by AntigoneUnbound » Sat Oct 11, 2003 4:17 pm
GODS SERVED AND ABANDONED
Part 48
Disclaimer: I don’t own much, although I do have the vision and good judgement not to sacrifice things of substance in an ill-advised attempt to create a high-tech, metaphorical After-School Special on drug use.
*****
“Venus?” The word was uttered almost as a chorus as everyone looked at Tanya.
“The planet Venus,” she repeated deliberately. “Not the goddess of love, but the planet named after the goddess of love.”
“The light from which appears early and very brightly in the evening sky,” Giles muttered, nodding excitedly.
“Tanya, if you’re right, that means Glory can start the ritual after the rain stops and before the light from Venus becomes visible,” Buffy said, her eyes narrowing she took in the implications of this.
Willow glanced at her watch. “It’s just after five o’clock,” she announced. “The rain’s supposed to end late this afternoon, maybe early this evening. It seems like a safe bet that the rain stops before Venus appears; otherwise, the prophecy makes no sense.”
“Or I’m wrong,” Tanya supplied evenly. “But somehow I don’t think I am.”
“Either way, it’s the best lead we have,” Buffy said, her expression grim. “OK, who here can recognize Venus?”
Willow, Tara, Giles, and--surprisingly--Anya all nodded. The ex-demon murmured under her breath, “You all still think I’m just a newly-mortal pervert.”
“My bad,” Willow said contritely.
“Great. You guys keep the rest of us--especially me--updated, OK?”
She’s banking on at least one of us being alive at that point, Willow thought, unable to stop herself.
“We keep the Goddess of Ridiculous Shoes on the ropes until Venus shows up,” Buffy was saying, “and then we’re in the clear.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Giles countered reluctantly. “Buffy, have you thought about Glory’s reaction should she be thwarted in this?”
“I’m guessing ‘disconcerted’ may be an understatement,” Buffy replied evenly. “But that’s Act Two, none of which will see the stage if we don’t stop her now. If we can take her out tonight, so much the better.”
“Does that mean we kill Ben if we get the chance?” Willow asked, giving voice to what she suspected had crossed all their minds.
Buffy gazed at her for a long moment, and then said, “Yes.”
No one spoke, and then Buffy nodded as if to herself. “OK. I think we should head over to the tower; find out for sure that that’s where Glory is.”
“Uh, should we maybe formulate a game plan?” Xander interjected, looking around the room.
“Go to the tower. Get Dawn. Kick Glory’s ass.” Buffy’s voice was flat and decisive.
“OK. Sounds like a plan,” Beverly said, nodding as if Buffy had just laid out the blue-print for the Normandy invasion. Buffy gave her a quick grin, then beckoned Giles and Xander to help her grab the weapons from the back. Clenching her jaw, Beverly stood up, leaning slightly against the table for support.
“Beverly, are you sure you’re up for this?” Tara asked worriedly.
“What, and miss the grand finale?” Beverly’s grin faded as she turned to look at her partner. “Tanya, Sweetie, maybe you should--”
“If you say ‘stay here,’ I will dump you and take up with Gwen Paige.”
“That skank from the gym? You wouldn’t!” Beverly’s voice was horrified.
“Watch me, Girlfriend,” Tanya retorted, crossing her arms.
“Christ, you fight dirty, “ Beverly muttered, shaking her head.
“We’ll take two cars,” Buffy announced, as she, Xander, and Giles returned from the training room weighed down with weapons of all kinds. “Half of us will go with Xander; the rest will follow in Beverly’s car.”
“I think I’ll let my better half do the driving honors for now,” Beverly interjected.
“Xander, take us someplace about a block from there; we’ll walk the rest of the way to avoid being seen.” The Slayer turned to face them. “Guys…” She faltered suddenly, fumbling for words. “I know we’re trying to save the world, but…” She stopped, clenching her fists, and then drew a deep breath. “But please help me save my sister.” With that, she turned and headed for the door.
Armageddon Number 5, Willow thought, squaring her shoulders as she followed Tara out the door of the Magic Box.
*****
Moments later, they were parked behind a convenience store. Willow took in their surroundings: this was the older section of Sunnydale, with several abandoned lots and none of the chic little boutiques that dotted the tree-lined streets of downtown. Rain was still falling, but it was far lighter than the downpour of earlier. She watched as everyone chose a weapon of some sort, grabbing a long knife for herself. Tara, she noticed, was looking at the arsenal with a decidedly bemused expression.
