It took Giles and Andrew just over three hours to get to Buffy and Willow and then the gang took another 45 minutes to reach the outskirts of the village where the Immortal was holding Spike.
They were all now sitting in the back of the van discussing tactics and weapons. Buffy was pleased to see that amongst the various weapons Giles and Andrew had brought was the scythe she’d used in her defeat of Caleb and the First.
Andrew was recounting the results of his research on the Immortal - his weaknesses; apart from a tendency to grandstand and be vain, appeared to be none. Methods of killing him were equally vague and it had to be said that when someone like him lives over five hundred years, given that he does enjoy pissing people off, killing him must be difficult. General consensus was that cutting off his head would work, hence the scythe.
Willow and Giles had been working on various spells that might help. Giles agreed with Willow that it was obviously a trap so getting in would be easy. It was the getting out that they were worried about, so they were trying to find something that would leave a doorway open in whatever the Immortal had surrounding the house. Since he’d successfully cloaked it they had to presume he’d also have a barrier to prevent them from leaving.
Willow decided to see if she could get into Spike’s mind again, hoping that as they were so close and that they had had contact, albeit briefly, she’d manage to get a link.
She sat quietly in the van turning her thoughts inwards, gently and delicately trying to establish a contact.
< “Spike? Can you hear me?” > she asked.
Spike was laid on his stomach, only half awake. He thought he was dreaming when he heard the voice floating through his mind.
< “Spike. Concentrate. Can you hear me?” > The voice came again.
< “Red?” > his reply was faint but clear.
< “Yes, it’s me. We’re here and we need your help.” >
< “Here?” Spike didn’t know whether to be pleased or saddened by the fact they had taken the bait. “ But I’m……” He baulked at saying he couldn’t see. “I can’t…….fight.” >
< "Don’t need you to fight,” said Willow, “Do you know how many there are?” >
< “Two big vamps, the Immortal and another guy with some scary mo-jo. Well, they’re the only ones I’ve seen.” > He winced mentally as he said ‘seen’.
< “Okay. If anything changes or you get in trouble just find me. It should be easy for you to do.” >
Willow severed the link. Buffy looked at her expectantly.
“Well?”
“Only two vamps and one other guy plus the Immortal. But there’s something I’ve got to tell you, Buffy. Spike didn’t say but he’s not used to mind linking and didn’t realise I had access to all his thoughts. He’s hurt; badly hurt. Oh, Buffy he’s blind.”
“Oh, God! No! Poor Spike, all because of me. This ends now. I’m going to finish the Immortal once and for all.”
Andrew and Giles were aghast at the news and everyone agreed that the time had come to go in. They had to get Spike out before the Immortal killed him. Since he’d done his job by getting Buffy there, they’d have no further use for him.
Ooooooooooo
Spike sat up and tried to stand, struggling as he had nothing to hold on to. He made it after a lot of effort and stood there panting and swaying. He took a couple of steps. His legs felt strange somehow; a little slow to react when he moved. His left leg wasn’t great but it held his weight.
“Thank Christ for that,” he thought.
He wondered why he hadn’t told Willow he couldn’t see. That could put them all in danger if they were planning a quick getaway. But he just couldn’t face the thought of Buffy knowing. In his Swiss cheese memories of her, she was so strong and he’d matched her, fighting by her side. What hope would he ever have of being with her now?
The door opened and he turned his head in the direction of the sound. Surely they couldn’t already be here?
“Oh, damn!” said Gordy when he saw Spike was standing up. “I was hoping that crawly thing had done for your legs what the slug did to your eyes.” Malice was evident in his voice.
“Shit,” thought Spike, wondering what Gordy was going to do.
Without warning Gordy spun on one leg and kicked Spike viciously in his stomach. He went down like a stone, barely able to catch his breath, retching and coughing.
Gordy laughed. He went out of the cell for a second then returned.
“Here’s your dinner,” he said, slamming it on the floor, “Think you can find it? Enjoy it - it’ll be your last one. Once the Slayer’s here the boss has said I can have some fun with you. Lots of stuff out there for me to use” he sneered as he left.
“You’re dust. One way or another you’re dust, you git,” said Spike, hating being at his mercy.
He crawled along until he came to the tray. Carefully he found the cup of water, making sure he didn’t spill it. He was desperately thirsty but sipped it cautiously, wondering if anything had been put in it. It tasted okay so he decided to risk it. The food turned out to be a couple of pieces of half stale bread.
“Oh, yeah. Five star place this,” he said as he chewed on a piece. He couldn’t remember the last time he had a proper meal.
