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As the hours slowly ticked by towards the impending ritual, Chase began to grow all the more anxious for what lay ahead. He managed to sneak in a few hours of rest, however, and was all prepared to do what he had to the next morning. The first thing he did was return to Ivory's cell, and, after confirming that she still had her stake-equipped boots, asked to have them to give to Cordelia. It took some arguing, but Ivory eventually conceded to this.
Towards ten in the morning, Chase learned that Buffy had been removed from her cell and taken to a large cavernous region where the ritual would take place. Curiously, he wandered towards that area, looking on from afar as Ivory's mother was "readied" for the ceremony, arms raised above her head and wrists enclosed in chains that dangled from an overhang.
As Chase waited in his hiding spot and watched, a groggy Angel was brought next, and Chase deduced that whatever drug they'd given the elder vampire must have been a strong one. Buffy perked up slightly at the sight of her husband, even called out his name in mild desperation, but Angel was too out of it to hear her, let alone respond.
Leeloo was brought next, kicking and screaming, in Riley's clutches, putting up quite a fight until he locked her up in a third pair of manacles across from Buffy. If Ivory's mother was even slightly enraged by the prospect that Angel would die with her, she was even more so concerning Leeloo. Furious, Buffy vamped out, facing Riley with open hostility. "Let her go, you son of a..."
Riley laughed as he stepped away, finished securing Leeloo's manacles. "Now why would I want to do that?" he said in a mocking tone. "Would sort of defeat the purpose, don't you think? Look on the bright side... You and your family get to spend your last moments together at least."
Leeloo bucked slightly, twisting to get a better look at him. "You promised we could go when this was finished with!" she snarled.
"I lied," Riley said indifferently. "Really, baby, could you be any more naive? Your days were numbered from the time you were born. I can't believe you're just now realizing it!" With that, Riley turned to walk away with a laugh, leaving Leeloo to scream obscenities after him in a rage.
When he was gone, Leeloo shifted so she was again facing her mother, her eyes lowered to avoid Buffy's gaze. "Well, congratulations, Mom," she said softly, with a note of sarcasm. "You were right. He is scum. You'd think I would have learned that long before now."
Buffy's eyes took on a sympathetic light, every ounce of her aching for her younger daughter. "Oh, honey," she started.
Leeloo shot her mother a sharp look. "Don't you start!" she warned. "The last thing I need is another, 'I told you so.'" Leeloo paused, then added, "Do you know how sick I am of all the lame advice you gave me, the assurances that everything would be alright because we'd get out of here one day!? I lost that hope a long time ago!"
Buffy bit her lip, tears spinging to her eyes. "I wasn't going to say, 'I told you so.' That's not what either of us needs right now. Leeloo, I did the best I could, tried to give you everything possible under the circumstances."
"It wasn't enough. I wanted more!" Leeloo protested. "You could have given it to me, you know. You had the power to ensure that I grew up with my father and sister rather than apart from them. But no, you weren't strong or smart enough to avoid being captured!"
Buffy recoiled as if her daughter had slapped her. "Leeloo, that's not fair," she replied tearfully. "I in no way intended for both of us to wind up here. I had won too many battles, survived too many fights, and I got careless! And I am sorry for that! Do you know how many times I replayed that night over and over in my head, wondering what I could have done to defeat Ethan!? But all the replays in the world won't change the outcome." Buffy paused, raising her eyes momentarily towards the ceiling and allowing tears to fall down her cheeks. "I am sorry your life has been so miserable, but guess what?! You paid me back for it by hooking up with Riley although you knew I detested him. So, congratulations to you, Leeloo! We're even on the Hurting-Each-Other scale."
Leeloo was quiet for a long while, a mix of emotions playing out over her face as her eyes roamed around. At last, her gaze landed on Angel, and her expression turned pensive. "So, this is Dad, huh?" she asked aloud. "A little taller than I pictured him..."
Buffy looked at her daughter, wanting very much to brush the tears from her face. "Yes, this is your father," she replied softly, gaze shifting to her unconscious husband. "I wish we had more time, that you had time to get to know him. Through the years, I had hoped that you would get that chance someday... Well, I guess that was asking too much." Buffy paused, staring for a long time at her husband's peaceful face. "I love you, Angel," she murmured sadly. "Now, always, and forever..."
The cavern's vampires had already begun to assemble, and Cinnamon had come for Chase, dragging him off to a small alcove, by the time Ivory herself was brought to be chained alongside her parents and Leeloo. Together the four of them formed a sort of circle now, with Ivory standing across from her father, and Leeloo across from Buffy.
