Disclaimer: See part 1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part Three
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Crazy. The tracker was going crazy. "There was definitely something here," Gates said. "I've never seen readings like this though. Let's see if we can follow the trail." He rose from where he was kneeling just inside the crime scene tape.
Gary nodded and they began to follow the trail, but stopped only a few feet away, confused. "What?"
"What's wrong?" Gary looked over his shoulder at the readout.
"The trail disappeared. It's concentrated around the site where it killed that civilian, but it drops off almost immediately when it leaves. We won't be able to follow it." He sighed. "The professor isn't going to like this."
* * *
Riley watched as Buffy went through her warm up exercises in the campus gym. It would have been a full workout for many people, he reflected. The more he learned about her, the more impressed by her he was. He saw Giles off to one side, seated in a folding chair.
"Very good Buffy. Now move to the rings, and I want to see some movement. Iron crosses for 20 minutes don't impress me anymore." He spotted Riley and waved him over. Riley took a seat next to him and watched as Buffy began a gymnastic routine that would have won her a place on the Olympic team easily.
"She impresses me more every time I see her," Riley breathed.
"Adequate," Giles nodded as Buffy did a hand stand on the rings, then pushed off with her hands and twisted in mid air neatly switching her hands without losing her balance. She repeated this several times before going into a more complex set of movements ending with a complex twist and flip dismount. Riley applauded and Giles allowed a smile.
"Nicely done. Your control and balance continues to improve." Giles rose and passed her a towel.
"I'm afraid we may have to cut it short," Riley put in. "The trackers aren't working." Giles raised an eyebrow.
"Tracker?" Buffy nodded.
"I told you about the She-mantis, the headless guy that was found? They hoped to use these pheremone tracking thingies to locate it." She turned to Riley. "No luck huh?"
"Oh we found a couple of places it had been, but there was no trail between them. It doesn't secrete enough of a trail to follow when it's on the move." Buffy shrugged.
"No problem. I know another way." She toweled off. It'll have to wait until tonight though. In the meantime why don't you join me, Xander and Anya for an early dinner? My 'other way' won't be available till about an hour after sunset."
* * *
"Are you certain this will work lord?" The demon prince Serhan turned one of his many eyes toward his minion.
"Unlikely, but not every battle is about winning or losing." The minion considered for a second before answering.
"You wish to gage their strength. Determine the limits of their abilities and resources." Serahn made a pleased sound, somewhere between the roll of thunder and a cat's purr.
"Yes. It is also a psychological test of sorts. They are becoming complacent dealing with vampires and minor demons. Let us see how they cope with something completely different." The idea amused Serahn and he chuckled. "I believe this qualifies."
"It is… different," the minion admitted, eyeing the bizarre looking creatures before them. They stood on their hind legs about two feet tall and were vaguely reptilian in appearance. They looked up at their master, sharp toothed grins splitting their faces. The large ears were the most expressive parts of their faces, continually moving, folding back against the heads like the ears of a cat when it was angry. "You created them specifically for this test?"
"Not exactly," Serahn admitted. "I borrowed them from a movie I saw a few years ago. The behavior of the creatures was quite entertaining, so I borrowed them, and made a few modifications."
"Which movie?" His master smiled
"Gremlins."
"Gremlins?" He considered. "Somehow, the image of you sitting in a theater munching popcorn and laughing at a human made comedy is more frightening than these creatures could ever be." Serahn gave his faithful servant an amused glance and chuckled softly. He was indeed in a good mood. "And they will be set free tonight?"
"Yes. The she-mantis is already at work, and Samuel's recruiting drive is going well. Let us see how they handle multiple crises." His minion nodded approvingly while privately hoping that this wouldn't all blow up in their faces.
Their kind had always existed in relative peace with the human world, ignoring each other whenever possible. For every demon that wanted to wipe out humans there were many more who just wanted to go unnoticed, and live quiet lives Now that was changing. With the U.S. government becoming involved it would become near impossible to avoid a major conflict. It didn't help to have demons like Serahn escalating that conflict.
For all his power and ingenuity, Serahn was sometimes like a child. This was a game to him. For the lesser creatures he was using as cannon fodder, it wouldn't be nearly as much fun.
