A dangerous sorcerer named Felix Faust has come to Sunnydale, intent on raising an ancient demon to subjugate all of humankind. To succeed, he must perform a powerful curse to displace his enemies, transporting them from one time and place and exch...
Giles stepped forward, surprised. He had expected Ethan to flee or at least argue. "You actually mean to volunteer?"
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Ethan gave a grim chuckle. "I don't recall hearing the word 'volunteer' as an option. I'm simply ... simply not running away this time. Either I die and save the world, or I die and take the world, screaming, with me. Believe it or not, I'm not quite that selfish, Ripper."
Giles shifted. "No. I know you're not."
"Seems fitting, after all. I've caused my share of trouble. Only a matter of time before it all caught up to me. Either there's no more Earth, or there's no more me. I lose either way, so ... might as well go out playing the hero. Please don't bother with a ceremony or a medal. Honestly, it's not my best role."
Giles squatted down, sorry for him. He put a hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps it will be."
Delvina squinted at them. "You both seem to have misunderstood," she said. "You appear to think this process will kill him."
Giles blinked at her. "Well ... yes."
Whistler threw up his hands. "Whoa, that's what you thought she meant? Geez, you people really go all out."
"He only needs to sacrifice a portion of his blood, not all of it," Delvina said.
"Yeah, it's just a blood sacrifice, not a full sacrifice," Whistler agreed. "He won't even feel faint afterward."
Giles immediately removed his hand from Ethan's shoulder. "Oh."
Ethan relaxed. "That's a relief, as I normally feel faint quite often."
Whistler shook his head. "Wow, you guys got a lot more to learn than I thought. Look. Evil demons are greedy. It's kind of in their nature. But for most all of them, somebody giving them blood is like ringing the bell for Pavlov's dog. They taste a little blood, or even smell it, and you've got them hooked like a fish. They figure where there's a little blood, there's bound to be more. So it puts them at your beck and call. Got it? And a lot of the biggest demons, like Kalderon, want it the most. That's why he doesn't destroy the Summoners. They're the ones for bringing him blood. He's like a giant genie, submitting to the Summoner's wishes and protecting them. Like it or not, as one of the Summoners, Ethan can't be touched. And since he recited the curse, he's the only one who can reverse it."
"Well, so long as I'm not dying," Ethan said happily. "I'm all in."
"Splendid," Giles said with irritation, before returning to Delvina. "May we have the spell?"
"I'll locate it," Delvina said.
Whistler broke in. "You also got that item I ordered? In case they need it?"
She exchanged a hard glance with him. "Yes, it's right here," she said, nearly gliding across the floor as she moved behind the register. She pulled a long black case from the shelf and laid it on the counter. She opened it to reveal a gleaming sword with a thick, curved hilt. "I trust this will provide everything you need and more, once you have the spell. Wait here." She turned to disappear beyond the camouflage curtain.
