Part 3:
The Night The Lights Went Out in Sunnydale

As they pulled up in front of Buffy's house Xander got out and ran towards the house followed by Willow and Tara.

Buffy slid out of the car and looked around her. In the distance she could see signs of the approaching hordes. The demons were destroying everything in their path and darkness was taking over Sunnydale.

Spike got out and stood beside her pointing off into the distance. "Take a good look my dear," he said to Buffy pointing off into the distance. "It's a historic moment. You can tell your grandchildren you were there the night the lights went out in Sunnydale."

Buffy cringed at the recollection of the prophecy. "I don't know about that," she corrected him, quickly changing the subject. "You know, you did pretty well for yourself out of this little war Spike. Being a demon, they won't kill you and you've made a tidy profit as well. Unlike all these hopeless do-gooders who went off to fight and lost not only the war but their lives."

"I don't know if I'm so lucky," Spike observed. "At least they had something to believe in. I think I'll join up with our brave lads in grey. I'm feeling kind of grey right around now."

"You can't be serious," Buffy balked. "I need you here to help me fight them off. They'll be coming here to my house. Once they find this place Giles mentioned they will raise Sherman," Buffy paused painfully. "And he will kill me."

"Selfish to the end, aren't you?" Spike criticized, unaware of the prophecy. "Thinking only of your own precious Slayer hide. Well, Slayer or not, I'm going to fight the good fight for once in my life."

"But you're a vampire," Buffy pointed out. "You're evil by nature. I thought all you evil types wanted the world to end? Why would you align yourself with a lost cause that helps out the good guys."

"It may be a lost cause but I've always had a weakness for lost causes, once they're really lost," Spike reflected. "Besides, I'm in no big rush to see this world end. It's got lots of things I like. Dog racing for instance, and poker and it's got all these people walking around like picnic baskets with legs. No, I'm not looking to see the world end anytime soon."

"Well then if you aren't going to stay and help me you should just go," Buffy turned on him. "Get out of my sight because you don't seem to know what you are or what you want."

"Not so fast," Spike halted her. "There's one thing I do know, and that is I love you, Buffy. In spite of you and me and the whole silly world going to pieces around us, I love you. Because we're alike - bad lots both of us, selfish and shrewd, but able to look things in the eyes and call them by their right names…I've loved you more than I've ever loved any woman. I've waited for you longer than I've ever waited for any woman."

Buffy just stood there staring at him with her arms folded. "You know you're like a broken record sometimes," she criticized. "Vampires haven't got souls. They aren't even capable of love."

Spike was stung by her words. "That's where you're wrong, luv. We can too love," he paused then added with emphasis. "We can love well, if not wisely."

As if to prove it Spike stepped forward and put his arms around Buffy pulling her close. "Kiss me Buffy," he whispered in her ear. "Kiss me like you're never going to see me again. Because you never know, you might not."

Buffy looked at him with disgust and pushed him away. "Will you just go already," she urged.

"Fine," Spike said with a bruised ego. "I'm going but before I do I want to give you this." Spike held out a wooden stake. "That other stuff is just showy. This is all you really need."

"How do you know I won't use this on you?" Buffy asked as he turned to leave.

"I don't," Spike admitted, getting into his car and driving off into the still night air.

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

Buffy walked up the steps to her house. She was home. Let the demons come, she could face them all because she was home again. As she opened the door Buffy was met by the sad faces of her friends. Looking around her Buffy could see that the demons had already been there. Furniture lay broken and whatever personal objects they had left behind had been piled together into a large pit in the living room floor where the demons had started a fire. Buffy saw Willow emerge from a side room with a startled look on her face.

"What's in there?" Buffy asked timidly.

Willow looked at her friend with horror in her eyes. "Don't go in there Buffy," she cautioned.

"What is it Willow," Buffy needed to know. "Who's in there?"

Buffy pushed past Willow and entered the room. It was dark save for a few candles lit near a table at the far end of the room. She could just make out something laid out on the table. Getting closer Buffy's heart leapt into her throat. Strewn across the table were the remnants of Mr. Gordo. He had been shamelessly pulled apart into ragged dirty pieces of pink fluff.

"NO," Buffy let out a loud, wild scream.

Gathering her strength she emerged from the room her face streaked with tears.

"Buffy," Giles stepped forward. "I'm so sorry. There was nothing we could do. We hid when they entered the house and luckily they didn't find us before they left."

