Lost in the Dark, Cleansed in the Flame
folder
BtVS AU/AR › Slash - Male/Male › Spike(William)/Xander
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
16
Views:
6,069
Reviews:
9
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
BtVS AU/AR › Slash - Male/Male › Spike(William)/Xander
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
16
Views:
6,069
Reviews:
9
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS), nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Escape
Chapter 8 - Escape
Buffy was the first to wake. Her eyes swept the small cell, glad to find
that they had all been placed together. They had all been glamoured
to look like grakash demons, hoping that the Initiative would imprison
them if not in the same room, at least within sight of each other. She
shook each of her companions awake, checking her watch as she
went.
They had only about 45 minutes left before Angel came in after them.
Awakened, Tara and Willow made quick work of the locks on the cell
door. Cautiously they all stepped out. Buffy hefting her axe and
Giles carrying a small crossbow.
Once free of the small room, Willow let forth a small incantation. A
tiny spark of light appeared before her. "Find Xander." Her
instructions were succinct. And the bright ball of energy flew off down
the corridor, the four scoobies following in its wake.
***
Xander woke screaming Spike's name as he struggled to break the
bonds holding him in his chair. After Spike had collapsed, Xander
watched in agony as his form slowly dissolved into the gloom. He
knew that in all likelihood the mental form of his lover was dissolving
because he was no longer conscious enough to focus his will. But all
his mind saw was Spike disappearing into nothingness, as if he'd
been dusted.
He turned to his left to see Spike's inert form in the chair beside him.
There was sand scattered all around them, and candles dripping wax
on the floor. A few feet away sat a copper bowl that smelled of
smoke and incense.
"Spike?" Xander called to his mate, but there was no response.
"Hello Alexander." The voice came from behind him, and sent shivers
down Xander's spine. "I'm happy to see that you're awake once
again. We have a lot to discuss."
"What did you do to Spike?" Xander demanded.
"That's one of the things we will be conversing about, but I think that
one should wait until the vampire is also awake." The man spoke as
he slowly made his way around the chair, stepping into Xander's
view. "But I promise you, it's nothing bad. Not in and of itself, at
least."
"You!" Xander cried, finally able to put a face to the voice and not
liking it one bit. "How do you expect me to trust you? You've been
torturing me for hours, and now Spike's - !" Xander gestured wildly at
his mate.
"It wasn't meant to be torture." The man tried to explain. "It was a
test - "
"Like Buffy's test?" Xander was spitting venom with each word.
"Yes, much like Miss Summers' test." The man shook his head. "We
had to be sure. The prophecy - "
"Fuck the prophecy!" Xander interrupted. "What the hell is it with you
guys anyway? How would you like it if I cut off one of your damn
fingers and said - 'oh well you see there's this prophecy…'?" Xander
ranted.
The man winced at Xander's verbal assault. "Well, there was no
permanent damage, now was there?" He asked.
Xander flexed his newly formed finger, realizing for the first time that it
*had* grown back. Then his eyes narrowed and he stared at his
captor once more. "That's not the point! The point is you didn't know
it would grow back! The point is that cutting it off hurt like hell!"
Xander was breathing heavily and his eyes were wide with anger.
The man had the decency to at least look chagrined. "I am truly sorry
that we had to do that. But it was the only way."
Xander tried to calm himself. He still needed answers. "What do you
need me for anyway? What prophecy are you talking about?"
"It's not just you we need Alexander - "
"Stop calling me that!"
"I'm sorry, what would you prefer?"
"I'd prefer it if you just let us the fuck go. But since you won't do that,
at least call me Xander."
The man nodded. "As I was saying. We need you both. You and the
vampire."
"He has a name." Xander answered heatedly through gritted teeth.
The man nodded once more. "I'm sorry. We need both you and
'Spike'." Xander winced at the pronunciation the man gave his lover's
name. It sounded as if it had left a bad taste in the older gentleman's
mouth.
"For what?"
"To stop the Raven."
"Stop the who?"
"It is said that she will blanket the world in darkness - "
But before the man could answer further a bright ball of light came
zooming through the air, smacking Xander in the chest. And in the
next heartbeat four grakash demons came careening around the
corner.
***
The young soldier was just stepping off the elevator intent on
humiliating the civilian in charge when he saw the four hostiles
making their way into the warehouse. Immediately his hand reached
for his sidearm holster. At the same time his other hand went to the
radio attached to his shoulder calling out a warning.
Before he could take aim one of the hostiles stopped dead, holding
up what looked like a small pouch. The thing raised its arms and
threw the small bag at his feet, calling out words in a foreign
language. As the bat tht the ground, smoke erupted and the soldier ly hly had time for a short yelp before he was thrown off his feet
smacking his head on the wall behind him, snapping his neck in the
process.
***
The room was in chaos. Shortly after the demons had appeared a
small bubble manifested itself around Xander, Spike, and their captor.
The demons were making short work of the remaining Initiative
members in the room. Explosions sent several men bouncing at
once, while the rest were being held in hand to hand combat with two
of the larger demons.
