~*~

"I’m sorry, Buffy, but this goes beyond a missing vampire", Giles argued. "An organization with the resources this one appears to have is far too large for a small band of people to bring down. And it must be brought down, as you well know. Your life, Faith’s life, indeed the integrity of the entire Council and the mission are at stake here. Without any official government sponsorship that would give us a focal point to exert pressure, we must avail ourselves of the power of the Watchers Council. Brute force will be the order of the day, and we cannot exert that by ourselves alone."

Giles and Buffy had been having a rather heated exchange ever since the Watcher had first said the Council was going to have to be notified about the group responsible for Spike’s disappearance and the threat to the slayers.

"Giles, you know the Council is likely to agree with these idiots. They are still pissed off at me for the way I made them take you back, and they already sent a hit team after Faith before she volunteered for prison. They’d love a brand new shiny
Slayer all ready to say ‘yes, sir, whatever you say, sir’ to them. If they DO decide to help us, it won’t help Spike at all. I’m sure there would be some ‘oopsy’ sitch with a nice piece of wood to take care of William The Bloody. I won’t risk him getting dusted by the good guys, if you want to call them that. We’ll get him out, then worry about closing up their little science lab", Buffy said.

"Look, Buffy, I heard you express your, er, feelings for Spike along with the rest of your friends. I do understand your fears and agree that it would be unlikely for the Council of Watchers to overly concern themselves with the safety and care of a vampire, especially one with the notorious reputation of Spike. We will be there, however, and do everything in our collective power to see to Spike’s safety. At this moment, it is YOUR safety that worries me. Angel has already seen to Faith’s
protection through his sources. You are the one at risk, Buffy, and I won’t lose you because of a possible threat to one annoying vampire", Giles said firmly.

"Um, guys, maybe it isn’t an either/or situation", suggested Xander. "I mean the Council is way over in London, right? Even if they have a team close by, it would take a little while to put it all together, I’m guessing. How about we gather up our favorite toys and our very best witches and head for the area where this fun bunch of scientists are supposed to be hunkered down. The really-really-dead-for-good-this-time demon pointed us to the general area and told us it was underground. I’m betting Tara and Willow will be able to do that locator on Spike once we’re in the right neighborhood. The mad science guys won’t be expecting the Buffster to show up on their doorstep, so she’ll be safer than staying here. We locate Spike, call the Council from there, spring the Annoying Undead and skip town before the Council militia make the scene. Sounds win/win to me, huh?"

"Good Lord, this must be a sign of an impending Apocalypse, Xander has come up with a detailed and workable plan!", said Giles. He took off his glasses and polished them for emphasis.

"And it’s a plan to help rescue Spike! I think you may be right, Giles. Hellmouth openings on the horizon!", added Willow with a laugh.

"Xander, do you still have access to that van from your construction job? I think we may need to move Spike in the daylight and that’s the best way to do it without trying to stuff him in a trunk", Buffy said.

"Yeah, I think Bob will let me borrow it. He’ll think it’s for a hot date and he’s kinda challenged that way. Sure, I’ll go take care of it and meet you guys back here in, say, an hour?", Xander said. "I’ll stop by Willie’s and pick up some bagged human. If Spikey is in bad shape, I’m thinkin’ we can let him off the ‘all
pork, all the time’ diet this once."

"I can do that", Angel volunteered. "I think I can make sure that Willie gives us the good stuff. Besides, it will look more natural for me to go in for blood take-out than it would for you. The fewer questions and rumors, the better".

"Giles, think we can put together some non-lethal things like tear gas or something like that to take out a lot of these guys in one pop? I can’t see us killing a bunch of humans even if they are just like the Initiative was", Willow suggested.

"I think I may know a couple of spells that might help, too", offered Tara.

"Great, Team Vamp Rescue is starting to come together. Thanks, guys, you don’t know how much it means to me", said Buffy.

"We know, Buffy. YOU are the reason we are going to the extra effort", Giles said.

