Disclaimer and Continuity Note: I don't own any of the characters used in
this fic, who were created by Mutant Enemy productions unless otherwise noted.
This fic is set approximately circa October 2001. It is presumed to occur
pretty soon after the S6 episode "Flooded" (marking the return of Giles),
PRIOR to the series finale of the Lone Gunmen (which had to occur pretty soon
before their blue-faced appearance on the last season of the X-Files), and
at a corresponding point early in last season's ER.
Giles: Previously, on The Fallen:
Suddenly, Dr. Greene drops his clipboard with a clatter.
Dr. Greene: RACHEL!
Everyone turns to see Rachel Greene, pale and weak, barely supporting an almost
unconscious Dawn, has just staggered in the ambulance bay doors.
Rachel: Dad....
With that, she collapses.
Buffy and Dr. Greene both run to the fallen girls.
Dr. Greene: High fever, sweat, Abby, get some IV's, both these girls may need
fluid NOW!
Abby: I'm on it.
As Abby goes, no one takes note of a bright flash in the ambulance bay.
Buffy: What's wrong with my sister?
Dr. Greene: I don't know, but it looks like the same thing my daughter has.
Only it doesn't make sense. She wasn't ill before and symptoms
this severe don't usually pop up in a couple of hours....
Suddenly, Eve walks in the Bay doors, followed by the Gunmen, with Jimmy and
Tara supporting a very pale and weak looking Willow.
Eve: That's because this isn't a normal disease. We're too late. The
Jekyll plague has begun.
The Fallen: Chapter Six
Crash carts roll through the ER.....
Dr. Carter: Two teenage Caucasian girls presenting with acute bacteremia and
possible meningitis we need 3 MU penicillin G IV, stat!
Dr. Greene: They're burning up! We need to get them fluids, and get
their temperature down now!
Abby: Carter, we've got a problem! You remember how maintenance was
messing with one of the outlets in pharmacy? They moved one of the antibiotic
fridges off the red outlet, M-Z's could all be toast!
Dr. Carter: I love this place....
Dr. Kovac: Alternate regimen is 500 mg Chloramphenicol IV.
Abby: Got it!
Rachel: *murmurs* Dad....
Dr. Greene: I'm here, Rachel...
Dr. Carter: Good save, Luka, but what kind of meningitis sets in within hours?
Dr. Kovac: I don't know.... *glances back at the crowd at the ER entrance*
Buffy stares down Eve.
Buffy: That's my sister on a cart in there, so you've got exactly 10 seconds
to tell me what the hell you're talking about before I beat it out of you.
Eve: You're Buffy Summers, right? Your problem here isn't me, it's Maggie
Walsh.
Xander: Yeah, we're kind of aware of that. She made a plague?
Eve: I've only been able to access portions of her personal files, but as
nearly as I can tell it was a last resort plan of hers. In case her
plans to directly construct human/demon hybrids to combat demons failed, she
generated a bacterial strain that was capable of entering human cells and
inserting demon DNA into them.
Byers: She designed a pathogen that will turn humans into part demon? No
one could be that crazy!
Buffy: Walsh wrote the book on crazy. Literally actually. But
that isn't the point. WHAT'S THE CURE?
Eve: I don't know. The plague could only be in one of two sites that
the government didn't find when they decommissioned the initiative. I
presumed they would have picked one that didn't involve transporting live
plague across the country, and went to the one in Sunnydale, where the ever
helpful Gunmen and the witches jumped me.
Anya: Hey, that's right, we left them all in California. How did you
get here so fast anyway?
Langly: I'm still not sure where 'here' is. We're in Chicago?
Buffy: Never mind that. The other possible site is here?
Eve: I think so, but I didn't pinpoint the location, because I thought I'd
have time to analyze the intelligence we got from the Sunnydale site en route...
Giles: That nice nurse said that Dr. Walsh had a store-room in the basement....
Xander: Why am I unsurprized?
Buffy: Okay, lady, you're coming with us. You, Gun... computer people, deal
with the data stuff.
Anya: Not to interrupt, but what if Adam comes back?
Buffy: Wait for me, and then stay out of my way.
*The Doctor's lounge*
Willow slowly wakes up, and realizes she's lying on the couch in the lounge,
with Tara looking on, concerned.
Willow: Hey...
Tara: Hey yourself... *brushes back a stray strand of Willow's hair from her
face* Are you alright....
Willow: I don't know... the spell went fine, but then, I just got dizzy and....
The spell DID go fine, yes? We didn't wind up in Albuquerque or something,
did we?
Tara: *smiles slightly, but then is worried again* No... but what you did
was very dangerous, Willow.
Willow: It was just a spell. Alright, a big flash impressive spell,
but it isn't every day that we need to cross the country by sometime yesterday.....
Tara: You could have DIED, Willow, do you understand that? Demons don't
even take jumps of that size that frequently with passengers, especially not
to places they've never been before....
Willow: Did we make it in time....
Tara: No.... Dawn and another girl were infected.....
Willow: I need to help... *tries to sit up, can barely manage it*
Tara: You need to rest.
Willow: Tara, I just need a light snack, and I'll be good to go....
Willow looks across the room and sees a Powerbar lying on the counter. She
holds out her hand, willing it to come to her and... nothing happens.
Willow: *suddenly worried* Huh?
Tara: *figures out what just happened* Willow.... I didn't want to tell you...
but when you use that much magic at once, it can burn out your batteries.
You pretty definitely won't be able to cast even minor spells for a
few days....
Willow: Great.... there's a crisis and I can't do anything to help.
Tara: I... I'm sure you can help with something.... the hacker types are trying
to decrypt some of Walsh's files outside....
Willow: And that went so well for us the last time. We only got in because
Adam set it to decrypt itself when the time was right.....
