FicWad

- Traders' World -

--Showtime--

24

Beneath the Heart of the Targ:

Showtime.

They ran at each other.

Buffy went low to sweep his legs, but Data jumped clear - using the slope of a nearby tank for footing to come back down on her with an elbow to the face. She was knocked back a few feet by his power, but speedily composed herself despite the pain in her cheek.

Data stood there. Waiting for her next move.

So she gave it to him, going at him with a backhand. He blocked it easily and punched her hard in the same cheek again. The Slayer fell to her knees despite herself.

"Still think you're Macduff?" he teased.

"No," she replied, and sprang into action. She cartwheeled at him, catching him off-guard with her kicks, then she brought both legs up to kick his head. Data ducked and her feet passed over him, Just as she had expected, so - just before she went down - Buffy kicked out a second time and landed a good one in his ear. This gave her the chance to land and take his legs out from under him. Data went down hard as the Slayer flipped onto her feet and readied herself.

"More like Mac/Buff/," she finished.

When Data tried getting up, it would give her another chance to attack.

He rolled onto his front and began to get up onto his hands and knees.

Perfect.

She ran at him like an American Football kicker and aimed a foot for his gut. But he caught her by the ankle. Before she even realised her plan had failed, she was swung up into the air and slammed back to the steely platform with a crash.

Her vision refocused just in time to see Data above her, dropping out of the air with an outstretched elbow. Rolling out of the way with less than a second to spare before he smashed into the metal mesh, she decided to give him a taste of his own poison and toss him across the room. See how he liked it. When she tried, however, he caught her yet again in his unyielding clamp-like grip. He held her at arms-length by her wrists.

She decided to use that against him. Buffy ran up Data's body until she was almost upside-down and kicked him hard in the head, continuing to flip over in a 360 to free herself.

But Data went unnerved by her retaliation and his hold on her was unrelenting. Her arms came close to popping their sockets as her wrists were forced to turn within the android's inhumanly tight grip. She yelped at the sudden pain.

Data let her arms go and pounded both fists into her chest sending her flying once more to the platform where she rolled helplessly onto her stomach. She got up quickly as the hell-bent machine came at her again.

Buffy's robe had come away from her in the awkward landing, but her arms were still in the sleeves, so she quickly came up with her next counter-move.

As Data made a grab for her, she leapt up into an overhead roll, wrapping Data's head in the cloak, and landing on one knee.

They remained that way for a moment; with her crouched on the deck facing away from him holding still to the sleeves of the hooded coat that Data clawed at around his face. Then she pulled.

The evil android fell onto her back and she flipped him right over her so that he crashed face-first into the platform. The Slayer didn't pause there; jumping onto his back and pulling with all her strength on the robe that still surrounded his head. Data's head tilted back unnaturally and Buffy thought she might very well rip it right off. Any thought of trying to save Data had gone completely out of her mind at that point. He was far too dangerous to risk easing up on him while she had the upper hand.

"Looks like I got you on the ropes now, Threepio," she boasted.

Data mumbled something unrecognisable under the cloth.

"I'm sorry? I didn't quite catch that," she teased.

Again, he tried to speak through the cloth.

Buffy tutted loudly. "Now you're just not making sense. Jeez, I hope you're not losing...your head." She pulled harder on the robe, taking Data's head to the limit of its flexibility.

Then the sleeves tore.

Buffy reeled back and managed to keep her balance.

Data shot up and pulled the armless robe away from his enraged face.

She viewed the loose sleeves in her hands and whimpered, "Ooh." You would have thought they'd have invented clothes that don't rip by now! "I guess they still make 'em like they used to," she groaned.

There were thin pipes protruding from each of the many tanks around them. They came out from the sides and disappeared below the platform. Each was made up of several segments held together with bolts.

Data roared as he kicked one of the nearest pipes free at one end. He took it in both hands and ripped it out, wielding it like a bat.

The Slayer ducked as he swung it at her head. She rolled away, hearing the pipe slam against one of the copper funnels. But when she came up... He was gone.

"Great," she uttered. Figuring that he must have moved around the tank, out of site enough to surprise her with an attack, she moved close to it and ventured around its circumference carefully. She kept quiet and listened for any telltale sounds. Certainly not breathing, though.

/Robots suck/, she decided there and then. /They definitely suck/. And she hoped never to set eyes on one again after today. What she did not see, however, was what was happening above her.

Data perched on top of the funnel holding onto the vertical piping with one hand and his makeshift weapon with the other.

She didn't have to see him. She had a feeling.

Data pounced.

Buffy broke her own pipe free with her bare hands and spun with it in time to block the android's attack. They were locked. Their weapons pushing against each other with great force as the pair faced each other.

Data's face was twisted with hatred and anger, yet it was still the face of a machine. But his eyes. His eyes were a black hole of Darkness that gave Buffy's spine a cold shower of needles. Buffy herself bore her usual calm determination.

They pushed against each other harder. Buffy found she was beginning to bend back under Data's strength. This clearly wasn't going to end in her favour unless she changed the game a little. So she gave in, and feinted to the side.

Data's momentum carried him forward and Buffy spun and cracked the pipe into Data's skull. A great spark burst from the android's head with the impact, and he fell to the floor in 'shock'.

The Slayer put herself into position with the pipe held as though it was a sword in front of her. She was in some kind of martial arts pose. But she couldn't recall which one at that moment.

Data stood, still holding his pipe tightly in one hand. His eyes closed briefly as he checked internal damage. But when they opened they were filled with dark determination once again. He brought the pipe up before his face in salute, and stepped into the 'en garde' position.

Buffy recognised his stance as being that of fencing, though she had no experience of it herself. He stared right at her with his empty eyes. Deep, soulless eyes.