"Well, I sort of like Spike, too, and so does Tara", added Willow. "But, yeah, I figure I owe Buffy some happy since I’m the one that brought her back to Hellmouthy fun and games". The witch was heartily glad to have a chance to do something to alleviate some of the guilt she felt at having dragged her friend out of heaven.

~~~

Riley had been with Spike for over an hour. It was taking less and less time to beat the captive vampire into unconsciousness these days. The blood loss was considerable and Spike was rapidly failing with no effort required on Riley’s part. This fed Finn’s frustration and caused him to become even more angry with the vampire who was bearing the brunt of all of the soldier’s anger and hatred.

"Ri, look, I get that you’re getting some catharsis from this, but enough is enough, okay?" interrupted Sam. "We need to move on. I just left a meeting with the brass and they’ve decided it’s time to go pick up the Slayer. They also wanted me to tell you to get your butt in gear and finish this. Do it however you’re going to do it and lets gear up for Sunnydale. I’m thinking they’ll roll out the welcome mat and we can just wait till everyone else is gone before we taser the bitch and head out.
The Slayer’s friends seemed to really like me and Xander practically worships you. This is a no-sweat mission for once."

"Okay, stop nagging. You’re not my wife, Sam", Riley sighed.

"Look, I’ll clear this up in a minute. I want to stop by the clinic first before we go to the next phase. Tell the brass that it’s covered. Why don’t you go get some rest before we need to head out?"

"’K. Make sure you tell the doc about the lack of sleep and not just the weird limp. I know, now I sound like a wife again", Sam said with a fond smile.

Sam left the cell area with a pleased smile on her face. Finally they could move onto more important things than one wasted vampire!

~~~

Spike had begun to rouse himself from the ground. He was still able to see out of his right eye, even though it would likely be swollen shut, like the left one was, by morning.

"Well, Spike, looks like it’s that time. Not that you’re human or anything, but I’m thinking that this cell isn’t all that humane a place, even for a vamp like you. No fresh air, no view, I don’t think the folks at the Geneva convention would have approved at all. I know just the place to move your sorry ass. Of course, there will be some hours in the day where you’ll need to stand in just the right spot to keep from making an ash of yourself", Riley said. He laughed at his own joke for a bit before continuing. "Of course, you might just fall asleep and wake up on fire. Or maybe you’ll just do us all a favor and not worry about it at all."

"What makes you think I’m gonna stay where you put me, White Bread?", said Spike. He wasn’t about to let Finn think he had broken Spike’s spirit over the many weeks of torture. He might go out in flames, but he’d do it standing proud.

"Since you won’t be able to move, the way you’re going to be chained, the best you’ll be able to do is fall over into the sunlight and fry. As for getting you there, well, that’s where these tranq darts come in, Spike", Finn explained.

It took more than one dart to put Spike out, but even the most determined vampire can only hold out so long against chemicals.

~~~

By the time Spike was able to see, he did indeed have a view. He was chained in a small hut with a large window too high to be seen from, but too low to allow the possibility that the sunlight would be indirect when it did come. Spike looked at the night sky and tried to determine what direction the fatal sunrise would come. He suspected he was chained in the last area the light would reach. Finn would want the longest amount of time possible for fear to run its course before Spike blazed out in glory. He decided to sleep now so he could stay awake when he needed to be alert and upright.

~~~

"Colonel Finn, let me just have a look at that leg. It might be painful, so swallow these for me and I’ll be back in to have that look", said the doctor.