Xander felt no guilt in cheering on the demons. Between shouts of
encouragement he would check on Spike, occasionally calling to his
lover. But there was still no response from the undead body lying
next to him. His concern was steadily increasing no matter what
reassurances the other man offered.
"Xander!" He turned quickly upon hearing his name. He was sure
that was Buffy's voice, but he didn't see her anywhere.
"Xander!" Buffy tried again.
"Buffy??" Xander was sure he'd heard the demon calling his name.
"Yeah. Wills put a spell on us so we could get into the compound."
She explained in between punches. "She and Tara have a protection
spell around you guys, until we get the rest of these guys taken care
of." She was still fighting off the soldier in front of her, not really
glancing in Xander's direction yet.
"Buffy tell Wills she has to free the others. The vampires, and the
Claimants." Xander insisted. "We can't just leave them here to be
experimented on."
"The who's and the what's?"
"They forced other vampires to Claim 'volunteer' soldiers." Buffy
heard the sneer in Xander's voice as he said the word 'volunteer'.
"They were building an army, or testing for something, I'm not sure.
Stupid prophecies!"
"Prophecies?" The query came from the second demon who was
now looming closer to the bubble of protection Xander was in.
"I can explain that Rupert." The older gentleman turned to face the
demon.
Xander almost laughed at the sight of an 8 foot tall demon doing a
double take, but he found he didn't have the energy for it.
"Quentin?!" Giles exclaimed at his first sight of the man.
"You!" Buffy had finished off the soldier she'd been battling, and now
stood glaring angrily at the head of the Watcher's Council.
"Now as I said, I can explain - " Quentin Travers began, but was
never able to finish.
The battle over, Willow and Tara brought the barrier down. And as
the shiny bubble popped, Buffy strode forward and punched Travers
squarely in taw. aw. He went down in an unconscious heap.
"We'll get the others." Willow and Tara stated in unison, while Buffy
and Giles freed Spike and Xander.
Giles slung Xander's arms around his shoulders, and Buffy lifted
Spike into her arms. "Let's get the hell out of here." Buffy began a
brisk pace toward the exit.
"What about Quentin?" Giles asked, following as quickly as possible.
"I'll take care of him." Angel's voice was ominous with anger as he
appeared in the arch leading to the corridor they'd recently come
through.
"Do try not to kill him." Giles instructed. "We'd like to get a few more
answers out of him."
"Oh don't worry." Angel's smile made Giles' shiver. "I don't want him
*dead*."
Within minutes they were all walking out of the complex. Angel had a
firm hold of Travers. Giles was assisting Xander, who had yet to take
his eyes off the motionless vampire in Buffy's arms. And Tara and
Willow were bringing up the rear.
Behind them vampires and their mostly unconscious Claimants were
streaming out of the now defunct building.
Buffy was the first to wake. Her eyes swept the small cell, glad to find
that they had all been placed together. They had all been glamoured
to look like grakash demons, hoping that the Initiative would imprison
them if not in the same room, at least within sight of each other. She
shook each of her companions awake, checking her watch as she
went.
They had only about 45 minutes left before Angel came in after them.
Awakened, Tara and Willow made quick work of the locks on the cell
door. Cautiously they all stepped out. Buffy hefting her axe and
Giles carrying a small crossbow.
Once free of the small room, Willow let forth a small incantation. A
tiny spark of light appeared before her. "Find Xander." Her
instructions were succinct. And the bright ball of energy flew off down
the corridor, the four scoobies following in its wake.
***
Xander woke screaming Spike's name as he struggled to break the
bonds holding him in his chair. After Spike had collapsed, Xander
watched in agony as his form slowly dissolved into the gloom. He
knew that in all likelihood the mental form of his lover was dissolving
because he was no longer conscious enough to focus his will. But all
his mind saw was Spike disappearing into nothingness, as if he'd
been dusted.
He turned to his left to see Spike's inert form in the chair beside him.
There was sand scattered all around them, and candles dripping wax
on the floor. A few feet away sat a copper bowl that smelled of
smoke and incense.
"Spike?" Xander called to his mate, but there was no response.
"Hello Alexander." The voice came from behind him, and sent shivers
down Xander's spine. "I'm happy to see that you're awake once
again. We have a lot to discuss."
"What did you do to Spike?" Xander demanded.
"That's one of the things we will be conversing about, but I think that
one should wait until the vampire is also awake." The man spoke as
he slowly made his way around the chair, stepping into Xander's
view. "But I promise you, it's nothing bad. Not in and of itself, at
least."
"You!" Xander cried, finally able to put a face to the voice and not
liking it one bit. "How do you expect me to trust you? You've been
torturing me for hours, and now Spike's - !" Xander gestured wildly at
his mate.
"It wasn't meant to be torture." The man tried to explain. "It was a
test - "
"Like Buffy's test?" Xander was spitting venom with each word.
"Yes, much like Miss Summers' test." The man shook his head. "We
had to be sure. The prophecy - "
"Fuck the prophecy!" Xander interrupted. "What the hell is it with you
guys anyway? How would you like it if I cut off one of your damn
fingers and said - 'oh well you see there's this prophecy…'?" Xander
ranted.
