jedibuttercup

PG-13; B:tVS, DOOM. 400 words. (Next in the Handle ID Slayer ficlet series).

Buffy looked up to meet Sam's shocked, horrified eyes, and shook her head.

Title: Out of Hand
Author: Jedi Buttercup
Disclaimer: The words are mine; the worlds are not. I claim nothing but the plot.
Rating: PG-13
TtH Prompt: #02 - Death
Summary: Buffy looked up to meet Sam's shocked, horrified eyes, and shook her head. 400 words.
Spoilers: B:tVS post-"Chosen"; "DOOM" (2005)
Notes: Movieverse. Next in the Handle ID Slayer ficlet series This is where Buffy's presence really starts to make a difference.

In the confusion immediately following Dr. Carmack's attempt to break out of the med lab-- or the thing that used to be Dr. Carmack-- Buffy paid little attention to the radio traffic from the rest of the team. Her focus was all on the writhing body beneath her, its torn ear practically the only thing still recognizable from before its transformation.

The creature was at least as strong as she was now, and that worried her. As small as she was, trying to keep it muzzled and pinned to the floor was nearly impossible; after several long seconds that felt like as many hours Duke pitched in, but he was only human and was quickly knocked backward.

Buffy knew it was only a matter of time before the situation got completely out of hand; unless she wanted to let it escape to kill or infect others, there was only one thing to do. It wasn't Dr. Carmack any more; it was a predatory demon, and she knew what to do with those. She timed her moment carefully, letting go just as the creature arched powerfully up off the floor, the momentum catapulting her upward. Swiftly, she brought her weapon around from its resting position slung over her shoulder, aimed, and fired.

In the stunned silence that fell afterward, Buffy could hear the whispered voice of Goat over the radio. "My light is down. I don't see anything..."

She looked up to meet Sam's shocked, horrified eyes, and shook her head. "I'm sorry, Dr. Grimm. There are enough of these things out there already."

"Don't move, I'm on my way!" Reaper said in her ear.

"Things?" Sam blurted, dropping her gaze to the deformed body that had once been the base's chief scientist. "But-- that's Dr. Carmack--"

"Not any more, it's not," Duke said grimly.

"Pinky, can you see anything?" Buffy heard Goat ask the technician manning the surveillance system.

"No, nothing," Pinky's voice answered.

Buffy swallowed. "Dr. Grimm-- Sam-- You have to tell me. Did you find anything like this-- mutated, or worse-- at the dig?"

"No," Sam said tearfully, shaking her head.

"Any human genetic experiments going on in the labs?" Buffy pressed.

"No, nothing like that!" Sam objected.

The radio erupted suddenly with screams. "I think there was," Buffy said, pulse racing with worry. "And you're gonna help us figure it out before anyone else gets killed."

-~-

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