Chapters 1-5

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER:
One to Lead Them
by Kevin D. Cottrell



Disclaimer: All characters from the Television show “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” are owned and created by Mr. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, Inc, Kazui Enterprizes, Inc, Sanddollar Television, Inc, and Twentieth Century Fox Television TM. Any reference to The Ronin is an alternate Future to the “Code of the Samurai” by Nancy Holder in Tales of the Slayer Vol. III; however, none of her characters are used just her concept. Any and all references relating to “The Book of Fours” are owned by Nancy Holder, again, just her concepts and none of her characters. All other characters are of my creation. I make no money from this manuscript. Please, enjoy feedback and reviews are requested and highly appreciated.
Thank you.

Prologue:
This story takes place in Cleveland, OH the location of the second Hellmouth. Buffy, Giles, Dawn, Willow, Kennedy, Xander, VI, Faith, and Choi-Ann moved to Cleveland after “The Battle of Sunnydale” renting a house on the outskirts of the city. Buffy is twenty-two, and this is her eighth year as the Slayer. All slayers are at full strength; and retain Willows gift. Willow used the essence of “The Scathe” an ancient weapon made for the Slayer, to activate all of the potential Slayers in the world. Caleb destroyed The Council of Watchers; the Slayers and their friends are alone. Spike, Amanda, and Anya died in the school, and Principal Wood died of his wounds on the bus. The eight remaining Vampire Slayers: Buffy, Faith, Shannon, Carided, Kennedy, VI, Rona, and Choi-Ann is all that remains of the thirty young girls, that were called and died during the battle of Sunnydale.

The awakened Slayers all over the world have no one to guide them. Andrew, Shannon, and Rona were sent, by Buffy, to L.A. to find other slayers. They have buried their dead, cried their tears, and healed their wounds, and now await their destiny.


Into Every Generation, A Slayer Is Born. One Girl, In the entire World, A Chosen One, One Born With The Strength, And Skill To Hunt The Vampires, To Stop The Spread Of Evil, To Keep The Demons From Spreading their Number. That Girl Is Not Alone Anymore!


CHAPTER 1: That’s Our Girl!

The concrete and steel skyline jutted its angry glass teeth, glistening defiantly, towards a red moon; like a bloodshot eye it watched. On the north side of Cleveland, a cool wind gently blows off of Lake Erie. Two old streetlights framed the entrance to a large steel gate in an arcane yellow. The luminance silhouetted a girl standing on top of a crypt, under a steel sign that read Erie View Cemetery. Moisture glistened on the polished granite tombstones from an afternoon rain. Her black leather jacket was covered in a fine mist as the wind gently blew her long blonde ponytails. The girl’s loose fitting beige slacks soaked through and dripping onto her black leather boots as they glistened in the eerie light. She scans her patrol area and spots three shadows creeping in the direction of the Paragon, a local teen-hotspot. The girl jumps off the crypt, and readjusts a package under her jacket. She quickly moves in a direction adjacent to the trio’s path. Moving with blinding speed and staying in the shadows she climbs quickly over the cemetery’s wall, and heads down an alley to the back entrance of the Paragon.


* * *

Further down the alley and across the street a single white stretch limousine sat parked. Inside the driver sat, his attention focused on the alley. His hand reaching for the volume knob on the CD player turning the volume down. The driver adjusted his night vision goggles as he listened to the music.


“Oh Shit,” The driver says under his breath as he reaches for the CD player’s off button.


He turns off the music and hits a switch that lowers the inside glass separating the driver from the limos passengers. As the glass comes down the driver looks towards the back,


“We have activity at my twelve o’clock boss!”


“What is it, Sergeant Major?” asks a voice behind the driver's shoulder in a thick British accent.


“A young blond in a pony tail ran full speed up the alley, and Boss, she had a stake in her hand,” the driver answered.


“Do you have a visual?” asks the mysterious voice.


“Yes Sir, she’s surrounded and there are some more of what looks like six men moving up the alley, just a second, Sir,” the driver responds as he activates a side button on the Night Vision Goggles.

***


As the three vampires approach, they smile when they see Buffy standing with her hands on her hips blocking their way.


“Hi, boys dinner time… But I didn’t even ring the bell… yet”.


“You’re dead slayer,” the vamp in the center, clearly the leader, says with confidence.


“Really hope you brought an…army,” Buffy says defiantly.


“We did,” the leader says as, four vampires step out of the shadows four more climb out of the dumpster. The slayer looks down the alley as six vampires start heading up the alley in her direction.


“Sir, they are reading sixty eight degrees, outside temp, confirmed; Sir, their all vampires about seventeen in all”


“What is she doing now? Is she scared, is she acting afraid?” the boss asks.


“No sir, she’s waiting for them, she’s going to try and fight them all,” the driver answers.


“That’s our girl! Move it!” The driver starts the engine, turns on the high beams, and buries the gas pedal.

***


She quickly assess the situation, if she goes through the back entrance to the Paragon, not considering the heavy metal door, the vamps will have a free for all inside. Buffy looks up and sees that access to the roof is blocked. She has no choice; she gets into her fighting stance. She hears tires screeching, a large white limousine is moving fast, full speed up the alley, crashing into the six vampires moving in the direction of the fight. Two are staked outright, by twin hideaway sharpened wooden posts mounted under the front grill.



Tires squeal as the huge limo comes to a halt directly in front of Buffy. Four doors swing open, and five middle age men decked out in black leather outfits bolt out and take up fighting stances. They were armed with crossbows, stakes and one had a high-pressure water gun, the kind you would find in Toys-R-Us. The group of men that gets out of the limo forms a triangle around the Slayer, the leader standing directly in front of her; turns his head in Buffy’s direction.


She looks up, "Well...Hello! Mr. Tall glass of water."


“Evening, Miss Summers, care to lead?” She smiles still confused but eager to fight.


All six, the slayer in the lead, head into the fray. She leaps over the limo and performs a flawless flying tiger kick into the neck area of the vampire leader, sending him back into a pile of garbage. She goes left, pulling out a stake from a concealed leather holster that Xander had made for her. The five men helping Buffy skirted the limo on the right, and went into a diamond formation. The limo driver backed the limo up to block the alley as the door opened; a large older man stepped out. He had slightly graying blond hair, a three-piece suit, Ice cold blue eyes, and had two small crossbows in his hands; also, Buffy thought that she could smell after-shave, the kind with a ship on the bottle. The man crouches and fires, dusting two of the four vamps that survived the limo crashing into them. She dusts the vamp on the left with a forward stake thrust, and spins around dusting the next vamp. She's a whirling dervish, spinning striking first left, then moving right.


Her leather-clad friends, still in the same diamond shape formation, moved in the direction of the four dumpster diving vamps. The diamond formation quickly moves into a zulu pattern, horns of a bull, as the four men, two on each side of the leader, break off and move violently forward, dusting two vamps with forward stake jabs.


