Living a life that I can't leave behind ..
Helping the helpless. It was what I did, be it in Los Angeles or Sunnydale, or anywhere else for that matter. Granted, Sunnydale already had a champion in Buffy, but even someone as experienced as the Slayer could use a hand from time to time -- especially when the place in question was a potential gateway for evil. We were standing on the mouth of Hell, and no amount of fighting against the agents of darkness would ever prove to be 'too much' of a good thing. I had been cooped up in the old mansion all day, unable to bring myself to sleep due to the endless thoughts and worries that ran rampant within my mind. With the arrival of sunset, I couldn't get out of there fast enough. I was sure that there had to be someone in this town who might be able to benefit from my being here. Cordelia's visions might have helped narrow it down some, but in a place like Sunnydale, it was pretty safe to assume that there was always someone out there who was in need of a helping hand.
As it turned out, I wasn't wrong. While patrolling along the warehouse district near the docks, I happened to stumble across a woman who needed just that -- help. You'd think that with so many champions all congregated in one area, the demonic threat might wise up, pack up shop, and head somewhere a little less obvious. Then again, that might require more than a few brain cells that these demons didn't have. As I was quickly realizing, however, what they lacked in intelligence they more than made up for in brute strength.
"Look out!" The young woman shouted from the corner, as the large demon tossed me across the room with relative ease. Yeah. Next time, try warning me before my skull smashes up, and cracks against the wall. Thanks.
Whatever this thing I was up against was, it was powerful. I had already been sliced up pretty badly by the creature's talons, and thrown across the storage building enough times to have developed a concussion. Luckily for me, the undead didn't really need to worry about concussions. I quickly leapt to my feet, and almost immediately wished that I hadn't. All right, so the dizzying aftereffects of a concussion were just as real for vampires as they were for humans. It must have slipped my mind what with the whole death-match type scenario I had found myself within. I forced myself to move, despite the current state of vertigo I had found myself suffering. The sounds of those claws digging into the wall directly behind where I had been standing only moments prior let me know that, had I waited any longer, I might have been made into Angel-kabob -- and everyone knows that is always so much fun.
Images blurred then came back into focus in rhythm with the pounding in my head. All right, it was pretty safe to assume that now would be a good time to retreat. There was no way I'd gain the upper hand here anytime soon without some kryptonite .. or at least a decent-sized battle axe at my disposal. I staggered in the direction of the young woman I had been attempting to rescue, who was looking a little fuzzy by this point. Snap out of it, Angel. You need to get her out of here before that thing--
Wincing heavily as those talons dug into my back, I could already hear bones breaking from within -- feel each and every one of them crack, and then snap as the demon curled its claws still inside of me. The poor woman watched in horror as the creature pulled its bloody talons free, and I collapsed to both knees. I could hear her screaming in terror from the corner .. no doubt assuming herself next on the demon's list of victims. I only hoped that she would be wrong as I fell forward, already losing consciousness.
What made it worse though, was the fact that I knew that she was right.
By the time I had regained consciousness, my body had already begun to undergo the healing process. Either that creature hadn't realized, or just didn't seem to care that I was a vampire. Whatever the case, my injuries would heal given enough time. The woman who had been cowering in the corner, on the other hand .. her body was too broken, too mangled for a human to survive. It was only because I was already dead that my body had been able to manage, after sustaining such injuries. The demon responsible for the massacre had long since left -- I must have been out for at least a couple of hours, and I was still in no condition to do much more than head back home. I hadn't been able to save that woman .. but Cordelia was still somewhere out there, and with that creature still roaming the streets. I'd have time enough to beat myself up over tonight's failure, and kill the creature who had done this after I had made sure that she was all right.
I arrived back at the mansion another hour or so later. It was pretty late, and I didn't really expect anyone to be up at this hour, so I was a little surprised when I entered to find the place empty. Apparently, Cordy still hadn't returned from her little shopping excursion earlier that day. The fact that she hadn't come back yet only intensified the worry that had already collected within my being. It was after sunset. Surely she remember how perilous Sunnydale -- the Hellmouth could be. We weren't in Los Angeles any longer. What made things worse was the fact that I was in no condition to go looking for her just yet. I eased myself onto the sofa, hoping to rest for just a moment before I could muster the strength to get back up and seek her out.
