13421/Open Door: Once Upon a Time..

Open Door: Once Upon a Time..
Date of Scene:	02 June 2021
Location:	The Magic Box, Sunnydale
Synopsis:	The Scoobies and allies learn of the first Slayer, Shadow men the M? Scythe and a new threat, even as a mysterious enemy thwarts them every step of the way..
Cast of Characters:	Rupert Giles, Buffy Summers, Deadpool, Hellequin, Sinister, Phantasm (Drago), Mercy Thompson
Tinyplot:	Open Door

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Rupert Giles has posed:
The call had gone out to meet at the Magic Box this evening. Evening had come. The sun had set. The sky is clear, the stars spangle above, glittering like diamonds against an ocean of black. The front door of the shop has been locked. Those who are going to be here gathered around the table at the back of the public portion of the shop. The shadow caster is shaped like a pentagon. The five sides are not on it, but sit beside it. It lies upon the table, a box of matches sitting next to it. The large kind, meant for camping and lighting barbeques. The lights are off, leaving the shop bathed in darkness.

Giles, a match in hand, strikes it against the textured part of the matchbox, and a flame flares up. He uses it to light the candle already in the center of the shadow caster.

He lifts the first piece, it looks like ground with a plant growing from it. As he speaks, he puts the piece in place. "First, there was the Earth," he says.

The shadow caster rotates so that the next open slot is facing Giles, seemingly of its own volition, as he picks up another piece. This one features a demon. Again, as he speaks, he puts it in place. "Then there came Demons."

The shadow caster rotates. The next piece put in place has what looks like a tribe of people with spears in hand. "After demons came Men."

Next is a piece that has a girl on it, which is put in place once the next free slot is in front. "The men found a Girl to slay Demons."

With each rotation, the shadow of the panels are cast against the wall. The last piece has what looks like almost like a snake made of chains. "They chained her to the earth. Filled her with Dark." The shadow caster doesn't stop spinning now, casting the shadows in an almost chaotic sort of pattern. The light flickers, randomly, alternating with the shadows.

"You cannot be shown, cannot just watch. But you must See for yourself. But only if you are willing to make the Exchange. This is the only way. There is no other way."

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers arrived like all the others, kneeling in the circle with the others, watching in somber silence to the ancient eerie legend, and as each piece is added, it casts creepy shadows on the walls that seem to come to life as Giles speaks. There's the large hunk of earth that cracks and groans.

The demons spring to life next, snarling and growling, stalking the earth. They chase after the humans, tearing many to pieces. Screams fill the air. The girl is next, the first Slayer, chained to a wall as monstrous noises scream in the darkness...

The rest is lost in dizzying darkness and screams and the entire party suddenly find themselves being swallowed by darkness, spinning so fast that their bodies feel like they may be ripped apart..

Those with magical senses may sense that something is..Wrong. This isn't quite the way things are meant to be..There is a black portal of endless darkness that everyone is dragged into, but it is as if everyone'a spirit is being ripped from their body and dragged to a different dimension..

Its like a very very intense dream that feels so real you can feel the intense heat on your skin, see the incredibly brilliant blinding rays of the sun. Suddenly you're all standing on a sandy cliff overlooking a village. It is hot and dry and there is sand beneath your feet.

For those who are familiar with such landscapes, it appears to be some sort of African desert..

Deadpool has posed:
Deadpool is sitting there waiting yawning because he is board, he had come in with Buffy as he was invited by her to but he didn't know it wouldbe such a snooze fest. He sits patiently looking over at Buffy, and the others getting a light punch now and then if he started to talk during the process so is uncharacteristicly quiet. He wears his full Deadpool gear as usual covered head to toe in his black and red, guns, and his two swords. Laying across his lap is Besty II, a chainsaw that looks newish with silver teeth, and a water system to cool the blade with holy water inside.

He wasn't sure what they were going to face, and guessed it would be more demon vamps, so just brought it incase, but now they sat here doing their little pow-wow. He does his best to remain quiet and does for a bit though as things start to change, he sighs to himself. He doesn't interupt the 'vission' or whatever it is that is going on just enjoying the ride for now, but thinks about how he could really use a drink right now.

He didn't understand magic... thankfully, but he knew that when it was going on yelling 'Surprise' was not a good thing, as they always seemed to get mad at him for it. So he just watches and waits looking at what maybe coming for them. Also he didn't reconize the desert to him it was just sand, and heat which could be anywhere. So all he could add to the situation was a whispered.. "I hate sand.. it gets everywhere." and a light chuckle.. He had tried his best, but sometimes even he couldn't stop himself from talking.

Hellequin has posed:
There are so many unrepentant souls, evil-doers, magicians, sorceress and miscreants in this City, it makes the darkest days of the Inquisition look like a Sunday fair. So stopping by the Magic Box on his night shift almost feels like a break for the Hellequin.

Since Rupert Giles had stopped at his antiques store, Hellequin has kept the visit card the Watcher left him. Visit card or not, the Magic Box has been spotted by the ethereal Hunter, it beaconing to him in the night like a homing device. Tonight, the magic store seems to emit an aura of particular strong magic, and the Hellequin cannot ignore it.

Being ethereal has its perks, like being able to materialize indoor. Without a sound, the Hellequin slowly appears in a corner of the Magic Box, the process looking like a light mist slowly intensifying, gathering more substance until it settles and remains of a greyish hue. In this appearance, it's quite difficult to identify the kind of clothes the wraith is wearing, but they definitely look Medieval to anyone with some basic History lessons. The impressive sword at his side, as ethereal as him, looks exactly like the ones used by Knights Templar.
Oh, he was right, there's something happening in here, and it doesn't look quite Christian to him! But he has learned to observe before acting in the recent weeks, so for now the Hellequin remains where he's standing - or rather, hovering - watching the pannels being placed, with the look on his face of someone wading barefooted in an underground sewage at night.

