Disclaimer: Everything to do with BTVS belongs to Joss not me, I am
purely a bored software developer who likes toying with the
characters....
Inspiration: Watching Seasons 1 and 4 on a 26 year old black and white
TV! And sitting in Manchester airport during a powercut getting
very bored as my plane got delayed two hours! Oh and listening to
Moby, VAST and Enigma lots...
Recap: B&W are in Manchester fighting evil forces, they've just
realised their feelings for each other, but Willow and their host's
brother (Joe) have been kidnapped by said evil forces...
It's Grim Up North (8/10)
As the bell in the lift sounded for the 5th floor, Torr and Buffy
looked at each other nervously. You could have cut the tension with a
knife. As the doors began to slowly open, Torr couldn't wait and
quickly prised them apart, just enough for her and Buffy to get
through.
"Willow!" Buffy yelled in desperation as they ran towards the open
apartment door.
Inside the place had been considerably trashed and as Torr entered
the front room she was momentarily distracted by how they sofa could
have ended up standing perfectly on it's end against the
window. "I'll check the back room, you check the bedrooms." she
ordered as Buffy looked around in disbelief.
The rest of the apartment had been as equally trashed; it was as if
the kidnappers had gone out of their way to smash up as much as
possible. In the back room all the books had been thrown around and
destroyed as much as possible, "At least they didn't find this."
muttered Torr as she pressed the fastener underneath the lip of the
sideboard and the top swung open.
"There's no-one here." yelled Buffy as she returned to the front
room, "We have to find them."
"I know, hence these!" remarked Torr as she came through the door
from the back room caring a large back of weapons, "I've not yet had
the chance to use this." she continued as she selected a rather large
and somewhat sharp sword from out of the bag, "Never had the need
to." as she swung the sword above her head.
"Ooh." replied Buffy picking up a crossbow, "But how are we going to
find them, let alone fight whoever's taken them?"
"I think someone's not telling me everything he knows." she replied,
picking up the bag and leading the way.
****
In the passage way between the town hall and the library a young man
staggered towards the Metro station. Anyone who saw him would have
thought he was drunk and probably wouldn't have paid much attention
to the blood seeping from under the hand clutching his neck, just
another drunk who'd fallen over and managed to glass himself. About
halfway down the passage way, hiding in the shadows of one of the
library emergency exits stood Dave, licking the blood of his lips and
morphing back into his human face.
"Do you remember what I said I'd do if I caught you feeding?"
commented a familiar voice from round the corner.
"Torr, I'm sorry, it'll never happen again." he replied stepping out
of the doorway to face his friend.
"I know, but that's not what I wanted to talk to you about." Torr
continued, "You've not being telling me everything, have you? Where
have they taken Joe and my friend?"
Dave noticed the look in Torr's eye and decided to make a run for it
but as he turned away from Torr he bumped into Buffy, who'd walked
around from the other side of the library, "I don't believe you've
met Buffy yet!"
"What *the* Buffy? Slayer Buffy?" replied Dave looking rather
flustered as he began to back away from her, "Oh shit.", he muttered.
"I said you were famous didn't I." Torr quipped to Buffy as she
grabbed Dave by the hair and threw him against the door next to
them. "Tell me where they've taken them?" she calmly asked while
holding Dave's head against the door.
"I can't tell you, they're too powerful, I already risk enough
telling you what I do."
"Where are they?" she asked again squashing his head more. No reply
came. "You think what they'd do to you is bad, wait till you see what
we'll do to you." she continued, morphing into her wolf-side,
grabbing his nose-ring and twisting it, "Now where are they?"
Dave squealed in pain, "The University."
"That's not very useful when there are three huge universities within
spitting distance. Which one and which part?" growled Torr continuing
to twist Dave's nose-ring.
"*THE* University, in the old buildings." he spluttered.
"Now get lost, I see you again and you're dust!" she replied,
relinquishing her grasp. As Dave scurried away, Torr morphed
back, "See didn't I say that if you just stood there and looked
menacing then he'd talk."
"They're really that scared of me?" asked Buffy
"Well yeah. The rumours may have been hyped up a bit - you know,
demons not wanting to admit that they were defeated by anything
smaller than themselves." Torr continued as they headed back to the
van.
"So where's this university?"
"Not far."
****
Ruairc had been planning this night for a long time. He'd changed
those with the greatest power within the University into demon
hybrids that would do his bidding; no-one had noticed the difference.
He was currently standing within one of the 100 year old buildings
that surrounded the University Quadrangle watching as several robed
men prepared the area below.
"Bring them." he commanded the guards holding Joe and Willow, as he
walked down the stairs and went outside.
Buffy and Torr had spotted the guards at the gate as they were
approaching and had hidden in the bushes across the road.
"Got a plan?" Buffy whispered to Torr, as they watched the robed men
behind the gate.
"Not exactly, none of those men look a hundred percent human and if
we rush them..." she replied.
"They'll probably kill Willow and Joe."
"Exactly, but I can't think of any other way." Torr
continued, "There's only the two ways in and this one looks the least
guarded."
"Well what are we waiting for?" replied Buffy as she opened the
weapons back, slung the crossbow over her shoulder and picked up the
sword Torr had been holding earlier, "If they're not completely human
then we can kill them, no consequences. I need to get her back."
Torr noticed the tone of Buffy's voice change, she was fired up for
this, "OK. You take the guard on the left." she replied grabbing her
two favourite battle axes and morphing into the wolf, "But try and
make it quiet, we don't want them to know we're here yet."
Graham stood in the doorway next to the gate, behind him a
corridor led to the great hall that stretched over the gateway. He
watched the guards chained Willow and Joe to two large rocks, one
either side of the quadrangle. He felt very privileged as other than
the sacrifices he was the only completely human person present. Just
as he was about to join Ruairc in the centre when he thought he
noticed something outside the gate, come to think about it he hadn't
seen the guards in a while. He was about to go investigate when
suddenly an axe came thundering down on the chains holding the gate
shut smashing them apart. Realising what was happening he backed into
the corridor and closed the door behind, hoping that no-one had
noticed.
The guards on the gate had been easily taken care of but what Buffy
and Torr faced now was not going to be as easy.
"Stop them." yelled Ruairc as the gates swung open.
The men (I use the term loosely) who had previously been preparing
for the ritual turned and charged towards the two slayers. Buffy took
out one with the crossbow before they reached them, as he fell to the
ground the hood of his robe lifted showing his now demonic face.
'Great more ugly demons', thought Buffy as Ruairc's mini-army got
closer.
However well Ruairc had planned this, he hadn't accounted for the
possibility of there being two slayers and his 'men' began to fall by
the wayside he was starting to wonder if they'd been trained well
enough.
One of the demons had managed to get behind Torr as she and Buffy had
advanced towards Ruairc, and he grabbed her from behind causing her
to drop her weapons. Unfortunately for him Torr was not going to
allow herself to get pummelled again and swung out with her elbows,
the demon doubled up and Torr saw her opportunity. Grabbing one of
her axes off the ground she swung it towards him. The flat side of
the blade caught him on the chin and he went flying into the archway
above.
Buffy had had no such problems and was getting closer to where Willow
was chained up.
Ruairc realised that his 'army' could not stop the slayers and as
they neared the centre he began the ritual. As he chanted, two bolts
of energy shot out from his arms towards Willow and Joe.
"Buffy." Willow screamed as she noticed what was happening.
Buffy reacted quickly and shoved one of the demons she was fighting
infront of the bolt heading towards Willow stopping it in its path,
but she couldn't stop the other one and it connected with Joe.