And then there's her reaction to what their goal actually is, the slow creeping embrace of corruption and immorality in society. Of taking over the world not by destroying everything humanity has built but by twisting and co-opting it and making it so that humanity serves them willingly.
Which makes sense if you remember that WRH are at least over a hundred million years old. They are more then old enough to see things in a "Deep Time" perspective and recognize that humanity's greatest strength isn't our champions or magic but our ability to innovate and build. Demon societies are stagnant, remaining the same for tens of millennia. In that time humanity went from hunting mammoths with stone spears to splitting the atom and walking on the moon and god only knows what we will have achieved in another ten millennia.
Modern Earth is currently the most advanced and heavily industrialized world in the known Buffy multiverse and Wolf, Ram and Heart are just the type of ambitious bastards who would just love to co-opt all that, that industry, that technology, that innovative and forward thinking species. To take of all that and make it a crown jewel in their empire(and the fact that they were originally from Earth during the Primordium Age probably means there's a bit of nostalgia and vindication too).
I encourage you, and others, to examine the following quotes, all of which are relevant to some of the things you're wondering about. Be aware that information you may remember from the comics is especially suspect, and not particularly likely to be canon in this Quest.
"I know sixty thousand seems like a lot, especially considering our budget difficulties right now," Ian said. "But remember it wouldn't be a lump sum, we'd be subsidizing it over the course of the year. And earth honestly has a lot of consumer goods that might appeal. I'd think?"
Anya reluctantly nodded. "It's like the Walmart of dimensions. Not the best quality, but they sure make it cheap here."
"So we'd be whetting their appetites," Ian argued. "That subsidy won't be enough for dozens of nobles, we could be seeing profitable trade soon."
Some context about Earth's relative position there, in terms of advancement and industrial capacity. Think something like a developing third world country, and Anya would say you weren't that far wrong.
On the other side of the pool, a clothing rack full of bizarre garments was being pushed over by another pair of demon girls. A description rang out over the loudspeaker. "ON OFFER AS PART OF OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH SILKWORM, THE CENTERPIECE OF EVERY ASPIRING NOBLE'S WARDROBE! EACH QUALIFYING CONTESTANT SHALL RECEIVE AN ARASHMAHARR ORIGINAL, AUTOTAILORED TO FIT BY THE OLDEST IN CONVENIENCE MAGIC!"
The projector screen came to life again, along with the announcer. "FROM THE PAN-WHERE TRAVEL AGENCY, A WEEKLONG TRIP FOR TWO TO THE CITY OF BEAUTY IN ISKTAL!" Fantastical images of colorful skyscrapers were shown reaching up into a cloudy sky, populated by frantic-looking little demons doing all kinds of activities. The birdlike, accordion-stomached things didn't seem too threatening, and the place looked nice for what was presumably a hell dimension, but still did seem pretty weird, especially to spend a week in. "STAY IN GORGEOUS LOCATIONS, ENJOY SPECTACULAR VIEWS, SHOP AT ALL THE FAMOUSLY UNREGULATED MARKETS!" Enticing (well, meant-to-be-enticing) scenes kept being shown, but the announcer's voice quieted for his last sentence. "Subsidized shopping credits limited to 50 Siamese equivalent, offer not valid for trips originating from Quor'toth."
"FROM OUR TIMELESS FRIENDS AT LOST HOURS, YOU'LL NEVER MISS AN A MEETING AGAIN WITH A SET OF INTERDIMENSIONAL HORAE WATCHES! CONFIGURABLE TO ALL THE MOST TRAVELLED DIMENSIONS OF THE COSMOS, AND ABLE TO ADAPT EVEN TO THE MOST CHAOTIC DEMIPLANE, THE HORAE WATCH HAS BECOME THE GOLD STANDARD BOTH IN PRECISION AND STYLE." As the announcer was talking, the fourth demon assistant walked past the audience showing off a display box.
These are some of the prize-vertisements from Sour's show. Note that these are clearly something analogous to corporate sponsors. You also might want to consider the overall quality of the goods, especially compared to the type of stuff you see on Earth game shows.
"Wait, Giles always talked about the untold eons of demons walking the Earth. Do you mean before that?" Buffy asked.
"No, no, I mean, I guess you could call it a recolonization, if you were being pedantic," he said. "I mean after that, after the Sundering. Demons were thin on the ground in this dimension for a long time. How else do you think humans got so established here?"
"I think I've seen a couple of Wilkins' books mention that before," Willow said. Buffy definitely hadn't, but she didn't read as much. "You mean after the Old Ones all vanished?"
"When the dimensions broke up," he explained. "It's ancient history, even by demon standards, so in your … more applied line of work, I can understand how it wouldn't come up much."
"Oh," Willow said. "So that's what that meant. I was going to ask Giles about it but we've all been so busy lately, I never think of it when he's around." She paused and then looked at her laptop. "CyberWillow, remind me to ask Giles about the Sundering next time I see him."
