The four of them were led through the space underneath the club. Unlike the upstairs, this room was furnished in natural oak. A roaring fireplace lay along one wall. The room was softly lit, with tastefully quiet music drifting in through speakers mounted in the corners. It looked more like a medieval tavern than a club.
Jerking aside a curtain, one of the crossbow-bearing youths gestured for the four to enter. They did.
…Into a room dominated by a giant tree.
The four gaped at it. Not a tiny sapling by any means, this tree was more than a meter in diameter at the base, extending from a patch of plain earth up through the top of the room, which Buffy realized had no ceiling. Leaning against the base of the tree, casually, reading a book, was a man. The man looked up and Buffy gasped when she saw his face.
“Dracula?” she asked incredulously.
The man shook his head and stood, providing Buffy with a clearer look. No, it wasn’t the Dark Prince. In stark contrast to the vampire’s death-like pallor, this man had dark skin and his hair shined black and luxurious in the firelight. Still the resemblance was unmistakable. He smiled, walked over to them, dressed in a poet’s shirt and brown leather pants, and bowed.
“Greetings. My name is DeGanon, welcome to my home.”
He gestured to the guards, who put their crossbows away. He smiled charmingly at the group of travelers.
“And you, if I’m not mistaken, are part of the coterie that devastated my tribe in our raid against the Grigori Estate.”
The smile was there, but there were sharp edges to it. Buffy spoke first.
“Yeah, well, sorry, but I take exception to being attacked by people flying around and hurling lightning bolts,” she retorted.
DeGanon acquiesced the point.
“Perhaps,” he replied dryly, then turned his gaze to Angel, “but this man has no such excuse.” He regarded the vampire coolly. “The legendary Angelus, renowned for his cunning almost as much as for his cruelty.”
Angel looked down. Buffy shot the swarthy man a dark look.
“As opposed to the legendary DeGanon, who raids people’s homes to steal their magic,” she bit out.
DeGanon frowned at her, but kept from retorting.
Giles spoke up. “As you may or may not know Jenny Calendar was a friend of Angel’s.”
DeGanon snorted. “Does he murder all his friends?” he replied.
Giles’ face darkened. Alec stepped in.
“Those were extenuating circumstances,” he explained. “The curse-”
“I know all about the curse,” DeGanon interrupted. “My family’s bloodline was the one that performed it in the first place.”
Angel’s eyes widened as DeGanon smirked slightly and turned to Buffy.
“When you came in here, you mistook me for our lord, Dracula, who is an ancestor of mine. I assume you know of him?”
Buffy nodded slightly, coloring a little.
“Yeah, we’ve met,” she replied.
DeGanon leaned out and tilted her chin up a little, examining the scar left by Dracula’s bite.
“So I see,” he responded quietly. He released her and regarded the group. “Our lord has us on the lookout for any and all Slayers that pass through this city,” he explained.
“Elisabeta?” Alec asked.
DeGanon turned to him in surprise.
“Yes, he seeks his lost bride. Has he told you this?” he inquired.
Alec shook his head negatively.
“Another source of information. Listen,” Alec spoke up, “we could really use your help on decoding an enchanted fractal,” he informed the gypsy lord.
DeGanon frowned.
“Yes?” DeGanon asked.
Giles nodded. “We believe it to be a spell. It’s encoded in a way that resembles some things that Jenny did before she died,” he told him.
“I see,” DeGanon replied, nodding.
He turned to someone else and said something in his native tongue. The other man’s eyes bulged and he pointed at Angel, jabbering angrily. DeGanon cut him off and sent him away before turning back to address the group.
“It just so happens, that you came at the right time,” he informed them. “We have need of such fierce warriors, and you owe a debt to us for the deaths of our kinsmen,” he added.
Buffy frowned, angry. “If any of our friends had been killed, would you owe us?”
DeGanon shook his head.
“Of course not, you are Giorgio, non-gypsies. Our rules do not apply to you,” he informed them casually. “Nevertheless, if you will aid in the coming battle, you will be rewarded. I will have the glyph decoded for you and you will be sent on your way,” he finished.
Alec frowned at him.
“If this is another raid-” he began.
“It isn’t,” DeGanon assured him. “Though, if the raid last night had been successful, the coming battle would be that much easier.”
Giles frowned. “Then what sort of battle is it?” he asked.
DeGanon turned to him.
“Our enemies, here, under the ground - the Khulghaani,” he explained.
Buffy frowned. “Another gypsy tribe?” she asked.
DeGanon blanched at the unintentional insult.
“No!” he replied. Buffy started as the gypsy lord calmed himself. “No,” he explained more calmly, “they are blood-drinkers, monstrous creatures of the dark.”
Buffy’s eyed widened.
“Bald vampires? About six or so feet tall, that can turn all shadowy and move really fast?” she asked.
DeGanon, surprised, nodded.
“Yes, this is true. How did you know?” he demanded.
She gestured to Alec.
“My brother shoulder-checked one out of a speeding subway car right onto a ten thousand volt subway rail,” she told him.
DeGanon’s eyes widened as he regarded the other man.
“This is so?” he asked.
Alec shrugged.
“I had help,” he told him, turning back to his sister.
DeGanon shook his head in wonder.
“The Khulghaani are incredibly vicious fighters,” he told them, more than a little admiration and respect leaking into his voice. “To have slain one in its own territory with no fatalities on your own side is quite an impressive feat,” he finished.
He turned to his men and, pointing at Alec, said something in Romany. Far from the angry looks they’d given Angel, the men laughed loudly and came over to slap Alec on the back, jabbering in rapid, friendly tones to the younger Giles. Alec just smiled, uncomprehending, as a gypsy woman brought him a mug of beer.
“What did you say to them?” Alec asked.
DeGanon smiled.
“I told them that you slew no less than five Khulghaani with your bare hands, and that you, the mighty warrior, have agreed to be our General in the coming battle,” he stated simply.
Alec’s jaw dropped. “You did what?” he demanded.
“ ‘The mighty warrior’.” The Slayer laughed. “I think you’ve just been promoted, ‘General Giles’, sir!”
