Fearsome was the sight that greeted them. The Mayor stood in front of his desk, back to the door. He practically radiated power, daring them to make the first move. Buffy and her friends held their ranks, refusing the taunt.
"Ah, welcome. You are braver than most. Allow me to introduce myself," Gideon said and turned. Buffy gasped. He was fully vamped-out, yet the handsomeness of the features were still visible, making the demon all the more frightening.
"I am Gideon black. Your Mayor. You," he paused slightly, smiling. "You have been interfering in my campaign. For that you shall die."
Buffy got hold of herself quickly. "Enough small talk. Where's Eliza?" she demanded.
"Through that door, safe and sound. For the moment." He swept an arm toward the portal on the opposite wall. "By all means, take her with you. But you must go through me to do so."
"No problem." Buffy started toward the door. He stepped smoothly in front of her. Buffy raised her stake threateningly and the piece of wood flew backwards and out of her hands. She stepped back two quick paces.
"Tsk, tsk. Tell me, do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" he chided mockingly.
"Huh? Oh, right. Telepath. Fine." Buffy took the two steps forward again and was intercepted. Cordy strode forward and uncorked the bottle of holy water. She flung it at him, but the water fell short as if it hit an invisible barrier. The same thing happened with the crossbow quarrel that Giles had simultaneously loosed. Xander made to rush him and stopped, frozen in place. Cordy whimpered. Buffy glared.
"She's going with us."
"Of course she is," Gideon purred and then staggered from a blow to the side of the head. Two more punches followed in quick succession. Then a kick. Gideon finally halted her attack with a back-handed slap that sent her flying across the room and into the wall.
"Ooohhh," she groaned, dazed. Gideon was across the room in a trice and picked her up by the shoulders, eliciting a surprised squeak from the Slayer.
"Clever, Slayer. Very clever indeed. Thinking of someone else to disguise your true intentions. Worked once. Too bad, because it won't work again. You know, I wonder if Slayer blood tastes as sweet as I remember," he mused aloud and shrugged. He opened his mouth and moved for Buffy's neck.
* * *
Spike sniffed the air suspiciously. Smoke. Wha'? he thought and then screamed as fire engulfed his ankles. He began a mad dance about the room as he tried to put out the flames.
"Come on!" Eliza grabbed Snyder's arm and pulled him over to the door. She opened the portal and dragged him through, slamming it and quickly locking it behind her. She then turned to join the fight.
"Hey! Starting the party without me, guys?" she shouted. Gideon spun around and snarled at the other two prisoners. Arden quickly ducked behind Gideon's desk. Giles unsung his bag and tossed it to her. Gideon reached out a mental hand and intercepted it.
"Hey!" Buffy exclaimed. He turned to face her and received a vicious head-butt from the Slayer. Both Buffy and the bag fell to the floor.
"Ow!" she complained from her now-sitting position on the floor. Eliza snaked the bag away, grabbed two stakes and tossed one to Buffy. She also pulled out a cross.
"Back off, Gideon," she growled and shoved the cross in his face. He hissed his displeasure. Buffy lunged and missed by a hair. Eliza didn't. She rammed her stake into Gideon's back. The vampire staggered but did not fall or turn to ash.
Damn! Not in far enough, thought Eliza tiredly. Her energy was flagging, but she summoned enough focus for one last attempt. Standing motionless, she drew upon her reserves and concentrated on the vampire. His coattails began to smoke. Flames soon licked at the jacket. Eliza collapsed, unconscious.
"Eliza!" Giles shouted and ran toward her.
Gideon screamed in fury and sent a mental roundhouse kick outward, slamming Giles backwards over the few chairs still standing and hard into the wall behind him. With a muffled groan, he slid awkwardly onto the floor and was still. The backlash of the force sent the rest of them spinning and falling. Buffy recovered first and took a run at Gideon. She drove the flaming vamp backwards into the wall, slamming the stake in deeper. He roared and burst into ash.
Snyder peeked up from behind the desk. Eliza and Giles were out cold, and the rest of the Slayerettes were slowly picking themselves up off the ground. Buffy took charge yet again.
"Xander, take Eliza. Cordy, help the troll over there. I'll get Giles." So saying, they managed to move the injured out of the office and into the hallway. A scream and some thudding made them pause. Finally, a figure crashed through the inner office and ran out into the hall with them. Buffy tripped the fleeing Spike and flipped the hall runner over his legs, effectively smothering the flames.
"You owe me, Spike," was all Buffy had to say.
"Not again!" Spike groaned and fled as fast as his injured legs could manage.
"How are we going to get them out of here? Giles and Eliza are in no condition to get up and walk, and we came through the underground." Cordelia reminded everyone.
"Right. Good thinking, Cordy. Xander, go use the phone and call the library. Oz and Willow should still be there. Tell them to bring Oz's van to the loading dock."
Ten minutes later they were bundling the wounded into the van and driving off toward Giles' home. Buffy cradled Giles' head on her lap and leaned her own back against the carpeted wall of the van and closed her eyes. She missed Angel more than ever now. She needed someone, too; someone to hold her, to care if she was alright. A tear slipped out from under her lashes.
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