speakin’ to you?" Kate was more than a little relieved when the Slayer turned back to her Watcher. "I don’t need anyone to make excuses for me, especially to cops. So, these girls, they all worked at the Beaver Hunt did they? G, you and Wes are gonna have to go down there, see what ya can pick up. Ya never know ya might pick up something. Ya know," Faith’s smirk was distinctly unfriendly, "someone with a little more class than a pig."

"Why can’t I go with-."

"Not in the mood, Xander. Really not in the mood."

* * *

"I do hope we don’t run into any problems," gulped Wesley as they passed through the door of the club, "that doorman looked rather formidable." Giles didn’t bother to answer, he was busy trying to accustom his senses to the Beaver Hunt’s sensory overload. A combination of the wave of oxygen-stealing heat that hit them the moment they stepped over the club’s threshold, the power ballads blasting out of the club’s crackling speakers, and the strobe lighting illuminating the scantily-clad unnaturally enhanced strippers parading their wares on the club’s central, T-shaped runway and the tables making his head swim. "This reminds me of the 80s." Wesley mused as he looked around.

"Really?" Giles raised an eyebrow, his pounding head thankfully returning to something approaching normal. "I’d have thought you weren’t out of nappies by then."

"I’ll have you know I was in my late teens, early twenties by then!" Wesley sniffed.

"My point remains," Giles murmured under the power ballads. He looked left and right, eyeing with some bemusement the strippers working the runway and dancing on the tables. It really was amazing what surgery could do these days.

"Good gracious, is that even anatomically possible?"

Giles smirked as he noticed the position of the girl Wesley was ogling. "It is, I did it in the 70s," he grimaced, "the days when my back plays up, that’s why."

Wes’ awed stare was more than a little soothing to his ego. "Ah," the younger man nodded, "I see." The Watcher turned to him. "What’s the plan?"

"You take the left, I’ll take the right."

"Split up?" Wes’ eyes bulged. "You want to split up?"

"We’ll cover more of the bar that way," he patiently explained. "Relax Wesley, the girls won’t eat you alive."

"What about her?"

Giles gulped as he noticed the muscle-bound black amazon his companion was discreetly pointing at. "Well, maybe she would," he allowed. "Perhaps we should stay together after all." His eyes alighted on a tiny red-head stood by the bar. Comforted that the girl didn’t remind him of any of those he felt of as his children, he made his way across the bar and to her side. "Hello, dear."

The red-head’s far too old for her age eyes looked at both him and then Wesley. "Extra for groups."

"Good lord, young lady!" Wesley looked out-raged. "Do you think we’re animals? I assure you -, owww!"

Giles pulled his foot off Wes’. "Of course, dear." Giles pulled out four fifties. "Is that enough?"

The notes were snatched off him and disappeared into the red-head’s ample cleavage. "Sure," the girl continued to chew at her gum, one of the few revolting habits that Faith thankfully hadn’t picked up. "Where we gonna -."

Suddenly a girl crashed through the fire escape at the back of the club, her mascara running as tears poured down her face. "Jamie! Jamie’s dead!"

* * *

"When we got to the boarding house, there was nothing there," Giles reported. "No body, no sign of violence, nothing. However, the girl was quite insistent, and the man at the scene was the pimp called Jag."

"The one who’d known two of the previous victims," Kate commented.

"Just so," he smiled at his girl-friend. He worried about Faith’s attitude to his companion, but there was little he could do to change his strong-willed charge’s opinion of the police, and given her past he had to admit there was more than a little good reason for her issues. He just wished she’d give Kate a chance. "He claimed the girl was a junkie who’d imagined it on a trip, which I suppose is possible."

"However, I noticed something," Giles rolled his eyes at Wes preening himself. "This symbol was on one of the walls," his fellow Watcher drew a cracked oval within a circle, "it was faded, as if we’d interrupted it being removed. But I also noticed I’d seen it before," his countryman sorted through the autopsy pictures, "ah here it is. A mark on the cheek of the last girl reported killed, a ring mark."

