Just inside the Canadian border

"Abby, look! The ground is opening!"

The two children stood atop a cliff overlooking the crater that was starting to form. The earth started to rumble, shaking violently as rocks started to fall away beneath them.

"Elliot, back up before you fall!"

The awe faded from the boy's face, and he turned towards his sister with a nod. Just as he reached out his hand, the rocks beneath him gave away.

"Elliot!" the girl shrieked as he disappeared from view.

She dashed to the cliff, nearly falling over the edge as the ground continued to shake. She peered over the side, into a pair of huge, glowing silver eyes. Blood dripped from the beast's maw, and the girl screamed as she recognized the fabric from her brother's shirt dangling from one of its fangs. She opened her mouth to call for help, but her voice never reached the air as the creature's jaws closed around her.

Singer Salvage Yard

"Hey Dean, have you heard the latest story on the news yet?" Sam asked, his eyes glancing up at his brother from his laptop screen.

"Which one?" Dean asked through a mouthful of pancakes.

"There was an earthquake on the Canadian Minnesotan border," Sam said, unable to mask the curiosity in his voice.

Dean coughed, clenching his fork as he nearly choked on his food. "Shut up, you're serious?" He asked in disbelief. "I thought that was impossible."

"Geographically, it should be. The land is on a single tectonic plate. However," Sam spun the laptop around to show Dean the image. "It wasn't the earth that caused it."

On the screen was an image of a massive crater, at least a mile wide. The middle of it was dug out into a giant hole, so deep the bottom couldn't be seen.

"What the hell," Dean muttered. He glanced at the puzzled expression on his younger brother's face, his own thoughts just as confused. "What kind of monster makes a hole that size?"

"Not one that I've ever heard of," Sam said, spinning the laptop back around.

Dean grinned. "Guess that means you'll get to add something to your research on this one, huh Sammy?"

"Ha, ha, very funny," Sam remarked sarcastically before turning back to his screen. "Apparently there was a family of four camping near that area, Tom and Jane Gayle, and their kids, 8yr old Abby and 5yr old Elliot. The only sign of them has been shredded pieces of their blood stained clothing."

The brothers glanced up at each other, and Dean shook his head as a quiet sigh escaped his lips. This was going to be one of their tougher cases. Monsters that attacked children were usually twice as hard to handle, because they were heartless, cold-blooded killers. "Anything else?" he asked.

"A small news team has set up a camp near the crater, but it sounds like no one will go near it," Sam said.

"I don't blame them." Dean stood, putting his syrupy plate in the sink. He glanced over his shoulder to see Sam's expression had changed from confused to worried.

"What is it?"

"Do you think Lilith had anything to do with this?" Sam asked.

That was not something Dean had considered, nor did he want to. He shrugged. "Well, if she did, at least killing this freakish beast will be one less monster for her to throw at us."

Deans walked over and clapped his brother on the shoulder. "Come on, we got an eight hour drive ahead of us. Let's go find the son of a bitch."

Boundary Waters

It was almost 10pm when the brothers pulled into the parking lot of the Hungry Jack Lodge campground. The only other vehicle there was a white Fox News truck. They walked inside, and the older man at the front desk looked up at them with surprise.

"Can I help you boys?"

He was a thicker, white haired man with a scruffy beard and thin black glasses sitting on the bridge of his nose.

"Uh, yea, Carl," Dean said slowly as he found the man's nametag. "My brother and I need a room."

Carl snorted. "You boys been paying attention to the news?"

"About the wild beast," Sam interrupted, and Carl eyed him once-over. "Yea, we heard."

Simultaneously, the brothers pulled out their MN Ranger ID cards, flashing them to the older man. His brow raised, an impressed grunt slipping from him.

"Rangers, huh?"

"We're gonna find the son of a bitch that killed those kids," Dean growled as they pocketed their badges.

Carl sighed deeply, sliding two key cards across the counter. "Right up those stairs, third door on the right."

