slayedthedragon: (Angel - mug)
It's hard to say when Angel came in through the Door--vampires are sneaky that way--but he's at Bar now, happily enjoying a drink.

That might have something to do with the fact that he accidentally opened the door to Milliways just when Spike was in the middle of a hour-long (it was probably only a minute, but it really felt longer) snark at Angel's expense.

It just felt so good to slam the Door on his outraged, "Oi! I'm talking to y--!"
slayedthedragon: (Angel - Help)
 
[After this]

We join our heroes in mid-argument. (Not hard to do, since they've been bickering for hours now.)

"...I can't believe you're hoping Illyria will break us out of here," Angel is accusing.

"I never said that," Wesley is protesting.

"You almost did."

"Did not."

"Did too. And even if you didn't, you were thinking it."

"So were you."

Angel huffs. "She'd just leave me here to rot. You're the one she's obsessed with."

"She is not--."

"Just like you're obsessed with her."

"I am not--," Wesley glares. "You're trying to distract me from the fact that you, a Champion, need an Old One to save him."

"No I don't. I have a plan."

Wesley's eyes widen in hope. "You have a plan?"

"...Working on one."

Wesley eyes him. "Do let me know when I should start holding my breath in anticipation."

Angel looks away and makes a face at the wall.

"So," Wesley sighs.

"So," Angel sighs.

SMASH goes the wall.

The dust settles.

"You are both useless."

--------------------------------------------

Needless to say, Lofar has had plenty of time to make his escape, so the only thing Team Angel has to show for their Big Takedown is a certain musty odor that seems to linger wherever Angel or Wesley happen to be sitting.

"So now what?" a disgruntled Gunn is asking, doing his best not to wrinkle his nose at the smell, because it would look pretty sad if he did, and the way Charles figures it, Team Angel is looking sad enough as it is.

"We forced Lofar to change his plans. That'll have to be enough for now."

"That's a lame-ass 'win' to settle for."

"We'll find him," Angel snaps. "He just got lucky this time."

Illyria gives Angel a look disdainful even by her standard. "Perhaps, next time, you should hire a minion to drive you to its lair."

Angel barely manages not to wince.
slayedthedragon: (Angel & Wesley - not happy)
 
[After this]

It's been several hours since the two concrete walls slammed down, trapping Angel and Wesley in the stretch of sewer tunnel between them. The smell hasn't gotten any better, and they don't seem any closer to a way out. So things are getting a little tense when Angel eyes one of the walls and says,

"At least it's not a trash compactor."

"What?" Wesley asks, mildly annoyed.

"A trash compactor. You know, like in Star Wars."

"Oh," Wesley replies, bored. "I never saw that."

"You never saw Star Wars," Angel says in disbelief.

"No."

"Wes. Even *I* saw Star Wars. And I was living in alleys feeding on rats."

"Thank you for that *lovely* image."

Angel is quiet for a moment. Then glances at Wesley in concern. "I'm not a geek."

"What now?"

"A geek. I'm not one. Just because I went to see Star Wars. That doesn't make me a geek."

"Angel, I never--. If we were actually having this conversation--which, of course, we're not, because this is clearly some feverish delirium I fell into at some point without realizing it--I would honestly say that I have never thought of you as a geek."

"Good. Because, you know, I'm not."

Wesley s-t-a-r-e-s. Then shakes his head.

"Hard as it must be to imagine, American popular culture was not a featured topic on the Watcher Academy's curriculum."

"Oh, no. Wouldn't want anything interesting to get in," Angel grumbles.


[Next]
slayedthedragon: (Angel & Wesley - not happy)
 
"I swear to ya, Angel, I don't know nuthin' about no demon gods."

Angel crosses his arms, looks up at the sky and then turns back with that glare, the one that makes a demon like Benny feel like a bug pinned to a display board. "Now why don't I believe you?"

"Aw, c'mon, guys," the demon begs. "You know I don't go looking for no trouble."

"No, that's true," Wesley interrupts, his voice hardening. "But it always somehow manages to go looking for you."

"Aw, geez...."

"Benny, Benny, Benny," Angel begins, then grabs the panicking demon and gives him a hard shake, forcing him to look away from Wesley and that alarming dagger he's tossing casually from one hand to the other.