Tara: Well, we have to try.....
Willow: Tara, I... I'm sorry, I just can't stand.... We're supposed to have
power, you know, we're supposed to be able to make a difference and now the
chips are down and Dawn's in danger and I can't do anything to help......
The room is silent for a moment when suddenly, someone standing by the side
door speaks....
Dr. Weaver: I know what you mean.
Tara: Oh, sorry... we didn't know you were using this room....
Weaver: Don't worry about it. *crutches over to her desk, very tired*
Willow: Look, the brain behind that robot was responsible for some really
serious damage the last time he popped up. There's nothing you could
have done to stop him....
Tara: Yeah... I know things look bad... but we're pretty good at dealing with
stuff like this.
Willow: Yeah. We'll have your hospital back to you in no time.
Weaver has been sitting quietly, thinking, and finally looks up at the two
of them.
Weaver: How do you manage it?
Tara: What?
Weaver: Doing what you do.... Even though you're... different?
Willow: Well... I don't know, I mean, our friends have seen and done some
pretty strange things....
Tara: For me... I think it's about doing what you know is right, and trying
your hardest and knowing you're with people who'll fight for you and stay
with you to the very end, no matter what. *she smiles, slightly, having
taken Willow's hand*
Willow: Yeah... I guess that's it. Besides, there has to be something
different about you if you're going to be helping people do things they can't
do themselves.
Weaver: I never thought about it that way....
Willow: Alright, well even if I'm not a witch for the next couple days, I've
been lying down on the job long enough. Let's see if we can help with
that computer....
Tara: *smiles to see Willow ready to help, and WITHOUT using magic* Sure...
*opens the door for Willow, and waves to Dr. Weaver as she leaves*
Weaver: Witches?!
*The hospital basement*
Buffy: You've got to be kidding.
Anya: Well, maybe the number's her birthday or something.
Xander: Room 0314. And a serious security system on the door. Has
to be the place. Don't know that I want to open that door after what
we found the last time we went in one of these.
Buffy: Well, we don't have a choice....
Eve: Wait, that door is reinforced....
Buffy steps back, spins around and gives the door a forceful kick.
Buffy: OW! Ow, ow, ow....
Eve: And I thought rushing in was a guy thing. We're not going to be
able to open this door with a tank.
Xander: Well, do you have a helpful suggestion? *silence for a moment*
Anya: Well, shouldn't someone in the hospital have a key?
Buffy: Let's go.
Xander: That's why I love her....
*The Vending Machine area*
Giles stands and frowns at the coffee machine for a minute, quite put out
with it.
Dr. Corday: If you're looking for tea, you're out of luck in this god-forsaken
neck of the woods.
Giles: *turns around, shakes head* One prefers to hope....
Dr. Corday: You're a relative one of the sick girls Mark's working on?
Giles: Relative? No... not exactly. It's complicated.
Corday: Earlier this evening, I ran into some Billy Idol lookalike on the
roof, and now my daughter in law is lying on a bed next to your friend. Try
me.
Giles: I... The girls, Dawn and Buffy.... they ... their father isn't a presence,
and their mother passed away last year. I want.... I want to help them,
but they're getting older, and I just... I don't want to be standing in the
way of their growing up.
Corday: Rachel... she, well she seems reckless. And she doesn't seem
to think much of me either. But... now some strange thing is happening,
and she may die.... And Mark's been through so much... he survived cancer,
and we got married and Ella was born.... and now his other daughter may die....
Life doesn't cut any of us any breaks, no matter how much good we do, or how
hard we struggle to make a difference, does it?
Giles: *shakes head* No..... *silence for a minute or two* But
we try anyway.
Corday: Because it's the right thing to do?
Giles: Well, that too. And because we care.
Corday: Yeah.... guess us Brits can be stubborn that way.
Giles: Stubborn? Us? You haven't tried training teenagers, have
you?
Corday: Good point. *smiles*
Giles: And Billy Idol, huh?
Corday: Yeah, bleached blonde hair, silly black outfit and everything.....
Giles: *shakes head* Yeah, you'd have to be pretty crazy to dress like....
well, okay I know someone like that.
Corday: He in Chicago? I'd be relieved to know there's just the one.
Giles: Spike? No, I can't imagine what he'd be doing in Chicago.....
*An alley behind the hospital*
Two figures have fallen to the ground, and finally stop twitching. The
camera pans up to reveal standing over them.... Buffy. Sorta.
Adam: Trials confirm original suspected finding. Either Jekyll Plague's
infectious dose is higher than anticipated, or stock quality has degraded
during storage. Inoculation with an intravenous dose one hundred times
in excess of the recommended dose results in expected near-immediate subject
death and transformation.
As Adam speaks, the seemingly dead bodies rise up, and we see that they have
suddenly taken on aspects of demons sprouting from their bodies. From
the rooftop, a figure drops his cigarette in shock....
Spike: Bloody hell.....
To Be Continued....
The Lone Gunmen
Bruce Harwood .... John Fitzgerald Byers
Tom Braidwood .... Melvin Frohike
Dean Haglund .... Richard 'Ringo' Langly
Stephen Snedden .... Jimmy Bond
Zuleikha Robinson .... Yves Adele Harlow
ER
Anthony Edwards .... Dr. Mark Greene
Noah Wyle .... Dr. John Truman Carter, III
Laura Innes .... Dr. Kerry Weaver
Alex Kingston (I) .... Dr. Elizabeth Corday
Paul McCrane .... Dr. Robert 'Rocket' Romano
Goran Visnjic .... Dr. Luka Kovac
Maura Tierney .... Nurse Abigail "Abby" Wyczenski Lockhart
Created By Michael Crichton
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