The looks on his face remains the same as he's suddely yanked away in the other reality. While he can't really feel the sand beneath his feed, the Hellequin can see that he has be somewhat transported somewhere. Is it the Holy Land?

"Sorcery!" he spits in his low ethereal voice, as if the word itself had bad taste.

Sinister has posed:
'Wessex' - Aka: a Sinister fellow with a face that changes at his whim - had been quite fascinated by this process up to a certain point, at which he had become enthralled. Throughout he had been quiet, up until the disorienting rip from the very fabric of here and now, to the very much -else-. To his credit though, the man doesn't throw up, or balk overly much; hands splayed to steady the spinning - blue eyes slowly and methodically taking in his surroundings, casually bringing hands to his shoulders to shrug off his leather jacket, which is simply dropped and floats in a bundle behind himself, leaving him in a white shirt, waistcoat, black jeans, boots... He fixes attention on the trees and scrubs, his head tilted a little as he analyzes them.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Well well well, look who finally decided to make an appearance! Bookbag on his back, loaded with a lot of sticky goodness (fighting sticks), the only guy under six foot looks curiously to those gathered. Other than Buffy and Deadpool, he's never met the others. But being that he doesn't live here and ... stuff happened to make it to where he had to change phones pretty quick, It's a bit reasonable that he's not here everytime a group gathers. Sometimes it takes time to meet another member of the group.

As the show starts, he watches the shadows, frowning to the story being depicted so far. As the dizziness starts to set in, a feeling sets in the pit of Nick's stomach as he ends up closing his eyes, bringing a hand up to his head to press the side. The scar upon his lower right forearm fades from view. Nausea feeling going away he lowers his arm, blinking as he starts to watch the dessert view blur into sight. Eyes squinting due to the bright light, he looks around.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
One of those who has come is Mercy, though she isn't sure how much help she might actually be. She's quiet where she sits at the table to Giles's left, a mug of tea sitting on the table in front of her and her hands resting lightly in her lap. She watches as the pieces are fit into place, and she listens to the words that Giles says -- and more than that, to the sounds that seem to fill the space with each piece that is placed. She shifts slightly where she sits, sitting up a touch more, her brow slightly wrinkled. The screams and other oises are less pleasant to her ears, as sensitive as they are, but she still stays quiet. She closes her eyes against the spinning, and though she's able to sense the magic, there's naught she can or does do against it. Perhaps the magic bleeding from the thing is normal, and perhaps not -- she has no way of knowing.

When she opens her eyes after everything has stilled and settled again, is it to the bright sun and sand of the desert, the former of things making her blink a few times quickly. An attempt to become used to the brightness, at least in part. Luckily, she wasn't overly dressed -- a loose fit grey t-shirt, a pair of blue jeans, and her usual steel-toed boots. One of her eyebrows quirks up slightly, and she takes a moment to look around a bit, perhaps attempting to get some manner of bearings in such an unfamiliar place.

Rupert Giles has posed:
One moment, Giles was reciting what he'd memorized out of the manual he'd found for the shadow caster, casting the spell, as it were. Something that is very definitely /not/ Christian. The next, his breath catches as he feels like his soul is beign ripped from his body. And in the next, that sandy cliff. "What the bloody hell?" He shakes his head, trying to clear it of the residual dizziness the ceremony had caused. "Something isn't right." Helpful Giles. Real helpful.

He looks down at his feet, at the sand . Over the cliff and down on that village. He looks further afield. "Desert," he murmurs, half to himself. "Could be Africa. Or Arabia. Or maybe Mongolia." There's a big desert in Mongolia too. Giles isn't sure which desert they might be in. He blinks at the familiar voice of Hellequin and looks toward the etherial entity. "Where'd you come from?"

Dressed as he tends to be, in long sleeves, though he wasn't wearing a suit at present, he is wearing a knit, button up, sweater. Grey, tonight. Still, a much heavier thing than is good for the heat in this place. Sweat already starting to glisten on his visible skin, Giles rolls his sleeves up, and starts to undo the buttons at the front, revealing a white teeshirt beneath it.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers peers around, shading her eyes as she tries to get accustomed to the sudden blinding brightness and the searing heat. "Everyone here? This..Is where we're meant to be, isn't it Giles? The spell was supposed to take us back to the time and place of the first Slayer, who can possibly tell us more about this new threat and legendary weapon?"

Its strange, how very..Real this world feels. They may be experiencing this dimension in their astral firms or soul so to speak, but it certainly feels real, looks real, sounds real..Buffy is glad that she didn't dress heavily, wearing faded blue jeans, and a white tshirt, having shed her leather jacket when she entered the store.

She did think to pack her favoured bladed tonfa of course, and some stakes, ready for anything really.

But even as she speaks, those with such senses can feel dark magic in the air. Its as if someone tampered with the shadow caster in such a way that the trap wouldn't be triggered until the spell was completed. And even now, it seems that some dark demonic forces are already gathering. "Hold it, I'm sensing something coming..Get ready!"

The words are barely out of her mouth when large shadowy figures start to move in on the group, quickly surrounding them. There are a lot of them, maybe twelve in total, hideous creatures resembling huge hounds with burning red eyes, owls salivating as they slowly approach the group. Their intent seems pretty clear. Kill the intruders!

Deadpool has posed:
Deadpool looks around a bit, he looks different in the astral his red, and black outfit gone he wears a large black cloak that goes over his head and covers his body. He looks down at his hands that are only bones and no skin, "What the... what is this?" he says almost a bit worried. His self has been removed from his body, and wierd things happened when that happened, as he seems to weaver a bit like static the pull of his body already starting to try to override the process. He glances around at the others there. He listens as the nerd speaks sure he was a knight at some point, but he let some young girl do all his fighting so to DP he wasn't the person to really look up to. and sighs to himself "What did you do to me..." he would threaten violence, but it seems his body wasn't even here right now.

