"Help her!" came another male scream.

"Lord Jesus, heal her!" Came yet another voice. Jesus smiled and waved his hand, and then walked through the crowd. The people immediatly parted from his way, leading Jesus to the over dosing party. Xander struggled to get a closer look and got close enough to see everything. Jesus walked over and knelt beside the girl, who was covered in sweat. Blood came from her nose and mouth, and she shook with convulsions. Jesus knelt down, and Xander could hear the woman whispering the same thing over and over again:

"Oh god please don't let me die, oh god please don't let me die....." Jesus quieted her.

"Easy now my child, Your savior is here." He said softly. He put a hand on her forehead and she quieted. Jesus closed his eyes, and whispered a few words, and the girl opened her eyes and breathed in a large breath.

"Lord Jesus?" She asked. Jesus nodded. The girl got to her knees and kissed the mans' feet. "Oh thank you my lord Jesus......"

"Enough!" Xander yelled, stepping forward out of the crowd. "This is sick!" Peter caught him in the neck with a forearm, bringing him to the ground. Xander struggled for air, and watched as Peter drew a hand gun from his jeans and held it above xanders' head. Xander closed his eyes, waiting. Nothing happened. Xander opened his eyes to see Jesus' hand on Peters' arm.

"No." Jesus said quietly. Jesus looked down on Xander, and smiled. He leaned forward, bending over the teen. He held out a hand. Xander sat for a moment, considering, and then took the hand. Jesus helped Xander to his feet, surprising the teen with an actual decent level of strength. Xander was face to face with a man who thought he was Jesus. "Hello, my son, I am Jesus....."

"No, you're a loony." Xander said. He felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Eve. Her face was creased with worry.

"Xander,please, don't...." She began.

"Xander......" Jesus said "What a nice name. Is it short for Alexander?" Xander nodded stiffly. Jesus smiled. "Now now my child, do not be insolent. I am your lord, your savior. I died on the cross....."

"No, you didn't!" Xander exploded "You're just some wacko with delusions of granduer. I don't know how you healed that girl, but I know you're no savior." Eve tightened her grip on his shoulder.

"Please, don't! He'll kill you......" Eve said.

"You care for this....blasphemer?" Jesus asked.

"Yes." Eve said, her head bowed. "I'm sorry for his disobedience, lord jesus......"

"Nonsense. Tell me boy, why are you here?" Jesus said, putting a hand on the top of Eve's head. She gave a small moaning sound at his touch.

"I got lost. A local mechanic fucked up my car, and now me and my.....well......she and I are stuck here." Xander said, not moving back a step or faltering....no matter how scared he was. He saw most of the crowd begining to grow angry at his disrespect of thier apparent 'savior'. "hmmmmmm. I see. Have you met my disciples?" Jesus asked.

"Your disciples.....?" Xander asked.

"Yes, Peter and Paul, and John, and Matthew, and Luke......?" Jesus asked.

"Oh,those guys." Xander said "Yeah, we met." He eyed Peter nervously. Peter gave him an angry look.

"We're called the Nightcrawlers, Lord Jesus." Peter said. Jesus looked over at him.

"What an absurd name for the Disciples of the new messiah." Jesus said "You'll stop using it..."

"No,Lord Jesus. It's our name. We picked it....." Peter said, his voice becoming low.

"Well you will unpick it. I am the lord, and you will obey." Jesus said simply. "It is that simple."

"My lord, we will keep that name." Peter said "It is our pride, it is how we know, and we run this town with it...." Jesus backhanded the skinhead.

"get this straight." Jesus said, his voice still calm "I am the lord. I turn water into wine, I make you walk on water. I run this town, and soon more. You are the weapon, I am the master." Peter angrily got to his feet and glared at Jesus. Jesus held out a hand. Peter, seething with rage, kneeled down on one knee and kissed Jesus' knuckles. Xander watched all this with interest.

"You can't perform those miracles." Xander said "You need the Nightcrawlers to control this town." Jesus glared at him.