She snapped out a salute as Alec took a long, steadying pull of the black beer. He swallowed the alcohol and coughed before turning to his grinning sister.
“Fair enough,” he replied, “and as my first act as General of the Spaarti forces, I hereby appoint you my battlefront coordinator,” he informed her.
Buffy blanched.
“I don’t lead armies!” she cried. “I just pummel things.”
Alec grinned. “Well, then it looks like you just got promoted,” he chuckled and turned to DeGanon.
“We have friends upstairs, may they join us?”
DeGanon nodded. “Certainly.”
He snapped his fingers and a man came to his side. He said something in Romany. The man nodded and turned to the group.
“DeGanon suggests that one of you travel with me, to ensure your allies’ cooperation,” he told them.
Alec turned to Angel. “Angel, would you mind?”
The vampire shook his head. “I’m on it,” he told him.
He left the room following the gypsy. Alec turned back to DeGanon, his voice slipping into that authoritative, commanding tone he unconsciously took on whenever he started making a plan.
“What are our forces?” he asked.
DeGanon shook his head.
“The failed raid on the Estate took a heavy toll, we are no more than twelve men, and a double handful of youths,” he informed them grimly.
Alec shook his head in dismay.
“I don’t suppose the youths can perform magic?” he asked.
DeGanon nodded. “Some, although the best and the brightest were with us upon the attack on the Estate,” he told him.
Alec sighed. “What about the Khulghaani?” he asked.
DeGanon shook his head.
“We are unsure, but it is safe to say that they outnumber us by no less than two-to-one,” he told him.
Alec sighed. “So, in other words, we’re outnumbered, outgunned, and expecting an attack… when?” he asked the older gypsy.
“No more than four hours from now,” he replied.
Alec sighed. “And we’re running out of time,” the appointed General finished grimly.
DeGanon grinned and slapped a hand on his back.
“It is almost unsporting! We should perhaps only send half our forces against the Khulghaani,” he laughed.
Alec eyed him incredulously.
“After all, with the General that commands the forces of fire and darkness at our side, how can we lose?” DeGanon finished, grinning.
Alec sighed, not bothering to tell the older man that he had had to tap deeper into his powers than ever before… and that the resulting homicidal frenzy that had taken him had convinced him just how dangerous such a proposal was.
Alec sighed again and looked around at the young men surrounding him.
“How indeed,” he commented dryly.
Their friends joined them shortly after. Buffy filled them in and DeGanon lead them all through a series of tunnels coming out onto the street. A quick trek across the street and they entered the sewers through a manhole cover. Dawn was less than pleased.
“Terrific. Come to New York and take in the scenic sewer system,” she commented unhappily.
Buffy smirked. “Trust me, the sewers in Sunnydale aren’t much better,” she told her sister.
Dawn snorted. “Yeah, well, give me a life where it’s a given that I won’t be slugging through sewer systems, period.”
Alec had given her a scarf, borrowed from one of the gypsy women, to wrap around her nose and block out the smell. It was hardly sufficient.
Alec walked up beside DeGanon.
“The young women, the non-combatants, where is the safest place for them, in your fortress?” he asked.
DeGanon thought.
“That would be the altar room, it resides in the center of my home and can be sealed shut with heavy floodgates,” he told him.
“Heavy enough to stall the Khulghaani?” he asked.
DeGanon nodded.
“If the battle goes poorly, we will retreat to that room and seal it. That will keep the Khulghaani at bay long enough for us to access a secret passageway, leading through a storm drain out into the street,” he told him.
Alec nodded as DeGanon held up a hand, signaling for the group to stop. Taking out a flare, the gypsy lit it and threw it down a dark corridor. Cupping his hands over his mouth, he let out a strange undulating howl. The call was returned and a few words were yelled in Romany. DeGanon responded and gestured for the group to follow. They turned the corner and were greeted by more youths with guns and tear tattoos. DeGanon waved at them to lower their weapons, they did so and DeGanon led the group into the vast subterranean complex. The roaring sound of rushing water filled their ears as they noticed about half a dozen miniature waterfalls spilling from large pipelines mounted high in the walls, spilling their contents into murky pools of water below.
“What is this place?” Faith asked, taking it all in.
“It used to be an underground reservoir. When the city built its sewer system, this was converted into a massive aqueduct system to supply the city with its water.” DeGanon gestured at the huge pipelines that flowed water into murky pools. “It has since been rendered obsolete. Rather than tear it down, the city decided to just ignore it, building around it rather than through it.”
“Your tax dollars at work,” Xander commented.
He was trying not to slip on the wet concrete catwalk, as it was lined with three pools on each side, the massive aqueducts pouring water into them hard. Alec looked around and gestured to the pipes.
“Can these be sealed?” he asked.
DeGanon nodded and, putting his fingers to his lips, whistled, making a slashing motion across his throat. There were sounds of acknowledgement and with a groan of metal, huge cover plates slid over the openings of the pipes; the flow of water first slowed to a trickle, then into nothing at all. The sudden silence was deafening, followed by a gurgling as the six pools surrounding the catwalk drained out. Moments later the concrete pits were empty.
Alec sighed. “Thank you.”
Turning to DeGanon, he addressed the gypsy leader.
“I need everyone assembled in the largest room that you have. I also need blueprints showing every way in and out of this place: storm drains, electrical access tunnels - miss nothing,” he explained to DeGanon. Sending a sidelong glance at Dawn he continued to address the gypsy. “We also better get to the altar room, I want to make sure it’s secure.”
DeGanon nodded and gestured.
“This way,” he told them, leading them down another tunnel.
Alec joined him, examining their surroundings intently.
"You!"
Alec never saw the blow that knocked him sprawling. Pandemonium erupted as Buffy jumped in front of her brother and blocked the next attack, sending their assaulter sprawling. Alec, still prone, frowned when he saw what was attacking him.
It was a man, heavy-set, in his late forties with a full bushy beard, who looked thoroughly Slavic.
