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Author's Chapter Notes:
The timeline at the start of this chapter goes back to a few hours before the previous chapter ended. I hope it's not too confusing.

Warning: This chapter includes more extreme violence & blood-n-guts than previous. Also, there's some grown-up words. If that bothers you, or you are too young to see those things in movies, please step away from the fic.
Fade Away Again, Chapter 14

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Connor

Joy's not much of a fighter, but she's trying. Gotta give her a nod for effort. And for looking hotter than anyone has a right to after they've been out in the rain overnight, but that's really beside the point.

As the better fighters get tired, and little injuries start to add up, more demons have snuck past the front line. We've been working too hard covering everyone's backs to fight our way back to the front, so I can't even plug the gaps, really. Joy can't be in the front line; she'd get dropped in a second, and I'm supposed to be her partner, so I have to stay back. Which is pissing me off. I'm one of the strong ones; I should be out there in the front causing some serious damage. Backstage is no place for me.

Even as I'm thinking that, a big grey thing comes out of nowhere; would've sliced Gunn in half if I wasn't there to jump in the way and kick its ass. So, I guess there is a method to me being here after all. When Gunn’s safe back up on his feet again, I turn to help Joy with the demon she can’t seem to kill, and out of the corner of my eye I catch Spike taking a knife to the jaw. That’s gonna leave a mark…Yup, when he turns to help one of the Slayers fighting near him, the cut is spurting blood down his neck, and I’m pretty sure I see bone through it.

Not life threatening by any stretch; and vampires can’t get infections, but it’s still freaky. I suddenly want to check on how my pops is doing, but I can’t take my attention away from Joy and Gunn for very long. Between the three of us we’re holding our own, killing things - but it’s taking all three of us.

I don’t know why Gunn’s back down on the ground; I thought he was banished to the fire escape until his side started healing. Guess he likes the hands-on approach. Or, we ran out of crossbow bolts. That’s probably more likely. I’m not ashamed to say I was happy for my time out; he’d probably be up there if he could do any good. Joyce would be better off back on the fire escape. I still can’t figure out why the little one kicked her off.

My shoulders are pulling against the bandages, and I think fleetingly that I’m gonna need to be stitched up again before this is over. Then more of those flying gnome things show up, and Gunn’s axe swings into the air. Damn, he’s got serious aim with that thing.

The rain’s sped up again in the last few minutes, and suddenly the temperature drops…Like, plummets. It’s spring in southern California and my teeth are fuckin’ chattering. What the hell’s going on? They can’t kill us with demons, so they’re doing it with flu? Joyce lurches to the side, ducking behind me, and before I can see what’s coming she jumps back out from behind me, right over my head, and throws the whole weight of her body into the demon. She’s holding a sword in front of her with both hands, and as gravity pulls her down, she guts the thing wide open. When her feet hit the ground, she lurches back up with the sword and lops off the head. Graceless, yet effective. I think I like her.
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Angel

Zen is all well and good, but even vampires get tired of killing things after a while. Eventually my concentration is broken by the roar of another dragon, and I shift my stance to look for it. Circling for now, smaller than the last one. It can wait.

I don’t remember how long ago it was that I last went in for some blood, but I’m flagging again. Unfortunately, the Slayers need more food and rest than Spike and I, so they get it first. The younger blonde just took off, and the short brunette still isn’t back yet, so I can’t rest.

When the temperature drops, I can feel it but it doesn’t bother me. Lower body temp in the first place means less sensitivity to cold, lucky for us vamps. The Slayers are feeling it, though. Pretty much instantly, their response times slow. I wouldn’t notice, except that the girl closest to me was fine a minute ago, and now she’s struggling to keep pace.

I'm having trouble keeping track of things, processing details. That should bother me, but right now I can't focus too much on myself, unless I want to end up mud. No way I'd stay dust in this rain. I finally spot Connor and Gunn; holding their own, backing up each other and one of the Slayers. They're wet and bloody and nowhere near as strong as I know they can be, but they're still upright, still fighting. It's more than I could have hoped when we started this.

Next thing I know, Gunn gets swiped across the chest by something nasty, and Connor covers them while the Slayer supports him towards the Hyperion. Every instinct screams to run after them; to push the girl away and carry him inside on my own; but I force myself to stay where I am and fight the battle I'm meant to.