The Sundering as a concept does not exist in BTVS canon. Little is known, but all the dimensions were once One, and now are not. The Old Ones once ruled as beings greater than gods, and now are gone.
Giles gave Willow a troubled look, and seemed to choose his words carefully. "When you asked me about the Sundering, I was not aware that you were investigating the usage of Lachrymal artifacts."
"I wasn't! Then," Willow said defensively. "I was just curious, like I said. But knowing how old the Box was, I just wanted to check what kind of effect I could get if I used the spiders. It was like, a thought experiment. Except with computer simulations."
"This is the same evil box that almost got you killed, and helped the old mayor turn into a giant snake, right?" Oz asked dubiously. "I'm thinking maybe that box isn't our friend."
"Using its … produce in any ritual could constitute the darkest of magicks, Willow," Giles continued. "Even if properly channeled, such a spell could be very difficult to control, and that's discounting the obvious dangers of collecting the spiders in the first place."
"Willow's really powerful though," Anya said. "She's like a savant. And this wouldn't be some old ritual she's casting that she barely even understands, you built this from the ground up, right?"
"It was a collaborative exercise," CyberWillow answered.
"She's really good at calculating energy folds," Willow said. "But yeah, we think we understand it pretty well."
"'Pretty well' is hardly adequate for rituals using components over ten thousand years old," Giles said, his frustration starting to show.
Giles isn't exact in conversation here, but he knows that it happened about 14,000 years ago. No extant civilization in the multiverse predates it, and artifacts leftover from those times are dangerous wonders of immense value, impossible to replicate by any modern means.
These spells are called "invocations", because they're calling upon a god or goddess (either one directly in the same dimension or in another one, with some confusing restrictions) to remotely supply the rest of the pattern and energy for the spell. Sometimes these invocations have direct costs, but more usually the deity is happy to do this for "free". It's not super well understood by anyone Buffy knows exactly why, but invocations tend to always be effects which align with a deity's domain, and casting a lot of them tends to quickly align both the caster's energy reserve and their mindset in general with that of the deity.
Buffy herself is a little confused by her sudden burst of popularity. But it seems to stem from the notoreity of a young mayor, the confusing rumors coming out of Sunnydale (Wilkins, Gangs, Police; Buffy being confusingly involved in all three), and more recently everyone has heard she's in Cortez' new movie. The Friday debate was televised across SoCal too, so that might contribute to her being recognized.
[x] Buffy wasn't sure what district in LA Congressman Gold represented, but Gunn was close enough to being one of his constituents that this felt a little like his responsibility. Maybe the official support would be useful for the rag tag group.
[x] Percy West would be going to college at USC in just a few weeks, and he wasn't the only City Watch member who'd be going to college in LA. Both groups working together could do a lot more than either group working alone.
[x] Percy West would be going to college at USC in just a few weeks, and he wasn't the only City Watch member who'd be going to college in LA. Both groups working together could do a lot more than either group working alone.
[x] Percy West would be going to college at USC in just a few weeks, and he wasn't the only City Watch member who'd be going to college in LA. Both groups working together could do a lot more than either group working alone.
Honestly not convinced with Buffy's logic that Gold would feel much responsibility for this group. Lizard men demons might be as moral as humans, but that's not exactly a glowing endorsement, and I assume anything without a very good reason to care is at best a tool, more likely raw materials, because secret clan of lizards surviving in Buffyverse California.
Adhoc vote count started by DeAnno on Oct 25, 2019 at 6:51 AM, finished with 19 posts and 13 votes.
[X] Percy West would be going to college at USC in just a few weeks, and he wasn't the only City Watch member who'd be going to college in LA. Both groups working together could do a lot more than either group working alone.
[x] Buffy wasn't sure what district in LA Congressman Gold represented, but Gunn was close enough to being one of his constituents that this felt a little like his responsibility. Maybe the official support would be useful for the rag tag group.
I'd rather LA took care of its problems without our input, so... Give them official backing, and hope they manage from there.
[x] Buffy wasn't sure what district in LA Congressman Gold represented, but Gunn was close enough to being one of his constituents that this felt a little like his responsibility. Maybe the official support would be useful for the rag tag group.
@DeAnno now that Buffy did some testing with Warren and the stuff at the college can you tell us how much of a difference there is compared to what Giles thinks a normal slayer should be capable of?
@DeAnno now that Buffy did some testing with Warren and the stuff at the college can you tell us how much of a difference there is compared to what Giles thinks a normal slayer should be capable of?
Buffy was already an exceptional Slayer at the end of Season 3, but her capabilities have been increasing much more quickly than usual ever since her vision during S3.5E3. She's actually been avoiding Warren for the past few weeks for obvious reasons, but during testing she did with him in July she could bench press almost three tons, with roughly proportional strength in other contexts. The records Giles has of other Slayers have a lot of variation but the average bench would be about half that much (one and a half tons.) The consistent level of strength Buffy has now would be the tip top of the previously observed slayer range. Most of her other physical measurables follow that pattern of being about the very top of slayer range, and in aggregate this is completely unprecedented. How much of this was Buffy already before and how much of it is new summer increases is as yet unclear, but it's definitely been increasing some.
