The Wand
By Shea Akers
All rights reserved.
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all Angel characters belong to joss and his crew.
PG: mild violence, blood

	
	Doyle moaned as he was slammed into another wall. Any more of 
this, he wouldn't be able to keep up his human face. There were three 
men attacking him, obviously with deep training. Doyle did his best to 
fight off the attacks, but he was losing. Why don't you just give up? 
Doyle thought to himself, You saw that this would happen. Doyle took 
another blow to his face, directly on his temple. He teetered a bit. His 
vision blurred over and his face reddened in nausea. He tried to lift 
his hands to stop the persistent blows to his body, but he could feel 
himself falling down, sinking against the wall. Doyle felt the blood 
drip down his face and he tried to stand again. He saw one of the men 
fighting him smile and place a pair of iron knuckles on. Doyle tried to 
back up more, desperately attempting to fight off the abuse. He knew 
what was coming could be fatal. Suddenly, his head cracked against the 
wall and consciousness was no more.

	"Of course I'm looking for him, Angel!" said a frustrated Cordelia 
over the phone. She slowed down as her the light changed to red. 
	Cordelia sighed and leaned back. She rolled her eyes as Angel 
talked to her again. "OK… OK.. .OK! I got it! Man, Angel, you're 
going to give yourself a heart attack… I know you don't have a heart!! 
It was an expression!"
	Cordelia shook her head and looked out her window. She screamed. 
	Angel pulled the phone quickly away from his ear. He brought it 
back and yelled into it, "Cordie?! Cordie?! You there? What happened?"
	"Angel… He…"
	"What happened Cordelia?"
	"Doyle… I see him… Oh god… he's in the car next to Me.. He's 
bleeding… Oh god.. Oh my god.."
	"Cordelia… Talk to me! Where are you?"
	"Oh god.. Angel… he's bleeding down the window! Why didn't you 
stop him!?"
	Angel's face blanched. "I couldn't… the sunlight…" 
	He knew it sounded like a cheap excuse. He tried again. "Cordelia… 
where are you? Where do they look like they are heading?"
	"Doyle… Wake up… Wake up Doyle.. DOYLE!"
	"Cordelia," Angel yelled a bit gruffly, "SPEAK to me!"
	Cordelia sniffed and took a staggered breath. "I think they're 
going down Stylar Avenue. The Manor was around there."
	"That's right! The Wand! I totally forgot about that!"
	"I'm following them." Cordelia said in a determined voice.
	"No. Stay where you are. Don't go…"
	"What? You want me to just watch Doyle bleed to death here? I 
don't think so! I am following them and you can't stop me!"
	Angel shook his head and frowned, "That's what Doyle said to me 
basically. No, I can't stop you. I'm asking you to not do it!"
	"Whoops! Light's green!! Meet you at the manor Angel.. I gotta get 
Doyle!"
	Angel pulled the phone from his ear and sighed. She had hung up on 
him. He quickly left for his basement and the Sewage tunnels beneath LA. 
He knew the way to the Manor. 
	