Ooooooooooooo
The gang stood in the shadows looking at the house they were about to enter. It had been decided that Willow and Andrew would find Spike with Andrew leading him to safety, Willow then backing up Giles and Buffy against the Immortal. She’d be able to find Spike by psychically linking with him again, finding Buffy and Giles the same way.
All were well armed, Buffy having her trusty scythe and the others having both a wooden stake and either a sword or axe.
“Okay guys, here goes,” said Buffy. She looked at Andrew, “Just make sure you get Spike out, okay? I need him safe.”
Andrew nodded, terrified at the prospect of the fight ahead but willing to do anything for Spike.
With that they walked across the lawn, Buffy and Giles heading to the front of the house, Willow and Andrew the back.
At precisely the same time Willow and Giles cast a spell forcing entrances to appear in the protective barrier around the house. They stepped inside.
< “Spike! Talk to me so I can get a fix on where you are,” > Willow called out in his mind.
If Willow was here Buffy must be too. God, let them be okay. He knew he couldn’t survive if Buffy died. He sat on the floor hugging his knees trying to listen for any clue as to what was happening, knowing it was futile as the cell was totally soundproofed.
Willow and Andrew ran along a passageway, weapons at the ready, but so far they’d seen no one. Willow concentrated so she could guide them to Spike. They came around a corner and saw a new looking door. They stopped, looked at each other, took deep breaths and opened it. It revealed a staircase. Cautiously they went down. They passed an area with a tiled floor and walls with white tiles. A high pressure hose hung to one side of it. They walked past it silently. Another door was in front of them and again stealthily they opened it. As they saw inside the room Andrew gave a gasp of alarm.
“Shh!” warned Willow, although she too was totally freaked out at the sight of all the instruments and devices. On one side were various sized cubicles. Spike was in one of them.
“Come on,” she whispered to Andrew.
< “Spike, we’re here,” > she said in her mind.
said Spike, his answer guiding her to the middle of the strange cubicles.
He had just managed to get to his feet as they opened the door. As it swung open they caught sight of Spike. If he could have seen their faces he wouldn’t have been able to mistake their looks as anything but horror. They couldn’t believe what they were seeing. He was barely recognisable, skin covered in cuts and bruises. Blood from the wound on his back had run down his sides and legs. But his face - his eyes. The right eye was the worst, heavily swollen and bloody. What bit of eye you could see was red where it should be white, lines of dried blood where stained tears had ran down his cheeks. The left was less swollen but still horribly bloodshot. He stood there swaying slightly.
“Spike!” exclaimed Willow.
“Thank God! It is you. Thought when you didn’t say anything it was one of the vamps,” he said in relief.
“Come on,” said Andrew, “Let’s get you out of here.”
“Good plan but………..er…….bit of a problem….” started Spike, unaware of quite how bad his eyes looked and not realising that even if Willow hadn't read his thoughts they would have known he couldn’t see.
“We know,” said Willow, “Let Andrew take your arm and let’s go.”
Andrew stepped over to Spike, put his axe down and took hold of his left arm, knowing he’d need more help on that side because of his leg. Spike leant on him gratefully and they walked out of the cell.
“Okay, Andrew. Make sure you get to the van. Buffy’s counting on you,” said Willow.
“Buffy?” said Spike.
“Not now, no time. Just get out of here!” ordered Willow.
She helped Andrew get Spike up the steps then left them to go down the passageway to get out. She then headed off up another flight of stairs to where she could sense Buffy and Giles were.
Ooooooooooooo
Buffy and Giles went up to the front door of the house and entered. A long twisting staircase was before them. They started to climb, Buffy a couple of steps ahead of Giles, her senses working overtime as she crept upwards.
Just as she got to the top a vampire appeared out of a door. He was huge, with black hair in pony-tail. Buffy leapt into action.
He started when he saw them.
“How did you get in unnoticed?” said Bill in surprise. That wasn’t part of the plan.
“Why have you got such dorky hair?” asked Buffy as she turned the scythe in her hands and jabbed the pointed wooden handle into the vampire’s chest with lightening speed.
He exploded into dust.
“One down,” she said to Giles.
She opened the door Bill had just come out of and stepped boldly inside. The sight that greeted her stopped her in her tracks. The room was beautifully furnished, tastefully decorated and typical of an English country house. There, sitting in an armchair near the fireplace and looking every inch the English country squire that he wasn’t, was the Immortal.
He looked at Buffy and Giles as they walked in.