The man with the water gun sprayed down a vamp, which took off smoking and screaming. “Damn, I should have thought of that, holy water in a super soaker,” Buffy thought to herself.
Then he sprays down the roof of the limo, preventing the last two vamps in the alley from approaching.


The men move forward, on line, and as the leader breaks rank, he sidekicks one of the surviving dumpster vamps. The vamp bounces off the dumpster, the leader strikes with a spinning back stake dusting him. As one of the men drops his crossbow, he pulls out two drumsticks and performs a double forward thrust, dusting the final vamp. As the dust clears, Buffy turns around, places Mr. Pointy back into her holster and throws her leather jacket back, concealing her weapon.


She looks slightly annoyed “who in the Hell are you!”


“You’re welcome,” the leader says.


“Look, I don’t need your help, I can handle myself.”


“You look, Slayer, I don’t doubt that you could have handled that situation all by yourself, but why?” The leader says.


“Again I ask, who are you?” Buffy glares at him.
The leader reaches into his jacket and pulls out an envelope.


“Just friends,” he replies as he hands her the package, and walks away towards the limo, which was already facing in the direction out of the alley. As she looks down at the envelope the limo drives off.


Inside was a cell phone with a small note, it read “call when ready to be picked up for dinner at the Sanctuary, all will be explained, bring your entire party."


“Hey, that’s tomorrow night, cool.”
Smiling slightly, Buffy walks down the alley, heading home. She returns and completes a final sweep of Erieview Cemetery, but finds no activity and returns home.


As she enters the house, Xander is in the kitchen making a sandwich.


“Hey Buffy, what ya doin,” Xander says looking like a pirate with his left eye socket covered with a black eye patch on which he had painted a white cross.


“Not much, dusted some vamps behind this club, by the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame. Hey, nice eye patch Xander,” Buffy said while thinking back to when Caleb ripped out his eye prior to the Battle of Sunneydale.


“Yeah, it’s a look” Xander replies.


“There was something weird that happened tonight,” Buffy says to Xander. “I was moving on these vampires that I saw heading to that club, The Paragon, so I stalked them to the back alley and they laid a trap. Xander, I was surrounded!”


“You’ve been surrounded before Buffy,” Xander says to his best friend.


“No, it was the weirdest thing, I think they know we are here, but that’s not all. As soon as I started to attack, this white limo shoots up the alley filled with vampire hunters that start dusting my vamps.” “Can you believe it?” Buffy says.


“I don’t see the dire here Buffy, so some men help you to, what is the word I’m looking for TO…NOT DIE!” Xander exclaims.


“That’s three words,” Buffy says. “Well, they did give me this,” Buffy hands Xander the envelope. Xander starts inspecting the contents.


“Buffy, a cell phone and an invitation to dinner, that’s it?”


“What more do you want? The invitation says bring my entire party.”


“Oh, I can come too? Buffy, this could be a trap!”


“I don’t think so Xander, bring my entire party, that’s five slayers, who would willingly go up against five slayers?”


“Damn good question, cool,” Xander says as he watches his best friend walk up the stairs.


“Goodnight Xander,” Buffy says.


“Yeah goodnight Buffy,” Xander says just loud enough for her to hear, clearly wanting to talk with his friend some more.


He sits alone in the kitchen thinking of Anya, the love of his life, who gave hers, during the Battle of Sunneydale, to protect Andrew. “I hope you made it to heaven, honey! I love you.” Xander quietly thought to himself, as he shed a silent tear.

* * *



“Dawn, are you up here,” Buffy yelled for her sister.


“I’m in here, Buffy.”


“It’s a little…smashed, sorry. Happy Birthday, Dawn,” Buffy said with a smile.


“You bought…me a present…you did buy it?” Dawn asked.


“Hey, you’re the ex-klepto not me,” Buffy exclaimed.


Dawn rips open the package. It was a blue sundress, and a pair of leather pumps.


“Oh Buffy, they're beautiful…take them back,” Dawn requested.


“What…Huh…what? I thought you said…”


“I did…Buffy we don’t have any money…we cant afford it.”


“You let me worry about that, my sister's going to have a nice birthday,” Buffy said.


“Now that’s just what you wear, I’m taking you out tomorrow night.”


“You’re taking me out, really…you’re taking me out slaying…In a dress?” Dawn asked.


“No, we’re going to a formal dinner," Buffy announced.


“Thank you, Buffy” Dawn whispered, "but, we can go slaying before, right” Dawn asked.


“We can do some training, In the morning, Dawn. I just don’t want you slaying here in Cleveland until I know what’s what, alright?” Buffy said.


“I know, but it can’t be much worse than Turok Han Vampires,” Dawn stated.


“Good night, Dawn” Buffy said ending the conversation.

***

Chapter 2: The Sanctuary


Next day, Buffy and Dawn trained together in the backyard.


"We're going, Dawn!” Buffy yells to her sister.


“Buffy, you met this guy one time in an alley, and you’re going to go to this dinner, is he like cooking or something?” Dawn asks with concern.


“I don’t know whether or not he will be cooking, but he did invite all of us; besides, he helped me out. And there will be no one here to watch you!” Buffy says with authority.


“I don’t need anyone to watch me, I’m seventeen years old, just how old do I have to be?” Dawn asks crossing her arms in defiance.


“Alittle older than…let me see, never! You’re going!” Buffy says, as Dawn rolls her eyes.


“Dawn, throw you’re hip into it when you make you’re arc.”


“Buffy, why did you name the scathe The Flame?” Dawn asks, partly out of curiosity, and partly to catch her breath.


“Well, I name all my weapons, but this is my favorite. Because it cleanses just as fire does; plus it's red, one of the colors of fire…pretty!” Buffy says, as she looks down at The Flame, and glances at Dawn. “Let’s do some more!” Here,” Buffy hands the Flame over to Dawn and steps back. “Fighting stance!” Buffy yells with enthusiasm. “Fade left, jab then slice. O.k. good! Dawn, do that move ten times.” Buffy says. “She has come so far and so fast… but I did promise to train her, I just don’t want any thing to happen to her,” Buffy thinks to herself.


“Buffy, what are we going to do? I mean about money. We can’t just continue to live off of Gile’s money.” Dawn says with concern.


“I know Dawn, I think that I will look for a job Monday,” Buffy says.


“I could get a part time job, you know, to help out,” Dawn adds.


“That won't be necessary, I will take care of it, don’t worry,” Buffy says while moving a lock of brown hair from Dawn's blue eyes.


Buffy and Dawn trained for another hour before Faith, VI, Choi-Ann and Kennedy showed up. Buffy ran through some warm-up drills then turned it over to Faith.


“Ready front!” Faith yelled.


The Slayers went through some sparring drills followed by some weapons training. Then the five Slayers and Dawn went on a three-mile run.
“I wonder who these guys are and what do they want?” Buffy thinks while running through the streets of her neighborhood.

