New Beginnings

Chapter 10
The Slayer Redux


Following his leader directive, the Gangrel watched as Beacham entered one of most expensive and luxurious hotel in downtown San Francisco. He stood there for a few minutes, making sure that Beacham did not come out, remembering to keep to the background. After waiting for a half of hour, he approached the concierge, trying to determine if Beacham was staying there.

After he had ascertained that indeed, Beacham was staying there, he reported to his leader, who then reported it to the Toreador’s Primogen.

***~***~***~***~***~***~***~***

Several hours later, a woman knocked on a door leading to a penthouse apartment. She was wearing dark glasses and scarf covering her hair. The door opened silently and she walks in closing the door gently behind her.

***~***~***~***~***~***~***~***

For the last couple of days, Lillie watched Buffy tendered to Julian. And both Sasha and Daedalus deferred to her in all things. She felt left out. Any suggestion she offered they ignored it. She had been with Julian so long; that she had took it for granted that she would be number one in his life. Even with the other Kindred, it was always Julian and Lillie or Lillie and Julian, now its Lissa. She never thought someone would replace her in Julian’s affection. Even when he was dating Caitlin, she had known she had a part of him, but this new girl. This Lissa, she was different. Daedalus and Sasha were deferring to her in all things. It was as if she was the prince of the city. It was time for her to do some thing about it. She did not like to be on the sidelines. It didn’t feel as comfortable as being in charge.


She decided it was time she took matters in her own hands. Using Buffy’s concerns about Julian, Lillie drew her into her confidence. She told Buffy that she had a plan to get the antidote from Beacham and Buffy should meet her at a certain restaurant where Beacham is hiding out. The plan made sense to Buffy, who thought it was a good idea. Since Julian collapse, she had been in a fog. She had to do something, because he was getting worse. She couldn’t sit idle by and not do anything. When did she start having feelings for Julian? What she thought, and what she knew were two different things. She always thought that all vampires are evil, but being around Kindred had taught there are two sides to everything.


***~***~***~***~***~***~***~***


The next morning saw Buffy running late. She had been on bodyguard duty all night before. As primitives, the Kindred grew sensitive to light and heat. And they were put in cages in the basement and they had to be watched twenty-four seven. When someone wasn’t watching, they would try to hurt them selves and each other. The previous night was Buffy’s turn, although every night seems to be her turn. Julian got agitate, whenever he could not smell or hear Buffy in the room with him. They had taken to record her voice and putting clothes scented with Buffy’s scent to give the illusion that she was there, and to allow her to get some rest.


Daedalus had founded out that one of the stage of the virus was blindness. But the primitives retain, their sense of smell and hearing. Since the collapse, she hadn’t gotten any sleep. As the slayer, she does not need a lot of sleep, however to meet some at nine in the morning was asking that person to be hurt. And for the last couple of days she had not been feeling well, plus the lack of sleep made Buffy a cranky slayer. While walking to her car, she was overcome momentarily with a rush of dizziness, but she shook it off.


She drove out the gate, turning left towards downtown; she then drove past several shops and couple restaurants before finally reaching her destination. “Maybe I got the wrong address,” she mumbled to herself, looking at empty buildings surrounding her. She paused slightly, before parking the car and getting out. Buffy stood on the docks near the waterfront; several dilapidated buildings populated the area. She looked at the map, she had brought along with her. This cannot be it, she thought, searching for her cell phone. When she found it, the battery had died. “Damm,” she cried. She checked her watch. It was ten thirty. She was to meet Lillie at nine. “Typical, she’s late. If I have get up at the ungodly hour of eight to be here, she should be here waiting for me,” Buffy muttered to her self; a shadow of annoyance crossed her face.


Lillie and Buffy had made plans to come together, but at the last minute, Lillie backed out saying, she would meet Buffy there, because an emergency came up. She said it was something to do with her club. Then she saw it, the Seaview Restaurant. The place, Lillie said the Gangrel told them Beacham was hold up. She never imagined Kindred to be living behind a restaurant, especially a Brujah. She looked at the paper, where Lillie had written the address on; then she looked at the dilapidated sign. She shrugged. It was the right address.