A purely ceremonial dagger, as it happens, but Benny has no way of knowing that.

"We don't care about you," Angel continues. "It's your boss that's the problem. We just want Lofar. He's the one who's been making deals with Ro-Kathac."

"You want me to squeal on Lofar and Ro-Kathac? Why don't you just kill me right now while you're at it?" Benny jerks his head to stare wild-eyed at Wesley. "I'm kidding! I'm kidding!"

Wesley looks extremely disappointed. He starts giving the knife a flip as it goes back-and-forth between his hands. Left. Right. Left.

Angel squints at Wes. Ok, that's it. He is spending WAY too much time with Illyria.

"Benny!"

"WHAT?!? Aw, man...."

"Just give us the address to his lair and we'll let you go. See? We'll even give you a head start."

"Yes, you might even make it as far as Bakersfield before Lofar's hellhounds catch up with you," Wesley adds.

"Wes!" Angel yells, as Benny proceeds to have a complete meltdown.

--------------------------

Ten minutes later they're cruising down Route 10 with the top down on Angel's '67 Plymouth.

"Well. That was productive," Wesley muses, watching the nighttime landscape rush by, "Of course, he might have given us a false address."

Angel rolls his eyes. "He was half out of his mind, Wes. On his best night, Benny isn't the most creative guy. The way we had him, the only thing he was going to come up with was the truth."

"I suppose this is where you'll chastise me for being too hard on him."

"The thought crossed my mind."

"Angel, if we don't put a stop to Lofar, he'll have half of Los Angeles pledged to Ro-Kathac, a demon god who might even give Illyria pause.... No, never mind. It would only encourage her. But the threat is real enough."

"I know that. But at least try to remember we're supposed to be the good guys?"

Wesley is silent for a while. "I'll take it under advisement."

"Great," Angel grumbles, as the convertible speeds into the night.


[Next]
slayedthedragon: (Angel & Wesley - not happy)
 
[After this.]

Long-parted allies and friends. The first man thought dead by the second. The second man thought never to be seen again by the first. United again, only to find themselves lost in a desolate dimension under the sway of their greatest enemies. Their only resources? The few items they have on them.

So, naturally, it takes less than an hour for the bickering to start.

“This is really great, Wes. Another hell dimension with all the rocks and skulls and mile after mile of nothing I ever wanted. “

"It is called the Death Realms. What were you expecting?”

“Should have been called the Walking Realms.”

“Would you prefer I carry you?”

“What I'd prefer would be to end up just once in a hell dimension that has jet planes and race cars. Or, I don’t know, skateboards.”

“I’ll be sure to consult the indexes for one the next time Wolfram & Hart recruits us.”

“...Don’t have to get all snarky about it.”

------------------------------------------

Geburah, of course, is not getting any more cheerful. But the low hills have given way to a view of the Great City in the distance, and Angel and Wesley pick up the pace to get to it as quickly as they can. Out among the low hills, it’s hard not to feel like an easy target.

Fortunately, distance in Geburah is a shifty thing, and the two men find themselves on the outskirts of the City in only a fraction of the time they expected.

“Looks like something wants us here all right.”

“Ye-es,” Wesley agrees. “I don’t recognize these buildings from my previous visits. But one can’t expect this sort of place to remain the same.”

“So how do we to get where we’re supposed to go?”

“You don’t,” a voice calls from behind them. “Not without my help.”

Wesley is not in the least surprised. “Father.”

Angel glowers. “Roger Wyndham-Pryce.”

“So, you’re finally here," He steps out into the pale light. "You might have hurried along. This is not the sort of place I prefer to be kept waiting.”

“Waiting for what exactly?” Wesley asks, his expression growing less pleased by the second.

“For you, obviously. The Council arranged for a precognition of your next visit to this place. At great expense, I might add. But it was important than one of us be present to intervene, so I accepted the formidable dangers involved in coming here. Of course, had I known you were going to take time for an extended tour--.”

“Is this ever going to get to a point?"

“Angelus. Of course. I should have expected I would find you here as well."

“It’s Angel,” the vampire corrects through gritted teeth.