“Still not much for the swimming?” she murmured into her girlfriend’s ear.
“Or the climactic battle with the Hell God,” Tara acknowledged ruefully.
“Tara, you should at least take a dagger or something small,” Xander said, glancing at her. “Here--this one has a belt and sheath; you can just strap it to your leg.”
Willow looked at her, her eyes a study in innocence. “Yeah, Baby--just strap it on. I bet you’d be really good with it.”
“Remind me to put frogs in your back pack,” Tara muttered through clenched teeth as she took the proferred weapon from a clueless Xander.
As they fell in step behind the others, though, Willow reached out for her beloved’s hand. “Baby--promise me you’ll be careful; promise me you’ll keep safe.”
But Tara’s expression told her that she knew such promises were impossible to keep. She’d seen too many of their battles; fought in too many herself…and she’d witnessed, more than any of them, how tenuous human existence truly was.
Tara replied simply, “I’ll promise if you will.”
Willow gazed into the fathomless blue eyes looking at her with love and wisdom, and suddenly the desire to stop, to turn back and return to whatever safety they could find, was so sharp that it hurt. She granted herself the luxury of stroking Tara’s cheek, leaning forward for one moment to feel the soft lips against her own. And then it was time to walk again, because really, she knew, they couldn’t do otherwise.
The group walked in silence for the remainder of the trek to the construction site. In moments they were staring up at an immense tower that loomed at least seventy feet high. In the quiet of the night, they could hear the rickety structure creaking in the light wind.
“Spedoinkles,” Beverly finally breathed.
“I thought you were an English teacher,” Xander said, peering back at her over his shoulder. “I was expecting something a little more poetic.”
“You got a better ejaculation?” Tanya asked, fixing him with a wry gaze.
“Probably not,” Anya murmured as Xander shrugged uncomfortably.
Moving closer, they could see several figures--some in robes; others in regular attire--moving about the base of the tower.
“Good call, Xander,” Buffy said quietly. She took in the scene for a moment, and when she spoke, Willow knew she had moved into combat mode.
“OK, guys, this is it. It’s still raining, but it’s definitely easing up. I wanna be in position before it stops completely, so let’s move in. Glory’s either got Dawn up on the scaffold already, or she’ll be moving her soon. If I see them on the tower, I’m heading up. You guys do whatever you can to keep the rest of them from stopping me, because I’m guessing she’ll make that a priority as soon as she sees me. Willow, Tara--anything you’ve been saving for a rainy day, bring it out now, OK?”
Willow felt the reassuring warmth of Tara’s hand in her own as they nodded in unison.
“Buffy?” Giles’ voice was hesitant. “What if we’re wrong about the window of opportunity?”
Willow knew that the Slayer could barely consider the possibility. Suddenly, Tara’s voice broke into the silence.
“Glory’s not exactly stoic,” she pointed out. “If we see her starting to panic as time passes, I think we’ll know we’re on the right track.”
“Good point,” Giles said, nodding.
“And if we are wrong,” Buffy finally spoke up, “I think it’s safe to say we’re all fucked.” She turned to start toward the tower.
“Wait.” Beverly stepped toward the Slayer. “Buffy, I think I should be with you. You’re going up against a Hell God, and I’m the only thing that’s slowed her down so far.” Willow could see Tanya’s fingers clenching and unclenching around her ax handle.
Buffy looked from the Protector to her girlfriend and then back. “Bev, are you sure?” she asked quietly.
“It’s why I’m here,” Beverly answered simply. With a slight grin, she added, “Hell, that’s probably about the safest place I could be. Glory’s the one soldier in this battle who can’t lay a hand on me. Besides, I wanna see the look on that wench’s face when she finds out I’m not dead.”
Buffy gave a small grin in response. “I get that.” Then she turned back toward the construction site, which was lit by a bizarre mixture of lights and candles. “Let’s do this.”
As they approached the tower, Willow could see two robed figures leading a struggling captive up the final flight of stairs.
“Buffy,” she whispered.
“I see it,” came the terse reply. Buffy stopped abruptly in mid-stride; slowly, she held out her hand, palm up.
“It’s stopped raining.”
