A/N: Okay, so this chapter had so much planned for it, that I had to split it in two, with the next part most likely coming this weekend. Sorry, it just would have been a monster chapter. The next one will be pretty action packed! Enjoy, and remember to vote on my poll if you haven't. Someone mentioned Balthazar, so I added him as an option.

As Always,

EverReader

P.s.- All four of my current projects updated this weekend. Every story is different. Two are Canon compliant, two are AU . The AU's are both pretty dark, but if you like fluff, please check out "How to Fix a Winchester". If you're a Sam girl/guy, check out Confessions of a Boy King.

Trigger Warnings- Lots of cussing in this one kiddos, and some torture. Also, a red lollipop. Just FYI.

Disclaimer: Still not mine.

All the Pretty Monsters- Chapter 9

"Rare and Precious Things"

"But how is an arch demon made?" Dean asked, horrified and determined by equal measures.

She looked away. She bit her lip. Dean watched her, wondering what could be so bad that she was now being reluctant to talk about it after she had so willingly told him everything else.

"Demon Blood." She said finally.

He frowned. "All demons have demon blood."

"But we, the arch demons, were exposed before we were demons." She replied.

Dean felt the floor tilt under his feet. "What did you say?" He asked, certain he had heard wrong.

"Souls are born into living bodies, and they need living bodies to grow. The soul of a child that dies remains the soul of a child. It's nature might change, it might become a demonic child if in hell long enough, but it would always have the limitations of a child. Souls need adequate time in their living, human bodies to grow strong. That's where Arch Demons come in. Only another Arch Demon can create a new one. They pick a human, one with whatever skill or ability or personality they are looking for, and they make a deal. Then the human is exposed to Demon Blood."

"Exposed?" He asked, voice strained.

Her eyes bored into his. "Fed, Dean. The human is fed Demon blood. As much as the Demon can feed them while still alive. And every encounter, every exposure is like a hit of radiation to that soul, giving it powers, changing ones it already had. Then that person dies and goes to hell, where the transformation is complete. And there you have, an Uber Demon."

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Gabriel sat back, grinning as he watched the various monitors.

The Atlanta Zoo was going at full capacity, visitors coming and going all day long. Families could be seen picnicking by the lake, laughing children tormented small animals in the petting zoo. Bored teenagers on school trips used the break from class as an excuse to rough house and flirt with each other.

Gabe sat happily, waiting for the muse to strike.

Perhaps the jerk in the football jersey who had just thrown the nerdy kid's lunch into the lake. Or his girlfriend, who Gabe knew for a fact had just come back from a restroom rendezvous with the school's quarterback.

Then there was the creep walking around the goat enclosure at the Children's Zoo, even though he hadn't come in with a child of his own.

That could be either very interesting or very, very bad, and Gabriel made a mental note to watch him. Gabriel played an extra special game with pedophiles.

So many choices, so little time.

Of course, there was always Saskia.

One of the few remaining white tigers in existence in captivity that was not only female but of prime breeding age, Saskia was enjoying record breaking crowds while the Atlanta Zoo Board attempted to locate a breeding partner for her.

Unfortunately for them, Saskia was as mean as she was beautiful. She had removed half of the ear of the last male put in her enclosure, and most other zoos were unwilling to risk their own specimens.

There had been talk of artificial insemination, but someone ( Gabe wondered who that could have been) had leaked the plans to the press, leading to animal rights groups setting up protests outside the gates. One of the more well funded groups had taken legal action against the Zoo Board on the tiger's behalf, and in the meantime, Saskia was stuck holding court in Atlanta.

The bonus in that whole scenario for Gabe was the animal traffickers who kept attempting to steal her.

They would sneak in at night, with trucks and tranquilizer guns, after the zoo had closed, the goal being to procure the rare animal for whatever private collector had hired them.

Gabe had...dissuaded no less than three teams of them already, and didn't expect the flood to slow to a trickle any time soon.

Kicking his feet onto the desk he stuck a red lollipop into his mouth.

Yes, the maintenance gig at the Zoo had been a brilliant idea, if he did say so himself.

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Dean leaned against the Impala, breath steaming in the early morning chill.

This was a spectacularly bad idea.