"Murderer!" the man cried out again, scrambling to his feet and removing a knife from his belt, ready to skewer the young man.
A long, thin blade suddenly appeared next to his throat.
"What is the meaning of this, Antonio?" DeGanon demanded coolly, standing over his kinsmen with a needle-like sword in his hand.
"This bastardi killed my Julia!" the other man cried out, tears of grief and rage leaking out of his eyes. "He wore the demon's face as he tore her heart from her body!"
Buffy, who was helping Alec up to his feet, looked stunned and regarded her brother in shock.
"Alec, is this true?"
Alec shrugged, "I don't know, I killed a lot of people that day."
"Son," Rupert began, coming up behind them.
" 'Son' nothing! It was a battle - we lived, and they didn't. That's all." Alec retorted sharply.
"You killed my little Julia, my baby, my only family!" Antonio roared.
Alec stepped past his sister to confront the man; DeGanon took a step back, unsure as to what to do next.
"Yes, I killed her… Antonio, right? I killed her, and all the others, and if you had been there, I would have killed you as well." Alec turned to regard his own family. "If I had to kill her again, I would. If I had to kill ten people like her, I would. If I had to kill a hundred people, a thousand, all of you, I would." He fixed a level glare at Antonio down on the floor before crouching down on his haunches to join him.
"Because, Antonio, I was protecting MY only family. And if Julia or anyone else has to die for that to happen, then so be it!"
Buffy and Giles exchanged shocked glances; they'd never heard Alec sound so brutally cold.
"We've picked our General well," DeGanon said solemnly.
"I'll kill you," Antonio hissed.
"You are welcome to try," Alec said off-handedly. "And you may take comfort in the knowledge that, should you attempt to do so, you will be reunited with your daughter in short order."
The half-demon turned his cold eyes to DeGanon.
"Take him away and get him cleaned up. He is a brave man and is worthy of our respect."
DeGanon nodded and helped Antonio to his feet. The other man continued to glare raw hatred at Alec. Suddenly, he reared back and spat in Alec's face.
"I curse you! By all the powers of the Spaarti tribe, I curse you!"
With that, he shook off DeGanon's grip on his arm and stormed off.
"Get in line," Alec said quietly to the grieving father's departing form.
"Alec, what's going on with you?" Buffy demanded.
"As far as I know, nothing," Alec said, calmly wiping the spit from his face.
"You can't treat people like that Alec, you killed his child!"
"I did, and if I hadn't they might have killed you, or Dad, or Willow… or Dawn."
Buffy drew back from his accusatory tone, but Alec was relentless as he advanced on his sister.
"I'm glad you have such a clear grasp on right and wrong, sister. It must be very simple to regard the rest of the world as either 'good' or 'evil'. But in case you haven't noticed, the good guys keep dying, yourself included, because they won't do what I do."
"What have you been doing, Alec?" Buffy whispered with dread.
"What needed to be done," Alec turned away from his sister. "You keep to the moral high ground, Buffy, don't sully your pristine Slayer hands if you don't want to. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go save all our lives."
With that, he turned and walked off into the dark to plan a war.
And to do what needed to be done.
A short time later found DeGanon, Alec, and two other men straining unsuccessfully against a huge cover plate. After a while, they gave up and turned to the assembled group.
“I am sorry,” DeGanon apologized, his face red with exertion, “but the plate has rusted shut, it cannot be moved. This room has not been used in many weeks and the corrosive atmosphere of the sewers has taken its toll.”
Buffy casually walked past him and, throwing her shoulder into it, shoved the metal plate aside with a groan of tortured metal. The assembled men’s eyes bulged in shock as the petite Slayer finished shoving the metal portal aside and turned to regard the gypsy, brushing flecks of rust from her shirt.
“It’s all better now,” she told him.
The man just nodded his head, dumbfounded. One of the other men crossed himself, muttering a prayer. Alec frowned and turned to DeGanon.
“That reminds me, do you have a priest here?” he asked.
DeGanon nodded. "Yes, in fact, we do. You have already had the somewhat dubious pleasure of meeting him."
Alec sighed; he knew what was coming next.
"Antonio?" he asked quietly.
"Antonio," the gypsy lord confirmed.
Alec and DeGanon exchanged a quiet, collected, and very calm look. What Buffy read into it chilled her to the bone - if Antonio would not stand with them…
Turning towards the altar room, Alec gave it the once over and nodded, satisfied.
“Where’s this storm drain passageway?” he asked.
DeGanon pointed at a large stone cross set on the altar.
“It is behind there,” he told him.
Walking over to it, he pressed a hidden catch with his foot and the massive stone cross popped open. The group peered into it, noticing a long narrow darkened tunnel.
“This crawlway leads out of a storm drain and onto the street,” DeGanon told them, gesturing. “It is about ninety meters long.”
“Two hundred and seventy feet,” Giles commented, peering at the crawlspace. “That would do it,” he nodded and straightened.
Alec turned to Dawn, placing his hands on her shoulders.
“Dawn, when the battle starts, I need you to stay in this room.” He turned to Anya, but continued to talk to the young lady. “Anya will keep you company. If something happens, I want you and her to get into this tunnel and get out of here, you hear me?”
Dawn shook her head.
“I’m not leaving you,” she said stubbornly.
Alec smiled, touched at her loyalty, but crouched in front of her.
“Dawn, if you have to leave, and I’m not with you, then chances are I’m already de-.”
“Don’t SAY that!” she cried. “You’re my hero, you can’t die!”
Throwing her arms around the older man, Dawn held on tightly. Alec held her back, whispering reassuringly. Buffy turned to the rest of the group, who were taking the display in with looks of compassion.
“We should check the rest of the hideout,” she commented.
Everyone nodded and mumbled agreements. Willow placed a hand on Alec’s shoulder. He opened his eyes and looked at her, still holding the frightened Dawn. He nodded to her, letting her know he’d be okay. She smiled at him and followed the rest of her friends out of the room. Dawn hiccupped and pulled away. Alec wiped the tears from her eyes.