Connor gets swarmed in the absence of the other two, and Elise moves towards him as she fights, steering the demons as she cuts them down. I try to help her help Con, but the enemy is closing in around us; suddenly the alley is packed tight with demons.

I swing my sword around as quick as I can, opening up more space around me so I can at least turn and see how they're doing. Which turns out to be a very good thing, since Elise and Connor are just far enough apart that they're both swarmed and can't help one another. Time slips away as we all throw ourselves into the fight, and the corpses pile up around us. Times was, this would have been a party to me. Now it's all about protecting these kids, my team, and the world.

I'm punching and kicking and cutting, pushing myself to move faster than ever, working my way slowly towards the kids, using all the momentum I can get to push myself forward, but not reaching either of them. The blonde Slayer who carried Gunn away a lifetime ago returns to back Connor up, and if she's not the most skilled fighter, she's doing well enough to keep herself alive and take some of the weight off him. I'm still trying to fight towards Elise without much success. If the demons have thinned out in the last few minutes, there are still a wall of them between here and there.

I kill a brown scaly thing that manages to take a chunk out of my calf before it dies, and as I look up, the unthinkable happens before my eyes. Connor gets pushed back by the demon he's fighting, straight into one behind him, almost knocking the blond on her ass as he stumbles. He can't recover quickly enough, and then he's losing as both of them press the advantage. Elise dodges under a demon's arm, aiming for a blow to the torso, when another punches her in the back, sending her to the ground with a scream of pain, and then there are three of them standing over her…

I don't think, I rush for Elise. Connor's got backup, so there's hope for him. I've been fighting, one way or another, more than long enough to know what happens when you lose their footing in battle. You die. I launch myself at the girl, knocking one of the demons to the side and landing atop the Slayer in just enough time to block the axe-like weapon bearing down on her with my body.

There's a sickening squelch and a searing pain accompanied by a sandy, grinding sensation that sets my teeth on edge; and I try to ignore the pain and roll away, raising my sword again…Except, my right arm doesn't seem to be holding any weight. Then, everything goes black.

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Lorne

We've been running around here like loonies since they brought Apple inside. The sight of her injuries prompted everyone who could get up and out to do so. It gives Doc and me more room to do our thing; but it's also unfortunate for our fighters, because some of them still belong here. Willow sticks around to help long after she should have left; makes sure we've got things straight, and she even uses some little spells to augment our primitive medical facilities. Luckily, the witch seems to be back up and running. And not a moment too soon, I fear.

Teen Slayer's bone is pushed back together with a pin, the veins are re-attached, and we're working our way through stitching everything else back together with a combination of thread and magicks.

Then, Joy and Elise drag Angel in.

At first I can't process what's happened. Angel's right arm is nearly separated from his torso, but rather than a clean cut through the bone like Apple's, whatever did the severing somehow wedged into the joint and popped it apart. We're out of beds, Gunn still dead to the world from sedatives, so the girls lay Angelcakes on the floor, and run off in search of something else to put him on. It isn't until they're man-handling…Or, should I say Slayer-handling…Another bed into the room that I realize Elise is sobbing.

Joy's trying to reassure her, but I have a nasty suspicion that platitudes aren't going to help here. Unfortunately, we can't send her back out until she's calmed down, so it's up to Uncle Lorne to reassure the trembling warrior.

Once the bed is squished into the room, and Angel moved onto it; Joy takes off, and I force Lise to sit next to me so we can talk while I assist the Doc, allowing Willow to do what she can for Apple on her own. "This is all my fault." She whimpers, waving a shaking hand at Angel. I'm about to try sweet-talking her into giving up more info, when she starts speaking. "I mean, I knew he was gonna get hurt saving me, that he would try to sacrifice himself for me; but then he just…Th-Threw himself under an axe to protect me, and the blood…The blood just went everywhere, and I s-saw the axe hit his shoulder, and then it kinda got lo-lodged there, and the demon twisted the axe trying to get it loose, and there was more blood, and this horrible ri-ripping sound…And it got the axe loose, and it was gonna swing again, but Joy killed it, but then I was stuck under Angel, and he blacked out, and it took all…All three of us to move him, and then there…There were too many demons; we had to carry him, then stop and clear a path, then move him again; it took almost an hour to get inside, and he's lost so much blood…An-And it's all my fault…"

She's weeping openly, now; too overcome with tears to speak. I have no idea what to say. Poor kid, it's hard knowing what's gonna happen. I always knew Angel's pride would be his downfall if he didn't watch himself. He's blown back and forth across the line between Champion and arrogant prick so many times the last few years, it was touch and go which side he'd come out on. Luckily for us, he seems to have fallen on the side of justice. Still, it breaks my heart to know that he's come so close to losing everything.

