The elevator entered the motor-pool and Fred, Harmony and Lorne exited.
“Why did you press the button Harmony,” Fred screamed.
“I don’t know,” she said, “I guess I panicked and the demon was giving me funny looks…”
“What?” Lorne asked, “You’re a vampire! You could kick its ass.”
“Let’s not point the finger all day, we’ve got to concentrate on how to get Spike and Gwen away from the demon without them dying.”
“Easier said than done,” Lorne said, “that demon looked all Agent Smithy. One mission and all that. For all we know they could be dead right now.”
“Don’t say that,” Fred insisted, “get in one of the cars and we’ll drive to the front of the building so we can use Harmony.”
“What do you mean “use”?” Harmony said standing her ground.
“You wanna join our exclusive gang you’ve got to make sacrifices,” Lorne said
“Such as…”
“I don’t know,” he continued walking towards the car, “your wardrobe, your demon nightclub, your eternal happiness, maybe even your life.”
“It’s not all fun and roses saving the planet,” Fred said as she sat in the driver’s seat.
The others go tin and they drove into the sunlight and came back around to the front entrance.
Gwen and Spike stood staring at the demon.
“I am the Intercessor,” it said, its voice extremely slow in contrast with its dazzling speed, “I am here to take your demands.”
“Yeah,” Gwen said, “and I’m the Ass-kicker and you can guess what I’m going to do.” She took off her gloves, revealing her bare, electrically charged hands.
Gwen leapt across the room and made full contact with the demons chest. Gwen fell flat on her face while the demon just staggered back.
“Huh,” she said.
“Hey,” Spike called from the back of the room. “You gonna pick on the lady all day or take on a real challenge?”
Spike’s face transformed into the face of a vampire. “How about it?”
The demon turned and charged at Spike, Gwen made a run for the main foyer elevator, the floor smattered with bodies and blood.
Spike put his fists up, waiting for a fight and the demon simply passed through him, into the glass, cracking it down the middle.
Spike continued running and went straight into the blood-stained elevator with Gwen, she pressed the switch and the elevator began to crawl down the shaft.
In the foyer above the demon let out a scream and Angel’s entire office shook, the window cracking even more.
It charged at the elevator door, causing a huge dent to appear. A rage overcame the demon and it separated the door and leapt down the shaft.
It started to pound the top of the elevator and eventually penetrated the roof.
Gwen and Spike looked up.
“Spike,” Gwen said, “I hope you don’t conduct electricity.”
Gwen reached up and put her palm on the top of the elevator, expecting the entire elevator to become charged both Spike and Gwen where shocked to find that nothing happened.
The demon seemed to smile. It punched again and Gwen dropped to her knees attempting to distance herself from the lightning-quick fists of the demon above.
“Hold on there Gwen,” Spike said, “only three more floors to go and we’re on the ground.”
The demon lowered himself into the elevator and bowed down to Gwen. “You smell delectable.”
Gwen looked at the floor counter, only one more floor to go…
She punched the demon directly in the face and it seemed to mildly annoy it.
The elevator came to a stop and the doors opened. Spike got and called as Fred, Lorne and Harmony came through the main entrance.
The demon threw Gwen out of the elevator and across the hall and she fell down unconscious.
Fred and Lorne picked her up while Harmony stood frozen to the spot.
Spike called the group to get to the stairs and they listened, all four ran towards the main stairway but the demon ran and beat them to it.
The demon raised both of its arms and let out an almighty roar.
It then ran at the group and knocked Lorne flying.
Fred dropped a still unconscious Gwen and ducked as the demon swung for her.
Harmony transformed into her vampire face and went for the demon and tried scratching it but the demon simply swatted her away.
All of the group where down when the demon wrenched a pole from the metallic stairway and began to swing it.
It passed straight through Spike, and only just missed the neck of a now standing Harmony.
The demon roared again and threw the pole at Fred, she ducked and it impaled a worker behind her who had been running between pieces of cover making his way towards the door.
Gwen opened her eyes and tried to stand to take on the demon, she simply fell back down again.
The demon came towards her and raised its fist.
It came in so they where nose-to-nose, the hatred in his voice was obvious.
“I…Win…” it said.
A voice came from above Gwen. “You must have the booby prize ‘cause I’m about to kick your ass.”
