By this point, the potentials had realised something was wrong, each one shuffling back and forth from foot to foot and looking at each other nervously.

“What’s going on?” Tara asked as she pushed her way through the others to join Faith and Kennedy at the head of the group.

“Erm, where’s Buffy?” she said, urgency filling her voice. “You have all noticed she’s not here?”

Kennedy glared over at the blonde but said nothing.

“Well, erm, I’m gonna guess B’s not five by five!” Faith told her.

“So now who’s in charge?” Kennedy said, looking at Faith hopefully.

“No time for that!” Faith yelled, spinning back towards the darkness. “GET READY!!” she yelled as she took her fighting stance and swung a punch into the shadows.

A loud grunt echoed around the darkness and a bringer suddenly emerged into the dim light.

“Alright!” Kennedy cheered as she took over from Faith and swung her sword rapidly, its blade connecting heavily with bringers shoulder and sinking into the flesh. She kicked the bringer and pulled on the sword at the same time, sending him flying towards the group to finish him off.

Faith and Tara had seemingly formed some unspoken pact, both women connected through nothing more than the power of the Slayer. After disabling another three bringers each, a deep growl sent shivers up the spines of everyone.

At the back of the group, Willow flinched as the lifeless and beaten body of the bringer landed at her feet. Her mind, which had so far been searching for the reversal spell for the binding she had performed, was frozen with fear. With Tara inexplicably leading the group, she was alone and in a precarious situation. Her only escape was the door through which they had entered but it was also the entrance the bringers themselves had used. She found herself wondering if maybe Buffy had thought the plan through properly.

Tara’s pained scream pulled her from her strangely times thought and she pushed her way to the front of the group.

The sight she saw crushed her heart. Faith was lying motionless on the floor, blood covering most of one side of her face. Kennedy, Rona and Amanda were gallantly but pointless trying to hold off one of the Turok-Han but the thing that froze her heart was Tara. She was hanging, almost lifelessly a foot off the floor. The vice like grip around her throat belonged to the preacher they had heard of, but had remained unseen.