"Thank you Carl," Sam said as he and Dean grabbed the key cards.

"You two best be careful out there. 43 years I've owned this place, lived out here, but I ain't never heard of something like this before," he said quietly, fear lacing both his eyes and voice.

Not knowing what to say, the brothers simply nodded and headed up to their room. They tossed their bags on the floor and flopped down on the beds. Sam dozed off quickly, but Dean couldn't stop thinking about Sam's yellow eyes. The haunting memory of his father being possessed by Azazel crept its way to the front of his mind, and replaced John's face with Sam's. The color changed had only lasted a second, but Dean knew something was wrong. He had been cured of his manic paranoia by then, so it was no hallucination. A large part of his mind told him it was a warning of Lucifer's coming, but Dean refused to believe that his little brother was going to get tied up with Satan. Of all creatures, that would be the worst. No, that wasn't happening – he wouldn't allow it.

Boundary Waters

Dean was awoken the next morning by a loud knock on the door. He sat up, grumbling, and heaved himself off the bed. Sam propped himself up on his elbow, his mouth widening into a yawn. Dean unlatched the lock, and was surprised to see Carl standing in the doorway. His expression was grave, and he spoke in a serious tone.

"You boys might want to rethink going out there," he warned.

Dean and Sam glanced at each other worriedly. "What happened?" Sam asked.

"You're gonna want to come look outside," Carl said, then he disappeared down the hallway.

The brothers got dressed quickly and grabbed their bags, their guns safely hidden under their jackets. As they walked down to the lobby, the distinct scent of blood wafted through the air.

"Dean," Sam said, grabbing his brother's arm and turning him towards the front door.

The glass windows were splattered red. The door itself had been knocked off its hinges, and clung to the wall with a few desperate splinters.

"What the hell?" Dean muttered as he walked towards the wreckage.

They stepped outside, and the scene became even worse. The Fox News van was tipped over on the other side of the parking lot, and had been absolutely destroyed. Broken glass was shattered all around it, and shredded pieces of metal and rubber littered the pavement. Puddles and splatters of blood painted the parking lot, but there were no bodies in sight.

The brothers dropped their bags next to the Impala before looking at the scene closer. Sam carefully tiptoed around the blood and glass towards the van. "Dean," he called, and his brother walked up beside him. "Look."

Dean's eyes widened with bewilderment. "Is that – ?"

"A giant paw print in the side of the van? Yea."

The metal had been crushed into a concave wolf-like paw print that was easily twice the size of a bear's. Four jagged holes had punctured the door, indicating the size of the creature's claws.

"Sammy, this son of a bitch is huge," Dean breathed in shock.

"Yea, except…" Sam leaned down to inspect the paw print further, his brow furrowed. "Even an animal this big wouldn't have been able to create that huge crater."

Dean dragged a hand through his hair, exhaling loudly. "So, what, we got a shapeshifter on our hands?"

Sam shook his head. "There aren't any animals this big that a shapeshifter could copy."

"Well it could be two monsters working together," Dean suggested.

"Maybe, but it seems like too much of coincidence." Sam said in a lowered tone, more to himself than his brother. He sighed. "I don't know Dean. We might be in over our heads on this one."

Dean raised a surprised brow at him. "What are you talking about, Sam? You think just because this thing is huge that we won't be able to kill it?"

Sam stood, tugging at the edges of his jacket nervously. "I mean, maybe Carl is right. We don't know anything about monsters like this. We've never seen anything on such a massive scale before."

"So what, you want us to just walk away from this one?" Dean asked in disbelief. He shook his head, clenching his jaw with a stubborn look on his face. "I won't do that Sam, not after this many people have already died."

"Dean, we can't just walk into this blind!" Sam exclaimed. "We're not going to be helping anybody if this beast kills us too."

"We're not gonna die, Sam, not this time," Dean barked sharply. He grit his teeth in frustration. The past year had been tough enough. He was not interested in dealing with it again.

