Chapter 52: With the World Behind Me

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Trademarks of WB, David Greenwalt, Joss Whedon, 20th Century Fox, and

Others. Please do not plagiarize or anything. LOVE YA

"Cale." Kelly said.

Cale lifted his head from his arms and looked up at Kelly, who seemed to be bathed in light, "Kelly?!" he asked, breathing rapidly.

"You've been here...I..." Kelly stammered.

"Just calm down, baby, I'll get someone." Cale said, standing.

"No, it's here! Help me!" she screamed.

Cale tried to grab her but a black shadow shrouded her and he sat up, realizing that it was just a dream.

-           

I walked through the cemetery, trying to spot any suspicious activity, but I found only the emptiness and solitude of the cemetery. I walked faster as I heard fighting sounds and stopped when I reached the fight. Lestat was fighting someone, a guy. The guy was wiry. He looked to be taller than me, 6'0, dark caramel skin, jeans, jeans jacket...crossbow. He stood, holding a gun at Lestat's head.

I walked over and his hand, "What's going on?" I asked.

The guy backhanded me and Lestat took the time to tackle him to the ground, "He's a hunter." Lestat said quickly.

"Right." I said, watching.

The guy kicked Lestat off of him, "Two vampires in one night! Holy shit." He chuckled, switching to a crossbow.

"I'm not a vampire." I said quickly.

"You just help `em?" he asked.

"I slay...'em." I said, extending my hand, "I'm Austin, the vampire slayer."

"I've heard of Slayer, never met one, but, they're girls." He said, looking me up and down, "You're trying to trick me."

I bent down to pick up the gun and bent it into a circle, "Slayer." I said.

"That's impossible." He said.

"It's a long story. I told you who I am, now, who are you?" I asked.

"Hunter." He said, "My name is Malcolm, Mal, Aarons, professional demon hunter."

"See Supernatural." I said.

"You're an animal." Lestat said.

Mal pointed the crossbow and shot, but Lestat moved and I kicked the crossbow from his hands.

"What's your problem?! He's a vampire." Mal said angrily.

"That's what people keep telling me, but he's a good vampire." I said.

"What? He got a soul?" Mal asked.

I shook my head, "No, but he's helped me save the world." I said.

Mal threw him a glance, "The Lestat? Didn't think you existed." He said.

Lestat nodded darkly.

"I gotta kill you, then." Mal said.

"Not gonna happen." I said, "Look, he's here for a reason."

-           

AS we walked through the door to my house, I saw Doug at the table. He was working, trying to find a way to save her. He was always working nowadays. When he wasn't, he was mad at me. At Cale. At the world. I could take it though. That could easily be me.

"Hey." Doug said, looking up at me, Lestat and Mal, "You just keep bringing `em home. At least tell me this one is human."

"Mal, meet Doug, Doug, Mal." I said, introducing them.

Mal looked at me, "I take it he's not a vampire." He said.

"Witch." Doug said, retracting his hand, "I see he knows our secret."

"I live in it." Mal said.

"Easy tiger." Lestat smirked.

Mal threw him an angry glance, "I'm going to the bathroom, where is it?"

"Upstairs, first doo on the..."

"I'll find it." He said, heading up the stairs.

"Still think this is a good idea?" Lestat asked.

"What's his problem?" Doug asked.

"He's a hunter. He's very skeptical about my Slayer-ness, uneasy about me working with a vampire, and hates vampires." I explained, "He's dangerous."

"Guns?" Doug asked.

"How'd you know?" I asked.

"I'm not dumb, he's got total Winchester fever." Doug said.

"Huh?" Lestat asked.

Doug looked at him for a second, "It's a show." He said.

"Oh. Yes." Lestat said.

"Why do I always feel like I'm on a bad rerun of Grey's Anatomy?" I asked, "Look, we need info on Mal. Think you can do that?"

Doug nodded, "You betcha, just need some time. It shouldn't take long." He said.

"Thanks." I said, "Lestat, I need you to find out what the Master is up to."

"Where will you go?" Lestat asked.

