Brave New World

Chapter 6

Spike had never been the sort of vampire who was known for being patient. He was brash, impulsive and headstrong. He was a dare devil, known for taking risks that other vampires would never think of attempting, just to say that he "had the biggest pair of wrinklies on the block."

The only thing that he would never risk was his Drusilla. Unfortunately, Dru had taken her own risks and had nearly been killed by an angry mob in Prague. He had rescued her from them, but she had been injured. Slowly, she had been getting progressively sicker and unable to eat. Spike had frantically tried to find a cure and had finally come to the Hellmouth and made a deal with the Master.

Spike would go to LA and gain control of all the vampire gangs for the Master. In return, the Master would see about finding a cure for Dru. Only it hadn't worked out that way. They had gone to LA almost a year ago, and Dru had seemed to be stabilizing, or at least not declining as quickly as she bee been. Spike had quickly established a base of operations in an extremely posh mansion in Beverly Hills and began establishing his control over the city. He took control of several gangs within the first month, either by intimidation or direct killing of the head vamp, and continued in this fashion, slowly building a network of control. Then disaster struck.

All had been going well until six months ago, when Drusilla had suddenly collapsed. She began sobbing and wailing that "Daddy" was gone and all was lost. Later, after Spike had carried her to their bed and when she had finally stopped weeping, Spike tried to talk to her.

"Come on then, Luv," he said sitting next to her on the bed. "Talk to me. What happened?"

"Spike?" her voice was barely a moan.

"Yes Baby, what did you see?"

"I saw Daddy, Spike. He was in a fight. But he wasn't strong anymore. The Master had him locked up. Just like my birdies. But he got out of his cage and was being a 'Bad' Daddy. He went to hurt the Master. But the dark boy got him instead. And he went poof. And he's gone now." Drusilla began to softly cry again.

"Baby, I'm so very sorry," Spike said while stroked her hair. He then leaned over to gently kiss her. "But there's nothing we can do now. We're almost done with this bloody town, and then we'll get your cure and then we'll get out of this rotten country."

"... cure, Daddy's ..." Dru whispered. It was so soft that he almost didn't hear her.

"What was that, Luv?" Spike asked leaning in put his ear near her lips.

"No more cure, Daddy's gone," she murmured.

Spike felt a wave of cold sweep through him. As a vampire, he had never been scared before, but for the first time in over two centuries, he was afraid. In a barely controlled voice, he asked, "What do you mean 'No More Cure' Dru?"

"Only the Sire,
can rekindle the fire.
Just one to provide,
what is needed inside.
No more Daddy. No more cure. Too late, to wait.
Ashes, ashes, we all fall down."

Spike was beginning to feel his world start to crumble around him. **No cure.** Her words seem to echo in his mind. Dru's visions were never wrong, just difficult to interpret. Most of the time. They were very easy to interpret after it was too late. And this vision seemed extremely easy to interpret. He grabbed the telephone and called the Bronze but there was no answer. He ran out to the main hall, grabbed the first two vamps he came across and ordered them to get to Sunnydale as fast a possible. They were to find out what had happened and to call him back in LA.

Two hours of pacing later, he received the call he had been dreading. Angelus was indeed dead. A Slayer had set him free and together they had attacked the Master at the grand opening of his new "Blood Draining Factory." Angelus had been slain during the battle by Xander, who in turn had been slain by the Slayer before the Master had finally stopped her.

Spike allowed himself to rage for an hour. He destroyed everything in the living room, the dining room, the game room and the kitchen. He was about to set fire to the library, when he remembered that Dru was sleeping in the master bedroom and that if he set the house on fire, he would have to disturb her. The thought of disturbing Dru from her rest hit him like a bucket of ice water. He ran to the bedroom and was relieved to find her still asleep. Closing the door, he slowly walked back to view to destruction he had wrought on the house.

Slowly, tentatively his minions emerged from where they had fled to escape his wrath. Spike stared blankly at the floor for a few minutes before speaking. "Dalton?"