She shivered.

Data advanced. He lunged at her with a chest attack. She blocked and returned a blow, which he parried. Sparks flew as the metal pipes collided.

The android continued with his forward attacks; each one failing as the Slayer blocked his lame manoeuvres easily. Spark after spark after spark.

He soon gave in, realising he had knowledge beyond that stored in Data's files. "It seems Commander Data has recently taken up fencing," he said. "Whereas I am more accustomed to wielding a /Broadsword/." He pounced on her with raw power blows. Pounding her weapon with his, he beat her down. With one final blow, he sent Buffy's pipe rattling across the walkway. He swung at her, and she ducked low - going into a roll toward her weapon. When she came up to evaluate her position, Data drew back his pipe.

Realising he was going to throw it at her, and knowing his aim would be perfect, she moved closer to a nearby tank. On the face of the tank was a closed hatch. A peephole to the contents inside. She had one hope.

He aimed for her face and hurled the pipe with force.

The Slayer snatched the hatch open and the missile ricocheted off its metal surface. When she looked out from behind the face-guard, she found Data was gone yet again. But this time she had no intention of going after him. Instead she carefully made for the nearer of the two pipes that lay on the gridded metal catwalk. And he came as if from nowhere.

Data caught the Slayer by the throat and lifted her a little, slamming her against the opening in the tank.

She was ensnared. Unable to free herself. Her legs hung above the surface of the floor. Her fists and feet were no more than a soft breeze against the machine's unfeeling body. She tried to speak, but only managed a harsh wheeze through the tightness of her throat. He forced her head back until it was within the tank, and he tilted it around enough for her to see the faint glimmer of light reflecting off of the gallons of ale that filled it. The bitter smell of alcohol rose up to greet her.

"I wonder," he spat at her, "how long you would have to ferment in there before your tedious sarcasm would dilute enough to grate less on my ears."

The edges of Buffy's vision began to fade to blackness; sparks of light twinkling across her line of sight. She began to fall away from the world of the living.

Then Data reacted to something out the corner of his eye. He released her neck and dragged her around the tank as a blast of phaser fire came down on them and skimmed its copper surface.

Troi.

Data was leant tight against the brewing tank with Buffy held against him, her back against his front with his arm across her collar. His head snapped up when he realised what was ahead of them.

Buffy coughed, and followed his gaze to see the large, glowing cylindrical device out in the open, in clear line of fire, just 3 metres away.

She had no idea what it was for, but no doubt it fitted into some kind of plan that the Darkness within Data had formed.

"You're not going to make it, you know," she said, pain burning her windpipe with every word. "We know you're plan. You'll never reach the Hellmouth."

"Small words uttered by a small being," he retorted, recounting an instant in Data's memory files when a certain Borg-Queen had said the same thing to him. "Deceive yourself all you want, Slayer. My power is infinite." He adjusted himself slightly. "Ask yourself this: Even if your meagre witch finds a way to bind me... what then? Time moves on. Ages pass. And, when you are nothing more than a distant memory, I will rise again and claim ALL life. There IS no success. No triumph for you. Your efforts will come to NOTHING."

"If we bind you," Buffy argued, "it'll be forever. We'll make sure of it."

Data laughed at that. "I was speaking hypothetically, you sorry mortal! I will NOT be bound again."

"We'll see," she muttered.

Then a shrill beep came from Data's armband. He lifted his arm and Buffy saw on the unit a small screen. The image on it was unclear - filled with static. Probably due to the energy field that surrounded this massive room. But there was also another display on the band. It had an alien writing scrolling across it. Some sections were missing - again due the interference no doubt.

"That would be my cue to leave this reunion," Data said finally. He spun Buffy around and picked her off the ground by her clothes with both fists. Bringing her face close to his, he recited Macbeth:

" 'When shall we meet again?

In thunder, lightening or in rain? ...

When the hurly-burly's done.

When the battle's lost and won.' "

He tossed her to the catwalk and ran out into the open. Shots of phaser fire burned past him - some so close they scorched his clothing - but none managed to meet their target. He swept the device up with one hand and leapt high into the air. When he landed, it was with such force that the platform beneath him folded like paper and he slipped through, free-falling the 100-or-so feet to the basement floor.

Buffy watched, open-mouthed, through the diamond-holes in the expanded metal as Data's feet smashed into the hard ground. But he remained on them. In fact, he fled at some speed, running for the elevator and vanishing from site.

He left with Buffy lying on her kicked ass, a hole in the platform, and two crushed circles of ground where his feet had landed beneath her. She didn't even bother to get up right away.

Buffy knew that, by the time they caught up with him, he'd have gotten well outside the Wetting field that surrounded them down here and have beamed safely away. Besides, she didn't much fancy round 2 right now. She closed her eyes, laid back, and massaged her sore larynx with her fingers. Finally some peace. She could have stayed there for hours like that. Or so she thought, until a slimy hiss roused her.

She peeled back her eyelids to find herself confronted with a misshapen figure.

It was the Klingon! The dead one! He drew closer to her gradually, drooling in anticipation - hands grasping out for her - eyes white and hollow. Data's parting gift to her.

"Oh, gimme a break!" she groaned.

One sudden flash of orange phaser energy later, and it was nothing more than a steaming wisp of hot gas that quickly dissipated.

Troi appeared holding a small phaser pistol in one slightly shaky hand. "Are you alright?"

Buffy nodded as she sat upright.

Not far behind Troi came Willow. "Where's Data...D-Darkness?"

"Gone," replied Buffy, glancing over to the hole in the platform.

Willow followed her glance. "We showed him, huh? Ran off like a scaredy-pup."

"Yeah," Buffy agreed without much belief in her words, "we showed him."