Title: Afterlife
Rating: T-M
Summary: AU to 5.4: The End. Sam Wesson meets up with what could be the last rebel force and helps to fight the forces of the Devil and keep his terrible secret.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Supernatural TV series. I make no money off this story
Chapter 1: The Crazies
Sam slowly eased open the door and looked around the dim room, afraid to use the small flashlight in his pocket. The air in the room was heavy, meaning that not a soul had been in there for a long time. There was no light coming from the lights above and hardly any from the outside. He was forced to use the flashlight. The flashlight was small the size of his thumb but it had a bright light.
The light coasted around the deserted grocery store. The shelves were all but deserted of food and everything else was scattered, the jewelry, hair care, clothes, movies, everything was thrown on the floor in a frenzy.
Sam first went to the register. He didn't have to force it open. It already had been. Everything but five pennies had been taken. He took the pennies anyway and stuffed them in his pocket. He grabbed discarded plastic bags and went shopping.
He first thought of food, anything canned, fruit, vegetables, soup, beans, tomato sauce. Everything went into the bag. Even bags of beans. Sam hated refried beans, but if it was between life and death, Sam would eat the beans any day. There wasn't a lot on the shelves but he managed to fill two grocery bags and stuff them into his camping bag.
Then he went to clothes. His were rags on his shoulders and he needed a new set. He also grabbed a bag of briefs. He went to the back of the room to change. He shed the rags and put on the new white undershirt, dark flannel and blue jeans.
When he left the back room he stuffed his bag with what remaining clothes were on the rack. He would need them later, for what he didn't know yet. He also packed jewelry, hair bands, books, magazines, and anything that might become handy later or could use to barter with in case he met with another human again.
He was looking at books, deciding on which to grab when he heard a crash. He turned off the flash light and ducked down, laying the bag on the floor next to him. He heard another crash, closer this time, and Sam carefully peeked over the shelves. He silently groaned.
Standing in front of the store was a group of people but very dangerous from Sam's experience. Their clothes were torn, dirty and bloody. Their faces were dirty, their hair matted and cuts and bruises covered their bodies. The major difference between them and safer people was their blood shot crazed eyes, and the knives in their hands.
'Oh God, it's them!' he thought and ducked away. He tried to quiet his breathing and hit at the back of the aisle. One came toward him and he quietly crept away from the hiding place and hid again at a far aisle in the back of the store. A quick check showed Sam he was surrounded.
'Oh, shit!' he thought. 'Please, God. Don't let them find me!' A dirt shoe came into view and Sam closed his eyes, silently screaming, 'Go away! Go away! Go away!'
The foot left. Sam heard multiple footfalls leaving the store. He checked again and found the crazies walking out of the store. He sighed in relief. He grabbed his bag and shot out the back. If there was one group another wasn't far behind.
Sam walked out through the loading dock and hurried down the alley, keeping his head down. He didn't want to get caught after running for so long.
He only had to hide once in the back alley from a group. He hid for ten minutes as the group loitered around the dumpster he hid behind before finally leaving. Wooden crates on either side effectively hid him from prying eyes and he slowed his breathing to keep from being heard.
He finally got to his hideout. It was the basement of an abandoned hotel building. The doors leading in were locked and the only way in was a loose window. Sam shoved his bag through first before going in himself. He locked the window with a hook and loops and covered it with a sheet of plywood. All the rest of the windows were boarded up too and a small camping grill was set in the corner with coal bags next to it. A sleeping roll was spread out on the floor. Against the wall were boxes full of supplies. Everything Sam had collected was there.
Sam opened one of the boxes and carefully put the canned food in. he reminded himself he'd have to look for meat before sunset the next day. He took out a can of vegetable soup for his supper. He used an army can opener to open the can, start a fire, pour the soup in a camp cooking pot and set it on the grill. He set out a bowl and spoon he'd use for his soup.
This was Sam's life for the last five years. Sam's whole life had been hard but there last few years were the hardest. He lived in this hell on Earth but he didn't mind. Staying alive kept him from going crazy.
He had just finished his supper when the gunfire went off. Sam didn't run outside to check who it was. Rogue soldiers shooting off at every crazy out on the street, or on anything that moved. Sam never went out while they were shooting. He hadn't even met this group yet, but he watched them often. Learn your enemies before you meet. That's what his father always said.