Buffy withdrew her hand, curling it into a fist. “Now,” she hissed, and they tore forward, stealth abandoned. They were spotted by one of Glory’s minions when they were within twenty yards of the tower.
“The Slayer! Glorificus, the Slayer arrives, accompanied by her insignificant, mortal companions in a vain--” He halted suddenly, crumpling slowly to the ground.
Willow looked over at Giles, who had just sent an arrow thudding into the warty little sycophant’s chest.
“Nobody calls me insignificant and vain in the same sentence,” he huffed.
“I’ll make a note of it,” she nodded, eyes widening. Turning back to the tower, they saw that Glory was on the landing between the second and third flights of steps. Far above, Dawn was being led to the end of a long platform that extended out over seven floors of empty space.
“Guys, keep ’em busy,” Buffy shouted. “Bev--stick close to me.” Together, they headed toward the stairs.
Glory’s voice screeched out, furious and shrill. “Nobody gets up the stairs, especially not the Slayer and the lesbo.”
“Which lesbo?” came the bewildered query, as the minions gazed out at the Sapphic-intensive onslaught.
“The Protector, you wretched refuse! The one that’s supposed to be dead!” Glory slammed her fists against the railing of the stairs, then resumed climbing.
Willow could see that even with Buffy’s strength, it was proving impossible to fight through the thick crowd that had gathered at the base of the steps to block her. Beverly was limited to warding off blows with her staff. Despite the dose of mystical healing, Willow could see that the Protector was in pain.
Giles, Xander, and Tanya were now wielding swords. Some combination of athleticism, adrenalin, and love was making Tanya a fiercer warrior than Willow had imagined. Anya was swinging a mace wildly above her head, and Willow made a mental note to give her wide berth. For their part, she and Tara were chanting litanies of spells as quickly as they could think of them--spells to separate; spells to repel; anything that might help them break through the throng. And still, none of them were within fifteen feet of the stairs.
Suddenly her attention was drawn to a slight figure perhaps twenty yards away who was sprinting toward the fray. As the person drew closer, Willow recognized her as the EMT who had lingered behind at the Magic Box, giving Beverly her name and workplace.
What the hell…?
From above them, Glory screamed out in frustion. “Not another one--I thought the Lone Star lezzy was the only one left!”
“She’s a Protector!” Tara shouted. “She must have recognized Beverly and followed us.”
“So that’s why she was talking to Bev that way.” Tanya’s voice was harsh above the clanging of metal.
“What did you think she was doing?” Willow demanded, dispatching a wild-eyed teenager with a quick incantation.
“Hitting on her!” Tanya bellowed, bringing a minion to his knees with a heavy swing of her sword.
“While she had an arrow sticking out of her shoulder?” Tara called out incredulously, sending a mumbling homemaker flying with a hurried “Exodus Expedite.”
“Hey, your aunt’s a total babe!” Tanya protested defensively, neatly beheading a short, warty figure in a burlap robe.
Sparing a glance above, Willow could see Glory turn and resume her climb.
Why doesn’t she just fly up to the top? She’s a god. Then she saw Glory falter slightly, pressing her palm into her forehead.
“Tara, Glory’s getting weaker!” she shouted. “Bev and the other woman are close enough to slow her down.”
“Is Venus out yet?” Xander called. But the planet had yet to make its appearance, and Willow estimated that there was at least half an hour before it did so.
“No,” she replied hoarsely, repelling a dazed man of perhaps fifty with a quick chant. Looking up once more, she saw that Glory was slowly making her way upward, and the more distance she put between herself and the two Protectors, the more she regained her strength. Several feet away Buffy was swearing, and Willow knew that the Slayer had also realized this. Her friend’s voice held a desperation Willow had never heard before.
Oh God, she’s not gonna make it. She can’t even reach the tower; Glory’s already--
Willow.
She heard her beloved’s voice, but knew her name hadn’t been spoken aloud.
Willow, together. We have to be together.
The din and chaos surrounding them faded and blurred as Willow suddenly stilled herself. Of course. How silly they had been, not realizing it from the beginning. They would do this together; they could only do this together.
