"Oh Castiel, I pray to you to get your ass down here you idjit. The boys need help." The words echoed inside his head, Castiel looked down at the demon he was interrogating and sighed. Bobby had never called him before, let alone sounding his most irritable. Curiosity getting the better of him, he rested his hand on the demons head and flexed his will to smite it before moving himself to Bobby.

Bobby, he observed from the doorway, looked even more dishevelled than usual as he wrestled with the stuck cupboard door.

"Is something the matter Bobby?" Castiel asked, frowning subtly as Bobby jumped and turned to glare.

"Gah, don't do that!"

"Do what?"

"Sneak up on me, you're gonna give me a heart-attack."

"My apologies Bobby." Frowning and shaking his head Bobby returned to yanking the door open.

"Yeah, I'm sure you're still going to keep doing it though." Castiel glances around the house, noting the conspicuous absence of Sam and Dean, patience for human small talk wears thin.

"What did you call me here for Bobby? I was busy."

"Well excuse me" he snaps, setting a tumbler down rather heavily and proceeding to fill it with cheap whiskey. "thought you might be interested in knowing that I haven't been able to raise Sam or Dean for a few days now." He pauses to swig some of the whiskey. "And I'm getting worried, it's not like them to not check in, 'specially with what they were after." Castiel frowns, listening attentively, all traces of impatience now gone as he realises the possible extent of the problem facing him. Bobby slams back the last of the whiskey before continuing. "Ain't like I can go looking for them seein' as how I'm a cripple and all."

"Where are they?"

"Hell if I know, last I heard they were hunting what they thought was a trickster up in Wellington, Ohio. They've had a bug in their ass about that one ever since one killed Dean a few hundred times for Sam."

"I'll find them" Castiel rumbles before disappearing.

"Yeah well when you do, tell 'em..." Bobby turns to look at where Castiel once stood and sighs irritably. "Tell 'em you're too damned quiet."

Castiel looked around the town and wondered where to start, If he could find their motel room he might be able to retrace their steps and find where they stumbled. By the third motel the desk clerk remembered Sam and Dean.

"Yeah I remember them, their car's a beaut'. Haven't seen them in a while though, they're paid to the end of the week so I've left their stuff be. If they're not back though I ain't holding onto it. Got a deal going with a buddy of mine who runs a pawn shop." The clerk barely paid attention to Castiel as he spoke, clearly more interested in the magazine.

"Thankyou," Castiel replied before walking out into the lot and looking down the row of rooms, half of them looked empty. Knowing they always picked the same room if they could Castiel willed himself into it, not bothering with invisibility since there was no car outside it. The tacky room was indeed Sam and Deans, if the radio, lap top, and candy wrappers were anything to go by. Picking up the wrappers he sighed, definitely indicative of a trickster. Aside from evidence they had been here a few days ago the room held no clues as to where they were now though. Wearily glancing around Castiel wished they'd left some sort of note as to their location. Having been missing for days though narrowed where they might be, it would have to be somewhere isolated, abandoned, and likely with the Impala still outside it since bobby hadn't mentioned anyone finding the car abandoned. Dropping the wrappers Castiel set about searching the outskirts of the town for abandoned houses or warehouses. Eventually he found the Impala outside a warehouse that had smashed up windows and peeling paint. As he walked to the door, he wondered what he would find on the inside, or if they would even still be here.

Opening the door he stepped through and found himself surrounded in fog, with lots of noise ahead of him. Emerging from the foggy tunnel Castiel glanced around in confusion. He was apparently on the stage of a gaudy Japanese TV show where Sam and Dean were bolted to platforms and looking panicky.

"Cas?"

"Is this another trick?" Sam asks quickly.

"it's me" Castiel responds, still looking around trying to make sense of the situation "uh, what are you doing here?"

"Us? What are you doing here?" Dean asks incredulously.

"Looking for you, you've been missing for days"

"So get us the hell out of here!" Sam exclaims. Frowning at how much of this they must have been through before he found them, Castiel steps towards them and reaches out.

