Chapter 10

Sarah

Opening my eyes the next morning was a chore, especially when I could blind myself to reality and pretend as though nothing had changed in the last couple years. The whoosh of the air through the vent was such a familiar sound that it nearly lulled me back to sleep. With the dank covers surrounding my waist and Lucy's even breaths to my right, it was easy to imagine that we still remained at the orphanage; Two kids, looking for a better life.

There was a hollow ache in the pit of my stomach, my body seeing past the fog of illusion that my mind was trying to press around me. My hand drifted upward, seeking to press into the flesh in an attempt to calm the throb, when my fingertips brushed the warm leather of my dagger's sheath.

Curling my fingers around the form, the hotel room rearranged itself back into it's normal state, the illusion broken. I opened my eyes, sat up, and let out a long sigh, tossing my hair back over my shoulders. Searching the ceiling for answers I knew I wouldn't find, I granted myself one glance at Lucy's slumbering form. Out of instinct, I got up slowly and silently. I laced up my boots, tossed my bomber jacket over the loose tank I wore, and left the room. The door was only just clicking shut when I reached Sam's contact on my phone and dialled.

If it was even possible, the hotel the Winchester's were staying at was in even harsher condition than ours had been. Upon further reflection, however, I could, indeed, believe it. They were the famed

Winchesters- with so many enemies looking to thwart them, one of the thousand horrible hotels would be a better option than a secure and more populated hotel.

Dean was on the phone, leaning against his car with his back towards us. Sam had been expecting us, and began to walk to our position before I'd even parked the car properly. I rolled down the window, while Lucy opened the door and stepped out.

"Alright, then. I guess we'll take her down to Bobby's. You heading to Missouri, now?"

I nodded, rubbing the bridge of my nose, "I'm already way over schedule, but I'll be up soon to come see you."

Lucy nodded, accepting the promise. "I guess you know where I'll be." With a sigh and a slight slump to her shoulders, she grabbed her bags from the back seat and made her way towards the Impala.

Sam drummed his fingers along the top of my car, and I raised an eyebrow at his worried expression. "I'm aware that you aren't too comfortable with this situation. To be frank, neither am I. I need to finish this hunt and then I'll try and get things sorted out, Sam. You know that."

The younger Winchester sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I know that."

"Good," I shifted my car into reverse, my foot resting lightly over the gas. "Sam?"

He looked at me questioningly.

"Take care of her. I'm trusting you."

"Of course-"

"-And you've got a beautiful smile, it doesn't hurt to let the world see it once every twenty four hours."

He looked down and away, grinning a little. As he stepped away from the car, I shook my head, backing up and driving away with a concerned look in the direction of Dean, whose eyebrows were knit together as though he were suffering a horrible headache.

Lucy

My eyes skimmed down the roads while I stared out the window of the Impala I'd been riding in for what seemed like an eternity. Being in the car so long, I'd begun to let my mind drift off into a sort of peaceful trance after waking up from a backseat cat nap. The drive got a little boring after a while, but I had to admit after all the chaos that took place the past few days, an opportunity to relax for a while and think was nice. In fact, I was so wrapped up in my thoughts I'd missed when Dean took a sudden turn and pulled the car into the place known as Singer Salvage Yard.

"Alright, here we are." Dean grunted, snapping my mind back to reality. I said nothing and let my curiosity guide me while I took a well needed step out of the car and got a better look. Stretching my legs, my eyes scanned this way and that. I wanted to get a good look at the place I'd supposedly be staying at for a while.

Dean didn't bother waiting around for me and went ahead to start inside. I felt Sam tap my arm and I'd turned my head to notice he'd been looking at me expectantly. "Ready?" he asked me in slight concern.

I sighed a little while looking into the opened doorway we were approaching, where Dean and an older man were sharing a brief conversation. "Yeah. Let's go." My face was hard and serious. I didn't bother to look back at the tall man now trailing behind me.

"We have a surprise." Dean drawled to Bobby and jerking his head in my direction. The scruffy man looked to me in question.

"Uh... hi," I introduced myself, slightly timid. "I'm Lucy."

