Title; A Childe Awakens, (BtVS)
 
Author; Phoenixheart79 aka Carl/theblondiebear
 
Rating; R overall, 18+ if you're british like me
 
Disclaimer; I do not own BtVS, that privilige goes to Joss Whedon and 
M.E. I guess I own Sebastian, but the rest I'm just borrowing. I 
promise to put them back in the toy box when I'm done!
 
Distribution; (not that anyone will want it! LOL) Please ask my 
permission before putting it anywhere else than the places I do.
 
Feedback; Please! I write for me, but it's a boost to know what people 
think of my work.
 
***********************************************************************
Chapter 7
 
"The Totem of Tilock? Are you sure?" Giles asked, studying the 
artifact standing on the coffee table.

"Absolutely. Harmony blurted it out right before I staked her and the 
others seemed wicked pissed at her for mentioning it." 

"You staked Harmony?" Xander interrupted. 

"Way to go!" Willow cheered "The tramp had it coming!"

Buffy had to smile, "Yeah, but now I’ve cut off a handy supply of 
information. I tell you, her mouth just keeps on moving. She’s a 
bigger snitch than Willie, but it just got put down to her stu..."

"Buffy!" Giles cut her off "Are you absolutely certain about the 
totem?"

Sebastian stepped forward from the corner where he’d been cleaning his 
sword, a long Katana which rested idly in his hand as he stood next to 
Xander, who shuffled about nervously in his seat. "Yes. Harmony, was 
it?" At Buffy’s nod he continued, "Harmony was clear when she said 
that. And Buffy was right, one of the others was bloody pissed off 
with her for saying that. Why do you not looked convinced?"

"Well, the totem was said to have been lost centuries ago. The few 
watchers diaries from that time and local legends all say that the 
slayer seized it before it’s power could be activated. They tried 
everything they could think of, but they couldn’t destroy it. Finally 
it was thrown into a volcano blessed by the old gods so as to prevent 
it’s retrieval. It was cast away from man and demon for all eternity. 
If that’s incorrect then we have a problem Buffy."

"Why?"

"Because the totem is a focus. From what we have here, it appears to 
have been broken down into many pieces. When assembled it will act as 
a focal point for power. Every vampire ‘consecrated’ with the mark of 
the totem will have greater strength and speed."

Buffy looked at him, "Giles, they’re vampires, they already have 
superior strength and speed."

"Over humans, yes, but not over slayers. Buffy, the totem will give 
every vampire who bears it’s mark the same strength and speed as a 
slayer. You would lose your one advantage and face an army of equals."

Buffy looked shocked and stood quiet for a minute. "Oh." Her face 
betrayed the shock she tried so hard to hide. Then her face set in 
stone, she turned to face the gathered crowd, the scoobies and the 
slayers in training. 

"Then we stop them. We know what they want and what it will do. We 
scour this town from top to bottom, and then we destroy it once and 
for all."

"Buffy, I’m not sure it can be destroyed. We may have to send someone 
away to dispose of it again, throw it into another volcano perhaps."

"Giles, we can’t. We don’t have the people. Hell, we barely have the 
people to deal with everything that’s happening right now, without 
sending folks away on errands. We destroy it. Besides, we have one 
advantage they didn’t have back then," her gaze drifted to Willow, 
"the single most powerful witch the world has seen in a century."

Willow blanched. "Buffy, I can’t. To destroy that, would take more 
power than I can channel at the moment. When I was all vein-y and 
black haired, I touched on a lot of knowledge and I can tell you, 
without doubt, that there’s no way I can destroy that thing."

Kennedy laid a hand on the witch’s shoulder, "I’ll be with you, I’ll 
be your rock. You can do it, I know."

Willow smiled wistfully, "I wish I could, but I can’t." she looked up 
at Buffy, "Honestly Buffy, I can’t do it."

"Can’t or won’t Will? This is to serious for you to put your 
self-doubts first! We’re your friends, we’ll help you..."

"Like you did last year, Buffy? Only Giles, a coven and Xander stopped 
me from ending the world. We were lucky!"

"This isn’t the time to be scared Will! Everything will be fine, we’ll 
keep..."

