Spike's fascination with the sun lasted all of ten minutes. Yeah, it was great, and he'd missed it, but enough was enough. Everyone else was busy reading old scrolls and going through books, so he decided to explore.

The vampire wandered from temple to temple, picking up a trinket here and there. It's not like any one was around to catch him lining his pockets, and he doubted that they'd be missed. At least not anytime soon.

His duster was incredibly heavy by the time he decided that he had collected enough gold and jewels to keep him in blood and fags for years to come. But he was still bored.

He noticed one small temple stuck in behind the God of War's marble monstrosity, almost like it was being hidden from sight. Spike ambled through the garden, knocking off the heads of various flowers, eventually making his way to the temple.

Inside it was black with the occasional splash of red just to liven things up a bit. Various daggers hung on the walls alongside whips and assorted lengths of chain. Spike ran his hand up one of the chains and hissed when his palm was sliced open. The edges of each link had been ground down to a fine edge. Now here's a God with some taste! Spike thought to himself.

It hadn't taken long in the other temples to discover which God it belonged to. Aphrodite's was all pink and frou frous were scattered everywhere. Hephaestus had a huge forge in place of an altar. Spike smirked at the memory of Cupid's temple. It reminded him of a motel he and Dru had stayed at once. A big heart-shaped bed, huge pillows scattered over the floor and the entire ceiling had been mirrored. But this temple, there was nothing to say who it belonged to.

Spike wandered into the back room and there he was; whoever he was. Pale skin, black spiky hair and dressed all in leather. The vampire hadn't seen anyone that punked out since the early eighties. He moved closer and could hear a slow, steady heartbeat. The power coming up off the God was impressive, but he was obviously caught in the same spell the rest of them were under.

Spike casually looked around, extending his senses as far as they could go. There wasn't anyone around, Gods weren't human so his chip wouldn't go off, and he was really hungry. Sitting on the bed next to the sleeping figure, Spike leaned closer until he could hear the blood moving through the veins right under the pale skin.

He had an instant to wonder what a God's blood tasted like before instinct and hunger took over. His face shifted and he sank his fangs into the soft, smooth skin. The thick, ruby red blood rushed into his mouth and he whimpered. It was better than anything. Better even than the blood of the two Slayers that he'd killed in the past.

He grew dizzy, and he could feel his skin flush like he'd been drinking sweet, red wine. He swung his legs up onto the bed until he was literally wrapped around the comatose God and sucked harder, wanting more of the intoxicating fluid. Finally, his demon was sated, it hadn't been this happy in years.

Spike withdrew his fangs and slowly licked the rapidly healing marks, trying to get the last little bit. Dazed, he raised his head and looked straight into wild, blue eyes. The God smirked and burst into insane giggles. "Cool." Was the last thing Spike heard before he fainted.

**********

Strife rolled the Bacchae over onto his back before moving to straddle his hips. He wanted to look over this new worshiper. Skin as pale as his own, outrageous cheekbones and a really cool scar through his left eyebrow. Strife shifted back a little and something poked him in the back of the leg. He dug through the pockets of the leather coat and pulled out one of Aphrodite's golden daggers. They couldn't hold an edge and were worthless in a fight, but the jewel-encrusted hilt was pretty.

Strife went through the rest of the pockets and found all sorts of things. Things he knew belonged to the other Gods. He piled them on the floor next to the bed, and went back to examining his new pet. He was more than a little pleased with what he found. He finally slipped his mind into the Bacchae's, quickly searching through his memories.

He didn't really care for the human the Bacchae had been, but what he had become...even his name was perfect. Spike. The sheer ferocity and careless disregard for the rules was awe inspiring. But the anger, that didn't make any sense.

Strife dug deeper and learned all about the Initiative and the 'bloody fuckin chip'. It only took a second for Strife to destroy the chip and his blood coursing through Spike's veins would soon return him to full strength, but it wasn't enough. Strife sent a burst of power through the Bacchae, now he would be the strongest Bacchae to ever walk the face of the earth. Strife giggled some more and hugged himself tightly. Staring greedily at Spike he said, "We're gonna have so much fun. I wonder where I can get some railroad spikes?"