Sam settled in his roll to sleep, humming Bon Jovi.
"Whoa, we're half way there. Whoa living on a prayer…."
"I don't see why your father isn't proud of you," said Jessica smiling at him. "I know I am."
"Well, my dad is proud of me, in his own way," said Sam.
"He should show it more. I've never even met him."
"He likes his privacy." Jessica scoffed.
"Apparently it runs in the family," she said.
"You're more important," said Sam. "I don't know what I'll do without."
"Crash and burn," she said smiling.
Sam smiled back at her and leaned to kiss her, and the room went up in flames. Sam jumped back and watched in horror as Jessica burned.
"Jessica!"
"Come on, you idiot!"
Sam was grabbed from behind and dragged out. He kicked at his rescuer.
"Let me go! I have to rescue her!"
"She's dead, you moron! Save yourself!"
The air exploded and Sam could feel the heat in his face.
Sam woke with a start, a second before the alarm on his watch went off. He shut it off and lay on the sleeping roll, fingering his father's wedding ring absently. Sam hadn't had a dream like that in almost twelve years. Why would he have one now? He couldn't even look at a fire safely since Jessica died. Why would he dream about the accident now?
Sighing he sat up and grabbed a nutrient bar for breakfast ad a pot of water was set on the fire to boil. He set a large bucket he found somewhere near the fire and poured kettle after kettle full of hot water in it. He went up the basement door leading into the hotel and walked into the first room closest to the door.
Walking into the bathroom he grabbed a fresh hand towel, stripped and began to wet himself down with the hot water. He didn't wince or cringe away from the water. He was used to it. He used a bar of soap to wash himself and his hair before rinsing himself off by first running the towel over him and then dumping the bucket over him. The water was cooler by then. He dried with a large towel, dressed, collected his things and went back down to the basement.
He washed the clothes he had worn the day before, hung them on a line he rigged and got ready to go out. He strapped the knife he always wore to his belt and crawled out of the window, a bow and quiver of arrowed with him. He put a large crate in front of the window and crept out of the alley.
Sam didn't really know where he was going. He just went in whichever direction he felt like, and each direction seemed to take him where he needed to be.
This time his feet took him to the outskirts of town, five miles from where he as hiding. It took him a couple hours to get there, needing to dodge crazies and avoid detection. When he felt he reached his destination he crouched behind a car jack knifed on the side walk and waited. He did this sometimes, when the intense need to observe overpowered him and he walked out with just a knife and gun, or bow as the case was now through he preferred the knife. It was silent and didn't attract detection if you used it right. A gun was efficient but loud when you're trying to be silent.
Sam didn't have to wait long when a sound of a car rolled in. He peeked over the hood of the car and saw a Jeep and a truck roll by before stopping in front of the car Sam was hiding behind. Eight people got out of the cars, four in each.
"All right, everyone has their jobs," yelled the leader, his face hidden from Sam but voice oddly familiar. "I want ya'all back in half an hour or I'm leaving out here is this hell hole. Got it?"
"Yes, sir!"
And they went off in groups of two, each going into a different building. Only the boss and a second man stayed behind. Sam figured he was the second in command so Sam dubbed him "Second".
"So when are you going to tell Cassandra you're sleeping with Molly?" asked Second.
"When are you going to tell Lana you're sleeping with Sarah?" asked Boss with a smirk.
"Hey, I'm not the one sleeping with everyone, and I mean everyone."
"Hey, when I have an itch, I don't care who scratches it."
"When are you going to settle down," asks Second.
"When I'm dead," said Boss. "Too much hell in the world for me to think about having a wife."
"What if one of your one night stands has a kid?"
"That's what the refugee camp is for. I'm not father material."
A whoop came from one of the buildings and Boss and Second looked over as two men hurried out of the apartment building.
"Yo, boss, jackpot" yelled one man holding up a handful of DVDs and video cassettes.
"That's great, Ronny, now what the hell are we going to play them on?" yelled Boss sounding slightly annoyed.
Ron looks guilty. "Sorry, boss. I-I just thought…."
