Fic: Shanshu 35: Sword Play

[dragonyphoenix]

Title: Sword Play
Fandom: BtVS
Prompt: 465 - Flashback
Rating: PG
Summary: Another chapter for Shanshu
Word Count: 1117

Their path dead-ended in an armory. Not guns, demons didn't use them, or the axes they'd seen the demons carrying, but swords. As far as Willow could tell, they were sort of your everyday go-to sword, or a Slayer's version of that anyway, swords with slightly curved single edge. “At least we've got our choice of weapons.”

Will glanced about the room but didn't take a sword. “I don't like it. We should go back, take another turning, before they …”

And there was that chittering noise again, real close. “Too late.” Willow grabbed the nearest sword and tossed it to Will.

He cringed back and it clattered to the floor. He picked it up and held it out in front of him, with both hands, as if it were a big stick. “You know how to use one of these things?”

“I've got my magic.”

The look he gave her said he still didn't believe in magic. “Shit, we're dead.”

“Spike was good with a sword, well, with any kind of fighting.”

He raised the sword up and brought it down with an awkward chop. “Too bad he's not here then.”

The demons swarmed in and they didn't look as bug-like as Will seemed to think they did. It was just that their arms and legs were really thin, to thin to be human, and that's probably what made Will talk of bugs when he saw them. When the demon blocked Will's swing with its axe, the sword fell to the ground. Willow shot out a bolt of magic. It wasn't the greatest defense because each bolt took energy. Maybe she should have learned to swing a sword at some point. The demon dropped but then the others swarmed all around her as if she were the target rather than Will, which didn't really make sense unless they thought her magic was a threat, which it damn well was. She zapped another but it raised a shield and the magic bounced off. It was odd, though, they weren't really attacking so much as surrounding her.

“Red.” The shout was in Will's voice, but the word was Spike's no matter what Will had said earlier. Two of the demons fell before his sword and the others lowered their shields as they turned to attack Spike or Will or whomever he was. She zapped three of them while he took out the fourth. He flashed a grin at her. “Right handy you are in a fight, luv.”

He'd been pretty handy himself. Swinging the sword like that. She could see what Buffy had seen in him. “Spike?”

The sword clattered against the floor. His face went pale. Not as pale as when he'd been a vampire, but a lot of the color drained away. “Oh God, spikes, blood. Shit, children … I did … to kids?” Oh, flashbacks or maybe his memories were returning. It seemed like an odd time but if he could fight again, she wasn't going to complain. But then he dropped to the floor and scrunched up over himself with his face down between his knees and his arms curled around his head. And then he screamed. It sounded like a siren, rising in intensity and pitch, but it never came down again. His soul seemed to be pouring out in a long, drawn-out keening. Bad, this was very, very bad.

“Spike. Spike!” His screams weren't letting up. If she didn't stop him he'd draw more of those demons down on them. “Spike!” She yanked his arms until he was sitting up and wished she hadn't. Tears were streaking down his face. “Spike, you have to stop or the demons'll find us again.”

“Good. Let 'em kill me.”

“Spike, I know what you're going through.”

“Bloody hell, bugger off woman.”

“I do. After Tara was killed … Do you remember Tara? She was shot and I sort of snapped. I went after the guy who'd killed her. Spike, I skinned him alive. Used my magic to rip his skin right off.”

Spike turned away from her and puked against the wall. Okay, maybe not the best approach. As he turned back, he wiped the puke from his mouth. “You've got to kill me.”

“What? No. You can get through this. You've done it before. I mean, yeah, you went a bit crazy but …”

He pulled open his shirt and popping buttons flew into the wall. Oh, and, wow. He might be human but he'd kept his abs just as tight …

“Kill me. Stake, right through the heart.”

“What? I don't have a stake. And no, I'm not killing you.”

“Have to. This is what the demons wanted. My memories back. Now they can rain down fire and lay waste to the land.”

What? “Oh, you mean they couldn't use you in the apocalypse ritual until you had your memories back? I wonder what kind of ritual …”

“Red. Luv. Kill me.”

“No, I'm not killing you. We're going to escape and kill the baddies because that's what we do.”

“I'm bad, Willow. Wasn't kidding when I called myself the big bad. Kill me. Now. Before it's too late.”

And then it was too late. Demons swarmed into the room so fast Spike barely had enough time to grab his sword before Willow was swept away as if by a roaring river. It sounded like he'd cried out something about dying with a sword in his hand, but she couldn't be sure. She found herself smashed up against the rocky walls of the cave, her arms held still and a hand over her mouth so she couldn't cast a spell. One of the demons raised an axe and started swinging it around.

“No!”

As if halted by Spike's shout, the axe stopped just an inch or two shy of her throat.

Spike dropped his sword. Oh, bad idea. Bad, bad idea. “I'll come peaceful like. Just don't hurt her.” Damn, Spike had been right. They should have died before letting these demons use him to call down an apocalypse.

The demons let her go and Willow fell to the floor. Spike rushed over to help her up and the demons started chittering. “Bug off. I'm not going without her.” She let him drag her back to her feet. “You alright, luv?”

Willow winked at him. “Give her some room,” he called out. “Come on, let's get this over with.” As they walked down the endless tunnels, Willow made a big production of needing Spike's support although she tried not to lean on him any more than she had to for appearances sake. If they were going to get out of this, they'd each need all the energy they could muster.