Knowingly entering the deep woods with not only three civilians but two demons. Dean had obviously had a mental breakdown the other night, and the men in white were coming for him any time now.

"Coffee?" Andy appeared suddenly, without warning, and Dean startled, cursing.

Andy stepped back, easy going smile firmly in place as he held the thermos out of the way of Dean's flailing limbs.

"I'll take that as a no." He answered his own question with a grin. Dean didn't fail to notice that his smile never really reached his eyes.

"Where the hell did you come from?" Dean snapped, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets to hide their shaking.

The small part of his brain responsible for self preservation was screaming loudly in the background, something along the lines of demon-death-demon-bad-run-run-run, but Dean hushed it forcefully.

Andy was the best link Dean had to Sammy, and he wasn't backing down now.

"Around." Andy said casually, taking another swig from the flask he pulled out of his pocket. Dean's eyes narrowed as the caught sight of a drop of something red on Andy's lip for a moment, and his skin started tightening, feeling as if it were crawling.

It looked like blood.

Andy licked his lips, and the stain was gone, and Dean did his best to dissuade himself that he'd never seen it. For his own peace of mind, he'd have to.

Dean nodded to the guy who'd come up behind Andy, looking...intense.

His eyes were wide, darting about everywhere, and he moved as if he were slightly uneasy in his own skin.

"Who's you friend?" He questioned.

Andy tossed a glance over his shoulder. "That's my brother, Jake. He's...not a morning person."

"Your brother?" Dean asked incredulously, taking in Andy's fair complexion compared to Jake's chocolate toned one.

"Yup." Andy said simply. "Just be glad Sam didn't send Anselm. He can be...intense." The way Andy paused had Dean's mind filling in the space with about a hundred other words less dignified than intense.

"I want to see Sam." Dean said, taking up the argument from last night. He railed at Andy for hours to no avail, until the demon threatened to leave and not come back. Dean was afraid to push too hard and chase off the demon who had been the most open with him of any of them so far, but he was drowning in his questions and fear, desperate to see Sam.

Andy shrugged. "Personally, I could go for a pizza right now. But I'm stuck in the woods with you. Chill, man. Sam will show when the times right."

Dean scowled. "What the hell does that even mean?"

"It means to shut the fuck up and listen to what Andy's telling you." It was the first time Dean had heard Jake's deep voice, and his eyes flew to the man.

"You gonna make me?" Dean asked, stepping forward, hand reaching back for his gun.

"Civilians." Andy said mildly, from where he'd taken to leaning against the Impala.

The other two turned to look at the cars that were pulling into the parking lot.

"At least we have bait." Jake said, annoyance ringing in his voice.

"They're not bait." Dean said tightly.

Andy pushed up, coming to stand between the two men. "First rule of hell, Dean. Everyone falls into three categories. Predator, prey and bait. Those three?" He nodded to where Haley, her younger brother and the man Dean assumed was their guide were standing.

"They're bait. The three of us walk away right now, they're prey. We stick around, they're bait. But they'll always be one or the other. They aren't equipped to play the game on the same level as the monster, Dean." Andy walked past them then, smiling and holding out his hand to the guide.

Dean couldn't hear what he was saying, but whatever it was, it must have been the right thing, because the man relaxed almost immediately.

Dean started forward, but Jake's grip, rock solid and seemingly unbreakable, stopped him.

"Remember what Andy just told you." He commanded, and Dean bristled at his tone. Jake continued on as is he hadn't noticed- or didn't care.

"You want to see Sam? Then you better start playing on Sam's level. Things are going to start moving quickly, hunter. This shit is going down, and Sam can't afford dead weight. You might be the righteous man, but Sam doesn't have time to rescue you every time you get in over your head."

"I hold my own!" Dean snarled furiously. "And that's the second time one of you yahoos has called me that. What the hell does that even mean?

"That's just my point, Winchester." Jake grinned ferally. "You think you're ready to play, and you don't even know the game. Get up to speed and get ready, or you'll be prey, just like them. We're at war, it's going on, all around you, all the time, for thousands of years. Sam's going to be the one who ends it. "

"What are you talking about? What war?" Dean demanded fiercely, heart pounding.