"We’ll research the symbol," Willow took the drawing.

"Excellent," Giles nodded. "Myself and Wesley are going to keep an eye on the club owner. Xander, this gentleman Jag is certainly a key player, I’d like you and Gunn to keep an eye on him. Kate, a little more research on both the club owner, Duke Anderson, and Jag appears in order."

"I’ll get right on it," Kate said.

"What about us?" Faith looked towards Cordy. "We suck at the research."

It was on the tip of his tongue to reply that if they put in a little effort they’d do a lot better, but good sense stopped him. "You stay here," Faith’s heart-shaped lips parted in protest. "Should we need you, we’ll call you."

* * *

"Well they’re not leaving me out of this," Cordy bristled the moment the door closed behind the others. "I always wanted to be an actress or an undercover cop. I’ll be a working girl, a tart with a heart!"

"I thought you said you wanted to be an actress," Faith’s lips tugged up into a half-smile at Amy’s mutter. "I mean playing a hooker, hardly a stretch."

Faith sighed as she looked at Cordelia. "I’ll have to come with you."

"What will you wear, Faith?" Tara asked.

Faith shrugged. "Some of Cordy’s stuff I guess. It just cries hooker."

"Hey!"

"Wow," Willow leered. "I can’t wait for that." Faith glared at the red-head. Willow blushed. "Um, for artistic purposes."

"First time a gal asked me to pose artistically." Tara raised a hand. Faith shook her head. "Yeah?"

"C…can I ask too?"

"Unfucking believable, lesbians are worse than guys!"

* * *

Xander exchanged looks with Gunn as Jag left his apartment, before peering back out of the shadows across the road from the pimp. "Little late to be going out on your own in Sunnydale," he commented.

"Must have somewhere important to go," Gunn agreed.

"Looking at this place, I’d guess it would have something to with pest control or getting the building condemned," Xander continued. "But on the off-chance it’s something else."

"We’ll follow him," Gunn finished for him.

"Yeah," Xander nodded before stepping out of the shadows and starting across the street, eyes fixed on the pimp ducking and moving out of the shadows. Xander shook his head.

"What’s up?" Gunn asked.

"All this, derelict buildings, struggling businesses, disused warehouses, hookers, crack dens," he shook his head again. "People shouldn’t have to live like this, without hope."

"If I was smart and educated like Giles or Wes, I’d say something about the human condition, blah, blah," Gunn chuckled. "But I’m just a street kid, and I’ll just say some people go under, some will keep going no matter what. That’s people."

"That’s profound," Xander replied.

"Apparently, even sleep can’t stop some of Giles’ lectures from sinking in."

"You think we should get more shifts at work so we can avoid him?" Xander suggested.

"I like that pla-," Gunn pulled him back. "See him go into that warehouse?"

"I saw," Xander agreed. "Could be something illegal. Or it could be something demonic."

"At the risk of stating the obvious."

"Only one way to find out," Xander started across the street, Gunn beside him. Xander winced slightly as he pulled the corrugated-iron door open, its screech ruining any chance at a stealthy approach. "Huh, hey guys," Xander’s eyes narrowed as they entered the moth-eaten warehouse to see two very familiar figures stood in the middle of the floor, neither of them their quarry.

"We followed Anderson in through the back, only to find he’d disappeared." Even in the darkness, Giles’ frustration was obvious.

"Same with Jag," Xander looked around, the hairs prickling on the back of his neck.

"Not gone anywhere," a voice corrected from the shadows before stepping out with another five figures all carrying a collection of knives, bike chains, and crowbars. "Just waiting for the rest of youse Curious Johns to get here."

* * *

"What’s your name?"

Faith looked at Cordy as they tottered down the street, deeply uncomfortable in her high heels, man they sucked, black PVC micro and red halter top showing three inches of gym-toned midriff. "My name is Faith," she said patiently. "Yours is Cordelia."

"No," Cordelia shook her head. "If we’re to play hookers, we need to get into character. I’m Cookie, now who are you?"

