Venomous...

[Doc]

Yeah. Joshua (remeber him?) has been helping me out. It's become a round robin with him, but i don't mind. He gets some good ideas.

[Jessy]

Joshua? The guy who, I don't know, hates my guts?


Damn... This is good though....

[Doc]

lol

[Doc]

Elsewhere

“That makes the twelfth this month,” Xander slammed the newspaper onto the long table.

“Thirteen if you count the midnight raid on the 31st of last month,” Willow pointed out as she typed away at the nearby computer.

“What are you talking about now?” Cordelia, Xander's “girlfriend” . . . or should that be Xander, Cordelia's “boyfriend”? . . . griped as she looked up from adjusting her crossbow. Her personal hand-held crossbow, loaded with wooden arrows and supplied by Watcher Rupert Giles.

“Sightings of the demons' demon,” Xander held up the newspaper, which its front page article was entitled 'Venom Stalks Los Angeles: New She-Venom Hero or Mastermind' and was accompanied by a still-capture of the female black-clad creature, sporting a subtly different motif on her chest as she exchanged a couple of webbed-up punks for a case of chocolate bars at a local convenience store.

“If it weren't for the fact that it was crazy and that Venom is a known super-freak of Hellmouthy proportions, not to mention seriously disturbed, I mean what is up with that tongue thing,” he added in aside to Willow, who shrugged back, “I'd almost swear that this thing was Buffy,” he finished saying to Cordelia.

“Which we know is quite impossible,” Giles spoke as he entered at a brisk pace. Oz was just behind him, looking pensive, which on anyone else would be jumping up and down, running back and forth screaming in terror, and all of the teens that called themselves the “Scoobies” knew it.

“Unfortunately, we have slightly more worrying concerns,” Giles continued as he pulled out a blackboard and began to write down information on it. “The Council has just informed me . . . approxiamately two weeks after the fact,” he hissed under his breath before continuing, “that Kendra's replacement, a Slayer by the name of Faith, is on her way here to Sunnydale. On her heels is a vampire master known as Kakistos, Xander no jokes! Kakistos is Greek. It roughly translates to 'Worst of the Worst', and this is a vampire we're talking about.”

“OK, insert appropriate bleeping for numerous instances of foul language,” Xander deadpanned as he turned his full attention to Giles.

“When is she supposed to get here?” Willow helpfully asked.

“Two weeks,” Giles muttered as he continued to write names, dates, and circled words like 'Vampire Master', 'Kakistos', and 'Balthazar'.

“She'll be here in two weeks?” the redhead asked, excited at the prospect of meeting another Slayer.

“Hm?” Giles turned to regard the teens, then replied, “Oh. No, I'm afraid she was supposed to have arrived here, at the latest, two weeks ago. The Council only called to tell me approximately five minutes ago,” the gang looked over at him.

“Well, so nice to know they actually care about their Slayers,” Xander said dryly.

“Yes, well, they were a bit busy investigating the death of her Watcher,” Giles said defensively. “They deduced she would head this way after finding copies of my diaries pertaining to Buffy in their apartment.”

“Her Watcher’s dead?” Willow asked. “What happened?”

“We’re not entirely sure,” Giles said. “Although her, uh…well, for lack of a better term her corpse had all the hallmarks of Kakistos.”

“’For lack of a better term’?” Cordelia repeated. Giles wordlessly slid a fax across the table, showing the Watcher in question. Or what was left of her. Xander went pale as the girls ran out of the room, holding their hands to their mouths. Oz turned his head, really not wanting to look at it again, as he had been the one to get the fax working for Giles.

“So,” Xander began. “We have 2 missing Slayers, an ancient sadist that makes Hitler look sane and Venom in very close proximity. Any good news?”

“Well, Venom doesn’t seem too interested in Sunnydale,” Giles said blandly.



The Diner
Buffy watched on as Faith piled away plate after plate. Briefly, she wondered if she had enough money to pay for it, at which point her other reminded her that they had been relieving criminals and vampires of their money for three months and that they had a substantial income. Buffy watched as Faith ordered another serving on fries and wondered if it would be enough.

“So,” the dark haired Slayer asked through a mouthful of fries. “Watcha doin’ ‘round here? Thought you were in Sunnydale.”

“It’s…complicated,” Buffy said slowly. Faith stopped eating.

“Oh. Sorry,” she said. There was a tone of panic in her voice. “If ya don’t wanna talk about it…”

“I will,” Buffy said. “Just not now, not here. Anyway, I think we need to worry more about getting you fixed up than why I’m here.”

“Fixed up?” Faith looked at the pile of plates she had left in her wake. “Fixed up how?”

“Something to wear other than rags would be a start,” Buffy said pointedly. Faith blushed, looking down at what she had be delegated by her ma…Kakistos. More fitting for a pet, he had said.

“Guess I could use a wardrobe change,” she said nervously. Buffy nodded.

“Then, we need to get your confidence back up,” the blonde Slayer said. Her other was agreeing in the back of her head. The poor girl was almost shattered. It would take a while. “For one, stop avoiding my eyes. You’re as good as anyone here, me included. I’m nothing special…”

‘If only she knew,’ the symbiote remarked.

“…So don’t treat me like it,” Buffy continued.

“But…” Faith began. Buffy shook her head.

“I just got some good breaks is all,” Buffy said. “And you got some really shitty ones. We’re gonna fix that now.”