"I'm Bobby." The man replied.

"Lucy here says she wants to start hunting." Dean clipped, crossing his arms and smiling bitterly to show his protest against the whole ordeal. I glared at the dirty blonde and in my sudden temperament I missed Bobby's eyebrows raise and Sam's disapproving scowl shot toward his older brother.

"Dean," Sam pressed, then relaxed his gaze back on Bobby. "She's a good friend of Sarah's. She got caught up in a bad situation and needs somewhere to stay under protection-"

"I can speak for myself." I snapped suddenly.

Bobby raised a hand. "Alright everyone shut it!" The older man in the rugged ball cap then brought his voice to a softer level and brought his attention on me. "How 'bout you come inside and tell me the story."

I nodded. "That'd be great, thank you."

Without a word more, Bobby stepped aside and I let myself into the house while the two brothers followed after. It was a comfortable space, there was plenty of room to move around in. The environment was a bit dirty, but nothing some fine dusting and sweeping couldn't fix. I started further but Bobby stopped me before I could go anywhere past the door mat. "Not so fast." he told me while proceeding to pour some clear liquid on me.

"Hey, wait, what are you doing?!" I demanded, confused and alarmed.

"It's holy water." Dean stated.

"I need to go over a few things, just to make sure you're not a demon or anything else other than what you're supposed to be." Explained Bobby. I nodded in understanding and, albeit apprehensively, allowed him to do the rest. It felt a little ridiculous, standing there being poked and prodded and seasoned with salt like some ready-made pork chop, but I figured it was one of the many things I was going to have to get used to.

Shortly after he finished, Bobby led the three of us to the couch and I sat down; him stealing a seat on a chair across from me.

"So, what's going on?"

"I got attacked by a demon." I stated bluntly. "I have no idea why, as far as I'm aware I'd never mixed myself up in crazy satanic crap before so I really don't understand why one barged in my apartment trying to kill me." I wiped my hands on my pants while I let Bobby process the information.

"In any case, it happened. And my friend Sarah saved my ass and drove me miles away. I met these two," my hands gestured to either side of me, where Sam and Dean stood behind the couch. "And now here we are."

Bobby nodded. "Alright, and I'm guessing you need a place to stay?"

"Sarah was talking to me about how Lucy had nowhere to go," Sam joined in. "And she had to make sure she was somewhere she could be well protected. She told me that there was no way she would be safe at her apartment, seeing as it's too small, and Sarah's almost never home. So I suggested here, since you always have spare rooms, and you rarely leave the property. That way someone else will be around to watch her."

"I, er, I hope it isn't too much to ask of you..." I fiddled with my hair nervously.

"Of course it ain't no trouble." Bobby scoffed with a wave of his hand. "I sure as hell wont let an innocent life get hurt by some black-eyed bastards just 'cause they felt like screwing around. You can stay here under my watch 'till we figure out your problem."

"She might end up staying here longer than you think, Bobby." Dean informed.

The older man's face crinkled in confusion for a brief moment before remembering Dean's previous words said to him at the door. I felt Bobby's gaze back on me. "You want to start hunting." He said it more like a statement than a question.

"Yeah, I do." I said with confidence. I didn't care how foolish Dean or Sam or Bobby may have thought it was.

"You do realize the danger that comes with a job, a lifestyle like this? You'll be surrounded by a heap ton of other demons like that, and many other dangerous things, day in and day out." Bobby's serious gaze bored into mine. "Are you sure that's something you want to commit to?"

I nodded firmly. "Yes. I don't want to be useless and slow you all down. I'd rather learn to fight until I've worked up enough skill to protect myself." My eyes then pressed hard into Dean's challenging green ones. "I can't hide here forever, and I can't rely on you guys to be my heroes every time something like this happens. And I know there will be a next time."

There was a long, agonizing silence while my reply took all three of the men by surprise. Finally, Bobby's jaw slackened. "...Alright, fine."

Dean's eyes gaped, with outrage or concern, I couldn't quite tell. "Bobby, that's-"

"It's her decision, boy. Now shut it."