"I'm going to see if Cale needs anything." I said.

"Anybody heard from Grahm?" Doug asked.

"Military stuff." I said, "It's a thing."

"What about the hostile hunter upstairs?" Doug asked.

"Lestat, take him with you, but don't, under any circumstances, turn your back on him. He's a good guy, but he's...not.."

"I know." Lestat nodded.

Mal made his way back down and looked around, "Nice house." He said.

"Thanks." I said, "Umm, here's the deal, you're going with Lestat. There's a big vampire in this town, The Master, and I need intel. Be careful."

"The fuck!" Mal spat, "I'm not going with him."

"You could just leave town, knowing that people are in danger." Doug said, "I mean, it's your conscience."

Mal groaned, "Fine, but if fangs tries anything..."

"I won't." Lestat growled.

I nodded, "I have a friend who got bitten. She needs me to be there." I said.

"Sorry." Mal said.

"It's the Master's fault." I said, "Your sympathy should be for him when I come face to face with him."

"Tough guy." Mal joked.

"You have no idea." Doug said.

"Let's go." Lestat said, "I know where we can find him."

"Alright," Mal said, pulling out a cross. With the flick of a button, a long piece of wood slid out the bottom, "But I'm warnin ya..."

"Go." I said impatiently. The both exited and I turned to Doug, "This town ain't big enough for all of us."

"What you thinking?" Doug asked.

"I'm thinking it's time we destroy the place. Sunnydale two needs to be abolished." I said, "Have you found anything to help Kelly?"

"Nope. Well, sort of. It's this spell that can help people communicate on their death beds...maybe we can find out what's really wrong." Doug said, "Then there's this other spell that awakens...but there's not telling what will happen."

"Find the safest way." I said, "I know you were mad because I didn't mourn the way you did, but I am. I'm dealing with the possibility that I'm going to lose one of my friend."

"We're not going to lose her." Doug said.

"If she does, then, you have to leave." I said.

Doug looked at me oddly, "Huh?" he asked.

"If she dies, you're leaving." I said again.

Doug groaned, "Here we go with your Slayer Isolationist crap." He said.

"Connor and Groo are the latest inhabitants of Hell, which I can't help with because there's some kind of powerful spell protecting whatever did it, Oz left, Kelly's in a coma, Micah's entire soul was obliterated and Gemma..." I trailed.

"Don't you..." Doug said, but he was too angry.

"If I wouldn't have just been so focused on the wrong things, maybe I could have done something other than just surviving." I frowned.

"Stop it. You weren't...she was my responsibility." Doug sniffed.

"And I'm supposed to be the Slayer and all I can really be is annoying pun guy with a stake glued to his hand." I said softly.

Doug frowned, "Gah, you saved the world from a Hell Goddess, big bats...and all sorts of things." He said.

"I saved the world, but I can't save the people around me. What good am I?" I asked. I grabbed my keys and walked to the door, "I need to go." I said, leaving.

§   

As Lestat and Mal trucked through the sewers, rats, and other pests ran away from them. It had to smell horrible, Lestat thought. Good thing he didn't have to breathe. He chuckled and looked back at Mal, who looked as if he was about to throw up. Lestat noticed that they must be miles from where they started.

"See anything?" Mal asked.

Dumbass, Lestat thought. The rats had stopped. There were no sounds of rats or anything else.

"We're close." Lestat said.

"Good." Mal said, covering his nose. The smell had begun to get to him and his legs were almost tired. Good thing he worked out. As they made their way down the sewers, Male couldn't help but feel nervous and watched. From what he'd heard, demons in Vengeance weren't the average Hell beasts, mostly because of the Hellmouth. He didn't trust Lestat, he'd read up on Lestat and his tale wasn't something you'd find at Disney. And what was the deal with the Slayer? A male? And he'd heard about this town...

"What?" Lestat asked, turning.

"Are the books true? They can't be...Anne Rice..." Mal asked.

Lestat nodded, "I let her interview me." He said.

"So, you are as strong as they say...telekinetic, Firestarter, telepath..."

