Plasma
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It's that time boys and ghouls! So plump up that coffin pillow and get ready to enjoy some lovely terror tales and deadtime stories from 4 ghastly ghouls and cadaverous corpses. 
Vote for which story you enjoyed best, and at the end of the week we'll tally them up and announce the winner! It's up to YOU to decide which of our wickedly wretched writers will end up on the CHOPPING BLOCK and who will make it out with their head on their shoulders! So please do be so kind as to read through these ravenous writings of the macabre!
After Buffy had been raised from the dead a second time, Willow had been walking down the street when she saw a familiar object in a ditch. It was the left arm of the Buffybot, torn off the robot by the gang of demon bikers. She wondered if there was enough left to rebuild it – after all, it had proven to be an asset in the fight against Glory and against vampires during the dark five months when Buffy was dead. She finally found all the pieces, repaired them all and reassembled the Buffybot. She was just about to head over to Buffy’s place with the Buffybot when she got a call from Glies:
Giles: Willow, I have called Buffy and Xander to my place to discuss a new threat and I think you should come over as well.
Willow: I just finished assembling the Buffybot, so we can both come over.
Giles: Very good, there is a new threat and she might come in handy for what we have to do.
Willow and the Buffybot arrived a few minutes later and Buffy and Xander were already there. They all sat down and Giles brought out one of his books of predictions.
Giles: We have a new threat that is supposed to appear at the end of every month starting with Halloween this year and it may not be the most difficult one to defeat, but the consequences of not being able to defeat it are truly the most horrible you can imagine. It demands a sacrifice once a month at the end of the month, twelve sacrifices in a year and what happens to the poor unfortunate sacrifice is that he or she is burned alive and cast into a hell dimension where it is forced to live out its worst moments over and over again..
Xander: Halloween is coming up soon.
Buffy: What kind of a beast is it?
Giles: It’s called Draxoltron the Soul Destroyer and it takes the form of a large flying dragon with a very wide mouth. He demands a victim to be thrown into the flame coming out of his mouth, and if the victim is not thrown into its mouth within seconds, he devours all the people within a quarter mile and they all suffer the same fate of hell.
Xander: How do we fight it?
Giles: Let’s put the Buffybot in sleep mode for now.
Willow hit the standby switch and the Buffybot slumped down on the sofa but didn’t fall over.
Giles: There is a way. The Draxoltron isn’t very smart. It can be deluded into thinking anything is its sacrifice. It can devour any living thing but there is some mention that it gets severely injured if it ingests anything that cannot be burned. It can also be poisoned by various metals and it can be destroyed by anything it ingests that does not burn and this is why I think the Buffybot is going to save us again.
Buffy: I can’t believe I’m saying Spike’s robot was a good idea but it certainly turned out to be useful and it looks like it will be again.
Willow: Copper, silicon, iron, tantalum, aluminum, they are all in there and some of this has to be poisonous to the dragon.
Xander: So do we just show up with the Buffybot and feed it in?
Giles: It may be as simple as that.
Buffy: Where is this Draxoltron supposed to appear?
Giles: It will show up on Halloween night, coming up through the hellmouth. This is in Sunnydale high, right under where the library used to be. We have to be ready at sunset.
Halloween had the usual children going from house to house but the scoobies had no time for that. They plus the Buffybot all showed up at the school on Halloween night and went down the stairs to the Seal of Danzalthar that covered the hellmouth. It didn’t take long before the seal flew open and Draxoltron came up out of the ground with a roar that became a flame aimed at the people he saw.
Draxoltron: Have you selected the sacrifice for this month?
Giles: We have.
Draxoltron: Which one of you is it?
Buffy pushed the Buffybot forward. This was either going to be an entertaining poisoning of the beast that was effective immediately or the beast would die elsewhere and not be seen but in any event, it would be gone with no human toll. With a blast of fire, the beast swallowed the Buffybot whole and disappeared into the hellmouth but there was no apparent poisoning or damage.
Xander: Aw, that’s no fun, I was so hoping to see it thrash around then drop dead in agony.
Giles: I guess we will know if it worked if it doesn’t come back a month from now. Or maybe if I check with a few people I know, we can find out what happened to it.
Willow: All that work and the Buffybot ends up like this.
Giles: Given the consequences, any amount of work would have been justified. I doubt there is any other electronics project you have undertaken that would have a more beneficial effect in Sunnydale.
Willow: At least we don’t need to do another resurrection spell.
Xander: It’s just wires and metal and electronic equipment. It was built before, maybe it would be a good idea to build another one.
Willow: So I just have to order more parts. Then assemble them on a Buffy production line.
Giles: I think that is a good idea. Willow, I can reimburse you for whatever you spend. It’s the least I can do for a worthy cause. I bet we could find a use for another robot within a year. I hate to say Spike had a good idea but his obsession certainly helped us this time. Buffy, what do you think?
Buffy: That’ll put marzipan in your pie plate, bingo.
“Ready or not, here I come”!
A familiar voice echoed through the trees.
“Kaylee”?
River looked around, but no-one could be seen. The pale light from the moon made it difficult to see ahead.
The voice called out again.
“Come find me, River”!
River rose, taking tentative steps forwards. The stiff air chilled her shoulders, and she began to clutch at her arms to keep from trembling.
“Kaylee”?
“Over here, River”.
The response came from close, to her left.
River Squeezed the fabric of her skirt in her fist as she turned to follow the voice.
