Who Wants to Live Forever? (Buffy/Highlander/Last Vampire)
Chapter 1
Texas, 1990
Smith sat trembling in the chair. He'd long since given up hope of getting out of there, but he did not want to die. He wasn't ready. He had so much more to do. Too many people were still alive.
He could still hear their screams in his head, see the blood as he cut them. God it had been glorious, the begging, the whimpering, and finally, the life fading from his victim's eyes. He sighed. Ah well, nothing lasted forever.
Through the window, he saw the audience. He'd stopped trembling, and now he felt a calm go over him. Then he noticed the smell. Seems they'd dropped the pellet. "So long folks!" he shouted. "It's been fun!"
The gas filled the chamber, and Robert Smith, serial killer, was dead.
*****
He awoke, panicking. What had happened? Oh yeah, he'd died. So where was he now? It was dark, and he could sense that he was in a enclosed space. Was this hell? He felt around with his hands, and discovered the padded surroundings.
He'd seen enough coffins to know where he was now. Well I'll be damned. he thought. Guess the gas didn't kill me. Of course, his situation had not improved. Now instead of being gassed to death, he'd been buried alive.
Suddenly, his head began buzzing, and his stomach dropped out, as if he was going down the first hill of a roller coaster.
"Wow! That was almost as cool as killing somebody!"
Above him, he heard the sound of digging. Someone was robbing his grave? What luck! And what a surprise they'd get!
A shovel struck the lid of his coffin, and he played dead. The better to scare the hell out of his rescuer. He felt air on his face, and heard the coffin open. Here we go.
"You can stop playing dead." Someone above him said. "I know you're awake."
Smith's eyes snapped open in astonishment. "What?" he asked.
"You've been given a rare gift my friend." the man with the shovel said. "I'm here to teach you how to use it. You're going to live forever." He grasped smith's hand and pulled him to his feet. "Oh, by the way, I'm Jack. Jack the Ripper. Maybe you've heard of me?"
Sunnydale California 1998
Smith sat with his new friends, Ted Bundy, Geoffrey Dahmer, and Richard Ramirez while their teacher and mentor, Jack the Ripper negotiated with the crippled young man.
"Why do we have to suck up to him again?" Ted wanted to know.
"He's sort of like the local mob boss or something." Geoff said. "We need his permission to operate here."
*****
"Well," Spike mused aloud, as the five humans left. He'd given them his blessing. "It does my heart good to know that not all humans are the same."
"It's going to be such a fun time." Drusilla agreed. "Are we going to tell Angelus?"
"Let's not just yet." Spike said. "Let's let it be a surprise."
*****
"Good grief." Xander muttered. "Dozens of students die of mysterious causes, and nothing. One kid who doesn't even go here gets shot in a drive-by shooting, and Snyder puts up a metal detector."
Buffy wasn't quite clear on the logic either, but she was quite used to Snyder's strangeness.
*****
"How'd you get your sword past that metal detector?" Sita asked Tut.
"Same way I get it past airport security." the Immortal smiled mysteriously. The question had been the first words Sita had uttered since they'd arrived in town last night. She'd refused to tell him what was wrong, but she seemed to be coming out of it.
Sita was worried, she should have checked out the town before buying here. She'd smelled it the moment they'd hit town. Vampires. The town was crawling with them. Dimishti Vampires, the worst kind. And there was something else that bothered her, something about the school in particular did not sit right, it wasn't a smell, more a feeling in her blood, almost one of, coming home. It should be a soothing feeling, but instead it disturbed her.
However, she'd seen how happy Tut was here, and Dimishti would be no danger to her, and once she'd eliminated them, to anyone else. She shoved her feelings aside.
Tut stiffened unconsciously, somewhere nearby, was a pre-Immortal. Methos had taught him a little of how to sense them, but he'd grown rusty. He did however manage to narrow it down to one of the three students they now approached, but he could not tell which.
"Excuse me," Sita said, not being able to help noticing that all three of these people had the smell of Dimishti dust on them. They'd killed their fair share apparently. "We're new here,"
"That would explain why I don't remember you." the black haired boy said. He was a flirt that one.
"Could you tell us where the Principal's office is?" Tut asked.
"In trouble already?" the boy said. "You two work fast don't you."
