Five
Angels and Demons
Warning: This part includes elements of torture and cruelty. Especially concerning Sam.
Not that bright, white room endless rooms made nervous or anything, but he'd been inside this room for God knows how long, and there was no sign he was every getting out. He was silently cursing Michael for trapping him in here, even if that was slowly becoming the most confusing thing Dean had ever experienced in his short life. Why would Michael have to save him and his family? Why would he want to?
"Hello!" Dean yelled, hearing his voice echo back to him as he wandered through the vast expansion around him.
There was no furniture, no windows, no indication of life or existence anywhere. No way could this be in Dean's head. Surely, he'd be in a bar somewhere drinking a beer with a couple of girls on his arm. Seriously. Where was he?
"Is anybody here?!"
Nothing came back, and he turned back to go the direction he'd come from, only to discover the white room gone. Instead, he found himself in a park — with swings and slides and a jungle gym. The grass was soft beneath his bare feet, but he wasn't in the white pants and shirt he'd had on upon appearing in the white room. He was wearing his jeans and t-shirt again, which was strange by itself.
A slight breeze tickled the hair at the back of Dean's neck, and he made his way toward a bench on the other side of the park, noting the green trees and bright colors of the swings, slides and jungle gym. There was something unreal about the place. It was too colorful, too perfect, too simple. Where was he now?
"Hello?" he yelled, expecting his voice to carry like before, but it didn't.
He looked around again, making it to the bench which allowed him to see the whole park as it set empty. That was strange too. Kids loved places like this. How could it be deserted when it looked like it was the middle of the day on a beautiful day like this?
"Dean?" he heard and looked to his left to see Mary there by herself. But she wasn't in her white gown anymore. She was wearing blue jeans and a plain blue t-shirt with her hair pulled back into a braid.
"Mary?"
Snow had begun to fall close to midnight as Sam, Cas and Crowley all hunched over the young woman who had surfaced before just before he had. Despite a knife wound to her abdomen with the most effective Demon-killing knife Sam knew existed, she was still very alive, and it didn't look like she was going to be dying any time soon. With what Cas had told Sam, it seemed pretty damned likely that he'd stabbed a Human being. Sam didn't like how that felt.
"We should probably move her," Crowley insisted, shivering despite his imperviousness to the cold.
"No," Sam shook his head. "We're not going anywhere until I know where Dean is."
He'd since put away the knife, but he'd stowed none of his apathy. This woman knew something about where his family was being kept, and Sam wasn't going to feel sorry for her just because she'd gotten caught in the crossfire. For all he knew, she'd thrown a few grenades herself just to get a reaction.
"Where's my brother?" he demanded.
She grimaced at the pain in her abdomen, crying softly. "I don't know. I don't even know who you are! Why are you doing this to me?!"
"Because you know where he is," Sam accused. "And you're going to tell me where, or you're going to die."
"Threaten me all you want," she taunted. "I'll die anyway. She won't let you hold me for too long."
"She's right," Cas said. "It's probably not the desired course of action, but we really should move her."
"Why?" Sam demanded. "We're right here, where Adam was when he disappeared, where the compass says Dean and Mary are. Why move now?"
"Because we are where Dean and Mary are being kept. They're more than likely right below us, and we've taken a child of Lilith from her possession. She won't take this well. It's best if we settle somewhere in town before we began our interrogation," he said harshly, laying his eyes on the bleeding woman.
Though Sam didn't like it, he leaned forward, lifting the woman in his arms and carrying her back to the car with Crowley and Cas behind him. She didn't fight, remaining silent as Sam set her in the car and moved around to the driver's side.
"Don't bleed on the upholstery," he warned. "Dean won't be happy if we have to get it detailed again."
She scoffed softly, grimacing again. "Don't mind me, Sam."
He paused, glancing at her for several seconds, but he said nothing as he put the car in gear and backed up, getting back on the road to town where he knew Cas and Crowley would be waiting. As he drove, he still went over most of it in his head, thinking of the first thing Cas had told him about Lilin and inwardly kicking himself for falling for Michael's manipulation. It didn't matter that being around Michael made him angrier than he'd been in three years. It didn't even matter that this woman had essentially become a pawn in Michael's game.
Why was Michael helping them? And what had he been talking about making things right? How was pushing the limits of this situation going to make things right? Sam had so many questions. He didn't even know where to start.
The closest motel to the edge of town was just closing when Sam got there, but he gave the attendant a hundred for the night, and the guy gave him a single. Cas and Crowley were both waiting with the woman as she laid silently in the car, and he carried her into the room before depositing her on the bed. She laughed as she was set down, grimacing again as she held onto her abdomen.
