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Part FourteenCale, Emily, Xander and Cordelia huddled in a corner of the chamber. Regan and her Watcher had been chanting for an hour. Emily checked her watch. 11:35. They had 25 minutes to finish this up. She also wished like hell she had a bottle of Tylenol. She hadn’t told anyone — God knows they had enough to worry about — but the mystic energies from the Hellmouth swirling away in this chamber were giving her a horrendous headache. It had been one of the reasons she’d performed so poorly in her fight with Elsza.
Ms. Rosenberg appeared on the edge of exhaustion. While Regan had had less to do, the ritual’s requirements apparently demanded the caster speak for an hour nonstop.
“… and, finally, let the soul of Buffy Summers, as placed in this Orb, be restored to her body.” Ms. Rosenberg paused.
“So shall she be cursed,” Regan answered. The glow slowly vanished from the Orb.
“Did it work?” Xander asked impatiently.
Emily said, “I think so,” as everyone turned to look at her. “I mean — I sensed some form of energy leaving the stone and going down the passageway.” Ms. Rosenberg wearily walked to the edge of the barrier, but motioned the others to grab weapons.
“They’re coming,” she said. A minute later a flock of vampires came barreling down the hall, Angelus and a shaky Elsza in the lead. Her Watcher said, “Come on,” and everyone moved in behind her.
“Well, well, well,” the Master began. “I see we’ve been busy little boys and girls.” Emily pushed down her excitement. It had worked! Seeing everyone’s face sag in disappointment, she dropped her gaze … and saw Elsza’s foot edging towards the lines of the pattern.
“Whatever spell that was,” the non-Master continued, “it didn’t work. Don’t try it again.”
“Or what?” Willow asked.
Suddenly the barrier dropped! Angelus looked down in shock, and Emily felt ten years of pent-up anger boil forth as Elsza slammed him into the wall and crushed his neck. She dragged Ms. Rosenberg behind her and tensed for action. She could see Xander and Regan do the same, stakes in hand, and Cordelia and Cale drew crosses.
“Elsza, what —” he choked out. Then she heard the three words she’d been waiting for.
“Not Elsza,” the former Master screamed. “BUFFY!” She rammed Angelus’ head into the wall twice more. “I am not Elsza.” Slam. I am not the Master.” Slam. “ I. Am. Buffy Summers!” Slam. Slam. Slam. “The SLAYER!” Slam.
The other vampires looked confused until Angelus finally choked out, “She’s been cursed! Get them!” Finally he broke free of Elsza’s — no, Buffy’s — grip and knocked her into the cavern. This, unfortunately, let loose the flood of vampires, which the struggle between the former Master and her former consort had been stemming.
Emily drew two stakes and quickly thrust them at the lead two, Slaying one and piercing the other through the eye. That headache was still bothering her, dammit! Regan quickly finished that one off as Xander took care of the next one. A vial came flying over their heads, cracking and splattering four more vamps with holy water. As they winced, Emily cracked two heads together and staked them, one stake in each hand, as they sank to the floor. Regan twisted the third’s neck, but the fourth jumped on top of Xander. Cordelia rushed over and staked that vamp with the end of her cross. “Nobody gets on top of my husband but me,” she muttered. Cale was still guarding the exhausted Willow. Emily turned back to face the flood. Something had to give soon. She socked a vampire in the jaw …
An enraged Buffy was pummeling Angelus. The vampire was unable to dodge the combination of vampire strength, Slayer skill, and a mad-on ten years in the making. Finally she said, “No!” and knocked him out with a kick to the jaw.
She looked up and saw Emily and the others about to be overwhelmed, put on her vampire face, and shouted, “Any of you want to deal with me?”
The only way Emily would’ve fought Buffy was with an AK-47 and backed by a platoon of Marines. The vampires apparently came to the same conclusion, because within seconds the only ones left in the chamber were Buffy, Emily, the Slayerettes and an unconscious Angelus.
“God! that felt good,” she said. “Ten years trapped in that goddamn stone.” She then shifted back to human form. She looked up and it finally hit her who was surrounding her. “Xander? Cordy? Willow?” She grinned. “Hi, guys. Miss me?”
A wordless hug followed among the four of them. Emily moved to join Cale and Regan. “Think we’ll be like that in ten years?”
Regan commented, “Under the circumstances? I would hope so.” They looked at the pale blonde in surprise. “I meant it when I said I liked you. You — both of you — are my friends.” Emily moved forward. “Hug me again, Slayer, and I’ll break both your arms.”
Emily laughed, then winced. This headache was killing her!
* * *
The friends pulled out of their hug. Before anyone could say a word Buffy quickly took the chains Emily had ripped from the wall and used them to bind Angelus’ hands and feet. As an afterthought, she gagged her former consort. “Staking’s too good for you,” she muttered as she finished. She turned and saw the three Original Slayerettes staring at her. “What?” she said. “Is it my hair?”
“Ten years trapped in an Orb and the girl can joke,” Xander said.
“Not entirely. I was either in the Orb — or trapped looking through Elsza’s eyes. After a while the Orb was better. I didn’t have to watch myself kill people then.” She paused. “Now I know how Angel felt.”
“You didn’t do it, Buff. The demon did.”
“I know that. But now that I’m back in my body, I remember all the things she did.” She shook herself. “I can’t think about that now. So, guys, while I have time, tell me about your lives. Whatcha been doing? Who are these three?”
Willow quickly introduced Emily, Cale and Regan, who uttered a few pleasantries and faded back to keep an eye on Angelus. For the moment, this wasn’t their show. Buffy turned back and said, “So what have you all been up to?”
Willow said, “Buff, I —”
“Not you, Will. My senses extended far enough out of the Orb that I could tell what you were doing when I concentrated. Xander? Cordy? What’s up?”
Cordelia said, “After all this, you want to chat?”
Buffy responded, “Please? It would really help me right now.” So for ten minutes they chatted as though there was absolutely nothing bizarre about the situation and Buffy had been on vacation for a month instead of dead for ten years.
Then Emily screamed in pain and collapsed.