Dark Angel Big Bang - "Apocalypse Now and Later" Chapter 4
Chapter Four
She let her boot scrape along the asphalt as the bike rolled to a stop. Behind her was nothing but failure and loss but there was nothing but triumph before her, the desert stretching out like a vast road to victory. In less than a day, she’d succeed on her mission. The Hellgate would be opened, the Cage broken, and that beautiful silver light would become one with her. She would be with the Morningstar and never be alone again. Her lips lifted in a feral grin; she tasted road dust and blood.
“What are you waiting for, Princess?” Meg asked from her perch on the back of the bike.
Angela glanced back. Aside from Meg, there was a small army of vehicles. More motorcycles, trucks, cars and vans. All filled with people who were sworn to follow her and the Morningstar. They were people who smelled of copper and sulfur, with eyes that flashed black, and who fed her with blood. When Meg had called for loyal supporters of Lucifer, they had come, ready to see their Father on the throne again, and the usurper Crowley disposed of forever. As Angela lead them closer to the Hellgate, they willingly opened their veins and poured out blood into bowls and bottles and glasses.
And Angela drank it all.
She wasn’t hungry or thirsty anymore; the demon blood filled her more than any meal had ever done, made her drunk with power in the way that alcohol had never been able to do. She knew she had consumed gallons in the short time it took to trek from Phoenix to California. Meg would stand to one side and shake her head whenever Angela would come up for air after a long drink.
“Man, it’s a good thing I thought to send out invites to all my friends for this little road trip. You would have drained me dry.”
Angela didn’t even bother to look apologetic. “You said I had to drink as much as I could to be strong, right? And it’s not like I’m holding a knife to anyone’s throat to have them offer. They’re the ones with the knives!”
The desert wind blew hot and strong against her face as she let the grin spread. She lifted an arm to the line of vehicles behind her and waved it forward. Then, with Meg latching onto her belt again, she revved the bike to life and roared down into Death Valley.
*
The dry desert wind died as the sun swung to the center of the sky. Nothing moved across the barren playa; there was nothing to be seen but the dry, cracked earth and the strange tracks left by the sailing stones.
Then the silence was broken by the throaty growl of the Impala. The car crept carefully down from the almost invisible road and into the valley. It stopped at the edge of the valley, and the three men got out, squinting against the sun. Dust stirred up under their feet as they gathered weapons from the trunk and started hiking across the valley.
“We’re sure this is the place?” Dean asked. “There’s nothing here.”
“Cas said to go to Racetrack Playa, right?” Sam replied. “This is it.” He pointed. “There, you can see the sailing stones out there.”
Dean shook his head. “So everyone’s been thinking that aliens or magnetic forces move those stones around, and it’s actually energy from a Hellgate?” He shook his head. “Freaky.”
Alec kicked at a pebble. “What’s not freaky here, let’s be honest.”
By the time they made it to the sailing stones and the intersecting tracks they had made, the brothers were sweaty and out of breath, and Alec was tense. There was no sign of any other kind of life in the valley, and Dean kicked at one of the stones with the toe of his boot in a fit of boredom as he pulled out a bottle of water. Sam had out a pair of binoculars and started scanning the horizon. Alec couldn’t sit still; he felt a coil of energy building in the, crackling across his skin like static electricity. He paced without real direction.
Dean capped the water bottle and tossed it to Sam, who caught it one handed. “We sure this is the right place?”
Alec took a step across the tracks of the stones. The energy hit him like a whip crack, somehow black and dirty and sharp white at the same time. He yelped and staggered back, panting. The brothers stared at him.
“I think it’s the right place,” he managed, and quickly moved away from the invisible but undeniable Hellgate.
The wind shifted and Alec gagged and clapped a hand over his nose and mouth. “What is that?” he demanded. He tried to take another breath and gagged again.
Through watering eyes, he saw the brother’s noses twitched as they sniffed the dry air; Dean sneezed from the dust. “Sulfur,” he said.
“Goddamn, I knew it smelled, but this is horrible.”
“What’s you’re issue?” Dean asked Alec. “It doesn’t smell that bad.”
“Maybe not to you - it’s pretty damn rank for me.” He kept his hand over his nose and tried to keep his eyes from watering.
“Ah, that’s right, superior genetics,” Dean muttered. “Not always so great, huh?”
“I’d guess that little demon army Cas said Meg had is coming,” Sam said, mouth in a grim line.
