Xander ran. He didn't really have any idea where he was running, only that every step took him and his pursuers one step away from Harmony and her gang.
And how the hell did that happen? A few days ago he'd have considered them the enemy. Now, he was risking his life for them. It didn't matter that technically he was a demon himself now. Zombie or not, Xander considered himself a lifelong member of the human race. Of course, it took his own unique brand of logic to justify that one, but...
Now he raced blindly through the sewers, intent on saving a bunch of misfit demons.
He'd turn round and explain that it was all a mistake, if only he though it would make the slightest difference.
He splashed to an intersection, skidding and almost falling on the slimy brickwork. He could still hear the echo of marching feet, all around him. Totally disoriented in the dark, Xander chose a random direction. For all he knew he was heading straight towards them, but with few options, he chose to rely on the luck that had nurtured him and kept him alive – sort of, for the past decade.
Of course, having a certain slayer and witch around to save his pathetic life likely swayed the odds a little. By himself, Xander was painfully aware that his demon fighting abilities just about qualified him to scream and die in abject agony.
Actually, for that he was probably overqualified.
He heard, or maybe imagined voices up ahead. Blindly he skidded to a halt. He heard the thud of approaching feet, echoing through the tunnels. Indecision gripped him as he realised he couldn't tell if they were approaching from ahead or behind. Even as he stood, locked in indecision and panic, the sounds grew closer.
Desperately, his body made the decision for him. An instant before the demons rounded the corner it threw him into an shadowy alcove, flattened against the slime encrusted wall.
Not daring to breath, Xander watched as the demons filed past him. He felt the stone bite into his hands as he gripped it convulsively.
For the first time, he got a good look at the demons who chased him, who had taken exception to Harmony and her brigade of misfits. They were tall and thin. They were covered from head to foot by bulky metallic gray, Xander couldn't tell whether they wore armour or it was a natural exoskeleton. They wore long leathery cloaks sewn from skin - what of he didn't like to contemplate. Antlers protruded from their long narrow heads, high enough they had to duck to make their way through the sewer tunnels.
They looked to him a lot like the knights who say Ni.
He'd maybe have felt surprised that the demon hunters were themselves demons. Then again, humans had hunted and killed one another enthusiastically since before history had begun. In that respect it seemed, demons were more like us than not.
The last of the half dozen demons had almost passed his hiding place and Xander almost dared breath again.
It paused.
It raised its head. He could hear indistinct snuffling sounds. The demon turned its head from side to side, hissing sibilantly to itself.
Every muscle in Xanders body seemed to cramp tensely. He felt an overpowering urge to move, to shout – to do something other than helplessly crouch in his mediocre hiding place, so close to the demon he could almost reach out and touch it.
Behind its leering mask, the demon managed to convey uncertainty as it continued to take deep breaths of the fetid air. Xander guessed that was the reason. Even for a creature that hunted primarily by smell, as it seemed this demon did, trying to separate the smell of a terrified zombie from the usual aroma of the sewers must have been a little like trying to find a – well, like trying to find something very small among lots of other very similar things.
Just as Xander was certain he couldn't stay still any longer, there was a noise. It seemed barely audible over the thumping of his heart, but the demons head came up instantly. It hissing grew excitedly, and it moved hungrily in the direction of the sound.
After a moment, amber eyes appeared in the gloom. They focused on him as easily as if it was broad daylight.
“Hey you.” their owner murmured quietly.
With a rush of relief, he recognised the voice. “Spike!” he whispered loudly. He realised that the little demon must have circled back after Xander had become lost in the maze like sewers and that he must have been responsible for the distraction that had lured away the demonic knight before it had discovered him.
The demon sidled forwards, coming into view. He glanced around furtively and raised a warning finger to his lips.
Xander nodded his understanding. “Thanks.” he whispered.
The look the demon gave him was cold. “Keep up this time.” he ordered. “I won't come back for you again.”
Inspite of his threat, the pace that Spike set was far less frantic now. With an unknown number of demons both ahead of them as well as behind, the need for haste gave way for the need for stealth.