**********

Xander wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was bored. He couldn't even play with Bliss, the baby had collapsed on his chest again and was sound asleep, his snowy white wings fluttering as he dreamed. The low voices soon became indistinct, lulling him into a daze. His head nodded, and he jerked trying to stay awake, but it was a losing battle.

Cupid saw Xander fighting sleep; he hadn't taken his eyes off the mortal for more than a couple of seconds since they'd come back to Olympus. Leaning over to his father, he said quietly, "I'm going to take Xander over to my temple so he can get some sleep."

Ares looked up at the boy and nodded. "Go ahead, we'll see you in the morning."

Cupid said goodnight to Joxer and Giles before carefully removing Bliss from Xander's arms. "Xander? Can you wake up a little? I'll take you to where you can get some sleep in a real bed."

Xander half opened his eyes and yawned. "Sounds good." He mumbled. Cupid was just getting him to his feet when a bright flash of light lit up the room. Hearing a gasp behind him, Cupid turned to see Strife standing there holding the unconscious Bacchae in his arms.

The God of Mischief grinned at his uncle. "Hey, Unc. How's it hanging?" Lifting Spike higher in his arms he said, "Look what I found in my temple, can I keep him?"

Ares jumped up from his seat and grabbed Strife in a hug, crushing the vampire between them. As soon as he let go, Cupid was there, thumping Strife on the back and laughing gleefully. Joxer sat on the edge of the table, worried about how Strife was going to react when he saw him. He didn't have to wait long.

Strife laid Spike on one of the pillows in front of the fireplace and slowly advanced on Joxer, hissing under his breath. "What the fuck is he doing here?" The God of Mischief looked around warily, "Where are they?"

Ares grabbed his nephew and shook him. "Strife listen to me. You've been sleeping for over two thousand years. Everything has changed. Xena and the annoying one are long dead and forgotten." Pointing at Joxer, the God of War said, "Joxer defied them and stayed with me. He brought me out of the Twilight just weeks after it happened. We've been trying to wake up the others ever since."

Strife staggered and would have fallen if Ares weren't hanging onto him. "Two thousand years? Two thousand years?!" He screeched. "Well that really sucks." He said petulantly.

Xander snickered, he couldn't help it. The God was whining like a five year old. Strife glared at him just once and then his head rang. Clasping both hands to the back of his aching skull he looked up at Cupid. "What was that for?"

Cupid nodded at Xander, "He's my friend, Strife. He woke me up from the Twilight. You lay one hand on him and I can guarantee you won't like what happens."

Strife held up both his hands and slowly backed away from the other Gods. "Chill, dudes. Just chill. I'm not going to hurt your mortals." Strife looked Xander up and down, "So you're Xander? I saw you in Spike's memories. He actually thinks you're half decent, for a mortal."

"Well, gee, my heart is all a flutter." Xander said snidely.

Strife started giggling. "Not bad. At least you've got some balls." Turning his attention to Joxer, Strife said, "So you saved Unc, huh? I guess you're okay by me then."

Ares grabbed Strife by the throat and lifted him off the floor, "He's my consort, Strife. Insult him and you insult me." Setting Strife back on his feet he said, "How did you wake up anyway?"

Strife pointed at Spike and said, "He did it. There I was, minding my own business, and he decided to bite me." The God of Mischief shrugged, "Actually, I kinda liked it, a lot."

Giles groaned and thumped his head on the table, "I knew Spike couldn't be trusted."

"Hey! He's mine now. You can't talk bad about him." Strife declared indignantly.

That got Giles' attention. "He's yours? What do you mean?"

Ares sighed, "Mr. Giles, I'd like you to meet my nephew, Strife, the God of Mischief."

Giles actually laughed, "A marriage made in Heaven, I'm sure. Strife and Spike, the mind boggles. Now, what do you mean that he's yours?"

"Simple, he brought me offerings that he stole himself and drank my blood, that makes him mine."

Giles' smile turned pure evil, "As a favor to me, Lord Strife, I'd like to be present when you inform Spike of his new status."

Strife straightened out his leather, "Sure, dude. No problemo." Turning to his Uncle he said, "So, Unc, what's shakin'?"

