Immortal Assassins: Chapter Five
by Peter Withers
San Salvador's Notes:

I wake up by a kick to my ribs. ( Not a nice way to wake up. ) The next thing I notice is my hands handcuffed to a pole. I struggle a bit and then give up after a moment.

"Well now, look who's awake." After a moment, I recognize the voice. Angelus. I decide to keep silent even though images of the uses of rusty knives on the vampire are going through my head.

"So, I'm just wondering, how does a human come back from the dead twice and cause a lightning storm?" He gives me a couple of kicks in the ribs for the apparent sadistic pleasure of it. I change the image of the rusty knife to a spoon.

I decide that silence is the better part of valor but a low growl came out anyways. Standing up might be a good first step in getting out. My arms are handcuffed high and behind my head.

"What are you, damn it?"

"Angelus, once I get out of here, I'm going to remove your privates with a rusty spoon before tearing out your lifeless heart with my bare hands."

"Why, you stupid bitch. I'm going to. . ."

"What? Kill me." ( Okay, smartass response. )

"No. But I'll make you wish you were dead." I lash out with a kick that grazes him. Angelus backhands me and I slip back down to the ground. "I'll come back in a few minutes with a few things that will be more appropriate for our conversation."

Angelus goes to the back of the warehouse and the rest of the vampires go wherever they go. I sit there for a minute and think of options. I don't have any lockpicks on me or any weapons besides my bare hands. I look over to the side and see my weapons on the table. That includes my sword, both of my wooden knives and Charleson's sword. The only thing I can think of will be quite painful but quick. I grab my left thumb with my right hand and yank hard and dislocate it. Ignoring the pain, I fold the thumb inward and slip my hand though the handcuff. The other had I can deal with my lockpicks. I stand up slowly and relocate my thumb. ( Shit. It hurt even worse. Hopefully, my healing will fix it quickly. I'm weak and tired from the Quickening and the temporary death. Just get my things and get out. )

I put on all my weapons and ignore the pain in my thumb. I only kept out my wooden knives for other vampires and walk toward the door. I realized that the only way to get out would be to get past Angelus. I stay in the shadows and see three vampires. Angelus, a raven-haired vampiress, and a blond vampire in a wheelchair. They are arguing about something but all I could tell was that the blond vampire really doesn't like Angelus and is really jealous of the fact that Angelus and the female vampire are real close. Angelus and the female vampire stalk past me with several instruments, most likely for the use of my torture.

"Going somewhere, Ducs." Spike, if I remember correctly.

"Yeah. I forgot my housewarming gift for you guys. I'll be going now."

"Really, and why do you think I'll be letting you go?"

"One is that unless your faking your injury, you can't stop me. Another is the fact we both want revenge on the same vampire."

"Good points," Spike says.

I grimace a bit and say softly, "Shit, I've not felt so bad since Woodstock." It wasn't meant to be heard but Spike heard anyways.

"You went to Woodstock, too."

"Yes, If you want to get together sometime, I'll be out in the park for at night for at least the next month. Leave with your Drucilla soon. I'm going to kill every vampire I can get ahold of when I recover. If you prefer not telling Angelus, it would be good for both of us." I run out the front door to the sounds of footsteps and angry exclamations.

I am slightly more than angry at the general vampire community. The hatred, anger and need for revenge is burning me up. As she jogs through the streets of Sunnydale, I see a church coming out of the fog. With over twenty vampires on my trail, it is the best place for a bit of safety. I run up to the door and starts pounding on it.

"Please help me, help me." The heavy door creaks open.

"What do you need, my sister?" A priest is standing in the doorway.

"I need someplace to be safe for tonight and tomorrow." Several shapes come out of the fogline. Vampires. I start pulling out my sword.

"Don't fight. Come in. You have sanctuary against the demons for tonight. The priest speaks some Latin that I don't understand. I back into the church. The vampires run up and slam into an invisible barrier.

