Chatting with wounded people.

Air Date: 16 May 2003

Jayde and Michael, sitting in a graveyard

Jayde

Jayde sez to Michael, during the chilly night or the next morning...

"So it turns out you were right about my fighting style. I really want to work on that before this sort of thing happens again. Because we all know it will."

"In fact the next 36 hours would be a good time to get started seeing as I won't have anything to fall back on, and frankly I'm going anywhere in this state. It's just a pity you have a big hole in your leg."

:-)

As an aside, this is _so_ Jayde. sinfest1, sinfest2

Rachel T-shirt reads: I survived the Cruciamentum. Did you?

Michael

"Thats kind of the problem here isnt it? You dont have any fall back when weird stuff like this happens. If you want to survive this thing, we need to work something out."

"If this was the army, then we'd have the grunts doing the patrols and set up a mobile reserve to take out any hot spots as they arise. That way you wouldnt be on the line 24/7."

"What we need is organisation. Get some firepower together, like maybe a core of Mages, like Arden. Plus some vamps like Angel. Get everyone into armor and comms gear. Then the Watchers check out the trouble spots and then we fly in and take it out. Maybe even some firepower if we could work out some wooden bullets or something."

Michael's obviously flipped into 'im dreaming mode'.

"Better yet, if we could get Mary into it too. Then we'd have some backup incase you got hurt. We'd need a base and comms gear...."

Jayde

"Ohh, poor Michael really has lost a lot of blood. There, there. It will all be better soon." Jayde's bedside manner is really stretched...

Michael

"Err, yeah. Right. Forgot. sorry."·

"You might think Im crazy, but we've go to do something '2 months' is the magic number. Troops in the line have about that long before they crack."

"That is an average, so maybe double it, atleast in my case because Ive had training training. Also, we're not in the front line 24/7, so I guess that helps extends it a bit. Maybe we're more like pilots I guess, although not exactly."

"Look, think what you want, but Ive seen you change in the short time Ive been riding shotgun. You're changing. You're cutting people off and getting into that combat mentality, whether you like it or not you like to see it that way."

"You want me to keep you alive? Then you have to get some of this stuff sorted out. You need a safe zone and you need people to pick up the slack when you cant be there."

He pauses for a short time and then quickly continues, "And if Mary is making you feel jumpy then Mary is part of the problem. That needs to be solved. One way or the other."

Jayde

"Are you saying I'm going to go totally nuts or something in the next few months? That's not very comforting."

"See the trouble is one of trust. In a Slayer's ideal world the Council is there to pick up the slack and provide the safe places. However given recent events we're not on the best of terms. More circling around a clearing, teeth bared."

"And if a certain potential slayer is right, they don't seem to think I'm worth the effort anyway."

"As for Mary - the only reason she's still around is because I still don't believe she's meant to be a Slayer, and she'd human. Sort of."

Michael

"I think you need somewhere safe to take timeouts. And to me, that means no Mary. And I cant see how you can get there without...."

He pauses and changes tack.

"See, thats what I dont get. Take Mary and this prophecy for example. If it is true, then what do we do about it? Do we just all splinter into seperate groups and wait for attrition to cut the number down to one? It seems to me that you'll have to fight it out and kill each other, but that kind of makes you 'evil' by the watchers definition doesnt it? Doesn't that mean that 'good' loses? Or is it ok if you kill in self defence?"

"I guess Im a little out of my depth here. My moral code is, err, more flexable than yours and the Watchers. Ive killed people before. Not randomly and not without cause." He clarifies quickly. :). "Atleast I dont think so. But does that make me not a white hat? Does that mean Im 'evil'? And if it does then should I really be advising you?"

"If it was me, and I knew that it was going to come down to Me or Mary, then Id pick the place and time and not let her stike first." He shrugs. "Or maybe Im missing something. It seems pretty clear to me that if you're just going to wait for these 3 other slayers to come and pick you off, then you're going to lose along the way somewhere."

"I mean if the Council is no help, then you should ditch them. Buffy did, right? And if you do ditch them, then what happens if they start helping Mary?"

"See this all gets ugly real fast. Im trying to think how I can help, but there are just too many possibilities and I need some guidelines. We could do everything from cap Mary and the council and start again, all the way to wait, be good and hope 'The Powers' will come to the rescue. I just dont know where to start or what to work towards."

"Obviously training is a given, but I think its all a lost cause without looking forward."

Jayde

"And here I was trying real hard not to think about the bigger picture."

"I really think we should talk to Alex about this. Just Alex though. No other Watchers, Slayers or wannabes. She is still my watcher and I have known her, like, forever. I think she's trying to do the right thing, but she's way too influenced by the others. Probably best if you don't mention the 'cap Mary' option right off though."

"If she can't convince me that the Council is working with me to the best of their ability and that they are giving me all the information they have, then I'll seriously consider getting out of town. A long way out. And of course they have this whole 'potential slayer with access to Council records and deadly weapons' to explain."

And so... phone call to Alex to arrange a meeting before the meeting.

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