	"C'mon.. melt melt melt… I can feel you.. Melt!!" hissed Lyn. 
	Her hands rubbed the locks on her doors. She massaged the metal 
between her fingers as she felt the metal heat up. She shut her eyes and 
concentrated hard on the task. She felt the warm oozing of the metal 
drip from in between her fingers. A sick smile spread across her face. 
She tore the oozing metal from the door and threw it to her floor. The 
metal immediately hardened into a mound of scrap metal. She flung the 
door open and paused. Lyn turned back to the metal on the ground and 
began the process all over again. This time, she twisted the metal into 
a makeshift knife. It was dull, but it would suffice. She threw the 
'knife' into her pocket and crept silently down the hall. Her feet left 
small singed marks into the fine wood floors.
	"God, Angel, I should have been there." Cordelia whispered beneath 
her breath.
	Angel looked up at her. "You say something?"
	Cordelia's head popped up and she flashed a smile, "Me? no, I was 
just talking about how only Doyle could get himself into these 
ridiculous messes!"
	Angel's eyebrows furrowed and he nodded, "I see. I think Doyle 
would be in the next hall."
	"How can you tell?" Cordelia asked as they crept down the lavish 
halls. 
	Angel shrugged. "I can't."
	Cordelia turned the corner and gasped. Angel followed and placed a 
hand on her shoulder. They were in the same hall as before. Cordelia 
shrugged her shoulder free from Angel's grasp. "I'm fine," She said in a 
shaky voice, "I am just… a little… wary of this… place."
	"You can go home, if you'd like. I can get Doyle." Angel said. He 
wished there were more to say but Cordelia was a complex individual. Her 
exterior may seem simple, but he knew there was more. Doyle knew there 
was more. 
	Cordelia shook her head. "No. I'm getting Doyle. Getting his 
little wand and then leaving. They can't almost kill a friend and get
away with it."
	"I can see a little Buffy rubbing off on you." Angel said, his 
voice with a lilt of humor.
	Cordelia rolled her eyes, "Let's pray her fashion sense doesn't 
rub off on me, because the last thing I need right now is a small town 
Sunnydale Washout wardrobe!"
	Angel smiled again. "Glad to see there's still some you in… you."
	The two walked down the hall. Angel took notice of how Cordelia's 
arms wrapped her body, as if she were cold. Her head was pointed down 
and she walked with a brisk pace. Angel kept his silence. She'd talk if 
she needed to talk. 
	Jefferson scratched his graying hair. He looked at the bruised and 
bloody mass in front of him. He seemed so small and defenseless. This 
thing killed my son? He thought. Jefferson's hand tightened around his 
wineglass. Doyle's eyes turned up to look at Jefferson staring at him. 
Jefferson smiled in acknowledgment. Doyle's eyes left Jefferson and 
moved to the wand on the table. His eyes sparked, the blue seemingly 
leaping from them. Jefferson laughed and picked up the wand. He twirled 
it in between his fingers. "This," he said, "You want it?"
	Doyle moved his mouth, but it was too bruised to make any sound. 
Doyle nodded. Jefferson laughed. "I'll give it to you, if you tell me 
how it works."
	Doyle's eyes clouded over. He shook his head. He didn't know how 
the thing worked. It was won on a bet! Jefferson wasn't pleased with the 
response. He moved closer to the bound Doyle and sighed, his breath 
falling thickly on Doyle's face. "Tell me, Mr. Doyle, Tell me how to use 
this Wand!"
	Doyle opened his mouth and hissed out, in a broken voice, "I… can't…"
	Jefferson's face turned red. "WHY NOT!" he yelled. "I've seen you 
use it!! I've seen the Fire girl use it! Why can't I use it?!"
	Doyle's eyes turned down. "I… don't know."
	Jefferson grabbed Doyle by the hair. He clenched his teeth and 
hissed into Doyle's face. "YES. YOU. DO."
	"Bloody don't know!" Doyle said again.
	Jefferson grabbed his wine glass and threw it into Doyle's face. 
The alcohol burned some of the deeper cuts along Doyle's face.  Doyle 
leaned back and winced. Jefferson handed the wand to Doyle. "Make it 
work, boy, or I'll kill you."
	Doyle held the wand in his hands. He stared down at the ivory 
handle and the snake head. He glared at it. "You're a curse." Doyle 
said. "You are not of good."
	"Oh stop the mindless babble and make it work!" Jefferson hissed.
	Doyle lifted the wand and stood up. His bonds dripped from him 
like water. Jefferson backed up in fear. Doyle switched it between his 
hands and sighed. His muscles began to lose their ache. His wounds 
widened, letting the blood flow again, cleansing them. The wounds then 
resealed, covered with fresh skin, leaving no scar tissue. Jefferson's 
face widened in greed. He crept towards Doyle and laughed. "Me… work it 
on me… Bring my son back. Give me back my Youth…. Give me riches... lots 
of riches…"
	Doyle walked to Jefferson. He lifted the wand and brought it to 
Jefferson's eye level. Doyle then cracked the wand in two. A deep 
howling was heard, almost like a creature thrown into a fire. Doyle 
looked at his hands. Deep burnt marks stretched across them. The broken 
wand curled up in itself and broke into ashes. Doyle blew them into the 
face of Jefferson. Jefferson wiped them from his face and stared at his 
hands. "No…" he muttered. 
	Jefferson looked at Doyle and lunged at him.
	"What was that?" Cordelia said. She turned to face Angel. 
	Angel paused. "Sounded like a dying animal. It's from that room."
	The two entered the doors, leaping to opposite sides. Cordelia 
raised a stake, while Angel held a crossbow. They heard the sound of two 
men struggling. Cordelia walked around the table, to see Jefferson 
strangling Doyle, who was now turning a nice shade of purple. Cordelia 
shrieked, "Get off of him!"
	Doyle curled his legs into him and kicked Jefferson from his body. 
Angel was about to attack when Doyle yelled for him to stop. Jefferson 
stood up, brushing off his expensive suit. Doyle stumbled a bit and 
Cordelia winced. Doyle seemed to walk more in fatigue. All of his 
exterior wounds were healed. Cordelia smiled. He looked so brave and 
strong right then. She immediately shook the thought from her mind. 
Doyle walked to Jefferson. His fists were clenched and his eyes seemed 
to be in a rage. Jefferson laughed, "Come on, boy, show me what the 
little half demon has in him."
	The stake fell from Cordelia's hands and she turned. She left the 
room. Doyle turned and called out, "Cordelia, don't leave!" 
	Jefferson took the advantage to leap towards Doyle. Doyle turned 
back and stumbled back as the weight of Jefferson fell upon him. Doyle 
stood up, as the lifeless body of Jefferson fell to the floor. There was 
a thick shard of metal impaled in his back. Doyle looked up at the 
direction of where the knife might have come from. A girl stood. Doyle 
raised an eyebrow. "You…"
	"yeah, it's me Doyle." She said, her voice low and pain filled.
	Angel walked forward. "What did I miss?"
	"That's the girl I won The Wand from." Doyle quickly explained. "You're free now. I knew that you were captive."
	The girl raised an eyebrow and moved forward. "Lyn. My name's 
Lyn." She said. "and I'm here to kill you too."
	Doyle moaned to himself and stumbled back again, regaining his 
balance. "I've had enough violence t'last me a century!"
	Lyn glared at Doyle. "That Wand is mine."
	"I won it fair and square!" Doyle countered.
	Lyn shook her head and sighed, "It's mine by right of blood. My 
demon ancestors made it."
	Doyle gulped. "You're a demon?"
	Lyn raised her hands as two fire balls rested upon them. She 
smiled. "Affirmative."
	Lyn threw the first fire ball at Doyle. Doyle leapt away from it. 
Angel retreated to the doorway. Lyn hissed and threw another one. The 
second one hit Doyle in his leg, setting it on fire. Doyle quickly 
extinguished it. Lyn frowned. Angel raised his hands into the air.
 "It's destroyed, Lyn."
	Lyn raised her eyebrows. "You think I don't know that?! Why do you 
think I'm so ANGRY!"
	"You don't have to do this." Angel rationalized.
	Lyn shook her head. For the first time, her face betrayed her 
emotions and she looked like she was going to cry. "No... I've accepted
what I am. I am different. I am the last Attardo. They are fire demons. 
I'm the last one! I now accept this. I have to do this."
	Doyle meekly whispered out, "Attardo, Timulch, Bardak or Brechen… 
It doesn't matter. Humanity isn't heritage. Demons aren't killers… 
necessarily."
	Lyn took a step back.  She shook her head, the tears beginning to 
form. Angel walked to her and pulled her arms to her sides. Lyn began to 
shake and fell into Angel's embrace. She moaned softly into his chest. 
"I'm so sorry. I'm confused. I don't know what to do. I don't know who I 
am!"
	Angel shushed her and held her tight, as the tears soaked his 
shirt. Lyn backed away and wiped her tears. She looked up at Angel. "I'm 
going home."
	Angel lifted her cheek with one hand and smiled. He wiped away a 
tear with his thumb. "Go home. Be with those who love you. No matter 
what."
	Lyn nodded. "Who are you?"
	"Angel." Was the reply. 
	Lyn wrapped her arms around her and left the room. She turned back 
before leaving. "Angel."
	"yes." 
	"You better look after your friend. The Wand withdrawal is going 
to be hard for him."
	Lyn then left. Angel said outloud, "Time to go, Doyle."
	There was no response. Angel walked to Doyle and gasped. Doyle had 
fallen unconscious. Angel lifted the Irish half demon and walked from 
the room. Cordelia, who was waiting outside, followed the two out. 