* * *


After showers every one was ready to go. Buffy pulled out the cell phone,and made the call.


“Hello, this is Buffy we are ready to be picked up.”


“Is everybody present?” The cold voice on the other end asked.


“Yes,” Buffy said.


“We are on our way!” The man said as he hung up the phone.


“That was alittle rude” Buffy thought as she put the phone in a pocket of her denim jacket.”


What exactly do you know about your friends?” Giles asked.


“Well, nothing really, it seemed like they came out of nowhere,” Buffy answers her longtime Watcher.


Giles reached into his pocket, pulled out a handkerchief, and started cleaning his glasses.



“Is there a possibility that you were being followed?” Giles asks with concern.


“Well maybe…I don’t know.” Buffy replies. “Giles, all I know is that when I walked into that alley I was trapped, and they helped me out! I don’t think I could have taken all of them by myself, these vamps were different, more organized and until I know otherwise we have to trust them.” Buffy says as she checks her hair in the mirror.



“Buffy, you don’t even know their names do, you?” Giles asks her with a slight smirk on his face.


“Well”… Buffy try’s to answer.


“Yeah and she met them in an alley!” Dawn yells down the steps.


“Thanks Dawn,” Buffy says as she shoots a glare up the stairwell.


“We will get some information tonight, any reason why they would include me?” Giles asks.


Buffy thinks about it “maybe they know you are my Watcher, and plus their all old like you,” Buffy responds.


Giles narrows his eyes, looking at his Slayer, “I’ll be sure not to over exert myself,” Giles states, as he puts his glasses back on. Buffy just smiles.

* * *

Two white limousines pull up in front of the house. As the group moves over to the cars, the drivers step out and start opening the doors. Giles didn’t think Buffy paid any attention to his concerns in the backyard until Buffy started splitting up the group. Faith, Kennedy, Willow, Giles, and Dawn got in the lead vehicle. While Buffy, VI, Choi-Ann, and Xander got in the rear vehicle, placing at least two Slayers in each limo. Buffy with the two new Slayers “a good strategy, since no one knows what or who they are about to face or confront,” Giles thought. Giles smiled to himself, and climbed in.


“This is nice,” VI turned and said to Buffy as the tail limo drove from Cleveland’s suburbs to the western edge of the city where The Sanctuary was located.


“Yes, benefits of being a Slayer.” Buffy answers her.


“Or benefits of being the friend of the Slayer,” Xander said.


“What’s he look like?” VI asks Buffy.


“Who?” Buffy replies.


“Yeah right! So you didn’t get just a little turned on when they jumped out, and helped you!”


“Well, maybe a little, but he’s all old and everything,” Buffy said.


“Oh, like you haven’t had older boyfriends before,” Xander says to Buffy while adjusting his black eyepatch.


Buffy smiled, and then looked out the window. She looked just a little sad, as through she were thinking of someone.


“Spike would have liked it here,” Buffy thought as she often did lately.


“Spike gave his life to save the world, I wonder if he went to heaven? Was it enough to redeem his self after spending over a century as a vampire,” Buffy considered while the limo drove west out of the city.


In her young life Buffy has had three boyfriends. Angel, a vampire with a soul over two hundred and forty years old. Riley Finn, a human that fights demons as a member of an army commando squad. Spike another vampire with a soul, known in his days of killing humans as William the Bloody.

***

Holy Cross Cemetery, 2000 hrs, three miles south of Cleveland

The night’s full moon shined down on The Holy Cross Cemetery like a large dirty pearl, its luminance glistened and danced off of the many mausoleums and granite tombstones, the smell of Azalea bushes mixed with the city’s pollution, permeated the air in a sweet sickingly way. A large concrete wall enclosed the entire cemetery; bats were dancing and screaming in the fall sky, a small gust of wind blew grass clippings onto the well-manicured walkways and paths, lined by flowers of all types. They intertwined through the different sections of the graveyard.

On a small rise overlooking the entire area stood fifteen men, very large, no shirt under their leather and steel breastplate’s. The front of the breastplate held two leather loops,on each side, hung loosely through the loops were four leather lanyards as if to make room if the breastplate expanded. On the front of each breastplate was a large red “L” embossed onto the leather. Their hair red, black and blonde hung shoulder length, freely blowing in the wind. Their axes, swords, and crossbows held loosely at their sides.


“When are they going to be here?” demanded the leader.

“War-chief, The Devil’s Seraphim are not honorable! Their warriors were supposed to be here over an hour ago, shall we maintain human form, the men are getting tired of resisting?” The Warlord’s first lieutenant asked, at the same time in the distance a large rumbling could be heard moving down route four-eighty’s exit ramp.



Fifteen Harley Davidson’s drove through the large steel gates, carrying the Devil’s Seraphim wearing cutoff leather jackets, jeans, and boots.
The bikes pulled up to the glade; they parked their bikes, locking in their kickstands, and slowly approached the likens carrying crossbows, chains, swords, and sawed off shotguns filled with silver-shot.


“You’re encroachments into the outlying suburbs and surrounding belt of forest is in violation of the treaty between vampires and werewolves, that has been in place for the last twenty years.”


“Enough talk, we ride where we please, and we take what we please,” Cobra yelled out holding a sawed off shotgun.


“Very well, no need for diplomacy, fifteen of your number against fifteen of ours, we fight to the death.” The War-chief said, as he raised his double headed axe high in the air.


The likens immediately got into formation of three wolf packs, then they changed. The fifteen likens looked straight up at the moon filled sky, and screamed in pain as their bodies contorted into grotesque shapes. They fell to the ground arching their backs as they clawed at the ground. The night air carried along the sound of muscle, bone and tendon growing and snapping into its new form. Once the likens changed they lost the power of speech, so the War-chief had only hand and arm signals to communicate with his wolf packs.



They were huge some over three hundred pounds, three likens one from each team ran to the woodline, and came back out walking three beasts on all four, the two on the left and right had werepanthers on leashes, but the one in the center was mammoth. Over one thousand pounds of striped death, its head was huge surrounded by a large mane, a wereliger part lion, tiger, and werewolf. Its long talons dragging along its handler, trained from a cub to kill vampires, it had the scent and he was champing at the bit.


The three handlers re-joined their wolfpacks, hellbeasts out front. The war-chief brought his axe down, the center pack, wereliger out front charged, as the other two packs attacked the left and right flanks. The likens collided with the Devil’s Seraphim in a clash of steel, crimson swaths of blood flew through the air. Cobra yelled out commands over the den of battle, “hold the flank, strengthen the center line,” all the time firing his sawed off pump shotgun.


He dropped to one knee to re-load; he looked as the wereliger snapped latching on to his neck, with a twist he dusted. The Devil’s Seraphim’s line collapsed, without their leader they stood no chance against the military precision the likens possessed. The likens carried off their wounded leaving the glade covered in black dust and fifteen riderless bikes.