Tut and Sita grinned. A wit.
The blond girl, who, Sita noticed, smelled even more of dead Vampires than the others, shook her head, amused, and pointed them in the right direction. Sita wondered just what was going on in this town. She'd rarely encountered a place so crawling with the undead, and only once before had she smelled a girl so dusted with dead Vampires.
1000 B.C.E.
Sita crouched, her nose to the ground, sniffing out the trail. The Vampires had gone this way. Nodding to herself, she looked up at her companion. She and Vespa had met in a wasted village, both with similar goals. To destroy the Dimishti Vampires. Though Sita knew what Vespa was, the Slayer was not aware of Sita's special powers, other than her being an exceedingly skilled tracker and fighter. She planned on keeping it that way.
Sita had been on their trail for two days since she'd first come across it in Rome. Then she met The Slayer. She'd heard legends about these girls, supposedly they'd existed ever since the Dimishti first appeared.
Vespa for her part was impressed with Sita's skill, and prowess in battle. She was second only to Vespa herself. Sita was the first civilian she'd ever allowed to accompany her on her mission. Half for the certainty that if she hadn't, Sita would have come anyway.
"They're nearby." Sita told her. "Very near."
"How far ahead?" Vespa asked.
Yakshini enhanced vision picked out the tracks on the ground, and then the wind shifted.
"They've doubled back!" she cried, shoving Vespa out of the way, as an arrow shot from a nearby grove of trees. The arrow pierced Sita's shoulder, sending burning pain through her left arm.
Vespa, to her credit did not miss a beat. She ran, low to the ground, towards the shooter, only to be ambushed by a group of ten Vampires.
"Hello Vespa." a familiar voice crooned.
Vespa's eyes narrowed as she faced off against the leader of this band. "Darla."
Darla's eyes widened in delight. "You've heard of me? I'm flattered!" She circled the Slayer, a mocking grin on her face. "So, you're my successor. And not a bad one from what I've heard. But can you stand up to the Master? Or even me?"
"Let's find out." Vespa muttered, feinting with her right hand, a stake clutched in her left.
Darla saw through the trick however, seizing her left arm, she twisted, snapping it in three places. Then, still holding onto the shattered arm, she grabbed Vespa by the throat with her free hand, choking off the girl's scream of pain.
"Some Slayer." Darla spat, and effortlessly snapped her neck.
"She wasn't alone." Darla spoke again. "Find her companion and make sure it's dead."
"Not hardly!" Sita cried, her shoulder had healed enough, and she leaped into the group of Dimishti, killing them swiftly and mercilessly.
The one named Darla had escaped however. Still relatively young, Sita was unable to distinguish her particular scent, and let her go.
Crouching, she laid a hand upon Vespa's head. The girl was obviously dead. "Krishna's grace be with you." she whispered.
California 1998
Sita stiffened with the realization that she'd just met the current Slayer. A possible ally. She hardly needed one now, but she certainly wouldn't stand in the girl's way. So long as she doesn't stand in mine.
*****
Sita sat in the afternoon sun, waiting for Tut. Her first day at school had been pleasant. Nothing truly extraordinary happened, though she had noticed an odd sensation regarding a cheerleading trophy in the hall. She wasn't particularly worried about it though. Whatever it was, was securely trapped and was not likely to be able to break free.
Then there was the depressingly big Memorial board for students who'd died. There were too many. As much death as she'd seen, even she was not unaffected by the numbers. She was even more determined than ever to rid this town of it's blight. The question was whether or not to tell Tut.
She saw him exiting, an amused smirk on his face.
"What's the joke?" Sita asked. "I love a good laugh."
"More ironic than funny." Tut answered her. "My last class today was ancient history. I've been assigned to write a biography of King Tut."
Sita laughed out loud. Not something she often did anymore. "And just what are you going to put in this little bio of yours?"
"I haven't decided." Tut smiled. "How much will they believe?"
Sita continued to smile as they walked to the car. She hadn't been this content since...Ray Riley. Her spirits immediately fell when she thought of the boy that had been torn from her.
"Drop me off at the store on your way home." Sita said. "I'm in the mood to cook tonight, and I need to pick up some things."
"Ooooh," Tut smiled. "What are you going to make?"
