buffy9x22
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        10     INT. SUMMERS RESIDENCE - LIVING ROOM. DAY.              10

               We pull back out and away from Buffy, Andrew's agitated voice
               fading back into range.

                                   ANDREW
                         Buffy? Buffy!

                                   BUFFY
                             (blinks)
                         Huh?

                                   ANDREW
                         What happened? You looked all
                         spaced out for a second there, sort
                         of like that sequence in
                         'Fellowship' where Frodo-

                                   BUFFY
                             (blurts out)
                         The police station!

                                   ANDREW
                         The what?

               Buffy lunges forward and grabs the phone out of his hands.

                                   BUFFY
                         The police station, Kane's there,
                         he's opening the Hellmouth! 

               Andrew jumps to his feet.

                                   ANDREW
                         What? But, uh, how do you know?

                                   BUFFY
                         Amy just told me, she's at
                         gunpoint, he's making her finish
                         the job! Andrew, we have to get
                         everybody together that we can,
                         right now!

                                   ANDREW
                         Okay, but, uh, Giles is still at
                         the hospital with Marie, Xander and
                         Sofia are out trying to find Hope,
                         and Shanna's still looking after
                         Jackson.

               Buffy pauses - Andrew's got a point. She thinks for a beat,
               then marches over to the weapons chest behind the armchair in
               the corner, takes out a sword, and tosses it to Andrew. 

               He almost drops it, but just about manages to keep a hold. He
               looks back at Buffy, who has a steely look in her eyes.

                                   BUFFY
                         Looks like we'd better get moving,
                         then, huh? 

               Andrew GULPS, and from his terrified look, we cut to:

        11     INT. FACTORY. DAY.                                      11

               We're looking down into an abandoned factory, rusting
               machinery scrolling past us as we move towards a line of
               silent conveyor belts, caked in dust. 

               Standing near the belts, sharing a cigarette or two, are the
               vampire trio MILLER, ROTH and WHELAN, and wrapped up safely
               in a makeshift cot before them is baby HOPE.

                                   WHELAN
                             (checks watch)
                         Alright boys, it's rendezvous time.

                                   MILLER
                         Who are we meetin' here, anyways?

                                   WHELAN
                         'We' aren't meeting anyone, I'm
                         taking the kid to our employers
                         alone. Those were the terms. 

               Roth stubs out his cigarette and looks down on Hope, smiling
               warmly at her.

                                   WHELAN (cont'd)
                         Don't get too attached. They've got
                         big plans for her, from what I
                         hear.

                                   ROTH
                         Yeah, I know... but she's just so
                         darned cute!

               He reaches a hand out to tickle Hope, but she SQUEALS as soon
               as Roth's hand comes anywhere near her. 

               As he withdraws it, we pull back to pick up Xander and Sofia,
               sneaking along a gantry overlooking the trio below, hidden
               from sight by bulky rows of pipes. They stop directly over
               the vampires, crouching down to spy on them.

                                   WHELAN
                         Time to get started. 

               Whelan walks a few steps away from the others, and we notice
               for the first time a MAGIC CIRCLE drawn onto the floor in
               white paint. 

               Sofia glances at Xander, but his eyes are locked on Hope, his
               knuckles whitening as he grips his axe tightly. 

               She lays a hand on his to get his attention, then with a few
               quick hand signals motions that they should head down and
               attack the vampires from either side.

               Xander nods, and as the two start to sneak down to the bottom
               level, we turn our focus back onto Whelan. 

               He kneels in the centre of the circle, his eyes closed,
               before starting an incantation.

                                   WHELAN (cont'd)
                         Aprire il cerchio! 

               There is a WHITE FLASH, and in an instant, a PORTAL has
               opened up in the air before Whelan, a howling wind blowing
               from inside it buffeting him. 

               He turns and walks back over to Hope, looking down on her.
               Hope is still making the odd wailing noise, clearly not happy
               with what's going on.

                                   WHELAN (cont'd)
                             (smirks)
                         Don't worry, kid. Once they get you
                         round to their way of thinking, you
                         won't be crying any more.

               Miller and Roth watch on - neither one aware that Xander and
               Sofia respectively are stalking up behind them.

                                   ROTH
                             (nudges Miller)
                         I hope we get to see her again.
                         That's one cute baby.

                                   MILLER
                             (eyes him)
                         Man, what is with you and babies?
                         You getting broody or something?

                                   ROTH
                         Maybe, it's about time I- 

               CLANG! The two vampires whip round. 

               Xander has just bounced his axe off a nearby sheet of metal,
               and he grimaces as he realises he's just blown the sneak
               attack. He looks up to see Miller and Roth staring back at
               him, and he manages a nervous smile.