The roar of vehicles filled the air, and a cloud of dust darkened the sky. A figure appeared on the lip of the ridge; it was the unmistakable silhouette of a person on a motorcycle. A very familiar person. Alec opened his mouth to call out to Max almost instinctively, but just as quickly he realized who it really was. More shapes appeared behind it, blurring everything into a black blob. It was impossible even for Alec’s eyes to cut through the dust, but he felt a jolt shoot through him as he looked to where Angela’s eyes should have been. It snapped through him like an electric shock and he staggered again.
“Shit,” Dean growled. “There’s no way we’re going to stop all of them.”
“Where’s that angel buddy of yours?” Alec asked. “You said he’d be here with back up!”
Before he could reply, the ground began to shake, and a hum swelled through the air. It quickly became a sharp ringing, running towards the edge of unbearable. Alec groaned and clamped his hands over his ears, the shotgun he was holding dropping to the ground. A fine sheet of dust rose above the ground and hovered in the sound waves.
The scream of angelic voices rose even further. Alec fell to his knees; blood leaked from between his fingers and down his jaw. He screamed in pain. Past the agony, he felt Sam stagger over towards him, with Dean a few steps behind. If they were screaming too, he couldn’t hear them. There was nothing but the shrill ringing in his head, slicing through his ears.
There was the sharp smell of ozone and a flash of light. They all shielded their eyes and curled away. As the light faded, dark forms appeared near the center of the valley, wings unfurling like thunder clouds before fading away again.
“That the back up?” Alec panted.
Dean struggled to his feet and swore. “Nope.”
“What are we going to do?” Sam asked.
Dean grimaced. “Buy some time until Cas shows up.”
“Think it will work?”
“I hope so.” He glanced at Alec. “You’re probably safe, being the vessel and all, but us they might just decide to kill on principle.” He shrugged. “Just saying.”
“Christ,” Alec muttered.
*
She reached the edge of the path where it fell into the valley first and alone.
When the blacktop had faded away, she had kicked Meg off the bike to the battered minivan that a demon who called himself Tommy was driving. Meg had been pissed, grumbling about how she thought they were friends, about having to deal with Tommy, how she had been the one to help her to where she was now, but Angela didn’t care. Meg hadn’t been there when the silver voice of Lucifer had called to her. Meg hadn’t reminded her of her own power and promised more. She’d helped, that was certain, but she wasn’t as important as she thought she was. So Angela had kicked her to minivan and went off down the road by herself.
The smell of ozone and sulfur mixed in the dry air as the wind buffeted around her, lacing dust through her short hair and powdering her skin. With the pavement gone, it was hard to make good time, even on the bike; the park trails and dirt roads hadn’t exactly been kept up, so the vehicles following her stayed closer than she would have liked. Rocks and ruts and even ruined cars obstructed the path. But with every mile that rolled by, her blood sang louder through her veins. Red and black mixed with the silver, and it was all she could do to keep from howling out a battle cry to the world.
Eyes wide and lips parted in a dangerous smile, she pushed the bike up a ridge. And the ground suddenly changed into the sky as the world dropped away. With a quick twist, she turned the bike, wheels throwing up a plume of dust behind her and skidded to a stop. A dead valley was spread out beneath her, all dun colored sand and dull rock. A flick of movement caught her eye; four dark figures stood in the center of the valley. Before she could take a closer look, Meg and her cavalry arrived in a billow of dust and exhaust.
It was then that she realized that the screaming in her blood was echoed in the air. Power thrummed around her, filtered into her lungs and touched the throb of strength in her blood. Even the noise of all the demon filled vehicles behind her could not overcome it. The piercing whistle filled her and she answered it. Head thrown back, she screamed out on the edge of pain and pleasure and power. Muscles froze, joints locked tight, and her vision went white.
The world exploded in a burst of light.
It returned with a heartbeat of silence and then a rumble of thunder. Angela blinked hard against the aftershock of the light and sound. The floor of the valley was now filled with dark shapes; against the opposite side of the valley, against the washed out blue sky and the baked dirt, black wings appeared like shadows.
“Oh, great, the angels are here.” Meg’s voice suddenly filled her ear.
“Are they allies for that woman you killed when I first met you?” Angela asked.
Meg shrugged. “Probably. But the thing is, they’re going after the same thing we are, but they’re not on our side. So we need to hurry.”
