48 hours prior…
Buffy lay upon Riley’s bed, with only a sheet wrapped around her nude body. She smiled contentedly, as she remembered their shared moments. This was the first time, she had awakened after a night with a man, and he’d remained. At first, Buffy was slightly shocked, which quickly transformed into immense happiness. Almost like a normal couple. Well, as ones who fight demons can be, they shared a brief conversation and gentle kisses. Before they could go any further with either, Riley’s phone rang. He answered, before the second ring.
“Riley…”
“We have a situation.” the stern voice on the other end declared. Riley extracted himself from the bed, stood and walked several paces away from Buffy. The importance of the caller and their words set his features into a stone façade.
Briskly he responded, “Yes, I understand,” and closed the phone. Riley’s features softened as he approached Buffy who had remained on the bed.
“Who was that?” Buffy’s brow furrowed, while she tightened the sheet around herself. Her question hung in the air briefly before he responded,
“Professor Walsh, she was just instructing me on the protocol for an issue we have. Now that I fully understand what needs to be done. All will be taken care of.”
“Just like that, no questions? No…” Riley’s hungry lips cut off Buffy’s words.
“Don’t talk, not now.”
Once Riley’s whispered words brushed past Buffy’s parted lips, he resumed kissing her. Within moments, the fabric barrier was pulled away. With his body, he encouraged her to recline upon the rumpled sheets. Riley continued to place urgent kisses upon Buffy’s heated flesh. She responded with breathy moans and mews of pleasure. Her mind whirled with desire. Out of the corner of her eye, she witnessed Riley reach into his end table. Buffy’s heavy lids fluttered, in anticipation of the ecstasy that would soon follow.
Riley’s bulky body pressed hers into the mattress. Before his whisper reached Buffy’s ears, a sharp pain blossomed on the column of her throat. “This is what needs to be done,” were the last words she heard, before darkness consumed her.
**** ****
The Present
Buffy’s mind began to spin while she slowly regained consciousness. She fought to return to the quiet realm of sleep, until her senses were bombarded. Numerous odors intermingled into an overbearing stench, assaulting her nose. Her skin tingled. Her limbs were heavy. All the while, her fifth sense screamed that something was amiss. Buffy attempted to open her eyes. After several attempts, she was finally able to. Confusion filled her mind as she attempted to retrieve her memories. Slowly, bits and pieces formed, as she pushed her weary body from the ground.
“Fighting Polagara demon…captured it…sex with Riley…” Buffy struggled to piece together time. Some of her memories eluded her, like the morning after with Riley. When she tried, her mind remained blank. Buffy decided she needed to get out of her head and assess the situation.
Slowly, she scanned the area. It appeared that she was in a basement of some sort. All was quiet, too quiet. Her stomach roiled from lack of food. Her tongue lay thick in her mouth. She gagged slightly before she could form the words. Which came out of her mouth as a raspy murmur.
“Where the hell am I?”
While Buffy pulled her legs from under her, to stand, a figure moved from the darkness. Her movements stilled. Her gaze regarded an average looking man of medium build with blonde hair, cinched at the nape of his neck into a ponytail. With a devious grin, he responded,
“You could call it hell. You’re not the first one, nor the last. Finally awake, sleeping beauty? Didn't know how long you were going to be out.”
“Who are you?” Buffy’s voice trembled slightly from his words and hardened gaze.
“Names don’t mean a thing down here. Just call me Master. Follow my simple rules, and you’ll maybe live past twenty-one.”
The minute his words penetrated her hazy mind, Buffy filled with a blinding rage. In an instant, she stood before him, pure adrenaline fueling her movements. Fists clenched, gaze blazing with anger. Through clenched teeth, she seethed,
“Well, I plan on living a lot longer than that asshole. So, as a personal favor from me to you, I would show me the exit to this shit-hole and walk away. You have no idea who you are messing with.” While Buffy eyed him coldly, his crooked grin widened. With a loud scoff, he responded,
“If I listened to every demon that threatened me with empty words, I wouldn’t be as rich as I am. No sweetheart, you don’t know who you’re messing with. Now sit your pretty ass down and pay attention.” Buffy didn’t move, but her eyes narrowed. Her defiance silently encouraged his continuance. “Fine, stand bitch. Long story short, you are here to fight. Twenty-one wins, then you get to leave, simple as that.”
“Fight? Fight who…you? Fine let me kick your ass now and call it my twenty-first win,” Buffy quipped.
“You and every other freak here, wish it was that easy. See that red line surrounding you, and that pretty Tiffany bracelet around your wrist? Those will assure you don’t get punch happy with me or anyone else. Well, except for those you are selected to fight against.”
Hearing this, Buffy’s gaze followed the red line, which surrounded her. Then her eyes moved to her left wrist, which indeed did have a large silver bracelet on it. Her hardened gaze rose and met the man before her.
“So, a little jewelry and a red line…oooh…I’m scared. I faced three apocalypses with scarier things on their resume than these.” Buffy’s sarcasm hung heavy from each word.
“Go ahead and test how scary they are. You’ll be dust before one foot passes over the line. Care for a demonstration?” Before Buffy could respond to the man’s mocking tone, he called over a smallish, blue demon. The creature resembled one of Disney’s animated gargoyles, which hung around with Quasimodo in the bell tower.
“Yezz, Master?” The creature bowed slightly, once he approached the man. Without a word, the man shoved the demon towards Buffy. The moment it passed over the red line, it bursts into flames. The only things to remain were its bracelet and the echoes of screams.