"I'm going to surprise you."
"Goody."
To be continued...
Texas, 1990
Smith sat trembling in the chair. He'd long since given up hope of getting out of there, but he did not want to die. He wasn't ready. He had so much more to do. Too many people were still alive.
He could still hear their screams in his head, see the blood as he cut them. God it had been glorious, the begging, the whimpering, and finally, the life fading from his victim's eyes. He sighed. Ah well, nothing lasted forever.
Through the window, he saw the audience. He'd stopped trembling, and now he felt a calm go over him. Then he noticed the smell. Seems they'd dropped the pellet. "So long folks!" he shouted. "It's been fun!"
The gas filled the chamber, and Robert Smith, serial killer, was dead.
*****
He awoke, panicking. What had happened? Oh yeah, he'd died. So where was he now? It was dark, and he could sense that he was in a enclosed space. Was this hell? He felt around with his hands, and discovered the padded surroundings.
He'd seen enough coffins to know where he was now. Well I'll be damned. he thought. Guess the gas didn't kill me. Of course, his situation had not improved. Now instead of being gassed to death, he'd been buried alive.
Suddenly, his head began buzzing, and his stomach dropped out, as if he was going down the first hill of a roller coaster.
"Wow! That was almost as cool as killing somebody!"
Above him, he heard the sound of digging. Someone was robbing his grave? What luck! And what a surprise they'd get!
A shovel struck the lid of his coffin, and he played dead. The better to scare the hell out of his rescuer. He felt air on his face, and heard the coffin open. Here we go.
"You can stop playing dead." Someone above him said. "I know you're awake."
Smith's eyes snapped open in astonishment. "What?" he asked.
"You've been given a rare gift my friend." the man with the shovel said. "I'm here to teach you how to use it. You're going to live forever." He grasped smith's hand and pulled him to his feet. "Oh, by the way, I'm Jack. Jack the Ripper. Maybe you've heard of me?"
Sunnydale California 1998
Smith sat with his new friends, Ted Bundy, Geoffrey Dahmer, and Richard Ramirez while their teacher and mentor, Jack the Ripper negotiated with the crippled young man.
"Why do we have to suck up to him again?" Ted wanted to know.
"He's sort of like the local mob boss or something." Geoff said. "We need his permission to operate here."
*****
"Well," Spike mused aloud, as the five humans left. He'd given them his blessing. "It does my heart good to know that not all humans are the same."
"It's going to be such a fun time." Drusilla agreed. "Are we going to tell Angelus?"
"Let's not just yet." Spike said. "Let's let it be a surprise."
*****
"Good grief." Xander muttered. "Dozens of students die of mysterious causes, and nothing. One kid who doesn't even go here gets shot in a drive-by shooting, and Snyder puts up a metal detector."
Buffy wasn't quite clear on the logic either, but she was quite used to Snyder's strangeness.
*****
"How'd you get your sword past that metal detector?" Sita asked Tut.
"Same way I get it past airport security." the Immortal smiled mysteriously. The question had been the first words Sita had uttered since they'd arrived in town last night. She'd refused to tell him what was wrong, but she seemed to be coming out of it.
Sita was worried, she should have checked out the town before buying here. She'd smelled it the moment they'd hit town. Vampires. The town was crawling with them. Dimishti Vampires, the worst kind. And there was something else that bothered her, something about the school in particular did not sit right, it wasn't a smell, more a feeling in her blood, almost one of, coming home. It should be a soothing feeling, but instead it disturbed her.
However, she'd seen how happy Tut was here, and Dimishti would be no danger to her, and once she'd eliminated them, to anyone else. She shoved her feelings aside.
Tut stiffened unconsciously, somewhere nearby, was a pre-Immortal. Methos had taught him a little of how to sense them, but he'd grown rusty. He did however manage to narrow it down to one of the three students they now approached, but he could not tell which.
"Excuse me," Sita said, not being able to help noticing that all three of these people had the smell of Dimishti dust on them. They'd killed their fair share apparently. "We're new here,"
"That would explain why I don't remember you." the black haired boy said. He was a flirt that one.
"Could you tell us where the Principal's office is?" Tut asked.
"In trouble already?" the boy said. "You two work fast don't you."
Tut and Sita grinned. A wit.