He looks at Buffy, "You don't realize what you have done.." he says as he wavers again the face looking at her just bones that talk like a walking skeleton. He doesn't even notice the other person that wasn't there as he is a bit focused on himself at the moment. He waves a bone hand infront of his face, "I can't hear them.. the voices.." he notes to himself. He felt alone, and isolated without them, but this is what it ment to leave his body, it was a cursed body with a lot of baggage and they had yanked him out of it. The apperance, and the static were his power, and the powers that keep him living forever pulling him back into his body which the magic is currently fighting. How long he had before he was pulled back in was unknown, but even while he is standing there thinking about it he waves a bit in static again.

He glances around at the crowd around them, "Umm.. hold on.. Wait!" he yells at the te shadowy features. He had no body, he had no weapons, how was he supposed to fight, He points at one of the ones that might be close to him, and demands.. "Dance Off!" before he shakes his astral form in a wave, and spin a bit to show them some moves, after a moment he nods. "Yea... Beat that!" and grins with himself happy with his quick moves he was always alright at dancing, though from the outside it may look more like a floping astral form and a cloak swiriling around chaoticly.

Hellequin has posed:
After a moment, observing all the others gathered on the dune, the Hellequin raises above the group below, turning around to try and find a sign, an indication, whatever, that could help identify their location. One hand resting on the pommel of his sword, he swiftly motions with his other hand, the gesture quickly followed by the low rumbling of thunder in the distance. The rumbling intensifies until it all suddenly ceases, as his faithful ethereal war horse appears by his side.

"From Francia," comes the Hellequin's answer to Giles question. Didn't he ask him from where he came from? "But this seems unrelevant at this time. I believe that... "

The sentence is abruptly interrupted, as the Hellequin senses the evil forces approaching. Jumping on his horse, the sword is quickly drawn, he's ready to slay the evil hounds. These creatures are evil, thus they must be slained. The ethereal horse rears up, then starts to chase the beasts, both ethereal man and horse lunging at the enemies with gusto.

"Taïaut!" comes the low voice, like a rumbling thunder, uttering the century old call of the hunter.

Sinister has posed:
"It's Africa, Giles," Sinister has enough time to point out a few of the specific species of botany that litter the landscape. "You don't find them outside of sub-saharan...." but that's about as far as he'll be going. With a frown, it's possible he's sensing other things closing in, presences that have him lifting his right hand, palm upward and rising into the air, fast and sure. He hovers there, with a good ariel view of what is below, studying the nearest shadowbeast with a narrow-eyed focus.

"You're not quite there, are you?" That though, seems to have been directed at Wade, even as he's spreading the outstretched hand and plucking up the form of the closest Shadowbeast to himself, lifting it and well, to others it looks like telekinesis, but in truth, given where they're at, it's psychic annihilation; pulling apart the creature from its psionic fabric. It's quite ugly to watch and with a crush of hand, it folds into itself. "This is probably going to be somewhat bothersome and intense. Where are we supposed to be going, miss Buffy? It may be best if those that can hold them off, can clear a path to destiny and/or destination." Pause, beat. "Or I can fly us there, if you feel inclined to float?"

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
No longer feeling a thing the phantasmed Nick turns his head. An utterance of surprise after being brought to a random desert is normal. It coming from the person who cast you there, a bit concerning. He tilts his head curiously to the bespecatcled man, listening to the further proclamations of something not being right "...This part wasn't planned?"

Well. F-.

He glances to the scenery. "...cannot be shown, cannot JUST watch..." As the demonic hounds shows up, he throws up his hands in frustration, "Of COURSE this is going to involve audience participation. It's never simple."

To the mention of flying people elsewhere, Nick turns, looking to Sinister and then to Buffy. "I can take two along if we're doing the flight thing."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
The woman-coyote wrinkles her nose slightly, and then she gives a small shake of her head. A desert isn't very helpful, and it's not as though there are signs to identify which one it is. She looks over to Giles, and after studying him for a moment, the wrinkle to her brow has returned. She lifts her right hand, lightly rubbing her nose, the scents of the place unfamiliar as well. Then her gaze turns towards the village below, watching closely. Will they be friendly people or not? Either way, they'll need to find water sooner rather than later.

She turns at Buffy's warning, to look towards the slavering beasties, and she wrinkles her nose slightly. She didn't bring any weapons. She casts a glance towards the... now horseman... and one of her eyebrows quirks up slightly as he moves forward to engage the creatures. She moves a touch closer to Giles, though for whos's better safety might be a questionable sort of thing. Her gaze turns briefly towards Nick, then towards Sinister, and she tilts her head a touch to one side. "I'm not against floating or flying, in this case," she says in a soft tone.

Rupert Giles has posed:
Giles shakes his head a little bit. "I'm... not entirely certain. Perhaps, perhaps not. We have stories about the first Slayer, but we don't really know exactly where that was." Giles is just glad he'd left his coat hanging on the rack in the back. That would have been far too warm for here. The only weapon Giles had brought is a sword, bronze, tucked into his belt and a crossbow slung over his back, along with bolts in a quiver of sorts for them. The bolts are steel-tipped wood, dipped beforehand in holy water.

Giles frowns, and looks around. "There's dark magic at work here," he says, voice just loud enough to carry to those who happen to be here. Then there are hounds there. "More bloody hellhounds." He glances to Wessex. "What is it with hellhounds lately?" He calmly slides the crossbow off his back and affixes a bolt to it. He doesn't look to Deadpool, though he answers the question in a calm voice. "Astral plane, I believe." Hellequin gets another glance and a perplexed look. "What?"

