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Date Posted: 05:24:10 08/09/02 Fri
Author: Jeanny & Dawneen
Subject: Act IV
In reply to: Jeanny & Dawneen 's message, "Act III" on 05:21:52 08/09/02 Fri

ACT IV

Scene: Vamp Lair [Int.], Night.
BUFFY’s right hand shoots up and stops the stake. Her left hand follows and thrusts palm first against SARIA’s nose, causing her to fall back.

BUFFY
[calmly]
You probably want to rethink that. My mother is dead,
and she was one hundred percent human.

SARIA
You couldn't be more wrong.

BUFFY charges, but SARIA has regrouped and meets the attack well. The two exchange a flurry of blows, but it's a stalemate.

BUFFY
Is this what happens when a Slayer is turned? She
loses her grip on the real?

SARIA
I think you’re the one that’s confused, my dear. I
guess it’s understandable since it was never really
explained.
[mocking]
You could ask your Watcher - oh wait, he’s
gone.

BUFFY
Insane and a cheap-shot artist. So many reasons I
should stake you, I’m all aflutter.

SARIA
[smiling]
You hate me.

BUFFY
Gosh, no. I mean, not especially. I hate all the
bloodsucking fiends, it’s just a thing I have.

SARIA
Because you come from hate. You know it in your
heart. All Slayers do. Eventually they pray for death,
just to end the pain of knowing who they are.

BUFFY
That’s not...

DAWN comes bursting in.

DAWN
Buffy!

From DAWN’s POV, we see BUFFY turn towards her sister and SARIA rush at her from behind.

BUFFY
Dawn? What are you-

DAWN
Buffy look out!

BUFFY ducks under SARIA’s attempt to knock her out while she was distracted, flipping the vampire in the process.

BUFFY
Dawn, get out of here! Now!

SARIA regains her feet and charges with a snarl.

DAWN
No! I won’t leave you!

BUFFY and SARIA trade more blows, too evenly matched for either to gain the upper hand for more than a moment. DAWN watches and we briefly see the fight from her POV, in slow-motion. She sways slightly as the image returns to normal speed. SARIA knocks BUFFY down.

DAWN
Buffy!

BUFFY flips back to her feet as SARIA had before.

BUFFY
[to DAWN]
Stay back!

SARIA faces her again but doesn’t attack; the two eye each other warily.

SARIA
[to DAWN]
You can’t save her. I need her blood, and I’ll get it.
The mother is coming. She must come, because I
must kill her.

DAWN
Buffy, what is she saying?

BUFFY
I have no idea. She’s more than a little psycho, and
less than linear, but I think she wants to bring back a
vamp that's been staked so she can stake it herself.
Gift horses, mouth, I say.
[to SARIA, coldly]
And she’s out of luck, because apparently she needs
my help to do it, and I‘m not feeling especially helpful.
What’s dead should stay dead. Kinda my new motto.

SARIA
[suddenly emotional]
You don’t understand. She killed them. All of them.
My family...my...

DAWN
Amar.

BUFFY frowns as SARIA turns on DAWN

SARIA
You know nothing! Leave him out of this. He’s...

BUFFY
He’s the reason behind all this. You loved him.

SARIA
Yes.

DAWN
She killed him, didn’t she? The...Mother?

BUFFY
And now you want revenge. She’s dust, but that’s not
enough for you.

SARIA
[screaming]
How could it be enough? Our love was...you could
never understand!

BUFFY
You think you’re the first person that ever lost
someone? You’re not, and it hurts, I know, but you
don’t...do whatever it is you’re doing. You have to
move on.
[brandishing her stake]
I’m willing to help you with that.

SARIA
Lillith will die by my hand. Only then can I move on
from this world to join my beloved in the next.

DAWN and BUFFY exchange confused looks, and DAWN shrugs. BUFFY looks at SARIA quizzically.

BUFFY
Who’s Lillith?