She indeed saw a figure through the trees…No, two…Zoe…and Mal.
They sat, their backs to her. She continued closer to them, relieved not to be alone anymore.
“Captain, do you know where Kaylee is? She’s hiding. Can’t be found”.
Mal didn’t respond.
River cocked her head, puzzled.
“Captain? It’s me. River”
.
He didn’t move, though she heard him mumbling, “more trouble than they’re worth, little girl….little girl. Shoulda dropped ‘em when we had the chance”.
Zoe responded in an equally dreary tone.
“Right sir, just what I was thinking”.
She edged ever closer, and put her trembling hand out to touch Mal’s shoulder. Suddenly he whirled around and grabbed her neck with both hands…gloved hands. She stumbled backwards, her spine colliding with a tree. He stared at her, a murderous fury in his eyes…his deep, sunken, hollow eyes. His face was gaunt. Almost corpse-like…so was Zoe’s. She too wore the same blue latex gloves that the captain now pressed into her windpipe.
River tried to scream but nothing came out.
“You shoulda stayed quiet. Woulda saved us quite a lot of trouble”. The captain snarled.
Zoe brought a large needle out of her pocket.
River strained, pushing against the tree, struggling to use her feet to kick the captain away. He didn’t move an inch.
Zoe stabbed the needle into River’s forehead, and everything slowly faded to black.
River awoke to a large bright light, shining in her face. She squinted against it, her head still throbbing. She was lifting a hand to block it, when suddenly a blue gloved hand grabbed it, and forced it back down again.
River cried out as the masked figure fastened a strap around it, restricting its movement. The masked figure faded back into the darkness, and River took one shaky breath of relief before a muffled voice cut through the dark.
“Are the instruments prepared”?
Her eyes darted across the black to find the voice's origin. There. Just a shadow against the light. The silhouette came forward to reveal another masked figure, dressed in a surgeon’s uniform. She could just make out a face above the mask…
“Everything is ready, Dr. Tam”.
Simon took a shining metal scalpel from a table just beyond the light, and examined it, sighing. “Such a shame. Such a terrible shame”.
River thrashed against the restraints, but it was no use.
“Simon”?
He poised the scalpel over her heart.
The medical assistant returned to his side.
“Are you sure Dr. Tam? She’s not even dead”.
Simon met River’s wide, fearful gaze.
“She might as well be”.
Just as River felt the cold chill of metal on flesh, the silence was cut by the loud thud of a door, practically flying off its hinges.
Both Simon and his attendant turned in panic, and in an instant, their cries were silenced as they were pulled down below River’s view. She caught sight of something prowling at the edge of the darkness. Was it..more than just one?
Suddenly at her feet was a horrifying creature, hunching over the table. It’s face was gruesome, with bloody, rotting flesh cut and hanging, a snarling lip showing off rotting yellow jaggedly sharpened teeth. It’s shirt practically ripped to shreds, and it’s hat….
Oh, that hat.
Jayne.
But this wasn’t Jayne anymore. No, this twisted monster was no one River had ever known in her life.
It was then she saw the others. Wash shuffled back and forth, his left eye bloodshot and staring, his right entirely absent, leaving nothing but a bloody hollow.
Book crouched to the side, as if waiting for a struggle before he sprung. His gray-white hair was matted and clumps of it stained a deep, dark red. The flesh around his mouth was pulled and pinned back to reveal equally stained sharp and uneven teeth.
Jayne was still for but a moment, before he sprang on her, ripping the binds around her limbs and dragging her by her ankle from the table. She hit the ground hard, and he kept moving, pulling her as she screamed and clawed desperately at the floor. She saw now what he had done to Simon and his assistant…Now unmasked she saw the assistant to be Kaylee…Oh, poor Kaylee.
Through blood and guts and gore he dragged her screaming, and off into the darkness.
She awoke with a start. A warm, strong fragrance entered her stiff, tired lungs. She took in the elaborate drapery around her, and heard the sound of a soft voice humming a quiet lullaby. River was laying at the end of the bed in Inara’s shuttle. She turned her head to find Inara brushing her hair at the mirror to her right.
It took a minute before Inara finally noticed River’s big eyes staring at her, soundlessly.
“Oh, you’re awake! Your brother asked that I look after you. I thought it’d be a harder task, but the first thing you did was curl up and fall asleep”!
She came and knelt beside the bed.
“Were you having a nightmare? You were crying out”.
River nodded as she sat herself up, her head still spinning.
“Well, it’s all over now. You’re safe. Here, come here. Tell me all about it”.
She directed River to the chair in front of the mirror, and as River sat she gathered up her messy tangle of dark curls and began to brush them out.
“Now what was so scary”?
River took a breath before letting her story pour out.
“I-I was lost in the woods, and I was all alone, and then I saw Mal and Zoe…Only they weren’t…right. They…They were all rotting…rotting away.. And they wanted to take me back…they wanted to send me back to the black”.
“I see”.
“And then Simon, he was one of them. He wanted to cut me up, said I was better off dead. But he didn’t get to. Jayne and Wash and Shepherd…They were all reavers, come to eat us. Come to eat me, and Jayne”-
“I see what this is”. Inara cut her off, “I suppose it’s no harm. It’s certainly easier than the truth”.
River looked up at Inara in the mirror. “Truth”?
“Don’t you remember”?