***

“Giles what’s up?” Kennedy said, “I’m just saying, Buffy meets some dudes in an alley, and all of the sudden we have a bunch of sugar daddies?” Kennedy asks.


“What’s a sugar daddy?” Giles asks nobody in particular.


Dawn looks at Giles and says, with a slight look of boredom, “It means we all pretty much hang on someone’s belt-loop.”


“Dawn!” Willow shoots Dawn a look of shock.


“What? I hear things!” Dawn says.


Faith,second in command of the slayers looks at Kennedy, chewing gum, and flings a lock of her black hair to the side “What are you worried about, Kennedy? I say we party and take them, for all they're worth. So what are they going to do to five Slayers, a Watcher, a Witch, a Carpenter from Hell-mouth, and the freaking key to the Universe!” Faith says as she slaps Dawn five.


“Yes-Yes this is all very captivating, but I think we all need to stay on alert even if we hang on someone’s pants-loop”. Giles says looking very British over his glasses at Dawn.


“I think that’s belt-loop, Rupert,” Kennedy says while looking at Willow and giggling.


The lead limo pulled into a driveway where it was stopped at a checkpoint. After the security guard checked the I.D. of the drivers, he passed the vehicles through a large steel gate that lead to a long driveway winding up to the main house. The gardens were perfectly manicured, as were the trees, and shrubs, rows of azaleas, and Maple trees lining the driveway, Giles noticed breathing in deep the intoxicating aroma. Areas of rock gardens and manmade ponds were placed perfectly along the landscape.


The main house was a large very old mansion that sat on about 300 acres of land west of the city. As the vehicles parked in the main garage everyone got out and looked at the house. The mansion was old, at least a hundred years, sand colored granite, three stories high, two large doors framed by large pillars. On top Gargoyles guarded the complex, one every six feet the full length of the roof. Azaleas lined the full perimeter of the mansion. The Scooby gang walked in through the large double doors, and down through the atrium to a large dining area. The gang was directed to have a seat at a large oak dining room table by a smartly dressed waiter.

Chapter 3: The Offer


A middle aged man walked in wearing a double-breasted black suit, with thin burgundy stripes that ran lengthwise, he had shoulder length jet black hair, deep set brown eyes, high cheek bones, a strong jaw, and carried a pure silver wolfshead cane. The man was followed by five others, dressed in three piece suits, who took up positions on either side of their leader.
Buffy notices that the jacket doesn’t hide the hard body of the middle aged man with the cane or his friends.

“Wouldn’t you like to take them for a ride?” Faith whispers to VI.


“No! Gross Faith!” VI answers.


“He is pretty good looking” Willow says aloud.


“Hey, I’m the only one you should be looking at red!” Kennedy says to her girl friend.


“Honey, you know I was thinking, you know… for Buffy,” Willow says attempting to dodge that bullet.


“Yeah…right!” Kennedy says hands on her hips.


“We are very pleased that you could make it,
Miss Summers, allow me to introduce myself, and the men who work with me."


"Miss. Summers, my name is Sir Arthur Van Helsing, but you may call me Arthur. This gentleman on my right is Sergeant Major Ryan Douglas.” The Sgt. Maj. steeped down and offered his hand. He wasn’t very tall, around five foot eleven, but he was rippling under his dark blue suit, he had blonde hair with a tint of gray, a muscle twitched in his left jaw. Buffy took his hand and noticed that it was very rough, he did not smile and you could see his cold blue eyes under his gray tint Gargoyle sunglasses. The Sgt. Maj. returned to where he stood.
“This is Michael, Scott, Kelly, and Eddie, this is The Van Helsing Continuum; please, will every one take a seat.”


Van Helsing and his team sat on one side and The Scooby gang on the other. At the front end of the room was the biggest fireplace any of them had ever seen. The room glowed with all natural light candlelight, light from the raging fire in the fireplace, and moonlight from the skylight directly above the table. “Welcome;” Arthur started out, “can I get anyone anything to eat or drink before we get started.”


“No Sir, I think we have been quite patient,” Mr. Giles said. Arthur turned to the two waiters, and dismissed them. As they left they closed the doors to the dining hall. “I am very sorry, that you are displeased Mr. Giles, but I assure you that all will become clear, very soon.”



“Well let me try and clear a few things up, Arthur you’re from the Counsel of Watchers and you want me back,” Buffy said, as every one in the room remained silent.
“No, absolutely not! Miss. Summers the only thing that is left of the Counsel of Watchers is some tattered volumes, and I have of course their money. No, we don’t want you back, we want you to lead us, you and Mr. Giles.”
“Huh…what? Wait a second, how can we even trust you?”
“You are right to be cautious! I represent the Van Helsing Continuum, a secret order created by my Great Grandfather Abraham Van Helsing after his battle with Dracula. The Order has been passed down in my family ever sense. We have always had a controlling interest in the Council of Watchers now we are here. When we are sure that you and your team are settled we intend to turn over that controlling interest to you and Mr. Giles to start a School for Slayers.”
“Arthur, just so we are straight you do know that your great grand father didn’t kill Dracula,” Buffy stated.
“Yes, we are aware of that, however, neither did you. He still controls certain provinces in Romania under an assumed name,” Arthur replied.
“Hey, I dusted him twice how does he keep coming back?” Buffy asked.
“We don’t know, but I would say pretty much the same way you keep coming back. He must have a shaman or a very powerful witch on his side or maybe he was never meant to die.” Arthur stated glancing at Willow.
“Arthur, what do you mean, when we get settled?”
“Buffy, this whole place the mansion, the grounds, the personal, the equipment, and the money it’s all yours to start a school to train slayers from all over the world, however, we are getting alittle ahead of ourselves.” Arthur looked right at Buffy. “What do you know about Cleveland?”
“Site of the second Hellmouth, has Lake Erie north of the city,snows a lot,Oh! and this city does have a Neiman Marcus,” Buffy responds.
“Buffy, this second Hellmouth didn’t just appear when the Hellmouth in Sunneydale was destroyed” Arthur stated. “It has always been here, a lot like the one in Sunneydale except, for what… Buffy?” Arthur asks the Senior Slayer.



The whole gang looked at Buffy to answer the question, and then turned to look at Giles.
“Well I’m not quite sure what you are getting at Mr. Van Helsing.” Giles says while cleaning his glasses.
“I do,” Dawn says still looking very bored. Everyone in the room looks over to Dawn.
“C’mon guys, it's not that hard, there has never been a Slayer here,” Dawn says rolling her eyes.
“That’s exactly right, and this means that Cleveland is almost overrun with Vampire, Likens, and other supernatural activity.”
“Like a what?” Dawn asks.
“Lycanthropy it’s a disease that causes a person to become a Werewolf,” Arthur answers. “So let me cut to the chase, using an American term,” as Arthur begins to speak he looks over to Mr. Giles, “that question was not asked to embarrass you, old boy.” “This is not a test, it’s an interview, but in honor of Miss Dawn Summers, we will start with her;” Arthur looks at Dawn and she smiles.