SARIA snarls and tackles BUFFY as DAWN screams.

CLEM
[Voice-Over]
It’s getting to be way too dangerous around here.

CUT TO:

Scene: Graveyard [Ext.], Night.
XANDER and WILLOW have found CLEM on their way to SPIKE’s.

CLEM
(continued)
I hate to think of Dawn out here alone.

XANDER
But you haven’t seen her?

CLEM
No, but I just got back from the hospital. Can you
believe they tried to admit me? I mean, honestly, you
people are all freaky about that flesh-eating bacteria
thing.

WILLOW
But why were you-

CLEM
Oh. There was a girl, nice young lady. Got attacked
by a vamp, and Spike asked me to-

XANDER
Spike?

CLEM
Yeah, he saw the girl get bit and saved her. Thought
she’d lost too much, you know, and he was right, we
just-

XANDER
[utter disbelief]
I’m sorry, you’re saying Spike saved someone.

CLEM
[a bit irritated]
When I’m not being interrupted.
[apologetic]
I didn’t mean to snap atcha, I’m a bit out of sorts.
Hospitals give me the willies.

WILLOW
They’re very unfun.

CLEM
They tried to keep me from leaving!

WILLOW
I’m sure it was horrible, but Clem, we’ve got to find
Buffy and Dawn like now.

XANDER
You heard anything about this vamp Saria, where she
might be unliving these days?

CLEM
The vamp that was a Slayer? All I know about her is
to stay far far away until she blows outta town. If
you’re smart you’ll do the same.

WILLOW
Why?

CLEM
All I know is, when a Slayer gets turned vampire, it
tends to make them not right in the head. Most of
the time, they don’t last too long - one vamp or
another with a grudge will take em out. But the longer
they last, the more cuckoo they get.

XANDER
This one’s been around for while.

CLEM
All the more reason to lay low. As fond as I am of the
Slayer and her sister, the thought of facing a psycho
vampire with the skills of a Slayer...

WILLOW
You have no idea at all where she might be?

CLEM
I just might, actually. You two have real moxie, you
know that? It’s so refreshing...

XANDER
Clem, focus.

CLEM
Oh, well, I ran into a Geleffi demon at the
grocery store earlier, old friend of mine, horrible
gossip, and he mentioned a lot of folks are avoiding
the sewer tunnels on the south end of town.

XANDER
Let’s go.

WILLOW
[to CLEM, sincerely]
Thanks.

CLEM
[calling after them]
Sure, anytime. Hope you find Dawn...
[weakly]
Alive.

BUFFY
[Voice-Over]
She isn’t coming back.


Scene: Vamp Lair [Int.], Night

BUFFY
Doesn’t matter if her name is Mitsy, Darlene, or Tina
Turner. You said it yourself, her little band of followers
is extra crispy.

SARIA
Don’t be foolish, Buffy Summers. Lillith will return.
She must. The First cannot be stopped by death, it
has been written.

BUFFY
See, that’s all cryptic. I hate when the bad guys get all
cryptic. The first what?

SARIA
You already know. It cannot be changed. The time is
now for my revenge.

DAWN
Yeah? We’ve heard that before. Prophecies are
wrong all the time, you know.

SARIA
You are a naïve child...the very air vibrates with
portents of her coming.
[pointedly, to BUFFY]
Can you not feel it?

BUFFY
Feel what?

SARIA
The darkness in you. Rising. It comes forth as the
hour of Lillith’s return grows nigh. I see it in you.

BUFFY
[tightly]
Well I don’t feel it. There is no darkness.

SARIA laughs, then looks at DAWN.

SARIA
Of course. Deny it if you must, but do you think she
can’t see it?

BUFFY knocks SARIA off her feet, pinning her down.

DAWN
Buffy?

BUFFY
[angrily]
I told you, there is no darkness. No...vampire...genes
or whatever you’re implying

SARIA
You think you know...what’s to come...

BUFFY, SARIA & DAWN
[in unison]
What you are...