"NO!" Kennedy’s voice, hard and cold, cut Buffy off in mid-sentence, 
"She said she’s not ready, hasn’t got the control to do it, then she 
doesn’t do it!" The slayer glared at the young wiccans’ lover, the 
anger and hatred in that moment almost palpable. 

"Kennedy’s right." Giles’ voice was soft, almost apologetic. "Buffy, 
we cannot push Willow into this, it would likely destroy her and us."

"Giles! What else can we do?"

With a soft chink, Sebastian laid his sword on the table. The blade 
was engraved with intricate symbols, strange axes, repeating over and 
over. A serpent ran the length of it, wrapping around the axes. "My 
watcher, before the explosion, gave me this. He said the engravings 
were mystical, that if suffused with energy, would make the blade unbreakable and give the sword the ability to destroy anything."

Giles’ hand reached for the Katana. "May I?" Sebastian nodded and he 
picked the weapon up, twisting it slowly in the light. "I recognise 
this now. It’s from the watchers’ armoury, isn’t it? The Sword of..."

"Exvirillion. Yes." Sebastian nodded.

"Well, this is most fortuitous. To have this now. I wonder, how did 
your watcher..."

"Mr Winseldon."

"Ah, Gregory. How is he?" Sebastian looked to the floor momentarily, 
then looked Giles in the eye.

"He was at the council, checking one of the prophetic tomes. 
Technically, he was on assignment with me, so wasn’t listed as been 
there. But we had received word that I was actually mentioned in one 
of the volumes, but it had always been assumed to be a mistake and so 
ignored. He was investigating that, when...."

"When the council was destroyed." Giles said softly. "I’m sorry. 
Anyway, I wonder how he had got this released. The council normally 
hoards such treasures, afraid they’ll be lost for eternity if allowed 
to be used by a slayer. I tried a few times myself, but to no avail."

Sebastian reached out and turned the sword over in Giles’ hand and 
pointed to a small patch of engraved writing, "It says ‘In the hands 
of a childe, the darkness will part.’. Mr Winseldon convinced them 
that it had been intended for my sister and so now, rightfully, was 
intended for me. With everything that has been building back home, the 
council relented. They needed someone ready to defend Queen and 
country. That was four months ago now, I’ve been training ever since 
in it’s use. Then the explosion happened and almost everything was 
lost. The remnants of the council handed me that parchment which I 
brought here."

"Fascinating. Willow, could you empower these runes? If I understand 
the markings correctly, it’s not so much a spell as a transference of 
power from yourself to the sword."

Willow still looked uneasy, "I’m not sure. Maybe. Can I?" she held out 
her hands and Giles laid the sword in them. She closed her eyes for a 
moment, then opened them and bobbed her head slowly in agreement. 
"It’s not a spell. This sword is like a sponge. All I would have to do 
is open my barriers for a moment and it would do the work, taking the 
power it needs from me." 

"Can we do it now then?" Buffy asked, "Destroy it now, before they 
assemble it."

"I’m afraid not Buffy. I translated that parchment Sebastian brought 
over. It’s actually an excerpt from a watchers diary, over seven 
hundred years old. Most of it didn’t mean much to me, in fact none of 
it made any sense until now. It says that ‘the equalizer may only be 
destroyed once whole’. Until you discovered this," he indicated the 
artifact on the coffee table, "I had no idea it referred to the 
totem."

"You’re saying we have to let them put this thing together before we 
can stop it?"

"I’m afraid so." he removed his glasses and cleaned them softly.

"Are you crazy?" Anya’s voice cut through the room like an knife 
through a gut. "Vampires, strong and nasty, we don’t need to be making 
them stronger. It’s suicide!"

"Yeah!" A number of the slayers in training chorused in with.

"It’s the only solution Anya." Giles cut in.

"It’s lunacy is what it is! I’m going home, lock myself up safe and 
sound where no super vampires can munch on my moist flesh!" With that 
she up and left the room, then the building. 

Buffy looked to Xander, "You can go with her, if you want. Make sure 
she’s okay." Xander merely shook his head, a wry smile playing across 
his features.