"Such a gentleman," she giggled, groaning softly. "Only a desperate man would be such a way with someone like me. Someone he considers evil."
"Save your strength, love," Crowley told her. "This doesn't have to be unpleasant."
"Actually, it will be," she promised. "And Sam's going to make sure of that. Aren't you?" She looked at him.
"What's your name?" he asked, unsure why he wanted to know but knowing she would tell him.
She hesitated, surprised by his question. "Eleanor," she said after half a minute.
Sam pulled off his jacket, rolling up his sleeves and speaking to Cas. "Strip the bed," he told the Angel. "But leave her on it. Can you heal her?"
Cas bowed his head, looking at her as she smiled slightly. "I can."
"Stop her bleeding," he ordered. "And make sure she doesn't lose consciousness. We don't want Lilith finding her while we're questioning her."
In an instant, the blanket and sheets disappeared from the bed, leaving her on the mattress with her head at the foot of the bed. Cas touched her temple lightly, and she gasped for air, shaking slightly and then relaxing.
"Where's my brother?" Sam asked softly.
Again, she smiled. "I don't know. Hell. New Jersey. The chamber moved around every four hours. You're lucky you found it where it was."
"Is there a pattern to how it changes?" He moved closer to the bed, kneeling so there was very little distance between his face and hers.
"Nope. It's random selection — like extinction."
"But it always resurfaces here," he commented. "I know that because of how we found Dean."
"And now it's somewhere else," she revealed. "I don't know where it went. I swear."
"Yeah, well, you're not the first Demon to lie to me, and you won't be the last. So we're going to try this a different way." He lifted his eyes to Cas', whispering softly. "Do it."
"Do what?" she asked, her smile gone.
Suddenly, she doubled over in pain, yelling and crying even as Sam laid his hand over her mouth to keep her quiet.
"You're gonna tell me where Dean is. You're gonna tell me what they're planning on doing with Mary, and you're gonna tell me what the hell Michael is doing with them! Because if you don't, death will be the least of your problems. I swear."
She stared at him, her eyes wide as tears slid from them gently.
With more anti-chambers to roam around than there were in the underbelly of every major city in the world, Michael was able to keep watch over Mary and Dean without stepping through the barriers he'd set up for them to be safe from Lilith for the time being. And with Sam busy, Lucifer's first was having to make do with the events as they were laying out before her. Michael didn't care one way or another. He only knew she was going to fail.
"Where's Eleanor?" Lilith asked, suddenly behind him.
He glanced over his shoulder at her. "Out. Probably torturing a banker or something."
"That's not amusing, Michael," she pressed, and he stopped, allowing her to get closer. "Now where is she? You know she has to be here. Mary's familiar with her."
He turned to face her, towering over her easily in Adam's body. "Mary's familiar with me. And my vessel. And I am looking out for Mary's best interests. So it looks like you're stuck with me."
She tilted her head. "What are you up to?" she asked, grinning slightly. "You know I'm on a tight schedule. If one things goes wrong, that's it for me. And him. Do you really think undermining me will stop him this time?"
Michael folded his arms over his chest, remaining unemotional as he responded. "I know all about your schedule, Lilith. I also know you won't last much longer in that body. I know this time isn't like last time where you can float from one body to another without worrying about the repercussions. You need Mary. That much is obvious."
The grin on her face faded, and Michael smirked.
"You came to us, remember?" she grit out through her clenched teeth. "We had a deal."
"We had an agreement," he corrected. "That I would allow you to take control on the body you're in now if you brought Mary to me. I had to make sure the Winchesters wouldn't hurt her. Now their intentions have become all too clear, and they've got much more honorable reasons for her safety than you possibly could. Be careful, Lilith. I can still put you back down there where you came from."
"Where's Eleanor?" she demanded.
"She's probably dead by now. It doesn't matter really. One of your other little minions can facilitate Mary's transformation. Granted that you don't try to circumvent the process just to undermine me."
She stepped closer to him, her demeanor turning cold. "You really want to kill him, don't you? Since you failed before. This isn't about Mary, is it? This is about revenge. About you following your Father's orders. After what happened last time."
He leaned in closer to her, his eyes level with hers as he spoke again. "I could care less about him," he spat. "And if you were smart, you'd leave him where he was. He's where he belongs, and he knows it. Death and disease follow him around wherever he goes, and he's better off wasting away in his rotting cage. Mary is one thing. My brother is another subject entirely."
She glared at him unmercifully. "You're not going back on your word," she countered. "Or I'll kill your precious sword."
He grinned smoothly. "We'll see about that."
