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A Handful of Slayers - Jessica
Set some months after Chosen, it's a fic inspired by
something I said when pointing out possible consequences with the activation of all the Slayers and in consequence is not a very happy fic.
A rating of 15 for swearing and violence.
Disclaimer. All familiar characters are owned by JW and ME.
Many thanks to Sho for pointing out all my mistakes. :)
Dark and gloomy the alley was not a particularly welcoming place. Rubbish
littered the dirty grey tarmac and the walls were adorned with a mass of
brightly coloured graffiti. The smell of stale booze and much worse was
everywhere and, either smashed or broken, not a single lamppost cast any
light. In fact the only light came from the orange neon sign above an open
door deep in the alley.
The Den of the Diablo the sign proclaimed in bold letters twelve inches
high and it showed the way to one of wildest clubs Sydney had to offer.
Loud music, copious amount of drink and if you knew the right person,
drugs were all on offer at the Den and it had a reputation for unrivalled
debauchery.
Standing in the orange glow beneath the sign a young woman took a drag on
a cigarette. Black leather boots, a short skirt and a crop top that left
several inches of tattooed midriff exposed she had an air of confidence
that belied her tender years.
Taking a final drag Jessica flicked the butt to the ground and leant back
against the wall, it had been fairly quiet tonight so far. Possibly the
quietest night since she had become a bouncer just over a month ago, she
smiled, and hadn't that been a night to remember.
Her announcement that she wanted the Den's vacant bouncer's job had been
met with, what she can only describe as howls of laughter from the club's
management. "Does your mamma know you're here little girl?"
Joel, the manager asked her.
Jessica put her hands on her hips. "Does yours?"
Joel scowled. "Get lost, I haven't gone time for this."
"Look mister all I'm asking for is a chance. I'm stronger than I
look," she had assured him, which she had to admit it was hard not to
be. Five foot two and barely a hundred pounds Jessica was little more than
a strip of wind.
"Oh blood and guts," Joel swore. He clicked his fingers and
waved at heavy thick set man with a tattoo of a snake on his arm.
"Glen."
Glen stepped forward a frown on his heavyset face. "Boss?" he
asked.
"Throw her out."
For a moment Glen seemed reluctant but then he shrugged and moved forward.
Jessica on the other hand wasn't reluctant in the least, she was ready,
eager in fact for a chance to prove herself. She ducked beneath his
outstretched arms and smashed her right fist into his stomach and followed
it with a left to his nose.
Bone and cartilage shattered in a shower of blood and Glen yelled in agony
and raised his hands to his ruined nose. The young girl showed no mercy
and kicked him between the legs. The big man fell to his knees, beaten but
Jessica wasn't finished and smashed her forehead into his in a savage head
butt.
As he collapsed to the floor unconscious Jessica turned to look at Joel,
casually licked her opponent's blood from her lip and smiled. "Well
do I get the job?" she asked brazenly.
Eyes wide and mouth open Joel could only stare in shock and bemusement. It
took him several seconds to recover his composure then he nodded.
"Sure, you start tomorrow," he told her. "Eight o'clock
sharp and don't be late."
Jessica hadn't been late and that was the beginning of what she would
describe as an interesting month. Night after night one idiot after
another underestimated her or thought they could take advantage of her
size and each time Jessica showed them the error of their ways. Usually
with a fair amount of violence on her part and generous amounts of blood
and pain on theirs.
Tonight had been quite different though. No one had tried to cop a feel
and no one had tried to get in without paying. She frowned, maybe her
reputation was too well known, maybe it was time for her to move on. There
was only one reason she had took this job and it wasn't the crappy money.
A noise at the mouth of the alley caught her attention and instantly
Jessica was alert and ready. Maybe the night wouldn't be a complete loss
after all. The figure standing in the gloom didn't seem in any hurry to
approach though. For over a minute Jessica stared at the stranger intently
and though she couldn't be certain she had a weird feeling that the
stranger was staring back just as intently.
"Do you want something?" she shouted a moment later as her
impatience got the better of her.
The stranger said nothing and Jessica growled beneath her breath. For
several more minutes she continued to stare at the shadowy figure, her
anger rising. If this was someone's idea of a game then they'd be laughing
on the other side of their faces when she was finished with them.
Finally Jessica had had enough and took a couple of steps forward.
"Either show yourself or go. You've got to the count of three and
then I'm going to come down there and break a few bones," she warned.
"One, two, three." The last echo died away and Jessica took a
step forward but before she could take a second the figure stirred and
moved out of the shadows. Then slowly, almost stately, the figure glided
towards her at which point Jessica realised that the stranger was a woman.