These were thoughts that he kept carefully hidden from his master, but he could not resist the urge to caution him. He would never criticize, but he could caution with reasonable safety, provided he did not appear the coward.
Makin glanced at the 'gremlins' as Serahn called them. Although semi-sentient they were made specifically for this task and had no existence beyond serving the will of their master. They would be efficient creatures, he had no doubt, efficient killers. If nothing else, he realized, they would make a good test for young Gary.
"Tonight at sundown," Serahn stated I will release them into various parts of the town.. Then we will watch."
* * *
"I like this place," Xander stated, holding up the knife. "They give you knives that will actually cut the food."
"Always a plus," Buffy agreed. The four of them were gathered in a small Italian restaurant that was a fairly recent addition to Sunnydale. The place was intimate without being claustrophobic, and they were relatively free to talk. Buffy smiled at Riley as he dug into his pasta primavera. "Food's pretty good too." The others only nodded in agreement, their mouths being full. "What did Walsh say when you asked her?" Riley swallowed.
"She's skeptical, but she agreed. Your 'other way' has his guarantee."
"Good. Xander?"
"He agreed, but he wants something extra. He feels confident he can stay out of sight on his own." Buffy rolled her eyes.
"How much?" She winced when Xander named a figure.
"It'll be worth it if he can actually do it. I'll take care of the cost. Are you sure he's trustworthy?" The question sent Xander into a coughing fit as he tried to laugh and swallow at the same time. Riley looked at him in alarm and Buffy reached over and slapped him on the back.
"Spike and trust don't really go together, but he can find the person we're looking for. The guarantee and the money will help him remember what's in his best interests. Besides, thanks to your patent pending procedure he can't hurt anyone, unless they're really oversensitive." Riley frowned at this.
"Meaning?"
"The only thing Spike can do these days is insult people, but he's really good at it." Riley resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
"Noted. You should know it was a hard sell. She wasn't exactly crazy about the idea."
"But she agreed right? He can be a tremendous asset, and I don't want to break my word. He's safe. That's the only way it works." Her tone was deadly serious. Riley nodded
"I promise." She gave him her best perky smile.
"Good. Now lets-" the smile faded as she caught sight of something in the window. "Back on the clock guys." Riley and Xander were suddenly alert. Anya looked put out.
"What is it?" Riley's back was to the window, but he didn't immediately look around. Xander looked out of the corner of his eye.
"It's about two feet tall," Buffy told him. "Scaly, with claws and real sharp teeth. I've never seen one before."
"You sure?" Xander squinted at the front window, giving it his full attention now. "Could be someone lost their pet monkey." Then the thing Buffy had seen swung into view again. It was using a banner out front like a swing. "Or not."
"Eeww," Anya said looking away. "I just lost my appetite." Xander smiled.
"Well then let's dance." He changed the grip on his steak knife. Buffy rolled her eyes, but smiled. Riley didn't have time to comment as a trash can crashed through the large picture window. There were screams and shouts from those closest. Overwhelming that was the sound of laughter from outside, high pitched and definitely malicious. "Let's go."
The lights went out even as he shoved his chair back. The confusion seemed to grow exponentially. People started yelling and scrambling toward the exits. They pushed and shoved, and swore, intent on getting out at any cost. Then things got worse.
A woman practically screamed in Riley's ear as the creature launched itself through the window and landed on her back. He turned, getting a closer look at the creature as it grabbed handfuls of the woman's hair and pulled. Riley knocked it away with a single punch and turned to look for others, and there were others. Too many.
"Get these people out of here!" Buffy shouted. "I'll tend to the munchkins." Saying this, she grabbed one that hanging onto a woman's skirt, apparently trying to look up it, by the leg and swung hard at another that was preparing to launch itself at her from the next table. Their bodies met with a satisfying thud and the one on the table sailed back toward the window and was neatly impaled on a shard still attached to the frame.
She turned abruptly as one of the creatures was slammed down on the table its friend had just vacated. Xander drove the knife he had earlier praised into the thing's chest. "Civilians are clear of the restaurant," he said, "but these things are outside. Looks like everywhere."
"Riley?" She looked around and found him just putting up his cell phone.
"They seem concentrated in this area, whatever they are. Agents are on their way to help, but we have other problems. Beta team reported sighting a large group of vampires near campus. We're going to be spread pretty thin."