Standing next to Cinnamon, Chase could only smile, although it was a fake smile, at her statement that the show was about to begin. But it wasn't until Chase noted when Cordelia entered the cavern arm-in-arm with Riley and Ethan arrived to commence the ritual that he got fully geared up for it.
Chase only spared a brief glance at the four vamps (each wielding swords) who came to stand behind Ethan as he started to chant in a foreign language the younger man didn't recognize. With a hint of anxiety, Chase looked towards, his eyes catching hers for a brief instant. It told him volumes though; he could tell she was scared and perhaps uncertain as to whether or not he could save her.
Letting out a deep breath, Chase relaxed himself, reaching out with his senses to capture as many minds as he could. He had only seized a few, hadn't even got them to start a riot, when Cinnamon stepped in front of him and threw her arms around his neck. The sudden movement was enough to break Chase's concentration, and he looked down at the redheaded vampiress in surprise.
"Now you wouldn't be trying to break this up, would you?" Cinnamon drawled in a whisper, low enough so only he could hear it. "Let's be honest, Chase. You're not going to save your little Slayer. I don't care what kind of mind control powers you have. It's not going to happen."
Chase recoiled slightly in horror. "How did you...?" he started, only to have her cut him off.
Cinnamon clamped one hand over his jaw, leaning closer to whisper in his ear. "That little vampire you hypnotized into leaving you alone. You would have done better to ensure I didn't find him first... I watched you reinstate him through means I had trouble fathoming at first. But guess what, honey? Those few minutes when you thought you had me under your spell... It was all a ruse on my part. Nice try though. You almost had me."
Chase froze, allowing Cinnamon to maneuver him so he was facing Ivory. "First she dies, then you," Cinnamon whispered to him. "Or maybe it should be the other way around, so she loses any amount of hope she has left first. Either way, the two of you will be together for eternity, just like you wanted."
Chase watched as Ethan concluded with his chanting and gestured to the bloodsuckers behind him to approach Ivory and her family. Turning his head to look at Cinnamon, he said hatefully. "You first," he growled, reaching up swiftly and gripping her in a choke hold. Before she could recover, Chase pulled her closer so her eyes met his, and he worked to impose his will on hers, stronger than he had before. Because no matter what, he wasn't letting her escape this time...
At this point, Ivory's eyes were on her mother rather than Chase, for she wanted that to be her last sight if necessary. Momentarily distracted when Ethan's flunkies approached, one of them holding up a long steel blade to the back of her father's left hand.
Ethan stepped forward, grasping Buffy's right hand and positioning it so it lay, palm up, against Angel's. In one swift motion, the blade was driven clean through both, eliciting a moan from Angel and a short scream from his wife. The cycle was repeated with Leeloo and her father, then Buffy and Ivory, until all that was left was for the two sisters to be "connected" to finish it.
Ivory bit back a scream, although her body felt as if it had been doused in fire as Ethan's black magick took hold. Wildly, she turned her eyes in Chase's direction, catching only the barest glimpse of him. *Whatever you're planning to do, make it fast!* the Slayer thought wildly, screaming his name aloud the moment the fourth blade was driven home....
Caught off guard, Cinnamon began to fall under Chase's spell. However, reorienting herself, she began to fight back, doing her best to shut him out of her mind, but Chase matched her every attempt with equal force. It seemed that this might go on forever, until the sound of Ivory's scream echoed around them.
Chase didn't dare take his eyes off Cinnamon, but hearing Ivory's calling his name added fuel to the fire of his determination. He increased the fight for control on his side, and he could feel Cinnamon begin to buckle under the force of it all. At last, the access to her mind broke with a rush; Chase readily slipped in to take over. A good thing too, since the increase in his efforts caused a splitting headache that lasted for a few seconds, as well as a slight nosebleed.
Chase absently wiped at his nose, slightly surprised at the streak of blood it left on his hand, even as his headache rapidly dwindled. Focusing on keeping Cinnamon under control in one part of his mind, he looked up to see Ivory and her family were doing. Much to his horror, he found that the ritual had progressed farther than he'd expected. Even now, the ground at Ivory's feet was shifting, a portal coming into being within the circle.
Knowing he had to act quickly, Chase reached out with his mind, seeking out several others. He entered Cordelia's much more quietly this time, his consciousness touching hers so softly that she practically invited him in. *Take Ethan and Riley out of the cave the moment Falmorean appears,* Chase suggested to her gently. *Stake Riley if you prefer, but leave Ethan for Buffy and Angel.*
He saw Cordelia nod as if in answer, so Chase left her to her own task and sought out Ivory and her family next. Being careful to keep his grip on Cinnamon intact, he took control of them the same way he had Cordy, so that each member of the family, even Leeloo, knew he was there. *Close your eyes,* Chase sent out as a collective thought. *It's the only way you're going to live... Cordelia and I will take care of the rest.*
Chase managed a small smile as he observed his little suggestion put into action. Feeling a sense of relief at knowing that the Slayer and her family would be safe, he closed his own eyes and unconsciously ordered Cinnamon to do the same. And simply waited out the carnage that he knew would follow...
