Games the Powers Play
DOYLE TBS
Heaven.
Conjures up pictures of . . . what? Floating around amongst the clouds playing little harps? Perfect happiness and streets of gold? Or maybe lots of virgins and a great party. Seems like there's a million different ideas of just what Heaven may be like. Which one is right? How about all of them?
One thing Doyle had learned a lot about in his time in the afterlife, was that the Chinese idea of celestial bureacracy was not one to be underestimated. Very aptly named, in fact. Doyle had not thought of his reward when he sacrificed himself, his sole thought had been of saving Cordy and Angel, of paying his dues. He sacrificed himself to save the others, and that's all that had mattered.
That was then.
Sitting on a comfortable yet annoyingly beige armchair in a comfortably pleasant yet annoying room, he listened to the pleasantly peaceful yet annoying soft music that played endlessly through overhead speakers. In front of him stood a large counter behind which stood two officious and happy looking people. Who were also annoying. Behind them, rows upon rows of filing cabinets that stretched from floor to ceiling lined the walls for as far as the eye could see. And yes, this was supposedly heaven. One version of heaven, that is.
To be more specific, this was the customer service department of heaven. Although it had a much more annoyingly celestial name that Doyle ignored.
After his death, Doyle thought long and hard about what version of heaven he deserved. He read the brochures, he saw the names of those that had been sent on to Elysian Fields and to Valhalla (where at least there was beer) and numerous other exotic and sensuous locales. But where had he been sent? To the place with the floaty clouds and harps? No. Not even that.
No, they had put him to work. Seems that once the Powers that Be picked you for a special mission, you couldn't get out of it as simply as passing on your gift and dying. Oh no. They still owned him. That was why he was here. He had spent countless hours (as time really meant nothing once one has died) here, arguing with the annoyingly pleasant people behind the counter, demanding to know why he was left lingering in between this realm and the next.
Their answer? "When you need to know, you will know. It is not to know, but to learn." Doyle had murmured threats about learning to kick their asses, then tried the logic about how learning usually leads to knowing, but they weren't swayed in the least. The conversations inevitably ended with a chipper, "Have a nice afterlife." He inevitably cursed some more before returning to the in-between place in reality he "lived."
But all of that was about to change. He had appeared suddenly in front of that cursed desk ten minutes earlier. This time he had not come of his own volition. The workers behind the desk had asked him to sit, and for once, he did as he was asked. Today was truly different than any other day since he had died.
A loud booming voice announced his name and he stood, feeling suddenly nervous and afraid as he ambled slowly towards the door that had mysteriously appeared in front of him. He looked around nervously at the customer service reps, both of whom were now watching him curiously, as if they themselves were uncertain of what may lie in wait for him.
"Guys . . . girls . . . "Doyle offered hesitantly, unsure really of what gender the customer service reps were, "Maybe I didn't give this enough of a chance! I mean, c'mon! I could get coffee in the mornin' . . . or . . . . " He thought frantically of some task that he might be good at, then remembered the various things he did for AI back in the day. "D'you have computers? Because I can browse like a bloody pro," he stammered, sweat collecting at his brow.
"It's your test. There can only be one. The Powers that Be have decided...."
"What kind of te-"he exclaimed loudly. He did not get to finish his question, never got to hear if they might offer him a job, for the door simply tired of waiting and sucked him on through.
He hit the ground hard, realizing in an instant just how heavenly heaven had been when he felt pain for the first time in years. As soon as he managed to stumble to his feet, another wave of bonecrushing pain hit him, but this time it did not come from his feet and legs as they hit the hard earth. This time they came from the mindnumbing vision that caused him to grit his teeth painfully as he doubled over in the rain drenched asphalt.
One after one, the images tumbled forth into his brain. Images that were initially confusing, but soon coalesced into a very familiar picture. Cordelia disappearing as a stunned Angel lost his second soldier. Angel, Spike, and two others facing a demon horde. Angel searching through the wreckage for the bodies of his team. Angel, alone in a dusty tomb of memories.
As he stood up and wiped the rain from his brow, he knew one thing. His mission had not changed after all these years. Angel was his mission.
"Ah, so they do delivery now?" Doyle laughed to himself as he saw the building directly in front of him. The same building from his visions. He wasn't sure exactly where he was, but that didn't really matter. He knew who he would find inside, and that was all he needed to know at the moment. The rest, he guessed, was not about knowing, but about learning.