"Lets go"

Before he can touch them however the scene stutters and Castiel stumbles, glancing up in time to see the boxing glove slam into his face. Irritated at the tricksters shenanigans he stands still and tries to will himself out of the confines of the illusion, only to have a second glove follow the first. Stunned, Castiel fends of the following strikes and attempts to work out where he is. Glancing quickly around it appears that he is in the middle of a boxing ring in a small stadium filled with people in outdated clothes and hair. Having had enough of the boxer Castiel ducks under a punch and drops himself over the guard rail.

As he turns away from the arena the scene is suddenly very different. All traces of the stadium replaced instead with a busy beach. Taking a moment Castiel crouches, glancing around he studies the illusion for flaws, picking up some sand and letting it fall through his fingers he frowns as he realises he can't find any. The illusion he finds himself trapped in far outstrips the abilities of any trickster, and nothing should have blocked him from flying out of the arena. As he stands back up people suddenly begin to look panicked, for a brief moment there is only silence before everyone begins screaming and running away from him. Puzzled, Castiel looks over his shoulder and his expression drops slightly as he observes the thirty foot high wall of water heading towards the beach.

"Oh." Is all that escapes the stunned Castiel, before it occurs to him, that if he cant fly, and the illusion is flawless, he has no idea what will happen if he lets the wave catch him. The sounds of panic fill the air, screams of pain as people are knocked over and trampled by others. He turns and runs inland as fast as he can, thinking franticly as he does so. He escaped the boxing match by leaving the arena, so there must also be a way out of this scene, going inside perhaps would escape the outside. As he reaches the end of the beach Castiel makes a beeline for the nearest building, its' door, partially open stands still in the wind, and light flashes from inside.

Pulling the door open Castiel throws himself through it without pause, and is forced to cover his ears against the deafening sound of guns, and the distant booms of mortars. His face falls as he realises where he is now, deep in the trenches of some big war. He makes haste through the trenches, searching for another 'door' out of this scene, hoping that they do not continue to get worse. Nearby a particularly close mortar strike flings dirt up in Castiel's path, narrowly avoiding him. Shouts ring out nearby.

"Gas. Gas. Gas"

"Masks on soldiers!" Panic sweeps through the trench and Castiel turns and runs as fast as he can through the sticky mud, coming to a stop when he sees the low lying cloud of yellow vapour blocks his path that way as well. He takes a few steps back, looking around for a discarded gas-mask and failing to find them. Castiel winces realising his only option is to haul himself out of the trench and make a run for it. As he reaches for the top of the trench to pull himself out though, the walls seem to explode outwards and morph into a steel grey box.

Castiel takes a moment to collect himself and catch his breath. Eventually becoming aware there's the sound of someone else breathing hard in the room behind him. He turns around to the sound of his name being called as one might speak of something they did not quite believe.

"Castiel?" Crumpled on the floor is a bedraggled woman, matted brownish hair, threadbare clothes, and dirt-caked bare feet. strong features frame tired brown eyes that peer out from between the tangles at him. He stands, regarding her for a moment, as he ponders what manor of illusion this one is. Taking a steadying breath she speaks with a light French accent. "My name is Cassandra Loric. I am real." Castiel moves to help her but stops as she waves him off. "I burn what little strength I have left that I might speak and be heard so please listen." He frowns and kneels by her as she talks. "I have spent an almighty span caged in here. The illusions of this place, are beyond my control, but I can influence if I am powerfull careful. The violence of them is an unfortunate side-effect of the focus of my prophecies as you have apparently encountered."

"who put you here?"

"If you're here then you have met him, no?" She pauses, then at the confusion in his expression continues, an amount of hate in her voice. "Gabriel. This place is my punishment for using my foresight to aid Jehanne Darc in her quest. To help the one person who seemed immune to the curse of my line. So now I lie here in my own little corner of hell, aware of -everything- that happens at once. I can not sleep, I can not dream, I can do naught but watch the world in disjointed sequence" She takes a shuddering breath, the outburst seeming to have sapped her strength, the walls of the box crack a little as she works to regain her composure. Castiel looks around at the sound, concern evident on his face. He returns his attention to Cassandra and sees she now sports an alarming nose-bleed from the effort she exerts. "Please" she asks desperately. "Remember me, remember my story. If my story leaves here then eventually so will I." Face pinched in pity, Castiel rests a hand on her shoulder.