I had to hold back a smug giggle threatening to bubble in my chest while I watched Dean huff and cross his arms like a child. I liked Bobby's attitude. "Thank you for understanding."

"There's lots of space outside for you to practice in. I don't think it'll be a problem." Bobby stood up and I did the same. "Sam," he called. "You'll train her up."

The tall brunette looked in protest. "What? Bobby, I'm busy. I'll be out on the road too much! Why can't you do it? You're here."

"You're in better shape than I am. Besides..." the scruffy man turned cold and his voice grew low. "With the choices you've been making, you could use a little extra responsibility."

I witnessed as the two men stared each other off, and Dean watching both of them, his gaze pressed just as hard. I was almost overwhelmed by the amount of tension flowing through the mere five second awkward silence before Sam cut it off and walked away somewhere, Dean following after him. Bobby looked back to me and for that moment, things seemed to drift back to normal again.

"I'll show you to your room."

Sarah

Gabe. I don't know what I said wrong. Maybe it was something I did, I wouldn't know, and you still haven't been around to clarify... I'm heading up to Wisconsin, to investigate that seal. Somebody went after Lucy, and I've sent her safely to Bobby Singer's house. I thought it was important that you know.

I dropped my clasped down to my lap, opening my eyes and shrugging at nothing in particular. It wasn't as though the infamous angel was going to show up and explain himself. This time wasn't any more exceptional than the last three times I'd taken my time to try and coax him out of the dark. A rouge archangel wasn't exactly the greatest of my problems at the moment, anyhow.

I'd been outside the border of Rhineland, stopping for a bite to eat, when I heard my first general report on the situation from an old TV, poised on a shelf above the cashier's head. It seemed that the wreckage that demons often left in their path had been kept on the down low, a spike of murders being the only indication that demons were attacking vessels and claiming bodies as their own. These occurrences had happened all over the state, however, and for a moment I'd wondered why-

-Until I saw the pictures of the missing men and noticed they were all huge, muscular- hard to take down even as humans without proper training- men. Obviously, they were expecting unwanted company.

I briefly debated calling in another contact to partner up with me for extra protection. Assuming, given my lateness, that there were other hunters gathering in the area, I shrugged the thought off. Besides, it was difficult to believe they'd be in town before the eye of the storm descended upon the state. The police station was an awful destination to investigate first, they wouldn't have a handle on the situation regarding the dam, they'd be more concerned with the disappearances, and I hadn't a doubt of where I'd find the missing men. So as I got into town, I followed directions to the neighbourhoods that were positioned nearest to the waterline: The area where Jack Finnigan lived.

The wind was high in this part of the state, the temperature in the negatives and dropping the closer I travelled towards the water. When I found the address I was looking for, early in the morning on a Saturday, out of common courtesy I debated letting Jack sleep a while longer. After a moment of internal debate I wagered that we didn't have time to sleep away, if he was sleeping at all. Hunters normally don't. The vastness of the bodies of water I passed, and the nearness of the town to the river, made me uneasy as I weighed the consequences suffered if I didn't get the demons safely away from the dam. This town was a danger zone.

As I walked up to the door, a little girl skipped out of the house next door and laid down on the grass outside of her house, giggling gleefully. The sun shone on her burgundy hair, and her smile was wide an infectious, unable to lose its shine even as her Mother gave her trouble for squashing her backpack into the muddy ground beneath her. As the girl sat up, she turned slightly and saw me. I raised my hand and smiled, waving a little.

"Hi," I greeted softly.

"Hello! I'm going to school!" She responded happily.

"Oh?" I answered, "Well, I hope you have a good time."

"C'mon, sweetheart," Her mother cupped a gentle hand on the back of her daughter's head, directing her towards their small minivan. She smiled at me, "Sorry about that."

I shrugged, "Oh, it's no problem. Have a good day."

"You too." She sang, slipping into the driver's seat and starting the vehicle. I smiled to myself, then rapped my knuckles against the front door of Jack Finnigan's house.

A muffled voice sounded from within, which I assumed was telling me they'd be there in a second, so I waited patiently, tapping my foot.

