In a blur of speed borne out of her absolute terror Buffy was at Spike’s side in a moment. His entire body was writhing on the floor as if he was a live wire and she knew that something was wrong with the chip. The moment she touched his skin, she felt how warm it was and knew that if the current keep going he would burn from the inside out. She was new to being a slayer but she had seen enough vampire movies to know that if you take out the heart or brain you get the job done. With the chip being embedded there, she knew that she had to act fast. She looked up at Faith and Giles. “Hold him down and try to keep him still and you go and get me an adhesive bandage or a piece of duct tape…quickly.”
Without bothering to explain she got up and searched the room. She spotted a small radio sitting on the occasional table by the stairs and leaving it plugged into the wall, she grabbed it and carried it over to where Spike was laying. “Come on Giles…hurry up!”
In a few moments he slapped a large square bandage into her hand and she dug into her pocket and pulled out a penny. Putting the coin in her mouth, she removed the backing on the bandage and stuck it to his neck, just behind his ear. Taking out the coin, she slipped it beneath the absorbent pad and pressed the entire square down to hold it all in place. Knowing that she had to work fast, she broke the radio over her knee and looked for the wires she needed. “Everyone stand back and when I say three, put all your slayer speed to use and jump off of him Faith.
When Faith nodded, Buffy began the countdown and when she hit three she pulled the wires at the same time Faith leaped off of him. She felt the current shooting through her arms and pressed the exposed wires against the bandage. Instantly the current changed course and poured into him. He began to twitch violently and she forced herself to slowly count to twenty. When the right amount of time had passed she pulled the wires away and waited to see if it had worked. She watched a few more trembles run through his muscles, flexing them involuntarily but after a minute she knew he would be alright.
“What in the sodden hell did you do?” He asked her, feeling like his entire body was one throbbing mass of pain.
“I saved your ass so try saying thank you.” She told him with a grin pulling him close for a kiss. With his lips against hers, she ran her hands through his hair, just to reassure herself that he was really okay. Pulling away, she looked into his face. “I thought I was going to loose you.”
“I’m alright luv.” He gave her another quick kiss, to soothe away the worry in her eyes. “I didn‘t mean for it to sound that way pet. What I should have said, is how did you save me? I felt like I was burning alive and then you turned up the flame and instead of becoming the big pile of dust like I was expecting, I’m talking to you.”
“I had to…if your chip would have kept firing your brain would be ash right now. So I crossed the currents and fried the fucker.” Buffy told him with a smile. “A kid in one of the juvenile homes I was staying at, used to boost radios out of cars for pocket cash. He was trying to impress me so he told me how to use a car battery, walkman, bandage and a penny to short out a car alarm. I didn’t believe it would work so he took me out and gave me a little lesson in the art of breaking into cars. The security systems work off a single chip and I figured it would work the same way on yours.”
“Of course,” Willow said getting it immediately.
“Umm care to share that with those of us who don’t?” Xander asked, nudging her lightly with his elbow.
“Pennies are 99.2% zinc with a 0.8% copper coating. Copper is a great conductor but add that with the zinc and you get close to 12 times the power of the original current. The metal attracted the charge and since electricity always takes the path of least resistance, the spit on the coin was easier to pass through then her so the current went into him. Which since Spike is well…not all ashy it was enough to burn of the nodes in the chip making it useless.”
“Okay we know how she knows this, but we sure didn’t cover this in class…did we?” Xander asked shaking the knowledge around his head and not even getting a glimmer of recognition. “Because if we did, it’s no wonder I working in construction.”
“Zinc and Copper are in the forefront of Water Purification techniques and I was researching the other uses for them, hoping for a little extra credit in my applied chemistry class.” Willow explained a nearly giddy look in her eyes. “I wonder if the professor has ever heard of using that effect on a car though.”
“Do you mind Red. I nearly died and you’re bouncing around like it’s sodden Christmas.” Spike said crossly, getting to his feet.
“He does have a point Will,” Faith said easily. “How are you even going to tell your professor how you learned it?”
“Internet.” Willow riffed, receiving not only a scowl from Spike but also one from Buffy. “Sorry…not what’s really important right now.”
“What I want to know is why the chip went off to begin with.” Buffy said, taking Spike’s hand in her own. “I bet Adam had something to do with it but I don’t get how he could have known that Spike wasn‘t playing for his side anymore.”
“What makes you think Adam had anything to do with it at all?” Riley asked, not sure why he had said that. It made sense to assume that Adam was behind this, but for a second there it didn’t.
“First the chip doesn’t work then it tries to kill him. Add in the fact that he has access to all the Initiative files, he is about the only person left who knows how the thing works. What I don’t get is how he found out. I don’t believe that any of you told him but he’s either listening in or he’s just decided he didn’t need Spike after all.” Buffy said trying to think about everything they had told her about the Initiative and Adam plus what she had seen the night they met. “Either way we have got to assume he’s onto our plans, so I think we have no other choice but to attack tonight or else there are going to be a lot of dead people and demons to put together tomorrow.”
“Then I suggest we get started…it will be dusk soon and then it will be time to start.” Giles told them calmly, a cold sense of purpose filling into his bones.
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Disclaimer: The information contained in this fiction, is for entertainment purposes only. Try it in the real world and the nice officers will escort you to a cell, so don’t blame me.