"How do I get out?" She smiles an odd sort of smile at him, as if he's asked the right question when there were not only one to ask.

"You ask." She replies simply. She takes a deep breath, closing her eyes, throws her head back and screams. The sound reverberates around the room, growing to a deafening volume, forcing Castiel to cover his ears, before the box shatters in blinding white light.

Opening his eyes Castiel is relieved to find himself stood outside the door and next to the Impala outside the warehouse. Frowning determinately he sets off back inside to warn Sam and Dean that they could be dealing with an arch-angel, but definitely not a trickster.

Storming through the door Castiel walks onto a gaudy sitcom set, Sam and Dean stare at the beat up Castiel for a moment before Dean asks,

"You okay?"

"I don't have much time."

"What happened" Dean interrupts.

"I got out" He replies irritable at the side-track.

"From where?" Sighing Castiel ignores the question.

"Listen to me, something is not right, this thing is much more powerful than it should be."

"What thing, the Trickster?"

"If it is a Trickster" Castiel begins to explain before Sam interrupts.

"what do you mean?" Castiel opens his mouth to continue but instead has the wind knocked out of him as he is thrown violently backwards into the wall. The audience applauds suddenly as an overly cheery voice jumps onto set.

"Heyo!" Gabriel grins and bows once to the audience who explode in cheers and rapturous applause. Playing up to the attention as Castiel rights himself, becoming surprised to realise he's been gagged. "Thank you! Thank you! Please, stop" The trickster turns from the audience and grins at Castiel, who by now has recognised him as Gabriel. "Hi Castiel!" Gabriel makes a little shooing motion and the TV-set blips out of existence. to be replaced by a crowded darkened street.

Loud angry people yell, somewhere ahead horses clip anxiously. Glad at least for the lack of immediate threat. It doesn't take him long to look about and realise that he's in the middle of a riot, which means the area won't stay safe for long. He begins to push himself to the edge of the crowd then stops. If this place is temporarily secure or, at least, a danger he can handle. It might be best that he remain, at least for the time being. Thinking back to Cassandra and the colossal effort it took to remove him the first time, it seems unlikely that he can expect a rescue from the same source. Meaning he must rely on Sam and Dean to figure Gabriel out and force his hand. A long shot, but if there's anything they've built a career on it's pulling off the long shot. Castiel shoves himself to the edge of the crowd, remaining on the fringes of the conflict, but far enough out that he can leave quickly. Loud muffled voices call out over the hubbub, he catches maybe every other word, enough to work out that the voice is not only telling people to leave, but speaking Greek. Sighing he looks around for a nearby exit, spotting an alley nearby that glows oddly with a flickering light, that'll be the way when the time comes. Already the sounds ahead grow violent and restless, until the crowd almost roars and begins surging, for a moment there's only the roar and then the screams, and the frightened whinnies of horses explode into the air. The mob turns and runs madly, fleeing the chaos ahead, right into Castiel. Getting caught in the stampede Castiel struggles to fight his way over to the alley, practically falling into it when he reaches it.