“How many Vampires have you slain, Dawn?” Arthur asks.
“Hey wait just a minute!” Buffy said, “Dawn will not be doing any slaying!”
“That’s fine Buffy, but every one of you will train.” Arthur responds as Buffy sat back down.
“Three myself, and I assisted Xander in killing three Ubervamps…oh, then there was that time I staked the first boy that ever kissed me, but he was dead.” Dawn answers the question as everyone looks at her a bit sideways.
“Uberwhat?” Arthur asked.
“Ubervamps; A Turok Han Vampire, they're a lot tougher than regular vampires,” Dawn answers.
“First boyfriend…huh…Dawn, I would like to hire you as a part time Junior Watcher, and assistant to the director of this operation,” Arthur states, as he hands her a slip of paper; it read $35,000 annually. “Of course after school, and some weekends,” Arthur added, as the entire Scooby gang looked at him with their mouths open. Dawn shows the piece of paper to Buffy.
“This is ridiculous, she’s just a kid!” Buffy says.
“Hey I’m not a kid, I’m seventeen years old,” Dawn says emphatically.
“She’s also two years older than you were when you killed you’re first Vampire.” Arthur says to Buffy. “She does not have to patrol, but she will train as if she is going to patrol, along with the Slayer she will be assigned,” Arthur said as the room fell silent.
“I’m getting my own Slayer! I’m getting my own Slayer…I hope its Buffy, I’m going to make her run to Colorado, Can I make her run to Colorado?” Dawn asks as she sticks her tongue out at her big sister.


“Dawn, you are a Junior Watcher so you will be assigned a less senior slayer,” Arthur says choosing his words carefully as the three junior slayers look on.
“This also leads to my next question,” Arthur looks at Buffy with some concern. “We want to place VI, Choi-Ann, and Kennedy at Lakewood High. It’s the site of the Hellmouth, but the question is where do you want to enroll Dawn?”
“I knew it, I knew it was under the high school, it’s always under the high school.” Xander stated.
“I want to go to the school where the slayers are, that’s the place for a Junior Watcher, isn’t it?” Dawn replied emphatically.
Buffy thought about it, then looked up, “she’s right of course.”
“Hey Buffy, we will watch her back,” Kennedy replies.
“I know” Buffy says as she puts her hand on Dawn's shoulder.




“Oh! VI, Choi-Ann, and Kennedy will be hired as Slayers, and asst. trainers, you Slayers are not the only ones I plan to bring here.” Arthur says as he hands them each a slip of paper a salary listed as $45,000 annually. The look of shock spreads over their faces, except for Choi-Ann who looks puzzled. Arthur looks at Choi-Ann and asks her in Cantonese “you do not speak English?”
“No... I do not,” Choi-Ann answers back in her native language.
Arthur explains, and she turns around, and hugs VI as she smiles at Buffy.
“Shoot… I wish I went to school with three Slayers,” Xander says.
“Yeah, then you wouldn’t have lost so much lunch money!” Faith Replies.
“Or more,” Xander says as he slumps in his chair.

“Everyone who wants to live here at the mansion has a room already prepared, if you still want to live elsewhere, you can keep your room here, while you work,” Arthur explains to everyone.
“Why would you do this? I don’t understand,” Buffy asks Arthur.

“Since the first Slayer, the Slayer is expected to fight the forces of evil on an existence provided by her Watcher. The Slayer cannot effectively perform her job with the required amount of rest,training time, and recuperation if she has to work at Happy Burger for ten hours a day,” Arthur says as he sits back down at the conference table.

“But, my point is this! The Watcher, and the members of the Council all receive a paycheck, and always have,” Arthur continues. “We are here to change that Police, Firemen, EMT’s, and Paramedics all make a living; so will you,” Arthur states.
“I do not wish for you to be smothered in financial burden, and train an army at the same time.”
Kennedy raises her hand.
“Yes, Miss. Kennedy.”
“So, if I understand correctly, Mr. Giles is supposed to pay the rent, for his slayers?”
Everyone present looked over towards Mr. Giles.
“Bloody Hell, I have been,” Giles stated.
Arthur laughed “Yes, I’d say you have a good handle on it, my dear.”

“Buffy we watched your career until the point that Mr. Giles was relieved of duty, then all information stopped.” “What we do know is that you have been the Slayer since 1996,” Arthur said to Buffy.
“Eight years running, the longest living Slayer, yeah I’ve heard this before,” Buffy says.

“That’s not entirely true, Thessily Thessilonikki 461-490 BC is said to have lived to the age of twenty-nine, she spent seventeen years as the Slayer, and was called at the age of twelve,” Arthur said to Buffy as she turned and looked at Giles with an icy stare.
“I told you that you were an attention getter,” Xander says to Buffy.

“You could not have survived, if it were not for your friends, and Watcher. I will show you how to work better as a team,” Arthur said.
“Mr. Harris I want you to take over the construction crew, and the machinist shop in the back, also assist the Slayers training.” Arthur hands him a slip of paper $45,000.

“For the two veteran Slayers,” Arthur looks at Faith, and Buffy “you two will be hired as Senior Slayers and be the head instructors at the Slayer School.” Arthur hands them each a slip of paper, which read $60,000. "Buffy, do you have any idea what your name means?
Everyone in the conference room turned towards Buffy. "I did'nt think it meant anything...I did'nt think anyone else was ever named Buffy."
"It's Hebrew, and it means a gift from God." Sir Arthur stated. Dawn slammed her hand down on the table with a loud crack "Damn it! Why did you have tell her that, now her head's gonna get all swolled,"everyone turned towards Buffy looking at her head.
"My head isn't all swolled," Buffy stated.
The SMG snikkered and quickly returned to his normal granite expression.

“Miss Rosenburg I am fully aware of your desire to stay away from magic, so I am prepared to offer you a job on the Research Team, help Dr. Kidare as a medical assistant, a member of the Forensics lab downstairs, and assist in training.” He hands Willow a folded piece of paper, which read $60,000.
Willow raises her hand “Arthur, there have been times when I broke that rule.”
“When would that be? Arthur asks.
“During an Apocalypse; for example,” Willow replies.
“That could be helpful, maybe tad bit of white magic at just the right time,” Arthur says. Willow looks at him alittle confused not exactly sure what he meant. Arthur notices that Willow didn’t understand. “She isn’t supposed to, not yet,” Arthur thought to himself.