"Mr. Giles and Xander are trying to help us find Zeus' Lightning Bolt. Then we can wake up the others."

"Cool. This place is kinda dull with everyone sleeping. What'd ya want me to do?"

Ares thought about it for a moment, "Search everyone's temple, starting with Zeus'. We've already looked, but maybe we missed something. Look for any clue as to where Zeus hid his emblem."

"I'm on it." The God of Mischief left the room in a flash of light, and Ares breathed a sigh of relief.

The God of War shrugged, "I love the kid, but he's a pain in the ass. This will keep him out of our hair for a while. And maybe he'll find something useful."

They all got back to work and Cupid took Xander to his temple to sleep. Xander took one look inside and shuddered. "Tell me you didn't decorate this."

Cupid's face turned red, "Actually, my mom did. But it's better than it was. Everything used to be pink." Cupid led Xander into his bedroom and put Bliss in the cradle next to the bed. He smiled down at his son, Bliss would be thrilled when he found out Strife was awake. Turning back to Xander, he found him already in bed, fast asleep. Cupid waved his hand and stripped Xander down to his boxers before covering him up.

The God of Love grinned at the picture Xander made, sprawled out in his bed like that. He kissed him gently and said, "I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you spend every night for the rest of eternity in this bed, with me. I love you, Xander."

Cupid flashed out of the room and Xander opened his eyes. He'd heard every word. Smiling, he went back to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

*****

Buffy pounded on the punching bag, stopping every few minutes to yell, "Have you found anything yet?"

Willow sighed, "Not yet, Buffy. Keep hitting things."

Tara closed the book she'd been reading, "Willow, why are we doing this?"

Anya dropped her book and Buffy came running in from the other room. "Why?" Anya yelled. "They've got Xander! That's why!"

"And Giles." Buffy said. "Don't forget about Giles."

"Tara, what are you getting at?" Willow asked. She'd learned over time that her girlfriend generally saw things differently. Maybe they were missing something.

Tara's face turned red, "Well, it's just...Willow, we pray to Hecate to help us with our spells. She's one of the Greek Gods. Do we really want to make her angry? She can take our magic away. And Buffy, you said they went willingly. Maybe they're all right."

"NO! They are not all right! That God put a spell on Xander. That's why he broke up with me! They're evil! We destroy evil. So we have to destroy them!" Anya shouted.

Tara seldom lost her temper, but Anya was really getting on her nerves. "Anya. You said Xander was under a spell and broke up with you. Tell me exactly what he said, it might help."

"Well, first he started not wanting to spend time with me. Then he got angry because I didn't know when his birthday was, or his favorite food or his favorite color. He said we never talked and I said that was a waste of time, which it is, and we broke up."

Tara looked at Willow, "Willow, when is my birthday?"

Willow smiled, "August 26th, I have a really cool present for you already."

Tara blushed, "What's my favorite color?"

Willow giggled, "The color of my eyes."

"And my favorite thing to eat?"

"Tara!" Willow gasped; totally shocked that Tara would ask her a thing like that in public.

Tara blushed from the top of her head down to her toes, but she grinned wickedly, "I was talking about food, Willow."

"Oh. You like sweets. Any kind of sweets. Oh, and cheese and seafood and..."

"We get the point, Wills." Buffy said smiling. "But it doesn't change the fact that Giles and Xander are gone."

"Ooohhh, and Spike, they took Spike too." Willow said.

Tara took a deep breath, "I think we should wait. If we do something stupid, we may lose any chance at all of them coming back."

Buffy didn't like it, but she agreed and so did Willow. "Come on, Tara. Let's go get something to eat." Willow giggled as Tara blushed.

Buffy grinned, "Too much information, guys." Buffy shooed them out the door. "I'll catch up with you guys later at the dorms."

Buffy waited until the door was closed before she turned to Anya. "They're gone. You keep reading. I'm going to call Angel and see if he can help us." Anya grinned and picked her book back up.

**********

Angel picked up the phone, Cordelia and Wesley were arguing again and neither one of them were paying any attention. "Hello. Angel investigations."

"Angel? It's Buffy. We need your help."

"Buffy? What's wrong?"

Wesley cut Cordelia off in mid word and listened to Angel's side of the conversation.

