"And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences and earthquakes, in diverse place. All these are the beginning of sorrows." Matthew 24:6-8
They try to ignore the news but it is hard not to. A war has broken out between the English and the French. An old grievance between good allies and there is a threat that the French will use their nuclear technology and then they will all be screwed. Most of Europe is getting involved in the conflict. Only Sweden of course, standing back while being completely in the middle. Everyone thinks that it might be the beginning of World War Three.
Sam and Dean are holed up at Bobby's trying to do research. They have a lot of lore and a lot of books but there is nothing in there about stopping the angels from literally destroying the Earth. This is how it is supposed to be. It is written in so many texts, even predating Christianity that it seems like they are fighting a battle with everyone else against them. It is judgement day and everyone is getting ready for it.
When Sam had headed out the city the previous Sunday, the church, probably for the first time since it had been build, was over flowing. People were stood out of the doors, desperate for some sort of redemption. It is almost comical in the way that suddenly thousands of atheist are suddenly believing again but it doesn't stop the new religions forming every day from arguing. No one can decide exactly what god they should be praying too.
Now they are sat in Bobby's study. Bobby has gone off on a run for something. Helping local hunters out, Dean and Sam hadn't been paying attention. Dean is falling asleep into the huge book that he is reading. He hasn't slept properly since they last saw Castiel, a month ago. He is determined more than anyone to solve this but then he is desperate. Sam has never seen him like this.
"Perhaps we should just let it happen," Dean says. He has been giving up for days now. He just seems hopeless and helpless. Sam would hug him if Dean wouldn't kick him for being a girl.
Sam is furious though. Dean can't give up. It has only been two months! They need more time before Dean thinks about doing something stupid. Despite all of the angelic interference in their lives, they know where they are going. There is no need to send them into the churches. There is no amount of praying that is going to absolve them. They have both been to hell once. They are going back again.
"No, Dean. Don't you dare give up!" Sam demands.
"Sam. I am just tired of all of this," Dean sighs and gets up from the table. He grabs his car keys. It would be the first time Dean has willingly left the books since they got here.
"Where are you going?" Sam asks. He tries to keep the furious anger out of his voice but he is failing. Just like Dean is failing.
"To a bar."
"No, Dean," Sam protests but Dean carries on going. His brother is behaving like a madman and if he wants to bury the end of the world in booze and possibly women, then he can if he wants. It isn't like there is an angel who wants to be with him. "Stop."
Then Dean stops. He physically can't move. It is his turn to be angry. "Sam, what the hell did you do?" Dean demands. He looks like a human statue. He cannot even move his eyes to glare at Sam. He is stuck mid-step.
"I don't know. I am sorry," Sam responds quickly and then suddenly, Dean is able to move again. He looks at Sam in horror. Sam hasn't seen Dean look at him like that before. He hates it. Dean knows what is going on though. Or at least he thinks he does. The last time Sam was able to do tricks like that he didn't have a soul to play with.
"You sold your soul again?" Dean asks.
"No!"
"Then how come you have got your freaky powers back again?"
"I don't know," Sam replies. He looks as confused as Dean does, so Dean decides to believe that he hasn't. He likes to think that he knows when Sam is lying and when he is telling the truth.
"So now we have to research this as well as everything else," Dean sighs. Despite how dedicated he has been to it these past couple of months, he hates it. He places his keys back on the table and looks at the pile of books that he hasn't read yet.
"I think we should call Castiel," Sam suggests. He expects Dean to blow up on him. The last couple of times that Sam has mentioned the name, Dean has gone and hidden or just blatantly ignored Sam until he talks about something else. Since Sam has discovered about Dean's gay and possibly blasphemous relationship with an angel, things have been different between them like Dean expects to think of him less. Sam would never but he knows that is what goes on in Dean's mind.
"Sure, whatever." That just shows how fed up Dean is, that he would willingly allow Sam to call Castiel. The last time they spoke, Cas punched Dean in the face after all. Dean just wants this to be over. He wants to get back to the point where if Castiel walks into a room, Dean could just kiss him. "You do it though."
Sam calls Castiel and for a moment nothing happens. Then there is an angel sat on Bobby's desk. "Hello boys," he says. "If you don't mind Sam, I am going to stay ten feet away from you. No offence but the last time we met, you shredded my wings."
"Gabriel," Sam manages to get out because, he remembers. He remembers what he did to the angel. God, he feels sick. Gabriel of course looks fine now but Sam thinks he will always see him like he had been. There aren't worth for Sam to say to describe how sorry he is.
"You remember. How nice for you," Gabriel says bitterly. "Can we get this show on the road? There are wars to fight and I like my wings the way that they are?"
"Whatever Gabriel. Where's Cas?" Dean asks.
"He's not coming. Unless you want him to, of course. He is a little busy and I thought I would come in his place seeing as he is still moping from the last time you saw each other," Gabriel replies. He takes a chocolate bar out of his pocket and starts eating it. "Now, what is up?"
Sam is almost reluctant to tell Gabriel about it after what he had done. He still doesn't remember what he did to Castiel and though he knows enough, he can't remember what it had been like. With Gabriel, he is reliving it and now he is going to tell him that he thinks that he is going back that way. "I think my powers are returning."
"About time too," is all Gabriel says. He doesn't even stop eating.
