Faith's POV

It all comes down to this, this one moment, this one fight. I feel like everything is riding on what happens in the next few minutes, and it is, because Dawn is in the balance. Dawn's life depends on everything we're about to do. Giles said the ritual involves spilling Dawn's blood into a specific place, at a specific time, and if it does then the whole universe is thrown into chaos. We have to keep that from happening. Not only would it destroy the world, but it would cost us everyone and everything we care about.

I look over at B. She glances at me for a split second as we go full steam to our destination. She's carrying a one handed axe on her back and a short sword on her belt. I've got a long sword on my back and the knife Wilkins gave me on my belt.

Dawn connects us. We've connected on many levels, physically, emotionally, mentally. But Dawn connects us in a way we've never known before... through her. I'm connected to Buffy through Dawn, and Buffy's connected to me through Dawn. Dawn's connected to us the same way. It's the kind of thing that goes beyond love, and we may lose it all if we can't win this... if Glory opens the portal.

B stops and I stop with her. Before I can ask what she stopped for, I follow her line of sight to a giant tower standing over 100 feet high in the middle of a construction site.

"I guess we came to the right place eh B?"

"Yeah, Giles did say the ritual would probably happen somewhere up high, I guess that's where it happens."

I look around the general area.

"Dawn and Glory must be close by. She'd want to keep our daughter close for when..."

"LET ME GO!"

Buffy and I immediately look each other in the eyes and have the same thought.

Dawn...

"HELP! SOMEONE HELP ME!"

We both look to the edge of the wall in front of us and jump, grabbing it and pulling ourselves up to survey the scene. A number of Glory's demon minions are dragging Dawn, fighting for everything she's got, toward the tower's stairway.

"DAWN!"

B jumps down into the construction site and makes a bee line for Dawn. I jump down and follow her, looking for Glory. Buffy grabs one of the minions and pulls them off Dawn, tossing him 10 feet.

"STAY AWAY FROM HER!"

Before I can get there, B goes flying and I stop in my tracks at the sight of Glory now standing between me and Dawn. Dawn looks right at me with a look of fearful hope. I try and tell her with my eyes that everything's gonna be all right. I take up a fighting stance as I see Buffy get up out of the corner of my eye.

"You okay B?"

"Yeah... what the hell was that? Foreplay?"

I chuckle at B's comment.

"Well she did say she wanted a threesome, maybe we should've accepted."

B comes up and stands beside me in her own fighting stance. Glory scoffs at us before barking orders at her minions.

"Take the kid up to the ritual point and start the ritual when it's time. I'll be there after killing the slayers."

"Yes Glory!"

They start to pull her along again and Dawn tries to fight back even harder than before, doing anything she can against the five stronger minions.

"BUFFY! FAITH! HELP ME!"

I wanna go to her and help her, but Glory's standing between us and our daughter. The hell god puffs up her hair and hikes up her breasts.

"You want some of this? Come and get it."

We attack, once we're sure Dawn can't get caught in the crossfire of the fight. B pulls out her axe while I grab my long sword. She swings at Glory's head while I go for her body, both of which Glory blocks by grabbing the blades with her bare hands. Buffy and I both knock her off her feet by kicking her in the back of the knees with full slayer strength. Again Buffy goes for the head while I take a shot at stabbing her through the stomach. Glory stops us both, inches from her skin, this time bending back the axe blade and snapping the sword blade in two.

She uses the broken edge to slice at our ankles. I do a black flip out of reach and when I'm upright again I see Buffy's backed off too. Seconds later Glory's back on her feet and throwing the end of the sword away. Buffy and I both get rid of our damaged weapons and face off against Glory.

"Is that it? Is that all you've got? I guess going home is gonna be easier than I thought."

She won't get Dawn.

Buffy takes her on first.

"We've got more than that hell bitch."

A split second later I charge her myself.

"You're not going home, you're going down."

We start throwing consecutive punches at her, most of them either being deflected or dodged.

"Sorry, I prefer someone going down on me, not the other way around."

I go for a spin kick, hitting her in the back of the head and making her stumble a bit. B follows up with a shot to Glory's stomach, making her fall forward from the waist up. I grab her by the back of the neck and dress, spinning her before throwing her across the site and into a pile of bricks. Buffy and I watch the pile of bricks, knowing that it's not over yet.

"HELP ME!"

We look up at the tower above where Dawn's voice screams for us. Buffy looks at me, and I look right back as the bricks move.

"We have to get up to Dawn."

"Or you could stick around and get killed."

Our attention turns to Glory. I look at the stairs a few feet away and then at Glory.

"Get to Dawn B, I'll hold off the bitch from hell."

I take a few steps forward and get ready to fight.

"Faith..."

"I can take her B, just get to Dawn."

