All the characters that appear on Buffy do not belong to me, they were created by the all powerful Joss (all bow down) All others, such as Lily or Aaron, belong to me, as does the story line. I have taken Anya’s story, Gone, and given it a little twist. Buffy and Willow have switched places, so now Buffy is the half vampire. I just couldn’t bear Angel and Buffy being apart. (Becoming nearly killed me and Innocence and Surprise gave me a heart attack!) This is my first fanfic of any kind, all feedback is welcome, but no flames, purty pleeze. Hope you enjoy the fic.
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Part Nine
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PLAYING FAIR
The warehouse was dark, barely illuminated by the florescent lights hanging high overhead. Piles of boxes and crates were scattered all over the place, hiding a number of possible dangers. An iron walkway went all the way around the perimeter of the room and crossed overhead numerous times. Rickety and ancient, it matched the rest of the decor. The windows, when they were whole, were dirty and smudged, some covered with wooden boards. The floor was hard concrete, covered with the stray wrapper, dead leaves and the inevitable layer of dust that was disturbed only by the footprints of the small rodents who had made their homes somewhere in the walls. The entire area was silent, not a single creature moved. Even the rats could sense the dead creatures nearby and they knew better than to go scavenging tonight. They didn’t make a single sound.
In the shadows, nothing moved, yet there was something different. An unnatural darkness hung in the corners, disturbingly quiescent. A slight movement off to the right. . . Once again everything was still, until suddenly it moved again, a shadow separating itself from the darkness.
Angel slowly walked forward, his pale face illuminated by the harsh white light, his every sense on edge. He inhaled slightly, not out of need for air, since he obviously didn’t breath. Death had a knack of doing that to you, taking away your need to breath. Angel could smell the slightly musty odor, the same stale smell he always noticed his kind gave off. His sharp ears could pick up on the little sounds of someone moving somewhere deep in the bowels of the building, but he could hear nothing in his immediate vicinity. Of course, that just meant there was nothing ‘alive’ in the room with him. Vampires, if they practiced, could sit for hours on end, silent and still, not even batting an eyelid. That was one of the first things Angelus had learned to do when he had been changed.
Angel surreptitiously glanced at the rafters, noting the glass sky light he knew would be there. He carefully picked out the a few parts of the darkness in the upper corners that was so still and quiet that it was supernatural. The vampires up there, obviously young ones, did not know how to blend in with their surroundings just yet. He would have thought Kalith would train his people better than that. Angel finished his sweep and stood tall and still in the middle of the room. He wasn’t sure what ol’ Kal was planning, but he could wait. That was one of his strong points, something Kalith had never possessed.
The only warning Angel received was the slight displacement of wind at his back. He spun quickly, too fast for a human to actually see the movement, but not fast enough. A steely fist slammed into his jaw, snapping his head around. He fell to one knee, head ringing and he caught a glimpse of a booted foot coming up to connect with his side. This time, Angel was quicker.
He twisted sharply, bringing his forearm around to deflect the blow, while at the same time sweeping his led around and knocking his opponent off his feet. He leapt up with the grace of a wild cat and cautiously backed away, hands up and ready. The other vampire picked itself up slowly, growling threateningly low in his throat. As it straightened to stare him straight in the eyes, Angel realized that it wasn’t a ‘he’ at all. The woman, or more accurately, the demon circled him slowly, her black hair pulled back and out of the way of her face. Her vampiric ridges stood out prominently on her Japanese features and her eyes resembled those of a reptile. She hissed at him and Angel snarled back, feeling his face transform with anger. It didn’t matter what the hell she was, so long as he made her suffer.
Angel’s thoughts were interrupted by the new presence he sensed at the other end of the room. His head came around sharply, eyes blazing with such a deep hatred that no mortal could ever understand it. How could they ever comprehend a hate that had been cultivated and survived, not only through decades, but through centuries as well?
The new vampire smiled maliciously, returning Angel’s stare with dark amusement. He was nearly as tall as Angel, with slightly broader shoulders and the same air of danger. He took two steps forward and it became obvious that he was incredibly deadly, his muscles moving in the flowing movements of a carnivore. Cold, ice-blue eyes watched everything, while at the same time never leaving Angel’s face. His smile broadened a little as he noticed Angel’s nearly healed hand. “ You always did have something of a temper, didn’t you, old friend?”
Angel bared his teeth and turned in his direction, the vampress momentarily forgotten. “ I was never your ‘friend’, Kalith, never will be.”
Kalith frowned and shifted his position, rubbing his chin in pretend confusion, “ Well, that’s not what I remember. I seem to recall us being quite good friends. We used to eat together all the time. . .”
The implication was both obvious and true. While the demon had been in possession of his body, Angelus had often hunted with Kalith. It was not a pleasant memory. Those were often his most bloody kills, Kalith encouraging him to play with his victims first. Kalith had also learned a lot from Angelus, since his own sire had been killed by the slayer at the time, shortly after Kalith had been created. Angelus had seen the bloodlust in the young vampire’s eyes and had taken him under his wing with great aspirations of his ability to kill. Kalith hadn’t let him down, in fact, killing the slayer merely three months after being created.