“Listen, don’t worry about me, okay, Dawn? I’m a survivor.” He tilted her chin to look up at him. “Remember, I promised to always watch over you?” Dawn sniffled and nodded, Alec grinned. “Well, then I will,” he told her.
He gave her a tight hug, feeling his own eyes beginning to ache. The thought of dying, of leaving this girl undefended in this world of darkness and hatred, filled his soul with dread. He buried the feeling and looked back at her face. Smiling, he leaned in and placed a warm kiss on her cheek. Dawn closed her eyes and rested her head against his. When he finally pulled back, Dawn touched her cheek.
“What was that for?” she whispered.
Alec smiled. “For letting me be your hero,” he replied.
Dawn smiled at him, her eyes shining through her tear-streaked face as Alec reached out and gently stroked her cheek affectionately. Dawn leant into the caress.
“You’ll always be my hero,” she told him.
Alec smiled and nodded. “Bet on it,” he replied.
Taking her hand he led her from the altar room back to join the others.
“Okay, so, here and here are the access tunnels,” Alec gestured to the map.
DeGanon nodded. “Yes, they run the whole length of the city, two hundred miles in total,” he told them.
Alec nodded. “Okay, get them sealed,” he instructed. DeGanon shot looks to two men who hurried to obey. “That leaves only this main access point, here,” he pointed at the map, “where we all came in.”
The gypsy nodded. “Yes. If there is to be an attack, it will have to come from that direction. All other access points will have been sealed and it would take a while for even the Khulghaani to break through.”
Alec nodded and sighed.
“All right, then. Basic strategy: bottleneck the enemy, force them to come through one way only, and make that one way as unpleasant as possible,” he turned to his father.
“Remember the siege of Masada?” he asked.
Giles nodded. “One thousand Jewish zealots resisting a siege of two years against the Roman Empire in 70 A.D.,” he replied.
“What happened to the Jews?” Xander asked.
“All but seven committed suicide rather than be captured by the Romans when the fortress fell,” he replied.
Xander blanched and turned to Alec.
“Alec, pick another battle, preferably one where the defenders actually won,” he demanded.
Alec shook his head.
“Think about it though: one thousand untrained Jewish zealots versus an entire legion of professional soldiers, that’s at least ten thousand men,” he told them, “and they held out for two years.”
“We don’t exactly have a thousand people,” Faith noted dryly.
“We’re not exactly facing the entire Roman legion, either,” Buffy replied, seeing Alec’s point, “and I’m willing to bet we only have to hold out until sunrise. Vampires get pretty sluggish if kept up past their bedtime.” She turned to their resident vampire. “Right?”
Angel nodded. “No vampire will fight during the day if they can help it,” he replied.
Alec clucked his tongue in acquiescence
“Okay, so that’s what we have to do,” he sighed and checked his watch. “Sunrise is in five hours, the Khulghaani are due in three. Which means this battle will be done in two hours, give or take.”
“Or we’ll be,” Xander commented darkly.
Alec nodded, and grinned.
“But unlike the Jewish zealots, who had the numbers, we’ve got the Slayers,” he gestured to Buffy and Faith, “a pretty formidable witch,” he gestured to Willow, who blushed, “a vampire, who’s seen a lot of action,” Angel nodded, “and about thirty people trained in the arcane arts and both ancient and modern weapons.”
DeGanon grinned and slapped his shoulder.
“And we have you, the mighty General!” he declared.
Alec rolled his eyes and sighed, not really willing to argue the point.
“Okay, so let’s get working on those defenses.”
Everyone nodded as Alec laid out the plan.
They were all assembled in a large concrete room, just past the aqueduct chamber.
“Okay, I have to ask,” Buffy spoke. “Who are you people?” she asked turning to DeGanon.
DeGanon smiled slightly.
“We are mortal descendents of the Romany,” he began, gesturing to the dozen or so dark-skinned men and women around the room. “When our lord and master arrived to these shores, we accompanied him. He assigned us to this city, while he himself continued on to Sunnydale.”
“The two most likely places for his Elisabeta to manifest - either the largest city in America or the Hellmouth,” Giles chimed in, nodding. “It makes sense.” He smiled slightly and looked up at the gypsy. “Your loyalty to your vampiric lord is well-documented. It is said that you follow him to the death.”
“And beyond my friend,” DeGanon replied, “and beyond. Nevertheless we have remained here in this city, searching it for our master's lost bride.”
“Okay, I get you,” Faith put in, “and I get them,” she continued, gesturing to the gypsies around the room, before turning to DeGanon, “but what about all these guys?” she asked gesturing to the kids.
The gypsy smiled.
“Ah, this is our redemption,” he beamed at the youths. “Each of these children was encountered in our search for Elisabeta. They each have great potential in the mystical arts.” He sighed. “Unfortunately, they are also outcasts, banished from their homes by unbelieving parents fearing their gifts. Thus the enchanted teardrop tattoos.” He sighed once more and shook his head. “We provide what we can, we teach them so that they may teach others and thus spread hope,” he finished smiling.
“And to provide reinforcements for the occasional magical pantry raid?” Buffy asked, a little skeptical.
DeGanon sighed and shook his head.
“We take magic from other places, because we need it to defend our sanctuary from the forces of the outside world, the chief amongst these being the Khulghaani,” he explained. “Without the magic that we take from others, we ourselves would be exterminated.”
“So why not just ask Marlena for a cup of magic, or whatever?” Buffy demanded.
DeGanon snorted.
“Ah, yes, I can see how well asking an ex-Slayer to provide for the servants of the Prince of Darkness would go,” he replied sardonically.
“You may just be surprised,” Buffy replied, smiling secretly, remembering the elder Slayer’s confessed relationship with the vampire prince. "In any case, it’s okay to draft us into your little war? In case you haven’t noticed there are two Slayers present.” She gestured to herself and Faith, who grinned and nodded.
DeGanon nodded.
“It has not escaped my notice, young warrior. But you and your companions have incurred a debt of blood regarding the Spaarti tribe, a debt that must be repaid if you are to receive our assistance in your quest.” He leveled a finger at the blond Slayer. “Since our best and our brightest died at your hand, you will take their place to defend our home.”