“Yes,” Roger replies, eyeing him. “Well. Hardly a distinction of any significance.”

Wesley doubts Angel's next reply will help the situation.

“Father, what exactly does the Council expect you to prevent? We've come here as part of our effort to undermine Wolfram & Hart. It's hard to imagine why the Council would object to that, unless they've established some sort of alliance with the Senior Partners."

“Wesley. Don’t be impertinent.”

“Need I remind you that the last time we met, you tried to entrap my spirit here forever?”

“Oh, don’t be absurd, boy. It would hardly have been forever. It was merely a reasonable precaution to ensure the safety of those manuscripts until the Council could send a proper recovery team. Surely no more than a decade.”

“It seems your definition of 'reasonable' and mine differ quite a lot.”

"Once in a while, Wesley, you might consider the Greater Good."

“Because the Council has done such a great job on behalf of that,” Angel growls.

“As for you,” Roger turns. “How my son could consort with a monster such as yourself for all this time will be forever beyond me.”

Angel’s face darkens as he takes a step forward, “Keep pushing, Rog, and you might find out just how much of a monster I can be.”

“That's enough,” Wesley steps between them. “Angel hardly needs to prove his status as a Champion to you, Father, or to the Council.”

“That’s right!” Angel points. “The Shan--.”

Roger glares at Wesley. “Do you mean to say you take that ridiculous prophecy seriously?”

”—-shu prophe--[mumble].” (Dammit.)

“--Why, proving that ludicrous document a fraud is barely a trifle, even for a First Year. Laughable nonsense.”

(What’s one less Watcher? Even Wesley shot this guy. Sort of.)

“The Prophecy is quite real, Father, regardless of whether you choose to acknowledge it or not.”

“Oh, very well,” Roger sighs, waving his hand dismissively. “Believe what you must. We have a far more important matter to address.”

”I liked the robot better,” Angel grumbles.

[Continued]
slayedthedragon: (Angel - smirk)
 
[After this.]

Whistler is still talking. Angel is really wishing he would stop.

"...Because it’s not safe for you here."

"And it’s going to be safe for me there? The End of the Universe? How is THAT supposed to be safe?"

"You know, that’s a good point...."

"GAH!!  Look. Whistler. I owe you a lot. You’ve got...heaps of credit with me and everything. But unless you have a plan for getting me to Milliways? It’s not going to happen."

"...Actually? You might not get there anyway."

"...What?"

Whistler was looking at something over Angel's shoulder.

That was never good.

"Ohhh, what now?," Angel turns--. "Oh. Good. A demon lord. Xerxes the Eviscerator. And his mob."

"There must be like fifty demons there. What'd he do, bring everybody?"

"Uhh, no. Only the really dangerous ones."

"Oh, good. ‘Cause I thought we might be in trou--."

"ANGEL! YOU KNEW THIS WAS COMING. YOU AND YOUR MINION WILL LOOK MOST EXCELLENT WITH YOUR HEADS ON THE ENDS OF MY PIKES."

Whistler now looks even more pasty-faced than usual. "...So I guess we’re only completely screwed then."

"Relax. We’re fine."

"Oh, great. This is how you’re getting back at me in the end. Taking me down with you while you do the whole Champion thing I pushed you into--."

"No, it’s because I have friends in high places."

"Higher than him?"

Angel looks up. "...Not for long."


BOOM!!


Whistler is already diving for cover, but he figures it's going to be a while before his retinas let go of the image of a gigantic dragon hurtling down on top of Xerxes and crushing him into the pavement in a burst of meat, bone, and other messy demon parts.

Angel is still standing, enjoying the view, and wearing the first true smirk he’s had since L.A. went straight to hell.

"You know, Whistler," he calls out to the spot right behind the second dumpster. "Once in a while a plan turns out just like—-oh, no. No, NO, NO!! NOT AGAI--!!!".

The demon's head jerks out from behind the dumpster just in time to see a dimensional portal slamming shut, with Angel on the other side. Leaving Whistler all alone with one pulverized demon lord and the last few of his minions who haven’t been eaten yet.

And, of course, one titanic dragon.

Whistler could really use an inhaler right about now.

"Ha-ha-ha—hey. Ho—How you doin’ up there? Thanks for the assist, you know, uhh--."