                                   XANDER
                         Uh, hi there.
                             (beat)
                         Sofia?

               With a battle cry, Sofia CHARGES out from the other side of
               the vampires, and before they can react, Miller gets a stake
               to the chest, EXPLODING into dust, while Roth gets an arm up
               in time to block Sofia's second attack. 

               Whelan quickly SNATCHES UP Hope and turns, making a break for
               the portal.

                                   SOFIA
                         Xander! Quick! The other one!

               Xander races forward, closing in on Whelan - but the vampire
               pauses at the entrance to the portal, turns and sneers at the
               approaching Xander.

                                   WHELAN
                         Too slow!

               With that, he turns and JUMPS into the portal.

                                   XANDER
                         No!!

               Without stopping, Xander runs straight towards the portal and
               JUMPS - and he sails into it, just as the portal closes with
               a loud POP. 

               Roth is distracted for half a second - plenty of time for
               Sofia to drive a second stake into his chest. 

               As he crumbles away into dust, Sofia runs up to the magic
               circle - but Xander is gone. 

               As she looks all round, desperately trying to find some sign
               of where Xander's gotten to, we cut to:

        12     INT. CLEVELAND PD - BASEMENT ROOM. DAY.                 12

               Amy is still standing over the Hellmouth, but there is a
               bright white GLOW around the entrance itself, and Amy's face
               is screwed up in deep concentration. 

               Kane watches, grinning, as the light around the entrance gets
               increasingly brighter, building in intensity until with a
               terrific BANG, the light fills the room for an instant, and
               Amy is knocked off her feet. 

               Kane marches past her, ignoring her as she tries to stand,
               and he stops right over the entrance. 

               Looking down over his shoulder, we can hear the shouts and
               yells of whatever's been waiting on the other side growing in
               volume, and Kane starts to CACKLE.

                                   KANE
                         Excellent work, Amy! I'll make sure
                         they put a statue up of you in
                         whatever's left of the city centre.

               A loud, deep RUMBLING noise begins, the whole of the small
               basement room SHAKING, and Kane looks around him as the
               rumbling intensifies. He frowns, realising this may be too
               noisy.

                                   KANE (cont'd)
                         Hmm. Maybe we should have used a
                         few more cloaking spells... 

               As the rumbling continues to grow in volume, and Amy claps
               her hands over her ears, we cut upstairs to:

        13     INT. CLEVELAND PD - FOURTH FLOOR. DAY.                  13

               As the various cops and detectives on duty look around
               quizzically, the rumbling from the basement rattling the
               entire building, we see DAN step into frame.

                                   DAN
                         What the hell is that?

                                   COP #1
                         Beats me, sounds like it's coming
                         from downstairs.

                                   COP #2
                         Is it an earthquake?

                                   DAN
                             (rolls eyes)
                         We don't get those in Cleveland!

                                   COP #2
                         Oh...

                                   DAN
                             (to Cops)
                         Alright, let's go check it out.
                         Could be a burst water main or
                         something, we'd better find out
                         what's going on before the whole
                         damn building shakes itself to
                         pieces!

               Dan starts to head towards the stairs, the rumbling now
               starting to shake pictures off the wall and disturb whatever
               isn't nailed down to the tops of the various desks, as we cut
               to:

        14     EXT. CLEVELAND PD. DAY.                                 14

               With the rumbling still audible from outside the precinct,
               and several passers by looking around for the source of the
               noise, Buffy and Andrew step into frame. Their weapons are
               hidden from view - Buffy is carrying a sports bag that is
               just about hiding the Scythe and Andrew's sword - and the duo
               exchange a look.

                                   ANDREW
                         So... We're really going in there,
                         just the two of us?

                                   BUFFY
                         'Fraid so.

                                   ANDREW
                         No back up?

                                   BUFFY
                         Nope.

                                   ANDREW
                             (beat)
                         Not even a Plan 'B'?

                                   BUFFY
                         Andrew, I'm lucky if I get a Plan
                         'A' most of the time.

                                   ANDREW
                             (beat)
                         Oh.

               Buffy steps towards the station, and we cut to:

        15     INT. CLEVELAND PD - BASEMENT. DAY.                      15

               A door opens and out steps Dan, followed by the two Cops he
               recruited from upstairs. The RUMBLING is louder than ever
               down here, and the three officers press their hands to their
               ears, Dan turning to the cops and shouting over the noise.

                                   DAN
                         Spread out, find out whatever the
                         hell's making that noise! 

               The group splits up, Dan taking the corridor that contains
               the room hiding the Hellmouth. 