There was a sudden, sharp pain as Inara yanked River’s hair back, forcing her neck to bend backwards, and causing River to look up into Inara’s face.
“It was you that killed them”.
Inara saw the disbelief cloud River’s face, and she went on.
“Why do you think they sent you away with me? You killed them all. You’re the monster”.
River anxiously scrambled for something to say. “That’s not true”...
“It is. You killed them all, and you liked it. Even Simon”.
“That’s not me”!
“Monster”!
River shut her eyes and pressed her hands over her ears. Inara’s voice still came through loud and clear.
“Demon! Killer”!
“Stop it”!
“Freak”!
River squirmed off the chair, and hit the ground.
~*~
Simon awoke, as per usual, in the middle of the night to the sounds of his sister through the walls of his bunk. He drowsily arose, and slid the door open to the hall.
Shepherd Book stood in the doorway to his own room. The Shepherd wore an equally weary look on his face.
“Here we are again, huh”?
“Yes. I’m sorry”.
“I’ll give her one thing. She’s quite fond of routine”.
Simon laughed nervously.
The Shepherd shook his head before slowly sliding his door closed. ‘I’ll say a prayer for you, son”.
“Thank you”.
Simon knocked gently on River’s door, but heard no response.
He slid the door open to find the room completely dark, and after turning on the dim light in the corner, found River on the floor in a mess of blankets. She knelt, her forehead pressed to the ground, her hands pressed tightly over her ears.
“River? River, what’s wrong”?
He knelt beside her, gently tapping her shoulder. She shrieked and tried to scramble away from his touch.
“River…”
He caught her and gently held her by the arms. She finally let herself look at him, and stared in horror.
“River, you’re all right now. I’m right here”.
“Simon”?
“Yes. It’s me, I’m here”.
She lifted her fingers to feel his face, as if trying to make sure she was seeing him right.
“What are you looking for”?
She shook her head and sprang on him, flinging her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder.
He put his arms around her in turn. She was silent, but he could feel warm tears soaking into his nightshirt.
“It was only a nightmare”.
Red eyes amongst the trees
Willow agreed to accompany Buffy to the big old house at the eastern edge of town. “You will oh good I didn’t want to go there by myself,” said Buffy. Willow looked at Buffy as if to ask why, “That place gives me the creeps,” replied Buffy.
Willow grinned, “It does have a ripe reputation,” grinned Willow as she looked about the room for anyone else to go there with them. Giles was disgusted with everyone, “What is so scary about that place?” he asked, “I am going there with them well, I will drive them there and back, I’d best wait outside though.”
“Just don’t look into the forest though, there is a group of figures who are occasionally seen wandering between the trees, they are said to be successful Devil Worshippers.” Giles gave Willow a puzzled gaze, “They became face to face with who they worshipped; it killed them.
Giles thought deeply on what he’d just been told, “Considering that I might actually want to sleep tonight I might wait in the car. “Scary place huh?” asked Xander. “It can be, imagine if the person some twelve feet away in the forest had fiery red eyes then think of what scare factor
would it be if the person right in front of you had those same eyes.” Xander stepped back. “Luckily though they do not venture beyond the tree line,” continued Willow. Giles watched as Buffy and Willow wandered towards the house, they found the front door firmly closed.
“Come on Buffy let’s see if there is a side window open,” said Willow following Buffy along the side of the house. “Here’s one, though the window has been broken,” said Buffy. Willow clambered in through the window frame.
Buffy stared as she saw the several broken pieces of glass in the edges of the frame but no cut in the back of Willow’s jacket even though she had pressed back hard against the frame as she lifted her legs through the opening. Buffy was more careful about getting into the house: the glass was sharp.
Wondering why Willow’s jacket hadn’t been marked by the glass, Buffy followed Willow though she was beginning to keep her distance. Willow led the way along the hall to the stairs, after Willow had stepped up four steps she turned to face Buffy, “Careful about broken steps.”
Buffy asked Willow where they were going? “Traditionally, without a basement the scariest place in the house has always been the attic, so, guess where we are going?” asked Willow. “Oh goody,” muttered Buffy, she tried to smile and followed Willow up to the top step.
“Have you heard that?” asked Willow. Buffy looked about, “What.” “As we got closer to the top there was a sound of a lot of people whispering, it seemed to get louder and louder the closer we got to here.” Buffy glanced to her. “Do we have to go in the attic?” asked Buffy.
Before she uttered another sound the door opened and Willow stepped through the opening, Willow turned to see if Buffy was behind her, “You are not going to like this.” Buffy looked to her. “On the next rafter above our heads if you don’t look up it might appear as though
there is an electric light above us,” said Willow. “And if I do look up?” “You will see there is no electric light bulb above us, the brightness is coming from a burning skull – I’m getting the feeling that someone does not want us here.” Willow grinned to Buffy.
“Sorry, I should have said that someone does not want ME up here but I’ll be alright,” said Willow after she had turned to face Buffy. Buffy was at a loss of what to think. “What do you mean by that?” asked Buffy. “Do you remember?
When I was scary veiny with black hair, guess what? The devil protects his own!” Willow exclaimed as she smiled to Buffy, “Beside I love it when ghosts and the paranormal become real, all those scientists and religious zealots are faced with the truth.
that there is more to follow after this life and sometimes, just sometimes the dead have teeth that have been sharpened to a point, so who says that ghosts cannot hurt you. One might even ask why I saw six levels of windows as we came up here, yet there are only five floors, you got too love the easily explainable,” said Willow.
