Part 15<\/b>: Survival<\/p>\n
The decision was never really up to him. It was a simple fact. Cordelia\u2019s life was far more important than his own. He would save her life, even if he took him away from the death he so wanted now.<\/p>\n
\u201cFollow me, quickly!\u201d he shouted. Angel grabbed his Seer\u2019s hand and ran back to Kelemoke\u2019s library. Cordelia followed, having full faith that Angel would save them. But she was confused, how would they get out through here?<\/p>\n
Angel led her to the bookcase behind Kelemoke\u2019s desk. On a shelf about shoulder level sat a bust of Nero. Angel pulled hard on the bust. Cordelia realized it was a lever. Machinery grinded audibly as the bookcase slid to the left, reveling a stone stairwell.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt leads to the tunnels below! Come on!\u201d No sooner that the two set foot on the first step did they hear the sounds of the explosion. The pair raced down the steps into a stone lined tunnel. The earth quaked around them. Dust dropped from the ceiling below as the wooden rafters shook.<\/p>\n
Chunks of stone began to drop from above. \u201cAngel! We\u2019re not going to make it!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes we are!\u201d Angel shouted back.<\/p>\n
As more stone began to fall above them, Angel spotted a hole located at the bottom of the wall to his left. \u201cDive in there!\u201d he commanded. Cordelia, for once, did as he told her. The vampire followed behind her. The hole actually led to a small room that had been blocked off by stone.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis looks like a damn bomb shelter!\u201d Cordelia exclaimed. Plates of steel lined the walls of the room. It looked several inches thick.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt probably is,\u201d Angel exclaimed. \u201cThis place was built in the fifties.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both turned as they saw that stones had fallen and blocked the access hole. They were sealed in. \u201cWe\u2019re trapped!\u201d Cordelia said.<\/p>\n
Angel grabbed onto Cordy to calm her down. \u201cIt\u2019s okay,\u201d he tried to assure her. \u201cThese tunnels are fairly well built. They should be able to bare the brunt of the blast. It may take a little time to push the stone out of the way, but we WILL get out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia stared at the stone a moment longer before nodding. \u201cYeah,\u201d Cordelia whispered. \u201cWe\u2019ll get out.\u201d Staring into Angel\u2019s eyes she asked, \u201cHow did you know to go here?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI explored this building inside and out. Just in case I needed to leave in a hurry. I found this room on one of my explorations,\u201d Angel explained.<\/p>\n
The pair stood in silence as the last vestiges of the explosion died down. The earth stopped shaking. The sounds of thunder ceased echoing. A single heartbeat between two individuals marked the only sound.<\/p>\n
Angel made a very unmanly \u2018eek\u2019 of surprise when Cordelia enveloped him in a hug. \u201cI\u2019m so glad you\u2019re back.\u201d If Angel breathed, he would need to do it right about now. Cordelia clung to him tightly. Angel so wanted to enjoy the contact, but he wouldn\u2019t allow himself to. Gently, he broke the embrace.<\/p>\n
\u201cGlad to be back,\u201d he said. Angel hoped he sounded convincing. From Cordelia\u2019s look, he decided he didn\u2019t. \u201cCome on,\u201d he said, wanting to avoid a lecture. \u201cLet\u2019s get to work on moving those rocks.\u201d<\/p>\n
*********<\/p>\n
For several hours the duo worked to free themselves from the shelter. They finally succeeded.<\/p>\n
When they finally crawled from the room, they were able to survey the tunnels. Angel was right, the tunnels did survive the brunt of the blow. In fact, it seemed that most of the fallen stones decided to drop in front of the bomb shelter\u2019s opening. Cordelia didn\u2019t fail to make note of that.<\/p>\n
\u201cWould you rather have taken your chances we\u2019d make it?\u201d Angel asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot really,\u201d Cordelia mumbled. Angel almost smiled at her child-like response. Almost.<\/p>\n
Angel led the way through the darkened tunnels. After what was probably a walk of several city blocks, they came to a steel door. With a strong tug, Angel jerked the door opened.<\/p>\n
\u201cSewer? Eww.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll be in there only long enough to get to a manhole,\u201d Angel assured her. Hopping into the wet, dark sewage tunnels, the pair only had to walk another block before they reached a manhole.<\/p>\n
Climbing up first, Angel easily flipped the cover to the side. From the smell, the vampire could tell that the sun had just set. Angel jumped up into the alley, and then helped pull Cordelia to the surface. When the two walked into the street, they were amazed at the sight.<\/p>\n
There was nothing left of Kelemoke\u2019s palace. The only thing to mark the past existence of the large and stretching building was the rubble that scattered for blocks. Firetrucks, ambulances, and police cars surrounded the scene.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh my God,\u201d Cordelia said. \u201cIt\u2019s like a war zone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s because it is,\u201d Angel said solemnly. \u201cCome on. Let\u2019s go find the others.\u201d<\/p>\n
***********<\/p>\n
At Cordelia\u2019s apartment, the gang waited in silence. None knew what to say. For a while they batted around ideas about how to deal with Diaz, but that conversation died down. They mainly just sat and hoped that their friends would arrive.<\/p>\n
\u201cY\u2019know what would be great?\u201d Willow asked. \u201cCall INS and sick them on that Diaz bastard. I could alter his visa to say it expired. Get them to get him out of the country.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gunn sat in a recliner, Fred resting her head on his shoulder as she sat in his lap. \u201cSure,\u201d he said. \u201cGo for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room fell into silence again. When the doorbell rang, everyone started at the loud noise. Willow stood quickly and went for the door. But before she reached it, she had seconds thoughts. \u201cDennis,\u201d she called. \u201cWho is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