Buffy turned to look at him curiously. "What do you mean we?"

Dawn stepped out from behind Giles. "I think he means me."

"What are you doing here?" Buffy demanded angrily. "Didn't you know how dangerous this is?"

"Actually, no I didn't," Dawn admitted. "If I had known I definitely wouldn't have snuck away from Mom and Dad to come back here."

"Great," Buffy sighed. "This is all I need, my kid sister to look out for."

"Well I'm not too thrilled about it either. I'm hungry Buffy," Dawn whined. "The demons raided the refrigerator and they didn't leave anything behind for us to eat. I wish Mom was here. She'd know what to do."

"But she's not here," Buffy pointed out. "So we have to get by on our own. Willow, Tara, go have a look in the kitchen and see if there's anything left. We'll need our strength. Sherman's troops will be looking for the place where they can open the portal."

"Actually I know where it is," Giles interrupted.

Everyone turned to look at him.

"It's this house," he announced. "It was built right over the Hellmouth. All this time it's been right here below my library."

"Why didn't the demons realize that when they were here," Buffy asked.

"Those were just foot soldiers. They lead the way and raze the path for the Summoners," Giles explained. "They're the ones who know what they're looking for. The foot soldiers run amok creating havoc and mayhem before the Summoners show up. By my estimation they'll be here by morning."

"Don't worry about a thing," Buffy tried to sound sure of herself. "I'm here now."

"You're being very brave," Giles sounded impressed. "Considering what you know that can't be very easy."

"I figure what have I got to lose," Buffy sounded cavalier. "So tell me about these Summoners. What's their deal?"

"They will bring forth the demon known as Sherman," Giles explained. "Sherman is the one who will attempt to open the portal to the demon dimension thus creating unspeakable torment."

"How does he do that?" Buffy wanted to know everything.

"Well, it's rather complicated and a tad unorthodox," Giles picked up a book off of a table and opened it to show Buffy an illustration. "There has only ever been one other instance of someone attempting a ritual of this nature. That was back in the 1400's. It almost succeeded but the supplicant died of shock thus interrupting the ritual." Giles pointed to a picture in the book taken from an engraving.

"It looks like they're…" Buffy paused. "No, it can't be. It looks like they're licking his face."

"Yes, well, sort of," Giles looked a little embarrassed at the silliness of the act. "After they have spoken the spell to open the portal, the Summoners cleanse their tongues of the unclean words by wiping them off on the supplicant's face. What follows is quite horrific. When the words interact with human flesh they become alive and form into the portal using the human supplicant as an anchor. There are some aspects of the ritual that are a little unclear. I'm going to have to read up on it more."

"So what do these Summoners need Sherman for then?" Buffy questioned.

"The ritual itself only creates the portal. It doesn't open it," Giles shifted uncomfortably. "Sherman will need to rip the portal open."

Buffy gulped. "That doesn't sound too good for this supplicant guy."

Giles looked at Buffy with careworn eyes, "Or girl." He pointed out.

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

Willow and Tara emerged from the kitchen with what remained of the Summers family's usually well-stocked cupboards. "I've got a moldy radish, two half eaten crackers with some brown stuff on them and an unopened Cup O' Soup," Tara offered.

"Cup O'Soup?" Dawn sulked. "That's disgusting."

"Well it's all we've got so you'd better make the best of it," Tara suggested.

"I'd rather starve," Dawn decided.

"You have to eat something Dawnie," Willow explained. "If you don't eat you'll be too weak to fight back when the demons come. Tell her Buffy."

"What does it matter," Dawn pointed out matter of factly. "They're going to get us no matter what we do. They're too strong."

Seeing that her sister had given up hope Buffy decided to set an example. Exhausted by her fight with the demon troops and weakened by hunger Buffy picked up the radish and took a bite out of it in desperation. "I won't let them get us," she said with determination. "As God as my witness, as God as my witness, they're not going to lick me! I'm going to live through this, and when it's all over, I'll never be hungry again - no, nor any of my folks!"

Dawn watched from behind her sister, impressed with her strength of character. "I just want to see Sherman try to take us on," she proclaimed with a renewed sense of hope.

"His troops will no doubt be on their way to summon him," Giles calculated. "They must be on their way to this house as we speak."

"I think I have an idea," Willow announced with a gleam in her eye.