The Summers sisters stare at each other in shock, and SARIA throws BUFFY off easily. She looks down at her.

SARIA
You can’t even comprehend the power you wield, let
alone it’s origins. The darkness that links the slayer
and the vampire…the link. The blood.

DAWN
No! There’s nothing wrong with Buffy’s blood...

SARIA
What is it about that that frightens you, little sister?

BUFFY
Leave her alone!

SARIA
She fears your heritage. That which you share with
the beasts you destroy...

BUFFY
The vampires, the Slayer, maybe there is something
we have in common. But they’re demons, giving into
the darkness. The Slayer doesn’t do that. I don’t do
that. I fight it. And I control it. It’s a part of me, but it’s
not even the main part. And if you don’t know that,
obviously you weren’t much of a Slayer.

SARIA kicks at BUFFY’s head, but BUFFY sidesteps the attack easily. Out of balance, SARIA falls and Buffy moves in, pinning her down with a stake over her heart.

BUFFY
And not much of a vampire, either. I’m through here.
This ends now.

SARIA
[defeated]
Your arrogance will be your undoing, Buffy Summers.
You underestimate Lillith, your connection to her.

BUFFY
Whatever. If she shows, I’ll deal. She might be the
biggest baddest mother...sucker of them all, but she’s
still just a vamp. Stake, heart, game over.

SARIA
She’s stronger than any vampire you’ve ever faced...and
once you understand your connection to her, I think
you’ll find killing her won’t be that simple.
[laughing ruefully]
Oh, I wish I could be there to see it...

BUFFY
[pulls back, bright sarcasm]
Sure. Maybe we can paint each other’s toenails and
talk about boys...no, wait!

The stake is back at SARIA’s chest, and BUFFY looks serious.

SARIA
So arrogant. Fine. Go ahead, Slayer. Ignore my words.
Do your duty. I’ll see you in he-

BUFFY stakes SARIA and her ashes fall. BUFFY stands and looks at her sister wearily.

BUFFY
[with faint humor]
Suppose she was gonna say heaven?

DAWN shakes her head, her expression sad and uneasy. “”Black and Blue” by the Counting Crows begins to play.

BUFFY
Let’s get out of here. Come on.

BUFFY tosses the stake aside as she walks out of the room. DAWN lingers, staring at the dust with a seriously troubled expression.

SONG
Fading everything to black and blue
You look a lot like you'd
Shatter in the blink of an eye
But you keep sailing right on through
Every time you say you're learning
You just look a lot like me
Pale under the blistering sky
White and red
Black and blue

BUFFY
Dawn?

DAWN
Coming!

She turns to leave, picking up BUFFY’s stake in a fluid motion, a Slayer-like motion, without breaking stride. DAWN exits.

SONG
You’ve been waiting a long time
You’ve been waiting a long time

SLOW DISSOLVE TO:


Scene: Spike’s Crypt [Int.], Night
SPIKE is standing over a basin, scrubbing the blood from his hands. He stops, looking at them, but they’re still stained.

SONG
To fall down on your knees
Cut your hands
Cut yourself until you bleed
But fall asleep next to me

SPIKE
[to the stains]
Go away! Dammit, why won’t you...

SONG
Wait for everyone to go away
And in a dimly lit room
Where you got nothing to hide
Say your goodbyes

He scrubs harder, grunting with effort, harder and harder until he is scratching himself. Suddenly he hisses and draws his arms out of the basin.

EXTREME CLOSEUP of scratches oozing a small amount of blood. SPIKE freezes, staring at the blood oozing from his own wounds, completely transfixed.

SONG
Tell yourself we’ll read a note that says,
"I’m sorry everyone.
I’m tired of feeling nothing. Goodbye."
Wash your face
Dry your eyes

DISSOLVE TO:


Scene: Forest [Ext.], Night
SARIA’s POV as she runs through the forest for the third and final time.