Faith counted to ten. "I’m Midnight."

"After your hair, nice." Cordelia looked at her. "You should really have borrowed one of my push-ups to fill out that top. No need to feel shy about using clothes to make up from your short-comings."

Faith gritted her teeth. One day, once she’d worked out how she was going to get away with it and where she was going to dump the body, she’d kill Cordelia.

* * *

"Duke Anderson," Kate’s eyes widened as she read the computer screen in front of her, a feeling of cold horror coming over her. "Oh no, oh no." Grabbing her cell in a suddenly clammy palm, she hurriedly dialled Giles. "Pick up! Pick up!"

* * *

"I’ve found it!" Tara raised a hand as she found the symbol that Wesley had drawn in a well-thumbed, red leather back copy of ‘Arcane Symbols Of Power’. "Oh this is not good."

"What is it?" Willow shrieked with the excitement for new knowledge only a true academic could muster.

"It’s the icon of T'Purok the Corrupter," Tara reported. "He’s a demon that can only experience the sensations he feeds on through the use of acolytes."

"And the rings?"

"They act as conduits," Tara explained. "The rings allow T'Purok to feel all the pain and misery his acoyltes cause. And," Tara grimaced, "who better to cause pain and misery than a bunch of pimps? As for the illness the girls had, that was because of their closeness to T'Purok’s acolytes." Tara paused, stomach tightening. "Even if they hadn’t been murdered, they’d have died eventually anyway."

"But if the hookers are dying because of the corruption of being near people like Jag and Anderson, why aren’t they affected? And why aren’t the public in general effected?" Amy asked.

"It doesn’t say here," Tara admitted.

"Ooooo!" Willow jumped up and down in her seat, cheeks flushed with excitement. "I know this! My guess is that the rings protect the wearers, as to why only the hookers are affected," Willow looked sick, "I think I know the answer to that. Bodily fluids."

"Yuck," the three of them said at once. The phone rang before any of them could comment any further.

* * *

"You getting the same total as me?" Faith asked.

"Yeah," Cordelia nodded. "Eight girls dead, it’s just the police haven’t noticed some of them."

"It’s worse than we thought," Faith muttered.

"Girls."

Faith turned to see a six foot six inches tall two eighty pounds man in his late twenties stood behind them. "We’re on a break."

"I know," her eyes widened as a dart hit her in the side of her neck, she took a step forward before crashing to the ground, eyes fixed on the tranquiliser gun in the man’s hands. "A permanent one."

* * *

"Ah, a trap, how positively Machiavellian of you," Giles sniffed as he looked around. "I notice Mr. Anderson has gone though. Important business?"

"He has gone to ensure our master’s happiness." A beatific look crossed over Jag’s face.

"Ah," Giles nodded. "A shame you’re not going to be happy." Lunging forward, he grabbed the surprised pimp by the front of his leather jacket, and pulled him towards him, head shooting forward to smash into his adversary’s nose and knee driving up into the man’s crotch. His face a mask of blood, the man doubled up into his knee. As the pimp hit the ground, Giles turned to the battle.

In seconds it was over, half a dozen street punks no match for four men forged in the fires of demon-fighting. Giles turned towards the whimpering Jag. "Now," he kicked the downed man in the ribs, "I’d really like some specifics on just where your leader is?"

* * *

Duke Anderson looked up as the warehouse door was flung open and his bouncer walked in, carrying a girl over each of his barn-door shoulders. "You’re here, excellent." His eyes narrowed as he noticed that he didn’t recognise either of the drugged hookers. "I haven’t seen them in the club," he commented.

"I know," Tank beamed at him. "I saw them talking to the other girls, figured the master would like a fresh meal. Not a track on either of them. Untainted."

"Even better. Put them in the centre of the pentagram," he turned to the others already knelt behind the pentagram stood before their shrine of crack vials, used syringes, empty pint bottles, and porn magazines.