Hours passed like decades as they crawled their way through the sewers. The demons knew they were there, and repeatedly they circled back or joined as a group to comb large sections of the sewers. To Xander, it seemed that there was a demon round every corner, over and over he was certain that this time they would be caught. But each time Spike led him undetected, sometimes slipping away alone to draw the hunters away. More times than Xander could count they escaped through the tightening net again and again.
Unbeknown to Xander, they were almost to safety when disaster struck. Three of the demons, dimly aware of the chase they were being led on, simply stopped in a large intersection filled mostly by a deep stagnant pool of rain water. There was no warning for either of them as the creatures rose up out of the colourless water like something from the deep. Xander felt hands grasp him. He twisted away, slippery with slime. Something crashed into the side of his head and he fell.
He forced himself to his knees, feeling sickening waves of pain wash through his head causing his vision to quiver. He looked up.
The three demons were moving warily towards Spike. The diminutive demon was crouched low, so low that his head almost touched the ground. Long, sharp needles stood quivering on end the length of his body, making him appear twice the size. His tail, which Xander hadn't even noticed until that moment was raised threateningly above his head, bristling. The quills that were embedded in one of the demons armour - which leaked a thick black fluid, went a long way to explaining his attackers wariness.
Spikes eyes moved desperately as his three attackers circled him.
Xander hauled himself to his feet, taking in the scene. He took a tottering step towards the demons.
Then he stopped.
He felt his vision pulled inexorably towards the clear passageway. Salvation - freedom beckoned.
He hesitated. In confusion, one foot tried to move to help, while the other tried to flee. He stumbled and fell, a cry of pain startled out of him as sharp stone bit into his knees.
The demons started to turn, in that moment, Spike leapt.
Its difficult to fight someone who is for all intents and purposes a giant ball of needles. The demons made some effort to hit him, but as that invariably involved injuring themselves, they mostly concentrated on protecting their faces from the frenzied onslaught.
For an impossible moment, it looked almost as if he might win.
Then one of the demons grabbed hold of him, ignoring the spines which pierced its arms. It got a face full of quills for its efforts, but it hurled the porcupine like demon away.
Spike hit the wall with a crunch as spines bent and snapped. He fell to the ground unmoving.
The demon that had thrown him took an unbalanced step, reached up to touch its bristling face, made a keening sound half between a whine and a hiss, then collapsed. One of the remaining two moved in to finish the stunned demon, while the last moved purposefully towards Xander.
Xander backed up hopelessly. He knew that his chances of outrunning the demons now were about on a par with his chances of outfighting them. He wondered idly what it would take to kill him, if he would actually die at all, or if he'd stay alive and conscious as they tore him into bloody chunks.
Lacking a better plan, Xander lashed out.
He'd punched before. Usually when he'd been at school, it had warranted an amused look, and on one occasion followed by his head being forcefully inserted into the vending machine. Occasionally in recent years, he'd actually gotten off a semi-respectable blow.
He'd never taken anyones head off before.
He stared at his fists as if he'd never seen them before. He looked down at the crumpled demon, oily fluid geysering fitfully from the ragged hole that had been its neck.
He looked up at the last demon, a dreadful smile on his face. He stepped forwards menacingly and the demon shrunk back.
“Heads up.” he grinned.
The demon turned and fled.
Spike had managed to get back to his feet when Xander reached him. He clung to the wall, supporting himself with one hand. One side of his face was covered with blood and his eyes were unfocused, but he regarded Xander urbanely.
“Thanks.” he said casually.
Maybe being a zombie isn't all bad, after all. Xander thought.
Xander helped to support the injured demon as the two of them fled.
|
|
|
|
Rave
Barbie Girl (Becca)
biscuit07
Filmtheory (Jim)
Malice (Jess)
MebbtheScribe (MichaelB)
Reset (Allie)
Shay (Marrisa)
somnambulist29 (Shea)
Stephanie Loss
Wendyness (Wendy)
Questions?Contact Us
|
|
All stories on this site have been archived with the authors' consent. Do not copy these stories for your own uses without the express consent of the author themselves. Buffy the Vampire Slayer TM and Angel TM are © UPN, WB, Fox and its related entities. All photos on the site are © UPN, Fox, Warner Bros, and/or their respective owners. No profits are being made by use of these images.
Powered with the assitance of eFiction.
|
|
|