He just wanted his brother back.

"Guys." Haley called, annoyance on her features as she stood on the crest of the hill where the path into the deep woods started.

"Let's go!" Dean snapped, open hate in his voice. He was done talking to the asshole. He wanted information, not cryptic insults.

The other demon, Andy seemed more open. He'd start with him. He wouldn't rest until he'd found Sam, whatever it took.

Jake said Sam was at war.

War with who?

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Sam pulled smoothly into the almost entirely empty hotel next to the equally quiet looking casino.

The woman got out of the only other car in the parking lot.

"Classy place." Bela quipped, leaning down to look into the window at Sam.

Sam just smirked. "Do you have it?" He asked, a dark joy in his eyes that sent shivers down her spine.

She swallowed.

"Yes." She allowed, suddenly nervous about the deal she had made. "It wasn't cheap."

"You were provided with appropriate resources." Sam said dismissively. He reached out and took the jug from her carefully.

"Now get lost." Sam ordered dismissively.

"What?" She exclaimed, outrage on her face.

"Bela, I'm about to attack one of the oldest known creatures in existence, with the help of my little sister and a jug of religious lubricant. Show a little self preservation. I'll call you if I need you again." His voice brooked no arguments, the cold command nearly enough to dissuade her, but she had made the decision that she was all in, and that meant she wasn't just going to back down.

"How do I know you're keeping your end of the bargain?" She demanded.

His arm shot up, gripping her tight around the neck and she squeaked in surprise.

"Because I gave my word." Sam said, voice calm and absolutely deadly, and he shook her a little, like a cat with a mouse before letting her loose and she stumbled back from the car.

Strangely, instead of feeling more worried, Bela suddenly felt much better about her deal with Sam.

Both options were shit, but their was no doubt in her mind that Sam was the more dangerous opponent. Every one of her instincts screamed whenever she was near him, every nerve lit up with dangerous electricity, like she was standing next to a lightening rod.

Sam Winchester was powerful, perhaps more powerful than Lilith. But more than that, he was driven, his drive to stop Lilith was branded onto him so clearly even she could see it.

Sam Winchester would stop the demons, or end trying. There was no middle road for him.

Neither one of them had anything left to lose.

She left without another word, and Sam studied the jug he held in his hands carefully. There was no real way to test it's efficacy, which is why Lily was with him. Her abilities made her the most likely to be immune to an angel's attack (at least, of an attacking angel who was simply intent on smiting them, and not using their blade on them).

He looked over to where his sister was watching him carefully.

"Eight hundred and forty years." He said lowly.

"Thirty-six siblings." She replied back, unhesitatingly and they looked at each other.

"Let's hunt an angel." Sam grinned a dark, daredevil smile, and Lily smiled back, a manic light in her eyes that lit her features from within.

Anyone looking at the two beautiful young people in the car would think they were enjoying themselves, or perhaps even in love.

But the truth was much simpler, and much darker.

This was two people keeping a promise made in hell.

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Max watched with idle curiosity as John threw more holy water on the screaming, writhing demon. He supposed he shouldn't be surprised. His own human father had been an abusive asshole, so seeing Sam's father reduced to torture and violence should come as no real shock.

John gripped the demon by her jaw, forcing her mouth open and pouring salt straight down her throat.

Max's lip curled. Perhaps he shouldn't have expected more, but he had.

"Tell me where Azazel is!" John demanded, towering over the demon, trapped inside it's fourteen year old host.

"Tell me where I can find that monster!"

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Ruby slammed the glass down on the table, and Gordon winced as the sound ricochet's off the walls and drilled straight into his brain.

He studied the disgusting looking concoction.

"I don't know what kind of fool you take me for, you demon bitch, but I'm not drinking that. Who knows what it will do to me!"

She rolled her eyes impatiently. "Besides restore your somewhat dubious humanity?" She snarled.

"Let...me...think. Oh, that's right. It restores your humanity. Drink it."

"I'm not drinking that!" He argued, then groaned as his rage triggered his fangs to start pushing through his gums.

"Jesus..." He moaned, and she grimaced.

"Cannot help you." She replied tartly. "But I can. If you just DRINK THE POTION!" She purposefully yelled the last part, and he moaned again, covering his ears in pain.

