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Unexpected Arrival by Mefiant
 
Chapter 31
 
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Chapter 31

“Ok, I don’t like this.” Buffy wandered around the deserted office. “The whole place is empty, and it really shouldn’t be.” She looked to Spike for answers, not that she was really expecting him to have any. The pair had cautiously made their way up the stairs to the uppermost level of the council chambers, expecting to find resistance on their way. All that had met them, though, were empty rooms.

“They were here not long ago.” Spike cocked his head to the side, as though listening for the room to give up its secrets. “What do you think, luv? Secret passage?”

Buffy nodded her agreement. “Secret passage.”

“Just like Travers to scarper off when the going gets tough. His type never stick around to get their hands dirty.” Spike began prowling around the room, looking for some sign of where the Head Watcher had disappeared to.

“Odds are if we try and follow him we’ll be walking into a trap.” Buffy came to stand beside him, peering closely at the section of wall that had caught his attention. Glancing around the room, she found a small silver letter opener lying discarded on the desk.

“Were you expecting anything else?” Spike took the opener and began to slide it carefully down a small crack in the wood panelling of the wall before tossing it aside in disgust.

“There’s got to be a latch or something around here somewhere.” Buffy began to press on the wall, hoping that she would somehow gain access to Travers’ escape route.

“Hang on, luv.” Spike rested a hand on her shoulder before closing his eyes in concentration.

Buffy felt a pull inside her. Frowning, she concentrated on the feeling; following the sensation deeper and smiling to herself when she realised what Spike was doing.

A soft click sounded through the room as the wall panel swung open. Spike grinned at her. “Having a couple of witches in the family definitely comes in handy.”

“Yeah, ok, smarty. I would have thought of it eventually, you know.” Buffy turned to give him a quick kiss. “Ok, so do we wait for more reinforcements or start down now?”

“They’re already here, luv.” Spike nodded to a space behind her.

Buffy turned in time to see the air shimmer and a glowing portal open in the room behind them. When it finally closed the rest of the Scoobies stood gathered in the room.

“Hey, guys.” Buffy wiggled her fingers in acknowledgement.

“Hey, Buffy. So, we’re heading down again I take it.” Willow moved forward to peer into the dark passageway that led downwards.

“Looks like.” Buffy sighed, suddenly feeling weary at the thought of having to chase Travers down again, and into unknown territory at that. “I don’t like it, though; we’ll have nowhere to go if we come across resistance in that passage.”

“Hmmm, maybe…” Willow turned to Tara. “Maybe we could adapt the barrier spell a little.”

“Adapt it?” Tara began to go over the possibilities in her mind. “We could probably place it ahead of us…”

Willow nodded. “And if we could get it to move a few feet in front of us we would have a buffer if we come across an ambush.”

“It might work.” Tara grabbed a piece of paper from Travers desk, scribbling notes for an altered incantation. “It would be too hard to continually set the barrier up as we go, but if we could fix the spell to an object then we can get the barrier to move with it.”

“Do you think you can do that, Will?” Buffy questioned her friend, eager for any advantage when they would be walking into the unknown.

“It shouldn’t be too hard, it’s just a matter on deciding what to use.” Willow began to look around the room for potential items.

Spike moved to the desk and picked up a small round paperweight and tossed it casually in the air. “This do, Red?”

Willow flicked her wrist, stopping the ball in mid flight, her hand hovering for a moment as if testing the weight of the ball. “I think it’ll do fine.” Gently she levitated it back onto the desk’s surface, before joining Tara and going through the new incantation.

“Ok, so while Will and Tara work on the barrier, the rest of us can work out what weapons we can use in a small place, and what we can easily carry for use later.” Buffy began to sort through the weapons each carried before moving into the hallway to inspect those of the rest of her forces.

She noticed Mathew, Isabo and Jayala gathered with the others in the hallway. “Hi, guys. It looks like Travers and some of the others had an escape route, so we’re going to have to chase them down.” Buffy explained to them about Willow and Tara’s effort to create a moving barricade. “So I think the best plan is to keep the numbers in the passageway to a minium. Jayala, can you stay here with some of the forces and guard the building; keep the barriers up? Some of the watchers may not know that we’ve taken over, so they may return. Mathew and Isabo, I want you to get the rest ready to join us as soon as we get where we’re going. I’ll get Dawn to open a portal for you, so be ready.”

The others nodded their understanding before leaving to organise their troops. Buffy cast an eye around those gathered, satisfied that all would follow her orders without hesitation—demon and human alike. She noted that their numbers had increased—some of the watchers who had witnessed the effects of the spell on their colleagues had, after learning the truth, moved to fight beside many of the creatures they had been taught were the enemy. Their loyalty and belief in the Slayer—in her—compelling them to join the fight against Travers and his followers.

“Everything ok, luv?”

Buffy felt Spike’s hand snake around her waist, his touch soothing yet powerful as she felt his love and concern flow into her.

“All these people.” Buffy tried to name the emotion that was churning inside of her. “All these people trust in what I say, they do as I say without question. Why?”

“Because you’re the Slayer. They all know, every one of ‘em, that you are chosen; not by man, not by demon, not by some damn vote, but by a greater power. They know that no matter what, you fight for them, and against the evil that means to harm them and the ones they love.”

“Ok, so no pressure then.” Buffy heard Spike’s soft laugh.

“’s no different to what you’ve done every night since you were called. You and the bloody Scoobies. Only difference now,” Spike waved his arms towards those around them, “is that you’ve got a lot more help.”