The terrified bookworm vampire cautiously stepped forward, "Ye-Yes, my Lord."

"Do any of those books of yours mention any details about Dru's condition being painful," Spike voice was very low and steady.

Dalton nervously swallowed, "Uh- Uhm . . . I believe I remember some mention of pain, yes, but-but there are ways to alleviate it-"

"Get on it," Spike interrupted. "Whatever you need. Whoever you need. You will have it." Spike looked up at the rest of the vampires standing around, "Is that understood by everybody? Whenever Dalton tells you to get something, you jump to it, immediately."

"Yes, Spike," they all chorus to him.

Dalton hesitantly stepped closer to Spike to whisper to him, "Wha-What about the cure? Willow said that she-"

"There is no more cure," Spike hissed in a pain filled voice to a startled Dalton. He raised his head to look directly into Dalton's eyes, "Dru is going to die, and there is nothing I can do to stop it. But I won't have her suffering."

Tearing himself from Spike's hypnotic blue eyes, Dalton backed away, "I-I-I'll get a list together. Immediately." He fled to the library, shuddering from the memory of the emptiness and despair he had glimpsed in Spike's eyes.

A month later, Drusilla was gone.


Every Vampire in the mansion was on alert. They lived in fear of what Spike would do when Drusilla died. When it did happen, Spike again surprised them all by not exploding in a rage. Instead he sat in the room for a whole day staring at the ashes that remained behind after Dru had passed. When evening came, he stood up, picked up his jacket, retrieved his car keys and walked out of the room. Closing the door behind him, he found Dalton waiting, fidgeting in the hallway.

"Seal it," Spike said, and then he walked away.


Spike returned to establishing his control over the vampires of LA, picking up where he had left off a month ago. It was almost as if nothing had happened. But every vampire who had known Spike before, knew he had changed, and they walked on eggshells whenever they were around him. He had been deadly before with his cocky arrogance and eager joy for getting into a good brawl. Now, however, Spike was a terror of controlled ruthlessness. When he entered a room, other vampires would feel as if a wave of freezing cold air had entered with him. No longer did he ever raised his voice in anger or ever laugh or ever joke. And he no longer bragged. He also no longer made threats, he simply stated what would happen if what he desired did not happen. Within three months he had complete domination over LA. All that remained was to establish how things were to run.

**Founding a goddamn bloody bureaucracy, ** Spike had thought disgustedly. He had wanted to leave when Dru had died. **Fuck the Master and his wonderful 'New World'** he had said to himself. But for some reason he couldn't leave. So he had continued with the original job. Take control of LA. And when he had completed that, the Master had sent a message requesting Spike to remain in LA for a while longer and organize a Vampire Council that would manage the city in the Master's name. A few months ago, such a request would have been enough to make him go out and paint the town red with blood, after telling the Master to 'sod-off'. But now it no longer seemed important what he did and the emptiness inside prevented him from getting worked up enough to even complain. So he proceeded on to perform the latest request with a silent resigned acceptance.

Although he was ruthless in his enforcement, striking down all who dared oppose the orders on how things were to run, Spike no longer felt any joy from the violence, no lust for the kill, only a great emptiness inside. Even his thirst for blood was gone. He fed only to sustain himself, and frequently found himself not even bothering to kill his victims. It wasn't that he had anything against killing them, it was just that he saw no point anymore. Without Dru, it just wasn't fun, and, lately, Spike would feel full after feeding on smaller amounts of blood these days.

After raiding a blood bank one evening, he found himself giving up the 'Hunt' entirely. He began spending his time watching humans. In larger cities like LA, humans still went out at night. Even though there had been an increase in the number of people killed at night, the general population was still for the most part unaware of the growing threat. Only in smaller cities like Sunnydale were curfews imposed in an attempt to deal with the high nighttime mortality rates. Spike had gone one night with the idea to massacre a dozen or so human lovers, feeling that since his love was gone, no one else should enjoy it either. But as he watched various couples, he found himself feeling nothing about them. No rage, no jealousy, no hate, no hunger. The only thing he felt was a longing for the emptiness inside him to be gone. He began to watch them in malls, restaurants, theaters, clubs and even stadiums. However, as he watched the humans go on about with their lives, he noted that he occasionally was being watched, although he never could quiet catch a look at who it was.