"Nah, it’s okay. She can look after herself. Besides, I’m sensing a 
plan brewing, and I’m kinda hoping I get to be key guy again." 

Buffy smiled, but shook her head. "Afraid not this time. We’re all key 
guys this time around. Here’s what we’re gonna do...."

***********************************************************************
Chapter 8

The chains rattled, as Spike fought in vain to free himself. His shirt 
was in tatters, hanging from his body in bloody rags. Scars covered 
his once smooth chest. The pits from where matches had been thrown on 
him, little valleys where holy water had been poured down him. He 
pulled again, rattling the chains, but to no avail.

"Now, now, puppy. Behave or we’ll have to take you to be neutered. 
Maybe that’ll take your bite out." Spike looked up as the soft voice 
filtered through the bars of his cage. Willow stood there, Amy draped 
over her shoulder, both looking at him like he was some toy. Amy 
reached down and took a key from Willows’ hip. She opened the door and 
Willow sauntered in, a box of matches in her hand.

"Now then, lets see if you’ve found your tongue yet." She lit a match 
and held it to Spikes’ cheek, the tiny flame licking up his skin. He 
jerked his head away, but a hand grabbed his hair and pulled him 
closer to the flame.

The Summer’s house

Buffy moved quietly in the kitchen, pouring herself a glass of juice.

"Buff, can we talk?" she turned and Xander was leaning against the 
counter.

"Sure." She hopped up onto the counter, "What’s on your mind? You 
look, I dunno, upset? Worried?" 

Xander picked up the juice carton, turning it over in his hands, then 
set it down. "Sebastian. Do I have to..."

"Xander," her voice sounded tired, "I know you’re...uncomfortable 
around him, but I need someone with him who really, really knows the 
town, all the dark corners."

"Willow could..."

"I want Willow with Dawn, watching her."

"You don’t trust me to protect Dawn?"

She looked pained, "God, no Xander, of course I do. It’s just, Kennedy 
goes where Willow goes and I don’t want Bastian thinking we don’t 
trust him." 

"Do we?" he asked, then, his voice bitter, "Never mind, silly 
question. He dresses in black, has a British accent and is wicked 
talented at killing things, of course we trust him. Say, he isn’t dead 
is he?"

"Xander..." Buffy began.

"Sorry Buff. He just, he makes me uneasy."

She smiled a little. "Well there you go, you two can bond while you 
hunt the nasties. Do the guy thing, get rid of the unease."

Xander looked less than impressed. "Fine, fine, I’ll go Buffy." He 
turned and left the kitchen.

The Mansion

"Puppy’s tongue tied." Willow said petulantly, throwing the keys onto 
The Masters table, "He doesn’t want to talk." Amy lounged against the 
doorframe, the only way in or out of the room, her arms crossed. The 
master sighed.

"It is of no consequence. Despite last nights setbacks, we have half 
of the totem. Tonight will see us gather the remaining pieces and then 
this world will tremble before us!" Willow smiled, stepping towards 
The Master and reaching for him. He backed away slightly, "Now, now. 
We don’t want to make your witch angry, do we?"

In the doorway, Amy smiled then addressed Willow, "Come on, lets get 
out of here. I want to burn this world." The Master smiled again and 
laughed, a laugh that would chill the very fires of hell.

"Such anger and hatred for the mortals in one so young, you made a 
wise choice with her. Now go, stoke the embers of evil so that the 
flames will engulf them all!" Willow headed for Amy, grabbing her 
round the waist. Together they turned to leave. Willow cast a glance 
over her shoulder at The Master, but he was gone. A frown passed over 
her pale features, how was he doing that? She would have to ask him, 
but later. He was The Master, that’s all that mattered.

As they moved swiftly through the tree’s, towards the university 
campus, they talked.

"We lost at least eight last night. However the slayers male friend 
is, he appears to be skilled at dispatching our kind." Amy’s voice, 
almost a whisper, drifted through the tree’s to Willow.

"Haven’t you found out who he is yet?" Willow answered.

"No, but some of my sources are saying that Buffy’s return from the 
dead last year has disrupted the slayer line."