Small and delicate the woman was dressed in a flowing dress of the
blackest velvet. With long black hair surrounding a pale elfin face, high
cheek bones and large brown eyes she had an almost otherworldly appearance
but was nonetheless, Jessica had to admit, a beautiful woman.
"Are you lost lady?" Jessica asked more politely then she
intended.
The woman said nothing but continued to advance, stopping when she was
only a yard or so away and then looked Jessica up and down.
Uncomfortable under her stare the young girl shivered and had to stop
herself from trying to cover herself with her arms. "Well are
you?" she demanded somewhat more harshly.
"Well am I what?" the woman asked, her accent foreign.
"Lost!"
The raven haired beauty was silent for a moment then smiled a happy little
smile. "I don't think so."
Jessica was astonished. "You want to go into the Den. They'll eat you
alive."
As if Jessica had said the funniest thing in the world the woman laughed.
"No my sweet you've got it wrong. I haven't come to visit this Den of
yours, even though you make it sound quite interesting, I have come to see
you."
Taking a step back the young bouncer eyed her with new suspicion.
"Who are you?" she demanded. "And what interest do you have
in me?"
"I'm interested in all of your kind."
"My kind," she repeated. This was starting to get very
confusing. "What do you mean my kind?"
The woman shook her head sadly. "Terrible, such ignorant. It didn't
used to be like this you know, back in the good old days."
Was this woman on something? "Look lady I don't know what you're
talking about but if you don't piss off I'm gonna slap you one."
"Well they weren't particular good for my kind you understand and to
tell the truth they weren't that long ago," she continued oblivious
to the threat, "but times change."
Jessica was starting to get angry. "I'm warning you," she
shouted.
The woman laughed. "Don't be a stupid little girl."
That's it, Jessica decided, she wasn't putting up with any more of this
crap and punched her. The woman was taken by surprise and her head snapped
back but that was all. She didn't fly across the alley, she didn't crumple
to the ground and her head didn't cave in. Jessica frowned and a moment
later the woman looked up. Then sensually licking the blood from her lip
she smiled. "You'll have to do better than that dearie."
Will I? Well deal with this then you bitch, Jessica thought and balled her
fist but before she could throw it the woman moved and in a flash she felt
a hand round her throat. Jessica tired to pry the hand from her throat
then when that didn't work began to swing wild punches at the woman but to
no avail. The woman had a grip of iron. The young girl could feel the
panic inside her begin to rise.
"What do you want with me?" she managed to choke out still
struggling to break free.
The woman smiled and began force her head round. Jessica tried to resist
but nothing she did had any effect and she soon found herself looking into
the woman's large brown eyes. "Look deep little girl, look
deep."
Reflexively Jessica tried to close her eyes but for some reason her
eyelids wouldn't obey her commands leaving her no choice but to do as she
had been told.
Jessica's world narrowed, the club, the alley, Sydney, even the woman
herself were gone. All that there was, all that remained were the eyes and
she was transfixed. Deeper and deeper she looked searching for what she
had no idea but she knew she had to find it.
Suddenly Jessica found herself at the edge of a blackness, a blackness so
dark that she knew nothing could escape it. Before she could think of
escape though, the pool stirred and began to move towards her. With
agonising slowness the blackness closed about her, surrounding her,
covering her, enveloping her. She screamed but there was no sound.
Time passed, a day, a year, forever, it was all meaningless; there was
nothing but the blackness. Then something changed, something disturbed the
undisturbable. A sound. Jessica strained to make out what it was and
gradually she understood. It was a name, it was her name. She struggled
towards the sound fighting against the all encompassing blackness until
finally she broke free and found herself once again in the alley.
It was still night she noted vaguely and a low throbbing hum still came
from the club so not much time could have passed. These details would
normally have found interesting, but for some reason she just didn't care.
The dark haired woman no longer held her by the throat either but Jessica
had no thought of escape.
"Come to me Jessica," the woman commanded in a soothing tone.
Though she somehow knew it was wrong she couldn't help herself and in fact
wanted to go to her. The woman stroked her hair and Jessica smiled a
contented little smile. A smile which remained on her face as the woman
bent her head, moved her hair to one side and then savagely bit into her
exposed neck.
Drained of it's blood Drusilla allowed the body of the young Slayer to
fall to the ground her stained lips curved upwards in a smile of
exhilaration and triumph. Seven slayers she had drank dry now and with
each one she could feel the strength coursing through her body grow. What
miracle had happened to create so many untrained and vulnerable slayers
Dru didn't know and as long as there were more of them she didn't care.
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