Chapter 41 -
Spiral
Something wasn’t right.
Buffy could feel it through to her soul. She looked around making sure that
everyone was in position. It wasn’t necessary. They were and had been since the
first attack on the perimeter. Angel and she were at the front windows
downstairs, Xander and Anya were at the upstairs window, Giles and Jenny were
at the back of the house while
The protection spell was
fading. It would only be a matter of moments before Glory punched her way through
and the real battle would begin. Everyone was tense but ready. There was less
than twenty-four hours before the time of the ritual. After that it wouldn’t
matter. Buffy closed her eyes for a moment as she hoped that Spike was able to
get Dawn out of town without incident. Everything hinged on it.
“You okay?” Angel asked.
“No, but I will be,” Buffy
said.
It was only seconds but it
seemed they shared almost a lifetime of love as they stared into each other’s
eyes. Everything they needed to say was given in that one glance. She smiled at
her Angel and knew that whatever the outcome, everything had been worth it.
“They’re through,” Xander
yelled from upstairs.
“Coming through the back,”
Giles shouted from the rear of the house.
Glory’s minions seemed to be
appearing from nowhere. Little blobs of brown that flooded across the lawn and
straight toward the house. Buffy raised her cross-bow, aimed and let it fly.
She hit one and even as it fell to the ground, there were more to take its
place. Windows broke as they crawled into the house. She could see the arrows
flying from the upstairs window as Xander and Anya tried to stop some.
“Buffy, they’re in the
garden,”
Footsteps pounded down the
stairs as Xander and Anya came down to help with the invasion of the
downstairs. Anya armed with a bat attacked one that was coming in from the
kitchen. While Xander rushed out to help
“They’re like cockroaches,”
Buffy groused as she fought hand to hand with one.
They were everywhere at
once. Angel was fighting with two. He snapped one’s neck after he threw one
across the room. Jenny came running in from the back with Giles right behind
her. Buffy signaled for them to head for the garden. Contain them and they’d
have better luck if all of their forces were fighting as one.
Buffy quickly surveyed the
area as she burst outside.
Finally the last remaining
few were running. Buffy turned to see who was wounded.
“Let’s get inside and get
everybody looked at,” Buffy said. She put a hand on Angel’s arm to keep him
from following. “We have something else
to worry about.”
“What’s that, Buffy?”
“Where the hell is Glory?”
~~~~~~~
Spike leaned forward. “Step
on it, Faith, I think there’s someone following us.” He turned back around as
the van lurched forward. The car speeded up, too. Dawn went to pop her head up
and he pushed it back down. “Stay down, niblet, don’t want anyone seeing you.”
Things had been going like
clockwork up until now. They had found the exit through the water lines easily
enough. From there it hadn’t been hard to find Wesley and Faith waiting for
them and to start the ride into
“Watch out, Faith,” Wesley
said. “The car is coming up beside us.”
Faith swerved the van to
avoid the car aimed at their side. She sped up hoping to lose it but the
smaller car gained on them again. This time it darted out in front of them
forcing Faith into a tailspin. The van was skidding out of control and Spike
jumped forward to help.
“I can’t get the wheel to
straighten out,” Faith yelped, as she and Spike both tried to get the vehicle
back in the right direction. It continued to slide until it bumped over the
edge and finally stopped half in a ditch.
“Grab weapons,” Wesley
shouted.
“Stay under the blanket,”
Spike told Dawn as he covered her with it. “Don’t move unless I tell you to.”
“Okay,” Dawn said.
There were three minions
along with a man climbing out of the car. It took Spike a moment to recognize
him. It was Ben from the hospital. He furrowed his brow as he wondered why the
doctor was with Glory’s minions then suddenly he became Glory. He shook his
head as he contemplated if he had gone mad or not. There wasn’t time though as
he followed Wesley and Faith out to stand defensively in front of the van. He
watched as Glory approached them with apparently no fear of them or the weapons
they bore.
“Which one of you is my
key?” Glory asked looking first at Faith then to Wesley.
“’Fraid
you got the wrong people,” Spike said, stepping out in front of the others.