“So, if I am the Assistant to the Director, are you the Director?” Dawn asks Arthur.
“No, I am a Team Leader,” Arthur motions to The Continuum, “we will work with you, until the school is on its feet, then we will decide to stay or not,” Arthur says. “Mr. Giles is the Director of the school, and Head Watcher of both teams,” Arthur states, as he sees Buffy look at Giles with a look of pride. Arthur walks over and hands a folder to Giles, inside was an unsigned offer for $80,000 annually. “All I ask is that here at conference anyone has the right to question an order, but Mr. Giles’s decision is final, of course in the field, the Team Leader has command authority,” Arthur says while walking around the table. “Mr. Giles will obtain this authority when I am sure he understands how to deploy two teams of Slayers, and still maintain the ability to run this complex; until then I give the orders, any questions? Good.” Arthur says while closing a folder.


Arthur briefed them for another hour on the plans of the organization: Medical, Dental, Life insurance, and filling out a will. Arthur gave them a tour of the rest of the complex: the Gym, Swimming pool, Training field, Library, Infirmary, and Entertainment room.
“Oh, Willow, you will help Faith get her GED, and Mr. Giles you and Buffy are to enroll Dawn, VI, Choi-Ann, and Kennedy at Lakewood High,” Arthur states. “I also want anyone over sixteen that has a driver’s license to report to the garage tomorrow, and see Sgt. Maj. Douglas to sign for your vehicle,” Arthur added.
“What?” Dawn says.
“Yes, and until the rest of you show me a Drivers license your vehicle will stay parked,” Arthur answers.
“What?” Dawn asks again.
“People, this is not Sunneydale, Cleveland is a lot larger. Mr. Giles needs to deploy you at a moment’s notice so I want you to get there fast and safe.” “So, you have your choice of either a Hummvee or a Suburban,” Arthur explained. “We have set up some training in defensive driving led by our very own Battalion Sergeant Major from the Eighty Second Airborne Division sometime next week.” “Buffy, Faith he will also be giving you both Leadership classes.”
The two senior Slayers gulped as they glanced over at the Sgt. Maj. it looked as if he smiled alittle bit.

Giles stands up “Mr. Van Helsing this is all very generous, but do you really want to turn the keys over to sixteen and seventeen year olds, that’s madness?”
“Mr. Giles I have no doubt that every member of this team will earn every dime! Of this I promise you.” “Incidentally, its not my job to determine if a member of this team needs their keys taken away, that’s solely you’re job! Mr. Director,” Arthur added. Everyone in the room raised their eyebrows.“Who may I ask is funding this operation, the Government? Because, I had some bad experiences working with the government” Buffy asks.
“No this is funded by a combination of the Van Helsing Estate, The Counsel of Watchers assets, and a lot of family members who are both rich, live in this area, and have lost people they love,” Arthur answers Buffy. “The Forensic team, the Drivers, Security Guards, Doctors, Nurses, Cooks, and Office personal have all lost loved ones.” “They are professionals in their field, and want to help, but are not all as physically capable to fight,” Arthur answers.

“Arthur, you do know that I am still wanted!” Faith said.
“I know you escaped, but all of your records were in Sunneydale’s courthouse awaiting your transfer, for trial. I also know that you helped both Buffy and Angel Investigations stop two separate apocalypses. As long as Mr. Giles, and Buffy are satisfied that you are on our side, you are part of the team,” Arthur answers. Arthur looks at Faith, “I guess redemption will have to be on the job.” He added.


“How is it that you know about Angel Investigations, Arthur?” Giles asked.
“We know who Angel is and we also know who Angeles is, Angel ran a demon hunting team for four years, but last year his team moved into Wolfram and Hart and we really can't tell you what their agenda is at this time.” Arthur answered.
“We have sent a team to find out that very thing, and to find any slayers in Los Angeles,” Giles said.
Buffy raises her hand, “Arthur you mentioned that everyone would train.”

“Yes, Dawn, Vi, Choi-Ann, and Kennedy will conduct their training after school, Buffy and Faith will conduct a training session in the morning for the rest of us.”
“Everyone?” Buffy asks. “Everyone,” Arthur replies.
“Buffy how many apocalypses have you averted in your years as a Slayer?” Arthur asks.
“Around eight,” Buffy replies not sure what Arthur is getting at.
“In all of those eight times did your friends assist?”
“Yes, they did,” Buffy sees now what he means.
“So don’t you owe it to them that if they chose to fight by your side, whether you want them there or not, then you should prepare them.”
“Yes,” Buffy says with a smile as she looks at her friends “they were… always there for me”.
“Good,” Arthur smiles back. “Mr. Giles, Dawn, and Willow you are with me, Buffy lets get everyone settled in! Take all the time you need to decide whether you will be living here,” Arthur says as he walks towards the Library with Willow, Dawn, and Giles in tow.

Buffy walks the rest of the gang upstairs where they find their rooms. Each room was large, fully furnished. Name tags assigning each room to it's perspective occupant. Dawn’s room was across from Buffy’s.
Buffy was looking out the window where she could see the back of the mansion. “This is too good to be true, is it possible? Don’t get your hopes up! Nothing good like this has ever happened to me,” Buffy thought to herself.


Chapter 4: Getting Settled


“Mr. Van Helsing what exactly is the situation here?” Giles asks while barely able to contain himself.


He is totally awestruck as he looks at some of the books lining the walls of the Library; some titles Giles thought lost in the destruction of The Counsel of Watchers, their covers burnt and ripped.


“Well Mr. Giles, as I said, there has never been a Slayer assigned to Cleveland so expect an overwhelming amount of Vampires, Lycanthropy, Demonic, and supernatural activity."


"We think they're massing for a war against each other, and the humans are just in the way.”


“Mr. Giles, Dawn, I want organized patrols starting Monday night, no less then four person teams, unless it's just Faith and Buffy, but only in a Recon Patrol."


"Also, break down the teams so that they are even. That means I want a Veteran Slayer, and Watcher assigned to each team. Both teams must maintain communications at all times with a mobile unit, and the Sanctuary.” Arthur stated.


“Mr. Giles I am tasking you to conduct training sessions with Dawn on her Watcher studies,” Arthur added.


“Willow there is a reason that I mentioned the use of magic in a crisis, but for secrecy no one besides the four of us shall know what it is. The defense of The Sanctuary is critical, it is our home and we are vulnerable.”


“How bad will it get?” Willow asks Arthur.


“I expect it will get pretty bad, we tried to keep the location of The Sanctuary a secret but the other night we were probed,” Arthur answered.


“By exactly what?” Giles asks.


“We found hairs that we sent to forensics to be analyzed, but we are still waiting for the results. I expect that they will find it to be Lycan in nature," ”Arthur added.


“Lycan in nature, Willow could analyze the hairs and tell you exactly what it is, we have had dealings with Werewolves in the past.” Giles says.


“That is the part that confounds, we found two sets of animal hairs out around the perimeter, one set has been identified as Werewolf the other set is entirely different, but has the characteristics of both Lycan and feline,” Arthur added.