The owner of the voice grabbed the demons hand and spun him forward. The voice bent down and snapped the neck.
Spike looked over to see who had caused the damage.
There where a large number of people where standing just outside of the Wolfram and Hart building.
Spike could instantly recognise Giles, Willow, Xander and Kennedy there was also a large number of girls whom he assumed where Slayers.
He instantly recognised the woman inside who was leading the attack.
His eyes lit up.
“Buffy…” he said.
The group had used the backup elevator to get the demon up to Angel’s office and the rest of the group had come up on the staircase leaving the Slayers in the lobby and asking that they help clean up the bodies, Harmony was with them having organised the clean-up crew.
Buffy had agreed that it was not the best way to start a campaign but told them that she wanted to have a clear field in which to do battle.
Those who where not clearing up sat in Angel’s office.
Buffy and Spike where sitting at opposite ends of the table so as to avoid any uncomfortable conversation. Spike had sat down and Buffy had reflexively moved to the other end.
They made small talk for about an hour before Angel and Gunn arrived back at the office.
As the elevator door opened the Angel couldn’t believe his eyes, Willow and Xander who he’d not seen for years where sitting around his conference table communing with his current employees, Gwen was also sitting there, her lip bleeding and a demon lying on his desk with a neck at an unnatural angle. Buffy was now standing looking at him.
“Anyone want to fill me in?” Gunn asked.
Willow spoke, “The seers in the Coven in England have seen that a war is about to start in LA. We thought that we’d better give you a hand.”
Lorne looked to Gunn and Angel, “I take it that the negotiations failed.”
Gunn looked down, “It looks like once they’ve made up their mind their mind is made up. They said they would send someone over to take our demands before they launch an attack.”
Out of the blue the demon on the table began to shine. Its neck cracked back into position. It then stood on top of the table.
“Angel, leader of Wolfram and Hart,” the demon said reverently, “I am the Intercessor. Your followers have proved themselves worthy opposition and so it falls to you, Angel, their leader to decide what should happen if you and your allies win the war. You will have an hour to confer and then you must come to the white room and inform me of your decision.”
The demon left the table and walked into the lobby; the screams from some of the Slayers did not fill Angel with optimism about the coming battle but once the demon had gone into elevator and the doors had closed the group seemed to relax.
“Looks like the war is here,” Spike said.
Fifty-five minutes later Angel was in the lobby speaking with Buffy.
Uncomfortable seemed to be the word of the moment.
Buffy shrugged, “Are you sure that this is what’s right?”
“I’m pretty sure that it’s totally wrong but it’s the only thing to do,” he answered, “I need to keep damage to a minimum.”
“Angel,” Buffy said stepping closer to him, “if we survive this -”
Buffy was interrupted by a voice that echoed in everyone’s head.
“it is time Angel. come to me now.”
Angel and Buffy looked at each other.
“Did you hear that?” Angel asked her.
“Yeah,” she said, “why do you suppose it went directly into our minds if it was going to tell us both the same thing?”
“First impressions,” Angel said simply. “I’ve got to go.”
Angel kissed Buffy on the cheek and went to the elevator.
18, 23, 20, 28, 27. Angel typed the code into the control panel and a large button materialised on the top of all the other buttons.
“Let’s go make demands,” Angel said and he pressed the new button and the elevator flashed white.
The room was totally white. Angel stood dressed in black and was in complete contrast to the room.
“Angel.”
He recognised the speaker as that of the demon intercessor.
“Have you and your group come to a decision?”
Angel chose his next words very carefully. “I have.”
The intercessor smiled.
Angel came back down and looked at his group.
“I want to thank you for coming to help me. All of you. Even you Gwen, you kinda fell into it but I assume you are staying?”
“Count me in,” she said.
“Good. Now many of you wont survive and I understand that this is going ot be maybe even more devastating than the fight in Sunnydale. But I do know this.” He looked around the room. “We. Will. Win.”
The group looked at each other.
Harmony came rushing though the door. “Angel. I have some great news. Come and look.”
Angel ran to the lobby. He looked through the crowds of Slayers and saw three people he loved very much.
Cordelia, Connor and Doyle.
His lover, his son and his partner.
Angel closed his eyes in pain.
to be continued…
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