Buffy turned to face him. “You always know the right thing to say.”

“Spent a long time studying people to find out which buttons to push, just to torment them.” Spike grinned as he held out her Redwulf. “Same principle.”

Buffy took her weapon, deftly separating the two pieces so they could be more easily used in the confined space of the passageway. “Except now you use your power for good, not evil!” She strode past him and back towards Travers office.

“Hey!” Spike began to protest before following her. “It might be true, but no need to spread it around.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Willow and Tara stood by the entrance to the passageway, the small paperweight floating in the air before them. The cadence of their words drifted through the room gently, soothing those gathered. The ball seemed to shimmer slightly before returning to normal.

“Did it work?” Dawn whispered, not wanting to break the girls’ concentration.

“Yes, it worked.” Tara beckoned her forward. “Feel?”

Dawn moved to stand beside them, pressing her hand into the doorway. She gave a small gasp. “It’s kinda squooshy.”

Spike and Buffy each moved to test the barrier for themselves.

“It feels kinda like the air is thick, like a heavy drape.” Buffy pressed her hand more firmly, gasping when it seemed to break through the other side of the barrier. “Will?”

“We were having trouble making the barrier mobile; the only way we could get it to work was to weaken it a little. It won’t keep someone out permanently but it will slow them down long enough for us not to be surprised by them,” Willow explained. “I’m not sure we can keep the Tirer La Couture spell going at the same time.”

“Think it’s a safe bet that anyone down there with Travers is evil, Red.”

“Yeah we thought that too.” Willow’s eyes sought Buffy’s for reassurance.

Buffy merely nodded her agreement; they all knew that whoever they came across on this part of their journey would not survive the meeting. “Everybody ready?” Buffy waited for Willow and Tara to move behind the others before stepping through the entrance to the passageway; the small ball moving a few feet in front of her as she went.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

The passageway wasn’t as small as Buffy had first thought, they hadn’t gone far before it had widened enough that she and Spike were able to walk abreast, with room to manoeuvre around them. The passage had also lost its smooth look; the steps beneath their feet were rough and uneven, making their journey forward that much slower.

The passage was lined with small torches, burning with a soft light and throwing shadows against the walls. Buffy and Spike made sure they carefully checked each shadow for places where a person could be waiting to ambush them.

As they descended, the air seemed to become thicker, the walls were slick with moisture, and the smell of damp earth and decay seemed to get stronger with each step.

Spike and Buffy stood motionless in front of the others, both staring intently at a bend in the passageway ahead. Spike motioned for the others to stay where they were, before silently moving forward to press against the wall, out of sight of anyone who might happen to come around the bend.

Buffy waited for him to take his position before stepping forward again, making sure that her body was just visible around the bend, she turned her head as if to say something to the others when a large man rounded the corner and made a grab for her.

Buffy barely had time to register the look of surprise on her attacker’s face as his hands met resistance, before Spike had pressed his hands through the barrier and neatly twisted the man’s head, catching him and dragging him through the barrier without a sound.

Giles moved forward and pressed two fingers against the man’s throat, silently noting the lack of pulse. A brief nod told Buffy all she needed to know. Without a word, she took another step forward, carefully assessing the passage ahead for any further threats.

Spike quickly took his place at her side once more, as the others stepped carefully past the dead man on the ground. Not one of them spared him a glance as they continued on.

The first indication that they were coming to the end of the passageway, was when Spike stopped, cocking his head as he listened intently, a small smile playing on his lips as he felt a tug inside him—the others all drawing on his enhanced senses to hear the voices in the distance, each of them readying their weapons in turn.

Inch by inch the slayer and the vampire crept forward, the voices in the distance, although whispered, slowly become audible to all. Four men stood pressed against the walls ahead, each hidden in shadows. Spike grunted in disgust, no use hiding if they were going to spend the entire time blathering to each other. The pair moved back to join the others.

“Do we have a plan?” Buffy started as Giles’ voice sounded in her mind.

“Bloody man even thinks in British.” Spike’s sarcastic tone soon followed.

Buffy smiled as she saw the others grin, having a familial bond was definitely coming in handy. Buffy concentrated on sending her own thoughts to the others. “Ok, there’s four up ahead, I don’t think there’s any more close by, not any I can sense, anyway.”

“Don’t think a sneak attack is going to work here, luv. Passage is too open for ‘em not to see us coming.”

“I agree with Spike.” Giles peered into the distance. “Perhaps we should consider… erm…rushing them?”

“Ok, I want a quick attack, as little noise as possible.” Buffy turned her attention to each of them. "Spike and I in the lead, we’ll grab the first two and pass them back. We’ll deal with the other two. And remember, keep the noise down; we don’t want to alert anyone else that might be around.”

Turning back, Spike and Buffy lifted their weapons and ran forward.

The men seemed surprised by the small band of intruders running down the passage towards them, perhaps even more surprised when they made their way unerringly towards their hiding places. Three were caught easily, pulled through the barrier and dispatched with a minimum of fuss. The fourth, however, had taken off at a run when he saw the first of his comrades pulled from his place. His footsteps echoed off the cold stone as he ran, Buffy and the others following close behind. After a short while, he seemed to remember his voice, yelling a warning as he rounded another bend.

Spike caught up to him as the tunnel straightened out once more, pulling the man backwards and snapping his neck. As the body slipped to the floor he noticed the large cavern before him, with about thirty heavily armed men standing at the ready. “Bugger!”
 
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