He wasn't surprised when he found the glass doors that led into the dusty hotel unlocked. It didn't look as though the streets outside were exactly filled with people needing a place to stay. The thick dust that coated the lobby temporarily choked him, and he wiped a stray dust-induced tear from his eye as he slowly walked towards the counter. The hotel seemed oddly familiar after his brief vision, and he walked past the front desk to a small office, searching for Angel. The place was a mess. It looked like a fire had burned most of it, the rest had water damage, and then it looked as if someone bombed the little that was left. As he moved deeper into the hotel, he realized that only the top floor and parts of the front exterior remained somewhat intact.
Beginning to doubt the accuracy of his vision, Doyle scooped up a bit of burned paper and stared at it absentmindedly. No Angel in sight and no clue where he might be. Just that he was in some dark hole of a place, brooding. Footsteps crunched through the wreckage somewhere behind him and a smile broke onto his face. He shouldn't have doubted! Angel was here after all....just had been off in the more exposed areas Doyle hadn't investigated. His smile turned to a frown. He hadn't investigated those because of the sunlight and rain streaming through the broken walls.
So either Angel has suddenly developed a tanning hobby or.....Clenching his fists and expecting the worst, Doyle turned quickly to face the unexpected guest star. Holding the paper in his fist as if it were a weapon, he trained his eye upon the wreckage as the footsteps drew closer.
Suddenly someone emerged, dripping wet and looking thoroughly nonplussed. Doyle couldn't believe his eyes.
"Cordelia?"
CORDELIA
Cordelia pulled her flimsy, soaked through sweater tightly around herself as she wandered aimlessly down the narrow alley, looking for any sign of life that wasn't part of the rodent family. Her eyes darted for left to right, then back again as her brow furrowed in confusion.
"K, I was so just here five minutes ago" Cordelia sighed, bringing her hand up to her cheek to wipe the rain off of her face.
"Way to go Cor, the test hasn't even begun yet and you're already clueless." Turning round, she began to back track her steps in the hope of working out how she'd ended up in that alley yet again.
"Why couldn't it have been like multiple choice of something. You know, like… A vampire is killed by A. Giving it a hug, B. Clunking it over the head with a big heavy object, or C. thrusting a wooden pointy stakes through heart… Is it too much to ask for a little standardized testing here. Least that way I'd have a shot."
Cordelia had been here, where ever here was, for nearly an hour, supposedly to meet the person who was competing for the job she had already done for like two years, you know before the whole higher power thing had kicked in.
***
Cordelia slammed her fist down on the table as she glared at the glorified receptionist, sitting smugly behind her desk.
"Look, I know why he's summoned me here and I'm telling you now that I'm not going through some stupid test to find out I've got a job that I've already got! Now I've been waiting here in this room for hours, and while the champagne and unlimited issues of W have been great, I don't get why you won't just 'poof' me back to Los Angeles! Why do you have to test me against some other wannabe seer when you have Angel's one standing right here! Angel is my champion and if the PTB can't see that then I - "
"Miss Chase. He'll see you now. Go on right through." Cordelia smiled toward the woman who'd just stepped out of the conference room before quickly shooting a glare back at the receptionist who had taken Cordelia's lack of shouting to mean that the conversation was over and had gone back to the taxing task of filing her nails. Cordelia sighed angrily and headed through the large wooden doors to the conference room, her body secretly tingling with excitement at the thought of seeing Angel again.
"Cordelia Chase. You know why you're here."
"You're sending me back. Back to the role of Angel's link to you. The Powers. I heard a little something about a test, but I say let's just skip that teeny tiny bit, I don't really see why-"
"There's another. Another, who can fill that role. One with the power just like you."
"Yes, but I'm-"
"The champion has lost his way. There can only be one to guide him."
"I get that, really I do, and it just so happens that I'm that one, I know you see the connection we have."
"It is that connection that could cloud his judgement, you are too close. Hence the test. The connection will be erased. We, the Powers have decided. It is done."
With those words, Cordelia had been teleported to where she stood right now. Back in Los Angeles, the sunlight paling in comparison to the light that had once shone around her.
Cordelia continued to trace her steps, until she came across a familiar sight.
The Hyperion Hotel.
