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Chapter Sixteen “Don’t you find this all just a little odd?” Sam asked after the second radio check in. “Do I find what odd?” Teal’c asked, ducking under a branch. “That we’re searching for vampires. It’s just a boogeyman type story. They don’t really exist.” “I would have thought that with your experiences that you would not dismiss anything so lightly. Eight years ago you would have not believed that aliens existed and yet you now know many species. Does the fact that Thor believes they exist not reassure you?” Sam frowned slightly. “I suppose it does a little. But how are we supposed to believe that the planet has been protected for thousands of years by teenage girls? Or that Buffy is one?” “Why do you find it hard to trust her?” Teal’c asked instead. Sam stopped and gave Teal’c an incredulous look. “I do trust her, it’s just… this is a little strange.” “It is, but I trust that Buffy Summers will successfully lead us in liberating these people.” XXXXXXXXXX “Do you think there are really vampires, sir?” Simon asked as he adjusted his night vision goggles. “Wells, I’ve seen too much crap over the past few years to not believe in the possibility. If Summers and Jack say they’re real, then they must be,” Dave replied. “So you believe Buffy is some kind of mystical warrior?” “You think she lied?” “No,” Simon said hastily. “This is just a lot to take in at once. I mean, I know she’s tough because of how she rescued Balinsky, but… she’s just so small.” “Don’t let her size fool ya. She’s strong and could probably wipe the floor with Teal’c.” “Really?” “Oh yeah,” Dave said with a snort. “I know for a fact that she’s been holding back during our spar-” “Sir, movement to the left,” Simon said, interrupting him. Both men stilled as they looked to the area that Simon had pointed out. They were quickly able to make out two males making their way through the forest. The distorted faces on the figures assured them that they weren’t friendly. Through a series of quick hand gestures, Dave outlined his plan then melted into the trees. Simon waited until Dave signaled that he was in position by a single click of the radio. He raised the crossbow and made sure it was completely armed. When he was fairly certain his aim was correct he carefully squeezed the trigger. He jumped slightly when the figure literally exploded. Then he saw Dave slip up behind the other and took advantage of the confusion by decapitating it. The dust had settled by the time Simon had caught up with his team leader. They looked down at the two piles of dust on the forest floor and then back to each other. “So… vampires are real,” Simon said calmly. “Looks like,” Dave agreed. “And Buffy is a mystical warrior…” “In a pint sized package,” Dave said with a grin. “I’m telling her you said that.” XXXXXXXXX Late the next morning, Buffy managed to slip away from the two teams. They had already met to go over their findings while they ate breakfast. She was fairly certain that they’d find the vamps local hideout tonight after looking over the map and marking their kills from their first excursion. Her lips twisted in a wry smile as she remembered Sam pouting when she’d learned that she and Teal’c were the only two who hadn’t seen or killed any vampires the night before. The major was probably half convinced that it was a conspiracy against her. Buffy reached a small clearing, she sat underneath one of the encircling trees and pulled out the letter she had found. She had briefly thought about waiting until they were back on Earth to read it, but knew she’d never last that long. She needed to know if her friends were going to support her or turn their backs on her once again. With slightly shaking hands, she opened the envelope and removed the letter. Her hazel eyes closed and she took a calming breath before opening them again. Dear Buffy, I want to start off by apologizing. I never should have said those things to you. It was wrong and just plain rude. You just had me so scared and worried while you were gone. I understood why you had done it, but it hurt that you didn’t feel like you could come to me. I know that our friendship has had a few problems, but I always thought that we could talk about anything together. When you left immediately after Dawn’s funeral without saying goodbye I felt a little betrayed. Faith has pointed out that there were probably too many reminders here for your raw emotions and that you just needed some breathing space. But knowing that still