The phantom began to knock excitedly on the coffee table. A rush of air was felt as the ghost sprinted to the door. The door bolts were quickly unlocked and the door flew open.<\/p>\n
Excited shouts filled the previously silent room as the gang rushed to greet Cordelia and Angel. Cordelia eagerly accepted the hugs that everyone offered, but the vampire hung back from the crowd. He smiled slightly as the Seer was engulfed in the crowd.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re glad you\u2019re safe,\u201d Gunn said for the group.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah!\u201d Fred said anxiously. \u201cDid you see that explosion? Where have you guys been?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, I didn\u2019t see the explosion. I sure as hell felt it though. We escape into some tunnels and hid in a bomb shelter or something that was underneath the compound. It just took a while to dig out.\u201d<\/p>\n
While everyone continued to pay attention to Cordelia, Angel took the opportunity to slip away. He needed someplace dark, someplace where he could brood about what a monster he was.<\/p>\n
Cordelia had no intention of letting him do that. As Willow and Tara gave her a group hug, her eyes followed the vampire that both tried to kill her, and tried to save her. Cordelia knew him to well. She knew what Angel was thinking. She knew he wanted to reflect on the things he\u2019d done.<\/p>\n
Cordelia removed herself from all the hugs and followed the vampire. The gang knew that they needed to talk, so they busied themselves with talk about how they saved the day and on how to deal with Diaz.<\/p>\n
Cordelia found him in the bedroom by the moonlit window, sitting in a cheap rocking chair she bought at a garage sale. The vampire was fully aware of her presence. After years of working with him, she knew his mannerisms, most of them anyway. He had a habit of stiffening his shoulders slightly when someone entered a room that he alone occupied.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a great chair,\u201d he said softly. \u201cI used to have a rocker. Bought it in London around 1843. It was an impulse buy. The thing lasted about two weeks. Darla ended up smashing me over the head with it after a squabble.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou vampires, I tell ya, you\u2019re crazy creatures. I never said it before, but I always hoped you kids could work out your problems.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel fell silent. The vampire continued to stare out the window, the moonlight glowing over his face. Cordelia couldn\u2019t stand it.<\/p>\n
\u201cKnock it off, Vampire. I\u2019m not going to tolerate your fucking brooding.\u201d Angel\u2019s eyes locked onto her face. Good, she thought, she had his attention.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ll listen to what I say, and then we\u2019ll begin to move on, you got it?\u201d Angel continued to stare at her, but Cordelia could see that spark of attention in his eyes. \u201cI know what you are, what you\u2019re capable of. I know the evil you can cause. I\u2019d seen it before this ordeal, so had Willow.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut in the time that we\u2019ve worked together, I\u2019ve learned to accept the demon as a part of you. I did so because I cared for you, because I loved you. I owed you that love, because you were probably the first person to ever accept me for what I was.<\/p>\n
\u201cKelemoke told me that at your core that you are a vicious monster. Shut up,\u201d she said when Angel tried to speak. \u201cI don\u2019t believe that. It isn\u2019t the demon that defines who you are. The demon is inside all vampires. What defines who you are is the soul, not the demon. I\u2019ve seen what your soul is capable of doing. I\u2019ve seen the incredible good that you\u2019ve done. You\u2019re soul is a good one, no matter what you might think.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat you\u2019re thinking is this: I want to die. I deserve to die. Be quiet!\u201d she silenced him again. \u201cThat\u2019s bullshit. You lost your soul. You had it ripped from your body. The events that transpired afterwards are not your fault.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I will not listen to you brood over things beyond your control. And I will hear nothing, and I mean NOTHING, about you wanting to die. I told you back in that building, we have a purpose in this world. We were meant to be together on this. Without out you, what point is there to any of it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia flopped down on her bed, exhausted from her tirade. Dust and dirt coated her hair and skin. Her wrists were rubbed raw from trying to escape the handcuffs he had placed on her. But her eyes held a deep passion and conviction for what she was saying.<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia\u2026\u201d he began.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, Angel,\u201d Cordelia interrupted. She crawled from the bed and knelt before the vampire. \u201cYou have to listen to me. I NEED you Angel. Because all we\u2019ve done, all the good we\u2019ve done in this city means shit if you back out now. I can\u2019t do my job without MY Champion. I need you Angel. Not just because of the mission, but because I love you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel sucked in a long breath. He wanted to refuse her, to deny what she was saying. He was worthless, a monster at best. But her eyes, God, her eyes. They made him want to believe. In the end, his decision came down to one simple truth. He couldn\u2019t refuse her anything.<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay,\u201d Angel agreed softly. \u201cI\u2019ll live. For you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those were the words she wanted. The tears that had barely been kept back flowed freely then. Angel slid down into the floor next to his Seer. Gently, he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close as the tears continued to fall.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m so sorry,\u201d Angel whispered in her ear. \u201cI hope you forgive me someday.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia clutched the vampire tighter. \u201cI already have. I hope that you forgive yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel held onto Cordelia like she was his lifeline. Hell, he just practically said she was. \u201cI\u2019ll try,\u201d Angel promised her. \u201cI\u2019ll try.\u201d<\/p>\n