“I wish I was elsewhere,” she muttered, as she walked towards the building. The place seemed deserted to her, she took a deep fortifying breath and then boldly stepped into the room, the floorboards creaking noisily under her feet. “This place can’t be it,” Buffy said again, swiftly looking around. Graffiti covered the walls and the floor littered with debris. Parts of the flooring were rotten, and the glass in the windows cracked. A rat ran across the floor and scurried into a corner. “This is definitely not the place.” In Sunnydale, remnants (Vampire) lived in sewers and any shadowy corner. Since living with Kindred, she come to know that they liked their creature comfort.


In the corner, a crash echoed. Startled she looked toward the sound but did not see anyone. Another crash sounded. She glance around the room and walked tentative toward the sound. “I am the slayer,” she muttered grimly, strolling forward. “There is nothing to be afraid of.” She heard a grunt, then another. “Is anyone body there?” she called out. “Come out; come out, wherever you are.”


Bang! The door to the restaurant suddenly slams shut. Buffy rush towards the door, but something was blocking it. She pushed, but the door was unyielding. She swung back her arm to punch through the fragile door, when she senses someone or some thing behind her. She quickly spun around. What she could see at first were eyes, bright oranges, dozen of them.


Primitives surrounded her! There were six of them; they had sharp claws and fangs, their eyes a strange orange color glowed. Whatever they had looked like as Kindred, they don’t look like that anymore. They had low furred brow, long drooping arms that swung as they walked in a shuffle. Their hair was long and matted.


They growled, and then charged her.


Buffy went into a crouch, putting one of her leg out. Tripping them. Down they went, like pins at a bowling alley. “I guess you guys wanted to play uh,” Buffy said, snorting slightly. She grabbed one of them by the arm, swung it into another knocking two others down. A rush of adrenaline coursed through her. The Slayer had returned. She had feared that she had lost her instinct after months of in activity, but unluckily for the primitives, she hadn’t.


Snarling and dripping with saliva, two primitives grabbed Buffy from behind and threw her across the room. She got up, a little bit shaky and unsteady on her feet. “If you want to play rough, I will play rough,” she muttered peevishly, grabbing a broken table leg. She swung and it connected, hitting one of them in the face.


It howled in pain and then ran to cower in a corner.


Another of the primitive rushed toward Buffy. She gave a running start, leaping over its head, while another came behind, trying to grab her. “Oh, no, you don’t,” she said, knocking both their heads together. They hissed and spit. Spittle flying in every direction. “Eew,” she cried, wiping the disgusting wetness off her face. Buffy noticed that although the primitives appeared disorganized, there was clearly a leader. She had also noticed the subtle signal one of them was giving the others. He was larger than the other five. In addition, his skin was a reddish color and although he had the requisite glowing orange eyes, his was bulging out of its socket. “Hello ugly,” Buffy taunted. If he was this ugly as a primitive, imagine what he looked like as Kindred. He charged at her, with a growl. She did a back flip and dodged it. He came at her again. She hits him. He retaliates. She flips over his head, using the momentum to grab his head and choke him to death.


Another one grabbed her from behind, digging its sharp claws into her wrist holding her motionless. He moved to bite her grabbing her throat. Her Slayer-strength barely kept its sharp teeth from reaching its target. It was strong.