Riley took the tablets and sat stiffly, eager to have the exam finished. The doctor had been interested in all the complaints Riley had mentioned. As he had promised Sam, the Colonel left nothing out. Maybe that would get Sam off his back, Riley thought as his vision blurred and the room began to dim. In a very few minutes, Riley Finn was as unconscious as he had left his vampire captive.

~~~

Sam Walsh was looking through the one-way glass at her old friend and faux husband. She sighed deeply as she began to question the doctor. "So, why the malfunctions? I know he hasn’t had an injury that would cause all the problems. And he’s really off the scale. Sometimes he even snaps at me! I think you may need to adjust the levels of the serum or he’s liable to start taking US out. Could this be because
Mom had him on the meds and the implant? None of the others have reacted this way, but they weren’t part of the original Initiative either. I’m just glad he had the vampire to fixate on and take out his rage. He’s unstable."

"Yes, of course", the doctor agreed. "We’ve been watching closely since you first sent up the alert. He has no memory of the surgery or the alterations and we’d like to keep it that way. Judging by previous behavior, coupled with his current instability, we cannot risk his finding out.

The fact that he would have died out there in the jungle without the cyborg implants would not likely win us any points. The medication that allows the human parts of him to accept the artificial seems to be what is causing the mental and emotional instability. We will have to adjust the dosage, but we dare not discontinue it. He is our prototype, our ‘six million dollar man’, as it were. We’ll fix the damage to the wiring that is causing the limp and start to alter the medication. You must see to it that he eats properly. That is still the best method to get the serum into his system. He refuses any daily ‘vitamin’ supplements" we offer.

"Let me get in there to do that rewiring before he comes to", the doctor continued. "I think I’ll keep him overnight. Tell him I want some ‘sleep lab’ time to deal with the rest issues. That should give me time to check on those drug and hormone levels and come up with a new dosage. Meanwhile, I’ll let him think he fell asleep due to the lack of rest he’s been experiencing".

"I know you’ll get him back up to speed, doctor. He was so special to Mom, I know she would want him to be her crowning glory. It’s better without adding the demon element. If mom had stuck to the machine/human mix and left the demon parts out, Adam might have been all she had hoped. Now it’s up to Riley and you, Doctor", Sam said.

~~~

The rescue plan was in place and the Scooby crew managed to find the area with less effort than they had expected. Of course it helped to have spotted a pair of commandos leaving a convenience store and following them to an area just perfect for an underground facility location. The presence of a helicopter and large garage only underlined the success of their find.

"Bingo! I think we’ve got him! Well, not the exact, exact spot yet, but we’ve narrowed it down", Willow almost shouted. Tara had done the special locator spell to pinpoint Spike as soon as they were sure they had the right area. "He’s somewhere in a five mile radius. We can narrow that down, but it may take a little while", Willow admitted.

"I guess we’ll have to live with that for now, but please hurry", Buffy said.

"Show of hands for all in favor of sneaking downstairs and scoping out the joint", suggested Xander.

"I was thinking the very same thing", Giles agreed. "It would be a good idea to get Angel out of the great outdoors, at any rate. We can only hope the element of surprise will work in our favor".

"Oh, I can help with that. A bit of a glamour spell and presto change-o, three new NCOs report for duty", Willow offered. Willow jumped at the chance to do more than just write spells and a glamour was nothing to cause black eye syndrome. Still, she glanced at her lover to be certain that Tara wouldn't take exception to Willow indulging in actual magic this one time. Tara merely nodded in agreement.

"What about me, Will? I’m not just standing around waiting for Spike to fall in my lap here", Buffy complained.

"No, but I’m thinking you’d make a better doctor than a soldier. You’re kinda tiny and they aren’t the midget marines after all. A glamour can only do so much, Buff", Willow teased. She was beginning to feel the stirrings of victory close at hand and her mood was reflecting her happiness at the prospect of doing something proactive to bring it about.

It all went like clockwork. The quartet easily blended in to the background of the facility, which turned out to be much larger than expected.

Giles spotted the medical division first and suggested they begin the search there. They all remembered Doc’s gleeful description of the medical plans this group had for ‘Hostile 17’.

There was no sign of Spike in any of the holding cells they found. Angel saw a file on a desk in one doctor’s office with the title ‘Project Sunnydale, Initiative Clean-Up’. The desk was closest to Giles. Angel indicated with a gesture the need for a diversion to allow Giles to snap up the file.

Xander pretended to stumble, knocking into Angel and the resulting curses and shoving caught the eye of the nurse in the room. She came into the hall to try to calm the troubled waters. Giles slipped in and out of the office in record time, file tucked carefully in his jacket. Before any further attention could be drawn on the group, the ‘soldiers’ made up and peace was restored.

At that moment, Buffy caught sight of Sam Finn and headed in her direction. There was nothing she wanted more than to get physical with Riley’s little G.I. Jane.