A single flicker of a match lit Willow’s face as she peered across the darkened field. She had been waiting for this night for months, ever since she stumbled across Ms. Calendar’s wicca files in the aftermath of her passing. She spent all summer learning about rituals and spells, everything she could immerse herself in about her new wicca craft.
As she dropped the match on the ceremonial pyre, she began reciting the words from the spiritual compendium she borrowed from the library. She had been studying this compendium for a while, and she found the perfect ritual to try tonight. Suddenly the fire burst wider and larger. Visions of ghostly apparitions swirled around her.
One spirit floated in front of her, a spirit Willow recognized from one of Giles’s books.
“L-lucy Hanover?” Willow asked.
“It is I, Willow Rosenberg,” the young female spirit responded. “This is a very dangerous and powerful ritual you are attempting, young witch. Especially on the night of a new moon during the time of Samhain. As a friend of Buffy Summers, you should know that.”
“Y-yes it is,” Willow started. “B-but I was hoping it w-would help.”
“Tonight, on the night of Samhain, the spirits along the Ghost Roads are looking for any opportunity to come back,” Lucy told her. “They cause mischief–and death. Where is the slayer?”
“W-well,” Willow began, looking around. “I-I didn’t know if it would w-work. S-so I m-may have forgotten to m-mention it to her.”
Lucy’s eyes darted around Willow. The hair on Willow’s neck began to rise.
“Willow Rosenberg, it is not safe here,” Lucy said. “What spirit were you looking for tonight?”
Willow reached into the bag and pulled out a shiny yellow disk.
“A friend,” Willow started. “S-she passed away, and I n-never got to tell her goodbye. A-and thank you.”
For a moment, it appeared as though Lucy closed her eyes. Somewhere nearby a twig snapped.
Willow’s breath caught in her throat. “L-lucy?”
Lucy’s eyes shot open. “Willow Rosenberg, I believe I have located your friend. You will only have a few moments with her before we will need to leave you. Even in death, it is my duty to protect the innocent. Blessed be. And good luck.”
Lucy’s spirit drifted off, and in her place stood the figure of a woman Willow had known for a short time, but had impacted her immensely.
“Willow,” the woman said, sorrow filling her eyes. “Oh, how I’ve missed you.”
Willow wanted to throw her arms around the kind spirit, but she knew that was impossible. All she could muster was a single tear down the side of her cheek.
“I’ve missed you, too,” Willow said. “We all have.”
“Willow, this was very dangerous,” Ms. Calendar’s spirit warned her. “I would ask you how you managed it, but you have always been more than capable of anything you set your mind to.”
“She’s right.” A deep, British voice startled Willow from behind. “It was very foolish to attempt this spell, Willow.”
“Giles?!” Willow half turned, nearly breaking her concentration. She could feel the winds pick up from all around them.
As he stood next to his young pupil, Giles let out an audible gasp as his eyes laid upon the spirit Willow conjured. “Jenny.”
“Rupert,” the spirit of Jenny said. They stared serenely at each other. “Don’t be too hard on her. It comes from a good heart.”
“These spells are much too dangerous for her,” Giles said. He gently grabbed Willow’s hand. “For you.”
The wind continued to pick up, and Willows hair began fluttering around like dancing embers.
“Willow, you need to end the spell,” Giles told her, gently squeezing her hand. “It’s time.”
“B-but how?” Willow asked. “She’s here, Giles.”
“I know,” he said. “And while I am incredibly disappointed you attempted this by yourself, I do thank you for doing this. For her. For me.” He looked back at the spirit of his lost love. “But it’s time.”
The ceremonial pyre had gotten bigger and brighter; the strong wind threatened to spread the fire.
Suddenly, the spirit of Lucy Hanover appeared once again.
“Willow Rosenberg,” Lucy said, urgently. “I have tried to fight off the dangerous spirits, but it won’t be long until they are here.” She took Jenny’s hand. “I am sorry, but we must go.”
Jenny held out her free hand towards Giles. “I’ll be here, Rupert. Whenever you need me, I am here.”
Giles returned the gesture silently, and grabbed Willow’s hand. “Willow, you must end the spell.”
Tears in her eyes, Willow chanted the words to close the ceremony. As she did, the wind and fire ceased, and the spirits of Lucy and Jenny dissipated until there was no light, and no presence in the field, except for Willow and Giles.
Willow turned and wrapped her arms around her mentor. “She was here Giles.”
“Yes, Willow, I’m aware,” he smiled. As they pulled apart, he gently grabbed her shoulders. “Why did you do this Willow?”
Willow looked over at the burnt-out pyre, where the spirit of Jenny was just standing. “Ever since that night when we were on the staircase and I was doing the ritual to expel evil spirits, and you were so certain that it was Jenny haunting the school, I just wanted to find a way to show you she is okay.”
Giles gave Willow another big hug. “You were foolish to try this alone.” He shook his head. “I know I have been hard on you and your craft over the last few months, but it’s for your safety. These are dangerous forces you are dealing with.”
“I know, Giles,” Willow said. “But I’m good at it, and it can help.”
Giles looked around at the burnt pile, and the scattering of fall leaves all over the field. “Okay, I understand. But please, let me teach you.” For a brief second, he caught one more glimpse of his beautiful Jenny. “It’s what she would have wanted.”