At some point in the night, I must have fallen victim to my thoughts and drifted into what just might have been the most disturbing slumber I had experienced over the course of years. I was restless, tossing and turning, as I lay sprawled out on the sofa in the mansion's main room. My dreams were filled with the usual pain and torment .. guilt, and anger -- only intensified far past what I had come to expect anymore. For once I wished that I could truly allow myself to forget about the burdens and guilt I carried with me -- even if it was only through sleep. With so much tying me down in the waking world, however, such hope was washed away before it could even manifest itself. Everyone's pain and heartache seemed to pull me in, and there was nothing I could do but to allow the storm to run its course. Buffy, whose world was about to come crumbling around her probably wouldn't even allow me to try and help her before it was too late. I wouldn't allow myself to believe that anything would happen to her while I was here .. but in sleep your greatest fears have a way of bringing themselves to light. What if I couldn't do anything to save her .. just as I had failed to save that poor girl--
The sounds of someone moving through the hallway alerted me to wake. I stayed there for a long moment, staring at the ceiling, obviously shaken by my interrupted nightmares. I didn't want to move, for fear of watching those nightmares play themselves out here in the waking world .. but it was useless to think my inaction might prevent the inevitable. I knew that with everything so unresolved, that the nightmares would only come back the next time I laid down to rest. At least for a while, I could allow myself to partake in the comfort that working to prove my dreams wrong could provide -- even if it turned out that I had been lying to myself all along ..
I sat upright on the sofa, before finally managing the force myself to stand and stretch as best I was able to manage. My limbs were still sore from the demon I had encountered earlier that night, and the wounds it inflicted had yet to heal. All in all, I was sure I still looked as though I'd been involved in a train wreck. Unfortunately for me, however, my appearance was the very least of my worries. My gaze moved toward the empty hallway where the noises that managed to wake me had been coming from. I couldn't help but to wonder if it was Cordelia who had finally come back after a day's worth of shopping .. or whatever it was she had left to accomplish. I moved down the corridor and toward the master bedroom where Cordelia had taken up residence until she acquired her own living space. The door opened with a small creaking noise, before I peeked my head inside. There she was, sitting upright in bed and fingering through a .. book I'd never pinned her as the type to read. She must have lifted it from my room while I was still asleep. At least she seemed to be all right. I managed a small smile as the feeling of relief seemed to numb out any current discomfort I'd been experiencing. Knocking lightly on the door, I slowly pushed it open the rest of the way.
[ Open to Cordelia. ]
As it turned out, I wasn't wrong. While patrolling along the warehouse district near the docks, I happened to stumble across a woman who needed just that -- help. You'd think that with so many champions all congregated in one area, the demonic threat might wise up, pack up shop, and head somewhere a little less obvious. Then again, that might require more than a few brain cells that these demons didn't have. As I was quickly realizing, however, what they lacked in intelligence they more than made up for in brute strength.
"Look out!" The young woman shouted from the corner, as the large demon tossed me across the room with relative ease. Yeah. Next time, try warning me before my skull smashes up, and cracks against the wall. Thanks.
Whatever this thing I was up against was, it was powerful. I had already been sliced up pretty badly by the creature's talons, and thrown across the storage building enough times to have developed a concussion. Luckily for me, the undead didn't really need to worry about concussions. I quickly leapt to my feet, and almost immediately wished that I hadn't. All right, so the dizzying aftereffects of a concussion were just as real for vampires as they were for humans. It must have slipped my mind what with the whole death-match type scenario I had found myself within. I forced myself to move, despite the current state of vertigo I had found myself suffering. The sounds of those claws digging into the wall directly behind where I had been standing only moments prior let me know that, had I waited any longer, I might have been made into Angel-kabob -- and everyone knows that is always so much fun.
Images blurred then came back into focus in rhythm with the pounding in my head. All right, it was pretty safe to assume that now would be a good time to retreat. There was no way I'd gain the upper hand here anytime soon without some kryptonite .. or at least a decent-sized battle axe at my disposal. I staggered in the direction of the young woman I had been attempting to rescue, who was looking a little fuzzy by this point. Snap out of it, Angel. You need to get her out of here before that thing--
Wincing heavily as those talons dug into my back, I could already hear bones breaking from within -- feel each and every one of them crack, and then snap as the demon curled its claws still inside of me. The poor woman watched in horror as the creature pulled its bloody talons free, and I collapsed to both knees. I could hear her screaming in terror from the corner .. no doubt assuming herself next on the demon's list of victims. I only hoped that she would be wrong as I fell forward, already losing consciousness.