Three more flailing demons go down the open, jagged-tooth-filled maw with one sweep of the dragon’s enormous head. Their screams echo off the alley walls.

"N-nice dragon?"

"Man, I’m glad you think evil tastes better."

[Continued.]
slayedthedragon: (Angel - serious - looking ahead)
 
[After this.]

Startled that someone could have come up behind him, Angel whips around to see--

Dumpy guy. Loud shirt. Funny hat. You’ve got to be kidding.

“Whistler.”

“Hey, you remember. That’s good. ‘Cause I got important news, Angel. And you’re not gonna like it one bit.”

Angel crosses his arms. “I’m trying to remember a time when you told me something I did like.”

Whistler rolls his eyes. “Oh, that’s nice. Go ahead, beat up on the demon. He won’t mind. He’s used to it.”

Angel rubs his forehead. Great. I really need this now. Then looks up, and sighs. “OK, what?”

“Well...you need to go there.”

“Go where?”

“To that place! Where, whats-his-name, where he’s at. Wyndham-Pryce. What’s that place? Milliways.”

“...What?”

“I mean it.”

“How can I--? You mean that place Illyria keeps complaining about? The End of the Universe?”

“Yeah, that’s the one.”

“But I--. How am I supposed to get there?”

“Wyndham-Pryce got there.”

“I don’t know how to tell you this, Whistler, but—-oh, wait, I do know: Wesley’s dead.”

“So are you.”

“Yeah, but--.” Angel sighs again. This is really not going well.

“Told you you wouldn’t like it.”

“Well, you were right.”

“But you gotta.”

HOW? How am I supposed to end up at the End of the Universe? I kinda doubt there’s a train.”

“Probably not. I heard there was a hearse, though... A hearse with...robot arms or something. And maybe a sports car.”

“...Is it a convertible?” Angel violently shakes his head. “No, wait, NO! I am not listening to this.”

“Look, Angel. I’m not getting any joy here. I’m just passing on what the Powers are saying, and They are making it very clear you have to go there.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s not safe for you here..”

“And it’s going to be safe for me there? The End of the Universe? How is THAT supposed to be safe?”

“You know, that’s a good point…”

“GAH!!”

[Continued.]

Waiting

Dec. 6th, 2007 10:10 pm
slayedthedragon: (Angel - serious - looking ahead)
 
He hates waiting. It’s been weeks since Illyria left to find the Oracles. How much longer is this going to take?

He should go find them himself. Hello? Champion? He could do that.

Yeah.

He’d only end up getting the same cryptic messages the Oracles always gave him. And then he’d be stuck trying to explain them to Illyria and wouldn't that be fun. So let her deal with them. Then if they give her messages she doesn't like, she can take it out on them.

None of this is making him feel very Champion-y.

He should go out. It’s been days since he last made the rounds of the neighborhood, looking for humans to save. Save them, send them to Connor. Where they'd be safe with the others he'd found. The last survivors, getting by in what used to be L.A.

He should go out. They need him. Ever since that night in the alley, ever since Wolfram & Hart unleashed true Hell, the whole city has gone nightmare. Now half the buildings eat anyone who goes in through their ‘doors.’ But staying outside? That's even worse.

Angel slips on his leather coat and goes out to the street. He ducks into a familiar alley and starts making his way through the neighborhood, listening for sounds of struggle, for the sound of someone being dragged into a dark corner for an end that would come fast but not easy.

It’s quiet. But the wind is carrying distant sounds of roaring and screaming. Just another night in Wolfram & Hart’s Los Angeles.

It’s their city now. They made it.

He'd lost it.

“You’re trying to figure out how to get it back, aren’t ya?”

Voice from behind(!) Stupid, letting someone get the jump on you like--. Angel spins round to see:

Dumpy guy. Loud shirt. Funny hat.

You’ve got to be kidding.

"Whistler.”

The demon grins.

“Hey, you remember. That’s good. ‘Cause I got important news, Angel. And you’re not gonna like it. Not one bit.”

[Continued.]