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

And the wind swept through Sunnydale. SHERMAN! As Sherman's troops approached the Summers' home a stillness entered the chill night air and the soldiers parted to make way for a cloud of darkness approaching from the rear of their ranks. Clad in long, flowing robes, the Summoners appeared to be floating through the air, twisting and turning as though in agony. As they pulled their hoods back they revealed ashen faces with eyes so far back in their skulls that only a small hint of a glow could prove they were even there. They neared the house only to be greeted by the appearance of a tiny blond girl who stood her ground against them.

"We are the Summoners," they hissed in unison.

"Well, what a coincidence," the girl joked. "We are the Summers. Nice to meet you. But I'm afraid you can't come in."

The Summoners tongues lashed about in fury at the indignance of this girl. They reached forward to grab her with their long arms but their attempt was repelled by a forcefield surrounding the house.

"You demons have the worst manners," Buffy observed. "Luckily I've got a couple of friendly witches on my side."

The Summoners wailed in fury.

"You won't be able to hold this up forever," they decreed. "We *will* come in and we *will* summon Sherman."

Buffy just looked at them and grinned, "Not by the hair of your chinny, chin, chin."

She turned and walked back inside the house. "So Willow, this is the hobby that you and Tara share. Very cool. We can hold them off until Giles can figure out a way to stop them."

"Um, actually Buffy," Willow sounded a little nervous. "I don't know how long the barrier spell will hold. Maybe 'til morning, maybe a few hours longer."

Buffy was shocked by this news.

"Besides, we don't have any food," she pointed out. "We can't stay here forever."

From outside Buffy could hear the sound of the Summoners' wailing increasing.

Buffy saw the worried faces of her friends looking to her for the answers but she had none.

"So how do we stop this Giles?" she asked hopefully.

"I'm still consulting my books," he answered from behind a stack of large volumes. "There must be something we've overlooked."

"We should all try to get some rest," Buffy suggested. "We'll need to be at top form when the barrier comes down."

"I'll take the first watch," Xander offered.

Buffy settled down to sleep in what was left of a chair in the corner. As the group closed their eyes for a brief and troubled respite from their problems Xander stood in the doorway watching the Summoners try to break down the forcefield.

It was dark inside the house and amid their slumber the friends didn't hear the sound of quiet footsteps coming up from the basement. Giles was too engrossed in his books to even notice the figure of a vampire as it stepped into the room and hovered over the figure of Buffy. It had been hiding in the basement waiting for nightfall to make it's escape. Seeing Buffy stretched out in the chair it smiled an evil grin and leaned over to bite her before exploding, scattering her with dust. When the dust cleared the wooden stake Spike had given her could be seen in Buffy's hand.

"At least I'm going out fighting," she decided out loud. Looking down at the stake, she wondered to herself what had become of Spike. Where was he and what was he doing? Was he even alive still since obviously Sherman's troops had succeeded in making it this far? She didn't like to think of him lying dead somewhere, just another pile of ashes. Even if he was a disgusting vampire.

By morning the barrier had started to fluctuate, eventually giving out. Buffy braced herself for what she knew would be a losing battle. The door opened and the Summoners made their way inside. The first of them was met with a sharp axe to the skull. The next one in was luckier, managing to avoid Buffy's attack.

He was mumbling some kind of incantation and Buffy moved to finish this one off as well, but found herself frozen in her steps. Willow's eyes turned to black as she stepped up in front of them beginning an incantation. Realizing what she was doing, one of the Summoners held up a glowing orb and Willow crumpled to the floor unconscious.

"Willow," Tara cried out, rushing across to her friend. "What did you do to her?" she demanded as she tried to rouse the unconscious girl.

"Just a little trick I picked up from a friend back in university," a voice from outside explained. "Hello Mammy," Giles was greeted by his former friend Ethan Wilkinson.

"Ethan," Giles spat out. "What are you doing here?"

"What? Didn't your Slayer tell you all about me?" Ethan taunted. "She obviously doesn't tell you everything I guess."

"You won't win," Giles pronounced. "Evil will always be defeated by the forces of good."

"I think this might be the exception to the rule Mammy," Ethan laughed. "You righteous types make me sick. You think everything has to play out by your rules. Well, here's a news flash. The good guys don't always win and I believe I'll be proving that to you very shortly. I'm really going to enjoy this."

Ethan raised up a cudgel he had behind his back and struck Giles across the temple. Giles fell to the floor unconscious.