Buffy fell silent.
Alec spoke up. “Speaking of that there's a few other points I want to bring up: firstly…" And with that the General continued to lay out his desperate plan to protect these people.
"I don't care! I will not support that demon and neither will any of my flock!"
Antonio was screaming, red-faced, at DeGanon. The two were alone in a secluded part of the Spaarti sewer kingdom and the gypsy lord was attempting to recruit the priest's help in the coming battle. It was not going well as he pleaded with the man.
"Antonio, please be reasonable. We cannot defend our home without your aid, and we certainly cannot afford to have our people split in two if you insist on denying us not only your help, but also the help of the congregation!"
"He is a monster! A demon! He killed my Julia before my eyes and he enjoyed it!"
"Yes, good, fine; he is a monster,” the gypsy agreed placatingly, “but right now is a time for monsters!" the swarthy man placed a comforting hand on Antonio's trembling shoulder. "In times like these, evil must sometimes be fought with another type of evil."
Antonio shook him off angrily. "That is a deal with the devil, and neither I nor any who worship in my chapel will take part in it! I say it is better to lose our home, even our lives, than lose our souls by dealing with this evil creature!"
DeGanon sighed. "I'm sorry you feel that way, old friend."
He grabbed Antonio by the shoulder, quickly spun him around and drew his blade, poised to strike.
"Enough!" a voice cried out.
Both men stopped, stock-still as Alec emerged from the shadows.
"That's enough, DeGanon. We will win this battle with or without Antonio's faction. If we must retreat, we will, but we will not murder a grieving father for his rage."
"Great General, without his people-" DeGanon protested.
"Without his people, it is a more difficult battle, but we already acknowledged that this would not be easy. Murdering Antonio will not gain us an ally, it will only make him a martyr in the eyes of those who follow him and guarantee that they will not aid us."
"Vile demon spawn!" Antonio spat.
Alec turned to address him.
"Yes… yes, I am a demon spawn, and perhaps even vile. I had no choice in the matter; it is my birthright and my curse. The power of Hell itself flows through my veins."
Alec turned to go, then stopped and addressed Antonio over his shoulder.
"But I have a choice as to what I do with it, and I choose to defend my family and friends. Tell me, father, you are a free willed man with no taint of the infernal in your blood – what is your excuse for allowing your hatred to cause you to abandon your people?"
"You should thank me for ending Julia's life, in doing so I have spared her the knowledge of what kind of man her father really is."
Antonio went from red with rage to bone white with shock as Alec vanished into the dark. Even DeGanon looked nonplussed at the sheer brutality in the young man's fading words. Having nothing to say, the gypsy leader left Antonio alone in the dark.
Three hours later, which somehow managed to pass both too slowly and far too quickly for all concerned, they were ready. Alec huddled in the main tunnel, DeGanon beside him, waiting, their senses taunt and tense. Their breaths echoed loudly in the stone tunnel, and there was no light, save for some afterglow from service lights at the far end of the tunnel.
The end that the Khulghaani attackers would be coming from.
Alec crouched a little lower into the muck and peered at the end of the corridor.
"The men are frightened," DeGanon said softly.
Alec nodded. "I know. I can feel it."
"Perhaps some words from their General to encourage them?"
Alec took a deep breath and spoke quietly, in a strong, low voice that carried in the tunnel without, he hoped, giving away their position.
"Brothers, you stink of fear - the Khulghaani can smell it as well."
There were a few mutters of consternation at this. DeGanon sent Alec a puzzled look. This was his idea of motivating the men?
Alec continued. "But that's their weakness - they need that fear in order to fight, to win. These are not the wolves of your ancestors that wandered Romania and drove back the Turkish hordes. These are jackals, mere scavengers, drawn by the scent of your fear and what they perceive to be weakness."
Alec grinned tightly.
"They are in for one hell of a surprise."
Now the men responded, sending tight, brave smiles at each other.
"Remember that through your blood flows the blood of the Dragon Prince - your lord Dracula - who took arms against the superior numbers of the Turkish caliph, and sent him scurrying back to where he came from. Remember that yours is a fierce blood, a proud blood, and if any of these blood sucking bastards want it, they will have to trade a gallon of theirs for a drop of yours."
The men began to cheer quietly. Alec had them in the palm of his hand now; it was time to wrap things up on a high note.
"You are the songs of Dracul, the warrior prince, and I say to you that while fear may be their way, it is your legacy! I say that this fight is ours, that their unbeating hearts shall freeze cold and dead in their chests with dread, and that we have already won. We are living men, and they, they are nothing more than corpses."
Alec drew a wooden stake from within his jacket.
"Let's put these corpses back in the ground! Let us impale our enemies on wooden pikes as your noble ancestor once did. Let us show them what real fear is!"
The men cheered loudly then; a long, defiant cheer that was one part war cry and one part the roar of some great beast. Alec smiled grimly to himself: if the Khulghaani heard that, no matter. Perhaps it would simply assure the invading vampires that these men would not die afraid.
Alec turned to address DeGanon, who was grinning wolfishly in anticipation - Alec's words had touched his heart as well and he was no longer afraid.
“Remember, wait until I give the word,” the young man instructed him.
DeGanon nodded and turned back to look. His eyes widened and he grabbed Alec’s arm.
“Look!” he whispered fiercely.
Alec squinted and saw it – a vague humanoid outline, looking more like heat ripples in the air than anything solid, was slowly creeping up the tunnel, followed by another, and another, and another.
Alec nodded. “Get ready,” he whispered.
DeGanon removed the flare from his pocket. More cloaked shapes moved into the light and began to advance on them.
“NOW!” Alec yelled
With a Romany war cry, DeGanon lit the flare and hurled it into the darkness, where it, with a loud whoosh ignited the slime lining the floors and walls of the narrow cavern, fueled by the flammable chemical waste DeGanon had had the foresight to keep in barrels for such an occasion. There were screeches of rage and pain as the tunnel exploded in fire and light, revealing hordes of the bald vampires, writhing in the flames.