When Angel saw the determined look on his former love’s face, he held back Xander from following her. Better he act as backup in case Buffy’s actions drew any attention from others in the facility. Sam went through an exit door into a stairwell with Buffy close behind.

"Good Lord, she’s going to jeopardize the entire operation! Has the girl no sense whatsoever?" Giles sputtered as Buffy and Angel disappeared from view.

~~~

Sam didn’t recognize Buffy at first. Willow’s glamour spell was a good one, but not as effective when you got up close. As soon as she realized it was the Slayer and not a medical resident, Sam reached for the alarm switch to bring help, but she never made it. Buffy broke her arm before she could pull the lever.

"Okay, bitch, where did your husband take my boyfriend? Don’t even think about lying or stalling ‘cause I’m all out of patience with you both", Buffy warned.

The two women struggled on the stairwell, Sam fighting surprisingly well in spite of her non-slayer status. "Your latest vampire lay is dust by now, Blondie. Riley finished playing with him last night. He had a great time, but we’ve got other things to do, like you!", Sam replied.

The fight took on elements of a traditional cat fight complete with hair pulling and biting. The concrete steps made a treacherous battleground but both warriors used it to their best advantage. Metal handrails gave both leverage in their lunges at one another.. "Nope, try again, Catwoman, Spike’s still among us. You need to point me in the right direction before I decide to use YOUR blood to help him feel better", Buffy ordered.

"I’m not lying. Damn, you’re as stupid as the stereotypical blonde, aren’t you? Even I know the Slayer wouldn’t feed a human to a vampire", Sam said with a smirk.

"She might not, but I would", said Angel, slipping into game face.

Sam jerked violently at the sight of the vampire threatening her, losing her balance as she did so. Sam plummeted down the stairwell and landed with a heavy thud at the foot at the stairs.. Buffy didn’t need to be a real doctor to realize that Sam Finn had snapped her neck. The angle of the body was testament to her quick death.

~~~

Spike watched as the sunlight crept ever nearer. Even though his one good eye was only opened a small slit, his he could track its progress. Despite his best efforts to focus on the approaching sunbeams, Spike was beginning to hallucinate again. His good buddy Virgil was back yammering in his head again.

"Look, you bleedin’ ghostie or whatever the hell you are, I’m kinda busy here trying not to turn into barbeque, if you don’t mind. Don’t have time to listen to you givin’ another one of your daft speeches. Why don’t you look up Dru, she’d love a nice visit from a new vision. Got a soft spot for poets, too, my Dru, so take Dante with you why don't you?"

"Spike, your Beatrice draws near. Soon you can leave this level. She will escort you on the next part of your journey. Just as with Dante, who is still in prayer", the voice said.

"Yeah? Well, good on him. Don’t have a soddin’ Beatrice and the only journey I’m on is out of the path of Mr. Sunshine there. Thanks all the same for the kind thoughts, now sod off,". Spike moved further into the corner, desperately avoiding the progressing sunlight.

~~~

The group rejoined Willow and Tara in the woods that ringed the helipad and motorpool that served the facility.

"I really must place that call to the Council now, Buffy, if they are to be of any help at all. We saw no sign of Spike down there, so it is reasonable to believe that if he is still alive..or undead…or whatever, he is not inside that bunker. Perhaps there will be something in this file, or the locator spell might work better with the refinements the girls have come up with. I can no longer delay the call", Giles stated.

Giles proceeded to take out his cell phone and make the necessary report to Quentin Travers himself, detailing everything except the involvement of two very well known vampires in the whole situation.

Buffy sat with Willow as Tara began the new spell to try to find Spike before the whole area became far too crowded to assure his survival. Willow took her friend’s hand to reassure her that all would be fine, it had to be.

Giles began to look through the stolen file and grew ashen. "Oh dear, well the fat is truly in the fire now", he said quietly. The report he had been scanning clearly described the removal of the behavior modification chip from Hostile 17. "It would be best for Buffy if he is already dust. I hate the thought of her having to go through that nightmare again".