FIC: To Cross the River Styx (5a/?)

[PChazzman@xxxxxxx]

Yes, I'm slowly getting more fic written. Anyone who missed the earlier 
parts can write me.

Chazzman

TITLE: To Cross the River Styx (5a/?)
AUTHOR: Chazzman
E-MAIL: PChazzman@xxxxxxx 
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story. They all belong 
to Joss and the WB network. Please don't sue. 
SPOILERS: Open season on Season 4. This chapter centers on events from 
'Doomed'.
SUMMERY: I'm re-inventing season 4.
RATED: PG
DISTRIBUTION: Just ask me, please...
FEEDBACK: Is very welcome.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thank you again to all the wonderful people who have sent me 
feedback saying they are interested in seeing more. 


To Cross the River Styx

Chap 5a

Jude sat in his hotel room smoking a cigar as he looked over the folders in 
front of him. The first pile consisted of the personal files of the military 
members of the Initiative. The members themselves would have been surprised 
to discover what information was in the files about them. Not only was there 
private and personal information, but also, certain facts and information 
about themselves that they were entirely unaware of. The second pile 
consisted of dossiers on the Initiative's scientific team members, at the top 
of which sat the well-thumbed-through files on Doctors Walsh and Ackerman.

Pile number three consisted of files on project 'Adam' and the late Willow 
Rosenberg, now project 'Eve'. The names alone were enough to tell Jude that 
Walsh was unreliable. People with God-complexes always were. They were 
always certain that they were right and they hated having others controlling 
them. That was why she hated him. He was her controller. Unfortunately, 
she did not fear him. Ninety-nine percent of the time, fear was the key. 
The whip with which people were controlled and manipulated. Fear either for 
their jobs or their lives. With Walsh, he had to control her by controlling 
those around her; restricting her resources. Initially this had been easily 
done. Now, however, with the "Success" of project Eve, there was clamoring 
for results from project Adam.

Finally, there was pile number four. Actually, a single folder with one name 
on it. Buffy Summers. Inside the folder were a photo, four police reports, 
the past semester's worth of university grades, and a twenty page single 
spaced type report from Eve about the activities of Miss Summers over the 
past three years as 'The Slayer'.

It was fascinating to read

And alarming.

Looking at the clock, he picked up the phone, attached a scrambler to the 
handset, and dialed a number.

"It's me. This is a secure line."

"Yeah, uh-huh. Yes. No. No, I'm not at all satisfied with the good doctor's 
work."

"Yes, things seem quite and stable now, that's what bothers me. They usually 
are right before it all goes to hell, and from what I've learned the last few 
weeks, Hell's a lot closer than we thought."

"You've seen my report. I think she's hiding things. Skipping over 
important details."

"No I don't have proof. Just a feeling in my gut is all."

"I know. Yes. Well I'm flying in the dark here, but I have to say I think 
you're rushing things by allowing the Doc to proceed." 

"Well I like to plan for the worst."

"And if sterilization is required?"

"I'm also concerned about the Summer's girl."

"With respect, I don't believe that should be our only source on the matter."

"Yes. I'll take care of it."

After hanging up the phone, he sat and quietly smoked the remainder of his 
cigar while looking at the four piles. Finally, he came to a decision and 
stood up.

"Finn."

*****


Buffy threw her hands up in exasperation.

"Giles, I don't know what I'm going to do. It's like I've been handed this 
great big gift and I really should be able to share it with my best friend. 
Except her gift has now been taken away, and I don't want to let her know 
that I've got what those bastards stole from her. I can't hurt her like 
that. I mean after all she has been through."

"I know it's going to be difficult," said Giles as he cleaned his glasses, 
"but if you are serious about wanting to study this new ability, sooner or 
later, she will find out."

"I know. I know, but she's so hurt right now. She asked me to throw out all 
her magic stuff before she came back to the dorm. I took it all over to 
Tara." She paused as a thought suddenly occurred to her. "Or should I have 
kept it seeing as I'm going to be doing the Sabrina thing now?"

"No. No. Quite all right. Besides from what you described, it sounds more 
like sorcery than witchcraft."

"And the diff being?"