Vote for which story you enjoyed best, and at the end of the week we'll tally them up and announce the winner! It's up to YOU to decide which of our wickedly wretched writers will end up on the CHOPPING BLOCK and who will make it out with their head on their shoulders! So please do be so kind as to read through these ravenous writings of the macabre!
Post automatically merged:
1. THE HALLOWEEN DRAGON
After Buffy had been raised from the dead a second time, Willow had been walking down the street when she saw a familiar object in a ditch. It was the left arm of the Buffybot, torn off the robot by the gang of demon bikers. She wondered if there was enough left to rebuild it – after all, it had proven to be an asset in the fight against Glory and against vampires during the dark five months when Buffy was dead. She finally found all the pieces, repaired them all and reassembled the Buffybot. She was just about to head over to Buffy’s place with the Buffybot when she got a call from Glies:
Giles: Willow, I have called Buffy and Xander to my place to discuss a new threat and I think you should come over as well.
Willow: I just finished assembling the Buffybot, so we can both come over.
Giles: Very good, there is a new threat and she might come in handy for what we have to do.
Willow and the Buffybot arrived a few minutes later and Buffy and Xander were already there. They all sat down and Giles brought out one of his books of predictions.
Giles: We have a new threat that is supposed to appear at the end of every month starting with Halloween this year and it may not be the most difficult one to defeat, but the consequences of not being able to defeat it are truly the most horrible you can imagine. It demands a sacrifice once a month at the end of the month, twelve sacrifices in a year and what happens to the poor unfortunate sacrifice is that he or she is burned alive and cast into a hell dimension where it is forced to live out its worst moments over and over again..
Xander: Halloween is coming up soon.
Buffy: What kind of a beast is it?
Giles: It’s called Draxoltron the Soul Destroyer and it takes the form of a large flying dragon with a very wide mouth. He demands a victim to be thrown into the flame coming out of his mouth, and if the victim is not thrown into its mouth within seconds, he devours all the people within a quarter mile and they all suffer the same fate of hell.
Xander: How do we fight it?
Giles: Let’s put the Buffybot in sleep mode for now.
Willow hit the standby switch and the Buffybot slumped down on the sofa but didn’t fall over.
Giles: There is a way. The Draxoltron isn’t very smart. It can be deluded into thinking anything is its sacrifice. It can devour any living thing but there is some mention that it gets severely injured if it ingests anything that cannot be burned. It can also be poisoned by various metals and it can be destroyed by anything it ingests that does not burn and this is why I think the Buffybot is going to save us again.
Buffy: I can’t believe I’m saying Spike’s robot was a good idea but it certainly turned out to be useful and it looks like it will be again.
Willow: Copper, silicon, iron, tantalum, aluminum, they are all in there and some of this has to be poisonous to the dragon.
Xander: So do we just show up with the Buffybot and feed it in?
Giles: It may be as simple as that.
Buffy: Where is this Draxoltron supposed to appear?
Giles: It will show up on Halloween night, coming up through the hellmouth. This is in Sunnydale high, right under where the library used to be. We have to be ready at sunset.
Halloween had the usual children going from house to house but the scoobies had no time for that. They plus the Buffybot all showed up at the school on Halloween night and went down the stairs to the Seal of Danzalthar that covered the hellmouth. It didn’t take long before the seal flew open and Draxoltron came up out of the ground with a roar that became a flame aimed at the people he saw.
Draxoltron: Have you selected the sacrifice for this month?
Giles: We have.
Draxoltron: Which one of you is it?
Buffy pushed the Buffybot forward. This was either going to be an entertaining poisoning of the beast that was effective immediately or the beast would die elsewhere and not be seen but in any event, it would be gone with no human toll. With a blast of fire, the beast swallowed the Buffybot whole and disappeared into the hellmouth but there was no apparent poisoning or damage.
Xander: Aw, that’s no fun, I was so hoping to see it thrash around then drop dead in agony.
Giles: I guess we will know if it worked if it doesn’t come back a month from now. Or maybe if I check with a few people I know, we can find out what happened to it.
Willow: All that work and the Buffybot ends up like this.
Giles: Given the consequences, any amount of work would have been justified. I doubt there is any other electronics project you have undertaken that would have a more beneficial effect in Sunnydale.
Willow: At least we don’t need to do another resurrection spell.
Xander: It’s just wires and metal and electronic equipment. It was built before, maybe it would be a good idea to build another one.
Willow: So I just have to order more parts. Then assemble them on a Buffy production line.
Giles: I think that is a good idea. Willow, I can reimburse you for whatever you spend. It’s the least I can do for a worthy cause. I bet we could find a use for another robot within a year. I hate to say Spike had a good idea but his obsession certainly helped us this time. Buffy, what do you think?
Buffy: That’ll put marzipan in your pie plate, bingo.
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2. Firefly: Nightmare Scenario
“Ready or not, here I come”!
A familiar voice echoed through the trees.
“Kaylee”?
River looked around, but no-one could be seen. The pale light from the moon made it difficult to see ahead.
The voice called out again.
“Come find me, River”!
River rose, taking tentative steps forwards. The stiff air chilled her shoulders, and she began to clutch at her arms to keep from trembling.
“Kaylee”?
“Over here, River”.
The response came from close, to her left.
River Squeezed the fabric of her skirt in her fist as she turned to follow the voice.