didn’t help. Faith literally held Xander down to keep him from looking for you. It was actually kinda funny and I wish I had taken a picture to show you. Buffy giggled softly at the mental image. She wiped the tears off her cheeks and continued reading. I was just so darn happy when you called that I thought things were going to go back to normal, or at least as normal as we could get without Dawn, and, hey, looks like I can even babble a little on paper. But when you said you weren’t coming back, I felt crushed. It felt like you were running away from us and Dawn’s memory. So I lashed out. But Jack said some things to me that made sense even if I didn’t want them to. I realized I had made a huge mistake that night and I (insert the w word here) I could take it back, but I can’t. The only other person who knows where you are now is Giles. He had walked in right after I got off the phone and I couldn’t hide it. Turns out that he somehow knew you were friends with Jack. Buffy stiffened. She thought she had been so careful. Joyce had mentioned to him that you received a few calls and letters. Since they always seemed to cheer you up she didn’t want to press, but she was still worried. Giles did some research and found out that he was a good man. He said he didn’t know what the top-secret thing is that he does, but knows of his reputation. He assured me that you were in good hands. Buffy relaxed knowing that their cover wasn’t blown. She’d hate to deal with paperwork and telling General Hammond that her friends had found out about the SGC. That wouldn’t be a pleasant experience. I only hope that you’ll forgive me one day. Know that at least Giles and I, and probably Faith, will support you with whatever you need. If you want, I can try to explain everything to Xander and calm him down before you talk to him, but only if you want me to. Giles sends his love in a very British manner and wants to talk to you sometime – just to talk, nothing serious. Tell Jack I’m sorry for everything I said and thank you for pointing out some harsh truths. But if he hurts you, I’m bringing a shovel. Take care and much happiness! Love, Willow Buffy closed her eyes and bowed her head. Her slim shoulders shook as she cried in relief. She didn’t realize how important Willow’s approval of her new life meant to her until just then. An arm slid around her shoulders and Buffy jumped in surprise. She looked up to see Jack’s brown eyes looking worriedly at her. “Are you okay?” He softly asked. She smiled at him and nodded. “Not that I’m arguing, mind you, but it’s been my experience that tears usually mean the exact opposite,” he said with a little frown. Not sure if she’d be able to find the right words, she handed him Willow’s letter instead. She snuggled against him while he read. When he finished, Jack sighed. “Well that sucks.” “Why?” “I can’t yell at her now. Hell, she even thanked me. It’s no fun that way.” He handed the letter back and wrapped his other arm around her. “But it makes you happy so I guess it’ll have to do,” he said in mock exasperation. “Guess I’m not a good secret keeper,” she said, folding the letter and putting it back in the envelope. “Eh, moms are nosey. I’m not too surprised.” “I’m surprised Giles never said anything, or called you when I was dead.” “Won’t know until you talk to him about it,” Jack said. He tilted Buffy’s chin up with a finger. “You sure you’re okay?” “Very,” she said, reaching up to him to kiss him softly on the lips. “Good,” he said, capturing her lips again. “Before I forget, lunch is probably ready by now,” he said, kissing her again. “Already?” She asked, pulling back and breaking the moment. “How long was I gone?” “A while. Plus, it took me a while to find you,” he said with a sigh. “It didn’t feel that long.” Her stomach growled loudly and she blushed slightly. Jack stood and held out his hand. “Come on. Let’s feed the hungry beast.” XXXXXXXXX Daniel looked over at Jack while they continued on the patrol of the area that Buffy had given them that night. Jack was as quiet as he had been the night before. Curiosity that he could no longer contain was burning behind Daniel’s eyes as he said, “So…” “So…?” “So…” “So what, Daniel?” Jack asked. Daniel opened his mouth to speak and Jack quickly cut him off. “I swear I’ll hurt you if you say so again.” “You and Buffy, huh?” “Congratulations. It only took you three days to say something. A definite improvement.” “Jack.” “Daniel.” “Are you going to tell me about it?” “Nope.” “Why not?” “None of your