               He reaches the magically sealed door and rattles the handle,
               and it's obvious that this is where the terrifically loud
               noise is coming from. 

               Dan tries to barge the door down, but it won't budge.

               Taking a few steps back, he draws his handgun and takes aim
               at the lock, FIRING three times. 

               The lock on the door starts to GLOW brightly, and Dan lowers
               his gun, bemused, as more light starts to build from the
               other side of the door, spilling into the corridor.

               Dan raises his arms against the brightness - just as the door
               EXPLODES outwards, shattering into fragments and filling the
               corridor with sickly yellow light. 

               Dan lowers his arms, his eyes bulging at what he can see on
               the other side of the door.

                                   DAN (cont'd)
                         What the...

               And it's from his look of confusion that we:

                                                             BLACK OUT:



                                   END OF ACT ONE
                                       ACT TWO

                                                               FADE IN:

        16     INT. FACTORY. DAY.                                      16

               Sofia is still looking around for Xander, scanning the circle
               below her for any clues as to where it sent him, but she may
               as well be trying to read Greek in the dark. Frantic, she
               yells out in the hope he can hear her.

                                   SOFIA
                         Xander! Where are you?

               As her voice echoes round the now empty factory, we cut to:

        17     INT. PORTAL TUNNEL.                                     17

               Surrounded by dizzying swirls of white and blue light, almost
               like being caught in a snowstorm blowing perfectly sideways,
               Xander tries to struggle forward, shoved from all sides by
               the energies inside the portal. 

               Up ahead, he can see Whelan, also struggling his way through
               the tunnel.

                                   XANDER
                         Come back here!

               Whelan turns, sees Xander - and GRINS, just as we WHITE OUT
               and find ourselves in:

        18     EXT. THE CIRCLE - FIELDS. DAY.                          18

               With a FLASH of white light, Xander finds himself in a very
               familiar patch of waist-high grass. A snow-capped jungle lies
               behind him, with a volcanic-looking mountain range beyond
               that. 

               Xander jumps to his feet, trying to get his bearings, his
               eyes widening as he sees the stilted wooden village of the
               Circle up ahead - and Whelan, racing away from him through
               the grass. 

               The sun may be up overhead, but physics work differently
               round here, allowing Whelan to look up at the sun and CACKLE
               defiantly as it fails to turn him to ashes. 

               Xander's instincts kick in, saving wondering where the heck
               he is for later.

                                   XANDER
                         Hope!!

               Xander takes off, tearing through the grass in hot pursuit of
               Whelan, who is heading straight for the Circle's village. 

               As Xander chases the vampire, we cut back to:

        19     INT. CLEVELAND PD - RECEPTION. DAY.                     19

               With the police on duty now struggling to stay on their feet,
               as the rumbling and vibrations continue to shake the
               foundations of the precinct, Buffy and Andrew stumble into
               the foyer, Buffy looking around in confusion. She shouts
               across to the nearest group of cops.

                                   BUFFY
                         What's going on?

                                   OFFICER
                         We don't know! Something in the
                         basement!

               Buffy throws an anxious glance at Andrew, then starts to dash
               forward, weaving past the cops and making for a staircase
               that leads down. The Desk Sergeant, Officer KINCAID, yells
               after her.

                                   KINCAID
                         Hey! Wait! You can't go back there!

               She ignores his shouts and hurries on, into:

        20     INT. CLEVELAND PD - BASEMENT. DAY.                      20

               Buffy almost loses her footing as she clatters down the steps
               and into the basement, Andrew following after her. 

               She spots Dan, standing just where we left him, staring into
               whatever he's seen inside the room containing the Hellmouth.

                                   BUFFY
                         Dan!!

               He looks round - double takes, and then steps backwards, his
               gaze returning to the room before him. 

               Buffy rushes over to him, laying a hand on his arm, but Dan
               only glances at her for a second before looking back into the
               room.

                                   BUFFY (cont'd)
                         Dan, are you alright? What did you-

               Buffy FREEZES as she looks into the room too.

                                   BUFFY (cont'd)
                         What the...

                                   DAN
                         Yeah, that's about as far as I got,
                         too.

               Buffy steps towards the door, staring in disbelief into the
               room beyond. 

               As Andrew joins her, his eyes almost popping out of his
               sockets, we finally get to see what's going on as the trio
               step into the room itself:

        21     INT. CLEVELAND PD - BASEMENT ROOM. CONTINUOUS.          21

               The room, quite simply, isn't there anymore. The floor has
               fallen away entirely, and in its place is a long series of
               archways, curving downwards, following the slope of the newly
               exposed floor. 

