Armageddon SagaAngel stopped the caravan at a lost piece of woods at the side of the road. He motioned
Chapter Twenty-Six:
The Catacombs: Angel's Hell Revisited
By the Lady Sirona ladysirona@LadySirona.com
at a small opening in the forest at the base of a hillside. Buffy looked at the entrance. It
was hidden in the hillside behind bushes, and it wasn't very noticeable. Buffy knew if
Angel hadn't lead them to it, they would never have found it. It was just a small break in
the hillside, barely visible though the small separation in the foliage.They left a man in the vehicles, surrounded by garlic, crosses and holy water as they
walked into the opening. Buffy was keyed up and anxious. This was a classic vampire lair
like the types she had never seen before. That is used to be Angelus' added excitement
and dread to the adventure. She could feel the vampire energy that had built up there
over the last century.Angel went first into the dark cleft, followed immediately by Buffy. Willow followed
Buffy with Xander at her side. Giles walked carefully holding his crossbow high. Four
young and strong gypsy men followed them from the tribe. Karl had sent them as back up
and they had no desire to be there in any way. They thought going into a vampire lair at
night was insane, even if they were there with the Vampire Slayer and her consort on the
orders of the Lady Tirla. They were terrified.They walked away into the dark cavern, Buffy could barely see, and Angel had
recommended against regular lights. The humans carried small red light flashlights that
lit their way, but did nothing for the dark and gloom that ate at the edges of their
immediate environment. Bright white lights meant humans to vampires, and if they
wanted to sneak up on the remaining members of the pack they would have to do it by
entering as close to vampire fashion as they could.As they walked further along, Buffy noticed a coyly sweet, rank smell that seemed to
permeate the air. She wrinkled her nose up at it and Angel frowned. He nodded toward
an opening off to the side that was barely visible and whispered to her. "The main groups
disposal pit is that way," The regret and self-loathing was clear in his voice. She nodded,
thinking with increasing nausea about the numerous bodies that had probably been
rotting in that pit for the last 100+ years. She fought to prevent her stomach from tossing
her dinner.The caverns were dark and shadowy. Angel strode through them with the long
familiarity of one used to a lighted garden path in daylight. Buffy was close to Angel, she
was aware there would be a sentry soon, and they had planned out their fighting
techniques before they had left the compound.At a small narrowing of the path Angel reached up quickly and pulled down from a hidden
ledge a vampire that had ready too pounce on any intruders. Angel flipped him on his
back, and before the vampire could even start to react, Buffy thrust her stake into his
chest and rendered him into dust. The gypsies stared in shock at the speed with which the
Slayer dispatched the vampire.They left the three Gypsies at the narrowing to guard the way, to prevent anyone from
sneaking up behind them. The final battle with the catacomb vampires was going to be
just the Slayerettes. The gypsies were more than willing to stay where they were told
with their crosses, holy water and garlic.Angel strode into the main area of the vampires. A thin tall dark woman stood there
talking to another vampire. They both turned to assess who was walking into their
lair. The woman smiled as she recognized someone she hadn't seen in decades."Angelus!" She smiled and put her hand out. He manner was inviting and Angel's mind
ranged back in time to when that gesture meant an invitation to her bed for Angelus. She
was as beautiful in a dark and disturbing way as ever. She wore her sexuality like a
cloak.Angel took the opportunity to close the distance with her, and came within arms
distance. The woman smiled up at him with wide eyes. Her blatant enjoyment at seeing
him struck Buffy like a knife. Buffy didn't like the familiarity with which the gorgeous
woman responded to Angel. Jealousy flared, was she another ex lover? Somehow, Buffy
just knew she was. Had Angelus screwed every gorgeous vampire in the damned world?The woman looked behind him and dragged her eyes away to look at the others.
She frowned in obvious confusion. "Pets Angelus? I never knew for you to keep pets."
She turned back to him as she obviously dismissed them as beneath her notice. Obviously,
if he walked in with them, they were Enos, thralls to Angelus, and therefore beneath her
notice."Not Pets Antonia, my friends," Angel sneered. He hated the response he was having to
her. Too many decades spent between her sheets wrapped in vampiric passion made him
hyper-aware of her closeness.She laughed. "Oh yes Angelus! You have always had friends... human ones at that!" Her
voice dripped sarcasm as she turned to her companion who didn't seem too impressed by
the infamous Angelus' invasion of his "territory" with Antonia. "You, with breathing
friends? Don't make me laugh! The little blonde is she your little toy Angleus? Does she
know how you treat your toys?" She smiled sarcastically as Buffy bristled. The woman
laughed again at the obvious possessive reaction of Angelus' little pet. Obviously
another mortal girl with whom he was toying, and would eventually be destroying...."No, Antonia, she is not my play toy. I am her consort." Angel said in a low dangerous
voice with a hint of a snarl to it. "You know how I like my women dangerous, Antonia...
there is no woman more dangerous than her...she is Slayer Prime, and we are here to
shut you down." He finished the statement in a vicious growl as he slid into game face
and attacked Antonia.As rapid and sudden as his attack was, the she responded faster, and avoided his initial
lunge. Angel twisted around and kicked out with his heel and struck her in the face, he
heard the bones break. He was sick with the realization he was going to kill the woman
with whom he partnered for decades while he ran the Pack. What kind of monster was
he that he could kill her like this?He heard Buffy engaging the male vampire but was focused on his battle with Antonia.
She was a vicious fighter and would kill him without qualm. Antonia struck out and raked
her claws across his face and neck, nearly tearing his throat out. Angel barely got out of
reach of the claws as he kicked out and heard her left leg fracture under the kick. She
went down with a scream as he followed up with a quick strike to the heart with the
stake he held in his right hand. She looked at him with confusion and betrayal in her eyes,
far to reminiscent of Darla's look to him when he had killed her at the Bronze.She exploded into dust and Angel just stood over the ashes of the woman who at one time
lead the pack with him, and he had called lover while he was Angelus. He
had systematically executed those whom he at one time called family. Self-hatred and
remorse grew in him. What kind of monster was he for killing his own kind? Did he think
for one minute that it would make him human? He would never be human, and he would
never be pure vampire either.He felt odd. He wasn't the vampire he was when he lead the pack, yet he had lead the
pack for years, and now they were dead by his betrayal. He felt unclean to have caused
the deaths of those whom he had called family for decades, and several whom he had
called lover.Buffy could feel the pain radiating off him in cold waves. She could see the self-hatred
and loathing in him. He was so much more emotional now, and her heart broke for him.
He had called these people family for longer than she had been alive, and yet he fought
them at her side. How much love and trust could she need?She came up behind him and slid her arms around his waist and gently hugged him holding
herself against his back in a show of support, without invasion. He leaned back into her
with a low moan and a sigh of pain. "I love you Angel," She told him softly.He turned to her with tortured eyes. His soul showed the depth of his pain. "They were
my family Buffy, for decades. We did everything together... and now I have betrayed
them and killed them" He bowed his head ashamed of the emotions running rampant in
his soul. To mourn the death of vampires to the Slayer was insane...."I am sorry Angel." Was all Buffy could say. She couldn't believe how he could do it.
The strength of his soul was beyond comprehension. She didn't think she could kill
someone she loved to save the world... She didn't know how he had managed to do it."Don't be sorry Buffy. I made my choice." He wrenched himself away from the
sanctuary of her arms and walked over to a boarded up door. On closer inspection Buffy
noticed it had a Celtic Style "A" carved into it.Angel reached out and ripped the board off the door, rendering them into splinters in his
hands. He then kicked the door open and walked in as the others followed. Buffy
realized this must have been Angelus' room.
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