"No Future for You" is the third story arc of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight series of comic books, based upon the television series of the same name, and is written by Brian K. Vaughan. The storyarc would be reprinted in trade paperback under the publication of Dark Horse Comics on June 4, 2008.

Part I (Issue #6)
Faith sits atop the Art Deco Hope Memorial Bridge in Cleveland, smoking. After somewhat cynically reminiscing that her mother used to read Oh, The Places You'll Go! to her as a child, she receives a telephone call from Robin Wood. Wood and his "squad" are taking care of a vampire nest, but he tells Faith that one of the vampires they staked used to be a single mother and asks Faith to go check on the children. Faith arrives at the dead woman's house and finds six children, all vampires. After quickly dusting them, she heads back to her apartment.

She finds Rupert Giles waiting for her and drinking tea. Giles needs Faith for a dangerous mission with high stakes. If she succeeds, he will give her a passport to anywhere, with a new name and an early retirement. Faith agrees, and finds out Giles wants her to kill a rogue Slayer for whom there is no hope of rehabilitation.Giles trains a reluctant Faith to pass as an English aristocrat, so that she can crash Lady Genevieve's 19th birthday party and assassinate her.
In Scotland, Buffy and Xander are training. After Buffy questions him, Xander states that he needs to train so he can be Renee's sparring partner. After Buffy makes fun of his love interest, she stares blankly at the symbol of twilight from the first arc. Buffy confides that she has a recurring nightmare in which a monster says, "The Queen is dead. Long live the Queen" and then devours her.

Now in England, Faith dresses for the party while Giles gives her a last-minute quiz in etiquette. Faith appears at the top of the stairs in an elegant gown, ready to leave for the party, and asks Giles if things are all right, to which Giles responds that things are "five by five."

Part II (Issue #7)
Faith has a flashback of her battle with Buffy ("Graduation Day"). In the present, Faith has arrived at Genevieve's party, with a knife concealed in her hair. She hears Giles through an earbud, but throws it away, saying, "I've got enough voices in my head already." When Faith is inside, she pulls the knife from her hair, ready to attack Genevieve. Faith wonders why she is so nervous about this, when she has killed people before. Meanwhile, Roden watches over the party, and speaks to some of his flying gargoyles, telling them to be wary of the fourth person in Genevieve's receiving line: Faith.

In Scotland, Dawn and Willow have a conversation, and it turns around to the subject of Kenny, with whom everyone thinks Dawn had sex. Despite Willow's attempts to cheer up Dawn, she cries a little and is about to open up to Willow, when Renee brings the message that Buffy needs Willow's advice on computer security.

Later, Faith is outside Genevieve's house, smoking a cigarette and seems to be experiencing trepidations about her assignment. However Faith is determined to go back in and kill Genevieve once she has finished smoking. Genevieve startles Faith, who introduces herself as Hope Lyonne, daughter of the Viscount Avalon. As they chat about life and family, Faith slowly draws out the knife from her hair. Suddenly, Faith is lifted off her feet by Roden's flying gargoyles. She climbs onto one and sends it crashing to the ground. After disposing of the other, she faints.

In Genevieve's room, she and Roden argue whether or not to kill the unconscious Faith. Genevieve doesn't want to and thinks Faith would be a great asset as a partner. Faith wakes up and talks to Genevieve. When Genevieve mentions that she wants to overtake the queen, Faith asks if Genevieve is going to kill the current queen of Britain. Genevieve opens her closet, which is filled with pictures of Buffy, the symbol of twilight marked on one of them, and says, "No, Hope. Not Elizabeth."

Part III (Issue #8)
After discovering Genevieve is planning to kill Buffy, Faith jumps to the conclusion that Giles sent her to save Buffy from Genevieve. Nevertheless, she continues her assignment, and convinces Genevieve that she has sided with her. They immediately start bonding, even taking a bath together.

Outside the Savidge Manor, Giles along with a freelancer is trying to break into the manor to rescue Faith. The freelancer suggests that Faith has gone "native", and she's not working for Giles anymore.

In Scotland, Buffy and Willow are fixing up some of the force fields around the arena and discussing how they should respond to the danger posed by the army. Genevieve and Roden teleport Buffy to their stately home. Buffy and Genevieve fight, while Faith watches from a balcony. While the rogue Slayer proves to be an accomplished fighter, she is defeated by the more experienced Buffy. As Buffy is about to deliver the killing blow, and Roden prepares to attack Buffy with magic, Faith leaps into the fight. Buffy accuses her of switching sides again, despite Faith's attempts to convince her otherwise. Buffy attacks Faith, and during the ensuing battle, Faith almost drowns Buffy in a swimming pool, but comes to her senses in time. At that moment, Willow teleports Buffy back to Scotland, leaving Faith alone and shaken. While Buffy orders Willow to contact Giles immediately, back at the Savidge residence, Faith sits crestfallen as Genevieve approaches and prepares to swing an axe at her head, realizing that her friend has betrayed her...

Part IV (Issue #9)
A flashback to a scene in Buffy the Vampire Slayer's third season, between the Mayor and Faith, shows how Faith currently views the Mayor. She knows he was wrong and evil, yet how she can't help but feel loved when she thinks of him. Once the flashback ends, Genevieve and Faith start to fight. Faith tries to make Genevieve understand that Roden is wrong and is steering her in the wrong direction, but Genevieve refuses to listen.

Outside Savidge Manor, Giles and the freelancer are still trying to break in to the grounds. Giles is phoned by Willow, and he's startled to discover that Buffy is on the other line, and is not very happy. She demands an explanation for his involvement with Faith. When Giles refuses, she hands the phone to Willow and tells her to "do what you can for him".

Back in the greenhouse, Faith and Genevieve are still fighting. Genevieve sticks her axe into a tree and sprints toward Faith. Faith kicks Genevieve in stomach, knocking her back and impaling her on the axe. Roden appears and Faith begs for him to heal Gigi. He refuses, saying that Faith should be his new Slayer, and that she would be better than Genevieve. He says that together they can make Buffy disappear forever. He hands her the "twilight" book, and she looks at it blankly before refusing his offer. Roden and Faith start fighting. Roden summons a hand out of the earth which cements Faith to the floor. As Roden is about to deliver the killing blow, Giles appears from behind and stabs Roden in the back with some garden clippers. Faith throws Giles Roden's book and Giles opens it and yells out one of Roden's containment spells. He puts the field inside Roden and expands it, causing Roden's head to explode.

The following morning, Faith and Giles are back at the apartment. Giles hands Faith her passport out of the country, which Faith accepts, but renounces her plans for retirement. She says there are more Gigis out there she believes she can help walk over from the bad side, liking herself to be a "Slayer Social worker." Giles agrees with the idea and decides to be Faith's partner in this, given that he and Buffy aren't on speaking terms anymore.

Somewhere on top of a plateau (presumably Devils Tower), a helicopter lands and a woman named Lieutenant Molter steps out. She talks to a floating figure who calls himself Twilight. He tells her that he was glad Faith and Giles killed his two "targets". He says that she was meant to start an ugly war once they were dead. And that his game had taken two rooks out of the game and that the queen would fall soon enough.






previous pagenext page

ShareThis

0 comments

Related Posts with Thumbnails