She indeed saw a figure through the trees…No, two…Zoe…and Mal.
They sat, their backs to her. She continued closer to them, relieved not to be alone anymore.
“Captain, do you know where Kaylee is? She’s hiding. Can’t be found”.
Mal didn’t respond.
River cocked her head, puzzled.
“Captain? It’s me. River”
.
He didn’t move, though she heard him mumbling, “more trouble than they’re worth, little girl….little girl. Shoulda dropped ‘em when we had the chance”.
Zoe responded in an equally dreary tone.
“Right sir, just what I was thinking”.
She edged ever closer, and put her trembling hand out to touch Mal’s shoulder. Suddenly he whirled around and grabbed her neck with both hands…gloved hands. She stumbled backwards, her spine colliding with a tree. He stared at her, a murderous fury in his eyes…his deep, sunken, hollow eyes. His face was gaunt. Almost corpse-like…so was Zoe’s. She too wore the same blue latex gloves that the captain now pressed into her windpipe.
River tried to scream but nothing came out.
“You shoulda stayed quiet. Woulda saved us quite a lot of trouble”. The captain snarled.
Zoe brought a large needle out of her pocket.
River strained, pushing against the tree, struggling to use her feet to kick the captain away. He didn’t move an inch.
Zoe stabbed the needle into River’s forehead, and everything slowly faded to black.
River awoke to a large bright light, shining in her face. She squinted against it, her head still throbbing. She was lifting a hand to block it, when suddenly a blue gloved hand grabbed it, and forced it back down again.
River cried out as the masked figure fastened a strap around it, restricting its movement. The masked figure faded back into the darkness, and River took one shaky breath of relief before a muffled voice cut through the dark.
“Are the instruments prepared”?
Her eyes darted across the black to find the voice's origin. There. Just a shadow against the light. The silhouette came forward to reveal another masked figure, dressed in a surgeon’s uniform. She could just make out a face above the mask…
“Everything is ready, Dr. Tam”.
Simon took a shining metal scalpel from a table just beyond the light, and examined it, sighing. “Such a shame. Such a terrible shame”.
River thrashed against the restraints, but it was no use.
“Simon”?
He poised the scalpel over her heart.
The medical assistant returned to his side.
“Are you sure Dr. Tam? She’s not even dead”.
Simon met River’s wide, fearful gaze.
“She might as well be”.
Just as River felt the cold chill of metal on flesh, the silence was cut by the loud thud of a door, practically flying off its hinges.
Both Simon and his attendant turned in panic, and in an instant, their cries were silenced as they were pulled down below River’s view. She caught sight of something prowling at the edge of the darkness. Was it..more than just one?
Suddenly at her feet was a horrifying creature, hunching over the table. It’s face was gruesome, with bloody, rotting flesh cut and hanging, a snarling lip showing off rotting yellow jaggedly sharpened teeth. It’s shirt practically ripped to shreds, and it’s hat….
Oh, that hat.
Jayne.
But this wasn’t Jayne anymore. No, this twisted monster was no one River had ever known in her life.
It was then she saw the others. Wash shuffled back and forth, his left eye bloodshot and staring, his right entirely absent, leaving nothing but a bloody hollow.
Book crouched to the side, as if waiting for a struggle before he sprung. His gray-white hair was matted and clumps of it stained a deep, dark red. The flesh around his mouth was pulled and pinned back to reveal equally stained sharp and uneven teeth.
Jayne was still for but a moment, before he sprang on her, ripping the binds around her limbs and dragging her by her ankle from the table. She hit the ground hard, and he kept moving, pulling her as she screamed and clawed desperately at the floor. She saw now what he had done to Simon and his assistant…Now unmasked she saw the assistant to be Kaylee…Oh, poor Kaylee.
Through blood and guts and gore he dragged her screaming, and off into the darkness.
She awoke with a start. A warm, strong fragrance entered her stiff, tired lungs. She took in the elaborate drapery around her, and heard the sound of a soft voice humming a quiet lullaby. River was laying at the end of the bed in Inara’s shuttle. She turned her head to find Inara brushing her hair at the mirror to her right.
It took a minute before Inara finally noticed River’s big eyes staring at her, soundlessly.
“Oh, you’re awake! Your brother asked that I look after you. I thought it’d be a harder task, but the first thing you did was curl up and fall asleep”!
She came and knelt beside the bed.
“Were you having a nightmare? You were crying out”.
River nodded as she sat herself up, her head still spinning.
“Well, it’s all over now. You’re safe. Here, come here. Tell me all about it”.
She directed River to the chair in front of the mirror, and as River sat she gathered up her messy tangle of dark curls and began to brush them out.
“Now what was so scary”?
River took a breath before letting her story pour out.
“I-I was lost in the woods, and I was all alone, and then I saw Mal and Zoe…Only they weren’t…right. They…They were all rotting…rotting away.. And they wanted to take me back…they wanted to send me back to the black”.
“I see”.
“And then Simon, he was one of them. He wanted to cut me up, said I was better off dead. But he didn’t get to. Jayne and Wash and Shepherd…They were all reavers, come to eat us. Come to eat me, and Jayne”-
“I see what this is”. Inara cut her off, “I suppose it’s no harm. It’s certainly easier than the truth”.
River looked up at Inara in the mirror. “Truth”?
“Don’t you remember”?
There was a sudden, sharp pain as Inara yanked River’s hair back, forcing her neck to bend backwards, and causing River to look up into Inara’s face.