Normal Slayers have an innate affinity for learning about weapons or martial arts, and will typically pick up those skills at much faster than normal speeds. What Buffy has had since her vision in S3.5E3 is more than that; a high level of skill is simply already present, even for things she has never used before or rarely trained with, such as what we saw with the AT4 in S3.5E11, a weapon she had only fired once before then in her life.
Additionally, she can "notice" vulnerabilities in inhuman adversaries that you would ordinarily have to actually learn about from somewhere. We've seen this a number of times, including the dragon in E3, the Haxil in E6, even the weird Deathwok heart thing in the previous fight. No such ability is mentioned in any watcher journals, and in fact one of the principal responsibilities of a watcher has always been keeping a slayer informed about such things. As some have noted in thread, there will usually be "KILL" invisitext when this critical hit ability activates.
Slayer dreams as a rule are weird, and many slayers have experienced them to different degrees and in different ways. Getting slayer dreams about Wilkins all the time would not necessarily be that strange, except that Buffy's slayer dreams used to be much different and rather less frequent, and that there seems to be some kind of scrying going on over City Hall related to them, the source of which Willow can currently maybe block (temporarily, if she's working at it) but not locate.
Buffy was able to resist mental attacks both from the Dragon in E3 and Raven DeMorte earlier in this episode; this kind of ability is not unheard of in slayers (though as Kendra unfortunately discovered, not every slayer has it either), and in fact Buffy has displayed it before in canon against both the Master and Drusilla. She didn't feel much of anything from Raven, but she would've said the Dragon's mind control effect felt much stronger than the Master's or Drusilla's before her vision countered it.
As an aside while we talk about how Buffy in combat has changed, actually overt magic weapons are pretty damn rare, though weapons of high quality that might be a little magical are less so. Buffy's hammer seems to fall into this category, being both easier to use than it should be in the sense of inertia and also, as far as Buffy can determine, completely indestructible (it does not scratch, it does not stain.) Anya did not expect the hammer to work quite so well considering who made it and the price you paid, but also wasn't too surprised.
[x] Percy West would be going to college at USC in just a few weeks, and he wasn't the only City Watch member who'd be going to college in LA. Both groups working together could do a lot more than either group working alone.
I've been thinking about what this hunt looks like from the WRH pov, and I have to assume at this point they are hoping Buffy gives them a call to start discussing terms. The absolute worst case scenario must be that she came to town, killed a bunch of their guys, and sees no reason to make peace. They can't afford to have this just be a thing that happens every few weeks or whenever there is a slow period on the hellmouth. I don't really want to be in a forever war with WRH and would rather push for peace after asserting dominance, but just going home and waiting for Holland to call on a rotary phone or something low tech sounds delightful.
[X] Percy West would be going to college at USC in just a few weeks, and he wasn't the only City Watch member who'd be going to college in LA. Both groups working together could do a lot more than either group working alone.
Buffy could definitely see the use in having some Sunnydale expats work with Gunn's people once fall came around, but she'd have to be careful how she phrased things. "Even without any official recognition, you guys probably do a lot of good here. Holding off a big honking wave of demons like that, it was impressive."
"Don't usually see as much of those around as vamps, but yeah, our crew's pretty hot," Gunn raised his arms theatrically and got a little cheer from his people. "But what you buttering us up for? I saw you swinging that monster hammer of yours around, I've never seen nothing fight like that nowhere before."
"Not really about me," she said. "There are some people that I've had working in the City Watch over the summer. They grew up with it in the background, but they didn't really… fight, until the thing with the giant snake mayor. But after that things changed for everybody. I guess once they really knew-"
"Couldn't ignore it anymore," Gunn said, nodding. He'd probably been through the same thing, five years ago.
"But a lot of them are going to college now," Buffy continued. "And the most popular destination is LA."
"I hope you aren't gonna sign us up for babysitting," one of Gunn's gang piped up.
"I ain't changing any diapers," another said.
"Hey, hey," Gunn said, calming them down. "Now there's no need for any of that. Let's hear the lady out."
"I have a feeling they're going to be looking for trouble any which way," Buffy said. "Maybe you could all share the wealth?"
"Things can get a little hairy sometimes," Gunn admitted. "We wouldn't mind some more local help. You can vouch for these guys though, they aren't gonna run at the first sign of some fangs?"
"Percy's not afraid of anything these days," Harmony said. "And his squad is pretty good, really. If I was in their group for graduation, who knows, I might not have even died."
"Wait, you're telling me you got turned just a few months ago?" Gunn asked, and Buffy realized she hadn't actually mentioned the exact circumstances of Harmony's weird situation in the previous argument.
"Yeah, it was like waking up," Harmony said brightly. "I wouldn't recommend it for everyone though. I was kind of vapid before. I think my soul was probably lame."