To Nick, Giles shakes his head. "This wasn't my doing, no. I expected audience participation, but we were supposed to be transported back in time to the first Slayer, not to.. whatever this is, on the astral plane." He looks between Nick and Wessex, and nods. "Flying might be the better option." He lifts the crossbow and takes aim, shooting one of the hellhounds not already engaged in its left eye. It careens off with a yelp. Of course, that leaves an opening for another of the creatures.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers isn't a magic sensitive, but demons and other supernatural creatures are another thing entirely. And somehow, she just knows they don't belong here. "I dunno how I know, but those hellhound do not belong here. They're not part of the story..Giles, does that mean someone..I dunno..Tampered with the shadow caster? I dont like this.." she does arch a surprised brow at the astral plane bit. "Wait, I thought we were supposed to port into a different dimension..Are you saying our bodies are still sleeping back at the Box? I mean I dont feel like I'm sleeping. This feels real...Too real!"

Deadpool is given a surprised look as his innards show. "What happened to you? Is this what your spirit looks like or whatever?" to Sinister she sighs and shakes her head. "I'm not exactly sure but, I have a feeling we just need to play along, relive the first Slayer's story." her eyes narrow as she flips her tonfa and starts charging the monsters, "Even if it means having to fight through unexpected demons."

And with that, she charges the demon hounds even as they charge the party. Hellequin, Sinister and Giles seem to fare better than most with their weapons, dispatching several hounds even as others charge Nick, Mercy, and Deadpool..

But something seems odd with Buffy, she's not nearly as quick or as strong as she usually is, and doesn't dodge fast enough as one lunges and slashes into her shoulder. With a loud cry, she rolls to the side, barely out of danger. "Guys, something's wrong. I don't seem to have any powers!" normally she'd dispatch such fiends effortlessly, easily dodge them, easily repel their attacks. But now she's already heavily damaged, out run, overpowered by these creatures.

The only thing keeping her alive is her skill and tactics as a normal human, which she means she's struggling quite a bit more than The Slayer should be against such fiends.

Deadpool has posed:
Deadpool is dancing, as a very confused Hellhound is looking at him salavating over all the bones he sees, and is just entranced, though instinct kicks in, as one attacks Buffy Deadpool moves in like he usually does. He was used to being the one hurt, and getting in the way of others. Though as he dives in front the dog already missed as the dog that was confused goes into action, he jumps at Deadpool and bites on a bone as there is a "Ooouch!" though the sound itself wobles, as he statics again. This time though when he comes back there is no dog, as the dogs mind looks around it can hear "Oooh a doogie!" in a friendly Wades Voice, "Damn Dog!" from another wade voice, and this is repeated over, and over as the dogs mind looks around. There are thousands of Deadpools that it just got the attention of, though it isn't till it hears in Wades voice "Fresh Meat!" that it starts to worry. It is now stuck inside of Deadpools head, lost there forever to to be tormented by the Wade's inside of there eventually it will just crack, and another Deadpool voice will be added.. Maybe one that likes bones.

To the outside, there is just the disapearing dog, as only Bones Deadpool raises up again he looks at Buffy, "Go.. Grab one of them fliers and get out of here." he says before turning and holding his hands up going "Raaaawr!" at the dogs making a large outline though he might look a bit scarrier then he actually was.

After the distraction he looks as a horse is coming by, "My white knight!" he grins as he holds out an arm though this time covered with cloth so no part of him will be touching the spirit that is helping him, just incase. His touch would be... cold.. more like numbing without the cold even through the cloth, and after he hops on to the back he would wrap those numbing arms around the spirit. Unortunetly this is when he glitches out again. To Hellequin, the one who saved him, he would wake up looking into the Box through Deadpools eyes. It would be wierd as he could feel the outit he was wearing, and everything though that is when he would hear it. A whisper, "Get out.." as it raises louder and louder. Though it may seem like a threat it was actually a warning, as for a fraction of a second one could hear all the voices, Trillions all trying to shove information, or ask questions, forbidden knowledge that just can't be heard. It could drive someone insaine, though he just gets a brief peek behind the wall before being yanked back. Then he is again sitting on the horse just like he was with Deadpool riding on the back, Deadpool just whispers to him.. "Shh... Its okay.. Don't tell the others."

Hellequin has posed:
It was just a few seconds, but for that moment, the Hellequin felt something quite strange, just after Deadpool jumped on his horse. Something more than proximity to what's left of a human body, but something more like a very brief merging of the essence of the two of them. What kind of side effects this could have on the Hellequin is unsure, since he never experienced such a thing before? Voices, what are these voices? Is the Devil taking hold of him? Or would it rather be this /man/ riding with him? This is no time for questions, this is time for action, so since the voices left, the Hellequin focuses on his task.

The ethereal horseman keeps on hunting the evil hounds around, both man and horse visibly enjoying the hunt - which is quite understandable from their immortal point of view. Deadpool is better to hang in there, avoiding the sword wielding and get an occasional kick to the hounds with his feet whenever they ride close enough.

"It /reeks/ of magic," comes the ethereal voice. And not only from the evil hounds around, though he leaves this out for the moment. Stopping the horse for a moment, and glancing down at Giles, one can see a frown on his face as he wonders, "You are looking for the First Slayer," he states, "She is in Heaven and this..." he glances around, "Is most certainly /not/ Heaven." Of course, magical time travel is a notion foreign to the Hellequin. It's all the doing of the Devil. Simple enough.

That said, the Hunt resumes, and the Hellequin - Deadpool along for the ride - dispatches his fair amount of evil hounds, most of them ending decapitated on the ground, while chasing as many as possible away from the Slayer. There's at least one individual enjoying the situation.

Sinister has posed:
"I have a feeling someone is not playing by the rules," SInister calls down, but that goes without saying. There are combattants down there, another hellhound is obliterated by thought alone and he spots the difficulties of one Chosen one. Take the flying offer, they say. This depends on being in one piece enough soul-and-psyche wise to be able to do such a thing -- There's a soft cluck of his tongue, almost a sigh with it as he reaches his left hand out and draws an arc in the air over Buffy, the psychic landscape's air thickening into a protective barrier.