Angela got off the bike and went straight for the edge. “Let’s go then.” And then she leapt off into the air.
“Show off,” Meg muttered as she went to the edge and saw Angela working her way down the steep cliff face, finding hand and footholds with a speed and accuracy that boggled the mind. “There is a decent path, right over here!” she pointed. Then, she turned back to the demonic army. “Let’s go, guys! Show time! Get your shit together!”
Angela reached the floor of the valley and blurred. The rumble of vehicles and the accompanying dust rose behind her, but she ignored them. Power tugged at her blood, pulling her forward like iron to a magnet. So she ran.
Despite the fact that she was the only thing moving across the playa, not a single angel noticed her. Their focus was split between the woman at their head, and a knot of people in the center of the crowd. She slowed to a normal run but didn’t change course; there was no place to hide, even if they still hadn’t noticed her, so there was no choice but to go head on. With less than a hundred yards between them, the leader of the angels stepped forward and spoke. Angela automatically flinched as the woman’s voice cracked like a whip across the desert.
“Brothers and sisters! Begin!”
Angela stopped. Her blood continued to sing and the power tugged at her, but the crowd of angels stood between her and the source. She gave into the pull and moved forward.
The leader saw her. “Who are you?”
A grin cut across Angela’s face; the silver light blazed in her mind and throbbed through her blood. “Someone who’s a hell of a lot more important than you.”
The angel’s lip curled. “Lucifer’s vessel.”
Angela spread her arms, and felt the shadow cast by the demon army’s dust cloud cover her like a mantle. “And you say that like a bad thing.”
As the vehicles rumbled to a stop, Meg appeared and stood just behind her. She grinned and waved at the angels. “Hey, Wings. What’s going on?”
“Hold your tongue, scum!” the angel snapped. “I am Raphael, and I will not be spoken to by a demon.”
“Oh, you archangels are so touchy,” Meg said, waving her hand in dismissal. “You’re obviously not too bothered, otherwise you’d be smiting me. We both know why we are here. Thing is, I have my side’s VIP here.” She glanced around. “Don’t see anyone but angels and demons. So I have the advantage.”
Raphael glared, but turned back to the empty side of the valley. As the noise of the vehicles died away, Angela heard a strange chant coming from the center of the angelic mob. Meg heard it too.
“Damn it,” she spun to look at the rest of the demons. “Get going!”
“What’s going on? What’s with the chanting?” Angela demanded as the words twisted into the air and the ground started to tremble.
“It’s a spell to open the door for your Prince,” Meg replied. “Problem is, Flyboys over there also have a champion they want to let loose. We wanna beat them, but even if we don’t they’re missing a part.”
“What?”
“Well, we have you.”
“Hey, dick head!” a voice bellowed out.
Raphael’s head snapped around, and Meg and Angela turned as well. Three men strode across the playa, armed and determined.
“Well, it does appear that we have a vessel here as well,” Raphael said.
Alec’s head snapped around as she spoke, and his eyes narrowed. “Oh, he’s here all right,” he drew his gun and flicked the safety off, “but he ain’t gonna play nice.”
He felt the Winchesters move to flank him, weapons at the ready.
“Yeah, Raphael, you think we’re gonna let you try to end the world again, after we stopped you last time?” Dean rolled his eyes. “Nice try.”
“That’s Raphael?” Alec asked. “Thought he’d be taller… and a dude.”
“He’s still a dick, no matter what he looks like,” Dean replied. Then he turned his attention back to Raphael. “So you gonna quit this or are we gonna have to do this the hard way?”
The angel snorted. “There is nothing you can do. The spell is opening the cage, and once that happens, Michael will claim his vessel, as will Lucifer, and the Apocalypse will happen, and order will be restored.”
“Yeah, I don’t think so.” Alec lifted his gun and fired it point blank at Raphael’s face.
Lead smacked into flesh and bone, but Raphael just shook her head and the bullet fell out, and her forehead repaired itself.
“Weren’t you listening at all when we were talking about how to kill things?” Dean demanded.
“Yeah. But it felt good.”
“Enough!” Raphael roared. She turned to the front rank of angels. “Attack the demons, and prevent them from opening the gate first. We want Michael to have the advantage. And take Lucifer’s vessel hostage and secure Michael’s. Now!”
