'The Ring' Story Code '1ADH16' by Howard Gordon

At Angel Investigations, Angel, Wesley and Cordelia are paid a visit by Davin McNamara, who asks for their help; it seems his brother, Jack, has been kidnapped by the demon bookies that he owes money to, and unless Davin can settle the debt, Jack will be killed – and to prove their intent, the demons have sent Davin Jack’s finger… While Cordy and Wesley hit their research books, Angel manages to track the demon bookies down to an underground club. Inside the busy establishment, Angel chats with a woman named Lilah, and discovers that the premises are home to an underground fight club: the participants are demons, and must fight to the death. Angel sees Jack amongst the crowd, but when he goes to follow the man, Angel is suddenly blinded and knocked unconscious. Some time later, Angel wakes to find himself inside a cell, with a strange metal cuff around his wrist. He is warned by Jack that if he crosses a red line painted on the floor, he will be killed; Angel must wear the cuff until he has made twenty-one kills in the ring, and only then he will be set free. Meanwhile, Cordelia and Wesley are becoming increasingly worried about the missing Angel; Wesley decides to re-trace his friend’s steps, and manages to get the address of the underground club from the bookies. Later that evening, he and Cordelia pose as detectives to gain entry to the club, and arrive just in time to see Angel’s first battle in the ring. After a vicious fight Angel eventually wins out, and is declared the victor. Noticing the metal bands that the captives wear, Wesley and Cordy retrieve one of the devices and return with it to Angel Investigations, hoping to discover a way to disable it. Meanwhile, Angel tries to make his fellow captives to see that they must act together to escape the club, but they refuse to listen to him. Jack pays Angel a visit, gloating over the imprisoned vampire; Angel is able to pull Jack over the red line, and threatens to kill him unless he is released; however, Davin appears and promptly shoots Jack, demonstrating that he would rather injure his brother rather than bargain with Angel; the guards arrive and then shock the vampire into unconsciousness. Later, Angel comes to in the offices of Wolfram and Hart, where he is greeted by Lilah; she tells him that the law firm has bought him from Davin, but he is free to go as long as he forgets about the fight club. Angel refuse the offer, choosing instead to return to the club; here he learns that his opponent is Trepkos, a demon who only has one remaining kill to make before being granted his freedom. Back at Angel Investigations, Wesley manages to unlock the cuff; he and Cordy return to the club, and manage to sneak their way into the holding area as Angel and Trepkos face each other in the ring. While a brutal battle ensues, Wesley and Cordy free the remaining captives. Angel triumphs, but will not deliver the killing blow to Trepkos; their battle is interrupted by the escaped captives, who burst into the ring and slaughter the guards. Jack tries to regain control of the situation but one of the demons puts one of the bracelets on him; Trepkos throws Jack over the red line, and he disintegrates. With the demons now free and back on the streets, Angel wonders if he and his friends have necessarily done the right thing…

David Boreanaz (Angel), Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase), Alexis Denisof (Wesley Wyndam-Price), Marcus Redmond (Tom Cribb), Douglas Roberts (Darren), Scott William Winters (Jack), Stephanie Romanov (Lilah Morgan), Anthony Guidera (Ernie Nellims), Chris Flanders (Mr. Winslow), Marc Rose (Mellish), David Kallaway (Doorman), Juan A. Riolas (Val Trepkos), Michael Phillips (Announcer), Mark Ginther (Lasovic)
Directed by Nick Marck

TX (US): 29th February 2000

Notes:
*Featuring Angel, Cordelia and Wesley