This seemed to throw Gunn more than anything she'd said yet. "Usually vampires are all evil this and glorious darkness that. More, like, evangelical, if that's the right word."
"Harmony has made it a habit to defy expectations," Giles said.
"We have a standing order to report back for an evaluation if turned," Jonathan added helpfully. "Not that going out and getting turned is a good idea, because most people still think Harmony was just a weird one off. No offense Harmony."
She smiled prettily in response, showing currently human teeth, and Jonathan flinched a little. Buffy really wanted to do… something with that smile right now. Something very naughty, that would definitely horrify (or at least mortify) everyone else here. So she told herself that waiting would be fine. Plenty of time for that when they got back home.
"Anyway," Buffy said, bringing the conversation back into line, "Percy West and company. Good people, sharp weapons, and they'll be in LA in two weeks. You should be friends."
"Can't promise anything," Gunn said. "But we'll shoot the shit. See if they can hang."
Willow spoke up unexpectedly from the radios again, interrupting the conversation, "Buffy, I just got a sighting on the Deathwoks. They're a little more than a mile out from you, and guess what direction they're headed in?"
"Maybe it begins with Wolf and ends with ram-and-Hart?" Buffy said dryly.
"Did you take a nap when I wasn't paying attention?" Willow joked. "It's almost like you had a slayer dream."
"I imagine they're on their way back to their home dimension of Pylea, with their heads hung low in the shame of defeat," Andrew said. "Wolfram and Hart probably managed the portal to summon them somehow."
"Are we going after them?" Jonathan asked. "After Wolfram and Hart coordinated something like this, the rest of our targets have probably been warned."
"Just so we're clear, exactly how much more carnage were you all looking to deal out tonight?" Gunn asked.
"We bagged nine before the big battle," Harmony said. "And some of the rest were there right?"
"A couple of local mercenary clans which we'd identified were present, yes," Giles replied. They'd been saving chafe like that for the end; they weren't really as dangerous as the more professional assassins who worked alone.
"I don't think I noticed the Kaliff demons?" Jonathan asked.
"No, I got them behind the dumpster with Harmony, they were the ones with the guns," Andrew clarified. Everyone gave him a sideways look. "What? I was there in the scorpion. It's the same thing!"
"We got enough," Buffy said, looking to close the issue for now. She didn't want to get into the Vanessa Brewer issue with him tonight, for one thing. "But I want to follow those Death Knocks back to their lawyers anyway. Gunn and friends: Percy will get in touch with you, but we should get going now. We're overdue for a friendly chat with the disloyal opposition."
The Wolfram and Hart building was large and angular, like a cutaway section of some kind of sacrificial pyramid. The light of many occupied offices shone from the windows in the early hours of the morning, illuminating the little dropoff rotary in front in their industrial glare. They'd kept the power off entirely for a couple days, but Buffy figured they must finally think the building was safe from Willow. Whether that was actually true remained to be seen.
"You're sure about this, Buffy?" Harmony asked, sounding nervous.
"None of us are thrilled with you going in alone," Giles added.
"You guys are all exhausted, or hurt, or hurt and exhausted. I'll be fine. Besides, I won't be alone. Willow will be with me." Buffy wiggled her radio.
"You know I can't actually use any offensive magic through this thing right?" Willow asked.
"You guys worry too much. I don't think they'll even be looking for a fight, if they had anything more they wanted to send at us they'd have already sent it. Their tails are totally between their legs, I just need to go deliver the final 'bad doggie' scolding." Privately, Buffy wasn't so sure, but her team was beaten up enough that she didn't want to put them on display. With them circling around in the van the people in the building would have a harder time knowing if they were waiting out here at full strength instead.
The van came to a stop and Buffy popped the passenger door, making sure the little bag she was carrying was affixed to her belt as she did so. As she was hopping out, Andrew said, "May the force be with you." She figured he'd done enough to deserve his fun, so she gave him the Star Trek sign with her non-hammery hand. She heard Harmony groan and Jonathan snicker in the background as Cynthia rolled the minivan away.
She approached the doors cautiously, half expecting the security goons she saw to take potshots at her, but instead they edged out of the way. She wasn't covered in demon blood and guts anymore, but they definitely looked at her as if she was. The lobby she entered was an expanse of marble flooring surrounded artfully by tall glass windows and friendly indoor trees, with a little security island guarding passage deeper into the building. The two guards manning it looked a little confused about how to react; Buffy thought she noticed one of them reaching for a phone that wasn't there anymore.
Buffy figured they needed a little something to jog them out of their hesitation, and luckily she'd brought just the thing. She let her hammer drop and rest on the topspike for a second (shame about the marble) and opened up her bag. The funny thing about beheaded Deathwoks is they didn't seem to actually die.
"Have we reached your rancid lair, cow monster? Am I to grace your mantlepiece and look upon your deceitful face forever? Or am I to suffer the shame of an exchanged hostage?" The head inside had stopped screaming a while ago, but it was still fairly talkative. She took it out and threw it softly over to the security guard, who was too confused to do anything but catch it. "Such indignities I am subjected to! Will they never end?"