"This place is protected by God, Leave, now." I can recognize a voice of power when I hear one. Who are these priests?"

I walk down the halls of this plain yet strikingly beautiful church. "Well now, Sandra, why are you here?" How did he know my name? Something is really strange about this.

"It is a safe place against those vampires that are after me."

"Your jeep is closer than this church. Besides one comes to church for God and for forgiveness. What do you need to be forgiven for?"

"It is none of your business, Brother." I fairly spat out.

He is calm, "If you wish to speak to God, the altar is always open and I am awake for most of the night. There are some cots in the back if you want some sleep and extra shirts in the dresser if you want to change." He walks toward the altar. At this point, I'm fairly annoyed. I go back to the cot to lay down for some sleep. I strip off my bloody clothes and try to fall asleep. This is something I cannot do. I toss and turn for an hour before getting up. I make up my mind, put on the clean shirt, which comes down halfway to my knees and silently walk to the sanctuary. I walk in and kneel at the alter. The priest ignores what I'm wearing and continues praying. I'm not even sure he noticed me coming in.

*LATER*

Sandra finishes praying several hours later. There are a lot of things she feels that she should ask for forgiveness. She went back to her cot and fell back asleep. When she woke up it was morning. In fact, it is school time but she feels that is necessary to stay here for closure. San calls Principal Snyder and told her that she was pretty sick.

"I think that have that twenty-four hour bug that is going around," she said.

"You should be glad that the superintendent supports you. If he didn't, I'd drop you in a hot minute."

( That arrogant bastard. ) San thinks and he hangs up on her without any polite good-byes. She hangs up the phone and walks toward the priest that gave her sanctuary.

"Thank you for helping me, Father. . ."

"Brother Roberts."

"Thank you. I'll just let myself out."

"If you want to . But if you want to talk, I'll be here all day."

"That would be okay with me. Let's start with how you know my name."

"God."

"Of course."

"You who are Immortal and fight vampires, you don't believe in God?"

"Honestly. . . Wait a minute, how do you know all about me?"

"God, or course."

( I'll leave that at that. ) San thought. "I try so hard to fight the evil in the town but I just can't beat it."

"The anger at your loss is clouding your mind and your heart. Why are you fighting the vampires?"

"They are evil and must be dealt with."

"Why, again?"

"They killed my fiancee, John." My voice raises higher.

"Any in particular," he said quietly.

"Angelus. You know him too."

"A tortured soul. He is trapped within a body with the demon in control."

"Unless you are fighting the vampires to fight the evil and for love instead of revenge, you will eventually lose yourself to evil."

"Then what should I do?"

"Help the Slayer and deal with Angelus when the right time comes. And be what you are in your heart, what is God's Will."

"What is God's will, brother?"

"You will know when the time comes. Your past was preparation for this and the past month was the tempering for yourself. Let God choose what form you should have."

*Later*

I look at the mask that I once had gotten in Rome a decade ago and kept it around for no particular reason. It was the sort of flat hard mask that would be used in some acting for Roman shows. I decide to keep it simple and keep it plain. I find a black cloak with hood . I put on my third black body suit and look at myself in the mirror. I then took off the mask and made an adjustment in it. I have some special miniature red nightvision goggles that are only a little larger than eye goggles. I hooked it up with a battery pack on the neck support that I turned off the lights and turned on the nightvision. I see the white mask with the red glowing eyes.

"Awesome," I say in a whisper.

A few hours after, I find Buffy going about her rounds in the park. She jumps back several feet at the sight of me and I say, "Hey Buffy, its me, San."

"Nice costume."

"I tried to take out Angelus last night." I got directly to the point.

"Is that why you didn't teach class today."

"Yes. I got thrashed in a fight against another Immortal. I won but I got captured by the vampires. I managed to escape and got sanctuary at a church for the night."

"Whoa. Are you going to try to kill Angelus again?"

"Yes, Someday I will."

Final Notes: For good or bad, this might be the beginning of a trilogy or a series


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