I give up on helping the Doc for a few minutes, and hold the sobbing Slayer, using my best crooning and advice combination to calm her down. When Elise begins to calm, I drag her away from the injured and into the restroom to wash her up and get her some drinking water. It takes a few minutes, but she eventually stops crying and panting and finishes her water, and I know it's time to get her back out there. Angelkins may be a vampire, and likely to heal the injury on his own, but neither the Doc nor I will allow him to heal an injury this serious without a little medical attention, at least.

Now, how do I get her out of the medical room without having her freak out all over again if she sees her vampire protector? I evaluate her slouch and the pinched look of anxiety in her eyes, and I'm just about to launch into one of my famous pep talks, when it's like a switch is flicked. Suddenly, the sensitive and cheerful 14 year old I've been dealing with all day is gone, and in her place is a Slayer.

"I'd better get back out there." Elise says quietly, with a firm strength I haven't yet heard in her voice. "They'll need me to help with the fighting. I have people to protect, and I'll have to help bring Sp…" She winces and looks up at me. "Neither of them will be a vampire for much longer. They're both going to be alive again, and badly injured on top of adjusting to that. It'll get worse for all of us before it gets better." She stops and takes a deep breath. "But, it will get better. No one is going to die in this battle. Just…Be careful with Angel, okay? Don't rely on vampire healing to fix everything, he might lose his arm that way."

With those disturbing last words, little Elise stands up, steels herself, and throws open the door; marching through the room and out into the hallway as quickly as she can. As she disappears, headed for the exit, I thank whoever sent her here today. And I hope that she's right, and makes it back inside so I can talk to her some more. If anyone in this dimension could understand how it's been for me, always knowing the mistakes good people are about to make and being unable to stop them, I think it would be her.

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Willow

If anyone had told me yesterday that I'd end up doing psychic surgery on Angel, I'd probably have laughed at them. But, that was before his arm was nearly popped off like a cork; before we heard from a seer that Angel and Spike were about to be brought back to life. Will they be human? Will they remember anything about being vampires? The questions flutter through my brain, all willy-nilly, but I try hard not to let them distract me. There just isn't enough technology, or (excuse me for saying so) a good enough surgeon here to do this the old fashioned way. And if we're expecting more wounded, we need to get Angel on the way to healing fast.

Of course, what would really be helpful was if I could get out there and kill a bunch of demons with magic. But, I'm the only one here who can do healing spells. Or, maybe Wesley and Penny could, but they've been expending all sorts of magical energy for the last two days, neither of them is likely to have the strength left. And maybe Elise could, I'm not entirely sure. But then, if I need a Slayer type battery she's probably the best candidate, and…

"Willow, are you concentrating?" Lorne asks. "Far be it from me to tell you how to do your magicks, but Angel-cakes is lookin' a little rough around the edges, and nothing seems to be healing itself inside that wound."

"Sorry, sorry." I can feel myself flush, and curse internally. "Yeah, I was just thinking about everything I need to do after this, and my train of thought kinda slipped off the tracks."

"Well, hurry up and do everything you need to do and let me at him, so we can both get on with our lives." Ron mutters. Sheesh, he's a touchy one. I don't know what I ever did to him, other than sleep in one of his 'patient' beds while no one else was using it and then help him heal the poor little blonde Slayer, but he doesn't seem to like me too much.

Working as quickly as I can to enhance Angel's healing, I concentrate as veins and muscles re-align themselves. Then I work on easing them back together, closing the gap between the parts of his shoulder.

When I've done as much as I feel comfortable doing, I step back out of the way and let the doctor step in and finish. As he brushes past me, his arm and mine meet for a second, and I get an uncomfortable shock of energy from the touch. It shocks me so badly, I'm frozen there next to Angel's bedside for a moment, gaping at the back of a head covered in thinning black hair. I know what that energy means, and how strong it can be when opened up to magicks. I've never felt it from a guy before, not even Oz, and it confuses me. I wish I had time to reflect and meditate on it; to sit Ron down and have a conversation with him…But then I draw myself back together and get ready to go. They need me outside to stop the flood of demons; I can worry about other things later. Still, as I leave the room I send a quick blessing back onto everyone inside, hoping I'll get that chance to talk later.