The man winced at Xander's verbal assault. "Well, there was no
permanent damage, now was there?" He asked.
Xander flexed his newly formed finger, realizing for the first time that it
*had* grown back. Then his eyes narrowed and he stared at his
captor once more. "That's not the point! The point is you didn't know
it would grow back! The point is that cutting it off hurt like hell!"
Xander was breathing heavily and his eyes were wide with anger.
The man had the decency to at least look chagrined. "I am truly sorry
that we had to do that. But it was the only way."
Xander tried to calm himself. He still needed answers. "What do you
need me for anyway? What prophecy are you talking about?"
"It's not just you we need Alexander - "
"Stop calling me that!"
"I'm sorry, what would you prefer?"
"I'd prefer it if you just let us the fuck go. But since you won't do that,
at least call me Xander."
The man nodded. "As I was saying. We need you both. You and the
vampire."
"He has a name." Xander answered heatedly through gritted teeth.
The man nodded once more. "I'm sorry. We need both you and
'Spike'." Xander winced at the pronunciation the man gave his lover's
name. It sounded as if it had left a bad taste in the older gentleman's
mouth.
"For what?"
"To stop the Raven."
"Stop the who?"
"It is said that she will blanket the world in darkness - "
But before the man could answer further a bright ball of light came
zooming through the air, smacking Xander in the chest. And in the
next heartbeat four grakash demons came careening around the
corner.
***
The young soldier was just stepping off the elevator intent on
humiliating the civilian in charge when he saw the four hostiles
making their way into the warehouse. Immediately his hand reached
for his sidearm holster. At the same time his other hand went to the
radio attached to his shoulder calling out a warning.
Before he could take aim one of the hostiles stopped dead, holding
up what looked like a small pouch. The thing raised its arms and
threw the small bag at his feet, calling out words in a foreign
language. As the bat tht the ground, smoke erupted and the soldier ly hly had time for a short yelp before he was thrown off his feet
smacking his head on the wall behind him, snapping his neck in the
process.
***
The room was in chaos. Shortly after the demons had appeared a
small bubble manifested itself around Xander, Spike, and their captor.
The demons were making short work of the remaining Initiative
members in the room. Explosions sent several men bouncing at
once, while the rest were being held in hand to hand combat with two
of the larger demons.
Xander felt no guilt in cheering on the demons. Between shouts of
encouragement he would check on Spike, occasionally calling to his
lover. But there was still no response from the undead body lying
next to him. His concern was steadily increasing no matter what
reassurances the other man offered.
"Xander!" He turned quickly upon hearing his name. He was sure
that was Buffy's voice, but he didn't see her anywhere.
"Xander!" Buffy tried again.
"Buffy??" Xander was sure he'd heard the demon calling his name.
"Yeah. Wills put a spell on us so we could get into the compound."
She explained in between punches. "She and Tara have a protection
spell around you guys, until we get the rest of these guys taken care
of." She was still fighting off the soldier in front of her, not really
glancing in Xander's direction yet.
"Buffy tell Wills she has to free the others. The vampires, and the
Claimants." Xander insisted. "We can't just leave them here to be
experimented on."
"The who's and the what's?"
"They forced other vampires to Claim 'volunteer' soldiers." Buffy
heard the sneer in Xander's voice as he said the word 'volunteer'.
"They were building an army, or testing for something, I'm not sure.
Stupid prophecies!"
"Prophecies?" The query came from the second demon who was
now looming closer to the bubble of protection Xander was in.
"I can explain that Rupert." The older gentleman turned to face the
demon.
Xander almost laughed at the sight of an 8 foot tall demon doing a
double take, but he found he didn't have the energy for it.
"Quentin?!" Giles exclaimed at his first sight of the man.
"You!" Buffy had finished off the soldier she'd been battling, and now
stood glaring angrily at the head of the Watcher's Council.
"Now as I said, I can explain - " Quentin Travers began, but was
never able to finish.
The battle over, Willow and Tara brought the barrier down. And as
the shiny bubble popped, Buffy strode forward and punched Travers
squarely in taw. aw. He went down in an unconscious heap.
"We'll get the others." Willow and Tara stated in unison, while Buffy
and Giles freed Spike and Xander.
Giles slung Xander's arms around his shoulders, and Buffy lifted
Spike into her arms. "Let's get the hell out of here." Buffy began a
brisk pace toward the exit.
"What about Quentin?" Giles asked, following as quickly as possible.
"I'll take care of him." Angel's voice was ominous with anger as he
appeared in the arch leading to the corridor they'd recently come
through.
"Do try not to kill him." Giles instructed. "We'd like to get a few more
answers out of him."
"Oh don't worry." Angel's smile made Giles' shiver. "I don't want him
*dead*."
Within minutes they were all walking out of the complex. Angel had a
firm hold of Travers. Giles was assisting Xander, who had yet to take
his eyes off the motionless vampire in Buffy's arms. And Tara and
Willow were bringing up the rear.
Behind them vampires and their mostly unconscious Claimants were
streaming out of the now defunct building.