               The Hellmouth sits at the top of the slope, but that's no
               longer the main attraction of the room. The missing floor has
               exposed something even more spectacular - a colossal
               LABYRINTH, with high, stone walls twisting into a thousand
               different crazy angles and turns, stretching out for what
               looks like a mile in any direction below us. 

               In the centre of the labyrinth, lit by the dim yellow glow of
               hundreds of huge braziers and torches, stands a tall CITADEL,
               the entire complex sitting inside a massive tunnel, as though
               the citadel has literally tunneled its way down into the
               earth. 

               Buffy, Dan and Andrew stand in shock for a long beat, before
               Andrew breaks the silence.

                                   ANDREW
                         So... are you still sure about the
                         whole, um, 'no backup' thing? 

               As we watch, we can see many thousands of figures moving
               below us, starting to pour out from gaps in the walls of the
               labyrinth, one destination ahead of them - the top of the
               slope where Buffy and the others are standing. The army is
               starting to make an awful lot of noise...

                                   BUFFY
                         Oh, God... This is starting to feel
                         way too familiar... 

               Dan blinks, as if coming to his senses.

                                   DAN
                             (to Buffy)
                         So...

                                   BUFFY
                         Uh, yeah. Explanation. Okay.
                         Vampires? Real. Demons and
                         monsters? Also real. Me? Somebody
                         who's supposed to kill them.

                                   DAN
                         Oh.
                             (to Andrew)
                         So, what, are you like the
                         sidekick?

                                   ANDREW
                         Uh, no, I'm the backup.

                                   DAN
                             (eyes him)
                         Right.
                             (beat)
                         We're screwed, aren't we? 

               Buffy turns to Dan, the look on her face saying it all.

                                   BUFFY
                         We need to run. 

               She turns to the others, who are still transfixed by the army
               of darkness pouring out of the labyrinth below them.

                                   BUFFY (cont'd)
                             (urgent)
                         Run!!

               They finally turn, the trio racing out of frame, into:

        22     INT. CLEVELAND PD - BASEMENT. CONTINUOUS.               22

               Buffy, Dan and Andrew barrel back out into the corridor,
               Buffy leading the way as she heads back for the stairs.

                                   DAN
                         Wait... wait!

               Buffy skids to a halt as Dan catches up.

                                   BUFFY
                         What? We have to evacuate the area
                         and find some way to seal that off,
                         now! The whole city's going to be
                         overrun if we don't hurry!

                                   DAN
                             (mind racing)
                         But- who are- how did-

                                   BUFFY
                         I'll explain everything later, but
                         right now, we have to move!

               She grabs his arm and starts to drag him up the stairs, and
               as Dan throws a look over his shoulder, back towards the
               basement room, we cut to:

        23     INT. THE CIRCLE - GRAND LIBRARY. DAY.                   23

               Willow sits glumly at a desk on one of the upper floor of the
               library, staring out through a tall window next to her. 

               She suddenly spots something and sits up, blinking as though
               she can't believe what she's seeing. 

               Looking out through the window, we can see Whelan racing
               through the grass towards the village - and Xander closing
               in, racing his heart out to try and keep up with the vamp.

                                   WILLOW
                         Xander?
                             (double takes)
                         Xander!!

               She POUNDS her hands against the windows, but Xander can't
               hear her. 

               Willow turns and runs towards a long, spiral staircase that
               leads to the ground floor, clattering down it and sprinting
               for the Library doors when she gets there. 

               Throwing them open, Willow races outside, into:

        24     EXT. THE CIRCLE - VILLAGE. DAY.                         24

               Looking around frantically for Xander, Willow spots him and
               breaks back into a run. 

               Xander follows Whelan as he heads for a doorway built into
               the side of an otherwise plain building.

               Whelan throws the door open and leaps inside, slamming it
               closed, and Xander reaches it moments later. 

               He throws the door open - but there's nothing on the other
               side but brickwork. 

               Frantic, Xander PUNCHES the bricks, but they're solid.

                                   XANDER
                         No... No! Hope! Hope!!

               Xander doesn't see Willow bound into frame, almost in tears
               of relief, until she throws her arms round him. 

               It takes him a second to register who it is, looking more
               startled than ever.

                                   XANDER (cont'd)
                         Will?

                                   WILLOW
                         Xander! Xander, you're here! 

               She HUGS him again, but Xander prises her away.

                                   XANDER
                             (serious)
                         Willow, they've got Hope.

                                   WILLOW
                         What? Who?

                                   XANDER
                         I don't know, some vampires broke
                         into the house and took her, Sofia
                         and I tracked them down but one
                         escaped, I must've followed him
                         here...
                             (beat)
                         Where the hell is 'here'?