SONG
Cause you’ve been waiting a long time
You’ve been waiting a long long time

SWITCH ANGLE TO: Overhead shot of her running

SONG
To fall down on your knees
Cut your hands
Cut yourself until you bleed
But fall asleep next to me

SWITCH ANGLE TO: her running toward the camera. SARIA suddenly pulls to a halt, horrified.

SLOW PAN TO: Shot of a badly beaten AMAR, tied to tree with his knees on the ground and his arms pulled painfully behind him. SARIA runs to him falling to her knees in front of him and cradling his head gently. She starts to sob.

SONG
And have a dream I’m falling down on my face
I scrape my knees
I scrape my hands until they bleed
Cause you're fast asleep next to me
Next to me
Next to me

Music fades out. AMAR’s eyes flutter open.

SARIA
Amar!

She kisses him passionately through her tears. AMAR pulls his head away.

AMAR
Go now!

SARIA
What? No! I’ve got to get you out of here.

SARIA looks to the east, and we see the sun barely beginning to rise.

AMAR
No! It’s a trap, Saria. Go now, before it’s-

LILLITH
[O.S.]
Too late.

AMAR is staring hopelessly over SARIA’s shoulder. SARIA turns and sees LILLITH, covered by a shorud. She screams in rage, rushing at the vampire who meets the attack calmly but efficiently. Blows are exchanged in a slow-motion montage, and at first SARIA appears to be winning...but then LILLITH gets the upper hand. We return to normal speed as SARIA makes one last ditch lunge, her stake at the ready. LILLITH suddenly drops her defense.

LILLITH
Do it, my daughter. And then watch your lover die.

SARIA turns back to look at AMAR and sees the sun is nearly up. She looks back and LILLITH has disappeared. She drops her stake, running back to AMAR, kneeling and fumbling with his ropes. With a frustrated cry she pulls out a dagger, but the ropes don’t even fray.

SARIA
I’ve got to get you out of here...

AMAR
There’s no time, my love. Just...kiss me.

SARIA
No! I can’t give up...

She’s weeping, dropping the knife, her fingers now pulling at the ropes, but they won’t come undone.

AMAR
Lillith made the ties too strong, Saria. We cannot
break them.

SARIA
[knowing it’s true]
No...

AMAR
It’s over...

SARIA
You can’t leave me...not alone...

SARIA’s sobs quiet as she makes a decision. She picks up the dagger and brings it to her neck. Then she slices it across making a small cut. Blood goes trickling down as AMAR automatically slips into his vamp face.

AMAR
Saria, no!

SARIA
Kill me, Amar. I don’t want to live without you.

AMAR
I can’t.

SARIA
You can! We both knew this day would come. Please,
there’s no time left to argue. Drink!

SARIA presses her neck against his mouth, and AMAR plunges his teeth into it. SARIA gasps. CLOSEUP of her face as she closes her eyes, then slides to the ground, a smile on her face as she lay dying. SLOW ZOOM into an EXTREME CLOSEUP of her eyes, which fly open suddenly in horror when we hear AMAR scream in pain.

AMAR
No, no!

LILLITH is standing over her, dripping blood from a cup into SARIA’s open mouth. The Slayer swallows reflexively as LILLITH waves the cup.

LILLITH
Your lover’s blood is sweet, yes? Remember well the
taste of it, my daughter, for it is the last of him you’ll
have to remember him by. Now and forever.

SARIA closes her eyes, her breathing stops and LILLITH laughs.

From behind we see LILLITH remove her shroud and cover SARIA, effectively shielding the newly born vampire from the impending daylight.

AMAR
[growling, helpless]
Damn you, Lillith.

LILLITH laughs.

LILLITH
Silly vampire child...you cannot curse she who was
the First Cursed. It is redundant.

LILLITH turns and walks away from the doomed vampire, and for the first time we see her face. She looks exactly like the First Slayer.

FADE OUT.

END CREDITS

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