The smell hits him first, it's vile and recognisably sulphur. Demon then.

The tree provides shelter from the demon; it's walking around cautiously, but not cautiously enough. Doesn't it realise that there are things here that'll tear it up in seconds, including him.

"Hello?" He hears it call into the grey forest. This thing'll attract others in a matter of seconds if he talks once more. They love a confused newbie when they get one.

He can't risk more things coming over here, he blows his cover behind the tree and charges towards the demon, grabbing it by the neck and slamming it against the tree behind it. His homemade knife forcefully against his throat.

The demons chest is heaving heavily; a look of pure surprise and terror blown onto its face.

"What are you doing here" He growls forcing the knife heavier onto its throat.

He looks properly at the demon, when it died it was wearing a guy in its early twenties, relatively physically fit, it was a couple of inches smaller than him and had short brown hair coaxed in blood. Looking at it properly, its meatsuit was covered in cuts all over, even a couple of fingers missing. The thing that must have done it in was the stab wound that he could feel at the back of its neck.

He waits for an answer, but the only response is the demon looking at him in complete disbelief "Winchester?" it asked, a large hint of fear in his force.

He's taken aback of course, but not surprised. Most of the demons around here knew who he was, and of course all the leviathans knew it. Like they'd ever forget who killed their leader.

"Damn right I am" Dean replies, just about to draw blood from its neck if he held the knife any closer.

To Dean's surprise, the demon sighs. "I've had enough of you Winchesters for one day" it mutters, the fear still there.

"What?"

"What the hell did you thing got me? You're mental case of a little brother is the only one that could fucking do this much damage" it pointed to its stomach, Sam, Dean lifted up its blood soaked and slashed t-shirt to reveal a mess of guts and blood. The demons stomach was slashed right open and it didn't stop there, his guts had been played with, thrown astray like an unwanted pet. Sammy. He was proud that Sammy had killed the demon, but this was worryingly gruesome, even for him.

He regained himself, and looked back at the demons face. "You're gonna tell me what happened, NOW" He growled, once again tightening the blade around its neck.

It tightens its lips, probably thinking about whether to tell. Then it looks up at Dean's angry and worried eyes and smiles manically at him.

"Well Dean-o, Sammy's been busy the last few months you've been away. I didn't hear much of him after the leviathans left but then I was warned by several other demons to avoid him at all costs, that he was going like he did a few years ago last time you 'went away'" It looks at Dean, madness in its eyes. Dean looked away, he didn't know how Sam was when he went to hell, but he knew what he'd been doing with Ruby. Was Sam on the demon blood again? Oh God he better not be.

"I was safe for a few months, but there was a scare going through other demons. There were less and less of us topside, they sent more up but we were still declining, all loses were quite brutal" It gestured to itself. "The word going around was more like an order. Stay clear of Sam Winchester at all costs. I tried to keep clear, we all did. But you know how stubborn that asshat is. He was going to find me one way or another.

"When he did find me, he tied me up to a chair with demonic handcuffs, and inside a devil's trap for extra precaution"

"How'd he look?" Dean interrupted

"Fucking crazy. He's still a strong son of a bitch but visibly he is skinny as anything, and was shaking like a maraca. I could see his collarbones through his stupid plaid shirt. His hairs all over the plaid and man his eyes look like they've got serious bruises on them the bags are that bad."

Dean recoiled, just like Sammy to not take care of himself when he needs it

"Anyway, he got me tired up and started asking me questions, about you Deany-boy" The demon smiled that awful smile again "Where's my brother? Where's Crowley so I can kill him and get Dean back? He wouldn't take that I didn't know or give a shit for an answer. Then he started... doing this" Its eyes showed obvious fear and gestured to its body again. "Decided to get a bit messy. I could tell he was batshit crazy because of the way he kept muttering to himself, like he was having a conversation with someone I couldn't see. He even snapped a couple of times and yelled at thin away. But other times he just nodded his head, and started to paint something new on the canvas of my body."

"When he finally elected to believe me, it wasn't of his own choice. If the thing that he was talking to didn't step in, he would have went all night, doing on me as he says Lucifer did to him, Fucking Lucifer was telling this crazy bastard what to do, teaching him how to do whatever torture he did to Sam in the cage. I only knew that fucking Lucifer had told him to stop from the way he nodded, eyes finally putting away the absolute madness they had. But instead of stopping, he just stabbed me in the back of the fucking neck with that stupid knife you guys have. I've never seen a bastard so cr-HEY!"

Dean couldn't take anymore and sliced the demons head off clean. He had to be lying, demons lie.

Demons lie.

Unless the truth can bring you pain, can bring you to you fucking knees in Deans case. He slumped on the floor, Sammy.

So Sam was seeing Lucifer again, fucking perfect. But not only that but he was listening to him, actually doing what he tells him to do. And it's not like Lucifer tells Sam to sleep or eat, only what to do to find Dean, the only thing that Sam would actually listen to, how to find Dean.

He wonders when the last time Sam ate was, or slept. Sam didn't need a reminder of what happened at the mental hospital. He wouldn't have been functioning for this long if it wasn't for the occasional sleep and food break.

Maybe it wasn't as bad as the demon said; after all, demons always go out of their way to mess with someone.

But then again, Sammy was alone with Lucifer was riding shotgun, practically driving him. No one there to stop him going on this stupid self-destructive suicide mission of getting Dean back. No Bobby or Ellen or Jo or Mum or Dad. No one. Just like there was no one for Dean, he's stuck in purgatory and Castiel is God knows where.

They're both alone. There's no one else that they can trust in the world, not topside or in purgatory. That's even more of a reason for Dean to get back, because he refuses to see the day that Sammy actually finds a way to get to purgatory.

He will find a way out of here; he has to for Sammy's sake. He was going to look for a way out anyway, like hell he's going to stay in this hell hole, he's killed enough monsters for a life time.

Hold on Sammy.