Alec turned and cried. “Open fire!”
Without warning, two rows of men brandishing crossbows stepped out of the shadows behind Alec and DeGanon, and took aim at the burning figures. The first row dropped to their knees and fired, skewering several of the vampires with crossbow bolts. The second row advanced as the first row fell back to reload. They too, took aim and fired, impaling several vampires with their bolts causing them to explode into dust.
But the tunnel was rapidly filling with hordes of the monstrous creatures and Alec grimaced inwardly - DeGanon’s estimation of two-to-one odds had been grossly optimistic. The second row of crossbowmen fell back as a gypsy in robes began chanting. The vampires began advancing again as the flames began to exhaust their fuel. DeGanon hurled a Molotov cocktail at the advancing creatures, making them snarl and forcing them to fall back slightly. The gypsy mage finished his spell and bolts of lightening flooded the narrow corridor, striking the oncoming vampires, causing them to jerk and convulse as electricity raced through their bodies. The spell ended and Alec stood up.
“Fall back! Crossbowmen cover!” he yelled.
The first line of crossbowmen that had finished reloading, unleashed another barrage of lethal bolts, slowing the Khulghaani’s advance before quickly herding out of the narrow corridor. DeGanon followed, but Alec stopped, turning to regard the horrific vampires. They had begun advancing again. Alec dug into his pocket and found Willow’s magic ball. Kissing it for luck, he leaned back and hurled it at the vampires. The ball struck the ground.
…And a gargantuan dragon suddenly filled the tunnel. Alec’s eyes widened as the massive wyrm roared at the creatures and they screeched in terror and fell back. Alec looked up and noticed that there was a shimmering distortion where the dragon’s head met the ceiling. He understood instantly.
“Cute glamour, love,” he commented.
Unfortunately, chances were the Khulghaani would unravel the trick soon enough. Turning, he dashed through the doorway.
“Seal it!” he cried out.
Three gypsies quickly shoved the massive cover plate over the entrance and set to work on it with welding torches. They had just finished their work when the metal began to bulge outward from having blows rained on it from the outside. Alec turned to a gypsy man in robes wearing a rosary.
“You all set?” he asked.
"I am."
"Good."
"I will see you in hell, demon!" Antonio whispered fiercely to Alec.
Alec sighed and readied himself for battle. "Not if I see you first, Padre." He gestured to DeGanon. “Get your people out of here, fall back to the meeting room and prepare defenses!” he commanded.
DeGanon nodded and, giving Alec a slap on the back, took the youths and herded them out the back. Alec turned back to Antonio, who was getting ready to do his thing. He looked up at a pair of youths at the switches mounted on the far end of the wall, then turned back to the door that was beginning to buckle. Grabbing the priest, he retreated onto the catwalk.
“Get on it, Padre!” he yelled.
The priest removed a bag of holy wafers, and, praying rapidly, dumped their contents into the empty concrete pools lining both sides of the catwalk. He finished just as the door collapsed and furious vampires came barreling into the room.
“NOW!” Alec yelled
…And, with war cries, Faith, Buffy, Angel, Giles, and Xander came bursting out of the side alcoves, impaling the vampires with giant wooden pikes, sending them tumbling into the concrete pits below. The group formed ranks, swatting the vampires away, knocking them from the narrow catwalk, which forced the Khulghaani to close their ranks and attack single file to pursue the heroes. Some of the Khulghaani decided to descend into the concrete pits and try to outflank them. Alec grinned fiercely at their unknowingly grievous tactical error and gestured to the lads at the switches.
“Throw them!” he yelled.
The boys threw the switches and, with a groan of tortured metal, the cover plates of the aqueducts slid back, allowing a deluge of water to flood the concrete pits, slam into the vampires, and knock them down with crushing force. The vampires howled in rage, which soon became screams of pain as the holy wafers began to dissolve, turning the watery pits into giant pools of holy water.
“Enjoy your Jacuzzi, guys!” Faith yelled at the frothing screaming beasts slowly being dissolved by the holy water.
Willow had entered the room at this point from behind Alec.
“Now?” she asked.
Alec nodded and Willow raised her hands into the air.
“Goddess Hecate, work thy will, turn water into weapons of holy might!” she chanted
A blue light surrounded the witch’s hands and the lethal water, filled with dissolved vampire remains, shot out of the pools with a roar, combined into a great tidal wave upon the catwalk, and crashed into the advancing vampires. They screeched as the deadly liquid dissolved their flesh.
Alec grinned. "Fall back! Next room!” He had to scream to be heard over the rushing water.
Grabbing Willow’s arm, he pulled her across the catwalk towards the other end of the room. The rest followed as the vampires began to regroup.
There was a cry and Alec turned to see that Antonio had slipped on the catwalk. A scarred and pitted hand had lashed out of a pool, caught the old priest’s leg, and dragged him screaming into the water. Alec hesitated only a moment before running across the catwalk, sliding and skidding on his knees to grab the older man and halt his descent. Antonio screamed as the bubbling water quickly took on a reddish tint.
"I've got you, Padre! I'm not letting you go!" Alec cried out.
"Let me die, demon!" Antonio replied, his voice filled with agony.
"Enough good men have died today!"
With a heave, Alec hoisted the priest out of the water and he gagged at what he saw.
Antonio's legs had been severed at his hips, making him look like a shark attack victim.
The mortally wounded priest fell against the young man heavily, Alec fell backwards, cradling him, trying to simultaneously reassure the priest and get to his feet to get to safety.
"You're going to be all right, Antonio," Alec whispered, stroking the old man's hair back.
The priest reached up and touched Alec's face, almost tenderly.
"You have the Devil in you, my son."
Then his hand fell and he was gone.
Tears unexpectedly welled up in Alec's eyes. The old man had hated him, true, but he had been brave to a fault and, in the end, he could not condemn this man for hating the being who had taken his only child from him.
Grief gave way to rage and Alec leapt to his feet, darkness oozing out of his pores like blood. He turned to face the others.