Meg swore, grabbed Angela’s arm and started to run. “Come on, Princess!” She dragged her along back towards the rest of the demons. “Tommy, get your ass in gear! The angels are going strike force on us!”
At the same time, the Winchesters both moved to stand in front of Alec, weapons swinging up to the ready.
“Back off, I’m faster and stronger than both of you,” he snapped.
They ignored him. The angelic horde broke up into several groups. The core stayed still, and the chanting rose in volume and intensity; across the playa, the demons did the same. One group broke away and went for the demons, while several others strode towards the Winchesters and Alec, who did a slow, strategic retreat towards the car.
“You think we could do a massive angel banishing sigil and send them all away?” Dean asked out of the side of his mouth.
Sam grunted. “Could work. There are a lot of them, though.”
“Holy oil?”
“That’d be a massive circle. No way we get it put down and lit before they’re on us.”
“No, fry their wings.”
“Not enough oil for that many.”
The angels were almost on them. Alec lifted his gun and fired several shots between the brother’s shoulders and hit the angels. They flinched at the impact, but did not slow.
Hands clapped over his ringing ears, Dean snarled, “Didn’t I tell you that doesn’t work?”
“Not to mention it’s fucking loud!” Sam echoed.
“What stops them? Because we’re running out of options!”
Dean glanced around the playa, which was crawling with activity like a kicked anthill. “Okay, here’s the plan. Sammy, you get back to the car, draw a sigil, and if that doesn’t work, get the oil, and we’ll fry as many of these asshats as possible. Alec and I will cover you. And Alec, just don’t say yes if they do manage to pop Michael out of the Cage.”
“Yeah, don’t worry.” Screams tore through the air along with flashes of light as the angels and demons clashed; ozone and sulfur clogged Alec’s nose and choked him. The angels continued their inexorable advance, as they inched backwards, step by step. “Wait, guys, I have an idea.”
“Yeah?” Sam asked.
“These asshats all need vessels, right? And the only thing out here for miles and miles are us and a bunch of poor possessed bastards. So if I get to Angela and keep her from saying yes, there’s nothing that Lucifer can do, right?”
The brothers glanced at each other, thoughts playing across their faces.
“Cas did say that they needed consent on this side before they were able to get out, because the Cage isn’t really being opened all the way.”
“It’s worth a shot,” Dean agreed. “But I don’t like the idea of splitting up.
Alec growled. “How many times do I have to say this? I’m better than both of you.”
“Fine, fine,” Dean growled. “Get ready, then. Make a break and get your ass over to Angela, past angels and demons, don’t get yourself killed, and then stop her from saying yes. You should be fine.”
“Watch me.”
There was less than ten feet between them and the angels, but over a hundred yards to the Impala. Sam split his attention between the angels and the ground behind them, gauging the distances, while Alec fought to see were Angela was in the mess of fighting and chanting bodies; he had a strong feeling she was right in the middle of it. Dean just continued to stare down the angels.
One of the angels flicked his hand and hefted his blade. “Come now. Don’t fight.”
Dean rolled his eyes and snapped off a shot of rock salt into the nearest angels’ face. It did nothing but piss off the angel. “You don’t know who we are, do you?”
“You are not needed, Winchester. We only need the new vessel. Raphael said nothing about harming you.” He flicked his hand, and Dean went flying, and the second angel tossed Sam away.
The third angel lifted his hand, but before he could do anything, Alec darted away, blurring to the side. He paused and glanced at the Winchesters. Sam was up and running towards the Impala. Dean, who had apparently been tossed harder, staggered up and pointed towards the demons.
“Get going, kid!”
Trusting that the brother’s knowledge of how to deal with angels and everything else would keep them from being ripped to shreds, Alec blurred towards the mass of demons.
The battle was just as much of a mess as he thought it would be. Though from what he had heard and seen about angels, he’d expected them to cut a swath through the demons without much trouble. But the demons were putting up a good fight. Silver angels blades were in demonic hands as well as angelic, and the flashes of light weren’t just from exploding demons. And there were just more demons.
He got past the fringes of the fight without trouble, weaving with a speed that even the supernaturally charged people around him couldn’t match. But as soon as the press of bodies and the frenzy of battle tightened up, it became more difficult.
The stink of sulfur and bitter bite of ozone filled his nostrils, and the unbelievable power swelling around and from the Hellgate throbbed though his blood. The itch of freedom and the scream of power that had all been in his first dreams flooded through him again, but more intense and forceful than before. He clenched his jaw and forced his mind back to the battle field.