* * *

"Throughout the 80s," Kate talked into her phone as she hurtled through Sunnydale’s darkened streets with no regard for the speed limit, "Duke Anderson was a small-time pimp on the east coast, in and out of prison for beating up his girls, running them etc. Then, in ’94, things changed. He was the boss of a New York club where ten prostitutes turned up dead. In ’95, the same thing happened in Atlanta. In ’96, seven in Miami. In ’97, Texas. In ’98, he was managing security at a casino in Las Vegas when five hookers who were known to pick up tricks there died."

"Wow," Willow’s voice was hushed. "He’s killed a lot."

"Yeah," Kate nodded as she ran a red light, "the only reason he’s got away with it for so long is because of who he kills, and the number of times he’s moved. I’ve got an address for a warehouse that he owns. Give Faith the phone, I need to speak to her."

"Um," Willow paused. "Cordy wanted to go undercover, so Faith went with her. I’ve tried to ring her with the information on the Corrupter, but nothing."

"Damn it!" Kate cursed. "Keep after them, I’ll head there!"

* * *

Duke smiled as he knelt by the smaller of the two girls, ceremonial knife lifting. It was a shame, it really was, these two had something he’d rarely seen in a street girl. They could have made him some real money. "The Master comes first."

His gaze shot towards the far wall as a car powered through the rotting wood, before coming to a screeching halt, its driver, a gorgeous blonde, leaping from it with gun in hand. "FAITH!"

Suddenly the teen’s eyes opened. "Fuck no!" He screamed as the girl grabbed his arm and twisted, forearm breaking under her incredible power. "Bastard!" the last thing he saw was the girl’s foot swinging up to crash into his head.

* * *

Even as Faith leapt to her feet, the doors crashed open and Giles and the guys rushed in. In seconds it was over, Faith holding the bouncer who’d shot her full of tranqs at arm’s length. "You wanna tell me where your boss is?" the bouncer’s eyes bulged as he grabbed at her arm. "This is me asking nice. Ya don’t wanna see me asking nasty."

"Behind the shrine."

"Thanks," Faith nodded before flinging the bouncer into the shrine. The wall imploded revealing a tunnel behind. "G!" she snatched a double-bladed axe out of mid-air. "Thanks, take care of Cordy for me."

Dipping her head she started into the narrow, darkened tunnel, water dripping from the ceiling. Hearing a footstep behind her, she spun around, axe rising.

"Woah, I come in peace," Xander grinned at her. "Didn’t think I’d let you go on your own did you?"

"Thanks lover." She grinned at her man before continuing on.

"Nice skirt by the way."

"Funny bastard." They burst out into a foul-smelling room, a malignant mould clinging to the wall opposite.

"Ahhhhh!" the mould’s gurgle sent chills through her. "The people’s champion, a scared little girl who knows first-hand humanity’s true face, the depravity that festers in every heart. Kill me? You are but one, I am a thousand!"

Faith flung her axe at the mould’s glowing yellow eye, cleaving it in two, her axe shuddering in the wood. "Nine hundred and ninety nine to go."

* * *

"Yo! Come to papa!"

"Whoo! Where have you been all my life!"

"Like men in uniform do you, kiddo!"

"You look like a dangerous weapon, good-looking, maybe I should pat you down!"

Kate shook her head and kept it down as she listened to her hormone-charged colleagues shout what she supposed they thought were romantic overtures to some poor unfortunate office worker. "And maybe I should bounce you around the office like the rubber ball you’re shaped like." Mouth agape, Kate looked up to see Faith eye-balling one of her colleagues. Cheeks reddening, the detective half-rose. "Don’t." Something in the teen’s voice pushed him back into his chair. Faith nodded. "Smarter than you look."

The teen sauntered across the shocked into silence office, stopping in front of her, an uncomfortable look on her face. "I never got the chance to say it, thanks for last night." Kate opened her mouth, Faith raised a hand. "Let me finish. I can’t forgive cops for what happened to me in the past, but I can forgive you." A second later and the Slayer was gone.

Return To Season 4.