Her hand covered her mouth as the memories came flooding back to her. Everything, Wesley, Gunn, Fred, Lorne… Angel. Her heart leapt into her throat as her feet instinctively began to walk through the gates to what used to be their home.
Everything was different and yet the same. Underneath the wreckage, behind the charred exterior, stood her home. No voices welcomed her, but she could still feel them all as she entered the lobby and walked towards where the counter once stood, the counter where they had all stood on so many occasions, filling their non-demon fighting nights with mindless banter and laughter.
"Cordelia."
Cordy spun round to see Doyle standing in front of her, his arm raised and pulled back, ready to attack her with paper cuts apparently. Her face released a beautiful smile as she stared into the eyes of the friend she'd lost all those years ago. Cordelia became to step over the rumble towards him when a wave of realisation came over her like a punch to the face. Her smile faded as the pieces of the puzzle began to fit into place. Cordelia shot a glare up to the ceiling.
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!"
ATL
Sirens wailed in the background as a soft breeze ruffled the perfectly coiffed hair of the club goers. The breeze flirted around the surgically enhanced flesh of those that stood in line before growing bored and whispering its unheard tales to a nearby newspaper. The newspaper floated along with the breeze, catching litter and cigarette butts up in its joyful dance, as the breeze blew the streets dry from the afternoon shower and other various fluids that so often clogged up the drains of the city's walkways.
Far removed from all this, a dark coat swelled in the breeze atop a five story building just across from the new club. The man inside the coat stared impassively down at the blinking lights and revelers below, his expression completely unreadable in the reflected lights of the nearby club. Only the breeze bore witness to the bittersweet homecoming as Angel let himself acclimate to the city he had left so long ago.
A stereotypically big-busted blonde native to L.A gazed absentmindedly at the sky as she rehearsed her planned speech for breaking up with her boyfriend later in the night. As she decided that it would be best to just get caught cheating and be done with it, a dark shadow moved somewhere in her peripheral vision. She gave a startled scream as she saw a man looking down at her from high atop a building. Pointing up at the building, she continued to freak out as she flipped her cell phone and called her boyfriend. God the world is full of creeps and stalkers, she thought as she waited anxiously for him to pick up the phone.
Unaware that he had extended the expiration date of a dead-end relationship, Angel jumped from the rear of the building as the blonde at the club yelled hysterically. A crowd gathered to see the girl, murmuring that she must be high or crazy, but no one really cared so much about what she said as long as she looked good saying it. Soon all was forgotten as the crowd pressed forward into the dimly lit club.
Ducking into the nearest alley, Angel cursed himself quietly as he strode quickly past the various drunks and homeless people lying at random intervals near the ubiquitous L.A. dumpsters. He had let himself be seen. He would have to be more careful. He had come back for a reason. He had come back to California for one thing only...to find himself.
Hunching his shoulders and gathering his coat around him, he continued rather aimlessly through the side streets and dark alleys of the city. They, for one, had not changed. Despite the new construction and renovations going on around them, the underbelly of the city remained as old and dirty as ever. He had been away from it all for too long and now the cacophony around him put his senses on overdrive. The smells and sounds of the masses exhausted him. He struggled to find his center in the swirling mix of the city's soundtrack, to filter out all that was irrelevant and unimportant.
Almost as if on cue, the coppery scent of blood drifted towards him on the night air. From two blocks away, shattering glass and running footsteps pierced his consciousness. A sense of the hunt stirred in him as he recognized the call of the chase. A satisfied smirk spread across his face as he followed the scream...one of many in the tragedy that played after dark, but one that he knew was special. A spiralling cathedral loomed overhead as he drew closer, shaking his head ruefully as he glanced upwards at it's stony facade.
"Come ON. So obvious," he murmured as the smell of blood grew stronger. It was if someone had skimmed through the Cliff's notes version and picked out the word that repeated itself the most to study. Bad enough that the evil was being committed and worse that it was committed using Angel's name. But to target churches so predictably just lacked imagination.
Stooping briefly to examine fresh blood pooled in the alleyway, he winced in horror at the sheer amount of it. This was way too much blood to belong to only one person - and whoever (or whatever) had done this had been either extremely careless, wasteful, or a messy eater. The blood splatter trailed invitingly near the parish beside the cathedral, forming an almost perfect connect-the-dots. Unconsciously wiping his hands on his pants, he stood and carefully followed the red carpet that had so thoughtfully been put out for him. If he hadn't been so certain that no one knew he was in the city, he would have had only one thought.