He pressed past struggling bodies, deflecting blows instinctively; it hardly mattered if someone was purposefully tying to attack him or not in the mess. An angel swung at him, silver blade glinting in the sun. Alec blocked the blow with his forearm, twisted, and grabbed the man’s wrist, and slammed his other elbow down. The bone snapped, and he grabbed the blade as it fell from the angel’s now slack grip. With another quick twist he stabbed the angel. Blue white light flared around him. Before it had even faded, he was running again.
On the deserted stretch of sand between the battling forces and the Impala, Dean staggered to his feet and brandished an angel blade. Two out of the three angels that had initially gone after them squared off against him; the third’s now empty vessel lay sprawled in a puddle of blood and wing shaped scorch marks. Blood stained teeth made his feral grin even more macabre, and he flicked the blade through the air. “Who’s next?”
Behind him, he heard Sam scrambling to his feet and running for the car. “Banish ‘em, Sammy!” he bellowed, and rushed forward.
Sam sliced his hand open and smeared a red circle on the hood of the Impala. But before he could continue, an angelic scream filled the air and rush of wings blew dirt through the air. He spun around, knife coming up automatically. Yards away, Dean was on his knees, throat in the grip of one angel, as the other twisted the angel blade out of his hand.
“Dean!” he bellowed and automatically started forward. But before he could take more than a step, the dust settled, and a trench coated figure stepped out of the cloud, angel blade in hand.
Cas stabbed the angel that had Dean, and twisting free of both, Dean lunged forward and stabbed the other.
“Sam! No more banishing!” he called out, voice rough from the near strangulation. He took Cas’s hand and stood up. “Where the hell have you been?”
“Getting help.”
A third force of angels had joined the battle. Light from spilled grace, smoke from smote demons and screams of pain roiled from the battle.
“And it took you this long?” Dean wondered.
“There were… a few complications. Not everyone was on board.”
“In fighting? At this point?”
Cas didn’t reply.
Sam ran up and cast a worried eye at his brother. “You okay?”
“Better than them,” he said, nodding towards the angels. “Damn, I’m good. Took down three on my own.”
“They weren’t trying particularly hard,” Sam said. “I think they wanted to toy with you.”
“Fuckers,” Dean said, and spat out blood tinged saliva. “We gotta get back to Alec.”
“And stop the spell workers,” Cas added. “Where is Alec?”
“On the demon side of things, going after Angela.”
Cas nodded and looked over the battle field, strategizing. “You two go and help him. I am going to stop Raphael’s spell workers.” His wings whooshed and he disappeared.
Sam scooped up one of the fallen angel blades, demon killing knife in the other hand. “You ready?” he asked.
“Let’s go get that kid and put all these bastards back in their place.”
*He sensed her before he actually saw her. Her potential power flared out and brushed against some sixth sense Michael’s badgering had awoken. She stood between several demons, fixed on something in the center the of spell workers. Fissures had opened in the dirt in the center of the circle and the chanting went up a notch.
“Shit,” he muttered and put on an extra burst of speed.
By chance or by some sixth sense of her own, Angela turned. He was just an arm’s length away from her, and when she brought up her arm to hit him, he grabbed her.
“Sorry, sister, but you’re coming with me.”
She twisted like an eel, hissing through her teeth. “Let go!”
“Yeah, sorry, not going to happen.” With a quick twist of his own, he pulled her struggling body close and pinned her against his chest. And a small hand settled onto his shoulder. It was small, but the grip was iron.
“Oh, pretty boy, I know exactly where you come from!” she drawled. “And I know right where you’re going if you don’t let her go.”
“Back off, bitch!”
She shook her head. “That’s not very polite.”
He struggled to keep Angela pinned and the stench of sulfur hit him in the nose. “Let me rephrase it, then. Back off, demon bitch!”
“There’s no doubt you’re a Winchester,” she sighed and lifted a hand. “Let go of Princess here, and I won’t toss you around the valley like a bouncy ball.”
For a moment, Angela stopped struggling. “Ruby, no. Back off. This is between us.”
Ruby sighed. “Fine, I get it. Vessel to vessel, transgenic to transgenic. Have fun.”
Without warning, Angela kicked him in the shin. He winced but didn’t loosen his grip.