"One of your bosses lost something. That belongs to Holland Manners. Why don't you bring it up to him and tell him that I'm here to talk?" Maybe it would have some fun things to say to security guard on his journey.
Without saying anything, the guard with the head backed away off to the elevators, holding it as far from his body as he could. The other guards awkwardly stood around and stared as Buffy whimsically spun her hammer on its point, slowly wearing it further into the divot it had made in the floor. There wasn't any other traffic going in or out of the building, but she couldn't tell if that was due to her or the late-early hour. Without much else to do as she waited, she took a more careful look around; she didn't see anything that seemed like a trap, but she did notice a couple little emplacements in the corners that had been stripped of their security cameras.
After a longer period than the guards would've liked and a shorter period than she would've guessed, an older, suited man emerged from an elevator, with neither the guard nor the Deathwok head. He seemed calm and composed, and though he looked her in the eye, he didn't start conversation until he'd crossed the largish space and was in normal talking distance.
"Mayor Summers, welcome to the Los Angeles branch of Wolfram and Hart. I'm Holland Manners, the Head of Operations for the Special Projects division here." He was soft spoken, just enough that a normal person would be encouraged to lean forward to hear him more clearly. Buffy didn't have normal hearing, and didn't change her pose. "If I were to guess, you're waiting for me out here because you have something you want to discuss."
"You could say that. I was in the neighborhood, just taking care of some errands, you know, girl stuff." She smiled, and lifted her hammer back out of the floor. "And I was thinking that the campaign we're running against each other back in Sunnydale was starting to get a little fraught. Maybe we should talk over some ground rules." Buffy didn't feel quite as relaxed as she was trying to let on, but she needed to put a bow on this thing the right way. Wolfram and Hart's lawyers would pounce on weakness.
"That sounds like a wonderful idea," he said. "Let's take this somewhere more private. I'd offer one of our nicer rooms upstairs, but I think that in the current circumstances both of us might be more comfortable doing this on the ground floor." When Buffy gave a nod, he turned and led her beyond the security desk and the elevators, down a large open hallway traversing the rest of the ground floor. After not too long he led her into a mostly empty room with desk covered in paperwork and a window into a lawn area dominating one of the walls.
Buffy closed the door and leant back on the wall next to it as Holland turned the blinds closed. She felt an urge to say something, but she knew well enough that it was better to stay quiet. Let him talk first.
"I feel like our relationship has been a series of unfortunate misunderstandings, and for that I apologize." Holland said, "With the departure of Mayor Wilkins, Sunnydale was identified as a promising candidate for expansion and investment by our firm, and given the dangerous environs of the city, it fell on my division to lead that effort."
"And of course your first move was to buy a politician," Willow cut in, drawing Holland's eye towards Buffy's radio.
He didn't let it phase him. "Ah, Ms. Rosenberg, I presume? It's good that you can participate in this discussion too. You've been on the tip of everyone's tongue here for the past few days. But you probably know that already."
"I make it my business to know a lot of things," she said ominously. Buffy could work with this. She could be the good cop if Willow wanted to be the bad cop. Or maybe she could be the less bad cop, at least.
"That you do," he agreed genially. "But I should get back to my point. While I'm in charge of a good team of lawyers and other agents, I feel that they can't be truly great unless I allow them to spread their wings. To try things on their own. To learn from their mistakes. I'm sure that two women in your positions do the same sometimes, with so many other young people working under you."
"So you're throwing poor little Lindsey under the bus?" Buffy wondered out loud. "The misunderstandings with the Rats, the blackmail files, the poindexter warlock, the assassination plans, all of it was him?"
At the last phrase, she saw a flash of confusion cross over Holland's face before it settled back into measured calm. He took a deep breath. "I can see how you might've misinterpreted some of the information you found in our private records. Obviously, what's there isn't intended for public consumption-"
"I think the public might gobble it right up, actually," Willow interrupted.
Holland rolled his eyes and grinned, acting amused. "Regrettably, people in my department have gotten into some sloppy habits, and one of them is collecting certain kinds of information even when the circumstances of the situation make acting on it unwise. Be that as it may, I can assure you that there was never any plan to take such … final action against either of you or any of your subordinates. As you've demonstrated to the entire city today, such action would've been very unproductive in any case."
Buffy sighed theatrically. "Well, that's just great. So you're claiming, only claiming mind you, that you didn't want to send a bunch of trained murderers after me and all my friends. But all the rest, spreading plagues, controlling minds, that's just how you do business, right?"
He shrugged. "Do you want me to lie to you, Buffy? I feel that we're all adults here, and we've left behind childish ideals. That's just how things get done in the world. People with power use that power to get what they want from people that don't. Do I think that was the right tack to take here, especially in hindsight? Absolutely not. But what's done is done."
"Funny you should talk about power," Buffy said. "That was why I came down here tonight. To take your power away. I was strong, and you were weak."
"You've got me there," Holland said. "But now what?"