"This is supposed to be happening?" Sam asks, irritated with how Gabriel is treating it so matter of fact. He wants to scream.
"The powers were never what the demons did to you, they were always just you," Gabriel explains. "It is why the demons wanted your body so much in the first place. They didn't want your soul they wanted your power."
"I have never had them before," Sam remarks, he is trying to win his point.
"But you have never been this angry before. All that rage and frustration fuel it and make you ready to explode. The demons made that mistake. You were powerful with them but without your soul you couldn't feel as much hate as you do right now," Gabriel explains. "Frankly, I don't want to be in the room with you but this is good news."
"Good news?"
"There is a way to stop this. It might be a long shot but it is all that we have got," Gabriel starts. "There are two people, powerful people. One is supposed to take over hell from Lucifer and one is supposed to take heaven from Michael. You Sammy, are going to take hell."
"What? No!" Sam protests.
"It isn't as bad as all that. You can turn hell into whatever you want," Gabriel says. "Once you take over that is. You can decide on no torture. You can keep the demons under control. This is a good thing."
Sam is still in complete disbelief.
"Who is supposed to take Heaven?" Dean asks for the first time in the conversation.
"We don't know yet but we are working on it. That is what Castiel is looking for now. There are any number of people that it could be. The bloodlines got confused a bit."
Then Gabriel is gone and Sam is left to wonder exactly what the hell, no, he isn't using that word again, he is going to do.
Things are only getting worse. There are riots in the middle east and South America. In one night, all of the food in Australian is destroyed just like that. People are struggling to cope with what is going on. The whole world is struggling to cope. There are reports of strange, mass hallucinations where people go out shooting people down with guns, thinking they are possessed by demons. There hadn't been a demon involved at all. Sam can't take it anymore and he knows that to stop this he has to step up to the plate which is why, one morning, he gets up and decides to get stronger. He is going to help Gabriel and the angels with this fight if it kills him.
They start hunting again after that. There is no point researching when they know that the demons are still out there and they are waiting for Sam to lead them. Without his soul, Sam knew that he had been in charge of them but in a way they always had control of him. This time, he is going to be stronger. He is going to make the demons do exactly what he wants them to do. He is going to make them stop helping the angels from destroying the world.
Dean is still as depressed as ever. He is not filled with the Sam sort of purpose that Sam is but he is prepared to do anything that it takes to help Castiel even if he never mentions that it is what is motives are. Dean wants to call Castiel every minute of every day but he doesn't because he knows that the angel doesn't want to see him and he doesn't want to see the angel. Everything has changed between them and even the world ending is not going to help get them together again.
They are somewhere in Illinois. Dean's so exhausted, he had let Sam drive and so he isn't even sure what town they are in. It doesn't matter to him. It is still a motel room and it has two beds so he is happy. He could just sleep for a month but he knows he isn't going to because his brother is going to leave him, again but this time he is going to be the ruler of hell. That one is a little bit hard to deal with.
Sam has gone for a shower. They camped out in the car for the past two nights and they stink but it doesn't bother Dean. He thinks that if he tries to shower, he will hit his head on the tiles when he passes out. He flops on the bed, without bothering to even take off his shoes and he is almost asleep when there is a crash in his room.
Castiel is in his room. He has crashed straight in without breaking any of the windows or walls. He looks a mess. He is curled up in a mess on the floor. He doesn't look like he is breathing and Dean panics before he remembers that Castiel doesn't even need to breathe. Dean immediately on his feet. He forgets about being tired as adrenaline rushes through him. There is no way that he can be tired. Not when Castiel is hurt.
"Are you okay?" Dean begs. "Please tell me you are okay?" Dean grabs hold of Castiel.
"Dean," he manages to get out. His hands clutching his side release their grip and a white light bleeds out. Dean can feel it. It is Castiel's Grace. He is bleeding his Grace out. This isn't good. He could die. It is pretty much the only thing that can kill angels.
"Come on, Cas," Dean whispers. "Hold on, please."
Sam comes crashing into the room. He has a towel wrapped around his waist and he is looking at Dean and Cas in shock. "What's happened?"
"I don't know," Dean replies but he doesn't take his eyes of Castiel. "Damnit, Cas. I love you, please don't die." Dean brushes his hand over the wound. The light is so strong. It is so Castiel. It is like all those moments that they shared together. Dean wants to grab hold of it and push it back into him. He wants to keep Castiel the way that he is. Dean really doesn't want him to die.
Then the wound is healing. Dean doesn't know how it is happening but Castiel is fixing himself. Within seconds there is no wound there at all. Apart from the blood, there is no way of telling that Castiel had ever been hurt. Dean almost cries he is so happy but he doesn't because he is already so drained of emotion, all that he is capable of feeling is his love for Castiel.
Castiel leans up and kisses Dean on the mouth and it is perfect. Just like it always had been. He feels whole all of a sudden. He had been missing something this whole time. He hadn't even been complete and now he feels it. Castiel tastes like clouds and rain. Dean pulls Castiel closer. He cannot let him go this time.
There is a cough behind them and Castiel moves away from Dean. Dean tries to chase his lips but it is harder to do now that Castiel is a proper angel again. It isn't Sam but Gabriel who is making the noise. Dean wants to kill him. Sam just looks awkward.
"What do you want, Gabriel?" Dean demands.
"I think we have just found who is going to lead Heaven."