Ruby rolled her eyes. “Here, just let me get you two your own space to deal with this.” She flicked her hand and sent them flying out into the valley.
They hit the ground in a tangle of limbs. Alec refused to let go, and had ruined any chance of landing well for either of them. But he hit the ground with Angela on top of him; the impact jarred him enough that she twisted out and away, gaining her feet a few seconds before he did. The angel blade skittered across the dirt and away.
“What are you doing?” she demanded. Thoughts ricocheted around her head, agitated by burning flashes of silver light and power that demanded her attention.
Alec staggered to his feet, blinking dust out of his eyes. “I’m trying to keep the world from ending.”
“Why?” She narrowed her eyes and squared off against him. “Did Max send you out on some sort of mission? She does have a savior complex. I’m surprised she’s not here herself.”
“She was actually against it.” He rocked on the balls of his feet, but she shifted a step away, ready for any move on his part. “This is all on me, sister.”
The silver power built in her mind until she felt it pressing against her skull, threatening to burst out of her eyes. She fought it and spoke, the words tumbling out without conscious effort. “Don’t you see? This is supposed to happen! If we don’t do this now, the world will destroy itself. It will destroy all of us, transgenics! We do this, we help with this, we will save our people! I have been seeing it in my dreams!”
Alec shook his head. “Christ, listen to yourself. They’ve got you just as brain washed as Manticore ever did! Do you think these angels and demons give a shit about who we are? They’ve been planning this for eons before we were ever created. We are nothing but pawns to them.”
Angela shook her head violently. “No! I will get a family again! I won’t be alone anymore!” She sprang at him, fists and feet striking to hurt.
He danced back out of the way, deflecting a blow with his forearm and swinging back. “Yeah, you won’t be alone - because some asshat angel is going to be in your head, going to take your body. You won’t be alone, but you won’t be in control anymore.”
She just snarled and attacked with more fury. Within seconds, the ferocity of the blows became deadly.
*
High above the dust and reek of the battle, a lone figure in black watched. The battlefield was even more muddled than before. Three forces surged back and forth around the two core circles, where the wild chanting of Enochian opening rites spiraled up out of the dust. No one was making any sort of headway. Raphael’s angels were contending with Meg’s demons, and Castiel’s forces were split between the two; his own contingent of demons was just happy to kill angels - it didn’t really matter which side they were on. One side or the other would open the cracks in the cage and the Apocalypse would start again.
Crowley shook his head. “If you want something done right… and so forth…”
He lifted a hand and pointed around the valley, drawing a massive circle with his mind, projecting the power to inscribe it into the dirt and rock around the valley itself. The circle closed and energy hummed through the air, crackling like a massive power line. But no one on the battle field noticed. He started his own chant.
*
The brothers sprinted towards the crush of bodies, weapons at the ready.
“How are we going to find Alec in this?” Sam asked.
Dean shrugged. “Don’t know. But we’re going to have to.”
From the demonic side of the battle, a large dark blob suddenly flew into the air and landed several hundred yards further down the valley. In a cloud of dust, two figures staggered to their feet. The speed and grace of their movements left no question of who they were, if the familiar silhouettes hadn’t been enough of a clue.
“Found ‘em.” Dean changed course and ran for the two struggling figures.
It didn’t take long for Sam to catch up. “We’ve seen how the transgenics can move and fight, Dean, we may just become a hazard for him.”
“We’re not bad in a fight. And then he’ll have numbers on his side. And we’re not letting another member of this family get screwed over by the angels - even if he’s a clone from an alternate reality.”
“Okay. You’re right.” Sam’s face hardened.
A wild shriek pierced the air as they reached the scuffle. Two transgenic bodies twisted out of the dust cloud, and one landed heavily.
“Damn it, Angela!” Alec’s voice was raw and thick with pain; he twisted in the dust to protect his left side and move out of range of another strike. “You’re more stubborn than Max, you know that?”
She stepped out of the shadowing dust, fury burning through her like a silver flame, short hair disheveled and blood leaking from the corner of her mouth. “I am not stubborn, I am right. And you… you are wrong, and weak. And you will say yes, because you will not want to be alone.”
“He’s not,” Dean snarled.
Angela turned her heated glare to him. “Oh look. Humans.”
Alec blinked up at the brothers. “Back off guys. This is between us.”
Dean snorted and leaned down to grab Alec’s arm. “Not quite.”