"Cupid? The Greek Gods? What do you mean they have Spike?"

Wesley groaned, he had a very bad feeling about this.

**********

Cupid finally gave in to the need for sleep. He walked back to his temple and quietly snuck into his room. He checked on Bliss, his son was sound asleep, sucking on his thumb. Cupid grinned and pulled off his leather harness and kilt. Tugging off his boots, he slid into bed with a groan that turned into a sigh when Xander snuggled up close to him. Cupid wrapped his arms around Xander and pulled his head onto his chest. The God of Love fell asleep with a smile on his face.

*****

Strife rummaged through Hera's temple, snickering all the while. He knew his Grandmother would have a screaming fit if she knew what he was up to. He cheerfully tossed priceless objects on the floor, bounced them off walls and generally made a mess.

Strife would have been happily entertained for hours, except for one small detail. As he reached over Hera's altar to grab a golden urn, he knocked over a small clay statuette. It was an ugly thing, so he'd been ignoring it. When it shattered on the cold marble floor, the scream of a peacock filled the room.

Catching a flash of light out of the corner of his eye, Strife went rigid.

"Strife?"

As he heard his Grandmother's voice, the young God whimpered in fear. He turned his head and there was Hera, in all her glory. One glimpse of her hand reaching out for him was all it took. He screamed shrilly and vanished.

**********

Joxer almost jumped out of his skin when Strife abruptly appeared in Ares' temple. The God of Mischief was babbling hysterically about dying painfully while wrapping his body around the still unconscious Bacchae as if he were trying to hide.

Ares was at his nephew's side in seconds. Forcibly pulling Strife into his lap, Ares tried to calm him down.

"Strife. Calm down. What happened?"

Strife whimpered and buried his head in his Uncle's chest. "She's here. She's here and she's gonna kill me. I didn't mean to break it. It was an accident!"

"Who's going to kill you, Strife?" Ares asked gently, fearing his nephew's mind had finally snapped.

Strife didn't answer; he just tried to huddle closer to Ares' body.

Ares shook him slightly, "Strife, answer me."

A multi-colored flash of light preceded the arrival of someone Ares had never expected to see again.

"I'm afraid he's talking about me. I didn't mean to frighten him, I was just so surprised to see him."

Ares stared in disbelief, "Mother?"

**********

Angel broke several speed limits trying to get to Sunnydale. Wesley had a death grip on the dash of the car and was desperately trying to get his employer to slow down.

"Angel, please. If you kill us, we won't be able to help at all."

"We have to hurry, Wesley. I can't feel Spike anymore."

"Oh dear. You don't think he's..."

Angel shook his head, refusing to believe his childe might be gone for good this time. "No. He's not."

Angel cut off several cars, almost causing a pile up. Wesley sighed and got a better grip.

**********

Ares put Strife on the pillow next to Spike and slowly rose to his feet. "Mother? Is that really you?"

Hera nodded her head, tears freely flowing down her cheeks. She caught Ares' face in her hands and gazed into his eyes for a long moment. "Ares. I never thought I would see you again."

The Queen of the Gods wrapped her arms around her son and held on tight. Ares returned the embrace for a time, before gently pulling back.

"Mother, where did you go? I've been looking for you for two thousand years!"

Hera's face went pale, "Has it been that long? It seems like just yesterday that your father..."

Ares led her to a chair, never releasing his grip on her hand. Joxer appeared at his side with a cup of wine. Ares smiled at him gratefully and encouraged Hera to drink. Her hands were shaking so badly that he had to help hold the cup steady.

She drained most of the wine and drew a deep breath. As she looked around the room, she realized that she didn't recognize the young man at her son's side, the older man still seated at the table or the Bacchae her Grandson Strife was wrapped around. She sent out a thought and trembled when it became obvious that most of the other Gods were gone. Only a few remained. She could feel Cupid and his tiny son Bliss, but the others she could find felt wrong somehow.

Sheer terror overwhelmed her, "Ares? What happened? Where is everyone?"

*****

Cupid was merely dozing when he felt the presence of another God touch his mind. That fleeting contact was so unexpected, so shocking, that for a moment he wondered if he was dreaming. Bliss' sleepy murmur convinced him that it had been real. "Gamma?"