Some nice person has dumped a bag of casting supplies at the bottom of the staircase leading from our rooms into the lobby of the Hyperion. Not bothering to worry more than a little about whom they might belong to, I grab the bag and a knife to defend myself with and run out into the rain. The very cold rain, as it turns out. Damn, wish I'd brought a jacket with me. Maybe there's one inside I can borrow? I'm about to duck back inside the building and search, when a battered-looking demon runs out of the rain heading right for me. I assume one of our people fighting is hot on his…Its?...Heels, so rather than casting a spell on it I cast one on the knife, to help me strike a killing blow. Luckily, despite my frantic casting the spell works, and I send a quick apology to the Goddess for my inattention to her gifts as the big brown thing falls to the ground. I have no idea what that thing is, but it sure is ugly.

Which is about the time I realize no one was following it. I take a quick look around and don't see anyone, so I slip into a trance state and ask the Goddess' protection for the Hyperion. Once the building is protected from hostile intent, I step away from the back porch, hurrying towards the harshest battle sounds I've ever heard. The sheer loudness of it all overwhelms me, and I wonder if this is like what Buffy and Faith came up against in the Hellmouth. Neither of them is eager to discuss it with me, and I missed that part. Not like Faith and I have ever talked a lot, but we've gotten better lately about discussing work-related things; Buffy and I have been easing back into talking again, but with the Spike-dying factor involved she didn't much want to revisit the final battle of Sunnydale. Maybe now that he's not dead, she'll be more willing…

While my brain wanders all over the place, I've been steadily moving closer to the fighting; luckily nothing else has tried to jump out at me. By the time I can see battling Slayers and Demons through the downpour, and realize that I've wandered far too close to the fighting, a young man jumps out at me from behind the demon he's just killed. Luckily he realizes I'm human in time to pull his punch, or I'd be pieces of Willow. Then I realize I'm looking at Connor, Angel's son. We stand there frozen in shock for a second, then he leans close to speak to me. Which is a good call; I don't know how I'd be able to hear him otherwise. "You the witch?" He bellows.

I just nod, not sure I can get my voice loud enough to reply at this point. The wind and rain are almost frightening on their own, not to mention the battle going on around us. As I stand there wondering how Connor plans on helping me get where I need to be, he abruptly spins away from me, and faster than my eyes can follow he's fighting a Fyarl demon. I want to be able to help, with magicks or warnings, or…Something…But it's not safe for me to be where I am, and I have places to be. So when I spot Joy I make a break for her, hiding behind the Slayer as she takes out whatever it she's fighting; another demon I've never seen before, I know that much.

When the demon is good and dead (and oozing into a puddle of green and purple jelly, which is gross) Joyce drags me to a fire escape and practically throws me up the ladder. I continue to climb until I reach three bleary magic users trying to demolish anything they can with fireballs. In the normal course of things, I'd tell Wesley and Penny to pack it in and get some rest, but when I work my mojo we're going to need clean up crew, and none of us are one hundred percent. Not to mention the packed infirmary.

I grab Penny first, telling her to send Connor up. Other than being tired from days of magicks Penny's probably the least injured among the fighters; but fear for her Slayer is making her stick close to Elise, and I have to get old-school Giles-y on her butt, and remind her of her sacred duty before she listens to me.

Once she heads down the ladder, I tackle Wes. It requires less arguing than I'd have expected to get him to take a sword and go after Penny. In case the boy won't listen to a Slayer he barely knows, I repeat my order. And how weird is it that I'm giving orders? Anyway…

For a second, it's just me and Elise, standing there in the rain. I meet her eyes, and she returns a look that acknowledges what I'm about to do; it shivers up my spine, and I find my concentration broken as I wonder what she knows and if I need to know any of it…Then Connor pops up the ladder, breaking the spell between us. I fumble for a minute, trying to find my center again, and by the time I'm prepared I'm faced with two teenage warriors, injured and soaked with freezing cold rain, staring at me. And I'm ready.


Chapter End Notes:
I really hope you're all still with me here. It's lonely by myself...



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