Buffy wasn't sure what to say to that exactly, and Willow didn't respond either. Was he daring them to raise the stakes? Giving up?
"In the past week, the two of you have corrupted a fortune in hardware, cost the firm thousands of man-hours, and destroyed significant human and inhuman resources on your little rampage through the city. You've expended a lot of effort to assert your dominance and do damage, but what is it that you want? Wolfram and Hart started operations in Sunnydale with a plan in place for what we would risk and what rewards we could secure. Do you have that? Or are you just thrashing around on instinct, angry because you felt threatened?" Despite Holland's words, his tone remained even, and his expression was conciliatory.
"If all you really wanted was safety and peace, surely you realized you could have had that yesterday, if not earlier. Mr. Gervais is sinking like a stone in the polls, and you'd gotten ahold of all our plans and foiled them in detail. Our operations in Sunnydale were already dead in the water, and even by your own reckoning, to get any progress going again we'd have had to start sending people into the meat grinder. No offense, of course.
"Luckily for all of us, I've spent this trying night doing some thinking. I know what Wolfram and Hart wants, and I'm pretty sure I have a good idea of what you two want, even if you don't know that yet yourselves." He fished around on the crowded desk and picked up a sheet of official-looking paper with text in a list and a signature space at the bottom.
"I don't know what you think I've been told, but I know better to sign a deal with the devil," Buffy said.
"You misunderstand me. I'm the only one here who will need to sign anything. Let me show you the terms of the cease fire I'm proposing." He handed Buffy the contract, and Buffy glanced it over and then summarized it for Willow over the radio.
Terms of the Cease Fire between Wolfram and Hart, Buffy Summers, and Willow Rosenberg, to be signed into effect by the Head of Operations for the Special Projects division.
Clause 1: There is to be a payment on the 16th of every month from Wolfram and Hart to Buffy Summers of $100,000, and additionally a payment from Wolfram and Hart to Willow Rosenberg of $50,000, for a period of 13 months, starting on August 16th, 1999. After the last of the 13 payment pairs, on August 16th, 2000, this contract will be dissolved.
Clause 2: Wolfram and Hart is not to send representatives into Sunnydale County, contract clients there, or make aid of any sort available to anybody there, except at the behest of Buffy Summers or Willow Rosenberg.
Clause 3: This contract may be dissolved if Buffy Summers enters Los Angeles County without express permission from the undersigned.
Clause 4: This contract may be dissolved if Willow Rosenberg accesses or sabotages the technological infrastructure of Wolfram and Hart in any way or directs or assists others in so doing. This contract may also be dissolved if information obtained from previous unlawful access is disseminated any further by her or by any employee of the Sunnydale city government.
Clause 5: This contract may be dissolved if offensive violent action is taken against anybody within the Los Angeles County by any employee of the Sunnydale city government, or if they assist or direct others in so doing, without express permission from the undersigned.
"So it's a big fat bribe," Willow said.
"I think it'd be more constructive to think of it as tribute," Holland said. "I recognize that however this all began, my division is now on the losing side of a war, and I am willing to pay you for peace. This is more or less what you wanted, isn't it? I admit that you've won, and you get a prize to make all your efforts worthwhile. Then, both sides can go our separate ways and can manage our own affairs without interference in the future."
Buffy didn't know what she'd been expecting, but it hadn't been this. The money would mean a lot for Sunnydale's ongoing budget, but some of these terms were a little concerning. "So I'd be banned from the entire county?"
"Take it as a personal compliment if anything!" he said. "After your display earlier in June, and especially what happened tonight, the firm believes you are too personally dangerous to be here unaccounted for. And it's not like we don't want you doing any legitimate business, we would just want to set up certain assurances in advance and to be able to keep an eye on you while you were here. We don't want half our clients living in fear of you, after all."
"And this stuff about my employees taking action?" she continued, "Some of the Watch members are going to college here this Fall-"
Holland nodded, "And as long as they aren't working for you anymore once they're here, they can do whatever they like. That language is just there to prevent you from reaching out to attack us with impunity through proxies, which I'm sure you'll agree is fair."
Buffy wasn't sure how well that would mesh with Percy's plans, but at least Gunn was here to give him some backup.
"But what about the blackmail?" Willow asked. "Carl already knows about it, even if you stop backing him he could release it to smear Buffy's name!"
"That would be a shame, and I do admit the firm is responsible," Holland said, without a trace of sarcasm. "Though you have compromised our resources, I'd certainly be willing to handle him for you if you're a little too squeamish, with your permission, of course."
Buffy's eyebrows went up at the implications of what he was suggesting. "No. That won't be necessary. We can deal with him our way." He might be a total jerk, but she didn't want the death of a mostly innocent civilian on her conscience.
"Somehow I thought you'd say that. It might also be good to hear that while he is aware of your … youthful indiscretions, he doesn't have any of the documents to prove them." He rooted around in the desk again and handed her a manila envelope. "These are the originals. I'll make sure all the other copies are gotten rid of."