"Miss Summers, I strongly suggest you don't struggle and also, remember: this is not your body, you do not feel the heat or the pain, it's all in your mind. That being said, it's easier to say that than to believe it." The shield and bubble is lifted, hopefully with Buffy inside of it and moved from her overwhelmed position to Mercy and Giles' location, where Nick is also helpfully there. "Young man with the fighting sticks... take my friends there...." and he will then attempt to levitate them all with Nick's help, whilst the Hellequin has Deadpool. "Vantage of the skies, has a couple of benefits. The edge of a world seems closer when you can see to the horizon."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
With the general agreement from most of the party and Sinister working to convince the one hold out who isn't currently on a ghostly horse. Nick tilts his head as Sinister makes reference to what's in his backpack. A questioning look forms but nothing is said of it as there's currently the matter of HELLHOUNDS trying to kill them.

"Right." He holds out his hands towards Giles and Mercy. "Take a hand" He instructs. When they do so, he feeds them a bit of his power, " and now jump up high..."

With the prompts given, Nick leaps, tugging the pair along. Using the visual of his unstopping forward direction. It serves as a prompt to the subconcious of those less versed in lucid dreaming. Sometimes, seeing it being done is enough.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
A glance is cast towards the crossbow that Giles gets out, and she gives a small nod. At least he has weapons, and ones he knows how to use. "I could sense the magic, but wasn't sure what sort it was," she says quietly. She lifts one of her shoulders in a bit of a shrug. "Maybe they just like to toy with us?" she suggests. She doesn't expect to really be able to hurt the hellhounds very much, but she stepped ito the opening that was left by Giles taking a shot with the crossbow, to aim a kick in the face of the hellhound. Normally, she has strength that's a bit better than average, she'll know soon enough what she has here.

The rest of the fighting, she doesn't give a lot of attention towards. She really can't allow herself to get too distracted. "Bad guys usually tend to have their own set of rules that they play by," Mercy comments, wrinkling her nose slightly. She backs off easily from the hellhound as Nick approaches herself and Giles, and she gives a small nod to his instructions. She reaches up to take his offered hand, kicking off the ground as she jumps.

Rupert Giles has posed:
Giles nods. "Yes, probably," he answers Buffy. "Probably put a trap spell on it. Such things lie dormant until they spring. And yes. I mean our bodies are back at the Magic Box." He pauses. "Probably." He drops another bolt into the crossbow and sets it, then releases toward another hound. He's a surprisingly decent marksman. For a nerd. Well. He /is/ a bookworm. As Buffy gets injured, Giles' brow furrows into a frown again. "Well, damn," he says. "If you don't have any powers.."

He's reloading the crossbow again even as he speaks. "That must be part of the ritual. Getting your powers back by reliving the first.." He pauses to shoot a hound, the bolt scoring the side of the hound's face as it turns at the wrong moment. "Slayer's story." He nods to Mercy. "Perhaps. Perhaps they just want to kill us and be done with it."

Giles glances to Deadpool as he loads a fourth bolt. He doesn't fire this one, though. "Deadpool is right. Get out of here. Find what needs to be found."

When Nick offers a hand, Giles steps over to him and places his left hand within Nick's hand. This leaves his right hand free to keep the crossbow handy, just in case he needs to use it again. As instructed, Giles then jumps up high, right along with the instructor. Once in the air, he looks to his left hand and blinks. His brow furrows. "I can't feel .." He looks at his right hand. Sure enough, the crossbow is still grasped. "Anything." He sounds confused.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers blinks, quite surprised when she is literally plucked out of the air and tugged towards Sinister. Whom she still doesn't even know, except that he's seems to be a trusted ally of Giles'. "Heey, what gives?" she frowns, not one to ever back down from a fight. And even if she doesn't seem to have her powers and just got injured, it doesn't mean she's helpless at all.

But then again, the others might be right. These hellhounds could have been summoned by whoever was trying to stop them from reaching their ultimate goal.

And suddenly they're in the air..Floating. "Soo..Where are we headed?" she sighs, glancing around, trying to get her bearings. But this place is strange, and it's not a place where you find what you're looking with your eyes alone. Drawing a deep breath, Buffy closes her eyes and focuses as Giles has taught her.

"We came here searching for answers, who is this new evil? What's the m? Scythe, and what can the First Slayer tell us?" even as she says these things, as they traverse the endless barren wasteland of the desert, they soon come across a trio of African men, dressed in ceremonial garb. They seem stern, silent, regal..Powerful..

"Look, down There! We need to speak to them, that's the next clue, I think."

Deadpool has posed:
Deadpool is ridding on the back of the horse, and decides to just have fun at it so he waves one cloaked arm in the air with a "Wheee!" holding on to Hellequin! He looks at Buffy, and nods, "If you want to make it back to wherever you were eventually you better help Buffy." he notes. Though the man did have his hands full, and she was floating so he ment more generally then like right now. He sighs a bit, his voice cutting out again, "Look.. I don't have much time."

He is starting to glitch out a bit more, as whatever it is that keep him living is dragging him back to his body again. "Look whatever happends, or how bad it gets.. Don't forget." his voice sounds desperate as he is cut off by him litterally disapearing in front of him.

As Deadpool moves again for the first time he looks at the room full of sleeping people, though he isn't sure what to do. He knows you can't just interupt stuff like this or it can blow up in your face, so he just sits there. Well he does for a minute, then pulls out a marker and gets to work drawing.. There just were not enough mustaches, but then returns to his seat to wait for his allies to return from whatever it was that had them. It was all he could do as he didn't know magic, and thought about learning.. Your a Wizard Wade... crosses his mind as he sits conteplating asking Willow to start teaching him magic.

Hellequin has posed:
There aren't many hell hounds left behind, and they won't be able to pursue them. And then Deadpool gives his advices and... vanishes! Nothing makes sense, but the Hellequin has time to nod at his departing companion. "Nothing will happen to the Slayer as long as I live... and this means, for a very long time."