"Well, uhm, witchcraft requires the use of mystical items, chants 
or...or...or invocations to help focus and direct the magic. Sorcery uses 
only your mind."

"Well, Willow used to only use her mind to move pencils."

"Shooting a bolt of lightning from your hands is hardly comparable. Yes, 
there are some similarities in many aspects. But either one is totally 
unprecedented in a Slayer as far as I am aware of."

"What about the pendant?"

"It isn't magical-"

"Then why does it make me feel so...I don't know, 'powered up' when I wear 
it?"

"I don't-" He stopped suddenly as the room began to shake. As Items began to 
fall off of shelves, Giles and Buffy moved quickly to stand in the doorway 
arch to the kitchen while holding onto each other.

When it was finally over, Buffy groaned and slumped so that her head was 
resting on Giles chest.

As Giles looked down in puzzlement he heard her murmur in exasperation, "Now 
what?"

*****

"You want me to spy on her?" Riley asked incredulously. It was 12:30 in the 
afternoon of the day of the quake. Classes had been canceled until buildings 
were inspected and deemed safe. Mostly, there was a lot of knocked over 
shelves, but a few windows had shattered and some of the older buildings were 
showing new cracks. Riley sat in a sealed meeting room in the Initiative's 
HQ with Jude Law.

"I like to think of it more of as giving us alternatives," answered Jude. 
"You were against the idea of sending Eve out as Miss Rosenberg."

"Yes, but-"

"Would it surprise you to know that I was against it as well?" 

"Sir?"

"However, I had my orders, and I obeyed them. Now, I've been told that 
before this whole mess you were considered an excellent soldier. Tremendous 
potential according to the reports that I have read. Soldiers follow orders, 
and good ones complete their missions successfully. Now, I am not going to 
order you to do this. This mission is voluntary. Miss Summers would make an 
exceptional recruit before this trouble with her friend. She still might, if 
she is handled properly. If I could, I would do it myself. But I think I'm 
a little too old to be seducing 19 year olds. Besides you already have a 
connection with the girl however slight. All it requires is some attention."

"Why? What is so important about Buffy?"

Jude placed a sealed folder upon the table.

"If you want to know, you will have to accept the mission."

He then stood up and walked out of the room.

Riley looked at the folder for several long minutes. Finally with a sigh, he 
reached out to take the folder, broke the seal and began to read.

*****

"Will, hey," said Buffy as she ran across the lawn to catch up with her 
friend who was laying on a blanket reading a book. 

"Hey, Buf," the girl smiled as Buffy came up. "Whatcha doing?"

"I was about to ask you that young lady. Here it is a day of canceled 
classes and what do I find," she bent down and snatched the book from 
Willow's hands. "You, reading a 'Lit' book. 'Don Quixote'? Fie. Fie on 
thee. It has possessed my fair maiden and I am here to rescue thee."

Eve grinned. "That would explain why several of its friend tried to bury me 
back at the library."

Buffy's face immediately became one of concern. "Are you OK? Did...did you 
get hurt?"

"I'm fine," laughed Eve. "However, we did finally prove that Jeffery 
Ligget's head is so thick that not even the complete works of Charles Dickens 
will get through his skull. For some reason, he seamed to take great pride 
in that when they took him to the hospital."

Willow pensively watched from a distance as Buffy talked and laughed with the 
'Other One'. She hated that girl, whoever she was, and yet... 

She was starting to worry. Was she really 'Who' she thought she was? Or 
even 'What' she thought she was? Nasty thoughts had begun to pop into her 
mind lately leaving her filled with doubts and anxieties. 

"Maybe that body talking to Buffy was actually the real Willow Rosenberg." 

"Maybe 'I' am really just some Hellmouth creation."

"A spirit who had attached itself to Buffy and somehow Buffy's worry about 
Willow had imprinted itself on me."

"Or maybe I'm not even a spirit."

"Maybe I'm just a creation of Buffy's subconscious."

"Look at what had happened to Marcy. Turned invisible because everyone 
ignored her."

This was the Hellmouth.

What if she really was just a figment of someone else's imagination?

What was she to do?

What could she do?

"Nothing."

##### 

End part 5a
TBC