“It was you that killed them”.
Inara saw the disbelief cloud River’s face, and she went on.
“Why do you think they sent you away with me? You killed them all. You’re the monster”.
River anxiously scrambled for something to say. “That’s not true”...
“It is. You killed them all, and you liked it. Even Simon”.
“That’s not me”!
“Monster”!
River shut her eyes and pressed her hands over her ears. Inara’s voice still came through loud and clear.
“Demon! Killer”!
“Stop it”!
“Freak”!
River squirmed off the chair, and hit the ground.
~*~
Simon awoke, as per usual, in the middle of the night to the sounds of his sister through the walls of his bunk. He drowsily arose, and slid the door open to the hall.
Shepherd Book stood in the doorway to his own room. The Shepherd wore an equally weary look on his face.
“Here we are again, huh”?
“Yes. I’m sorry”.
“I’ll give her one thing. She’s quite fond of routine”.
Simon laughed nervously.
The Shepherd shook his head before slowly sliding his door closed. ‘I’ll say a prayer for you, son”.
“Thank you”.
Simon knocked gently on River’s door, but heard no response.
He slid the door open to find the room completely dark, and after turning on the dim light in the corner, found River on the floor in a mess of blankets. She knelt, her forehead pressed to the ground, her hands pressed tightly over her ears.
“River? River, what’s wrong”?
He knelt beside her, gently tapping her shoulder. She shrieked and tried to scramble away from his touch.
“River…”
He caught her and gently held her by the arms. She finally let herself look at him, and stared in horror.
“River, you’re all right now. I’m right here”.
“Simon”?
“Yes. It’s me, I’m here”.
She lifted her fingers to feel his face, as if trying to make sure she was seeing him right.
“What are you looking for”?
She shook her head and sprang on him, flinging her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder.
He put his arms around her in turn. She was silent, but he could feel warm tears soaking into his nightshirt.
“It was only a nightmare”.
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3. Scary Tales
Red eyes amongst the trees
Willow agreed to accompany Buffy to the big old house at the eastern edge of town. “You will oh good I didn’t want to go there by myself,” said Buffy. Willow looked at Buffy as if to ask why, “That place gives me the creeps,” replied Buffy.
Willow grinned, “It does have a ripe reputation,” grinned Willow as she looked about the room for anyone else to go there with them. Giles was disgusted with everyone, “What is so scary about that place?” he asked, “I am going there with them well, I will drive them there and back, I’d best wait outside though.”
“Just don’t look into the forest though, there is a group of figures who are occasionally seen wandering between the trees, they are said to be successful Devil Worshippers.” Giles gave Willow a puzzled gaze, “They became face to face with who they worshipped; it killed them.
Giles thought deeply on what he’d just been told, “Considering that I might actually want to sleep tonight I might wait in the car. “Scary place huh?” asked Xander. “It can be, imagine if the person some twelve feet away in the forest had fiery red eyes then think of what scare factor
would it be if the person right in front of you had those same eyes.” Xander stepped back. “Luckily though they do not venture beyond the tree line,” continued Willow. Giles watched as Buffy and Willow wandered towards the house, they found the front door firmly closed.
“Come on Buffy let’s see if there is a side window open,” said Willow following Buffy along the side of the house. “Here’s one, though the window has been broken,” said Buffy. Willow clambered in through the window frame.
Buffy stared as she saw the several broken pieces of glass in the edges of the frame but no cut in the back of Willow’s jacket even though she had pressed back hard against the frame as she lifted her legs through the opening. Buffy was more careful about getting into the house: the glass was sharp.
Wondering why Willow’s jacket hadn’t been marked by the glass, Buffy followed Willow though she was beginning to keep her distance. Willow led the way along the hall to the stairs, after Willow had stepped up four steps she turned to face Buffy, “Careful about broken steps.”
Buffy asked Willow where they were going? “Traditionally, without a basement the scariest place in the house has always been the attic, so, guess where we are going?” asked Willow. “Oh goody,” muttered Buffy, she tried to smile and followed Willow up to the top step.
“Have you heard that?” asked Willow. Buffy looked about, “What.” “As we got closer to the top there was a sound of a lot of people whispering, it seemed to get louder and louder the closer we got to here.” Buffy glanced to her. “Do we have to go in the attic?” asked Buffy.
Before she uttered another sound the door opened and Willow stepped through the opening, Willow turned to see if Buffy was behind her, “You are not going to like this.” Buffy looked to her. “On the next rafter above our heads if you don’t look up it might appear as though
there is an electric light above us,” said Willow. “And if I do look up?” “You will see there is no electric light bulb above us, the brightness is coming from a burning skull – I’m getting the feeling that someone does not want us here.” Willow grinned to Buffy.
“Sorry, I should have said that someone does not want ME up here but I’ll be alright,” said Willow after she had turned to face Buffy. Buffy was at a loss of what to think. “What do you mean by that?” asked Buffy. “Do you remember?
When I was scary veiny with black hair, guess what? The devil protects his own!” Willow exclaimed as she smiled to Buffy, “Beside I love it when ghosts and the paranormal become real, all those scientists and religious zealots are faced with the truth.
that there is more to follow after this life and sometimes, just sometimes the dead have teeth that have been sharpened to a point, so who says that ghosts cannot hurt you. One might even ask why I saw six levels of windows as we came up here, yet there are only five floors, you got too love the easily explainable,” said Willow.