She felt herself step back from her own desires and her own fears; felt her mind slide into the groove that she and Tara had etched together. She saw herself reach back and take Tara’s hand without needing to look for it. The warm flesh molded into her own and anyone watching would have known that the two women’s fingers were entwined but could not have told you where one outstretched hand ended and the other began. They were seamless, and Willow felt Tara’s energy slide through her with a force and a surety that made her gasp. Their eyes met, quickly, and then both of them turned toward the throng blocking the steps.
“That which would divide us is now divided.”
Willow didn’t know where the words came from; she had never encountered them in any text. Nor did she know who had spoken the words. They had been uttered aloud, she was sure of it: the voice that spoke them was neither of theirs; and both of theirs. This was the sound, she realized, of two voices merged into one. It wasn’t alone and it wasn’t harmony. It was one voice--their voice.
It worked as she had known it would work. Bodies began flying away from the base of the staircase, landing harmlessly ten and fifteen feet away.
“What the--?” Tanya’s voice was awestruck. But Willow saw Buffy look back at them, and she only nodded as her best friend mouthed the words, “Thank you.” And then the Slayer was sprinting up the stairs, Beverly and Angelica close behind her.
The throng, once dispersed, seemed totally lost. The humans were walking aimlessly, peering with blank eyes at the chaos around them. The minions, it appeared, were torn between resuming the battle and hovering at its edges, waiting to see how this new turn of events played out. Willow took advantage of the moment to catch her breath and watch the emerging drama on the tower.
Far above them, Dawn was struggling against the two minions who had led her to the end of the platform. She was fighting like a woman possessed, and Willow suspected that the two servants had anticipated all of the glory of the moment but none of its difficulty. They hadn’t counted on the slender teenager putting up such a good fight. As Willow watched, Dawn managed to free one hand, and with surprising force, landed a harsh blow to one minion’s stomach. As he doubled over, Dawn gave him a fierce kick to his face. He lurched forward and with a final kick, Dawn sent him screaming off of the platform, arms flailing uselessly.
The remaining servant was still desperately trying to secure the Key, who was clearly energized by her recent victory. The struggle was terrific, and Willow could see the platform pitching slightly with the intensity of the fight.
Suddenly, both figures froze, peering at the landing several yards away. Following their gaze, Willow saw Glory emerge from the stair case.
Dawn stared at the Hell God for several seconds. It seemed to Willow as if they were talking. Then Dawn glanced back over her shoulder, into the abyss that opened only inches away.
“She’s going to jump,” Tara whispered, still holding onto Willow’s hand.
Her partner was right. Dawn had realized that Glory would reach her, would bleed her to open the portals, and she was about to do the only thing that could stop her.
“Tara, we can’t let her! Somehow--a spell, something to freeze her, hold her there--”
“Willow, we can’t.” Tara’s voice was equal parts determination and despair. “We promised her; we can’t break that promise.”
“But Buffy’s on her way up the stairs! Glory’s still walking toward her; Dawn doesn’t have to jump, not yet.”
“Willow, Glory’s a god. This could be over in a split second and it’ll be too late for Dawn to prevent it. We promised her, Will!” Tara was almost sobbing now.
Goddess, don’t make me watch this girl I love kill herself. Please don’t let it end like this, with us standing here watching it happen. Please--not this. Tara’s hand was clenched around her own, squeezing almost to the point of pain.
And then there was a scream, and Willow thought for one instant that Dawn had jumped; that her own eyes were unwilling to see what had happened. But it was Buffy, shouting out her sister’s name in terror and desperation.
“Dawn! Dawn, I’m coming; I’m almost there! Hang on!”
At the words, Glory shrieked with frustration and tried to run toward Dawn. But Buffy wasn’t alone--she had two Protectors with her, and they were getting closer. Willow watched as Glory stumbled slightly, raising one hand shakily to her head.
Willow looked back at the landing where Glory had arrived seconds before. Buffy emerged slowly into view, followed closely by Beverly and Angelica. All three moved tentatively out onto the platform.
Oh God, it can’t hold them all. It’s too shaky, it’s too weak…
And then another figure had arrived on the landing, a minion who paused only long enough to cry out, “For you, Glorificus!” and then raced forward, tackling one of the Protectors and sending both of them off the platform and into the void.
“Oh God.” Xander’s voice was choked with horror. But a panicked glance at Tanya told Willow which Protector had been lost, and her own beloved’s face was filled with sadness but not agony. Willow looked back at the tower, and in a split second the long hair streaming in the wind identified Angelica as the sacrifice. Willow looked away one moment before the bodies slammed into the ground.