"Yep," Ethan decided. "I did enjoy that."

Buffy was straining to break free of the spell that held her frozen.

Ethan was clearly amused by her struggles. "It didn't take much to defeat you," he chuckled speaking close in her ear. "Just a little magic of our own. You know, I could slit your throat right now if I wanted but then you wouldn't be around to see your world end. I want to see the look in your eyes as you watch everyone you love die." Looking over at Dawn, he pointed a finger at her, "I think this one will do. She's so pure, she stinks of it."

The Summoners came over and grabbed Dawn, taking her towards the basement.

"No," Buffy cried out, still frozen and motionless.

"Oh, don't worry," Ethan mockingly consoled her. "You'll get to watch."

Buffy and her friends were also dragged into the basement where they were forced into a side room with only one small barred window with broken glass letting in the morning light. Buffy, still frozen, was dumped on the cold floor. "Oh and Slayer, I left a little present in there for you," Ethan announced.

As her eyes adjusted to the darkness Buffy noticed a prostrate figure in the far corner of the room.

The bowed and beaten figure raised his head.

"Angel," Buffy cried out.

Angel struggled to stand.

"You're hurt," he observed.

There was evidence of torture and beatings on Angel. Burn marks in the shape of crucifixes could be seen on his chest as well as wounds that would have killed any human. As he took a step towards Buffy he passed in front of a ray of light coming through the broken window and he flinched, a whiff of smoke arising from his arm where it had been exposed to the sunlight.

"It's a trick. He's a vampire," Xander accused. "I don't want him in here with us."

"It's ok Xander," Buffy explained. "He's not like the others."

"I have a soul," Angel managed. "I'm not guided by the demon that possesses me. Not anymore."

"Well, if he tries to bite me I'm holding all of you responsible," Xander complained standing on the far side of the room from Angel who was still in great pain and obviously incapable of any being any real threat.

Giles was starting to regain consciousness. "What happened?" the stunned Watcher asked.

"They've put us in the basement," Tara explained. "Willow's still out."

From her position on her back Buffy flipped onto her side attempting to push her head to the floor awkwardly.

"What are you doing Buffy?" Xander inquired. "Are you ok?"

"I need to see what they're doing," Buffy explained. "I need to know what they're doing with Dawn. If I push my head down all the way I can just see underneath the door."

From her vantage point Buffy could see the Summoners take Dawn over to a section of the wall and fasten her to it with chains. One of them began anointing her with scented oils while the others chanted. Buffy relayed this information to the others.

"What are they doing with her?" Buffy asked Giles in hushed tones.

"It seems they have chosen their supplicant," Giles observed in horror. "And we are to watch them perform the ritual."

"How long before they…before they…?" Buffy couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence.

"My understanding is that the ritual itself takes at least twenty four hours to complete," Giles elaborated. "It begins with the anointing of the supplicant. After this they will perform a blood letting ceremony that will enable the Summoners to complete the ritual."

"They're going to cut Dawn?" Buffy asked in shock.

"No, not *her* blood," Giles explained. "Dawn will not be harmed until the final stage of the ceremony. They need her to be pure and unharmed in order for the ritual to work. For the blood-letting they require the blood of a witch. It is a slow and torturous process. They will cut her, causing her to bleed slowly. This is why it takes up to twenty-four hours to complete this stage of the ritual. Once she has been bled to death Sherman will be summoned as he is needed to prepare the blood for them. The Summoners will then drink her blood and the magic life-force that flowed through her will give their voices the power to speak the words of the ritual."

Tara turned and looked at Willow cringing at the thought of it.

Several hours later the spell had started to wear off and Buffy had regained the ability to move about but was still not at full strength. She was quickly wearing a path in the stone cement floor with her pacing. "I feel so helpless," she lamented. "I need to do something. I can't just sit around here and watch my sister die like this. Tara is there anything you can do?"

"That barrier spell took a lot out of both Willow and me Buffy," Tara apologized. "Willow's still unconscious and I can't do anything nearly powerful enough without her help."

Angel had returned to the darkness of the far corner to avoid any more accidents with the beams of sunlight peeking through the window. Buffy sat down beside him. "Angel, I'm so scared," she confessed. "I just want it all to be over. I wish they would summon Sherman already so he could finish me off."

"Don't say that Buffy," Angel cautioned her. "You can't give up. Dawn's still alive. It's not over yet."