"Of course." Lestat answered.

"You can fly?" Mal asked.

"..." There was a silence from Lestat.

"But you choose not to feed on humans?" Mal asked.

"Not those who are good." Lestat said.

Mal chuckled in disbelief, "The Slayer let you live knowing that?" he asked.

"It is unclear what he knows. To him, I am a slightly above average vampire." Lestat explained, "His is one of the only minds I do not wish to invade."

"In the books, the Anne Rice...You're, umm, you like men and women..."

"Yes." Lestat said.

"You and the Slayer, that's why you're alive, isn't it?" Mal asked.

"I don't know." Lestat said, looking down.

"You know." Mal said.

"And what kept you from killing the Slayer with your gun?" Lestat asked.

"He's fast." Mal said quickly.

"Now, Malcom, we both know where your mind was." Lestat smirked, "There's a long line."

"You're in love with a Slayer...but you have no soul!" Mal said.

Lestat let a low growl out. There were a few low growls

"I'm assuming you can't be in eight places at once." Mal said, pulling out a crossbow.

§   

When I entered the hospital room, Cale was fixing flowers in a vase. I smiled at it. I hadn't given him a fair shot. If he had come to me and said, "Hey, I'm your new Watcher," I'd probably have told him to kick rocks. The smell of the hospital made me sick. The sight of Kelly laying in the bed made me sick, but I pulled myself together in time to see Cale turn and walked over to me.

"Oh, hello, Austin." Cale said.

I smiled, "Hi, Cale. How's Kels?" I asked.

"She's better, actually." Cale said, "Is something wrong?"

"No." I said, "Why?"

"You usually don't...I mean to say..." he stammered.

"It's okay. I know." I said, "I just wanted to talk."

"What about?" Cale asked.

"I haven't had a Watcher in a while." I said.

Cale sighed, "I understand, after this is all over I shall..."

"And I need one." I said, cutting him off, "I never had one, except Oz and we were walking into it blindly."

"So, you want me to be your Watcher?" Cale asked.

I nodded, "If you still want to." I said.

"Of course. Of course, but only after Kelly awakens." Cale smiled.

"Cool." I sighed, "We're working on a way to get her up and running again. There's a demon hunter in town and he and Lestat are..."

"Lestat?" Cale asked.

"Yeah." I said.

"Lestat." Cale nodded, "Have you ever read the books on him?" Cale asked.

"No...I googled. And Wikipedia-ed him." I said, "Why?"

Cale explained to me about the extra powers and his conquests. He told me about the awesome powers and what he's done, according to history.

"Without a soul? How is that?" I asked, "I mean, he's extra helpful without a soul."

"He's a descendant of very powerful, vampire born vampires." Cale explained.

"Vampires can't reproduce." I said.

"Not now, it's all too diluted, but where do you think so many vampires came from?" Cale asked, "He is an entirely new breed...or old breed."

"He can fly?" I asked, "Super strong...Lestat?"

"What?" Cale asked.

"Nothing." I said, wondering just for a second if he was this Twilight but he wouldn't want to get rid of magic and if he did, he wouldn't be helping me.

"What was this hunter's name?" Cale asked.

"Aarons..." I said.

"Malcom?" Cale asked, surveying my face.

"That a problem?" I asked.

"No...No.." Cale said, sitting, "Yes. I am at odd to tell you this, seeing as I detest Lestat, but he may be in danger. His family was slaughtered by a vampire named Drusilla."

"Know her." I said, "I have to go." I said, walking to the door.

"Be careful." Cale said, touching Kelly's hand, "She needs you to be careful."

I nodded and left.