Cupid boiled out of his bed, throwing the covers onto the floor; he had to find out what was happening. Could Hera really have returned from her self-imposed exile?

The cold draft coursing over his body pushed Xander closer to consciousness. Fighting to stay in that warm, dark place in his mind, Xander curled up into a ball, grumbling unhappily.

Cupid stared at the young man who'd been sharing his bed. Long, clean lines, smooth skin and an impressive amount of muscle made him long to crawl back into that bed and never leave.

The God of Love forced himself to retrieve the blankets from the floor and conceal the form gracing his bed. But he couldn't just leave it like that. He carefully sat on the edge of the bed and leaned over Xander's sleeping form. He very gently brushed his lips over Xander's sleep warmed ones. He moaned when a strong arm curled around his neck and pulled him closer.

Xander's lips parted and he kissed Cupid eagerly. Cupid finally broke the kiss regretfully. "Xander? Are you awake?"

"Uh huh. Cupid? What's wrong?" Xander mumbled, his eyes never opening.

"I have to go see Ares."

"Need to get up?"

Xander wasn't making a lot of sense, but Cupid understood. "No. Go back to sleep. I'll be back as soon as I can."

"'Kay. Bliss?"

"He's still asleep in his cradle. He'll be fine."

"'Kay." Xander dropped back into full sleep in seconds. Cupid kissed his forehead, he'd more than enjoyed that kiss and wanted more, but he knew it wasn't going to be that easy. With one last caress, he walked out of the bedroom, not wanting to wake them when he flashed out.

**********

Hera became increasingly hysterical, "Ares? Please, where is everyone? Why can't I feel them anymore?"

"Mother, after Father...Mother, the Twilight came."

Hera shook her head, "No. That's not possible. Zeus gave up everything to prevent it. He let himself die to prevent it. He left me alone so everyone would be safe."

"I'm sorry, Mother, but the Twilight did come. I tried, but I wasn't strong enough." Ares gestured to Joxer to come closer. He took Joxer's hand in his and said, "Mother, this is Joxer, my consort. After I sealed off Olympus with what power I had, I, too, fell under the Twilight. Joxer stayed with me and never quit talking until I woke up. We've been trying to find a cure ever since."

Hera desperately wanted to deny him, but she knew she couldn't. The Queen of the Gods forced herself to calm. "Who is left?" She asked quietly.

"Not many. All of the minor Gods are gone. They faded away in the first few centuries. Almost half of the elder Gods are gone now; others vanished when the Twilight first came. I don't know where they are."

Ares knelt back down and took both of her hands in his, "Mother, where have you been?"

Hera looked confused. "I'm not really sure. I remember Zeus dying, then next thing I saw was Strife."

"You don't know where you were?"

"No. I just remember...dreaming. There was a young man. Dark hair, dark eyes and an unusual name."

Ares looked at the others in the room, almost hoping he was wrong. "Mother, do you remember his name? Please, it's important."

"I'm not sure. I just remember that something he did brought back the King of the Gods."

Giles finally spoke up, "Madam, could his name have been Xander?"

Hera frowned but then brightened. "Yes. Xander. Such a sweet boy. He was happy, but then he was crying." Hera's face grew dark. "Why was he crying? Being the King of the Gods is a good thing, a wondrous thing." A horrid thought crossed her mind, "Could it have been me? Does he hate me?"

"What do you mean, Mother?" Ares asked worriedly.

"Why, if he becomes the King of the Gods, then we'll have to marry. Doesn't he want to marry me?"

Ares explained to his mother about Xander, and his relationship to Cupid.

"I'm sorry, Ares, but I am the Queen of the Gods, I hold half of the power. Who ever becomes King has to be wed to me. There is no other way."

The implications of that statement struck everyone's heart. They all knew how Cupid felt about Xander. But which was more important? The happiness of one God and one mortal? Or the salvation of them all?

**********

Cupid flashed into his father's temple and ran straight to his Grandmother. Hugging her fiercely he laughed with joy. "Grandmother! You're all right! I have so much to tell you. I met someone, someone special. You'll love him, you'll see. His name is Xander."

Next Part