With her strength, she pushes him away, he stumbled and slashes at her, but she ducked its misshapen claw. Given a big roar, the primitive rushed at her and grabbed her…


***~***~***~***~***~***~***~***~***


“What are you doing here?” Daedalus said to Lillie, who had just strolled casually into his lab. For the last twelve hours, he had been working on a cure for the virus. He knew that, with or without giving up the city, Beacham would never give him the cure. The virus continued to affect Kindred throughout the city. And it was getting harder and harder to isolate them, even with the help of Frank, Sonny and few unaffected Kindred. If he doesn’t administer a cure soon, the masquerade, the Kindred had spent hundred of years protecting will be broken. Daedalus knew that he was running out of time. However, he cannot see himself giving the city over to a terrorist. Therefore, he was working feverish for the last twelve hours, just to starve off the inevitable. When Lissa had told him about the dream she had earlier, something had struck a cord into him. Although he was not a Watcher to interpret Slayer’s dreams, he was going to try. “I thought at a meeting with Ms. Winters this morning,” he asked, looking up from mixing two chemicals together, his eyebrow rose inquiringly.


Daedalus believed that, there is more to the story of creating that virus, than Beacham was telling. Lillie had corner him, after that meeting in his apartment, trying to change his mind.


**Flashback**

“Why don’t you give James what he wanted?” Lillie asked him.


“James?” Daedalus inquired silkily.


“James Beacham. He would be willing to give us the antidote, if we just give him what he wanted.”


“He wanted more that we could afford to give him.”


“So you are willing to go war instead of saving Julian,” Lillie asked dismayed. “Is that what you wanted?’


“No, that is not what I wanted,” Daedalus admitted. “But we cannot trust him. How can we trust someone who created a poison so deadly to his kind, just because they have something he wanted? What kind a person is that?”


“Maybe it is not about trust. Maybe, it is about sacrifice. I am willing to give up my position as Toreador Primogen to make Julian well again. If I am willing to take that chance, why can’t you?”


“I can’t. I do not trust Beacham. And I am not willing to sacrifice this city, even for Julian.” he said, turning his back on her in dismissal.


**End flashback**


Ignoring Daedalus now, Lillie strolled towards several unopened bottles of chemicals. “What does that do?” she asked, pointing to a large blue bottle.


He sighed, putting down the chemicals. “Lillie, what are you doing here?” he asked again, walking towards her stripping off his gloves.


Looking up from her perusal of the various bottles, Lillie said. “I want to help. You never let me help,” she said with a twinge of disappointment, fingering one or two bottles as she navigates the room.


“Well there is not a lot you can do at this time,” he said gently.


“You let the human, help you,” said Lillie, pain in her voice.


“Ah, this is not about your desire to help,” Daedalus said, chiding her softly. “Lissa is a natural born leader, she doesn’t ask to help, she just does it. Don’t be jealous of her,” he said gazing down at her.


“Jealous! I not jealous of anyone,” she said, avoiding his gaze. “At least not anymore,” she said softly.


Suddenly a flicker of apprehension coursed through Daedalus “What did you do?” he asked, reaching for her.


Eyes widen incredulously, she said. “I did not do anything.” Backing away slowly towards the door of the lab, she almost stumbled over a stool in her haste to getaway.


Eyes narrow speculatively. “You did something,” Daedalus said, grabbing her arm.


“Let go of me,” Lillie demands, putting her arm up to block his. But he grabbed both her arms, holding them hostage. “How dare you put your hand on me? You think because you are Nosferatu, you can do anything you wanted. Julian would not allow that,” said Lillie arrogantly.


“Julian is not here,” said Daedalus. “I am in charge until he gets well.”

“You!” she said, scornfully. “Don’t make me laugh. You allow the little human to tell you what to do. She is the one in charge.”


“I am not going to argue with you, but you will tell me what you did, even if I have to shake it out of you,” Daedalus growled, shaking her.


“Stop it, you are hurting me,” Lillie said, suddenly afraid. It was not wise to go up against the Nosferatu.


“I am not hurting you yet,” Daedalus said, menace in his voice.


“I did nothing,” she insisted archly.


“You are lying,” said Daedalus, watching her eyes. “You forgot that one of my gifts is reading the truth.”


She quickly looked away. She had forgotten that Nosferatu could smell lies. Daedalus gave her arm a quick wrench, breaking it.


The pain was immense that Lillie screamed out in pain.


“Tell me now,” he demanded, remorseless.