Angels and Demons
Warning: This part includes elements of torture and cruelty. Especially concerning Sam.
Not that bright, white room endless rooms made nervous or anything, but he'd been inside this room for God knows how long, and there was no sign he was every getting out. He was silently cursing Michael for trapping him in here, even if that was slowly becoming the most confusing thing Dean had ever experienced in his short life. Why would Michael have to save him and his family? Why would he want to?
"Hello!" Dean yelled, hearing his voice echo back to him as he wandered through the vast expansion around him.
There was no furniture, no windows, no indication of life or existence anywhere. No way could this be in Dean's head. Surely, he'd be in a bar somewhere drinking a beer with a couple of girls on his arm. Seriously. Where was he?
"Is anybody here?!"
Nothing came back, and he turned back to go the direction he'd come from, only to discover the white room gone. Instead, he found himself in a park — with swings and slides and a jungle gym. The grass was soft beneath his bare feet, but he wasn't in the white pants and shirt he'd had on upon appearing in the white room. He was wearing his jeans and t-shirt again, which was strange by itself.
A slight breeze tickled the hair at the back of Dean's neck, and he made his way toward a bench on the other side of the park, noting the green trees and bright colors of the swings, slides and jungle gym. There was something unreal about the place. It was too colorful, too perfect, too simple. Where was he now?
"Hello?" he yelled, expecting his voice to carry like before, but it didn't.
He looked around again, making it to the bench which allowed him to see the whole park as it set empty. That was strange too. Kids loved places like this. How could it be deserted when it looked like it was the middle of the day on a beautiful day like this?
"Dean?" he heard and looked to his left to see Mary there by herself. But she wasn't in her white gown anymore. She was wearing blue jeans and a plain blue t-shirt with her hair pulled back into a braid.
"Mary?"
Snow had begun to fall close to midnight as Sam, Cas and Crowley all hunched over the young woman who had surfaced before just before he had. Despite a knife wound to her abdomen with the most effective Demon-killing knife Sam knew existed, she was still very alive, and it didn't look like she was going to be dying any time soon. With what Cas had told Sam, it seemed pretty damned likely that he'd stabbed a Human being. Sam didn't like how that felt.
"We should probably move her," Crowley insisted, shivering despite his imperviousness to the cold.
"No," Sam shook his head. "We're not going anywhere until I know where Dean is."
He'd since put away the knife, but he'd stowed none of his apathy. This woman knew something about where his family was being kept, and Sam wasn't going to feel sorry for her just because she'd gotten caught in the crossfire. For all he knew, she'd thrown a few grenades herself just to get a reaction.
"Where's my brother?" he demanded.
She grimaced at the pain in her abdomen, crying softly. "I don't know. I don't even know who you are! Why are you doing this to me?!"
"Because you know where he is," Sam accused. "And you're going to tell me where, or you're going to die."
"Threaten me all you want," she taunted. "I'll die anyway. She won't let you hold me for too long."
"She's right," Cas said. "It's probably not the desired course of action, but we really should move her."
"Why?" Sam demanded. "We're right here, where Adam was when he disappeared, where the compass says Dean and Mary are. Why move now?"
"Because we are where Dean and Mary are being kept. They're more than likely right below us, and we've taken a child of Lilith from her possession. She won't take this well. It's best if we settle somewhere in town before we began our interrogation," he said harshly, laying his eyes on the bleeding woman.
Though Sam didn't like it, he leaned forward, lifting the woman in his arms and carrying her back to the car with Crowley and Cas behind him. She didn't fight, remaining silent as Sam set her in the car and moved around to the driver's side.
"Don't bleed on the upholstery," he warned. "Dean won't be happy if we have to get it detailed again."
She scoffed softly, grimacing again. "Don't mind me, Sam."
He paused, glancing at her for several seconds, but he said nothing as he put the car in gear and backed up, getting back on the road to town where he knew Cas and Crowley would be waiting. As he drove, he still went over most of it in his head, thinking of the first thing Cas had told him about Lilin and inwardly kicking himself for falling for Michael's manipulation. It didn't matter that being around Michael made him angrier than he'd been in three years. It didn't even matter that this woman had essentially become a pawn in Michael's game.
Why was Michael helping them? And what had he been talking about making things right? How was pushing the limits of this situation going to make things right? Sam had so many questions. He didn't even know where to start.
The closest motel to the edge of town was just closing when Sam got there, but he gave the attendant a hundred for the night, and the guy gave him a single. Cas and Crowley were both waiting with the woman as she laid silently in the car, and he carried her into the room before depositing her on the bed. She laughed as she was set down, grimacing again as she held onto her abdomen.
