The vamp's head rocked back, the 9mm hole appearing in it's distorted forehead like a bloody magic trick.

As the shot died down in the basement, Buffy rolled her eyes, the chained up vamp growling behind it's gag. "Bullets don't work."

Frank Castle lowered the Glock to the table, glancing at the Slayer while removing the ammunition clip and ejecting the still chambered round. "I like to experiment."

Was there a Geneva Convention on vampires? If so, capturing and dragging one for experimentation was probably a no-no."Okay, you're a gun guy. We have something called a crossbow."

"Which takes thirty seconds to load between each single shot." Castle picked up a pump-action shotgun. "A bow and arrow would be better."

"Which is why we use the time honoured bit of wood called a stake."

Castle took several rounds from a small cardboard box, and began to load them into the shotgun. "If you're too close to shoot them, you're too close. Period."

"Fine then. Shoot up this vampire until you realise it doesn't work."

Castle finished loading, then pumped the action on the shotgun. "Let's try something a little more exotic ..."

Castle put on a pair of sunglasses before he aimed. "This is a round combining zirconium and white phosphorous called a Dragon's Breath."

A bright flash filled the room, making Buffy jump. The plume of flame which burst from the shotgun muzzle enveloped the vampire, setting him alight. It shrieked for a second or two before it burst into a cloud of ash.

Castle placed the shotgun alongside the pistol, then jotted down a few words on a notepad.

Buffy stared at the ash pile, then back at Castle.

"Are you going to be incredibly smug and 'I-told-you-so-and-bask-in-my-rightness'?"

"It's possible."

Buffy crossed her arms and tried not to pout."If you weren't so good in bed, you'd be looking at a pre-emptive dump right now."