He stumbles on the suddenly dusty earth, strong heat warms his back, spinning round expecting something dangerous as the source of it, Castiel is relieved to find it is merely a large bonfire chasing away the dusks shadows. An odd tenor chanting rises and falls in a language that, oddly, is not being translated like the Greek was moments ago. He wanders through the camp, the tipi's and dark skinned people working on basic day to day chores complete the image. For whatever reason Castiel finds himself in one of the old Native-American camps. Following the chanting he finds the camp shaman chanting over a prone young boy obviously ill somehow. He sighs, knowing the boy most likely dies of his sickness. Castiel tours the camp for a while, looking for whatever threat will manifest, doubting the boys illness counts, after a while his attention is drawn by the sound of bugles over the distance in the dark. Most of the camps inhabitants look over to the sound as well, and it occurs to Castiel that most of them are women and children and elderly. The horn blows again, and this time the thunder of hooves can be heard, as he continues to watch the cavalry become visible. Sounds of fear begin to permeate the camp and Castiel looks for the exit, before he finds one however, the riders reach the camp and some dismount, yanking the women about, obviously looking for something. The rest remain mounted, rifles at the ready, one of the searchers comes out of a tipi throwing a woman on the ground and brandishing a few rifles. They yell at her and she babbles back in broken English, an older man goes over and tries to get them away from her, one of the mounted soldiers shoots him. Chaos breaks loose, with everyone panicking, women and children running, soldiers shooting. Castiel ducks out of sight behind a tipi and wonders if he can hide from them and wait it out. It's then that he notices one of the tents being ignored by both soldiers and families. Moving quickly over to it he draws the attention of some of the soldiers, who begin yelling and running at him. Taking a chance he dives through the opening.

Cicadas click throughout the darkened dusty streets streets of an american settlers township, the streets seem deserted, and chaotic. Upturned wagons and discarded items lay here and there. Sounds of violence drift from up ahead and Castiel ducks behind a nearby tree to watch, resting his hand on the bark as he looks round He frowns, feeling the sticky sap and indentations of freshly carved wood. The carving reads: 'CROATOAN' in scrawling uneven letters. Looking at it his expression hardens as he realises this is going to be a lot harder than the previous memories to escape. Thinking that, he realises that's exactly what these are. Cassandra's memories from her imprisonment, which is why Greek was translated but the tribal tongue wasn't, she must be able to speak Greek. What someone from France was doing speaking Greek however was beyond him. Hearing footsteps behind him Castiel turns to look at about the same time the person notices him and begin running towards him, Castiel runs for the nearby house grabbing the woodcutters axe from the stump and swings at the man, nearly lopping his arm off. But as he pulls the axe back for a second swing it's as if the wound never existed. The man tries to grapple Castiel who manages to throw him off and do the only thing he can, run. Of course that makes noise and before long there's more than one set of footsteps following him. As he begins to get winded Castiel changes course, making for one of the houses, hoping it to be another doorway. Running through and slamming it shut the scene however doesn't change, and within moments the men chasing him begin pounding on the door, trying to force it open. Pulling the bookcase by the door over to block it He runs and jumps through the window opposite, aiming to put as much distance between him and the town as possible.

Maybe 10 paces from the window however the town is abruptly replaced by abandoned warehouse. Breathing hard Castiel looks over Sam, Dean, and Gabriel who's ringed by holy fire, standing next to him. Dean looks back at Castiel, faint lines of concern mark his expression.

"Cas you okay?"

"I'm fine" Castiel replies shortly, "Hello Gabriel."

"Hey bro," Gabriel says nonchalantly "how's the search for daddy going? Let me guess, awful." Dean turns to leave, apparently having had enough of Gabriel.

"Okay we're outa here, C'mon Sam." As they walk towards the door, notes of uncertainty enter Gabriel's voice.

"Uh, okay? Guys? So, so what you gonna, just gonna leave me here forever?" Turning to look back at the worried looking angel Dean snaps angrily.

"No, we're not because we don't screw with people the way you do, and for the record this is not about some prize fight between your brothers, or some destiny that can't be stopped. This is about you being too afraid to stand up to your family." As Dean rants, Gabriel's expression hardens from worry to something akin to anger at being spoken to this way. Dean reaches and pulls the sprinkler system on and Gabriel seems to relax, glancing up at the sprinklers he looks thoughtful. "Don't say I never did anything for you." Sam and Dean leave but Castiel remains for a moment, watching Gabriel as the fire slowly dies, wondering whether or not to ask about Cassandra. He decides against it, Gabriel would probably only lie if he didn't just throw Castiel back there for fun. With one last look at the defeated looking Arch-angel Castiel shakes his head subtly and heads outside to his friends.