“How big a feline are we talking about?” Dawn asks.


“Big, we will know for certain later, and Willow you can join them after our meeting. We expect it could be as big as Say Mountain lion or Panther, and the Werewolf had it on a leash,” Arthur said with concern in his voice.


“That’s not possible! I went out with a Werewolf and he did not retain the mental capabilities to walk a small dog after he turned, much less a Mountain Lion,” Willow states.


Arthur looks at Willow with a slight look of shock and then composes himself “How long was he a Werewolf when you went out with him?”


“Maybe a couple of months before we started going out,” Willow answers.


“It takes decades but eventually the cognitive functions of a human starts to merge with the animal to a point where they don’t even need a full moon to turn. They are extremely dangerous once they reach that point,” Arthur stated.


“Back to the cat! Dawn interjected are you saying that this maybe some kind of WereLion?”


“Yes that is exactly what I am suggesting,” Arthur answered.


“Oh...” Dawn replies.


“I do not want to alarm the Slayers until we know what we are dealing with. Willow if you would go down to forensics and give Dr. Kidare a hand, she is waiting to meet you. Oh, and Willow, Mr. Giles is to get a full report as soon as possible. Dawn you can go take a look around, see if Buffy needs any help getting the teams settled in, Mr. Giles and I still have some things to go over,” Arthur says to the young Watcher.


“Oh, Willow I noticed the way Kennedy guarded over you tonight, right now we have you in adjoining rooms, but if you want I can have Xander look into knocking out the wall to make a large double occupancy, if that’s alright.”


Willow looked at Arthur and smiled “thank you, Arthur I’ll talk with her about it,” Willow answered.


Willow and Dawn closed the door behind them as Arthur poured himself and Mr. Giles a glass of single malt bourbon whiskey.


Dawn grabbed Willow by the hands “Can you believe it! This is so great, Willow you don’t seem that happy, is anything wrong?”


“I guess, it’s just that…Dawn, don’t get your hopes up! We still don’t know any thing about them or this place. Promise me…you won't…I just don’t want to see you hurt,” Willow said. “I’m just being Miss. Cautionary Willow.”


“Hey we will talk later, I’m going to find Buffy, this is so great…see ya,” Dawn says as she runs to the stairs.


Dawn comes in Buffy’s doorway, “Hey, check it out, this is nice, don’t you think, Buffy?” Dawn asks her sister.


“I love you Dawn, Buffy said to her sister.”


“I know Buffy, I love you too! Do you want to know how I know that you love me?” Dawn said.


“How?” Buffy asks with a slight smile.


“Because you lived, if you didn’t want to be with me then there is no way you could have survived Sunneydale!” Dawn answers as the two sisters hugged, and talked, for about another hour then said goodnight.

***

Willow walked down the stone steps to the lower levels until she reached some double doors marked Forensics in black lettering. Willow stepped through the double doors and was amazed at the sophistication of the lab. There were Electron microscopes, DNA, blood, and fingerprint analysis equipment. The lab assigned to Dr. Kidare consisted of six separate labs DNA, Ballistics, Trace, Finger print, Biological and Chemical, and a state of the art Medical Facility.


Willow noticed someone sitting at a large table, a beautiful blonde haired woman in her early forties in a lab coat, wearing a black with white pinstriped pants suit, her lab coat could not hide the fact that she had a remarkable body for someone that old.


“Hello, you must be Willow, I’m Dr. Lori Kidare Mr. Van Helsing tells me you normally handle any lab or medical work for the slayer.”


“Yes, that’s me the sidekick, Willow answered. He seems to know a lot about us. Did he tell you that I’m a witch?”


“Yes, he did but I was going to let you tell me. Two things, you can trust him and in this lab we use scientific evidence. You follow my procedures, I must approve of any use of magic, however, I can teach you a lot and there may be a need for your special skills if the opportunity presents itself. That will be your choice,” Dr. Kidare said with a smile.


Dr. Kidare motioned for Willow to sit down.
“Willow, I want you to consider going back to school, the University Of Ohio, Cleveland Campus has a very good Forensic Science curriculum. The Sanctuary will pick up the tab, until then I will be your instructor.” Dr. Kidare added.


“I was planning on re-enrolling this spring, and I haven’t really thought about a major yet, but if you don’t mind this is all moving a little fast. I am looking forward to working with you.”


“Well let me give you the tour, this section of the lab is for analyzing source DNA. Here we have an Olympus Dual Electron Microscope, for analyzing blood, hair, skin follicles, and other trace evidence. Against that wall over there is a 310 Genetic Analyzer used in the analysis of DNA using samples from blood, saliva, and epithelia."

"This is a GC mass spectrometer, a Gas Chromatograph Masspectrometer used for identifying certain chemicals down to their individual compounds,” Dr. Kidare said.


“This lab is equipped to analyze both restriction fragment length polymorphism or RFLP, and polymerase chain reaction or PCR. Here we keep our centrifuge, a high-speed separation device whichh it separates the different components in DNA analysis, and a CODIS combined DNA index system computer, which is tied into the national database.”


“Dr. Kidare, this is awesome, I can’t wait to get started, thank you.” Willow said unable to hold in the excitement any longer.


“You do realize, this is very expensive equipment and you will have to be trained on their operation.” Dr. Kidare said as she walked Willow over to one of two offices.


"That’s my office and this is your office, notice the leather couch, you will probably be spending some time sleeping here, I just wanted you to be comfortable.”


Willow walked in very slowly taking it all in. It was very spacious there was a large oak desk, computer, printer, bookshelves, a couch, and a fish tank.


“The computer is on the Sanctuary’s Intranet, and the Internet. You can access everything in the library’s computers, and every volume has been transferred to the Sanctuary’s main frame. By using this switch you can switch from Fiber Optic, to Satellite, or a cable medium,” Lori explained.


Lori and Willow walked out of the office and Dr. Kidare motioned her to the large oak table in the middle of the room.


“This is what we are currently working on, there was a security breech last night, once the site was secured I was able to collect these samples; we found two tufts of hair, a tooth canine in nature, and we found a piece of a leather leash."


"We also found a blood trail, the blood was human, the hairs were found to be two separate species, the first was all werewolf European, I think, by the tracks it walked fully upright. The deep impressions it made in the ground, I would say it’s around three hundred pounds. The second tuft of hair tested out to be of two separate species werewolf, and the feline characteristics of a panther. By its impressions I’d say it weighed around two hundred pounds.”


Dr. Kidare explained further, the tooth turned out to be aged, dead for a long time, it was broken at the top, but see this at the break there is evidence of a drill hole. I’d say it fell off of a necklace, there were small pieces of leather in the hole. The blood turned out to be human."


"Tomorrow, we can go back down to the site after your training, when you get settled of course,” Dr. Kidare said.