The air was calming through my hair, and I heard the sounds of cars on the main road down the street, followed by the rumbling of the many cars travelling along the freeway. It smelled like apples, and I found the source when I noticed a small cluster of crab apple trees in the neighbors backyard.

I turned around and caught an arm that was centimeters from touching my shoulder. "Woah! Woah, woah, woah. Heya, I'm Jack, you're Sarah, Rufus told me you were coming here, don't stab me."

Relaxing infinitesimally, I smoothed out the curve of my fingers, hovering over the handle of my dagger. I lifted my chin, brushing long, curly blond strands behind my ear, noting my hair was getting irritatingly long. "You startled me."

"Yeah, sorry. I hadn't guessed that you'd be a trained hunter. Figured you would've been the research type." He laughed good naturedly.

I raised an eyebrow, "Why? Cause I'm a girl?"

Jack laughed even harder. "I've had my ass whooped by many female hunters. You're just more well mannered than the ones I've met up until now. And smaller."

"I'm fast, though."

"As you succeeded in demonstrating."

I grinned, holding out my hand for him to grasp and shake. "Nice to meet you, Finnigan."

"Likewise. Now, come inside, the front door won't budge, only the side door works." Realization dawned on me as I understood what he'd been yelling to me from behind the red oak door. Following in his footsteps and accepting his hospitality, I soon sat with a cup of tea warming my cold fingers, huddled into a soft red love seat with a white blanket draped over the back, and Jack sitting across from me, sipping gently on a steaming hot cup of black coffee.

Clearing my throat, I set my tea on the table and interlocked my fingers, resting them on my lap. "From what I gathered on the news while I was heading up here, the situation has only progressively gotten worse."

"Ah, well, a few missing bodies isn't new to me. The situation over at the dam is, however."

"It doesn't seem like anyone else has noticed anything amiss around the dam," I observed, "The situation hasn't been given any media whatsoever."

Jack shook his head. "Don't suppose they would realize. Authorities don't concern themselves with the affairs of 'a little water', when they can do more exciting rounds."

The situation was simple. It began as a few calls in sick, followed by a tremendous loss of employees. The demons hadn't executed their plan exceptionally smoothly, however, as suspicion rose immediately when, on the days that the previous workers had thrown away their jobs, a new group of workers had applied. With mild curiosity, but a greater need for employees to properly run the services, they were hired. Jack, as the previous manager, decided to call in the authorities when the workers tried to overthrow him. When they succeeded and he lost tabs on the situation without any help from the police, he called in hunters. It had taken me around three days for me to get to town, after he'd been thrust out of the establishment.

"I hate to send you in there blind, but I have no other choice now. If you'd been here a few days earlier I could've offered some sort of aid."

"No, I know, and it's my fault." I agreed. "I had a small dilemma back home to take care of. When do you think I should go?"

"If security measures are the same as when I left, the shift switches at approximately seven, and very few men stay during that hour."

"The demons act in this way? Or the humans did?" I questioned, realizing the demons would probably have tighter security precautions for whatever they were planning.

Jack scratched his chin, which was painted with dark brown stubble, more outgrown than most. It was an attractive look. "Now that you mention it, I was talking about the humans, but even new employees had fallen into the pattern. Then again, maybe it was just until they managed to throw me out."

I stood up with a game plan already forming in my head. Jack stood as well, and I handed him my now empty tea cup.

"I appreciate your help," There was a strong note of relief in his voice.

"I'm glad to be of service. Wait-" I was halfway out the door, with my hair twisting in the sudden torrents of wind gusting off the nearby river when something dawned on me. "Will you be helping?"

"Oh, no, no, no! I'm merely a contact, I have nothing to do with your folk, other than knowing of your existence. Rufus helped me back in the day, yknow. Anyways, I'm not in this business, and I'd like to keep it that way." His eyes darted around his yard quickly, as though expecting someone to be spying on us and taking notes. "Goodbye, now!" He closed the door with a quick snap, and I heard him climb the stairs to his living room quickly.

Wariness spread through my head, and my fingers immediately rose to rub small circles into my temple. There was too much weighing on my shoulders, and every minute was important at this point, sleep wasn't an option.