The duo had been feared and despised by the peasants of the countryside of Italy where they had lived, and revered and feted by the vampire community that ruled by night. Demons often traveled from over seas, just to see the famed vampires, who had killed an entire village in one night. These memories haunted Angel more than anything else and his hatred of Kalith grew with the reminder.
Kalith smiled now, his face stretching into a diabolical grin as he regarded the elder vamp. “ But then, you did lose your taste for our cuisine a while ago, didn’t you? I didn’t, after all that girl- what was her name, Ariel? Yes that was it - after all, that girl was exquisite. I wonder if your new paramour will taste just as good?” He watched Angel closely and he was pleased to see his eyes darken with rage. He continued to press his advantage, wanting to cause him as much pain as possible. “ Well, actually she tastes better, at least her skin does,” he taunted dangerously. Suddenly from out of no where he produced a familiar red rose, with a couple of it’s petals missing. Angel felt his rage increase and struggled to remain in control. Kalith raised the blossom to his face, playfully letting it brush softly against his lips. “ She is truly wonderful, Angel, I must applaud you on your choice for a bed mate. Perhaps you would lend her to me sometime, just for a-”
Angel snapped. His face transformed quickly as he threw himself at Kalith with a blood chilling growl, crossing the distance between them in an instant. He tackled Kalith just below the knees, taking them both down. For a second they scuffled on the floor, each struggling to remain on top. Suddenly they separated, rolling in opposite directions and coming to their feet. There was no hesitation as they leapt forward again. Kalith swung wildly at his opponents face, missing by a centimeter. Angel steadied himself, pulling his arm back and smashing his fist into Kalith’s face, sending him stumbling backwards. Angel followed up with a round-house kick to the face and another punch. The demon inside of him sung, glorying in the violence and hatred. Angel allowed it some measure of control, knowing that in order to win this fight he had to be as ruthless and cunning as his protégé. Everything else faded from his mind. The other vamps hiding in the rafters, the demon who had first attacked him, even Buffy’s safety retreated to the back corner of his mind. The only thing he was truly conscious of was that he had to win. He had to win.
Kalith straightened as Angel attempted to kick him in the side. Snarling, he blocked the blow quickly and threw a vicious upper cut at his face. He stepped forward, placing his forearm on Angel’s shoulder and pushing him backwards. Angel stumbled, momentarily caught off balance. Kalith used that to his advantage, dropping to a crouch and swinging his foot around to connect with Angel’s ankle. His legs collapsed beneath him and the tall vamp crashed to the ground. Kalith, lying on his back, brought his foot down sharply, intending to crush Angel’s rib cage with it.
Angel’s sight cleared just in time to catch a glimpse of Kalith’s foot coming down on top of him. There was no time to think, only to react. He rolled away, pulling his arms in under him and pushing himself up. He backed away, watching the silently laughing vampire across from him. The fire in his ankle told him he probably had a torn ligament and the pain in his jaw was throbbing. he warned himself silently. Angel tensed his muscles, ready to fly at Kalith again, when all of a sudden the demon began to laugh out loud, shaking his head in Angel’s direction.
“You never did learn, did you?” he spoke with something akin to wonder in his voice. “You should have, after all you taught me pretty much everything I know. But you somehow’ve never realized it. You can’t trust me. I don’t. . . play. . . fair.” The last word was just barely a whisper. His eyes focused on something behind Angel’s back and a cold wave of understanding washed over the ancient vampire. He spun on his heels, bringing his arms up to block the blow that was sure to come. There was a quick glimpse of Ri’s face, then the feeling of shattered glass that connected with his out-stretched hand and the sensation of burning as the holy water connected with his skin. Angel flinched involuntarily to protect his face from the flying droplets of water and as he did so, Kalith came up from behind him and smashed an iron crowbar onto the back of his neck.
Angel dropped onto his hands and knees, his ears ringing, the ground seeming to move under his feet. He fought to clear the mist clouding his mind and to dull the bright stars swimming in front of his eyes. Slowly, painfully, he turned his head to stare up at his old enemy. Kalith merely stood there, stock still, partly shocked by what he saw. Angel’s eyes no longer held the tortured look they had for the last century or so, yet they did not resemble the madness of a demon. Instead, his vampire visage was cold, merciless and determined. For the first time, Kalith began to doubt the wisdom in threatening the girl. In the back of his mind he vaguely recalled something someone had told him long ago.
Kalith recovered quickly from his momentary doubt and raised the crowbar to deliver another blow, when Angel slowly smiled at him, his yellow reptilian eyes shining in the depths of his morbid face and his pointed fangs cutting a fearsome vision. “You may be right, Kal, but you forgot one thing.” Kalith hesitated, the bar raised over his head. “I don’t play fair either.”
Suddenly the sky light directly above them exploded and shards of glass rained down on them along with three swiftly falling forms. They each landed easily with a triumphant growl, and suddenly Kalith’s plan went straight to hell.
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