We Could Be Heroes (14/?)
“Halloween’s the one time yah can really be free, y’know,” observed Faith as they walked down the Atlanta streets arm-in-arm.
“By hiding under a costume?” queried Xander, feeling nervous even though neither of them were wearing a costume. Since the Halloween where he’d inherited Altaïr’s memories, he’d never been comfortable on the day anymore.
“Yeah,” replied Faith. “I mean yah can be anything you want.”
He chuckled at that. “Not everything.”
The Slayer lightly slapped his arm for that, scolding, “Thinking dirty thoughts that ain’t about me? Shame on you, X?”
“Now who said they weren’t about you?” he asked curiously, tugging her closer. “I think you’d look great in a school girl outfit. Y’know, the short skirt and all with the…”
“Good to know your fantasies didn’t get changed by Altair,” she murmured as she gave him a slap again. “Also, no way in hell.”
“The world he grew up in didn’t condone much to fantasies like that. And why such an answer? I mean I’d love it…”
Faith shook her head, asking, “I ain’t sexy enough on my own?”
Xander lifted a finger, saying, “Sexy in itself does not cover what you are. You…” He broke off speaking, as there was a scream from nearby and sighed. “We really can’t get a break, can we?”
“Nope,” she replied, pulling away from him. “C’mon!”
As she broke off into a run even he couldn’t keep up with, Xander sighed. “Says the woman that can outrun an Olympic sprinter if she wanted to,” he grumbled before he took off after her.
When he caught up to her, she whispered, “Mugging.”
“Let’s go then,” he stated.
“X…”
“I don’t like bullies,” he growled in explanation then dove around the corner and into the alleyway. Faith rolled her eyes then followed him, feeling a bit nervous. Something about this didn’t seem right…
She twisted around to see Xander shoving the would-be mugger away, easily slapping aside a knife he came at him with. A hand to the throat with fingers closing hard around the esophagus and the mugger was against the wall. Faith turned to the would-be victim and was surprised to see the woman looking up at her with a strange look of triumph in her eyes.
She twisted aside as the woman pulled a syringe from her bag and thrust at her with it.
“X!” she screamed desperately. “Council!”
He twisted around, eyes wide, then looked back at the mugger who was grinning at him. With a snarl, he lifted his left hand and drew the hidden blade, shoving it into the man’s throat. As he went down with his blood flowing out, Xander turned and pulled out his gun on the woman from where it was hidden in a shoulder holster under his coat.
“How’d you find us?” he spat as both he and Faith moved back towards the entrance to the alley.
“We’re everywhere,” replied the woman, not seeing at all put off by the death of her companion. “In almost every major city, just waiting for a chance you might be there. One of our team brushed by you in a mall not a day ago and we knew just where to set up our traps to catch you both.”
Faith’s eyes widened as she remembered the guy she’d bumped into who’d stared at them in surprise.
“Shit,” she hissed, “X…”
“You can’t run!” insisted the woman.
“Watch us,” growled Xander, keeping the gun on her. “Go, Faith.”
“But…”
“GO!”
Nodding, she turned and ran, hearing a shot ring out behind her then footsteps. She slowed so Xander could catch up to her as he shoved the gun back under his coat and noted the annoyed look on his face.
“Can’t kill people with the damn thing,” he growled. “Its too quick a kill.”
“What’d yah do then?”
“Shot out her kneecaps,” he replied with a feral smile. Then he looked ahead of them and hissed, “Fuck!”
Faith’s eyes widened as she saw what he did and shoved them both down as the man stepping out of the car with a tranquilizer gun fired. They both rolled to their feet and she drew the knife hidden in one of her boots as Xander rolled up with a throwing dagger in hand. The blade buried itself in the gunman’s throat and he grabbed her hand, running off to the right down an alley without bothering to retrieve it.
After dodging another tranquilizer wielding gunman, he drew her to a stop in a shadow of a building and hissed, “We have to separate.”
Faith stared at him then breathed, “X, I ain’t leaving you.”
“We’re easier to find when we’re together. Just…just run and meet me…meet me a block from the motel at that gas station. I’ll circle back around and get the car, okay?”
“I don’t like this…”
Xander pulled her against his chest, arms tightly wrapped around her, and muttered, “Neither do I. But we’ve got a better chance alone.”
“Damnit,” hissed Faith. She then tugged his face down to hers, drawing him into a long kiss before she pulled away. “Don’t you die on me. I ain’t ready to lose yah just yet.”
“Neither am I,” said Xander. He then kissed her again before hissing, “Go,” as he pushed her away.
Faith watched him take off in a sprint down the road then turned and darted out of the alleyway and into another one.
* * *
Xander fell easily into a steady run through the streets, sending another of the Council’s men to a swift death with another throwing dagger. As he dodged another’s dart, he leapt up onto a garbage bin and grabbed for a rusted closed fire escape above it. Swinging to avoid a second dart, he climbed up the ladder and then sprinted up the stairs, hearing the shouts below him.
As he reached the roof of the low building, he ran to the opposite edge and grinned as he saw a layout of buildings of similar height that stretched out in front of him for a short way. It wasn’t quite like the areas Altaïr had ventured through but it was similar enough.
Taking a few steps back, he ran forward and launched himself into the air, landing hard on the next building. He was up again in moments though and running again, the adrenaline and fear of them getting their hands on what he knew driving him.