Then one evening, when Spike had gone to a baseball game to watch the people around him, a poorly dressed, little man casually strolled up, plopped himself down in the seat beside Spike, and said, "Hello, Spike. Good game?"

Spike turned to stare at small man beside him who had begun eating a hot dog and drinking a beer.
"It's a bloody ridiculous game. I suggest you leave now," Spike said in a flat steady tone.

"Or what? You'll kill me," a grin cross his face, "Oh my! Horrors. A vampire." He gave a chuckle, "You know I said the same thing to your sire several years ago? When I first met him. Name's Whistler by the way," he said, before he took another swig of his beer.

"Yeah well he's dust now, and I don't care who you are, go away."

"I know. There was a screw-up somewhere. He was supposed to help the Slayer stop the Master,"
Whistler took another bite of his hot-dog.

Spike stared at Whistler as he chewed, "And I should I care because...?"

"Are you looking forward to a future of starvation, Spike?"

"What are you on about?"

"Do you have any idea just how long the humans are going to last if the current growth of vampires continues?" Whistler asked.

"Don't know and don't care."

"Well if we neglected other factors, and based on an exponential growth rate of vampires and an overfeeding on the human population, we're thinking that in about 23.3 years, the human race is gonna be extinct. Soon after that, there is going to be a lot of vampires running about making Calista Flockhart and Kate Moss look like the poster children for over-eaters anonymous."

"Other factors?"

"Oh all sorts of possibilities and permutations. Here's one to think about. Vampires are becoming more prevalent everyday. Soon enough, every human will know the truth and then they will start fighting back in fear. Fear makes 'em stupid. Soon they are pushing the buttons to eliminate their largest cities that have become chock-full-o-vamps. Enough of these bombs go off, and we're into a wonderful nuclear winter, not to mention the atomic fallout. That scenario is expected as a possibility in about 10 years."

With a blank face, Spike looked at Whistler but said nothing.

"OK. Fine. So your not interested in joining a 'Save the Humans' campaign, how about we try something a little more up to your demon alley," he leaned forward to look directly into Spike's eyes. "How about a little pay back at the Master for betraying your deal on the cure for Drusilla."
Whistler never saw Spike move his hand, but it was suddenly wrapped tightly around his throat. "What?" Spike said through clenched teeth and with a growl that almost muffled the question. Whistler simply continued to stare into Spike's eyes even though they had changed from his normal piercing blue to a fierce yellow. He did not try to struggle, he knew it would be of no use. He was treading on extremely dangerous ground and the wrong word would get him killed in a instant. After a min Spi Spike relaxed his grip from around Whistler's throat but kept the claws that had extended from his fingers rested there.

"Willow had the cure two weeks after you came to LA. He knew it."


Spike was on his way back to Sunnydale.

It had been five weeks since he had met Whistler. Five weeks of planning, plotting and making preparations. He could hardly believe it himself. The old Spike of six months ago would have hopped into his car and gone after the Master that very night. **And probably would have gotten my arse staked as well,** he thought to himself. He had instead talk with Whistler for the remainder of the night. And then he had gone back to the house, and said nothing.

With the forces that he had put together here in LA, he could have easily organized a mass assault on the Master's stronghold in Sunnydale, but that would of lacked the personal touch, in as much that he wanted to personally shove the stake through a certain demon's heart. Additionally, he was certain that in spite of the fear that his underlings held for him, were he to say anything about organizing an attack on the Master, and the he would know about it within an hour, and then there was the possibility that his prey would escape. And Spike had no desire to become involved in a vengeance pursuit that could last for decades or centuries. No, he wanted vengeance soon and with certainty. And to go up against the Master, by himself required a trickery and subtlety he had never before exhibited.