“Me and my roommate have to go and pick up some things from the house we are staying at, but after that I’m all yours,” Willow said.


Chapter 5: Naiya the Vampire Slayer

Devil’s Lake, Sioux Indian Reservation, North Dakota


“What is it that you have seen, my daughter?” Chief Wolfspirit asked.
“It is always the same, Father, a large stone building, a blonde haired girl, werewolves and vampires, other Slayers, and a sign "Welcome To Cleveland." Father, I think she leads others like me, I feel I must go,” Naiya told her Father.
“Then you must go, find out more about who you are. You must find out why you were given this gift,” The Chief told his daughter.
“This is why I cannot go, my duty is the protection of the tribe not the whites of Cleveland.”
“Daughter, this gift was not given to you to protect our people, it is to protect all humans.”
“Of course, you are right,” Naiya looked into the loving eyes of her Father.
“Naiya, you must leave immediately, and you should not take Mars with you, he will only cause problems. We will look after him,” Chief Wolfspirit said as he held his daughter tight.
Naiya, grabbed her things she had one other to say goodbye to.


Naiya walked over to a clearing wearing jeans, Timberland boots, a gray plaid button down shirt, jean jacket with a hidden pocket where she kept a wooden stake. She had a quiver of arrows, some were silver tipped, and a Mirage 1.5 compound bow strapped to a rucksack, it fired a bolt at three hundred feet per second, also a large hunting knife on her belt. Tied to her hair were three black feathers.
“Hey Mars,” Naiya spoke to her life long companion.


Mars was a full grown male mountain lion, Chief Wolfspirit found him roaming by the reservation after his mother was killed by a vampire that came out of the city. The Chief noticed two puncture wounds on his neck, he later found the young cubs mother and cremated her as a warrior of the tribe.
She rubbed him behind his ear, he growled slightly, trying to get the chain from around his neck; the other end was attached to a pole in the ground. He was chained that evening by Chief Wolfspirit to prevent him from following Naiya.

Naiya grabbed him around the neck and gently kissed him on his big head as Mars started to lick her face. “I’ll be back as soon as I can, watch out for Father, and the tribe,” Naiya said as she got up and grabbed her rucksack, then headed into the woods. She was heading east when she got to the woodline, she turned and looked back at her home, Mars was growling and ripping and clawing at the chain, jumping high into the air, pacing back and forth all the time looking right at her.Naiya wiped her wet eyes with her jacket sleeve as the young fifteen-year-old moved into the woods.

Naiya stayed close to the woods keeping route two on her left shoulder, heading in the direction of Grand Forks, North Dakota. She moved across the plains where her ancestors hunted buffalo, and did battle against the white man. Naiya hoped to make forty miles a day, she could hop a train at Grand Forks. Naiya started to run, jumping over small creeks and ditches, thinking of the stories that her father told of great warriors of long ago hunting, battling, and living free. Sometimes Naiya would run with a bow in her hand, like ancient warriors of her tribe. At other times, she would run holding a stake, jabbing, striking, and spinning as she moved across the plain heading for a large wooded area.

* * *


“Mars settle down, she will return,” The Chief said as the big cat flipped and twisted biting at the chain. Highly agitated, Mars got down low on his hind legs and pulled, with a loud metallic clink he was running in the direction of Naiya with the length of chain trailing behind him.

* * *

She stopped before leaving the Stump Lake area and set down her rucksack, pulling out a fishing net. She cast her net looking up at the sun. “Not much time before the sun goes down,” Naiya pulled out her Mirage 1.5, scanned a field upwind from her and loosed an arrow with a bird tip; She got up and ran to a small berm where she found her arrow through the neck of a plump rabbit.


The Slayer packed up her net, she wrapped up five fish and the rabbit in plastic wrap, and after packing her prize in her ruck, she got up and continued east. She moved deeper into the woods around sunset, and found a draw, where she was protected on three sides. It had not rained in a few days so she knew the leaves in the area were dry and she could hear anyone or anything approaching her position. Naiya stopped for the night and dug a hole using rocks to shield the only approach, and then she built a small fire, placing two green sticks across the top. Naiya cooked the fish and rabbit she had caught earlier. After she ate one of the fish and half of the rabbit, then Naiya pulled a blanket over her shoulder and fell asleep.



Shortly after midnight Naiya was dreaming. “A blonde haired girl, hair in a pony tail, was running through a cemetery, a stake in her right hand. She wore a brown leather jacket and beige slacks. Three Vampires trailed her, she made it to a clearing and stopped, placing her hands on her hips and waited. As the vampires made it to the clearing twelve more slayers stepped out of the woodline.The blonde haired girl simply smiled. Then leaves crackled, a twig snapped and the distant sound of metal clanging, sounding louder as it approached…”


Naiya was up stake in hand; the three vampires were on her in an instant, she was able to block the first blow with her forward arm, jamming her stake up and under her blocking arm, dusting the one closest to her. They attacked from down hill and were blocked on two sides; they could only attack one at a time. The other two closed the distance, and grabbed Naiya by her jacket. She struggled; as she heard a metallic sound, one of the vampires turned her neck towards him; then, she heard a low growl and felt hot breath, barely enough time to register in her brain that vampires do not have hot breath, they don’t have any breath.

Mars had one of the vampires by the neck on an upward slope twisting and turning like a rag doll as the head came completely off. Naiya spun on her forward instep, dropped to one knee picking up one of the green sticks in the fire, the end a glowing red ember, and staked the last vampire. Naiya looked at Mars through a shower of dust, he was on the upper bank coughing, as if he had a fur ball, and then he pounced down into her arms. She caught him midair almost knocking her down. “I am so glad to see you,” Naiya said as she hugged him. Mars put her arm fully into his jaws and growled. “I know I promise…I will never leave you again.” Naiya told her companion, feeding him the other half of the rabbit, and two of the fish. Naiya curled up to Mars and laid her head across his chest pulling the blanket closer; she fell asleep to the soft rumbling of his purrs.

* * *


The Sanctuary


It was late, Willow got caught up in the operations of the lab, and she looked at her watch and turned off her computer, and then turned off the light to the lab. She walked upstairs and down the hallway till she saw her name on the door. Willow entered, the whole room was bathed in candlelight, a waft of jasmine in the air. Kennedy was lying in her bed, leaning back against some pillows and she was reading Tales of the Slayer vol. 1.
“I am so sorry, I got caught up with Dr. Kidare,” Willow said.
“I saw her... she’s pretty, what all… did you talk about?” Kennedy asked.
“Kennedy, are you jealous?” Willow asked.
“No, I’m really just kidding, I knew you were going to be late, new lab and all,” Kennedy answered. “I just went to the store, and bought a hundred candles… because, I was bored, now if you don’t mind would you get over here,” Kennedy said, as she removed her top.
Giles came by each room and said goodnight and instructed that they had to be outside by seven a.m. sharp for their first training day with The Continuum.