"Such a gentleman," she giggled, groaning softly. "Only a desperate man would be such a way with someone like me. Someone he considers evil."
"Save your strength, love," Crowley told her. "This doesn't have to be unpleasant."
"Actually, it will be," she promised. "And Sam's going to make sure of that. Aren't you?" She looked at him.
"What's your name?" he asked, unsure why he wanted to know but knowing she would tell him.
She hesitated, surprised by his question. "Eleanor," she said after half a minute.
Sam pulled off his jacket, rolling up his sleeves and speaking to Cas. "Strip the bed," he told the Angel. "But leave her on it. Can you heal her?"
Cas bowed his head, looking at her as she smiled slightly. "I can."
"Stop her bleeding," he ordered. "And make sure she doesn't lose consciousness. We don't want Lilith finding her while we're questioning her."
In an instant, the blanket and sheets disappeared from the bed, leaving her on the mattress with her head at the foot of the bed. Cas touched her temple lightly, and she gasped for air, shaking slightly and then relaxing.
"Where's my brother?" Sam asked softly.
Again, she smiled. "I don't know. Hell. New Jersey. The chamber moved around every four hours. You're lucky you found it where it was."
"Is there a pattern to how it changes?" He moved closer to the bed, kneeling so there was very little distance between his face and hers.
"Nope. It's random selection — like extinction."
"But it always resurfaces here," he commented. "I know that because of how we found Dean."
"And now it's somewhere else," she revealed. "I don't know where it went. I swear."
"Yeah, well, you're not the first Demon to lie to me, and you won't be the last. So we're going to try this a different way." He lifted his eyes to Cas', whispering softly. "Do it."
"Do what?" she asked, her smile gone.
Suddenly, she doubled over in pain, yelling and crying even as Sam laid his hand over her mouth to keep her quiet.
"You're gonna tell me where Dean is. You're gonna tell me what they're planning on doing with Mary, and you're gonna tell me what the hell Michael is doing with them! Because if you don't, death will be the least of your problems. I swear."
She stared at him, her eyes wide as tears slid from them gently.
With more anti-chambers to roam around than there were in the underbelly of every major city in the world, Michael was able to keep watch over Mary and Dean without stepping through the barriers he'd set up for them to be safe from Lilith for the time being. And with Sam busy, Lucifer's first was having to make do with the events as they were laying out before her. Michael didn't care one way or another. He only knew she was going to fail.
"Where's Eleanor?" Lilith asked, suddenly behind him.
He glanced over his shoulder at her. "Out. Probably torturing a banker or something."
"That's not amusing, Michael," she pressed, and he stopped, allowing her to get closer. "Now where is she? You know she has to be here. Mary's familiar with her."
He turned to face her, towering over her easily in Adam's body. "Mary's familiar with me. And my vessel. And I am looking out for Mary's best interests. So it looks like you're stuck with me."
She tilted her head. "What are you up to?" she asked, grinning slightly. "You know I'm on a tight schedule. If one things goes wrong, that's it for me. And him. Do you really think undermining me will stop him this time?"
Michael folded his arms over his chest, remaining unemotional as he responded. "I know all about your schedule, Lilith. I also know you won't last much longer in that body. I know this time isn't like last time where you can float from one body to another without worrying about the repercussions. You need Mary. That much is obvious."
The grin on her face faded, and Michael smirked.
"You came to us, remember?" she grit out through her clenched teeth. "We had a deal."
"We had an agreement," he corrected. "That I would allow you to take control on the body you're in now if you brought Mary to me. I had to make sure the Winchesters wouldn't hurt her. Now their intentions have become all too clear, and they've got much more honorable reasons for her safety than you possibly could. Be careful, Lilith. I can still put you back down there where you came from."
"Where's Eleanor?" she demanded.
"She's probably dead by now. It doesn't matter really. One of your other little minions can facilitate Mary's transformation. Granted that you don't try to circumvent the process just to undermine me."
She stepped closer to him, her demeanor turning cold. "You really want to kill him, don't you? Since you failed before. This isn't about Mary, is it? This is about revenge. About you following your Father's orders. After what happened last time."
He leaned in closer to her, his eyes level with hers as he spoke again. "I could care less about him," he spat. "And if you were smart, you'd leave him where he was. He's where he belongs, and he knows it. Death and disease follow him around wherever he goes, and he's better off wasting away in his rotting cage. Mary is one thing. My brother is another subject entirely."
She glared at him unmercifully. "You're not going back on your word," she countered. "Or I'll kill your precious sword."
He grinned smoothly. "We'll see about that."