Sam exhaled loudly, putting his hands on his hips. "Why don't we call Cas? Maybe he'll be able to help," he suggested.

Dean frowned. If he was being honest with himself, which he wasn't, he would admit that Cas' existence sorta freaked him out. Up until his rescue from Hell, he didn't believe in angels or God or that sort of thing. Now he basically had his own guardian angel, and it was...weird. Ironic, but weird.

"Yea, alright, fine," Dean agreed.

Neither of them had said a word yet when they suddenly heard the faint flap of wings. The brothers turned around to see the blue eyed angel standing a few feet from the wreckage.

"Cas," Dean said, surprised he had shown up without a call.

"Dean," the angel responded with a nod. "Sam."

"Cas, do you have any ideas on what this creature could be?" Sam asked.

"Yes," Cas stated. His voice was void of emotion, but his eyes were tinged with fear. "It's a shapeshifter."

Dean's eyes narrowed in confusion. "That's impossible, it's freaking huge."

"Not for her, it isn't," Cas confirmed.

"Her?" Sam emphasized.

"You know this thing?" Dean said in a demanding tone.

Cas's eyes fell to the pavement, and he nodded. "Her name is Arlos," he said quietly.

His tone was sharp, cutting the air as if saying her name burned his tongue. The brothers exchanged confused glances. Cas' expression was distant, and he took a moment to collect his thoughts.

"She's a Celestial Shapeshifter, the only one of her kind."

"What the hell does that mean?" Dean asked.

"She can change into any form she wants, though she prefers that of a dragon or wolf," Cas explained.

"Alright, well now we can figure out to kill her," Dean said pointedly.

Cas cast him a skeptical look, and shook his head. "It's not that simple."

"What are you talking about?" Dean asked. "Every monster's got a weakness."

"Dean, cool it," Sam said in a berating tone, then he turned to the angel. "Cas, can you tell us what you know about her so we know what we're up against?"

Dean rolled his eyes, folding his arms across his chest and rocking back on his heels. Cas' eyes stared out into the woods as he recalled his memories.

"She was created by Lucifer," he began, surprising the brothers. "After God bestowed the Mark of Cain on him to contain the Darkness, Lucifer's bolstered powers spawned Arlos. She is stronger than all the archangels combined, and is loyal only to Lucifer."

"Ok, so besides all the mumbo-jumbo at the beginning of that, she's basically Satan's prized pet," Dean stated, and Cas shrugged in agreement.

"If that's true, then where has she been this whole time?" Sam asked.

"After Lucifer was cast out of Heaven, God feared Arlos would follow in his footsteps. At the time, we thought there was a chance she could still be redeemed, but…we were wrong," Cas explained, almost sounding guilty, as if he blamed himself. "God then forced her into a deep slumber and buried her underground."

The angel turned and glanced out across the lake where the crater was hidden by the forest. "We're not sure how she reawakened or why she's attacking people. All we know is that whatever she's planning," he turned back to the boys, "Will lead to her releasing Lucifer from his cage."

"Son of a bitch," Dean muttered. "First Lilith, now Satan's pet…thing?"

"She has to have some kind of weakness, doesn't she?" Sam asked.

"I've only heard rumors of the pendant powerful enough to stop her. I don't know for sure if it exists," Cas admitted.

Dean threw his arms up, letting them flop back down against his sides. "Well isn't that just peachy. We've got a man-eating, shapeshifting monster on the loose with no way to stop it," he groaned irritably.

"Cas, what are we supposed to do? We can't just let her keep killing people," Sam pointed out.

The angel's brow furrowed. "I suggest staying in this area for the time being. It's possible the pendant was buried with her and hasn't resurfaced yet."

"Well it's better than nothing," Dean grunted. "Come on, Sam."

"Dean, wait," Cas said. "There's more you need to know."