"That’s all?" the red head frowned, "Some use your powers are turning 
out to be. Maybe I shouldn’t torture you later." she smiled and Amy 
blanched.

"Don’t say that. Anyway, you enjoy it as much as I do."

Willow laughed, "I have a puppy now, remember."

"Besides," Amy said, "I’ve been thinking. Buffy died before, but was 
brought back by her friends, that’s why we have two slayers." It was 
Willows turn to blanche.

"Two slayers?" Amy nodded then carried on,

"But what you, I mean, Willow, did went beyond that. I think she 
reinserted Buffy into the slayer line. Up until her second death, she 
had existed outside the line. I think Willow put her back, meaning 
that when she or Faith dies, a slayer will activate. Meaning there 
will always be two slayers from now on."

"Faith is such a dirty name." Willow said quietly, "So...christian 
sounding. Have faith..." Amy grinned at her partner in the darkness.

"You’d love her. So dark, when I saw her. Heard she went bad."

"An evil slayer..." Willow mused. 

"Sorry to disappoint, but she reformed." 

"She’ll change her mind again, with the right persuasion." Willow 
licked her lips, tingling inside at the prospect of taking a slayer, 
of making the girl hers, her childe. Amy’s face was cast in stone. 
‘You won’t replace me that easily’ she thought to herself.

They entered a clearing and looked around. Branches were broken, the 
underbrush crushed and flattened where bodies had landed. There was a 
small hole in the ground, quite shallow. Amy sighed and placed her 
hands on her hips. 

"Looks like the slayer took them out as they were digging. Looks like 
she has at least one piece. The Master will not be happy." She looked 
at Willow.

"Then we’ll have to get it back from the slayer, won’t we?" Willow 
stated, her voice cold. "Contact the others, and tell them to return 
home. We’ve got to prepare to storm a fort." Amy closed her eyes 
briefly. When she opened them, they were pure black.

"They’re on their way now." 

Willow smiled and ran a dead hand over Amy’s cheek, "Good. Very good. 
Lets go, we have to prepare."

***********************************************************************
Chapter 9

Buffy and Giles strolled down Main Street. Almost every thing was 
closed. A few people were leaving the Sun Cinema, heading home or for 
the late night coffee shop. They’d been on patrol for nearly two hours 
and had not seen a single vampire. In fact, they’d seen nothing. No 
vampires, no demons and, aside from those who were leaving the cinema, 
no people. Even in Sunnydale, where the majority of the populace had 
learnt, through no conscious decision, to stay indoors after dark, 
that was unusual. There was always someone who decided to "go for a 
stroll" or "check on aunt Bette." and ended up hostage or worse.

"Something’s not right here. We should have seen or heard something by 
now." Buffy said, looking a little restless.

"Yes, Buffy, I gathered that from the oh, two dozen times you’ve 
mentioned it." Buffy gave him a sharp look.


"Sarcasm does not become you Giles."

He smiled wistfully, "Be that as it may, you look agitated Buffy. Is 
everything okay?"

"I just don’t like this, it’s far to quite. Something’s up."

"Up?"

"Yeah, you know, wrong, bad, sour, off-kilte..." Giles sighed.

"I know what you meant Buffy, I was asking what you thought was up."

"Oh. I knew that. Just teasing ya."

"Of course. Thousands would doubt you, but not me." he smiled and 
Buffy had to smile back. She missed this Giles. With all his brooding 
recently, it was a pleasant change.

"Again with the sarcasm. But something’s definitely not right here, I 
think they’re planning something big Giles. I think they know we have 
a piece of the totem and they’re gonna want it. And that’s bad. I 
wanted us to take it to them, on our terms. But if they know and come 
for it..." She trailed off. Giles stopped and laid a hand on her 
shoulder.

"Buffy, everything will be fine. With the totem in your house, there’s 
no way they can get it. No one will be stupid enough to invite them 
in. Well, maybe Andrew, but we can keep him tied and gagged in the 
basement."

Buffy had to smile, "I’m liking this plan already." They resumed 
walking. "We should head back, there’s nothing out here." They carried 
on down Main Street, then disappeared down a side street and made 
their way home.