“No,” she said, being stubborn despite the pain.


“Yes,” Daedalus said, twisting her arm again. Her arm hangs limply at her side. “Do you want me to break the other one?” he asked.


“Okay, okay,” said Lillie babbling. She couldn’t think through the pain. It was immense. It was like acid burning through her bones, turning it to mush. She couldn’t help but tell Daedalus what she had done to Buffy.


‘”You stupid woman,” he said, pushing her away. There was cold edge to his voice. She stumbled, cradling her now useless arm to her chest. Daedalus shook his head; he cannot conceive she would do such a crazy thing. Not only Lissa was Julian’s woman, but also she was the slayer of their kind. “You condemned us all with your petty jealously. She was the only on strong enough to handle the problem of the primitives.”


“What do you mean?” Lillie asked, tears of pain and frustration running down her cheek.


“Come on,” said Daedalus dragging her out of the room.


“My arm,” she cried, stumbling behind him.


“If any thing happened to Ms. Winters, you will be crying about more, than you arm,” he said remorseless.


***~***~***~***~***~***~***~***


Daedalus and several Kindred, rushed towards the deserted building, uncertain of what they would find.


What he saw was a slayer; she was poetry in motion. Shock and awe held them immobile. Buffy seems to be all over the place. She was grace personified. When the air cleared, dead primitives littered the ground.


“What? Who?” said Lillie astonished. “She is not human.”


“Yes she is. She is the Slayer,” said Daedalus, pride and admiration sounded in his voice. It was a privilege to see another slayer in action. This time, he was not on the receiving end. In his lifetime, he had come across several slayers, but one memorable instant came to mind. It was twenty years ago, and it was his misfortune to come across a hunter. It was glorious, how they had danced until it ended in a draw. He hadn’t seen another slayer that has the same fire and spirit as his ‘Thea’ until he met Lissa.


“The Slayer,” Lillie asked shaken. She looked at the dead bodies. If she hadn’t seen Lissa dispatch the primitive with her two eyes, she would have thought some else did it.


“Yes, the Slayer of our kind,” said Daedalus, also looking around at the dead bodies. “In every generation, there is a Chosen One. A girl. She alone stands against the vampires and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer. Whenever all this is finished, we have to sit down and discus Kindred history.”


Lillie shivered. Daedalus had to be wrong. This human cannot be a Slayer. As the newly embraced, her Primogen had told her about Slayers killing their kind, but she thought he had used that as a scare tactic. She never believes one girl could do all that. They had to be wrong.


Buffy stood amid the carnage and blood, breathing deeply, letting her mind settle from the battle rush and adrenaline. Letting the Slayer in her rest. These vampires did not disappear as the ones in Sunnydale did. Blood and gore, matted her skin. The stench from both her self and the bodies was making her sick. She has to get out here. Buffy looked for possible exits, when she notices that she had company. Lillie.


Lillie watched the girl Lissa apprehensively, what she saw in her eyes scared her. Her eyes were unemotional, empty. She avoided her gaze. She shuddered inwardly. The slayer.


Buffy eyes touched unto Lillie momentarily, showing the predator within. But the stench and the blood were getting to her. It has been a while since she let the slayer out. Ignoring her for now, she walked past the small group of people crowding the doorway, not saying a word.


Ah, fresh air, she thought as she walked into the sunlight. She stood a few minutes out on the docks over looking the sea. The water colored a brownish color that smelled strongly of fish. She stood there trying not to throw up, the smell of the water not helping. Buffy was having trouble-keeping conscious, dizziness assaults her and her vision was growing blurry.


Daedalus and Lillie, who was shelter by the overhang heaves, stood watching her.


Buffy turned towards them, made a few hesitant steps and collapsed. Daedalus rushed to her aid yelling, “Quick someone get the car.” He quickly picks her up, rushing towards the dark interior of the car. He told the driver to drive, after he swiftly ascertains that the blood on her clothing was from the primitives and not her. She was unconscious, pale, sweating, and warm to the touch.