Revenge is a dish best served hot; very hot! Pt. 2
Prelude: Lillith
The demon flew straight up in the air. Freedom at last. After 300 years being stuck in another dimension, she was finally free to roam the Earth again. First resolve the tasks at hand and then extract a bit of revenge. The priest who had banished her from this plane was long dead, but she could extract her revenge on his descendents, or maybe go after his church and thoroughly corrupt the whole congregation. And then thereâs the boy who summoned her.
However, first she had to get her bearings in this new era, so she flew north.
The first large town she came across was Tijuana. A quick flyby and a few psychic probes showed her that there were few vices on Earth that were not available here. Her half an hour investigation showed her the possibilities of this day and age. The thorough corruption that had gotten foothold in this modern society, the drugs, the sex, the violence, it all made her wander if there wasnât a demon influencing it allâŠ
She then flew north, to California. To Sunnydale.
Chapter two: The Magic Box becomes a toy box
Anya was shooing the last customers out of the Magic Box, it had been a busy day, especially without the help of her friends. The day before Halloween was always the busiest day of the year for the Magic Box and without the help of the Scoobies it wouldâve been impossible to help all customers.
But Willow wasnât allowed in a fifty metre radius of the store for obvious reasons, Anya couldnât stand to be around Xander the whole day and Buffy was out on slayer duty. Only Dawn had been there to help her during the day, but then again she was still paying Anya back for goods she had stolen last year.
Luckily Dawny had been smart enough to take some friends from school with her. There was way too much work for the two of them to keep their heads above water. There were Carlos and Kit, Dawnâs new two best friends, and also Jason and Diana, two seniors whom Dawn also knew from school. Jason and Diana were, like Kit, two Goths who thought it would be cool to work in a magic store. And truth to be told, Anya thought they had done a good job.
As she closed the door behind her last customer, she let out a sigh of relief. There was still a lot of cleaning up to do, and she had to count what was in the cash register and enter into the ledger. But first things first.
âDawn you have to go home, itâs getting dark outside and your sister wants you home before dusk.â
âAww Anya, come on, let me stay.â Dawn replied embarrassed.
Anya was completely unaware of the embarrassment she was causing to Dawn by telling her she had to be home before dark, in front of her friends and went on obliviously: âDawn you know what your sister said. You have to be home before dark and you have to stay inside with Willow and Xander. Iâll join you guys later and weâll play some games and swap stories. Itâll be fun.â
To spare herself further embarrassment Dawn gave in. âOkay Iâll go.â
âWeâll escort her home miss Emerson.â Carlos said. âWeâll see to it that she stays safe. Come on Dawn, grab your coat and letâs go.â
Carlos, Kit and a sputtering Dawn left the Magic Box.
âWill you two stay behind and help me clean up?â Anya said as she turned to Jason and Diana.
âSure miss Emerson, youâre shop is so cool. Youâd almost think magic is real if you see all these things.â
âUh, yes Diana, I guess youâre right. Well first of all I want you to take those half empty bargain price boxes and put them in the storeroom round back. Just put them on the empty shelves, okay?â
âOkay miss Emerson.â Diana and Jason both took a box each and went into the back of the store.
Anya meanwhile opened the cash register and started counting her money. It was one of her favourite things of the day, especially on a day like this. The happiness she felt counting those stacks of green bills almost made her forget the anger she felt towards Xander Harris. Almost, but not quiteâŠ
Meanwhile outside
High in the air above Sunnydale Lillith soared. All her heightened senses were scanning the town that sprawled beneath her. She was like an eagle searching for her prey.
Her ears picked up the childrenâs chants of trick or treat. Her eyes observed the children dressed as demons walking the streets. Her nose smelled the demons hiding in the shadows. Her skin felt the changes in the atmosphere that revealed an oncoming storm. Her mouth tasted the salty taste of blood, sweat and tears.
However she got most of the information about her prey from her psychic senses. Each and every mind in Sunnydale was skimmed briefly.
At that very moment five men and four women were committing adultery. Thirty-one men and well over fifty women were thinking about committing adultery; thirteen of whom, while making love to their spouses. Five fathers lusted after their own daughters, and two mothers did want their own sons. Hundreds upon hundreds of teenagers had gone to bed early to play with themselves. One slumber party was totally getting out of hand. Some frat boys were taking turns with a passed out coed, while in the living room of that same frat house, more willing girls didnât need to be drugged to let themselves be gangbanged.
And that was just the tip of the iceberg. Closet homosexuals, the most bizarre fetishes, and legion of other kinks to use, twist and abuse. Lillith could easily turn this place into a second Sodom. But first for her âmasterâsâ orders.
She couldnât believe her luck when she discovered a very familiar astral signature. When Jonathan had mentioned that there was a former demon in that group of friends, Lillith couldnât have suspected it was her nemesis. But then again, he didnât use her full name: Anya, formerly known as Anyanka.
Anyanka was once a vengeance demon for scorned women. And it was no chance of fate that their paths would cross from time to time. After all, if there was one individual that was responsible for more break-ups and adulteries than any other creature in the history of the world, it would have to be Lillith. And this meddling vengeance demon allowed some of the broken hearted wenches Lillith left in her wake, some minor satisfaction by granting them their wishes of vengeance.
It was in fact the wish of one of these girls that trapped Lillith in another dimension those 300 years ago. After the wrecking of a perfectly good marriage by Lillith, the adulterous male had hung himself. The widowed victim had demanded vengeance and Anyanka had given it to her. Her wish to let the whore, who did this to them, burn in hell, had allowed a priest to banish Lillith from this plane for more than 300 years.
But now Lillith could get even.
She descended upon the Magic Box.
Back inside the Magic Box
Anya had put the last of the money in the safe and was cleaning up the counter. Jason and Diana were cleaning up round back. And all were unaware of an invisible presence seeping under the door into the store.
The psychic probes that invade the minds of the three people were very subtle. Apparently Anyaâs demonic status was restored. And vengeance demons might not be very powerful, their senses were still attuned to magical energies and Lillith couldnât risk detection, yet.
Anyanka was filled with rage, but that wasnât strange. Her rage was focussed on a man called Xander, a man who left her at the altar. She felt insecure about her looks. She loved her money. And she felt guilt for her brief fling with the vampire Spike. She was a mixed up bundle of anger, insecurity, greed and guilt. Just the perfect target for Lillithâs powers.
The weaknesses of the two mortals in the back were even more obvious. They were only just 18 and were full of insecurities and urges.
This was going to be as fun as it was going to be easy. Lillith went deeper into their minds and started pushing the right buttons.
Jason said: âIâm going to the store to see if miss Emerson needs any help. Can you handle cleaning up the rest by yourself Dian?â
âYes Jase, no prob.â
As Jason had left the storeroom Diana lifted up a box of unsold items and attempted to put it on the top shelf. The box was quite heavy and Diana had to put her hands on each side underneath the box to get it up there. Apparently they had put too much stuff in the box, because as Diana hefted the box over head, the tape at the bottom tore and the contents of the box showered Dianaâs petite body. A particularly heavy wooden statue hit her square on the head and Diana momentarily passed out.
When she regained consciousness a few moments later, she lay sprawled on the ground surrounded by the contents of the torn box. While she slowly sat up and rubbed the solid bump that was growing on her head, she quietly observed the mess that she had caused. Miss Emerson wasnât going to like this. Sheâd better clean up the mess quickly. But as she stood up, a dizzy spell hit her and she fell backwards.