                                   WILLOW
                         Oh, this is the Circle.

                                   XANDER
                         It is?
                             (looks round)
                         You gave us all up for this?

                                   WILLOW
                             (urgent)
                         Xander! Focus!

               Willow steps past him and places her hands on the brickwork
               behind the door, closing her eyes.

                                   XANDER
                         Can you tell where he went?

                                   WILLOW
                         Yeah... Simple movement spell, this
                         place is full of them.

                                   XANDER
                         But what about-

                                   WILLOW
                         They'll know you're here soon. We
                         have to hide you. I'll find Hope
                         and bring her back, maybe I can get
                         you two out of here.

                                   XANDER
                         No, I want to come with you, I
                         can't-

               Willow shakes Xander once to snap him back to reality.

                                   WILLOW
                         No, Xander! It's too dangerous! 

               Xander stares back at Willow for a beat - then lowers his
               head and nods.

                                   WILLOW (cont'd)
                         Come on, follow me. I know where I
                         can put you so they won't find you.

               She takes his hand and leads him off screen, Xander finally
               starting to take in the outlandish scenery around him, as we
               cut back to:

        25     INT. HELLMOUTH.                                         25

               We're down in the newly-exposed Hellmouth itself, the
               archways overhead framing the long, sloping path that leads
               down to the entrance to the labyrinth. 

               Kane, smiling, holds his hands in the air as we hear CHEERS
               coming from the massed hordes before him - demons, vampires,
               Turok-Hahn, every kind of nasty under the sun, all clattering
               weapons and shields together in a cacophony of noise. 

               Kane's two demons follow him, one still holding onto Amy, who
               looks scared out of her skin.

                                   KANE
                         Thank you, thank you!

               Kane comes to a bump in the slope, forming a sort of plateau,
               allowing him to look down on the thousands of creatures
               massing below him.

                                   KANE (cont'd)
                         It's almost time! The plan has been
                         set in motion, so let this be the
                         day we celebrate the first of many
                         victories! 

               Another CHEER from the crowd. Amy yells over to Kane.

                                   AMY
                         How can you do this? How can you
                         let these... things out into the
                         world? They'll kill thousands!
                         Maybe millions!

                                   KANE
                         Yes, I have no doubt that they
                         will.

               Amy can't believe what she's hearing, looking out across the
               sea of demons and then back to Kane.

                                   AMY
                         What are you? You're not a man -
                         you're not human! 

               Kane spins on his heel and marches up to her, leaning forward
               to talk straight at her.

                                   KANE
                         Oh, I'm still very much human. You
                         want to know what one of our
                         greatest qualities is as a species,
                         Miss Madison? Greed. Sets us apart
                         from the animals. The difference
                         with them is that they know when to
                         stop.
                             (grins)
                         I, on the other hand, don't. 

               Kane turns back to face the hordes, lifting his hands in the
               air again to get another CHEER.

                                   AMY
                             (defiant)
                         She'll stop you!

                                   KANE
                         I'm sorry - who?

                                   AMY
                         Buffy! She'll find some way to stop
                         you, she always does!

                                   KANE
                             (shakes head)
                         Not this time. She was lucky the
                         last time she destroyed a
                         Hellmouth, and plus, she had
                         outside help. This time, it's a
                         straight fight.
                             (beat)
                         She's got no chance at all.

                                   AMY
                         That won't stop her! 

               Kane thinks on this for a second, then nods.

                                   KANE
                         No, I don't suppose it will. 

               He walks back up to Amy, who is now failing to keep her tears
               in. He leans closer to her.

                                   KANE (cont'd)
                         Unfortunately, you have a more
                         pressing issue to concern yourself
                         with.

               Kane calmly draws his handgun and SHOOTS Amy in the gut. She
               GASPS and folds, collapsing to the floor as Kane tucks the
               handgun away.

                                   KANE (cont'd)
                         You've outlived your usefulness. 

               Amy rolls onto her side, taking deep, panicked GULPS of
               breath as Kane turns back to address the demon army.

                                   KANE (cont'd)
                         Alright, gather yourselves! We're
                         about to march on the human world
                         above us, so remember the one
                         condition for your release!
                             (beat; grins)
                         Burn it to the ground! 

               A final CHEER sees the army start to surge towards us. 

               Wide-eyed, Amy watches the army stampede forward for a beat,
               before she closes her eyes, making a supreme effort of will
               to focus and concentrate. 

               Unseen by Kane or his demon attendants, Amy's body is bathed
               in a soft green GLOW, and after a beat, it fades away,
               vanishing completely without a sound. 

               As soon as she's gone, we cut to:
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