While his vile, arrogant words still echoed in the air, he returned to the shadows, which had birthed him. Buffy shook uncontrollably. Her mind raced with endless questions. Despite the number of “Whys? and Whos?”, one question continued to demand to be answered, “How the hell do I get out of here? Wherever here is.”
**** ****
Despite the endless amount of time that had passed, Buffy remained motionless. Her back pressed against the wall, far away from the line. Her mind was the only part of her, which ran continuously since her tour guide to hell had disappeared.
She could recall more fragments of her memory. She remembered the morning after with Riley. “He was still there…phone rang…Professor Walsh…kissing Riley…all went black.” Buffy’s eyes widened, her mind reeled with worry. “What happened to Riley, is he here too?”
Before she could stand in an attempt to look around for any hints that Riley may be nearby, four heavily armed guards came forward, each possessed tasers. Temporarily leaving her thoughts of Riley, Buffy’s mind began calculating the amount of force and what order to attack the guards in, when the man from earlier stepped forward.
“Now, now, you better stop that pretty-little head of yours, from continuing any further. You’re not going to bring down anyone. Especially me, so you better quit before you do something extremely stupid. Since I’m a gentleman…”
Buffy’s scoff interrupted his words momentarily. His jaw clenched, before he lunged forward. Prior to his advancement, another man grabbed him by the shoulder. Instantly, this new man stilled the other’s movements. This new man, a middle-aged man, sporting an ill-fitting suit and enough jewelry to make even Liberace jealous, eyed Buffy with disdain, before he spoke,
“Really, Jack, you’re going to let this little girl goad you? Don’t waste your time. She’ll get hers. Speaking of which, your penthouse suite is prepared.” Hearing his taunting words, numerous chuckles from several guards filled the air.
Despite how small and lost Buffy felt, she stood before them with her “don’t fuck with me” stance: her chin raised high, arms crossed over her chest, steely gaze, lips in a tense line. Ignoring her completely, the Liberace reject continued speaking,
“Well, today is your lucky day. I’m feeling a little generous. You have a choice. You can remain conscious or unconscious, during transport. Either way, you will get there. Just remember, there are lots of things that can happen to a woman when she’s unconscious.”
Regardless of his words, Buffy’s features remained stoic. Fortunately, all those before her were human. If any vamps were among them, their ears would have been filled with the frantic pounding of her heart. She was terrified. The man, who was named Jack, responded to the other man’s words,
“Fuck her! Don’t give her a choice! Despite her being human, she’s still one of them. You can’t believe a word they say!”
While he spoke, Jack pulled a device from his back pocket. With a flick of a small switch, a bright blue stream of electricity danced between two metal prongs.
Instinctually, Buffy lowered herself into a fighting stance. Four more whirls of pulsing electricity filled the air. The four guards positioned themselves for a confrontation.
“I said she has a choice, damn it! If I can deal with a cocky master vamp, then I can deal with one little girl! Stand down, NOW!” Mr. Reject roared.
Immediately, the four guards followed his command. Jack hesitated. His enraged glare remained firm on Buffy. Several moments passed, their gazes held in a stalemate. Mr. Reject’s warning bark, which echoed through the room, broke their stare.
“Jack!”
Gradually, Jack disengaged his taser. His murderous glance flickered to the other man, before turning and pushing his way through the guards. Upon his departure, Buffy stood to her full height.
Brushing away invisible lint from his suit’s sleeve, Mr. Reject eyed Buffy, then spoke, “Pretty impressive resolve, hopefully that will carry into the Ring. The higher-ups will definitely be pleased with their two new additions. So, before we were rudely interrupted, your choice?”
“Conscious.” Buffy’s voice was rough from lack of use. She decided to keep her response to one word. She was afraid if she said anymore, this resolve that he just praised, would crumble before their very eyes.
“Very well, but don’t take advantage of my hospitable nature. Money or no, I won’t be made a fool of.” Following Mr. Reject’s warning and a slight nod to the guards, he exited the room.
After his departure, Buffy received several brusque orders. Restrained with a pair of cuffs behind her back, she escorted out of the room. Buffy flinched several times while she passed over numerous red lines, the memories of the grisly demise of the little blue demon still fresh within her mind.
Numerous endless corridors later, the guards stopped her in front of the second, of two large metal doors. With a single swipe of a key-card, the small red light turned green. With a whirlwind of motions, Buffy was thrust into the room. She was forcefully pushed against the cold metal wall. One guard held the back of her head, as another unlocked her cuffs.
Moments following the release of her head and arms, the loud slam of the metal door and the whirl of the electric lock encouraged Buffy to finally open her eyes and slowly pull herself from her current position.
Rubbing her sore wrists, Buffy stepped back several feet to look at her new room. The walls appeared to be solid metal, no ridges visible. Off to her right, a slab of metal formed a bed. A thin mattress, adorned with a single sheet, announced its purpose. She turned to continue her visually assessment, when a teasing, unexpected voice echoed,
“Welcome slayer, don’t suppose you have a light?”
Buffy’s eyes widened, as she spun towards the voice. One word hovered on her lips, her mouth agape, before it blasted forward,
“Spike?!?”
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Author's Chapter Notes:
I'm so happy that people are enjoying this fic. It's such a change from what I am writing along side this, My Lady in Waiting. Big thanks to Sanityfair for being my beta and to Pixiecorn for a gorgeous banner! Thanks so much ladies!
Chapter End Notes:
Let me know what you think...please...not too proud to beg!!!