"Bye, then," I grumbled in the direction of the door, turning and heading for my car.

Lucy

"It ain't much, but it's got what you need."

I let myself in, looking around the room briefly. It had a small bed which lay under a window, a side table... the basics. Despite what Bobby said, it looked cozy. I shot a grateful look towards the man. "Thank you for letting me stay here."

"Don't worry about it. You'll be here a long time, so consider this room now yours. Now if you need anything, gimme a holler."

I watched him disappear to some other part of the house and closed the door, leaning against it and taking a deep breath. It felt good to be alone again. Alone and safe, in a place where I know help is just a few steps away. I walked over to the bed and flung my messenger bag onto it, already feeling ten pounds lighter now that the extra weight was off of me.

I explored the room a little further, running my hand on the window sills and other flat surfaces and quickly grimacing at all the dust build up. Clearly no one had been using this bedroom for a long time. I'd quickly made a mental note to clean this house up later myself. After I was familiar enough with the surroundings, I slipped out the room and gently padded my feet down the hall to take a look at other parts of the house.

I'd stopped abruptly as I got closer to the other end of the hall, after overhearing a couple of men speaking in harsh whispers. Quickly, I'd sunken into the side of the wall to avoid being seen.

"Dean, you're over reacting."

"I'm over reacting?! Have you and Bobby lost your heads? This is crazy!"

My fingers tensed on the walls.

"Look, I don't think it's the smartest thing to do either, but..."

"I can't believe you..."

"You heard what Sarah said-"

"I heard, and she shouldn't have agreed with her friends insane 'save the day' plan."

"So you'd rather have left her behind?"

"Sam, it was a mistake to bring her here."

I didn't hear what Sam replied with next, and I wasn't aware of how loud the front door slammed behind me while I rushed out in an angered frenzy as far as my feet would take me.

Sarah

The smell of books, old and new, and lemon surface cleaner clung lightly to every surface, rising whenever I shifted my weight, twisting and turning the maps of the towers on either side of the dam. The layout was quite simple, actually, all rounded out all the way up. Even the staircases spiralled upwards. My problem lay with the fact that, due to this simplistic set up, hiding places were limited. Three other maps were folded up to my left, discarded as useless on my journey to discover any hidden systems that I could use to move through the establishment. I had another two hours to find something, before I had to make the half hour drive down to the towers. I'd decided to take the route to the dam on the side of the river that was inside Rhineland, as the drive was faster, and it had a more secure hold on the greatest rush of water. If something went wrong, I could at least save a greater majority, and stop the brunt of the damage.

I was scanning sewer systems, searching for a way up and inside, when my phone buzzed in my pocket. My mind was so busy that I didn't think to check the caller ID before answering and pressing the phone to my ear, tilting my head to hold in steady against my boney shoulder. "Hello?"

"Sarah? Are you in Missouri?" I lifted my head, holding the phone myself, and set the papers aside.

"Yes, why? What's wrong?" It wasn't like Rufus to get straight to business, not unless something was happening in the here and now.

"The news has something on the dam, they're shifting the water currents into the dam. The authorities involved themselves when they noticed it wasn't an exercise and, upon entering to ask questions, no officers came back out safely. The police station is on the other side of town, I don't think they'll get on the scene fast enough."

"I'm at the library, I can be at the dam in half an hour. It should hold, even with the power of that much water, the structure is strong." Maps abandoned, I was pushing the doors at the front entrance of the library open by the time Rufus answered.

A sharp snap was heard in the background of the call, which I recognized as the sound of Rufus' laptop closing. "Is anybody working this case with you?"

I hesitated with my keys jammed into the ignition, "No." I responded quietly, before twisting the metal, which chattered together as the engine roared to life.

"What- you can't go in there alone! No, there's no way! You get out of that town, that seal is lost."

I scoffed, "I'm not letting these people die!"

"The authorities are already on it, Sarah! This is a suicide mission!"

Even as he continued to scold me on the danger I was thrusting myself within, the faces of Jack, of the small child and her mother, and the soft voiced librarian that had greeted me at the doorway skipped through my mind, and I knew I had to try and do better by these people, even if it was just warning as many as I could before evacuation was no longer an option.