As the Hellequin follows the group, his attention is directed toward the three men in ceremonial garb. His sword has been returned to its scabbard for now, though it only takes a couple seconds to draw it back out.

From his aerial point of view, the Hunter keeps an eye at the surroundings, in case other hellish creatures would appear. Once in a while he looks back in the direction of the Slayer, as he considers her under his /protection/, like some previous slayers have been. While his ways and views might be antiquated, his dedication is sincere and unwavering.

Sinister has posed:
Sinister helps the general movement through the plane, as this is not unfamiliar territory to him. Having another that has such experiences most certainly helps make it quicker. "I'm cheating," he informs Buffy "because someone else isn't biding by the rules, call it taking back the track." With the call though, his hands lower, bringing them down toward the ground, with a nod towards Nick for his assistance, he keeps an eye about the area. THis is not his Rite. Not his ritual. But he certainly can make sure he listens and learns... and keeps watch.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
"Everything comes at a cost." Nick replies to Giles, voice a bit calm for someone who is supposedly going through the same thing, "Comes with the package of becoming phantasm, loaned energy aside. It's not permanent. When we land it'll come back to you."

As Sinister and Buffy float nearby he looks over to her, listening. He doesn't have as much to offer to Buffy. Not really knowing the full extent of what led to the text message sent to his burn phone. He's been out of the loop due to some...family related problems.

Buffy's request doesn't fall on death ears and as Sinister directs his charges downwards, so does he, righting themselves upright as they are a few feet off the ground to allow for easier stepping. He checks the positioning of their feet to make sure they are on ground or slightly above before he releases his hold.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
"Hopefully that will mean that our bodies are safe, but... in some things, if your spirit self is hurt where you are then the injury is transferred when you return to your body," Mercy says, a thoughtful tone to her voice. She tilts her head a bit to one side, considering part of what he said. "The ritual words spoke of an exchange, but... whether that applied to how the trap behaved or something I couldn't say," she says, lifting one of her shoulders in a faint shrug. She doesn't know enough about magic to be able to make a judgement.

"If 'they' wanted us to die, then they could have simply dumped us in the desert and let the elements do their worst to us," she says, frowning a little bit. "They could have had any number of different intentions behind setting the trap," she comments, wrinkling her nose slightly. "No smell, bother it," she grouses, albeit mildly. She's used to being able to smell things. Many things. She gives a nod, to Nick's explanation. It's not uncommon for magic to have a price. "That's good to know, that it's temporary," she says in a soft tone.

Her gaze turns towards the ground when attention is called there by Buffy's words, studying the figures standing there. She waits through their descent, and once her feet are settled to the ground she looks to Nick and gives a samll nod. "Thank you," she says, gratefully. And with her hand released, she takes a moment to rub her hands together, perhaps liking to be able to feel the sensation of touch again.

Rupert Giles has posed:
Giles remains still, in as much as is possible while floating in the air, and watches around them. He spies the three African men when Buffy points them out. He nods in the direction of the three men. "Yes, lets," he says. He nods to Nick. "Ah. That makes sense." At least, he thinks it does. He nods to Mercy as well. "I suppose we'll find out for certain when we get back," he says. Clearly, he's assuming they /are/ going to get back.

Temporary is good. And Giles is glad to have his senses back once his feet are back on the ground. "Yes, thank you," he says to Nick. "Interesting manner of travel, but not unpleasant." Now that he's back on the ground, Giles takes a moment to first unload the crossbow and put the bolt back in its little quiver, and then to put the crossbow back over his shoulder where it's at least somewhat out of the way and unthreatening. Afterward, Giles looks around to take in their surroundings. And to see if he can sense any further black magics.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers arches a surprised brow as Deadpool,simply..Vanishes from existence. "Wade..?" she frowns, shaking her head, not sure what it means. Perhaps it is simply that he is not essential to the solving of this puzzle, his unique abilities allows him to more easily traverse this realm and the next..Or whoever is attacking them had focused their trap specifically upon Buffy.

"Hope youre right about that..I just hate running away from a fight. But maybe that's what led us here, to these people.." To Mercy, she shakes her head slowly, "But this realm, it's like we're reliving The First Slayer's memories. She has some control here too. They have to follow her rules to some extent too. I don't think it'd be that easy to kill us unless the dream goes astray..?"

For a moment, there a flicker of light around Buffy. For a moment, Buffy is not standing there but the lone proud savage and powerful First Slayer, Sineya, dressed in rags, her rich mocha skin and long dark hair painted in white ear paint.

"This is..My destiny.." she steps towards the men who..Seem somehow hostile, dangerous, they simply nod to her as she offers them her hands, and they chain then together with shackles. Suddenly they are no longer in a desert but in darkness, in a cool,dank cave somewhere, Buffy shackled to the wall, the others in cages of their own, and another, bigger cage containing some massive fearsome creature of darkness and evil..

The three men now sit behind a balcony overlooking the cavern several yards above the rest. The first of the three turns to look at Giles with cold dark eyes. "Young Watcher.." he booms in a heavy, rich accent, "You have much yet to learn. You...Must make sacrifices..Watch..Learn. This is the true power of Slayer.."

The second man looks to the others, "Friends of Slayer..You face..New threat. Together you have power, but is Highly unregular..Can trust no one, especially not..A demon!"

The third snaps his fingers and the cage holding the massive darkness is released. A huge shadowy creature steps out, it's long shadowy clawed arms reaching out towards Buffy. What little light that illuminates the room through the torches along the walls is quickly extinguished as the monstrous being of pure evil steps ever closer to Buffy, attempting to merge with her..But of course, it's a special demon, one that can be merged into one with the strength of heart and spirit to control the darkness. Isn't that how the story goes?

Only..Something is not quite right. There's too much fire in its eyes, burning under its nails. The fiery whip in its hand appears from nowhere and it lets out a twisted snarl of pure evil hunger.

