Chapter 1: You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet
"Load 'em up. Make 'em count," Dean said as he handed out the shotgun shells.
These weren't just any shells. He had gone back in time to kill a goddamn phoenix and get its ashes to make these special babies. The only thing in all creation known to burn the Mother of All Monsters, Eve.
Sam, Dean, Bobby and Castiel walked away from the rented vehicle, checking their weapons as they went. They angled toward Ervin's Diner, where they had been told to find her. Of course, she knew they were coming, but they'd been up against worst odds before, right?
"You gotta be kidding me, she's been in there the whole time?" Dean asked, looking at the front of the shabby restaurant. "Well, there's one way to draw her out. Me and Sam will go in," Dean announced.
"Dean..." Bobby said, disapproving.
"Look, if we don't get a shot off, then you two better," Dean said.
"That's the plan?" Bobby said sarcastically.
"Yeah," Dean said in reply. "Pretty much." He took the bag down off his shoulder where he had been carrying it and walked over to the diner door.
He didn't hear Bobby muttering to Cas, "Well, at least it ain't complicated."
The door to Ervin's opened with a little squeak, but the rest of the interior seemed relatively quiet. There were several patrons in the diner, three sitting at the bar, and a few at some of the tables. A waitress was behind the bar, her back turned to them as they came in, reaching for something on a top shelf. No one seemed to be paying attention to the two hunters and their duffel bags. They walked to the counter, sat their bags next to two stools and took a seat.
A man next to the jukebox glanced over at Sam, and Sam took out his phone to use the camera app. His eyes gave the tell-tale sign of a lens flare, giving him away as a shapeshifer. He rotated his phone around the room, cursing at each person, seeing the same flare. These were the hybrid things they fought before. Dean had named them "Jefferson Starships" just earlier that day.
"Is there anyone in this diner who isn't a flesh-eating monster?" Dean asked.
"Yeah," Sam replied. "You, and me."
"Let's get the hell out of here, shall we?" Dean asked.
"Two specials, right?" asked the waitress, bringing over two plates of hot food.
"Uh, no, that's not for us," Sam attempted to explain. "We were just headed out."
"Now that would be rude, Sam," she said, and the boys knew that the Mother had found them. Her flunkies locked the door and took away their duffel bags full of weapons.
Sniffing the shotgun, Eve shook her head. "Phoenix ash, you must have gone a long way to get that," she said. "Don't worry, I'm not here to fight."
"No," spit out Dean. "Just rally every freak on the planet, bring in khan worms and half-assed spider-men and dragons. Really, sister, dragons?"
"So I dusted off some of the old classics. I needed help," she said. "I was happy with our arrangement. The natural order. My children turned a few of you, you hunted a few of them. But then my children started being kidnapped, tortured, even my firstborns. I was pushed into this."
They just glared at her.
"You know what? Maybe you'll believe it if I look a little more like this," she said, and with a small glow and gust of air, the boys were staring at the image of their mother, Mary Winchester. She looked the same as when Dean had last saw her that fateful night of the house fire.
"Oh, you bitch," Dean said, unable to look at her. "If you're going to kill us, just kill us."
"It's not you I want to kill. It's Crowley I want dead."
"You're too late. That little limey mook roasted months ago."
She put her hands on the counter and looked at them. "Crowley's alive, she said with a knowing smile."
"That's impossible," Sam stated.
"I see his face through every one of my children he hangs up and skins. Any idea why he's hurting my babies?" she asked.
"He wants purgatory right?" Dean asked.
"Location, location, location," Sam added.
"Is that what he told you?" she asked in a sarcastic way that Dean wouldn't have associated with Mary at all. It made him sick to see his mother transformed in such a manner. "He wants the souls. Each soul is like a tiny nuclear reactor. It's about power, you simple little monkeys."
Sam blanched.
"Fine. We'll see how hot his hell burns when everyone comes to me. I'll turn you all," she said. "Or, I have an offer to propose. Crowley, as you know, is not so easy to find. You bring him to me, I let you live." She blinks prettily.
"Pass," said Dean without a moment's thought.
"Dean-" Sam started to protest.
"No, the answer is no, Sam. We don't work for monsters."
The door opened again, and more of the Starships marched Castiel inside the diner, with Bobby being held in a similar fashion not far behind.
"So much for your plan B," she said smugly, gesturing toward Castiel. "I'm older than you, Castiel, and I know what makes angels tick. As long as I'm around, consider yourself...'unplugged'," she said to Cas with a wink. His power had been blocked for most of the day. They had assumed she had some ability to keep him from using his angel powers, but this confirmed it.
"Beat me with a wire hanger, the answer's still no," said Dean.
Suddenly she was behind him, her breath hot on his neck. "Don't...test me," she snarled. The other Starships held back Sam, Bobby, and Castiel as they attempted to go to Dean's aid.
"Bite me," Dean told her.
And she did. Immediately, she started to choke, backing away and desperately grabbing at her throat. Her eyes widened in surprise and confusion.
"Phoenix ash," he replied, smirking. "One shell, one ounce of whiskey, down the hatch."
She clutched her chest and the image of Mary Winchester was gone, replaced by the cute brunette waitress from before. Black lines traced along the side of her face. Where her hand held her chest, a glowing light began to shine through her fingers. It reminded them of what happened when they used the demon knife or the Colt. Dean smiled a satisfied smile. They got the the bitch.
"You leave me no choice," she gasped, and ran to the back room.
Dean gave chase, not wanting to let this opportunity get away from him. Sam threw off the monster holding him and followed. A bright flash of light came from behind them, letting them know Castiel had his mojo back and had taken care of the rest of the Starships. Good, one less thing to worry about.
They were astonished to see a mirror standing in the back room. It was unlike any mirror they had ever seen—tall and ornate. Intricate asymmetrical carvings of vines and flowers adored the large frame. The surface of it rippled like water, and light shone through it from an unseen source.
"What the hell is that thing?" Dean asked.
"I don't know...some sort of portal maybe?" Sam added.
"We're going after her," Dean said.
"Are you insane? We don't know anything about what's on the other side of that thing!" Sam admonished him.
"What are you idjits yammering about?" Bobby walked in, and stopped in his tracks. "What in the..?" he trailed off, and went to examine the mirror, careful not to touch it. "She went through there?"
"No, Bobby, she's hiding in the freezer. Of course she did," Dean said sarcastically.
"I don't think it is of this world," Cas said, finally joining them in the back. "Maybe it's something she brought with her from purgatory. Or, maybe it leads back there."
"You're telling me that's a portal to friggin' purgatory?" Bobby asked.
"I don't know. But where else would the Mother choose to flee?" Castiel asked.
"We need to study this thing before any of us-" Bobby said, but cut off as Dean came up beside him.
"Screw that," Dean said and walked through.
Bobby sighed. "Dummy didn't even take his weapons." He and the others grabbed supplies from the back of the car and the two duffel bags remaining in the diner, before returning to the mirror.
"You sure you want to do this?" Cas asked. "Purgatory is the home of monsters. You'll be fighting constantly there, and I don't know how long this portal will stay open. If Eve is there, she can block my powers. I don't know how much help I'll be to you."
"I'm not leaving Dean to face her alone," Sam explained, preparing to cross over the shimmering surface. "But I honestly don't know what's going to happen. Maybe it's better if you stay here, Cas."
"No, I'm going," he said, wielding his angel blade. "I may not have access my angel powers, but I can still fight."
"Then I guess we're all going on this suicide mission," Bobby grumbled.
Sam led the way, followed by Castiel, and finally Bobby. The glow from the mirror faded, leaving the store room of the diner in darkness.