Sam grabbed his other arm and carefully helped lift him back to his feet. “It’s a family thing.”
Angela’s lips lifted in a snarl. “Back off, or I’ll have your asses too.”
Alec shook away the Winchesters’ hands. “Let go, I’m fine. Get out of here, I’ve got this.”
“Right, with broken ribs,” Sam said.
Suddenly, a massive subterranean rumble shook the earth. Angela turned her head, froze for a moment and suddenly laughed. At the same time, Alec screamed in pain and dropped to his knees, clutching his head.
“Fuck, no!” he bellowed.
Angela’s voice echoed his. “He’s here, he’s here!” Limbs thrown wide in ecstasy, breath erratic, she looked back to the men in front of her. Silver light shone out of her eyes.
Alec staggered to his feet and reached for her. “Don’t say it,” he said between clenched teeth. “Angela, don’t-” His hand latched onto her sleeve.
She ignored him. “Hello, Prince,” she whispered. “My answer is y-”
Before she could finish the word, the world exploded into light and sound. Dean instinctively dove for Sam, and grabbed him around the wrist, even as Sam reached out for Alec. The ground dropped away and the sky came crashing down. Everything twisted, turned, and transformed. Angels screamed on a level past hearing, and demons wailed through throats that should have been shredded by the force. Everything went white.
There was a heartbeat of suspension, and then Alec felt the tug of gravity as he plummeted again. The only thing he could do was grab onto Angela’s wrist and hope that it would end fast; Sam’s hand was tight on the back of his jacket. He heard Angela screaming in fury and agony, heard Dean’s pained cry, and heard Sam shouting his brother’s name. Then the roar of his blood and wind through his ears blotted everything out.
Then there was a sudden whoosh of wings and the free fall slowed down. Dust billowed into his face and he hit the ground hard. The air rushed out of his lungs, and he fought to breathe, the agony of his broken rips ricocheting off the scales.
Somehow Dean’s voice cut through the fog of pain and confusion cloaking his senses.
“Cas? What the hell, man?”
“A little gratitude would be appropriate,” Castiel replied, voice thin and strained. “If we make it out of this, remember that.”
Alec fought to even his breathing and open his eyes. The pressure tightened around his lungs, eased, and tightened again. “What’s happening?” he gasped and opened his eyes.
He wasn’t sure what he expected. The same blighted desert greeted him, ripped apart by battle. But it had changed. The combatants where no longer organized, the once battle lines scattered and broken. There was no more chanting; it was all screaming.
“Where are we?” Sam asked. “Are we still in Death Valley?”
“Not where, when.” Castiel’s voice fought against the chaos around them.
“When?” Dean demanded.
“A third spell happened! Someone sent everyone back eleven years!”
“Why the hell would they do that? Didn’t they want to open the Cage? And who did it? One of your guys?” Dean staggered up and stared around the valley.
“I don’t know!” Cas sounded out of control.
Power surged and thrummed through the air, but Alec realized that the pressure of the caged archangel wasn’t in his head anymore. “He’s gone.”
Sam shifted his grip from Alec’s jacket to his shoulder. “Who’s gone?” He asked.
“Michael.”
Wrist still clasped in Alec’s hand, Angela suddenly twisted and screamed. “NO! No, no come back!”
She flailed wildly, a fist catching Alec across the jaw and kicking Dean in the shin. Dean snarled and grabbed her other arm. “Settle down!”
A throb of power pounded across the valley, a massive shock wave; Dean was knocked off his feet, Sam and Alec flinched against the blast of air and sand. Less than a heartbeat later the sound of an explosion hit them, and Alec groaned against the noise.
“The spells are falling apart!” Castiel shouted. “The fallout will be catastrophic!”
“Then what the hell are you waiting for, get us out of here!” Dean said, all but sitting on the still struggling Angela. She screamed and increased her fight. Something cracked. “Shit! That was your arm, stop!”
Something clicked in Alec’s head. “Wait, you said eleven years? That makes it 2009. That’s when The Pulse-”
Angels and demons screamed. The air rushed towards the center of the valley in a heartbeat of intense power. And then the world exploded.
Before the shockwave could hit them, there was a rush of wings again, and Alec felt his body jerked up into the air and twisted again. And then he was in the dirt, choking and groaning against the shock and the ache in his ribs.
Chapter 3
Chapter 5