Is it really just a shadow demon or something more..?

Sinister has posed:
Sinister is in a cage. Oh, lovely. This is not something that most people ever think of doing twice and judging by the vexed look on his features, it's something he's only entertaining because of a respect for those here. He looks at the iron and bone, slowly traversing his eyes to the tableau infront of them, then toward Giles, Mercy and Nick he leans, murmuring aside.

"This is supposed to happen, yes? Or should I be rebelling about now and becoming all cross with confinement? I leave this to your expertise."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Nick gives a nod to Mercy and Giles as they offer thanks. "You get used to it after awhile." Nick adds to Giles' assessment of his dream travel capabilities, "Just...maybe don't start practicing around Halloween. People watch the weirdest stuff then."

The musician looks back over to Buffy, watching her start to transition in appearance over to another woman. The view is soon marred by the appearance of cage surrounding him. The momentary urge to get out pops in mind but the question about whether or not this is supposed to happen draws him back to the Magic box. There was some image of chains in there. So maybe?

Nick looks over to Giles, waiting for a sign for a potential jail break.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
"It will either be a pleasant surprise to go back and find out we're not hurt or an unpleasant one if we found out we are," Mercy comments, quirking a smile. She lifts her right hand, pushing her braid to her back. Her gaze turns to Giles, and there's a smile that tugs a little at the corners of her lips. She glances towards the quiver that holds the bolts as he puts that one away, and she shifts a bit to stand a touch closer to him.

Mercy lifts her shoulders in a bit of a shrug, her gaze turning towards Buffy. "We might be, we might not be. It might be some twisted version of it from whatever trap had been laid," Mercy says, a bit uncertain. She goes quiet after saying that, slipping the fingers of one of her hands into a front pocket of her jeans. One of her eyebrows quirks up a bit at the change in Buffy's appearance, and she tilts her head a touch to one side. But she doesn't say anything, not even as Buffy's wrists are chained.

And then, the location shifts and changes, and her nose twitches slightly. Caged, she steps back from the bars briefly, and she watches, withdrawing her hand from her pockets and rubbing them together a bit. Caged isn't a way that she likes to be, but she doesn't try to get out as of yet. She glances towards the demon that was set loose, watching it, giving the whip in its hand a brief look. She looks over towards Sinister, and she lifts one of her shoulders in a bit of a shrug. "I know not what is supposed to happen," she comments, frowning a bit. She isn't familiar with the origin story of the Slayers.

Rupert Giles has posed:
The expression Giles wears when Nick mentions practicing around Halloween... He shakes his head. "No, best not," he says. He has a smile for Mercy as she steps closer to him. He turns his eyes to the three men. He watches without comment as Buffy is chained. And then... That is how the story goes, but Giles knows something is amiss.. still amiss? More amiss? ..the moment the scene changes from light to darkness. And that demon... Wait. What? Young? Giles? His brain momentarily skips, and he shakes his head to get it back into gear. He looks at that demon again, his forehead furrowing with a frown. "Rebelling, I think. We should be rebelling."

He looks to Buffy. "Buffy, fight it. That's not the right demon!" So much for sacrificing by sitting by and Watching that merge happen. Giles moves to the cage door and tries to open it, to see if he can get out easily or if this is going to require a little more finesse. The door doesn't budge. He pats his pocket and then stops and takes a breath. He concentrates for a moment, and slips his hand into the pocket, and pulls it back out with a lockpick held between his fingers. He nods once, to himself, and sets to pick the lock.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers blinks slowly, shaking off the strange trance she was briefly under, eyes widening in horror as she realizes what's going on. "Giles? What is this? What do you mean 'wrong' demon?!" she clenches her hands, trying to break free of the chains, but she's just a normal girl..

Then the shadowy creature reaches out and touches her, and she screams in pain as it starts to merge with her, falling her with darkness. So this is what it was like for the First Slayer. The realization of the truth fuels her fear, turning it to anger.

*Snap!*

The chains break free as she regains some of her former strength, rolling out of the swipe of the creature's fiery whip. Buffy reaches for her tonfa, swinging it around, slashing at the creature's legs as it rapidly sheds its shadowy disguise, burnt away by a fearsome, fiery form, sharp horns curling from its head, powerful fangs hanging from its mouth.

For now it's focused entirely on Buffy but who knows what it has in store for the others?

The three Shadowmen watch intently, a bit surprised at the change, and one rises slowly to his feet, before the second rests a hand on his arm, shaking his head. "Another test. They must be ready..For what is to come.."

It seems Giles has already broken free of his prison, and the third shadow Ah rises to his feet! pressing a button and nodding too those in cages. "Prove yourselves worthy of what is to come, and that which belongs to her. To them.." he gestures towards a brilliant shining object that practically glows on its resting place on the wall between the three men.

The M? Scythe.

Sinister has posed:
"Oh, /good/." There is no small hint of malice in the way that 'Wessex' said that. Regardless of whether the cage was unlocked or not, his literally explodes, his head tilted downward and his hair hanging somewhat infront of eyes that have turned a solid ruby state, glowing and maleficent. All the fragments hover around as he walks forth from confinement, only to hold hands at his sides, twitching middle and index finger toward the demon as he advances; all those shards of cage take flight, fast and hard toward flames and horns and whip, even as he turns his gaze sidelong toward the scythe on the wall. "Giles!" is yelled as he sends a fragment of steel and sinew at the wall, impacting to dislodge it and let the man grab it. Then he flicks his index finger sidelong, sending a large bar of steel and bone toward Mercy as a weapon of sorts, not bothering with Nick as the man has his own sticks.