He had first started a rumor by one day mentioning off-hand that he had lived for too long with Drusilla constantly at his side and that he felt he the need for someone to fill her place. Then a few days later, while discussing the qualities and attributes of various vampiresses, he had mentioned how a certain redheaded vampiresses in the Master's clan had caught his eye. Soon enough, he was making preparations for his return to Sunnydale, and he knew the rumors were already there, festering away and waiting for him.

He knew the Master was attempting to figure out a way of keeping Spike from making a request for Willow. Spike had performed a huge service for the Master and as the original requested item for the service was no longer available, Spike's anticipated request could not be ignored. If He did, he would risk losing the support of his followers. It was one thing to punish somebody who had failed, but Spike had not failed.

And now, as he approached the city of limits, he caught sight of a vandalized sign saying 'Welcome to Sunnyhell'. His lips turned up into a tight little smile, the first one to have crossed his face in six months. And so, while humming to the tune of "Anarchy in the UK," Spike returned to Sunnydale on his way to meet the Master.


Spike strode into the Bronze and up to the stage where the Master was seated. Spike saw a number of vampire masters amongst the crowd and realized that this was more than just a display of appreciation for Spike for a 'Job Well Done.

**No,** he thought, **the Master is taking full advantage of the situation to show all these Wankers how well he rewards those who serve him. Must be wanting to make the most of the situation and thinks if he impresses them, a few might want to join.** He noted Willow standing to right and slightly behind the Master, while at his feet sat a blonde vampiress who was staring intently at him. The Master rose to greet him as Spike ascended to the stage.

"Welcome back from LA, Spike," said the Master as he stretched out his hand in greeting.

"Thank you," Spike replied as he extended his hand. His voice was low and clear, "Master, LA is now under the command of the Order of Aurelius." Playing the Loyal Lackey, Spike had purposely said the Order's name rather than just the Master's. The Master smiled, pleased with the emphasis on who was controlling what, before the packed room.

"Wonderful. Wonderful. Spike you have performed a grand service for me. I am very impressed by the reports I have heard. And I was so very sorry to hear about Drusilla. I know how much she meant to you." Spike did not say a word. He simply gave a half nod and kept his eyes on the Master the whole time.

"Very well," the Master continued, "sit and have a drink with me first. There are so many things I wish to discuss with you." Spike and the Master sat and Willow moved to pour blood in the two crystal goblets.

The rest of the vampires began to mingle and talk amongst themselves. The Master raised his goblet and to Spike said, "Today LA. Tomorrow the World." Spike again said nothing, only nodding his head slightly and raising his goblet in a return gesture to the Master's toast. Taking a sip from his goblet, the Master smiled and said, "Ah. Fresh from my factory. Yes now that LA is under control we can begin expanding operations. Till now we have been operating the machine only sporadically, testing, making modifications, and gearing up for an 'expansion'. And now that we have ensured there will be plenty of raw material available for us when we have drained this town dry we should be ready to do so in a month."

As the Master continued to talk about his plans for the future, Spike listened with only half and ear to what he was saying. Mostly he was observing the behavior of the two vampiresses on the stage with the Master.

Willow, the red-haired vampiress, he had met before when he first came to Sunnydale. She had oozed of sexuality and strength and had an unquenchable desire for murder and mayhem. Just his type of vamp in fact. But she had belonged to Xander then, and he had not really been interested, because of his concern over the state of Dru's health. Now, as he studied her and watched as she served the Master and him, and occasionally mentioned a small point for the Master to elaborate upon, he was slowly able to perceive the malicious, greedy and deviously intelligent demoness that resided there inside of her.