"I'll buy you some time!" he called out, his voice already shifting into the deep inhuman pitch it acquired when his demonic side came out.
Then he froze. Willow was right there, watching him with wide, terrified eyes.
"Willow?" Alec rasped, his voice momentarily returning to its normal tone.
"What are you?" she whispered.
"Yours."
And with a cry, Alec charged towards the oncoming vampires. He slashed and hacked and tore at them, killing by the droves. His wounds healed nearly as quickly as they were inflicted as the Khulghaani fell back against the rage and grief of the darkness demon. Time lost all its meaning and, for a moment, Alec found peace in the slaughter.
"Alec!" Buffy cried out. "Let's GO!"
Alec turned, and saw that some of the vampires had in fact made it past him and were heading towards the door that his friends were keeping open so that he would not be trapped. Realizing his blunder, he raced towards the door, slaughtering any vampires unlucky enough to be caught in his path, and dove across the threshold. Buffy and DeGanon slammed the door shut.
“Is everything prepared?” Alec demanded as he got to his feet, darkness draining out of him.
DeGanon nodded as two youths began welding the door shut, sealing the room.
“It is!” he assured the other man, then frowned. “Where is Father Antonio?”
Alec just shook his head. DeGanon’s eyes narrowed in rage as he fingered a stake hanging from his belt, cursing softly in Romany.
“The bastards will pay for that,” he growled.
Alec nodded. “Agreed.”
They turned to see the door already beginning to warp and buckle under the blows of the Khulghaani. Alec turned to the group.
“Prepare to fall back to the altar room. Ready for hand-to-hand combat,” he instructed.
Buffy and Faith grinned, dropping their pikes and taking out stakes.
“Let’s do what we do, sister,” Faith grinned at Buffy.
Buffy nodded. “Girl power,” she replied.
Alec turned to Willow.
“Any other tricks up your sleeve, princess?” he asked.
Willow was looking at him like he was some sort of abomination and it wounded him deeply, but she swallowed her fear and replied calmly.
“The weird water spell was my last one,” she told him.
Alec nodded.
“Okay, in that case, when we get to the altar room, stick close to Dawn and Anya. If things get hairy, take the secret passage out of there, got it?”
The redhead paled, but nodded, not bothering to argue. She turned to go, but Alec grabbed her arm, spun her around, and captured her mouth in a long passionate kiss, desperate and fiery. They pulled apart and Alec shoved Willow towards the door to the altar room.
“Go!” he yelled.
She nodded and fled from the room. Alec turned back to the gypsy lord.
“You ready to work your mojo?” he asked.
DeGanon nodded and began to chant. Alec turned to Buffy.
“What’s on your mind, sis?” he asked casually.
She favored him with a wry grin.
“The fact that, right now, I could be at home, drinking nog and eating roast beast (is it really roast ‘beast’? I keep thinking that some other similarly sounding word should be used, but one that I can’t unfortunately remember) instead of in the New York City sewer system in the middle of a war,” she replied.
Alec chuckled. “Yeah, but think what great stories it’ll make for our respective children,” he replied.
She snorted just as a particularly loud crash ripped their attention back to the battle.
“Here they come!” Xander cried.
With a crash, the door caved in and Khulghaani flooded into the room, claws and fangs dripping.
“Now!”
Alec yelled to the gypsy lord as he threw a curtain of darkness over the advancing vampires, blinding them. DeGanon began a spell and, suddenly, bright blue sparks of light begin swirling in the room. Alec’s breath crystallized as the temperature in the room plummeted to well below freezing. He lashed out with a darkness tendril severing the pipe over their heads, causing it to disgorge a torrent of water, dousing the advancing vampires. DeGanon finished his spell, a bright blue swirling storm in his hands and, with a cry, he flung it at the soaked creatures. The blue light slammed into them and instantly began to freeze the beasts in their tracks. The enchanted ice engulfed the first few groups of vampires, blocking off the room’s entrance with a huge sheet of ice. DeGanon smiled grimly and, lashing out with a pike, shattered the frozen vampires.
“That was for Father Antonio, you blood drinking sons of bitches!” he spat at the frozen remains and turned to Alec. “I have exhausted my spells, we must retreat.”
Alec nodded and turned to the rest of the group.
“Fall back!” he yelled as, already, shards of ice began to flake off the mystical barrier, preventing the vampire’s advance.
The group hurried into the next room and Buffy and Faith moved the massive plate into place. Alec’s eyes became pools of darkness as he readied himself for combat. The youths brandished bowie knives and wooden pikes, having been informed that their guns would be useless. Alec threw a look at Dawn and Willow, who were hiding behind the stone altar, out of sight and safe with Anya. He nodded before turning to Buffy.
“You ready to do that voodoo that you do so well?” he asked wryly.
Buffy grinned and tightened her hold on her stake.
“They want a war? Let’s give it to them, bro,” she replied.
She turned to Angel, who had his game face in place, wielding a sword that DeGanon had dug up for him.
“Angel?” she asked.
The vampire turned to her and saluted with the blade. Giles and Xander, along with the older gypsy men, each had crossbows cocked and ready. Faith narrowed her eyes in anticipation.
“Let’s rock!”
That was the cry of the younger Slayer when the roaring vampires came bowling through the steel door and into the room. Faith met one head on and staked it, already attacking a second before it could explode into dust. Buffy and Alec met the next wave as crossbow bolts flew over their heads to decimate the rear ranks of the vampires.
“Reload!” Xander called out.
The gypsies fell to their knees and busied themselves with their weapons. The youths descended on the vampires, stabbing slashing, and impaling the monsters. Alec lashed out with sharpened darkness whips, severing arms and heads wherever they struck. Buffy continued to pummel any vampire that came too close as DeGanon fought with massive curved blades, wreaking havoc on the Khulghaani.
“Romani Victor!” he cried out in blood-fueled battle glory.
But the fight was not going well, for every vampire they slew, two flooded into the room to replace it. Alec grimaced as more vampires barged into the room; he turned to Buffy, who was busy dodging a Khulghaani’s claws.
“I think we’re in trouble,” he yelled.