The shouts eventually faded behind him and he swung down from the last roof, taking a moment to get his bearings before he took off in the direction of their motel.
He just hoped Faith had gotten there okay…
* * *
Faith stood waiting impatiently for Xander, feeling like he should have been there by now. He had to have gotten caught!
The thought sickened her and she took off towards the motel in fear. She had to get to the car - even though he had the keys, she knew how to break in and hotwire it.
As she saw the Celica where it sat in the parking lot, she heard the screech of tires and turned to see a black van bearing down on her. Cursing, she took off at a run towards the motel but knew she wouldn’t make it.
Another van swerved in front of her and she skidded to a stop, spinning instantly to change direction and go around.
A burst of pain and numbness in her leg made her glance down to see a tranquilizer dart in it. Fear and sheer determination kept her going for a few steps towards the Celica but she felt her strength fade away quickly. She wasn’t moving as quickly as usual…and it wasn’t just from a tranquilizer.
The darts were filled with the Cruciamentum drug!
Another stabbed into her back and she stumbled, falling to the ground. Terror filled her but her mind was still clear enough for her to reach for the necklace at her throat and unhook the clasp. Taking it all up in her hand, she struggled upright again and threw it towards the Celica, the motion covered by her collapsing under the blow from another dart - this one a real tranquilizer.
As she felt her entire body going numb, she heard a male voice say, “We’ve got her. Do you want us to wait on the boy?”
There was a crackle of a voice from a radio of some kind then the voice barked, “Pack it in. We’re taking her home.”
“We’re leaving the boy?” questioned another voice as Faith felt hands on her, tying her up and lifting her.
“Letting him come to us,” replied the voice coldly. “He’ll come for her. And then we’ll have him.”
That was the last thing she heard as whoever had lifted her threw her into one of the vans, her head smashing hard against something within. As she lay there, feeling the pain of the blow only dully through the fog of her mind, she hoped to God X came after them.
The Council didn’t know whom they were dealing with at all, was her last thought before she finally succumbed to unconsciousness.
* * *
“Faith! FAITH!”
Xander cursed as he arrived at their car, eyes darting around. He’d circled past the gas station before coming to the motel and hadn’t seen her.
Now she wasn’t here…
Which meant…
“No, don’t think about it,” he hissed under his breath as he strode towards the car. “Don’t…”
He spotted a flicker of gold on the ground and felt something hard close around his heart as he bent down and scooped up Faith’s necklace.
They had her.
The Council had her. He just knew it.
She wouldn’t have left Tara’s necklace otherwise.
Xander stared down at the gemstone for a moment then closed his fist around it, teeth clenched over a scream of agony. He shut his eyes and very quickly shoved the pain away - he needed to think clearly for this.
Stuffing the necklace inside his coat, he pulled out the keys to the car and opened the trunk. Running quickly to their room, he threw their bags together then was back downstairs, tossing them into the trunk. Slamming it shut, he drew out the cell phone and dialed Giles’ number as he got into the driver’s seat and pulled out his map of the States.
“Yes?” came the sleepily voice at the other end of the line.
“They took her,” spat Xander in a cold voice.
“Who…Xander?”
“The Council took her!” he screamed into the phone. “They found us and they took her!”
There was the sound of low cursing and something breaking then Giles said, “Son, we’ll get her back. Just…where are you now?”
“Atlanta,” replied Xander harshly. “Where’ll they take her?”
“Back to London. To headquarters. I…damnit. I’ll make some calls, son. Then I’ll meet you there in Atlanta at the airport.”
“I don’t have a passport.”
“I’ll handle that, don’t worry. And I promise you that we will bloody well get her back.”
“I know,” said Xander softly. “Thanks, Giles.”
“You don’t have to thank me for anything, son,” said the former Watcher firmly then the line went dead. For a long moment he sat there with the phone still to his ear then tossed it violently into the passenger seat - the seat Faith should be in.
Xander stared at the empty space and felt distinctly like the world was shrinking around him. Suddenly nothing mattered but this moment - this space of time without Faith. It hurt like nothing else ever had.
He felt cold and hot all at once and gripped the steering wheel tightly. Absolute rage roared through him for a long moment then it settled into a frightening coldness. Everything else pushed itself aside and all that mattered now was getting her back.
And killing anything that got in his way.
Xander lifted his head and glared out at the night sky for a long moment. Then he violently cranked the car and tore out of the parking lot, leaning over to pick up the phone again.
When Giles picked up, he shortly stated, “Meet me in Houston, not Atlanta.” Without waiting for an answer he hung up and turned off the phone as he spun onto the road that would take him out of town.
It had taken them over two months of back road travel to get from Houston to Atlanta. Now he was planning to take every highway he could find to get back there.
Because he gotten the vibe of a fighter off of Rey and he’d known they were being watched during that last meeting with him. Sizing him up or whatever, he didn’t care what the man had been doing.
He was a fighter that was what mattered. And he seemed to have friends that were interested in the two of them.
Xander smiled coldly as he put the gas pedal to the floor and let the Celica’s engine roar.
If they were so interested, then Rey’s friends could help him out in getting Faith back. Even if he had to force them at the point of a blade or the end of his gun.
He was getting her back no matter what it took.