Blood

Jul. 30th, 2007 12:08 am
slayedthedragon: (Angel - serious - looking ahead)
 
The thing is, nobody ever gave Whistler credit. Nobody. Especially not the Powers. Sometimes Angel wondered if anyone even remembered his name.

But Angel would never forget him.

Not a day went by when Angel didn’t think of him at least once. Whistler wasn’t much to look at, but for Angel, he made all the difference. He turned things around.

“I’m gonna tell you something about blood you don’t know. I’m not supposed to tell you, because you’re supposed to get through this for the right reasons. But the way I figure it, you got enough to worry about without the Powers making you jump through more hoops. So here it is:

“Human blood doesn’t always taste better.

“Every person’s different, Angel. Everybody’s wired just a little bit different. Some vampires love the human stuff, can’t get enough of it. But others, the only reason they go after humans is because the demon tells them to. If it was up to them, they can’t stand the taste of the stuff. Every vampire is different. And you, I don’t think it was ever really about the blood, was it?

Angel shook his head.

It was never the blood. It was the cruelty. I’ve always known that.

“So there you go. You get a break on that. Trust me, it’ll make things easier. Except, you know, these things always have trade-offs. So if that part’s easier, some other part’s gonna be even harder to give up. But me, I’d take the physical break over the psychological any day. At least you got a fighting chance with that.”

And it was true. Harmony might have been braindead and psycho, but she was right about the otter blood. It really did add that special taste. And while he never liked to talk about it, that taste was just fine by him.

Anyway, even the hardcore vampires would have to admit—it wasn’t even the blood for them. It was about how the blood felt as it poured into you, into your dead, cold body and made it start to feel alive again. You needed the buzz from the bite because it tingled so bad, like when your arm used to go to sleep, except now it happened to your whole body if you waited too long. But you could feel every drop spreading out. A reminder every time of what you really were now.

It took him a decade to get used to his heart not beating. And he hadn’t even noticed it all that much when he was alive.

Cordy wouldn’t have liked Whistler. He’d have driven her nuts, even more than Doyle. And that was too bad. Angel might have made a lot fewer mistakes if he’d had them both around a little longer.
slayedthedragon: (Angel - serious - looking ahead)
 
The only thing worse than being (un)dead is trying to make everyone think you're really dead. Angel was never very good at waiting, but now (like Willow would’ve said) he’s got to be 'pretendy' dead too, until he figures out what to do next. And it hasn't taken long for that to get very, very boring.

Go back only a decade, and he would have spent this whole time brooding. He used to be pretty good at that. In fact, he still is. But there’s brooding because you want to and then brooding because you have nothing else to do, and that’s never as good.

The real problem is, They're still out there. The Circle. The Senior Partners’ best. Angel has done it. He's hurt them, badly. But he hasn’t taken all of them down. And the ones that are left? Now well out of reach.

"Couldn't finish the job, could you, Captain Forehead?  Ponce."

Taking over the L.A. branch of Wolfram & Hart had been the chance of a lifetime, and despite all the mistakes—-soooo many mistakes—-in the end, he'd done just about everything he could with it. So he's trying not to complain.

But I couldn't save Fred.

But the thing is, the fight's still going on out there. And he doesn't have a part in it. He's done. His people are gone, or on the run, or (dammit. dammit) dead.

Buffy always wanted this. To be done. I didn’t.

Back in the old days, he would have been fine on his own. Not anymore though. Now if he wants back in, if he wants to make a difference, he’s going to need a team.

Like Gunn had.

So, for now, all he can do is just glare at the guy. The guy in the expensive suit that Angel has just ruined by using its lapels to dangle its owner off the roof edge of this office building, ten flights up. The same well-dressed guy who, five minutes ago, had been planning to sacrifice those two college students over there, to some god Angel has never even hard of before.

Wesley would have known.

Small-time stuff. In the Big Picture, whatever would have happened here wouldn’t have mattered. But it mattered to him, which was why he's making sure it doesn't happen. And he's also going to make sure Mr. Evil Sorcerer wakes up tomorrow morning with a burning desire to find a new way to make a living.

A new life, like Lorne has now.

Little stuff. Just like this. That’s how it started before, back with Whistler, back before Buffy, before the move to L.A.

Cordy would have wanted it this way.

Maybe this is how it’ll start again.
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