"Alright, then spit it out," Dean said with annoyance.

"You won't be the only ones out there looking for it," Cas warned.

Dean's brow furrowed. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Arlos was able to communicate with the angels long before Lucifer's fall, but after he turned humans into demons, she was able to communicate with them as well."

"So she knows we're coming?" Sam pointed out.

"Not yet. Arlos can choose which side she wants to communicate with, if either," Cas explained. "She's most likely speaking with the escaped demons right now. I don't sense her among the angels, but it's possible she can't access us if her power hasn't fully returned."

Dean started pacing next to the smashed van, the glass crackling under his feet as it was crushed to dust. Sam glanced over Cas' shoulder, and noticed Carl standing in the doorway of the resort's building. Something seemed off about him though. He was standing still…too still.

"Dean. Carl's eyes are closed," Sam said.

Dean and Cas both turned around to see the older man's eyes flick open. They were completely black.

"Shit!" Dean cursed.

He and Sam bolted for the car. They hadn't gotten more than a few feet when a terrible roar broke the silence overhead. The sky darkened, and a silver dragon the size of a three story building burst through the clouds – Arlos. A dark auburn red crest of feathers donned her head and frontal wrists, topping off the tip of her tail. Teal scales covered her belly and fronts of her legs. Thick claws protruded from her four-digit hands and three-digit feet. A pair of dark, slightly jagged horns crowed her regal head.

Dean jumped into the driver's seat as Sam grabbed their bags from the ground and threw them into the back. The dragon roared, and Dean nearly dropped the car keys.

"Son of a bitch!" he cursed, fighting his trembling fingers.

Dean finally got the keys in the ignition, and just as the engine roared to life, their surroundings changed. The hotel, the smashed van, Arlos, everything had vanished, and the Impala now sat in the middle of the woods.

"What the hell?" Dean said as he cut the engine.

The two of them got out of the car, looking around. A flutter of wings broke through the trees as a pair of wrens flew through the branches.

"Dean, over there," Sam said as he pointed towards a clearing in the trees.

They walked over, and sure enough, they had been dropped right on the fringes of the crater. Sam breathed a sigh of relief. Rumor or not, they were away from Arlos and possible right next to her only weakness.

Dean raked a hand through his short hair. "Alright, well first thing's first," he said, going over to pop the trunk of the Impala.

Sam cast him a confused glance. "What?"

Dean pulled out a camo green duffel bag. "If what Cas said is true, we got to make sure those demons can't get close to the middle of this crater," he said with a determined tone.

"Dean, the ground is made of rock and dirt. Any devil's trap we make will get blown away" Sam pointed out.

"Not if it's made with these," Dean said as he pulled a few thin chains out of the bag. "Looks like Cas left us some supplies," he grinned.

Sam scoffed, his face breaking into a smile. "Ha, alright then. Let's get to work."

They spent the next couple hours laying out the devil's trap, burying the chains under the dirt and tucking them into the rocks to hide it from any suspecting demons. When it was complete, Dean and Sam split up to scope out the surrounding area. The earthquake had torn up the landscape pretty good, which left them with a lot of ambush places. Just to be safe, Sam decided to outline the inner pentagon of the trap with salt, finding places to blend it in with the light gray rocks.

Dean pulled out his phone, grunting in frustration to find he had no signal. "Damn it. Cas, you just gonna leave us stranded out here?" he muttered, but immediately regretted the words. He was worried about the angel. If Arlos was as powerful as Cas said, there was a chance she had added him to her list of victims; but when Cas described her, he had seemed almost…ashamed.

"Any sign of Cas?"

Dean jumped at his brother's voice, unaware of his approach. "Not yet," he replied, shaking his head as he focused on their current plan. "And there's no signal out here either."

"Oh, great," Sam remarked sarcastically. "So what now?"

Dean trudged over to the Impala's trunk, pulling out their shotguns. "Now we go blast some demons," he smirked.