"Yeah, I know what you thought, and with where we're at you'll get more out of a magazine. If you want to keep them, go ahead, but find me something useful. Got it?"
Ron nodded. "Got it, boss."
And he walked back in the building again, his partner behind him. Each team came out carrying something and went down the block collecting supplies. Sam moved for a closer look, and a bottle clattered along the street. Boss and Second looked toward his hiding spot.
"What was that?" asked Second.
"Check it out."
Second walked toward the cars. Sam only had enough time to crawl under the truck before Second walked around the truck to where he had been hiding. A barrel covered the bottom of the car from the street so Boss wasn't able to see him.
"What is it?" asked Boss.
"Nothing," said Second. "Just a rat."
Through a crack Sam saw Boss skeptically look at Sam's hiding spot before turning back to his men loading the truck and Jeep. Sam watched them from under the truck till they drove away.
Sam crawled out from under the truck and followed. The group had been more interesting than any other he had seen in any city, which was mostly rogue army soldiers. Sam had learned to avoid them. They were good on trading but never meet them in a big city. They will shoot on sight.
But this group didn't seem like that. They actually checked before shooting. The leader seemed to be nice but stern to his men, letting them know he supported them but they should also obey him. He was the kind of man others would respect.
And the leader seemed familiar to Sam but he couldn't place where. It had been so long since Sam saw any familiar face. The last person he saw was his old college fried before his life went crazy.
Two blocks from where Sam first spotted them the group stopped and restarted the process. Sam hid behind another car and watched them. Aside from Ron's antics the operation stayed fairly quiet with the Boss barking orders and small talk between him and Second. Sam learned that a guy name Cas had just healed from a broken leg and a girl named Lana's pregnant. At the Boss said something about reassignment.
Everything had been going smoothly till Sam felt something was wrong. When Sam got those feelings they usually were true.
He ran out from behind the car toward them.
"Get out of here!" he yelled. They turned to him but Sam was too busy looking around for the danger he knew was there. "Get out of here! They're coming!"
"Who are you?" yelled Boss and Sam looked to him. And stopped as the dream flashed in his mind. To the guy who saved his life from the fire and never saw again. Till now.
"Who are you?" he repeated and before Sam could answer a yell came from one of the buildings. Ron and his partner ran out yelling.
"It's a family!" Ron yelled. "A whole fucking family in there!"
"Everybody out now!" yelled the Boss. "Back to the cars! Move it!" he turned to Sam. "You too. Come on!"
Sam hesitated. He never took a ride with any of the rough arm groups and the fact that Sam felt familiarity to the leader of this one was another reason why he hesitated.
"What are you waiting for?!" yelled Second as the "family" that Ron called the was running out of the building waving knives, shards of glass and broken bottles as the rest of the team ran out to help. Sam was had taken out his hand gun and was firing to give them time to get away. "Come on!"
"I can't," said Sam over the noise of the gun. "I just….I can't!"
The noise was attracting more crazies. Soon the group would be over run. Not even Sam could hide from them. When he ran out of bullets he took out his knife and was blocking knives and shivs, the runes on the blade flashing. He slashed at one woman and looked over at the team. Boss was firing expertly at the hoard hardly glancing to aim. One crazy was creeping behind him with a glass shard in his hand to cut Boss's throat.
Sam didn't pause as he throws his knife. It sailed past Boss's shoulder and the man gasped as the knife embedded in his chest. Boss turned in surprise as the crazy fell then to Sam who was now fighting with a discard pipe, trying to escape.
Sam was so focused in finding an opening he didn't see the man jump off a car and slash down his arm. Sam grunted and fell, his head connecting to the concrete. Sam looked up see the man raise the glass to stab him but hesitated. He looked down at Sam a few seconds before he had been shot down and Sam looked up to see Boss walk over to him and grabbed Sam's uninjured arm.
"Come on, you're coming with us!" he yelled over the gunfire. Sam struggled against him.
"No, I can't come with you! I have to stay!"
"No choice," yelled Boss and shoved Sam in the Jeep. Boss jumped in the driver's seat and floored it as his team fired at the crazies to keep them off the cars. Sam tried to awake but the gash on his head made it impossible and he passed out.
TBC
-"The Crazies" is the name of the 2009 horror movie.