"I have to do something," I voiced aloud, "I need to do what I can before I leave."

"Sarah-"

I smiled, "Don't you trust me?"

The line disconnected, and I could almost hear Rufus cursing. I stepped on the gas, heading into town.

There was no visible signs of the impending doom that hung over the town as I sped through the streets, and I finally decided that yelling at people wasn't going to resolve anything. At the most, they'd think I was just another lunatic prophecising the end of the world. The thought made me want to laugh. I suppose I was just another idiot with an unfortunate gift for knowing disaster before it inevitably struck.

No, I knew what I had to do. And I'd have to get to the heart of the demons' operation to truly make any difference.

Under cover of darkness, thrown over the parking lot by a line of willow trees, I parked my car and crept out. Popping the trunk open softly, I slipped my hand into a secret patch of fabric, not unlike the rest of the flooring to my trunk, and grabbed my pistol. Normally, the weapon wasn't necessary- I had my dagger, and my stealth on my side. In such an enclosed space, with no escape, I knew that my usual technique would be useless. My only option was to head in, see how far I could get in and, upon detection, blow a hole through enemy lines, pull the siren switch in the control room and get as far from the dam as I possibly could before the water rushed over the town.

The trunk thumped closed, and I slipped the gun into the waistband of my jeans, along the line of my spine, the cold metal sharpening my focus on what I was about to do.

I angled my way around the building, watching for windows, until I saw the metal bars that guarded the sewage system. As I expected, it hadn't been well kept, and some of the bars were rusty beyond repair. Above the passage was a window, through which I could see a group of men standing. Two had their back to the window, one was sideways with his focus off to something in front of him, but I still risked him seeing my form out of the corner of his eye.

I looked at the curved wall, where above there were no windows. It didn't take me long to deduct that travelling there, pressing myself against the wall and slipping over to the grate was a more compromising idea. I was going to have to sprint and pray I wasn't noticed.

Crouching, I jammed the heel of my right boot into the muddy ground, searching for sufficient leverage to hurl me forward. Although slippery, I decided the momentum would suffice, and planted my left foot, eyeing the men through the branches of a low growing oak tree. I could see the man on the far left shake his head, pointing at something. The other man's shoulders shook, as though he were laughing, and the man with his shoulder to the window grinned. He opened his mouth, to smile or to say something, and I tensed.

When his lips began to form the first word, joining into the conversation and distracted from his view outside, I heaved forward one step, pressing the toes of my right foot into the ground and skipping forward lightly on my foot. I was moving so fast that by the time I got to the wall, I slammed into the stone and scratched my chin on the hard surface.

I refused to breath for a second, listening only to the sound coming from above me through the window, although they were muffled. When I heard another laugh, chills ran down my spine as air returned to my lungs, a strange combination. I moved back as far as I could without being able to see the men through the glass, so as to be able that they couldn't see me. I knew they'd hear what I was about to do next, it was just a matter of how quickly it took the demons to talk amidst each other and spread the news of a traitor in their forge that decided how long I had for a stealthy approach.

Supporting myself with my left foot in the circle a grate had previously dug into the ground before the bottom had torn out of the foundation, which now hung limply to the right, I lifted my right thigh up to my chest and slammed the bottom of my foot into the rustiest pipe, which gaze with a snap and a showering of burgundy sprinkles into the murky water below. I was able to slip through without much difficulty and, crouching so as to not hit the low ceiling, half jogged into the centre of the tunnel and lifted my head.

There, right as I'd seen in the map, was a row of evenly spaces metal rungs that lead up into the third floor washrooms. The ladder had been made as an escape route, in case of emergency.

I unsheathed my knife, holding the hilt of the dagger between my teeth, and crouched, springing myself upward to grab hold of the first rung. Thankfully the metal was stronger, untouched by water like the outside guards had been, and I was able to grab the second one and settle the weight of both my feet onto the first rung without difficulty. I stood, pressing my palms into the sixth so my body wasn't so squashed inwards, and climbed.