The blond girl, who, Sita noticed, smelled even more of dead Vampires than the others, shook her head, amused, and pointed them in the right direction. Sita wondered just what was going on in this town. She'd rarely encountered a place so crawling with the undead, and only once before had she smelled a girl so dusted with dead Vampires.
1000 B.C.E.
Sita crouched, her nose to the ground, sniffing out the trail. The Vampires had gone this way. Nodding to herself, she looked up at her companion. She and Vespa had met in a wasted village, both with similar goals. To destroy the Dimishti Vampires. Though Sita knew what Vespa was, the Slayer was not aware of Sita's special powers, other than her being an exceedingly skilled tracker and fighter. She planned on keeping it that way.
Sita had been on their trail for two days since she'd first come across it in Rome. Then she met The Slayer. She'd heard legends about these girls, supposedly they'd existed ever since the Dimishti first appeared.
Vespa for her part was impressed with Sita's skill, and prowess in battle. She was second only to Vespa herself. Sita was the first civilian she'd ever allowed to accompany her on her mission. Half for the certainty that if she hadn't, Sita would have come anyway.
"They're nearby." Sita told her. "Very near."
"How far ahead?" Vespa asked.
Yakshini enhanced vision picked out the tracks on the ground, and then the wind shifted.
"They've doubled back!" she cried, shoving Vespa out of the way, as an arrow shot from a nearby grove of trees. The arrow pierced Sita's shoulder, sending burning pain through her left arm.
Vespa, to her credit did not miss a beat. She ran, low to the ground, towards the shooter, only to be ambushed by a group of ten Vampires.
"Hello Vespa." a familiar voice crooned.
Vespa's eyes narrowed as she faced off against the leader of this band. "Darla."
Darla's eyes widened in delight. "You've heard of me? I'm flattered!" She circled the Slayer, a mocking grin on her face. "So, you're my successor. And not a bad one from what I've heard. But can you stand up to the Master? Or even me?"
"Let's find out." Vespa muttered, feinting with her right hand, a stake clutched in her left.
Darla saw through the trick however, seizing her left arm, she twisted, snapping it in three places. Then, still holding onto the shattered arm, she grabbed Vespa by the throat with her free hand, choking off the girl's scream of pain.
"Some Slayer." Darla spat, and effortlessly snapped her neck.
"She wasn't alone." Darla spoke again. "Find her companion and make sure it's dead."
"Not hardly!" Sita cried, her shoulder had healed enough, and she leaped into the group of Dimishti, killing them swiftly and mercilessly.
The one named Darla had escaped however. Still relatively young, Sita was unable to distinguish her particular scent, and let her go.
Crouching, she laid a hand upon Vespa's head. The girl was obviously dead. "Krishna's grace be with you." she whispered.
California 1998
Sita stiffened with the realization that she'd just met the current Slayer. A possible ally. She hardly needed one now, but she certainly wouldn't stand in the girl's way. So long as she doesn't stand in mine.
*****
Sita sat in the afternoon sun, waiting for Tut. Her first day at school had been pleasant. Nothing truly extraordinary happened, though she had noticed an odd sensation regarding a cheerleading trophy in the hall. She wasn't particularly worried about it though. Whatever it was, was securely trapped and was not likely to be able to break free.
Then there was the depressingly big Memorial board for students who'd died. There were too many. As much death as she'd seen, even she was not unaffected by the numbers. She was even more determined than ever to rid this town of it's blight. The question was whether or not to tell Tut.
She saw him exiting, an amused smirk on his face.
"What's the joke?" Sita asked. "I love a good laugh."
"More ironic than funny." Tut answered her. "My last class today was ancient history. I've been assigned to write a biography of King Tut."
Sita laughed out loud. Not something she often did anymore. "And just what are you going to put in this little bio of yours?"
"I haven't decided." Tut smiled. "How much will they believe?"
Sita continued to smile as they walked to the car. She hadn't been this content since...Ray Riley. Her spirits immediately fell when she thought of the boy that had been torn from her.
"Drop me off at the store on your way home." Sita said. "I'm in the mood to cook tonight, and I need to pick up some things."
"Ooooh," Tut smiled. "What are you going to make?"
"I'm going to surprise you."
"Goody."
To be continued...