“Well Buffy, how nice of you to stop by, but a little rude not to ring the doorbell, perhaps. And look, you’ve brought what, your grandfather along too? So sweet.”
“Why you……..” started Giles.
Buffy put a hand on Giles to restrain him. She looked at the person before her and wondered how she’d ever gotten involved with him in the first place. She supposed that in her grief at losing Spike she hadn’t been very rational. Now there he sat having done God knows what to Spike. Anger was burning inside her.
“You made sure that I came. Here I am. What do you want?” she asked coldly.
“You, of course. No woman spurns me! You’re not leaving here again. You’re staying with me. How do you like the place? Had it built 300 years ago. It’s got some special features, as that worthless creature Spike has been finding out,” he sneered.
At the mention of Spike Buffy stepped forward.
“Shut up! You’re not fit to speak his name!” she yelled.
“Don’t worry, soon the only use there’ll be for his name is it being written on his grave stone. Gordy should be preparing him for your visit by now.”
“Big vamp, black hair?” she asked, “He’s dust.”
“Oh dear, poor old Bill. But no, darling, that wasn’t Gordy.”
Buffy and Giles exchanged glances, worried for the others.
“Enough talk,” said Buffy, going towards the Immortal with her scythe raised in attack.
The Immortal waved a hand casually in her direction and she was flung backwards crashing against the wall.
From the corner of his eye Giles saw a movement. It was a wizened man moving with astonishing speed for one so frail looking. Giles turned, sword at the ready. He got almost to the man when suddenly he couldn’t move, feet seemingly glued to the floor. The man grinned at Giles’ struggles and approached him, digging into his pocket and pulling out a box. He opened it.
“Let me introduce you to the Mortensy Beetle,” he said.
“I know what it is,” said Giles, looking at it in horror.
“So you know what happens once it burrows its way into you?” said Mr. Parker.
“It takes the shortest route to the brain and starts chomping. The end result is agonising death,” said Giles, mouth dry.
“Nice to meet someone who’s done their homework.” He took another step closer, one more and the creature would be on Giles.
A flash of light exploded into the room, blowing Mr. Parker backwards. Giles feet were freed and he stamped on the beetle as it scurried along the floor.
“Good timing, Willow,” he said.
Buffy got up from where she had fallen and went for the Immortal again, once more unable to get near him.
“Willow, help Buffy!” shouted Giles as sword raised he attacked Mr. Parker.
Willow turned to the Immortal. She had to get rid of the barrier around him. Light dancing from her fingers, muttering the incantation under her breath, she hit him with all she had. There was a crash and the energy field dispersed. The Immortal leapt up from his chair, not looking quite so confident.
“You!” he glared at Willow, “Your power……”
“Yeah, I’ve got a whole heap of power. Want some more?”
She raised her hand again and sparks flew as she knocked him off his feet. The roots of her hair started turning black. Buffy, running over, threw the scythe at him. He dodged it and it embedded itself in the wall. She kicked him as hard as she could and he hit the wall next to the scythe.
Willow looked across to Giles. He was on his back with Mr. Parker trying to prise the sword from his grip. She unleashed her power and he flew off Giles, who took advantage and ran him through with his sword before cutting off his head just to be safe.
The Immortal grabbed hold of Buffy by the throat, raising her off her feet and choking her.
“You think you and your pet witch can defeat me?”
He pointed his hand to where Willow and Giles were, but Willow was too quick for him and deflected his bolt of energy away from them. A hole burned through the floor where it landed.
Buffy struggled, kicking her feet and reaching out desperately for her scythe. Willow, seeing what was happening, magicked the weapon into Buffy’s hand.
The Immortal flung Buffy away from him when he saw she’d gotten her weapon but not before Buffy had cut his arm, blood rushing from the deep incision on his biceps. She took a deep breath and swung the scythe with all her might. It missed. The Immortal had teleported himself to the other side of the room.
“Shit!” thought Buffy, “If he teleports out of here we’ll never be safe from him.”
But the field he’d prepared to keep Buffy in was his undoing. As he frantically recited the disarming spell, Buffy approached him once more. She swung the weapon at his torso, purposely avoiding a killing blow. He screamed in agony as his abdomen was ripped open.
“That one’s for Spike,” she said quietly, “This one’s for me.” and with that she swung again, the scythe cutting off his head as easily as a knife cuts butter.
The body of the Immortal rapidly aged, time finally catching up with him before it exploded into dust. Buffy stood there panting and holding her throat where he’d bruised it.
“Spike,” she said.
to be continued...
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banner by dawnofmeAuthor's Chapter Notes:
Thanks to Carol for her beta work!