	EPILOGUE:

	"What's with him and three days?" Exclaimed Cordelia. 
	She paced the inside of Doyle's hospital room. He had been in a 
coma for the last three days. Angel leaned back against the walls. His 
black clothing clashed with the white décor. Angel attempted a smile. 
"Don't pretend that you care, or anything."
	"I don't care…" Cordelia said. She then quickly added, "I mean, I 
care.. It's just… he… He was missing for three days… and now isn't awake 
for three days… and I… nevermind. The nerve of him! All for some stupid 
Wand!"
	"please, don't hold out on us, Cordelia." 
	"oh, I won't. He has no right to just make us worry sick over him! 
AND THEN that half demon thing." Cordelia paused. "how long did you know 
about that?"
	Angel raised an eyebrow. "Since I first met him."
	"You knew about this even before I knew you were in LA?"
	"Well, Cordelia, its sort of strange. I can't really bring it up 
in conversation. It's not like I can say to you, 'Hey Cordelia, nice 
skirt, by the way, Doyle's a demon.' Now can I?"
	Cordelia marched over to Doyle and looked at him. She sighed. "I 
guess not. It's just… why did he keep that so hidden. I want to know 
everything about Doyle. At all times. Why?"
	Suddenly, Cordelia felt a hand wrap around her own. She looked 
down to see Doyle staring up at her, his hand holding hers. Doyle 
flashed off a smile. "I was afraid, Princess."
	Cordelia's hand rushed to her face, but it still couldn't hold the 
smile. Cordelia bent down and embraced Doyle. Cordelia leaned back. She 
pointed a finger at his chest and hissed, "Don't ever do that again. 
Listen, the second you can walk yourself out of this room is the second 
you are going in for gambling counseling. Do you know the grief?! How 
dare you!"
	Doyle smiled. "Love you too, Princess, love you too."


THE END
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