“You gotta a time machine in your panties?” Faith asked cheekily before bowing her head.

“No,” Buffy said, before adding with a smirk. “Sadly, I left that in my other panties,” Faith gave a snort of contained laughter as the waitress walked towards them.

“Will that be all?” She asked snootily. Faith ducked her head again. Buffy glared, her symbiote growling in her head.

“Well, she could use a job,” Buffy said coolly. “Keep the attitude up and yours will be vacant,” the cool tone turned threatening, almost a growl. Faith looked at her in shock as the waitress paled. “Comprende?”

“Y-yes, miss,” the waitress said. “I’ll, ah…I’ll get your bill.”

“Thanks,” Buffy said cheerfully. Faith gaped. What the hell was that? Buffy looked at her and shrugged. “She pissed me off. No one looks down on my friends.”

Unknown to Buffy, she had just done something that no one but Faith’s Watcher had ever done, winning Faith over with just those words.

“Before anything else, though,” Buffy continued, unaware that from that moment on, Faith would follow her straight into the Mouth of Hell itself, “you need a proper night sleep without some psycho vamp nibbling on ya. So, you want the bed or…”

“Pets aren’t supposed to get on the furniture!” Faith gasped out, unable to stop herself. That was one of the first thing she had learned, painfully, at the not-so-tender mercies of Kakistos. She wasn’t worthy of a bed, or a mattress.

Buffy growled, grounding her teeth together as she thought of all the things she’d like to have done to Kakistos if they hadn’t already torn him in half. Her other offered some suggestions.

“Faith, honey, look at me,” Buffy said, grabbing Faiths’ hands as the Slayer dropped her eyes. “Look at me!” Faith raised her head slowly, fear on her face. Buffy saw that and felt her heart break. Damn that freak, what did he do to her? “Listen to me, Faith. You are no one’s pet. You’re free, you don’t have to do ANYTHING that freak ever told you to do. If you wanna sleep on the bed, sleep on the bed. You wanna eat til you throw up, eat til you throw up. You wanna go out on the street and dance naked, go out on the street and dance naked, though I may disown you afterwards,” Faith gave a small laugh, then looked at Buffy seriously.

“Does Slaying naked count?” Buffy blinked for a moment, taken aback by the not-unpleasant image of the Slayer fighting a vampire naked.

“You can tell me that story, later,” she said. Faith nodded with a giggle. “So, no more thinking down about yourself, okay?” Faith nodded. “Bed or couch?” Faith chewed her bottom lip for a moment.

“Couch,” she said finally. Buffy smiled. It was a start.

[Rogue]

When ARE you going to post another chapter?

[Doc]

Well, i just sent a bit off to Joshua. Once he's beta'd and sent back more, I'll do more.

[Rogue]

Ok ^^

[Doc]

Just realised i had this bit i hadn't posted yet from Joshua. Oops...



Just Outside Sunnydale
The motorcycle came to a roaring stop in a cloud of dust and debris, a black armoured van pulling up right behind it, leaving its own trail of dust. The rider, in all black leathers, which was strange for having just come out of the edge of a desert in Southern California, slowly stepped off his bike, staring through the mirrored visor of his glossy black helmet. Staring straight ahead to the center of the town they were on the edge of.

The door to the van slammed as the driver got out and the passenger rolled down their window.

“What the hell is the matter with you?!” the driver shouted at the rider.

“You don't feel that?” came the muffled reply.

“Blaze, I don't know what the blazes you're going on about!” the man just behind him shouted.

The rider took off his helmet and turned to look at the man that was dressed from neck to toe in black kevlar armor, with an ankle-length specially-made armored coat that was woven from a special-made adamantium alloy. In between was enough modern, and not-so-modern, weapons to supply an entire Army Ranger platoon for a week. For the man with the white skull on his chest, the man known to all as the Punisher, he was travelling light. Very light.

Johnny Blaze, reincarnation of the Spirit of Vengeance on Earth, stared back at Frank Castle before turning back to Sunnydale and staring for several moments more. Finally he shook his head and told Castle, “It's nothing. You're right. Let's go.” He quickly put on his helmet and got back on his bike.

Frank stared at him for several long moments, almost stopping the younger man to ask him what the matter was. Before he could work himself up to doing that, the passenger in the van called out, “Hey boys! Everything all right? Venom's not going to wait forever y'know!”

Frank gave Johnny one last look before stepping back and shouting out, “Yeah! Yeah, everything's fine! Let's go!”

“What was that about?” the passenger asked as Frank got back in the van and started it back up.

Frank Castle, the second-runner-up in title of 'Man Without Fear' and second also in 'Badass with a bug the size of Texas up his ass', turned to regard Felicia Hardy, also known to the select few of the superhero community as the Black Cat.

“I'm not sure,” he finally said to her as he took off after Johnny Blaze on bike, “Could be nothing. But if it's something . . . With Blaze, I'm not sure I want to know.”

“Good point,” the blond shrugged and went back to her catnap.

[Rogue]

Interesting.

[Doc]

All three of them...well, two of them have a beef with Venom. Castle just chases anyone he feels is dangerous and puts them down.

[Jessy]

When I saw man on a motorcycle I was thinking wesley... but no wesley...

[Doc]

Nope. Jonny Blaze, aka Ghost Rider.