 

 

The Mansion

Amy sat cross legged in the main hall of the mansion, within a circle, 
white candles at five points, a small bowl of incense and a small 
purple cushion with a key upon it. She spoke softly under her breath, 
her hair moving in an intangible wind that blowed within the circle, 
yet affected nothing else. She held her hands over the key and black 
light flowed from her fingers, seeping like oil towards the key, 
wrapping around and flowing over it. 

After a few moments, the key could no longer be seen, covered as it 
was entirely by the seething black mass. But as Willow watched, the 
blackness began to shrink, exposing more and more of the key. At 
first, she had thought it was simply evaporating, but now she could 
see that the key was absorbing it. With a tiny black flash, the last 
of the oil was gone, leaving a shining silver key on the cushion. 

Amy closed her circle, snuffed out the incense and candles, then 
stood, picked up the cushion and key and approached Willow, a twisted 
smile on her face. She held the cushion out in front of her, "Behold, 
a universal key."

Willow reached out and picked up the key, glinting in the half light 
of the wall mounted candles. The mansion had electricity, but both she 
and Amy liked the candle light, the shadows and tricks it played were 
fascinating. She smiled and beckoned the sentry from the door over. 

"Pass the word. We attack at dusk."

Amy stepped a little closer and leaned against Willow, "And tell them 
to pick up some guns, this slayer excels in close combat. If we shoot 
her, our problems are over."

The sentry nodded and left the room. Willow dropped the key into her 
cleavage then stepped forward and turned back to face Amy, her demonic 
visage distorting her face. She punched the vampire witch on the nose, 
splashing blood across the floor. Amy dropped onto her back on the 
floor, cradling her nose, blood seeping through her fingers. She moved 
her hand down a bit and licked the blood from her fingers, smiling. 
Willow dropped down, straddling the younger vampire and smiled, a 
smile so chilling it would make even The Master blanche. She trailed a 
finger around and over one of Amy’s breasts, the black latex shining 
softly in the candlelight.

"Now, about that torture..."

Westfield Cemetery

Xander picked his way through the headstones, Sebastian a few feet 
ahead of him. They’d been out on patrol for over an hour now and 
hadn’t seen a single demon or vampire. They also had barely spoken. 
Sebastian had tried, but to no avail. The young man was just not in a 
talkative mood. But he was nothing if not persistent.

"Hey, Xander." Silence. This was frustrating. Then he smiled, an idea 
forming, "Alexander?"

Xanders’ voice came back, distant, "It’s Xander." Sebastian turned, a 
smile on his face and ready with a quick-fire crack to raise a smile 
when he saw that Xander was crouched in front of a gravestone about twenty metres back. As Sebastian watched, he reached out and gently 
laid a hand on the gravestone. Quietly he stepped up behind Xander and 
looked at the gravestone. It was simple, not one of those modern, over 
the top monstrosities. It read, ‘Tara Maclay. Oct 16, 1980 ~ May 7, 
2002'. A personal message below the dates was obscured behind flowers. 
A pair of small stones sat atop the gravestone. He crouched beside 
Xander, his head bowed in respect. He glanced sideways at Xander. When 
he spoke, his voice was hushed, almost a whisper.

"Friend?"

Xander looked at him, a single crystal tear in his eye.

"Girlfriend?"

Xander shook his head. "Family." His hand caressed the T. "Tara, 
Willows girlfriend. She was shot."

Sebastian was silent for a while, then he spoke, voice still subdued, 
"Did they catch the killer?"

Xander shook his head, "No need, he’s dead."

"Oh. How? No, don’t answer. I’ll leave you alone, I’ll be over there." 
He pointed to a crypt 30 metres away and slowly stood, head still 
bowed. He walked slowly away, but stopped when he felt a hand on his 
shoulder.

"No, it’s okay. You should know, you deserve to. I know that you and 
Willow are becoming friends and I don’t know what she’s told you, 
but..."

Sebastian paled a little, "Willow killed him?" Xander nodded. "How?" 
His voice was even quieter than before.

"You might not know it, but Willow is one of the most powerful witches 
ever." 