Without warning, a clawed hand lashed out, catching him across the head. Alec tumbled to the floor even as the creature reared up to administer the killing blow. He tried frantically to roll out of the way when the beast suddenly screeched in rage and exploded into dust. Alec saw a wooden bolt embedded in the wall above him and turned to see his father nodding curtly at him. He rolled to his feet and gave his father a grateful nod.
A sudden movement off to his right caught his eye and Alec turned, his eyes widening in terror. Somehow, one of the vampires had gotten passed them and had almost made it to the altar, which sheltered Dawn, Willow, and Anya. With a wild cry, Alec hurled a vampire out of his way and dashed over to them. The vampire lunged at Dawn, who screamed in terror and jutted her hands out in a futile gesture to keep the demon at bay. It had time to growl once before a blurred, snarling dark shape plowed into it like an enraged freight train.
“You’re,” Alec tackled the creature to the floor and, picking him up, slammed him against the wall with a loud crunch, “Not,” he continued to slam the creature over and over, back and forth, against the wall, quickly turning it into a pulp, “Touching HER!”
With a roar of rage, Alec brought his arm up and slammed it down into the creatures face. Blades punctured the beasts face, skewering it, the creature spasmed once and died. With a growl, Alec retracted his arm… and stared at it in shock.
His arm, instead of ending with his hand, now terminated in a variety of sharp blades and hooks, all made of dark metal and crackling with violet strands of energy. He stared uncomprehendingly at the weapon attached to his arm, running from the middle of his forearm all the way to out past his hand. With a metallic snap, the blades folded in on themselves, disappearing under his skin, leaving only a few crackling bolts of purple energy. Alec shook his head, frowning in disbelief as he turned to Dawn, who should have been terrified out of her head by the viciousness of Alec’s attack and the blades that had just emerged from under his skin. Strangely, her face was calm as she hugged him; he held her back tightly.
“Are you all right?” he asked hurriedly.
She just nodded. He looked over at Willow, who had come running over; he quickly released Dawn into Willow’s grasp.
“Get someplace safe and stay there!” he yelled.
They nodded and fled as Alec leapt off the altar and landed beside Buffy.
“I think a miracle would be nice right about now!” the blonde Slayer yelled.
And on cue, a miracle arrived.
An eruption of shotgun blasts quickly gave way to the sounds of dying vampires. Alec frowned as one of the rear most vampires exploded into flames; he peered over their heads and his jaw dropped at what he saw.
“That’s right!” a familiar voice yelled out. “I’m back and I’m a bloody animal! Yeah!”
“Spike!” Buffy cried out in disbelief and joy as another vampire exploded into dust, revealing the blond vampire wielding a pump-action shotgun, spewing flaming death and howling at the top of his lungs.
“Yeah, you like that? How about you, mate?” he roared, game face in place as he fired flaming shell after flaming shell into the surprised vampires. “Come on! There’s plenty of Spike to go around! Incendiary rounds for everyone!” he yelled joyfully, mowing a path through the vampires.
“Yeah!” Buffy cried and redoubled her attack on the vampires.
The sudden arrival of a shotgun-wielding Spike had turned the tide back into the Slayers’ favor. Alec grinned and lashed out with more darkness, spreading screaming vampire death throughout the room. Spike bludgeoned a vampire to the ground before reversing his grip on the shotgun and firing. There was a bright flash from the barrel as a flaming projectile flew from it and impeded itself into the creature’s heart. It screeched and burst into flames.
“Where the hell of have YOU been?” Alec yelled joyfully as he roundhouse-kicked a vampire to the ground before decapitating it with a flick of his wrist.
“Sightseeing!” Spike replied as he fired another shell into the vampires’ midst. “Then I heard about a little war going on and thought I’d enlist!”
Alec grinned and lashed out with a fist, smashing a Khulghaani away from the blond vampire. Another wave of crossbow bolts crashed upon the monstrous vampires and, with a roar of rage, they began to retreat.
“We’ve got them on the run!” Alec cried, charging after them. “Finish them off!”
With a last, rallying cry, the room emptied as gypsies and the surviving youths charged after the fleeing creatures. They fought them back to the aqueduct room and knocked them into the still draining pools of holy water, where they died screaming and thrashing. The vampires tried to run, but with no way to cross except the narrow catwalk, which was soaked with holy water, they were cornered. DeGanon and his forces pursued and cut them to ribbons; those that didn’t die in the pools, died by stake, blade, pike, or crossbow bolt.
And suddenly, it was all over.
Alec looked around, dazed, but the battle was done. Spike swaggered over to him.
“Miss me, mate?” he asked wryly.
Alec grinned and gathered the vampire in a tight embrace amidst much manly back-pounding.
“Your timing, ‘mate’, is impeccable,” Alec replied, releasing the vampire.
Spike grinned, before reasserting his masculinity.
“Yeah, well, a hug was a little much. A handshake would have sufficed.”
Spike grinned again and suddenly exhaled hard as Buffy came running up to him, leaping into his arms, hooking her legs behind the vampire’s back, and kissing him full on the mouth. Spike dropped the melted shotgun and kissed her back fiercely. Alec’s eyes bulged in surprise as he took in the display. Finally, the pair parted, Buffy lowering herself to her feet.
“Don’t you ever run off like that again!” she warned direly.
Spike crossed his heart.
“Done deal, love,” he replied grinning.
“How did you know where to find us?” she asked breathlessly.
Spike favored her with a cocky grin.
“Well, the great gob’s not the only vampire ever to reside in the Big Apple, besides, every bloke knows about the Goth church,” he answered, shrugging. “I just followed what people were telling me, and here I am.” He grinned at her.
Buffy kissed him again.
“You’re so smart,” she replied cutely.
Spike grinned and threw an arm around the Slayer, following Alec back into the chamber to meet with the others.
[Reviews - 33]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | 
Chapter or Story
Has been viewed 879 times
- Text Size +
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | Chapter or Story - Text Size +
Author's Chapter Notes:
Sorry for being a few days late - but there's new material in here for you!