Buffy doubted that, but if Carl didn't have them at least it'd be a problem for later. As opposed to a problem for right now, like what to do about this Cease Fire.
Vote: What course does Buffy take here? Willow will follow her lead. This vote may have a second stage for clarification if the first stage produces particularly unclear results. Note that "Sunnydale County" is roughly the same as our world's Santa Barbara County. It does not directly border LA County; there is Ventura County in between with Oxnard and some other places.
[] Take the deal on the table. It doesn't actually bind Buffy to anything, and the money could be a huge deal for defending the Hellmouth.
-This option doesn't require any stunting or additional planning.
[] Negotiate for something more palatable.
-This option is about giving something to get something, trying to change the deal while maintaining the same general balance it already has. If you add more stuff Buffy wants, or take away stuff she doesn't, you'll have to also give back something to Wolfram and Hart. Stunt in changes to the deal, but each stunt has to be a self contained "fair exchange." Buffy doesn't have to know what things WRH might want in character; you can suggest something they might want that she doesn't know about. I'll be keeping an eye on stunts for this option and I'll inform you of any that won't go through as they're suggested. Everything that happens in this option has to be something that none of Buffy, Willow, or WRH would strongly object to in character.
[] Reject the deal and dictate terms.
-This option is about demanding a strictly better deal for peace. You can make whatever demands you want, as long as they're demands that Buffy or Willow would reasonably make. You also can accompany them with whatever threats you want to try to intimidate Holland Manners (but again, no OOC information, obviously.) Stunt in your demands and your threats. Wolfram and Hart might cave to your pressure or they might not; if they don't, negotiations will probably break down. Unless you explicitly call for an immediate attack in response, even if negotiations break down Buffy will just leave back to Sunnydale with her team for now.
Well, that was quite a good update, the meeting with Holland was quite good, I liked how he smooth and amiable he was, while still being blunt in his explanations. He still seemed a little condescending of us/our actions while still respecting our power. As for the deal I say...
[X] Take the deal on the table. It doesn't actually bind Buffy to anything, and the money could be a huge deal for defending the Hellmouth.
Take it. This is what we've wanted, a ceasefire. We need to focus on Hellmouth stuff and the upcoming problems there, we can leave Wolfram and Hart to Angel and Gunn and all the others there. The money we get is just the icing on the cake (especially the money going to Willow - she's done a lot for us and if we can get her paid that'd be nice). I don't see the need to argue the point further than this.
The firm never makes a deal that truly hurts them. At the bare minimium this simple lets them recuperate for Round 2 but may also be vital for them to continue affecting Buffy in a reasonable way.
Clause 1: Sunnydale needs money so this may just be appealing to baser greed and a test to see if money is a path to hurting Buffy's group. I am abit uncertain whether 13 may have ritual significance.
Clause 2: Wolfram & Hart looks like their neutered from affecting Sunnydale by lack of rep, client, or aid unless authorized. My issue with that is there is wiggle room for proxies that don't fall in that catagory or them to hit Sunnydale in a way that they get authorized to come in.
Clause 3: Buffy is straight off simple blocked from Los Angelos unless she wants the contract dissolved. Fortunately no reprocussions.
Clause 4: They clearly need time to figure out how to counter Willow's technomancy effectively and likely would simple be easier if the LA branch was not limited in their technological resources by a possibility of a hack. I honestly don't think their worried about the information spreadiing since its not really that effective if it can't be used in court and the firm already does other blatantly corrupt things.
Clause 5: This is abit tighter than the clause they assigned them selves in not being able to have employees or assist/direct others to operate in Los Angelos. Could connect with not being able to help Angel or Gunn's group in some future event with even advice.
The thing I think needs highlighting the most is this entire contract only lasts 13 months. The first clause makes it clear that once the payments are done the contract is done. This does give WR&H time to recover their losses but it also gives Buffy time to solidify her position.
When dealing with Wolfram and Hart it is vital to remember this; they play the long game. They have been operating on Earth for at least centuries and more likely millennia. They don't do annual reviews they do 75 year reviews. If they are acting directly against you it is because they either think you are weak enough to take down now, a cover for an insidious plot, or you've suddenly become a significant enough threat to be worth the effort.
What I think has been going on is that WR&H thought Buffy and co were weak. That she was just another Slayer; something they have been dealing with forever. They expected they could just come in; play some political hardballs, and wash us out gaining both control over Sunnydale and putting the Slayer back in her place as nothing but the PTB's dumb brute.
Instead Buffy has shown she can play the political game. She can even play the dirty political game. More important though she has shown a willingness to make deals. WR&H is all about making deals.
What I think this contract is about is giving WR&H time to reevaluate Buffy. If she can make it through her first year as the true Mayor of Sunnydale she she stops being simply the PTB's dumb brute. Instead she becomes something more dangerous and yet also more valuable; a player in the great game. A relatively minor player sure but one holding a very valuable piece of land (the Hellmouth).