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4. Spiritus
A single flicker of a match lit Willow’s face as she peered across the darkened field. She had been waiting for this night for months, ever since she stumbled across Ms. Calendar’s wicca files in the aftermath of her passing. She spent all summer learning about rituals and spells, everything she could immerse herself in about her new wicca craft.
As she dropped the match on the ceremonial pyre, she began reciting the words from the spiritual compendium she borrowed from the library. She had been studying this compendium for a while, and she found the perfect ritual to try tonight. Suddenly the fire burst wider and larger. Visions of ghostly apparitions swirled around her.
One spirit floated in front of her, a spirit Willow recognized from one of Giles’s books.
“L-lucy Hanover?” Willow asked.
“It is I, Willow Rosenberg,” the young female spirit responded. “This is a very dangerous and powerful ritual you are attempting, young witch. Especially on the night of a new moon during the time of Samhain. As a friend of Buffy Summers, you should know that.”
“Y-yes it is,” Willow started. “B-but I was hoping it w-would help.”
“Tonight, on the night of Samhain, the spirits along the Ghost Roads are looking for any opportunity to come back,” Lucy told her. “They cause mischief–and death. Where is the slayer?”
“W-well,” Willow began, looking around. “I-I didn’t know if it would w-work. S-so I m-may have forgotten to m-mention it to her.”
Lucy’s eyes darted around Willow. The hair on Willow’s neck began to rise.
“Willow Rosenberg, it is not safe here,” Lucy said. “What spirit were you looking for tonight?”
Willow reached into the bag and pulled out a shiny yellow disk.
“A friend,” Willow started. “S-she passed away, and I n-never got to tell her goodbye. A-and thank you.”
For a moment, it appeared as though Lucy closed her eyes. Somewhere nearby a twig snapped.
Willow’s breath caught in her throat. “L-lucy?”
Lucy’s eyes shot open. “Willow Rosenberg, I believe I have located your friend. You will only have a few moments with her before we will need to leave you. Even in death, it is my duty to protect the innocent. Blessed be. And good luck.”
Lucy’s spirit drifted off, and in her place stood the figure of a woman Willow had known for a short time, but had impacted her immensely.
“Willow,” the woman said, sorrow filling her eyes. “Oh, how I’ve missed you.”
Willow wanted to throw her arms around the kind spirit, but she knew that was impossible. All she could muster was a single tear down the side of her cheek.
“I’ve missed you, too,” Willow said. “We all have.”
“Willow, this was very dangerous,” Ms. Calendar’s spirit warned her. “I would ask you how you managed it, but you have always been more than capable of anything you set your mind to.”
“She’s right.” A deep, British voice startled Willow from behind. “It was very foolish to attempt this spell, Willow.”
“Giles?!” Willow half turned, nearly breaking her concentration. She could feel the winds pick up from all around them.
As he stood next to his young pupil, Giles let out an audible gasp as his eyes laid upon the spirit Willow conjured. “Jenny.”
“Rupert,” the spirit of Jenny said. They stared serenely at each other. “Don’t be too hard on her. It comes from a good heart.”
“These spells are much too dangerous for her,” Giles said. He gently grabbed Willow’s hand. “For you.”
The wind continued to pick up, and Willows hair began fluttering around like dancing embers.
“Willow, you need to end the spell,” Giles told her, gently squeezing her hand. “It’s time.”
“B-but how?” Willow asked. “She’s here, Giles.”
“I know,” he said. “And while I am incredibly disappointed you attempted this by yourself, I do thank you for doing this. For her. For me.” He looked back at the spirit of his lost love. “But it’s time.”
The ceremonial pyre had gotten bigger and brighter; the strong wind threatened to spread the fire.
Suddenly, the spirit of Lucy Hanover appeared once again.
“Willow Rosenberg,” Lucy said, urgently. “I have tried to fight off the dangerous spirits, but it won’t be long until they are here.” She took Jenny’s hand. “I am sorry, but we must go.”
Jenny held out her free hand towards Giles. “I’ll be here, Rupert. Whenever you need me, I am here.”
Giles returned the gesture silently, and grabbed Willow’s hand. “Willow, you must end the spell.”
Tears in her eyes, Willow chanted the words to close the ceremony. As she did, the wind and fire ceased, and the spirits of Lucy and Jenny dissipated until there was no light, and no presence in the field, except for Willow and Giles.
Willow turned and wrapped her arms around her mentor. “She was here Giles.”
“Yes, Willow, I’m aware,” he smiled. As they pulled apart, he gently grabbed her shoulders. “Why did you do this Willow?”
Willow looked over at the burnt-out pyre, where the spirit of Jenny was just standing. “Ever since that night when we were on the staircase and I was doing the ritual to expel evil spirits, and you were so certain that it was Jenny haunting the school, I just wanted to find a way to show you she is okay.”
Giles gave Willow another big hug. “You were foolish to try this alone.” He shook his head. “I know I have been hard on you and your craft over the last few months, but it’s for your safety. These are dangerous forces you are dealing with.”
“I know, Giles,” Willow said. “But I’m good at it, and it can help.”
Giles looked around at the burnt pile, and the scattering of fall leaves all over the field. “Okay, I understand. But please, let me teach you.” For a brief second, he caught one more glimpse of his beautiful Jenny. “It’s what she would have wanted.”