The blonde vampiress on the floor was another matter. She was dressed in a dark blue velvet gown with a subtle silver beaded design. She had a doll in her arms that wore a similar dress. **The Master's 'Toy',** he thought to himself. He had heard the accounts about the insane former slayer and how she, like Dru, talked to dolls. The fact that the gown was some thing similar to what Dru used to wear was not lost on him. He knew the Master must have purposely ordered this arrangement to throw him off balance, but the girl looked nothing like Dru. Dru had been quite tall, whereas this girl was tiny in comparison. Where Dru had long raven hair, this waif had a closely cropped blonde hair cut. The list went on and on. Still he could sense something about her that kept drawing his attention. It wasn't because she was beautiful. Spike had had thousands of beautiful women during the years, as either a sexual partner or a meal, and sometimes as both. Something about the way she behaved was nagging at him.

He knew she was fascinated by him. He had caught her eyes several times staring at him. She would always avert them and look elsewhere as soon as she realized he had caught her looking at him, but as soon as he returned his attention to the Master, she was watching him again. Once he had winked at her, and her eyes had opened wide, before she could look away. He was sure she would have blushed if she could have at that moment. She was an intriguing little chit and perhaps after he was finished with his business here he would take her with him. After all, the Master wouldn't be around then and neither would his little sidekick bitch, Willow.

He returned to listening to the Master, contemplating how best to press his request for Willow as a part of a suitable reward for his efforts and compensation for his losses. Willow was now an unattached vampiress and the Master could command her to submit to Spike. He intended to take Willow away and then dominate her by torture. He would get a full confession from her about the Master knowing that she had the cure, and then doing nothing to helping Dru while there was still time. After he exposed the Master's deal breaking before all, Spike would challenge the Master as leader of the Order of Aurelius, to single combat, as would be his right after such a betrayal. Lastly, Spike would then proceed to torture Willow for a very long, long time.

He knew the Master would like to try to weasel out of having to give up Willow to Spike, but there was nothing, that Spike could think of, that would not leave the Master looking like a very poor leader if he refused. **Especially in front of all these buggers. Tut. Tut. Very bad show...and all that rot,** he thought to himself.


The Master had called for attention again and all had quieted to hear his announcement.

"My Friends..." he began and Spike's mind began to immediately wander.

**I wonder if the old blow-hard was as long winded when he was alive,** thought Spike idly.
"...long policy of ruling alone..."

**Look at them. Bunch of bloody sheep, the lot of 'em. All set and ready to be led by the nose into the Master's 'Brave New World of Vampire Bureaucracy and Mass Production'. Probably not a set of brass balls amongst the lot of 'em anyway. Oh sure, put one of 'em against a load o' defenseless humans and they're as fierce as can be, yeah that's a real show o' strength.

Hell they're probably too stupid to realize what they're getting' into. Pretending to be interested in something that...Holy Shit!** bits of random information suddenly coalesced in his mind to present him with a conclusion startling enough to make him sit up a bit straighter in his chair.

"...which is why..."

Spike's eyes shot over to the blonde vampiress on the floor. She glanced away as soon as she noticed his eyes on her again, but it was too late. **She's bloody fakin' it,** he thought to himself. **All this time she's been here, pullin' the wool over their eyes. Nobody knows, including the Master and Willow,** "...decided to take a Queen to rule by my side as we bring about the domination of the world by vampires in the 21st century."

**Say what?** Spike rapidly shifted his attention back to the Master who was extending his arm.

"And because of her intelligence, beauty and devotion to me, I have decided that Willow will be my Queen." Willow step forward to clasp the Master's hand and face the applauding crowd.

**Shit**

Spike was able to retain the presence to clap politely when the Master turned to beam at him. Spike knew he had been outmaneuvered, and would have to rethink his approach toward revenge. Still, as he sat there he knew that while he may have lost this round, he had something that the Master did not. He had knowledge of a potential Ace-In-The-Hole. He looked again at the blonde vampiress, and, for the first time that night, she met and held his gaze.

**Oh yes.** Spike thought. **Things are gonna get very interesting around here.**