What made it worse though, was the fact that I knew that she was right.
By the time I had regained consciousness, my body had already begun to undergo the healing process. Either that creature hadn't realized, or just didn't seem to care that I was a vampire. Whatever the case, my injuries would heal given enough time. The woman who had been cowering in the corner, on the other hand .. her body was too broken, too mangled for a human to survive. It was only because I was already dead that my body had been able to manage, after sustaining such injuries. The demon responsible for the massacre had long since left -- I must have been out for at least a couple of hours, and I was still in no condition to do much more than head back home. I hadn't been able to save that woman .. but Cordelia was still somewhere out there, and with that creature still roaming the streets. I'd have time enough to beat myself up over tonight's failure, and kill the creature who had done this after I had made sure that she was all right.
I arrived back at the mansion another hour or so later. It was pretty late, and I didn't really expect anyone to be up at this hour, so I was a little surprised when I entered to find the place empty. Apparently, Cordy still hadn't returned from her little shopping excursion earlier that day. The fact that she hadn't come back yet only intensified the worry that had already collected within my being. It was after sunset. Surely she remember how perilous Sunnydale -- the Hellmouth could be. We weren't in Los Angeles any longer. What made things worse was the fact that I was in no condition to go looking for her just yet. I eased myself onto the sofa, hoping to rest for just a moment before I could muster the strength to get back up and seek her out.
At some point in the night, I must have fallen victim to my thoughts and drifted into what just might have been the most disturbing slumber I had experienced over the course of years. I was restless, tossing and turning, as I lay sprawled out on the sofa in the mansion's main room. My dreams were filled with the usual pain and torment .. guilt, and anger -- only intensified far past what I had come to expect anymore. For once I wished that I could truly allow myself to forget about the burdens and guilt I carried with me -- even if it was only through sleep. With so much tying me down in the waking world, however, such hope was washed away before it could even manifest itself. Everyone's pain and heartache seemed to pull me in, and there was nothing I could do but to allow the storm to run its course. Buffy, whose world was about to come crumbling around her probably wouldn't even allow me to try and help her before it was too late. I wouldn't allow myself to believe that anything would happen to her while I was here .. but in sleep your greatest fears have a way of bringing themselves to light. What if I couldn't do anything to save her .. just as I had failed to save that poor girl--
The sounds of someone moving through the hallway alerted me to wake. I stayed there for a long moment, staring at the ceiling, obviously shaken by my interrupted nightmares. I didn't want to move, for fear of watching those nightmares play themselves out here in the waking world .. but it was useless to think my inaction might prevent the inevitable. I knew that with everything so unresolved, that the nightmares would only come back the next time I laid down to rest. At least for a while, I could allow myself to partake in the comfort that working to prove my dreams wrong could provide -- even if it turned out that I had been lying to myself all along ..
I sat upright on the sofa, before finally managing the force myself to stand and stretch as best I was able to manage. My limbs were still sore from the demon I had encountered earlier that night, and the wounds it inflicted had yet to heal. All in all, I was sure I still looked as though I'd been involved in a train wreck. Unfortunately for me, however, my appearance was the very least of my worries. My gaze moved toward the empty hallway where the noises that managed to wake me had been coming from. I couldn't help but to wonder if it was Cordelia who had finally come back after a day's worth of shopping .. or whatever it was she had left to accomplish. I moved down the corridor and toward the master bedroom where Cordelia had taken up residence until she acquired her own living space. The door opened with a small creaking noise, before I peeked my head inside. There she was, sitting upright in bed and fingering through a .. book I'd never pinned her as the type to read. She must have lifted it from my room while I was still asleep. At least she seemed to be all right. I managed a small smile as the feeling of relief seemed to numb out any current discomfort I'd been experiencing. Knocking lightly on the door, I slowly pushed it open the rest of the way.
[ Open to Cordelia. ]