Sebastian nodded, "Yeah, I remember Buffy’s speech. And that Willow 
was reluctant to.." his voice trailed off as realisation dawned on 
him. "She lost control, didn’t she? Killed him with magic?" Xander 
only nodded. Sebastian turned back to the grave. "I had no idea. I 
don’t know what I’d do in that situation." He paused, "No, I do. When 
it finally sunk home about Liz, I was back in the flat, surrounded by 
her, her things, her smell. Some bloody teenage thugs were outside, 
trashing a neighbours car. I lost it. Put all seven of them in 
hospital." He lowered his head in shame, "I didn’t even know what I 
was at that point. I put them all in intensive care without breaking a 
sweat. Fortunately, no one saw me, it was dark, the kids couldn’t ID 
me. Still, I can guess what Willow feels now, at that moment, if it 
had been the guy responsible for Liz’s death, I’d have torn him 
apart." 

He crouched down in front of the grave. "Tara? You don’t know me, but 
I know Willow. I will watch out for her, as if she were family."

"As you watched out for me?" A familiar voice drifted across the 
graveyard. Sebastian whirled around and Liz stood amidst the graves, 
perhaps ten metres away. Shock spread over his face, his skin paling. 

"Liz?" His voice was strangled, barely audible. Xander looked in the 
direction Sebastian was staring and talking. Sebastian stood and took 
a step forward. "Liz? Is that you?" He dropped to his knees and began 
to sob, great racking sobs, "Liz. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for 
you."

Xander stared at Sebastian then hurried over, crouching behind the 
slayer. "It’s not her, it’s the first. It can manifest itself as any 
dead person." As soon as Sebastian turned to him, the anger on his 
face painfully apparent, Xander knew that had been the wrong thing to 
say. Sebastian’s open hand caught him in the chest and he sailed 
backwards, slamming into a gravestone and slumping to the ground. 
Sebastian turned back to the visage of his sister, the tears streaming 
down his face.

"How can you watch out for that witch," Liz said, her voice dripping 
with disdain as she uttered the word witch, "When you couldn’t even 
look after your own twin sister."

"Because he has the strength of his friends love." A soft but firm 
voice floated towards them. Sebastian looked back and a pale, 
translucent figure hovered about a foot above the gravestone behind 
him. 

Xander pushed himself upright. "Tara?" his voice came out soft, a 
reverent whisper. The spirit looked to him.

"Xander. Thank you." She smiled, the same beautiful smile that had 
turned the dullest day into sunshine.

"Thank you?" His face was puzzled.

"For saving her." Tara turned back to Sebastian and, Xander presumed, 
The First Evil. "He has friends and family now. No matter what you say 
or do, that will not change. Go now!" She raised her arms and a mist 
trailed from them. In that instant, The First became visible to 
Xander. He knew immediately that this form was that of Sebastian’s 
sister. The similarities between them were striking, yet each was an 
individual. The mist trailed towards The First, wrapping around it, 
smothering it. 

"You won’t save him, spirit!" It’s voice was ice, then it vanished, 
the mist from Tara dissipating.

Xander stepped forwards, tears rolling down his cheeks freely. "Tara. 
It’s....it’s..." The spirit smiled and nodded.

"Strange. I know. I came because of the love he feels for you all. You 
may not know it, but you’ve all found a new brother." She turned to 
Sebastian, "And you have found a new family. Look after them, because 
like all families, if you grow complacent, it will fall apart. You 
cannot afford to be divided, not now."

Sebastian wiped tears from his eyes and looked at the spirit, "Why?"

"A great battle is coming. Only your love and trust for one another 
will see you through." Tara’s form swirled slightly, as though someone 
had twirled a finger in her. "I must go, it is hard to exist here." 
She turned to Xander. "Tell Willow I will always, always, love her, 
but that she must live her life. And tell her, I like Kennedy." She 
smiled and faded away, becoming a white mist that vanished on the soft 
night breeze. 

Xander reached down and helped Sebastian to his feet. "Come on, we 
should go. Nothings happening here. Lets check in with the others."

Together they walked from the cemetery, talking quietly. The bonding 
had begun, over tears and not violence, Xander thought to himself, no 
matter what Buffy says.

TBC.......