Then a buckling forward by thirty degrees occurs and those shards of cage whirl in a wind about the evil horned one, buffetting, bludgeoning, slicing with a yell from the man that grows in anger and volume. Dust from the cave floor rises and hovers, his hair goes wild and his eyes glow brighter still. The telekinetic storm is like an intensified, localized Mach 7 tornado.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
To Gile's assessment, a brow raises, "Rebel it is." He closes his eyes and backs up. Stepping through the back part of the cage. When enough steps are taken, he opens his eyes, giving a quick assessment to Giles taking care of his cage. Ok, there's a way out for the rest. So time for the more pressing manner-.

Bzzt!

The door to the front of the cage swings open. There's the slightest of tics appearing upon Nick's face... Very well...

Nick jumps onto the top of open cage, vaulting off of it before pitching forward into a roll, form elongating and changing into a mix of furry gray, brown, and white. As the grey wolf lands, coat full. It's apparent why sometime's its good NOT to be able to have a sense of touch. Because, that amount of fur would probably be uncomfortably hot right about now.

The wolf runs forward, seemingly running towards the storm. Demon and all.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
One of her eyebrows quirks up slightly when Giles mentions rebelling, and she turns to step towards the bars of the cage that she's caught in. "I can likely handle a smidge of rebelling," she comments, a whisper of amusement finding her voice. She doesn't have a proper lockpick on her, but... she has a bobbypin. Lifting her right hand, she feels around a bit in her hair before plucking the hair pin free from her dark hair. She bends it a bit, as she'd been taught years ago, and she moves to the side where the lock is. Her brow wrinkles as she cocentrates on the lock, using the bobbypin to pick it by feel. She swings the door open a couple of moments in advance of the pushing of the button that would have granted freedom had she only waited. Patience isn't a strong suit of hers.

She steps out of the cage, and then she slips the bent bobbypin into a pocket of her jeans. She softly snorts a breath through her nose, her gaze turning towards the Shadowmen, though she keeps quiet. If she has an opinion on being caged, she doesn't offer it. As Sinister sees fit to provide and offer up a weapon for her, she gives a nod to him and lifts a hand to claim it from the air. "Thanks," she offers, a brief flicker of a smile coming to the corers of her lips. She appreciates the weapon, even though the swirling fragments of metal around the beastie give her reason to pause about approaching it.

Rupert Giles has posed:
Not quite what it was like for the first Slayer. Given that it's a different demon. "That's a balrog, not a shadow demon!" He gets the lock undone and shoves the door open, slipping the lockpick back into his pocket. Just as Wessex blows his cage to bits. He steps forward, moving toward the demon and Buffy, only for that shout from the doctor's shout. He turns that way and then there's a scythe coming his way! Giles catches it. There's a momentary blink as Nick turns into a wolf.

Giles shakes it off though. Turning, he runs toward Buffy with the scythe in hand. Once he's close enough to be certain the demon isn't going to interrupt it, he shouts, "Buffy!" And tosses the scythe toward her. Scythe away, Giles pulls the bronze sword from his belt and charges at the demon with a shout. It sounds like something Latin. He brings the sword down, toward the wrist holding that great fiery whip.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
The full run continues, bringing the wolf closer. Upon a chunk of debri hitting the ground before him, he leaps, seemingly orbiting around like some of the metal chunks. One piece flies through him from behind without him noticing.

As the wind brings the wolf up high enough he shoves forward, landing on the demons face. Claws extend, jabbing into the nearest eye with what will likely be a gooey, and quite possibly sticky, result. Clinging on, he tries for the other eye as well.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers glances towards Sinister, arching a brow as he unleashes a mad tornado like flurry of flying shards at the monster, which weakens it significantly, even though it seems to have a thick skin and incredible healing ability. This may take some time to wear it down.

Fortunately, there are more joining in the fray once they are freed with the prison, and Giles and Mercy soon join in the hacking and slashing, followed by Phantasm who leaps and with a few well placed slices, effectively blinds the monster, causing it to lash out wildly with flaming whip spinning about it in one hand and sword in the other. Hellequin is also here, deftly dancing about, hacking and slashing in his own style.

Finally, Giles shouts and Buffy reaches up to catch the..Well it's not truly the M? Scythe, only it's dream counterpart, a memory of the real weapon, but even then, memories are potent, powerful things. Especially with a weapon that draws its strength directly from the Slayer, her strength, her experience, her skill.

With a yell, she leaps in to join the fray, backspringing and jumping off the wall as it tries to snag her with its fiery whip that leaves a searing mark along the wall in its wake. The weapon seems to sing and ring out, glowing in silver light as she swings it, leaping high, and in one fell swoop she cuts off the beast's head.

With their combined efforts, the foul beast falls lifeless to the ground, in front of the startled, yet impressed group of three. They crowd together, murmuring amongst themselves until finally one of them turns to speak:

"You did well Slayer, Watcher, and allies. This dream was infected by a foul evil, and though you have pushed it back, still it remains in the waking world. A powerful force remains yet shrouded and yet it seeks even now to unleash hell on earth.." he descends the steps slowly, standing in front of Buffy, reaching out to touch her forehead. She gasps, eyes widening, staggering back at something unseen by all but herself..

"Go now, if you can find your way back.."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
THOOOOMMMMMPPPP.....paaaaa. The wolf ends up flinging to the ground giving a bit of a arp! in reaction. The wolf lays still for a few moments before getting up to his paws. Shaking it off. The fur floofs out with an approprate FWWOOOOMP accentuating the result. The poofball stands there for a moment, tilting his head before shaking himself back in order.

Threat gone, he shifts back to Nick form, listening to the shadowman that speaks. To the prompting of them being able to leave, he tilts his head. "...Well. Ok." He holds his arms out. "Grab on to an arm and hold on."

Nick pauses, looking to Buffy, "This is a lot of people to be giving a ride to in one go... I'm going to probably need to crash somewhere after this. And please don't let it be with Wade..."

Once everyone grabs on. Nick smiles, "Alright guys, Basic gist. Don't worry about the lack of taste, smell, and touch, that is normal. It will come back. Do not let go until I tell you to. Now. Close your eyes and on three, take a big step forward...."