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Chapter 8



Buffy landed with a loud groan and a splash, then she felt herself slipping into cold sticky, slimy mud.

Spike landed with a thud on hard ground.

“Urrgh! Bu-Buffy!”

He heard a gargling noise and Buffy desperately trying to breathe – she was choking and had begun to thrash and Spike managed to grab her hand and haul her towards him. The suction of the slimy wet mud had on her was almost too much, and as soon as he stopped pulling her, she soon began to slip back

“Baby – don’t thrash – let me…pull – UUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!” He panted hard, and pulled again, he was almost at his limit with sheer exhaustion, and then at last there was a sickening squelch, as finally the mud relinquished its hold on her and released her - she was free, and panting next to him

“What happened? - Babe…Buffy, love – Buffy – speak to me”

Spike frantically tried to feel for the torch, then his lighter, he flicked it open and lit it, holding it up in the air…

“Buffy?”

She was obviously out cold – cold being the operative word – this hole had never seen the sun – and suddenly a familiar odour reached his nostrils. Blood. Buffy’s blood.

“Oh Christ no, did it get you? Come on babe, let me look, where are you…oh FUCK!”

Spike, feeling up her leg, felt the entry wound – gingerly cupping his hand around the back of her thigh, he felt the exit wound too – the bullet had gone clean through her leg!

Seeing a small pool of water, Spike went over to it, turning game-face, he could see in the dark with his preternatural sight that it looked clean. He picked up his wife and gently laid her next to it, and began to wash the wound.

Buffy came to with a groan

“H-hurts – oh god Spike!”

“Shush, s’okay baby, I got you – ow!”

“What – “ Buffy reached for her torch and switched it on, then seeing it was covered in mud, she wiped it and trained the beam on her leg.

“Can you move it, pet?”

“OW - GODS that hurts!”

“Should think it does pet, went clean through your leg!”

“Well who’d leave a booby-trap like that?”

“Don’t know sweetheart…locals most probably – to catch that beastie – there………can you sit up, it might help stop the bleeding – besides, it’s crawling in here!”

Buffy managed to leaver herself up on her elbow and lean against the earth wall, bending her bad leg best she could.

“Oh god Spike…look at your hand!”

Spike’s hand where the snake had bitten him had swollen up, indeed, he could barely bend his fingers, and the flesh on is hand was going black………

“Spike – you really have to get the poison out!”

“All in good time babe, I want to see to you first!”

“I’ll be okay – my healing will kick in…let me suck the poison out of-“ Spike pulled his hand out of her grasp sharply and Buffy looked up slightly shocked

“NO! Babe, I know you’re only trying to help, but you can’t – you have split your lip, you can’t risk getting any of this venom in your bloodstream – it’d kill you”

Buffy patted her chest, and said

“Oh hell, the locator’s come off my top………the radio – oh Spike look – the radio it’s…”

“Kaput, yeah” Spike held up the radio cover with a few wires trailing from it – that’s all he could find.

“Has the weapon gone too?”

“I had to let go of it to try and scrabble out of the quagmire – oh boy, they’re gonna love me for loosing it!”

“Never mind that pet, you get some rest…you’ll heal quicker”

Spike lay down beside her, exhausted – he was starving hungry but couldn’t feed.

Buffy was cradled in his arms and closed her eyes, then she suddenly opened them in alarm and said,

“They won’t know where we are!”

“Don’t worry pet – we can get going soon, just rest a while hmm?”

She relaxed against him, and fell asleep, every part of her ached, and her leg hurt like no injury she’d had before – but she was comforted that Spike was next to her.


A few hours later Buffy woke – she was being dripped on, she realised that there must have been a rainstorm and the water was dripping off the large ferns that were still partially covering the whole above them.

She tried to straighten her leg, but it felt like she was being stabbed with red-hot knives, the pain was excruciating.

When her eyes got used to the dark, she located the torch and switched on.
Spike had his bad hand lying on his stomach, the flesh was turning black and his whole hand was swollen to about four times it’s usual size.

“Spike…Spike, babe, come on wake up….”

Eventually she got him to stir – she could tell in an instant something was wrong, he was very weak.

“Baby, when did you last feed hmm?”

“Huh? – um…blood-wise…day before yesterday”

“Spike! No wonder you’re weak, come on, here, I insist!”