Willow swallowed hard, gripping Tara’s hand with trembling fingers, and then craned her neck to see what was happening seven floors above them. Glory was shaking with fury, looking first at Dawn and then at the Slayer and the Protector. Willow scanned the darkening sky, praying for some tiny glimmer from the second planet from the sun. It couldn’t be long now; any minute now.
As if reading her mind, Giles cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted hoarsely, “It’s almost over, Buffy! Venus will appear very soon!”
Glory bellowed with rage, turning back to Dawn. As she did so, however, Beverly darted forward and brushed past her, giving her a small push as she did so. The Hell God swayed slightly, and Willow prayed that she would fall. But Glory quickly righted herself, looking over to see that Beverly had positioned herself between herself and Dawn.
The glance was no longer than a half-breath, but such moments had been the provenance of Buffy’s legacy for almost five years. She reached Glory in two strides, pivoted, and delivered a knee-shattering kick that pushed Glory to the edge of the platform.
Willow watched, unable to breathe, as Glory teetered for perhaps two seconds, the crazy weaving of a high-wire walker gusting in a sudden breeze. She was fighting gravity with the force of her godhood; but that godhood was wounded, made low by the force of the Protector that was looming so close to her. She gave one final, strangled scream, and then pitched forward off of the platform.
Willow vowed that this time, she wouldn’t turn away, and she didn’t--which was how she knew the exact moment that Glory became Ben.
The obscene transformation was made even more grotesque by the fact that it was complete in time for Ben to realize what was happening. Willow stared in horror as he took in this knowledge, his mouth opening in a scream that was smothered back into his throat by the force of his falling. Then he hit, slamming onto a pile of bricks. Willow could hear the snapping of bones being crushed and severed.
Only then did she look away, folding into the embrace that Tara offered, which she offered Tara in return.
No one spoke for perhaps ten seconds, and then Tanya was crying out Beverly’s name. Willow looked back at the tower, where three figures were making their way as quickly as possible down from the tower. On the ground, both humans and minions seemed to disappear into the night.
When the three had reached the bottom, Beverly gave as credible a version of a sprint as she could manage, falling into Tanya’s arms and kissing her so fiercely Willow thought their lips would bruise. Right behind them, Buffy was leading a shaking Dawn off the final flight of steps. When they were standing on solid ground once more, Buffy pulled Dawn into a tight hug; they said nothing, just rocking slightly. Finally, she opened her eyes, catching Giles’ gaze.
“Glory?” she whispered.
“Is dead,” Giles answered steadily. “She transformed into Ben during the fall; it was he who landed.”
Buffy stared at him. “But why would Glory change into Ben? That’s the only way the fall could kill her.”
Giles only shrugged helplessly. Tara, though, stepped forward slightly, her arm still wrapped protectively around Willow’s waist. “I’m not sure that’s how it happened,” she said slowly.
“What do you mean?” Buffy asked, perplexed.
“I think maybe Ben was the one who forced the change.”
Silence greeted this idea, until Xander protested, “But he’d have to know it would kill him.”
“And--and I saw his face,” Willow added, her voice trembling at the memory. “He was…terrified.”
“Who wouldn’t be?” Tara replied. “I don’t think he wanted to die. I think he craved life with everything in him. But I also think there was some part of him that knew this was the only way. Maybe--maybe the best part of his humanity convinced him that sacrificing his life was truly the best thing he could do with it.”
Willow knew without looking that Tara was speaking to Dawn now. “I think he found the courage to do the most selfless thing imaginable,” Tara continued. “And it takes more courage than we probably know to even think about doing such a thing.”
Willow had a hard time seeing things after that, because she was crying and because she had pulled first Dawn and then Buffy into a hug. Within seconds, everyone was embracing someone and at some point Giles and Xander were hugging and that was how Willow really knew that the miraculous had occurred.
*****
To Be Continued (More Promptly Than Last Time, I Promise)
I did like the way Xander described Glory's tower, with the obvious disdain of a builder looking at shoddy workmanship :-)
. Hopefully you have lotsa plans on write another one after this one then ? Can't let that new computer go to waste.. 
). Now that I have given you ego a little boast maybe there will be an update in the near future 
stephanie 
shuyaku