“Don’t know anything about your soddin’ key.”
“Search the van,” Glory
instructed one of her minions. “Make sure they haven’t hidden anyone.”
“Don’t think so,” Spike
said.
Wesley and Faith moved
forward to flank him. He glanced at both of them to make sure they were ready
before swinging at Glory. She grabbed his wrist, trying to bring him to his
knees but he kicked out to knock her off balance. She teetered for a moment in
the boots that were too big for her feet but managed to keep from falling.
“That was a mistake,
vampire,” Glory said. She grabbed a handful of his hair, twisting him around.
“You are expendable to me because you are nothing.” She flipped him easily with
a flick of her wrist, sending Spike down onto the black asphalt with a loud
thud.
Spike rolled to his stomach
as the blonde god reach for Wesley. The Watcher had been beating one of the
minions with an axe handle until Glory grabbed his wrist. The snapping of bone
was louder than the repeated thuds of flesh upon flesh. Wesley didn’t cry but
only tried to retaliate with his other hand. It was almost watching slaughter
as Spike pushed himself back on his feet. Faith was going back and forth
against the other two of Glory’s helpers but she was backed against the van.
“Fuck you bitch,” Spike
snarled, vamping out and tackling Glory to the ground. He unleashed all his
pent up anger on her, raining blows on her repeatedly as he watched her
expression turn to one of fury.
“Spike, watch out,” Wesley
called
The blow came to the back of
his head before he was able to react. Stunned, he fell on top of the enraged
Glory. He was unceremoniously pushed off of her and through blurred vision he
watched her stand up.
“You can’t stop me,” Glory
said, grabbing Wesley before Spike could move. She smashed his face into the
side mirror. This time Wesley did cry out. Blood gushed from the wounds caused
by the glass that was still imbedded in his face. Everyone seemed to freeze as
Glory pulled the man to her. She licked along his chin, made a face before she
spit it back out. “You’re not my key.” Pushing Wesley toward her minion, she
headed toward Faith.
Ignoring the blinding pain
that was echoing in his skull, Spike jumped up to his feet. He reached the
minion before he was able to grab Wesley. Wrapping his hands around the
grotesque little thing’s head, he snapped it with one clean twist. He dropped
it to the ground as he reached for Wesley.
“Spike, help,” Faith called.
Looking over, he saw that
Faith had managed to immobilize one of the minions but the other one had her
pinned while Glory pummeled her. Spike quickly put the newly unconscious Wesley
on the ground before rushing to the Slayer’s aid. Faith kicked out at Glory but
she only laughed as she caught the leg.
“When are you, people, going
to learn?” Glory mocked as she brought her knee up into Faith’s. The snap was
audible. Unable to stand, Faith slid to the ground. Spike realized he was the
last holdout between this god and Dawn. He quickly assessed the situation as he
advanced on Glory. She was kneeling beside the fallen Slayer. “This is going to
hurt, precious.” A jagged piece of the mirror was jabbed into Faith’s arm then
brought up to the blonde’s mouth. “Not you either.” She laughed. “Well, well,
it seems there must be somebody hiding. Dreg, search the van like I told you to
before.”
“Back off or he dies,” Spike
said, grabbing the minion and holding him in front of him.
“Do you really think I care
about that little puss filled cavity face?” Glory said. “Kill him. All I want
is my key.”
It was then that everything
changed. The minion that Faith had previously rendered unconscious had
disappeared. Spike looked around when he realized it was missing but it was too
late. The axe handle landed on the back of his head again. He let go of Dreg as
he tried to defend himself but the blows kept raining down on him. The
dizziness was overwhelming and he fell to his knees.
“Spike, help me, please.”
He heard Dawn’s crying for
him but she seemed so far away. His head lolling to the side he watched as
Glory changed back to Ben as they dragged Dawn away. Faith tried to crawl to
help but Ben placed a well aimed kick to her face that sent her sprawling
backwards. His last conscious thought was that he had failed…again. He allowed
the darkness to overwhelm him as the first rays of the new morning shone on his
boots.
to be continued…