business.” “Oh, come on, Jack. After I watched out for Buffy while you were being a complete ass and then making you see the errors of your ways, I think I deserve something. Besides, I thought I was your friend.” “You are, Daniel, it’s just… It’s still very new and I don’t want to ruin it.” Daniel smirked. “All the more reason to talk to me, to make sure you don’t screw up.” Jack glared at him before realizing that the lack of light was diminishing its effect. “Why do I keep you around?” “You gonna tell me about it?” Daniel asked again. “You’re not going to let go of this, are you?” Jack asked with a sigh. He ducked under a few low-hanging branches. “Not unless you give me a good enough reason.” “Fine. I asked her out, she said yes, and we had a very nice date before we were rudely interrupted,” Jack said irritably. “Where did you take her?” “Forget the vampires. I’ll kill you myself.” XXXXXXXXX Jeff grimaced as he adjusted his hold on the axe. It was still an unfamiliar object in his hands, but so far he had no reason to use it. Buffy had easily dispatched the three vampires they had seen the night before and the one from that evening. Even with his experience with aliens and the Goa’uld, this was a surreal experience. As a kid he had always hoped that vampires were real, but the childish dreams had given way under his growing scientific mind. This was just another shift in his belief system and it excited him. Made him a little giddy. A few feet in front of him, Buffy stopped and turned back to him. “Hurry up,” she whispered. “I think I found it.” As quickly and quietly as he could, he reached Buffy. She was standing in front of a slim opening in the mountain. If Buffy hadn’t pointed it out to him, he would have never seen it. Buffy flicked on her flashlight, more for his benefit than hers, and slipped inside. “This is it,” she said after a moment in her normal tone. “This is their hideout.” “Are you sure?” Jeff asked. “This could be a mountain lion’s home.” She grinned and shined her flashlight towards the opposite wall. “I don’t know of a lot of mountain lions who use chairs. Do you?” “Good point,” he said, looking at the well-used, yet sturdy wooden chairs. “Should we tell the others?” “Next check-in is in fifteen minutes. We’ll just tell them then.” “Now what?” “We wait,” she said, sitting in one of the chairs. “For how long?” “I’m gonna wait until dawn.” Jeff grinned. “Catch them as they come home.” “Exactly.” “How many do you think are left?” He asked as he sat down next to her. “Well, between the nine that were killed last night and the one I killed earlier, there shouldn’t be more than five to ten left.” “Five to ten?” It depends on how many the others killed and how many were actually living here.” She leaned her head back against the cave wall and closed her eyes. Jeff stood up and began restlessly pacing. “How can you be so calm?” “You get used to it,” she said with a sad smile. “Willow and Xander used to be jumpy when they first started helping me. They’d jump at almost every shadow. It didn’t last for long though.” She opened her eyes and looked over at him. “Think about when you first started fighting the Goa’uld. Weren’t you a little jumpy then, but eventually settled?” He thought about it for a moment and then nodded. “It makes you a casualty.” “But I’ve… Oh,” he said, understanding that not all wounds were visible. He sat back down, and they stayed that way in silence for a while before he said, “I don’t mind it though.” “Mind what?” “Being a casualty. I had… well, believe it or not, I had a hard time fitting in with the outside world. I may not have a lot in common with Dave, Simon, and you, but somehow you’ve become… family,” he said softly. “It’s nice.” “Even when we give you a hard time?” “Especially then,” he said with a grin. “You’re being friendly about it, making me part of a group, not an outsider.” “Anything to help.” The radio on her vest crackled to life. “This is Jack and Daniel reporting in. Nothing yet. How about everyone else?” Buffy counted up the numbers as everyone reported in. She figured that there were, at most, six vampires left. “I’ve found the hideout,” she told them. “Right where I thought it was. Just keep closing in. It should take most of you another hour to get here. But you have to be careful, the entrance is hidden pretty well.” “On it,” Jack said. “Check-in is in another half hour.” “So saving the world again, huh?” Jeff asked. “This doesn’t even register on the apocalypse scale.” Previous Chapter Undertow Menu Next Chapter |