"I just want to escape from all of this. I'm not going to win Angel," Buffy pointed out. "You've read the prophecy. You know this. I'm going to face Sherman and he *will* kill me."

Angel was silent.

"I look at my friends and I know that when I lose they're all going to die," Buffy said teary eyed. "I know that this whole life we've been living will end. When I look at everyone around me all I see is their deaths and I know that I can't stop it."

"You've been carrying the load all by yourself Buffy," Angel broke his silence. "Being the Slayer is still very new to you. I'll try to find a way to help you."

"You can help me by giving me something to hope for Angel," Buffy pleaded with him. "Tell me you love me. I know you do. Tell me you'll never leave me. Tell me that you were wrong to ever push me away. Then I can go to my grave knowing that at least."

Buffy fell against Angel's chest sobbing. Realizing that she had given up, Angel took her by the shoulders and pulled her away from him.

"You can't give up," he reminded her. "If you do then Sherman has already won."

"I have nothing inside me left to fight with," she sobbed.

"Nothing? Nothing except the Slayer," Angel pointed out. "Yes, there is something that you love more than me, though you may not know it. And that is being the Slayer. I heard about you taking on that horde of demon soldiers single-handedly, that's the true Slayer essence coming through. That's who you are. You are a fighter. It's in your nature and you can't give up now."

Buffy nodded in acknowledgement, "Yes, I suppose I still have that. Don't worry, I won't let you down Angel. I'll fight Sherman with my last breath."

The door to the room opened and the figure of Ethan Wilkinson appeared in the doorway. "I'm here for the witch," he announced.

Two of the demon soldiers stepped forward towards Willow. "Don't touch her," Tara commanded forcefully, getting in their way.

"Well," Ethan smiled. "It looks like we have two witches to choose from. You've got spunk though and I like that. I was going to pick the redhead but you'll make a much better choice I think." Ethan grabbed Tara and dragged her out of the room while his demon escorts held the others at bay. They closed and relocked the door.

"Tara," Buffy called desperately through the door. "I'll find a way to save you."

"Hey Buffy, come here," Xander interrupted.

"What is it Xander?" Buffy asked as she came over to the corner where he had been standing.

"I think I found something," he said, pointing to a small flap on the wall hidden in the corner.

Buffy looked closely at flap and then lifted it up by the corner. A pair of longjohns fell out. Her look of surprise turned to one of hope. "It's the laundry chute," she realized. "I bet I could crawl up it and get out. I can try to find help."

Buffy pulled up the small door fully and squeezed her body inside. It was a tight fit but Buffy just fit. Slowly she half pulled and half pushed her body up the chute. Finally, coming to another opening she pushed it open to find herself in her sister Dawn's room. Looking out the window she could see a couple of Sherman's soldiers enjoying a cigarette on her back porch. She could overhear their conversation.

"How much longer is this going to take?" the first demon asked.

"I don't know but my scales are starting to itch," the second one complained. "Hey, what is it with these vampires fighting against us? Over half our troops are made up of vampires but in the last day what do we end up fighting? Vampires. I can understand that Angel guy siding with the humans. He's got a soul but Spike? Come on. He and I used to do some real damage back in the old days. He's as bad as they come and yet he attacked us. What's he got to gain by this? He'd be better off on our side. I never did get vampires."

"So why haven't we staked him or cut his head off?" the first one asked. "Why keep him locked up in this shed you and I got stuck guarding?"

"The Summoners need something that Spike's got," his companion explained. "The one thing that Sherman needs for this portal spell is a certain magical amulet that is hidden in Sunnydale somewhere. They think that Spike knows where it is but won't tell them. Spike's just being stubborn. He'll come to his senses soon enough."

"What amulet is that?" the other demon asked.

"It's the Kronestar amulet," he revealed. "It has the power to transform the witch's blood for the spell they want to do."

Buffy pulled back the green velvet drapes as she peered out the window to get a better look. A caped figure approached from the far end of the yard.

"Oh great here's another one," the first demon sighed as the figure approached the shed.

Buffy worried that Spike would betray them all and reveal the location of the amulet. After all she had refused his attentions on numerous occasions. Maybe he would see this as an opportunity for revenge and do this out of spite. She had to know.

The caped figure entered the shed and stayed inside for close to ten minutes before leaving. Buffy stood there looking out, one hand still on the drapes. She had a plan.