This is a trap.
******
Vic (or Victoria as Andrew insisted on addressing her despite her numerous pleas for him to stop) popped another piece of gum into her mouth and offered the package silently to the girl sitting quietly beside her. Lisa removed the binoculars from her eyes long enough to take the gum and chide Vic for chewing almost the entire pack during their watch. "This gum is supposed to last 8 HOURS per piece, NOT seconds." Static silenced the retort that Vic had at the ready as both girls hastily turned down the volume on their earpieces.
Exchanging knowing looks of exasperation, the two Slayers smiled at each other. "What do you think it was this time - quotes from Firefly or Star Trek?" Lisa whispered and the two shook their heads as they pictured their team leader again trying to rouse the team to "constant vigilance." The entire squad had been vigilant for weeks now, but all that they had managed to do was cleanup detail after the fact. Vic shuddered as she recalled the mutilated bodies she and her team had come across just two nights before - Andrew had since been giving them lectures about their target, complete with horrifying slideshows and first-hand witness reports.
She looked around at the seemingly empty maze below her and allowed herself a tight smile. This alley had been carefully chosen and was completely surrounded on the ground and in the air. The plan was to lure the target to the cage in the priest's home and eliminate him quickly. On the off chance that he eluded them there, he would find all exits cut off.
He wasn't dealing with one Slayer now. Buffy and Faith were not in charge of this one. This time there would be no pussyfooting around...this time, Angelus was going to hell and he was going to stay there.
******
The rough wooden door of the modest home stood slightly ajar, and Angel could smell the musty death that lay beyond. Other scents lingered strongly in the air - the smell of youth, vigor, and mint. Perfume and power circled all around him as he stepped back from the doorway, his sense of foreboding now reaching a truly epic pitch. His entire nervous system seemed to be flashing red lights at him - bright neon signs that said - DANGER. He knew overwhelmingly that he was not alone, even as he recognized how wrong he had been earlier. This was a trap. He still felt completely confident that no one was aware of his return - so only one thing now made obvious sense. It was not a trap for him.
Unfortunately, he would be the only one in this scenario that would know the difference.
Surreptitiously scanning the horizon, he noticed the telltale glint of lenses aimed in his direction coming from the rooftops. No escape there, he thought, silently checking off that option from his mental list. He moved around the building and heard the sounds of quiet breathing and muffled footsteps behind him. Obviously they had chosen to surround him...he was strangely and morbidly impressed with their perfect choice of location.
Surrounded by dead end streets, this area was perfect for just such a maneauver. He found himself surprised by their restraint and caution considering how outnumbered he must be.
Must have done something extremely bad to merit this kind of greeting, he thought ruefully, wincing again as he wondered what damage had been wrought in his name. The footsteps drew nearer as he made his decision. Blocked on the right and left, there really was only one thing he could do. He would have to take his chances and hope for the best.
With that thought, he ran straight around the building, stopping three slayers in their tracks in surprise as he doubled his speed and headed straight towards them. Surprise didn't dull their reflexes as he saw the wooden stakes and crossbows quickly aimed in his direction.
"Sorry girls, no time for a chat," he said as he barrelled past them and quickly jumped onto the dumpster he had been aiming for. Without a backwards glance, he leaped onto the low roof overhead, jumping onto the next roof as he heard the yells and warnings from below. He knew that he was not alone up here, he had seen the streetlights bounce off their binoculars as they lay in wait for him. He could only hope that his speed would be sufficient to get him past them before they could stake him. Where he would go, or how he could hope to escape a squad of Slayers after that, he would worry about later.
******
Vic and Lisa alone remained unaware of the chaos around them. Having turned the volume down on their earphones, they didn't hear the shouted orders or warnings that the target was travelling faster than they could possibly have imagined. They sat together out on the outer radius of the trap - a last defence that they were certain would never have to be used. Even now they were imagining that it was all over, Angelus nothing more than a pile of dust blowing in the wind. They talked about Andrew's weird obsession with James Bond, and giggled over the gossip that Xander had a crush on Buffy Summers.