"I tire of your doubt. You are the doubting thomas." Jesus said seriously. He reached up with a pale hand and stroked Xanders' face. Xander jerked away but found it held in place by a strong hand. He knew by it's strength that it was Paul, the big guy. "But you will be my Adam." He looked over at Eve. "You want him?" Jesus asked. Eve trembeled as Jesus' hand touched her face. "Then he will be yours." Peter roared.

"No, she's mine! You promised me....." Peter said. Jesus turned toward him.

"You were more suitable at one time, but I have found a new Adam." Jesus looked at Xander "He holds such spirit, and inner strength."

"I want nothing to do with you." Xander said.

"I'm afraid what you want has nothing to do with it, Adam." Jesus nodded, and Xander was hit in the back of the head. Blackness faded to his eyes.

.........................

"Would you wait up?" David asked, running after Anya. Anya spun around towards him.

"What is it, David?" Anya asked coldly.

"Well, Xander asked me to protect you, and I guess I want to help him out." David said, catching up to her. He cluthced at his chest to catch his breath.

"Go home, David!" Anya said, stomping her foot "I can take care of myself. And Xander made his choice. He's not coming back any time soon."

"You don't really believe that!" David said in astonishment. "Xanders' gonna come back! I know he will......he just wants to help that girl."

"That girl is a prostitute. I swear, men are all the same....." Anya began to walk away.

"So that's it." David said from behind her. "It's jealousy." Anya turned around, about to say something. "You can't stand it that Xander is trying to save another girl. You're not the first thing on his mind so he's a bastard." Anya opened her mouth to respond, but David wouldn't let her. "You want to be the center of attention. Look, there is something between you two. Some spark. Don't give it up beacause Xander wants to play the hero." David stopped and watched Anya for a long time. Anya looked at him.

"No. I hate him." Anya turned and walked away. David swore, and then took off in another direction. He had to find Xander.

.......................

Anya walked away from David seething with rage. How dare he talk to her like that? She's tortured men like him for centuries and now.....well now she was a lovestruck girl pretending not to love. She hated being mortal. "Love sucks, don't it?" Came a cheerful voice from the shadows. Anya stopped in her tracks. "It's kind of funny. You go from avenging the broken hearted to becoming one. The irony is delicious, don't you think?" A man with dark hair walked out of the shadows. He ran his hand through his brown hair and smiled at her, revealing row after row of pearly white teeth. He was wearing a black suit with a white dress shirt and a black tie. "Well, I suppose you don't, being the victim of that irony, but you know where I'm comin' from,right?" Anya watched him, unblinking. "Hey, don't go speechless on me now, Babe." He said, holding out his hands.

"Who are you?" Anya asked.

"Well..........my name is...Lou. Lou Cypher. Nice to meet ya." He put a hand to shake. Anya relectantly shook it. "You know, that guy, Xander? He's in trouble. That idiot who calls himself..." He sighed "Jesus, has him."

"Xanders' in trouble?" Anya asked, her love coming through.

"Yeah. I want to go rescue him. I got to show this Jesus guy a thing or two about cults myself. But listen, that guy,David? You can't trust him. He's one of the bad guys, Babe." Lou looked behind her. "He's gonna come find you. Go with him, keep an eye on him. He's dangerous." Lou pulled her close and finished it with a whisper. Anya nodded as she heard David coming. She turned, preparing for David to run up to her. She turned back and saw Lou was gone. She shook her head and waited for David to come back. David ran up to her.

"Listen, I think we should go find Xander and then escape together. We can make it out of here together." David said. Anya nodded.

"Okay. Let's go." She followed him out of the area.

.......................

"Let me out of here!" Xander screamed. He looked over at Eve, who sat on the bed near him. Xander kicked at the locked door again, but to no avail.

"We have to do this. It is his will." Eve said.

"No." Xander said "That's bull and you know it. I'm not just going to have sex with you for no reason..."

"There is a reason. We must give birth to the son. The new god. He will come and untie this world." Eve said "We must do it for Lord Jesus."

"Look, Lord jesus is just some lunatic. Why don't you just go and get a load of cool aid with him....." The door opened and a man with a black suit and white shirt walked in and ran his hand through his brown hair.

"Well said, Xander." The man said "My names' Lou. Lou Cypher. And I'm here to rip Jesus a new asshole."

.................................