"Why are you even helping me?" He snarled.

She sat down across the table from him, leaning forward on her elbows. "Because seven years ago you started something very important, and I want to help you finish it."

"What are you talking about?" He asked, though they both knew that Gordon knew exactly what she was talking about.

"I'm talking about hell on earth, Gordon. And how you're the only one who can stop Azazel's special army from unleashing it. You're the only one who can stop them from unleashing Lucifer. You're the righteous man."

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Dean peaked around the corner, then jerked back again as he caught sight of the Wendigo's shadow. Damn, but that was the biggest one he'd ever seen.

He had just managed to locate where it had dragged Haley and Toby, her little brother. If he was very lucky, her older brother Chirs was in the rear of the cave also.

Of course, Dean hadn't been that lucky recently.

Where the hell were Andy and Jake, his so called 'allies', he wondered?

"Get ready!" The low, whispered command came from his immediate right, and he jerked, nearly exposing his hiding spot before Andy pushed him back against the wall.

"Sloppy." Andy murmured absentmindedly, head cocked like he was listening.

"Ready for what?" Dean hissed back, gun clutched uselessly in his hands.

"For that!" Andy replied, and Dean heard the sound of scuffling. Eyes wide, he looked back around the corner and his jaw dropped.

Jake was wrestling with the damn thing.

"Go! Get the kids out!" Andy said, and Dean glanced at him before taking off, sprinting to the rear cavern.

He got Haley and Toby down, and maybe he was luckier than he thought, because damned if they didn't find her older brother too.

The kid was pretty messed up though, not able to walk on his own, and Dean realized they weren't going to get anywhere fast.

Andy appeared beside him again, and this time Dean didn't even bother being startled.

"Jake's down for the moment." He said easily, as if he weren't the least bit concerned. "We should move faster."

"Easier said than done!" Dean snapped, gesturing towards the wounded kid. Andy eyed the boy appraisingly, and Dean felt his stomach clench. There was something cold and calculating in the look, as if Andy had just assessed every one of them standing there, assigned value.

'Bait' Dean thought to himself, remembering Jake's earlier words, and his grip tightened on Haley's brother.

Andy looked straight at him, seeming to read his mind. "Sam only said to save you." He remarked idly, and Dean bared his teeth at him.

"I'm not going anywhere without them." He insisted.

Andy sighed. Taking Chris's other shoulder, he hoisted him up easily, despite the fact that the kid had several inches on him. He handed Dean a flair gun.

"Hope you aim's as good as Sam's." He said lightly, and Dean grinned at him, a dare devil smile.

"Who the hell do you think taught him to shoot?" He retorted.

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It wasn't long before John segued into using blades dipped in holy water on the captive demon, and Max settled in for a long night.

He considered appearing and pointing out to John that the demon would have talked by now, if it knew any of the information John was demanding.

No demon weak enough for a lone hunter to catch singlehandedly would be strong enough to withstand the torture John had already put it through.

Demons weren't particularly loyal, not the minor ones anyway. This one would have already sold out Azazel if she could.

But at least it kept John occupied, and Max pulled out his crossword, wishing Lily were there to do it with him.

It was two hours later when the demon finally gibbered something of interest to John and Max, who perked up from where he had hidden in the shadows of the rafters.

"I don't know where Azazel is, but I know who he's hunting!" It laughed a little, the pain dancing along it's nerve endings making it slightly manic.

"The Boy King escaped, and Azazel is furious. Untold rewards for the demon that returns Azazel's toys to him..." It babbled on, sometime switching between Latin, and Enor'kaet, the bastardized version of Enochian particular to hell, often simply referred to as Hellspeak.

John was having trouble following the demon's ramblings, but he paused when he managed to translate the Latin phrase "Boy King".

"Who is he hunting?" Winchester demanded, his voice burning with a cold that reminded Max of

Hell, and he froze where he sat, every nerve tingling as he waited for the demon to reply.

"The Seven have escaped." It replied, laughing. "The King of Hell hunts the Boy Prodigy. Sam Winchester is free, and the King of Hell wants him back."

Well, Max thought sourly, things just got a little more interesting.