Buffy starts to go, but Glory moves with lighting speed before I can react, picking up the end of my broken long sword, throwing it at B's ankle. Buffy screams, dropping to her knees and then grabbing her ankle. I put myself between Buffy and Glory.

"Are you all right Buffy?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I've just got a sword in my ankle. I'll get to Dawn."

She gets up and starts limping towards the tower while I keep Glory from charging her by being in her way. I charge Glory myself, my own lightning speed kicking in. I lead with a hard right cross to her face which makes her stumble.

"Ow! That actually kinda stung."

Good...

I follow with a left hook which doesn't change her footing. I go for a right to the stomach but she deflects it and fires back with a few rights and lefts and I block them, coming back with a flurry of my own to her face and body, only half of which actually connect.

I think she's off balance.

I take a step back and try for a kick to the gut at full slayer strength. She catches it though, throwing it into the air and forcing me to do a mid air back flip to stay on my feet. Before I get my balance she tries for a punch to my ribs but I manage to block it by grabbing her wrist, holding it back. I pull her forward fast lifting my knee into her stomach and making her stumble back as she grabs the place where I kneed her.

"Ow! Where the hell did you get this kind of power? I've only gone up against one slayer with this kind of power before you."

I follow up quickly with a series of punches, landing as many as I can.

"You'd be surprised how hard I can fight when the ones I love are in danger."

I hit her with a hard spinning backhand, taking her off her feet and to her knees. I use a roundhouse kick to her head, making her fall on her back.

"I knew there was a reason I hated love... no..."

No?

She tries to get up, shaking, but I put a foot on her collarbone and hold her down.

What's going on?

"I... hate you..."

All of the sudden Glory changes into Ben, who's bleeding all over and trying to keep breathing.

"Ben..."

"I'm sorry... I never..."

I take out my knife and kneel down, my knee full into his stomach.

"I know... so am I..."

I thrust the knife deep into his heart and move back, leaving the knife in him. I stand up and watch as the blood spills out of his chest, slowly killing him. I turn away as he stops moving, to the aftermath of Glory. I look up towards the tower, where B's trying to make her way up to Dawn. She's only gotten up a few levels. I rush to her side.

"Buffy..."

She looks up toward the top of the tower.

"Dawn's still up there..."

I look up myself before staring into B's eyes.

"Glory's minions don't know she's dead."

"And she told them to start the ritual even if she's not there."

"I'll get to her B... I can get there faster than you can."

I start my way up but she grabs my arm, pulling me to her and kissing me.

"I love you Faith."

I put a hand to her cheek as I back up the tower.

"I love you too Buffy."

I turn and make my way up the stairs, running as fast as I can.

I have to get to Dawn.

I grab the railings and such to try and launch myself forward whenever I can, getting closer and closer to the top of the tower.

I have to get to Dawn before they start the ritual. If I don't they're going to cut into her, make her bleed until she destroys the world. I have to stop that from happening. If I don't...

The whole tower shakes like an earthquake just hit, throwing me off balance and making me stop.

Oh god...

I don't wait for the shaking to stop as I sprint up the last few stories to the top of the tower. A glow comes from below as I look out at Dawn screaming as they slice into her with the knife.

"Dawn!"

She sees me and Glory's former minions face me.

"Faith!"

The minions come at me and I grab the first two by the necks and throw them off the tower, punching the second two and knocking them off too. I grab the last one by the neck and raise him above my head, crushing his windpipe.

"Your god is dead. You didn't have to do this."

I crush his windpipe even more before making him join his friends. I look to Dawn again finally and before I know it I'm standing in front of her. I break the chains holding her there and her arms are around me.

"Faith..."

My own arms wrap around her and I hug her tight.

"I'm sorry..."

I look at Dawn, her tears of pain staining her cheeks.

"There's nothing to be sorry for Dawn."

"This is all my fault."

I pull my hands up to her cheeks, her own arms still around me.

"It's not Dawn... nothing about this is your fault."

I pull her to me again as I feel tears in my own eyes.

"This isn't your fault."

"I'm sorry..."

I start to rock her back and forth in my arms as she cries.

"I'm so sorry..."

"Ssh, it's all right Dawn. This isn't your fault."

We stand there at the edge of the tower crying, the world ending below us.

"I love you Mom..."

She pulls away to look at me.

"Dawn..."

"You and Buffy both, and Mom too, I love you..."

I kiss her forehead gently.

"I love you too Dawn, we all do... you're our daughter."

She smiles up at me through her tears.

"I love you Mom..."

"I love you too Dawn..."

And then I push her off the tower...

Fin

Author's Note: So... what do you think of how it ended? What do you think will happen next? Who wants to see the sequel? How soon should I start posting it? I'm debating posting an unrelated story before that. Thoughts?