Shortly after Chase had planted the suggestion in her mind, Cordelia had taken a step back, partly out of fright, as she observed that the portal was beginning to open. Unnoticed by Ethan and Riley, she dropped slowly into a crouch, so as to not raise alarms from anyone else. Discreetly, she half kicked off one of the boots, reaching inside, undoing one of the buttons, and removing a stake from its compartment.
Pulling the boot back on, Cordelia stood, hiding the stake from view beneath her forearm. She stepped up next to Riley, whose arm went casually around her, eying the portal to determine how much time was left. And, much to her horror, she found that Falmorean was already emerging from it, rising as if propelled by a forklift.
Cordelia swallowed a breath of air, almost a little too sharply, at the sight of the demon. However, it didn't stop her from doing what she had to do, just made her realize she had to act quickly. Leaning towards Riley, shifting her weapon in her hand to ram into his back, she whispered, in a secretive tone, "Can I tell you something personal, Riley?"
He looked at her with a seductive smile. "Anything," he responded.
Cordelia looked back at him, keeping her expression even. "You really are THE worst piece of slime ever put on the face of the earth," she said quietly, so not even Ethan could overhear. "And I hope you rot in hell!" With those words, she drove the stake home, aimed precisely for his heart. Before he exploded into dust, Riley's expression melted into a priceless look she'd not soon forget. Even though it only lasted for an instant, Cordelia thought it was well worth it.
Without missing a beat, Cordelia crept up swiftly behind Ethan, pressing the tip of the stake sharply into his back and gripping one of his shoulders tightly so he couldn't budge. When he turned his head to look at her in bewilderment, Cordelia awarded him with a sardonic grin. "You may be a powerful sorcerer, but you have the worst memory if you don't remember me," she spat out. "Come with me or stay here. Either way, you're dead!" Without giving him a chance to respond, she began to back away towards the nearest corridor with Ethan in tow, relieved when he didn't put up a fight. Once the two of them were out of harm's way, Cordelia put a stranglehold on him until he lost consciousness, all the while aware that screams were erupting from the cavern she'd just vacated...
Chase almost didn't dare breathe as the screams died down, nor did he dare open his eyes. Almost mechanically, he reached out telepathically, trying to get a sense of who was left standing. Ivory and her family, definitely, but other than that, the once teeming cavern was almost completely bare. Scary, it was; Falmorean had wiped out most all the population within a matter of minutes. There were only a few vampires left, running for cover, but Chase didn't bother with them.
Instead, he searched further until he found the mind of the demon, slowly closing in on it with his own. At this juncture, Chase drew in a deep breath, feeling a tinge of fear at what he was about to do. Taking control of Cinnamon had been difficult enough; to do the same with Falmorean... well, Chase didn't know if it was even remotely within his range, but for Ivory's sake, he had to try.
Chase encircled the demon's mind slowly, attempting to slip in unnoticed. And thankfully, Falmorean wasn't expecting it, for he didn't put up much of a fight. At least, not at the start.
Chase had almost succeeded when the demon became aware of his presence. With a roar, Falmorean fought back, putting up some pretty strong barriers. However, Chase only pressed in harder, nearly losing his hold on Cinnamon in the process. It was a long, hard battle of wills, causing the young immortal to get a searing headache and severe nosebleed, but he eventually won out in the end, his love for Ivory and his desire to keep her safe prompting him to see this through.
Panting for breath, Chase opened his eyes, taking a few moments to rest himself for what he had to do next. As if they were puppets, rather than demons, under his control, he willed Cinnamon to walk towards her lover, allowing Falmorean enough freedom to whisper her true name and stroke her face lovingly.
Gearing up for what was to come, Chase murmured, "Congratulations, Cinnamon. You got him back, but at the same time, you're going to join him where he was." He did a quick search of Falmorean's mind, seeking out the demon's memory of the ritual that had banished him to hell. Finding it, and concentrating with all his might, Chase made Falmorean tighten his grip on Cinnamon, made him say aloud that very same spell. But the longer it wore on, the more Chase began to buckle under the stress of the feat. He fought it long enough to finish what he started, and his last sight was of another portal opening that would send the demon lovers where they belonged, for all eternity. Then, the darkness caved in on him at last, swallowing Chase into its vast emptiness...