If we make it through S4 without any major disasters, that we don't otherwise deal with, then I think we'll see WR&H trying to seduce Buffy much like they did with Angel Investigations. After all WR&H doesn't want the Hellmouth to open or the world to otherwise end. In the global game of king of the hill they already hold the hill; all they need to do is run out the timer. So keeping Buffy bottled up in Sunnydale is already a win-win for them; they keep their plans from being interrupted by both apocalypses and Buffy. If they can seduce her over to their team it becomes even better.
If things don't go well for Buffy over the course of S4; well all they've lost is a year and an insignificant (1.95mil) amount of money. Compared to how much we've already likely cost them that is nothing. In the meantime they'd have let their new enemy fall apart on her own without having to invest anything else. Plus it also presents them as a reasonable evil so if things get bad enough Buffy might always come to them asking for help.
Basically no matter what happens this contract is a win for WR&H. This doesn't even touch upon how they are clearly also interested in poaching Willow (notice how she is a separate entry to Buffy in the contract?) for her leet magictech hacker skills.
However just because this is a win for WR&H doesn't mean we should take the deal. As I said at the start this buys Buffy time to cement her position, grow more familiar with her new and expanding Slayer powers, and improve both her knowledge and skills for the next (almost certainly political) round. Remember our priority is not taking down WR&H; they will always be there later if needed. Our priority to keep the world safe in the short term for without that there is no long term. We can trust Angel and co to handle WR&H for the next year.
I haven't decided what to to for yet, but I do think that people should keep in mind that the worst case scenario for Holland right now is that we say no and just go home. Then next week we come back and kill a bunch of clients, then the week after that Willow smashes them again, and then every time there is a slow week in the Hellmouth we smack thr LA branch like a pinata. Trying to go on offense into the Hellmouth under those conditions would be a mess.
I suspect that if we used dictate terms to demand more money and changed nothing else Holland's boss would high five him and be hyped that they could get back to business.
Ok looking at the contract that is a bad deal for Buffy. Because while they cannot attack Buffy directly they can still attack her through intermediaries or attack her on the national or public stage. Also Buffy is not the kind of person to take the money. Taking the money would make her life easy but it is literally blood money and can be used by wolf ram and hart later to show fraud or that the Mayor takes bribes. But if people want to take the money it is better to get it in cash and non marked bills. Will come up with a negotiating write in later.
Ok looking at the contract that is a bad deal for Buffy. Because while they cannot attack Buffy directly they can still attack her through intermediaries or attack her on the national or public stage. Also Buffy is not the kind of person to take the money. Taking the money would make her life easy but it is literally blood money and can be used by wolf ram and hart later to show fraud or that the Mayor takes bribes. But if people want to take the money it is better to get it in cash and non marked bills. Will come up with a negotiating write in later.
Intermediaries is almost certainly by "providing aid" and even if it isn't this is honestly a good faith contract. There is no regulatory body capable of enforcing the contract or mediating so it really comes down to if one side feels it has been breached then it has been breached.
You are right that they can attack Buffy on the national stage. However the same is also true. Sure Buffy can't drop by the LA offices and slaughter all their clients but there is nothing in that contract forbidding her from showing up to their Vegas branch, or San Fran branch, or anywhere else their people are located. Hell we can still mess around with the LA branch's clients since places like Anaheim and San Bernardino aren't actually within the LA county even though they lie within the Greater Los Angeles.
[X] Take the deal on the table. It doesn't actually bind Buffy to anything, and the money could be a huge deal for defending the Hellmouth.
If Buffy knew more about WR&H or if she was a better negotiator I'd probably push for a better deal, because this isn't exactly great, but this deal does accomplish what we want. WR&H stays out of our way and we stay out of theirs.
[X] Reject the deal and dictate terms.
This contract binds too many people to it with no benefit to themselves. Every Sunnydale civil servant, police officer and high school graduate could potentially break it. All those forbidden from Los Angeles need to be compensated for their loss of access, potential revenue, and increased travel expenses. $25,000 for every individual per month. Those not compensated will not be bound by this contract.
[X] Plan Negotiations in good Faith
- Buffy rejects the money but wants something more valuable information. She wants to know where Faith is and who or what she is with.
- Willow can keep the money if she wants
-Stunt
- Buffy looks Him in the eye in the eye and smiles. Let's be Honest with each other these is just a message to you to stay out of my Home and stay out of my business. I want to know where faith the vampire slayer is. I am sure you keep track of things like that and you do have the resources somewhere. Instead of that you don't have to pay me. Willow you can keep the money if you want but it is really there to make us hesitate to not fight them."
Ok wolf ram and hart are very powerful and have resources Buffy does not have such as the ability to find anyone not having weird tattoos on them. Also I would rather find faith now and deal with her now. Guys the money is from a evil law form who literally has slaves, organ trade and murders people . It is not the right thing to do and well Buffy has already made several questionable decision. The suck house and dating Harmony are the big ones but accepting money from them is there to make us hesitate in fighting evil in LA.
