Faith and the potential slayers lunge for the floor as the bomb goes off. Meanwhile Caleb jumps into the room down below and doesn't think Buffy can pry the weapon from solid rock before he kills her. Buffy proves him wrong and with a quick flick of her wrist, the powerful weapon is immediately in her hands. He begins to back away from her and the First tells Caleb to let Buffy go, he can get it later. After the bomb disaster, the remaining potential slayers try to make their way out from the rubble, carrying Faith on their shoulders. They're suddenly attacked by ubervamps and they quickly lose control of the situation. Back at the Summers' residence, no one has been able to locate Buffy and Faith hasn't returned with the potential slayers, and everyone is beginning to worry. Back in the tunnels, Kennedy is about to be strangled to death when Buffy appears and quickly disposes of the ubervamps with the scythe, saving all of their lives. They quickly evacuate the tunnels and return home. The Summers' residence becomes jam-packed with bleeding potential slayers and they're rapidly trying to bandage everyone's wounds. The potentials question Buffy, wondering if she's back for good. She tells that that she doesn't know but that they should all get ready because all their time is up.

    Later on, Buffy shows Giles and Willow the scythe, telling them that she can feel something when she touches it, as if it belongs specifically to her. Willow and Giles begin their research on the scythe, promising to find out whatever they can about the mystical weapon. Downstairs, Anya and Andrew are taking care of the wounded. Andrew decides to go to the deserted hospital to get extra first aid supplies and Anya joins him. Buffy and Xander are talking in the kitchen and Xander very much doesn't want to do what Buffy's asking of him. He feels like he's being put out of the fight, which he really doesn't want because he's always wanted to be there for the final fight. She tells him that she trusts him with her life and he's brought her this far, but she needs him to do this for her. Upstairs with the research, Willow discovers that the vineyard used to be a monastery. She tries searching for the axe itself and doesn't seem to find much. Willow picks up the scythe and tries to feel for the power that Buffy felt but comes up empty handed. She continues her research and comes across a scthe called m?. After Giles takes a look at it he begins to remember something regarding hieroglyphs that seems to be representing a sickle or a scythe, he encourages her to go back and look for more info about it. Outside, Dawn and Xander are trying to look for a crossbow in his car when Xander suddenly covers Dawn's mouth and throws her into the car. He gets in the driver's seat and drives off with her passed out beside him.

    Back at the vineyard, Caleb is extremely pissed off that the First made him let Buffy escape. She comments that he's gotten weak, especially since they haven't been merged as one in a long time. The First is elated, because as soon as it wins this battle, it'll be able to enter every man, woman and child on this planet. As the First and Caleb merge, Caleb becomes infused with the evil power of the First. Back at home, Buffy gives the scythe to Faith to hold. Faith opens up a little to Buffy and tells her that she's always been alone her whole life and that she's been jealous of Buffy's life. But when she finally got to lead the group of potential slayers, she admits to never having felt so alone in her entire life. Faith thinks that maybe the reason they never got along is because they're not supposed to exist at the same time. Buffy walks downstairs and runs into Spike and she apologizes for running out on Spike the other night. Spike promises not to make a big deal about it, which Buffy thanks him for. She tells him she's going to the vineyard and he says he might swing by later to check on her. He's about to head off when Buffy stops him, insulting his intelligence, she tells him that because of the strength he gave her she was able to get the scythe from Caleb. He admits that holding Buffy last night was the best night of his life because he'd never been close to her before then. They agree to leave it for now and they head off on their own paths for the night.

    At the hospital, Andrew and Anya load up with supplies. Andrew asks Anya why she's still around. She answers that even though humans are unbelievably screwed up in their mental processes, that they continue to fight to the end even though they all might die, she still admires them because they fight for something that matters to them. They never give up, and for that she thinks that she should keep fighting too. Andrew jokingly accuses Anya of loving humans to which she denies, but if he dares tell anyone, she threatens to kill him. Andrew is afraid he's going to die, but he's accepted it and wants to go out fighting like the rest of them.

    Over at the graveyard, Buffy walks in on a special tomb that looks like a pyramid. An old woman with long white hair surprises her, telling her that she's surprised how young she is. The old woman has been waiting for quite some time and informs Buffy that she looks good for her age, hinting that she's been around since the Old Ones walked the earth. As she looks at Buffy's new scythe, she tells her that she was one of the ones who put it in the rock. They forged it in secrecy and hid it from the shadowmen. This woman belong to a group called the guardians who watched over the Slayers and the Watchers. This weapon was put on earth to kill the last pure demon to walk the earth. She advises Buffy to use it wisely and that it can only mean an end is truly near. Suddenly Caleb reaches out from behind the curtain and snaps the old woman's neck, killing her instantaneously. Meanwhile in the car, Dawn wakes up and asks Xander what the hell is going on. He gives her a note that Buffy wrote, she wanted them out of town because she wanted them to live in case she dies. Angered, Dawn holds a taiser to Xander's neck and knocks him out cold. Dawn grabs the wheel and turns them back around towards Sunnydale. Meanwhile Buffy and Caleb go at it violently, beating each other down repeatedly. They each gain the upperhand at times, but then immediately lose it as the other gains control. Just as Caleb is about to hit Buffy with a killing blow using the scythe when Angel appears out of nowhere and stops Caleb from doing so. He offers her a hand but she insists that she needs to do this on her own. As Angel watches on, Buffy and Caleb brutally bang each other around. Buffy uses the scythe to her advantage and manages to run the blade end across his stomach. He falls down dead. Angel then asks Buffy if she's glad to see him, to which she answers with a kiss. Unseen from around a corner, an angered Spike watches on as the First taunts Buffy, calling her a bitch so that Spike may hear.