Moments later a second figure clad in a green velvet cloak emerged from the house. Hurriedly passing the guards it headed straight for the shed.

"Hey, wait a minute," one of the guards called out.

The figure stopped frozen.

"Have you got a light?" the demon asked. "My lighter's bust."

The figure just shook it's head no and continued on to the shed.

"You know," the demon said to his compatriot. "Those Summoners are the most anti-social creatures I've ever met. Once this portal thing opens I hope we don't have to see them anymore. That would just be hell on earth."

The cloaked figure stepped into the shed. It was dark inside and the figure of a man could be seen seated at a small table playing solitaire by candlelight.

Looking up he grimaced, "Can't you bloody Summoners just leave me in peace?" he sighed. "I've already told you I'm not going to tell you where that stupid amulet is. Nothing you can do to me or offer me is going to make me tell you."

The cloaked figure tilted it's head questioningly.

"Oh, you wouldn't understand," Spike shook his head. "You've never been in love. More's the better for you I guess."

The cloaked figure reached up to pull down the top of the disguise. Spike was shocked to find that it was Buffy.

"You?" he cried out in astonishment. "What are you doing here?"

Buffy recognized the need to get on his good side. "Why, I heard they had you penned up out here like an animal and I decided I just had to make sure you were ok," she lied.

"You dressed up like this just for little old me?" Spike grinned taking her by the hands admiring her disguise. "Pretty nice threads. But wait, you're not fooling me. You didn't just come out here to see how I'm doing. You went to a great deal of trouble to get out here. What do you really want?"

"Alright, I admit it I came out to see if you were going to betray me. Oh Spike," Buffy lamented. "I need you to help me rescue my sister Dawn and my friends," she admitted. "You have to give me the amulet so I can destroy it."

"So what are you offering me in exchange for helping you," Spike demanded.

"Well, the knowledge that you'd done the right thing for a start," Buffy suggested weakly.

"Not interested," Spike refused. "I'm a vampire, remember? Evil."

"Right," Buffy furrowed her brow deep in thought. "What about if I agree to not slay you when this is all over," she suggested, clearly annoyed at his stalling.

"Who's to say you could have anyway," Spike challenged her. "I want something better than that."

Buffy was silent for a moment and then looked up at him in earnestness. "You once said you loved me. If you still love me Spike…."

"I'm still a vampire," he pointed out to her. "I seem to recall you saying that vampire's were incapable of love. Have you forgotten?"

Buffy shook her head. "I haven't forgotten. But I may have been wrong about you. Prove to me that I've been wrong Spike."

Spike looked her up and down still smarting from her earlier refusal. "No, you're not worth me giving up my bartering chip. I don't think I want you after all. You'll never mean anything but misery to any man. Besides I couldn't give you the Kronestar amulet anyway. I've given it to a friend for safekeeping and he won't give it up to anyone but me and these nice demons are enjoying my company so much they can't bear to see me leave. So you see my dear, you've abased yourself to no purpose."

Buffy punched him in the face sending him flying back onto the table extinguishing the candle and sending the cards flying. Angrily she stormed out of the shed, forgetting to pull her hood up again. Once outside Buffy immediately drew the attention of the two demon guards.

"Hey," the first one called out to her as they ran at her. "You weren't supposed to be in there."

Buffy tried to run away from them but her legs were still a little wobbly and the cape got in her way causing her to trip and fall. Weaponless and prone she worried that this might be how she would meet her end. As the second demon raised his sword above his head to kill her a flaming arrow flew into his chest and he fell down on the ground attempting to extinguish it. The first demon looked in the direction of the arrow's launch only to be attacked from the side by a young man with a machete. Severing the demon's head he quickly made short work of the second demon who was still in flames.

"Buffy," a familiar voice greeted her. "Are you ok?"

Buffy looked up into the kind face of Colonel Jeffries. "I'd like you to meet Riley Kennedy, a young man with a lot of initiative."

Buffy smiled at her saviour as he pulled her up to her feet. "Pleased to meet you miss," he grinned back at her bashfully. "I'm here to help."

"We have to save Tara," Buffy entreated. "And everyone else inside. But they've just taken Tara and they plan to use her to start the ritual we have to hurry and stop those evil demons."

"Our mission is to wipe out all of the demons and vampires that have plagued us of recent," Riley smiled warmly at Buffy "Don't worry Buffy. We'll save Tara".

Buffy smiled back somewhat uncomfortably.

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