"What about local cops?" Xander asked. "They aren't good for much but they might help calm things down." A siren sounded even as they spoke. The four, including Anya, who had taken shelter under a table, made their way outside in time to see a patrol car run into Riley's car. It bounced away continued on its way in fits and starts. Through the broken passenger side window they could see one of the small creatures wearing some luckless officers hat and laughing crazily as it spun the wheel back and forth. Judging by the way the car was moving, there must have been another jumping up and down on the gas pedal.
"So much for the cops," Anya said resignedly as the vehicle continued to swerve down the street. Riley looked from his caved in driver's side door to the fleeing patrol car. It was the closest Buffy had come to seeing him angry.
"Let's get them."
"Hold on," Buffy put a hand on his shoulder. "We've still got a bug to stomp."
"Just a sec." He dialed control again. "Professor? I…" He broke off and listened, frowning. "The mantis…"
"Let me," Buffy suggested. He handed the phone over. "Professor. The mantis may already have hostages. Can you spare two men and the proper equipment? I've a friend here whose fought them before. He can round out the team." She glanced at Xander who nodded. "Don't talk about security clearance. He already knows about you, and he won't learn much more by leading you to the bug. Tell them to expect a… civilian consultant. Besides Spike won't go with people he doesn't recognize." She nodded. "Okay. We're at…" She gave the address. "We'll deal with the little guys….Yeah. Okay." She clicked off. Riley was staring at her.
"I don't know anyone who talks to Walsh that way. How?"
"I don't have time for the secret agent stuff. Let's see what we can do here."
The next 10 minutes were spent chasing small, ugly, vicious little beasts. A van finally pulled up in front of them, just as Riley was snapping a diminutive neck. The members of Delta squad piled out. Riley waved to them, breathing hard. Buffy was nowhere to be seen. He heard the sounds of ass kicking in the next street though.
"Agents. I really hate these things." He held up the corpse and shook it roughly before tossing it into a garbage can. "Xander!" he shouted.
"Here." He came around the corner followed closely by Anya. Both were carrying lengths of 2X4. Each board was spattered with a greenish glop that they tried to avoid touching or looking at. "Hey great. Ride's here. I'd rather go after a mantis than these things any day."
"Can I come too? Just to you know, hide in the van?" Anya looked exhausted and frightened. Xander raised an eyebrow at Riley, who shrugged.
"What's one more security breach?" He turned to Forest. "This is Xander Harris, the civilian consultant you were told to expect.
They climbed into the van. The driver and one other agent stayed with them while the rest spread out to search for the creatures. Xander gave directions to the place Spike had agreed to meet them.
"All the equipment ready?" The agent who wasn't driving nodded. Neither of the agents said anything, clearly not happy about his presence there. "Have you been thoroughly briefed on the mantis?" Again he nodded. "Okay. Is this to be a capture or a kill. I gotta tell you it's ugly out tonight. Trying to capture it could waste a lot of time we don't have."
"We've been ordered to kill the insect but secure the body. Then we'll proceed with the rendezvous with another team." He turned to look at Xander. "We'll drop you and your girl friend somewhere."
"Fine by me. I hate this monster hunting stuff." Anya pouted. "What's the big deal about a Mantis anyway? They only kill a few men. No great loss." The contemptuous tone in her voice drew a curious stare from the agent. Xander only rolled his eyes.
"Pull over here." Xander pointed to a corner near the entrance of Crestview cemetery. The door opened and Xander hopped out. "Spike?" For a moment there was no response then a voice from the shadows asked.
"What about my guarantee?"
"You've got it. I'm here to make sure they keep that promise." Spike stepped out of the shadows and reluctantly came toward the van.
"Remind me again. How did you talk me into this?"
"I believe Mr. Franklin talked you into it." Xander pulled the bill out of his pocket. "Let's go already." He handed the money to Spike. "You'll get the rest when the job is done." Spike climbed into the van. Both agents eyed him warily, but Xander cleared his throat.
"We have an approximate location of the hostile's lair, but we need to narrow it down. That's why Spike is here. Don't even think about it," he added as he saw a hand stray toward a weapon. "There are lives at stake. That's a lot more important than your vampire catching competition." He was guessing about the competition between the agents, but the nasty look the agent shot him pretty much confirmed his guess.
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
|