They were completely unprepared for the dark shape that leaped onto the roof directly behind them, shaking them from their gossip and daydreams. He paused only for a second, his eyes locking regretfully on them as they stood and prepared to attack. "I don't want to hurt you,"he had muttered, a statement that even later gave Vic chills when she recounted the tale. She could see how easily Buffy had fallen for him, how the brooding, soulful gaze could trick just about anyone.
"I'm really not too worried about that," Lisa said, grabbing a stake out of her pocket and rushing him. As Vic told her friends later, it had all happened unsettlingly quickly.
"He just stood there looking completely blank while she ran towards him. But then - at the very last second, as her arm and the stake were about to crash into his chest? He grabbed her arm - but he didn't try to stop her - he just kinda moved with her - she had so much force in her blow that he sent her flying clear off the roof before I had even made it to him.
Before I could even raise my stake - he was gone. Jumped off the roof." At this point, the listening Slayers would again ask her what happened next, and she allowed a moment to build the suspense so she could get all the attention she could from her participation in the day's events.
"Well you know that by then Andrew was already moving the squad to intercept. We might have lost him, but not for long. But then... all those cars just came out of nowhere! We had the street blocked off - Andrew had been careful to put all the cones and barriers up the night before. Andrew still thinks that someone came to help him. He had to have escaped by car."
The girls nodded thoughtfully as they all tried to imagine the scene. One question unsettled Vic as she popped a bubble and became silent at last. Who would help a deranged killer like Angelus escape?
Doyle -TBS
His jaw dropped for a moment before he burst into a huge grin. Cordelia! Only moments before he had seen her, vanished into thin air, leaving Angel and the team behind. Yet here she stood, her hair a little shorter than last time he had seen her, but beautiful as always. Her smile was aimed at him, truly aimed at him, in a way that he so seldom had gotten to see while he was alive. And not for lack of trying on his part either. He had done everything he could to get her to notice him, to get that smile turned in his direction. He had went along with any scheme she had, sided with her against Angel with an apologetic grin towards the vampire boss man, and otherwise made a fool out of himself nearly every day while in her presence.
It had taken her slapping some sense into him, literally, for him to even gain the courage to ask her out. In fact, he never really had gotten to ask her out....Angel had interrupted him. Then he had died, and that had pretty much ended all dating plans. Well, pretty much all plans. Death tends to put a hamper on things like that.
But here she was, once more with him, and he had a chance maybe to start over, he had a ....paper held in his hand like an idiotic weapon.
He realized what he was holding and blanched in embarrassment before quickly tossing the paper onto the floor. Just as he made it close enough to hug her, she stopped and glared straight up at the ceiling. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" she yelled up at the decrepit roof overhead.
Is this about the state of the hotel?
"Care to let me in on the joke, princess?"
Cordelia
Cordelia rolled her eyes in frustration as Doyle suggested this whole game was a joke. In her mind, it couldn’t be further from one.
“Do you seriously not have a clue to what’s going on her- what are you staring at?” Cordelia’s brow furrowed as her eyes flitted up and down Doyle’s non-descript frame as he stood on his tip toes beside her, “that doesn’t matter now, what does matter is the fact that we’ve been entered into some kind of reality TV show for the powers to talk about round the water cooler. I for one, think it’s disgusting that they’ve sent you back. It’s like ‘here’s what you could have.’ then whoosh! You’re back up in the bright light while I’m down here with Angel helping the helpless. Oh god! Angel!”
Cordelia ran to the door and yanked it open before turning back to Doyle.
“I don’t suppose your holiday trip back to Los Angeles came with a complimentary car?”
*
Unfortunately, it hadn’t come with a rental car, which was why her and Doyle were now traipsing through the sewers.
“I saw a church… Like a big old one.. Ack!” Cordelia leapt onto Doyle as a rat brushed against her foot.
“Remind me to never suggest the sewers as a quick way to get round the city.” Cordelia slowly untangled herself from Doyle, smiling apologetically. It was only then that she realised that she hadn’t even welcomed him back.
“It’s good to see you again Doyle, even though its only for a short time.” Their eyes met for a moment as a silent familiarity descended between them.
“Come on, I’ve got a vision to solve… or at least find. Hey! Wanna poke your head out and see where we are?”
he wondered vaguely as he shot a questioning look at Cordelia, following her gaze up to the ceiling. He moved close beside her and stared up at the spot at which she was looking for several seconds, before shrugging silently and looking back at her.