§   

As I made my way through the tunnels, I found myself looking down at the rats, which were scurrying in the opposite direction. I pulled out my stake and advanced forward, trying to find the Master's lair. I wondered about everything. Kelly's coma, Cale as my Watcher, all the news about Lestat, and a new...vampire hunter. Sounded like some kid's wacky nightmare. It all paled in comparison to the bigger scheme of things. An evil Goddess brought back a centuries old vampire to wreak havoc, not knowing that she wouldn't be around to see it play out. And in the midst, three Slayers had been turned into vampires. I taught these girls and now they were I enemies. Dread filled my body as I crept along the dark tunnel. As I got closer, I came to a stop as I heard fighting. I listened to the groaning and sprinted ahead, finally coming out of the darkness. As I stepped into the fight, I staked a vampire and the fight stopped.

"Nice of you to show." Mal said, "A little longer and we could have been food."

I smirked as the group of vampires snarled.

"Well," Lynn said, moving forward, "Something smells good."

"My lip gloss is poppin." I smiled.

"I have a story to tell..." Lynn smiled, "True story, Slayer trains girls. Girls go into the sewer, girls die, are reborn...Girls rip Slayer into pieces."

"You forgot the part where Slayer stakes girls." I said, confused, "This is confusing, can we just fight." I asked.

"You know these girls?" Mal asked.

"Oh yeah." Lestat said, looking around.

"They weren't this ugly when they were alive." I said, sizing up the competition.

Lynn ran right into me, sending me flying and slamming to the floor! As I looked up, I saw Lynn about to stomp me and I rolled out of the way. I kicked her feet from under her and ducked an oncoming punch! Lestat had not vamped out, but he still fought with such ease and grace, but on the other side of the coin, Mal fought sloppily, yet there was something about how he fought. Some oddity that made all his moves pop and work. I jumped into the air, bringing a solid fist down onto a vamp's head. Brindi moved behind me and grabbed me by the neck.

"I bet your blood tastes good." Lynn smiled, "We're not Slayers, and we're not vampires, we're something much better."

"Yeah, but..." I clutched my stake, jabbing it in Lynn's supple chest, "I still remember not to talk all the time."

Lynn looked down at the stake and dropped me, immediately turning to dust. I looked up ahead of me to see and hear the Master holding his head and screaming. I turned when I heard a familiar voice scream and saw Taylor holding her head. I felt a hand grab me and it was cold, but I knew that it was Lestat's. I looked up, meeting his eyes and for a minute, we both stared at each other, then he yanked me away.

§   

Cale and Doug stood over the comatose Kelly. She slumbered while Cale and Doug researched and tried to find anything that could help remove Kelly from the coma or that could link to the spell that brought the Master back. Cale found nothing, mainly because he wasn't looking. Doug was close to something. Really close, in fact, he found it!

"Well, well." Charity said, walking into the hospital room, "This is nice, for a place to die.

Doug and Cale stood, looking at her angrily.

"Don't get me wrong, I mean, I don't know if she's going to die or anything, but..."

"You should leave." Cale said angrily.

"I should snap you in half." Charity smirked, "But I'm not here for that. I'm here to grieve."

"Get out, or I'll stake you where you stand." Doug said, clutching a stake so tight that his hand began to shake.

"Why would you be here for Kelly?" Cale asked.

"When I said I was going down the straight and narrow, she saw I was serious." Charity said, " I actually liked her, she was sassy. I didn't like Gemma, she didn't agree with me." She said, rubbing her stomach.

"You bitch!" Doug said, stabbing at her with the stake.

Charity moved and slid the dining cart into Cale, knocking him into the wall! Charity kicked Doug into the wall and grabbed him by the throat from his back, "I'm not so fast. I had this killer headache earlier." She sniffed, "Need some new blood."

An arrow darted from nowhere and hit Charity right in the shoulder, "Get away from my friend." I said, tossing the crossbow back to Mal. I jumped into the air, kicking Charity into the wall and grabbed her head, slamming it against the bed. She elbowed me and flipped me to the floor! She rushed out the door, disappearing from the halls just as quickly. Doug stood against the wall, tears falling. I walked to him and hugged him, "I'm so sorry."

"She's really gone." Doug sniffed.

"Yeah." I said, holding his face in my hands, "She is and nothing I do can bring her back. But we're not dead. We're going to avenge her." I said, "We will."

- - - - - - - - - -

Thank you for reading.