She held her wrist up to his mouth, but Spike immediately turned away

“Can’t!”

“Yes you can – I’m already feeling a lot stronger – I didn’t loose that much blood”

“No Buffy, I CAN’T!”

“Spike, do I have to punch your demon out, coz –“

“Babe…listen to me – if I feed, it’ll re-animate my heart, it’ll send my circulation round, and then the snake venom will reach my heart – and kill me like it would kill you – paralysing all the muscles – I wouldn’t be able to feed – I’d just turn to dust in a few days”

“WHAT! Why didn’t you tell me this before! We’ve gotta get out of here!”

“That would be the plan, yeah – but I can’t do it kitten…I’m too weak and I’d only slow you down – you go…save yourself”

“What do you mean? Do you honestly think I’m leaving here without you?”

Spike’s voice got weaker

“You have to babe…look, remember one thing, I’ll always love you”

“Spike – shush! We’re going to get out of this”

Spike nodded slowly, and closed his eyes, he was totally exhausted

Buffy shifted herself to cradle his head against her chest and she kept kissing and stroking his hair as tears dripped down her face, she whispered,

“I won’t leave you, Spike – I won’t, I love you”

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

Cordelia laughed at the soldier’s little joke and placed her lunch, a bowl of soup in front of her.

Angel sat moodily drinking coffee, he didn’t like the way this soldier was ogling Cordelia…

Gunn was reading a newspaper, eating a sandwich.

“Could you pass me the – oh - OH – OH GOD Ahh!” Cordelia half stood, one hand went to her forehead, she had reached her arm out for the basket containing the bread rolls, but she suddenly had to grab the table to steady herself as a ‘vision’ came over her – it was blurry and it happened so fast, but she saw a close up of a snake, then there was a loud noise – falling…falling…a scream –

“CORDY!” Cordy swayed and her eyes rolled

Gunn dropped his paper and raced around the dining table to his colleague and friend.

Gently holding her shoulders Gunn managed to sit her down before she fell

“What is it, what’s wrong?” Riley asked concerned.

“Hold on, she’ll tell us when she’s ready…Cordy, you okay - would somebody get me some water please…come on love…” Gunn fanned her with a napkin

“Is it Buffy has something happened?” Riley looked worried

“I suggest you give her some air, let her breathe, she’ll soon tell us…here you go Cordy, take a sip of this………there” he put the glass of water on the table after holding it while she took a few mouthfuls.

Cordelia leant forward, elbow on her thigh, rubbing her forehead.

“Snake – a small one – poisonous then there was a loud noise”

“Noise? What kind of noise – could it be the beast do you think?” Riley asked, hovering over her

“Will you quit with the questions – man !” Gunn glared at Riley, then turned back to her

“Here you go, Cordy, have some more water…now when you’re ready”

“Falling…falling and falling the noise, screaming – I - I don’t…Buffy’s in trouble, serious trouble – they both are”

“Okay, but this noise – could it be another beast do you think?”

Gunn whirled around and glared at Riley again and said,

“What did I just tell you – she’ll tell us when she’s ready – can’t you see how much these visions take out of her, it’s not like watching a video you know!”

“I’m sorry, look, I’ll get onto base-camp right away” Riley went to lave the room, but was met by a soldier entering the dining room

“Sir!” the soldier snapped a smart salute, and then leant in and whispered conspiratorially to Riley

“Right, thankyou, I’ll be there directly”

“Everybody…can I have you attention please – (everybody looked expectantly at Riley, who continued) base-camp have just informed us that they have lost all contact with Buffy and Spike, no contact has been made for the last hour by either the radio or the satellite navigation system”

“So what happens now?” Angel asked

“Good question – we try and re-establish contact”

“And if you can’t?”

“Then I’ll have to get further orders from my superiors” Riley said

“Wrong answer soldier boy, we go look for them, that’s what!” Angel said incredulously

“I’ll have to see what – Angel, let go, roughing me up isn’t going to help!” Angel had grabbed Riley by the lapels of his combat jacket and hissed

“No, but it’ll make me feel a whole lot better – now you get and contact whoever it is you’ve got to contact – the rest of us – I suggest we get packed and ready to head on out” Angel said

“Where will you go?” Riley asked

“Base-camp 1 – where do you think?”





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