It wasn't until I was three quarters of the way to the vent that served as an emergency door that I heard voices bellowing at the guarder. I was much smaller than the vessels that had been used to patrol the towers, so I knew I still had precious minutes to get out of their sight. Once I was inside, they'd have to get to the second floor by travelling around the entire tower and climbing two flights of stairs.

I scrambled upwards. My right foot slipped briefly on a step, and my leg suspended in air for a second before I managed to secure myself once again, only squealing softly in terror around the hilt of my knife, and caught my breath quickly. The rung my feet were planted on was slippery, and I'd have to use one of my hands to unbolt the screws that held the grate in place from the outside. I took a calming breath, and loosened the fingers of my right hand from around the top rung, grabbing my knife, chest heaving gently. I tried not to move my legs as I leaned in and dug the sharp point of my dagger into the crevice of the screw and turned. To my relief it came loose fairly easily. It clattered into the water below, but the men were too busy trying to bust the other rods that formed the guarder in place to notice the small intrusion.

Another screw was loose in a matter of seconds, and then I had to reach up to get the top corners. I was too small to reach them without either stepping up and cramming my body into the tight space, or shifting to stand on my toes on the rung that was dangerously slippery.

I was still quickly debating what to do when I heard a bone chilling snap at the end of the hall, and I knew the men would be in soon. Looking at the panel with the bottom loose, I went out on a whim and hooked the fingers of my right hand under the cold metal and pressed my palm hard into the bottom.

I nearly screamed in success when the panel let off. One of the demons, armed with a gun, stood beneath me in a pose that indicated he was ready to fire, until the rectangular metal came into contact with his nose and knocked him out cold. Upon hearing other footsteps approaching, I slipped myself easily into the vent, using my arms to army crawl forward, my dagger between my teeth again. I could see light through the panel at the other end of the vent, and quickly unscrewed the bottom half, thrusting forward with both of my palms and shivering at the sound of the box clattering on the ground.

Third floor, I was on the third floor and ready for the inevitable swarm of demons that would be entering where I'd just entered: The washroom attached to the control panel by one entrance.

I raced forward, sliding between a garbage can and the door, holding my knife in a white knuckled fist. There was shouting before the door opened, and three demons poured in. Burying my knife in the nearest man's shoulder, I had slashed the stomach of the second demon's throat and combined their blood before the third had even caught sight of me. My hand slipped around the handle of my pistol and clicked off the safety before it was held properly in front of me. I fired without really thinking about aiming, and the bullet connected with the side of his skull, blood splattering the wall, and the man clutched at his ear even as the demon vacated the host. It was only upon further inspection that I noticed the slash wounds that raged across the bodies of the three wounded men. The 'meatsuits' were already dead. They were only demons now.

I was relieved. Now I could eliminate the targets without harming any people. A weight I'd been unaware of lifted off my subconscious.

Sidestepping into a different hiding spot- in a middle stall- I was well aware that the demons would be stupid enough to storm into the room over the corpses of their fallen brothers. I lifted my black coat sleeve, revealing a black hairband, and hurriedly tied my frustratingly long, curly blond locks into a simple pony at the base of my skull. I was back in a fighting stance before the next two body guards came in. I peered at them from in my hideout, as they slowly crept around the bodies I'd left sprawled on the floor.

A third one caused a sharp gasp to escape my throat, appearing right at the crack in the stall I was peering through. I shot him in the chest when he turned to see where the noise had come from, and threw myself at the next nearest one, knocking us both into the sinks. He spun me around with a grip on my shoulders, and very nearly caught my wrist, dooming me on the spot, before I thrust my foot up between his legs. Demon or no, being kicked where the sun doesn't shine still hurts. I spread my fingers, thrusting them upwards, and caught him right in the eye. He hollered, stepping back into the control room, and I stabbed him in the heart without blinking.

In the midst of bolting upward, a crack resonated in the air, and I wobbled uneasily on my calf. Fire spread through the limb, and I stumbled as I yelped in pain.

There were two other men in the room, and I had no intention of going down without a fight, especially not now that I was so close to success.

"Die, you hunter piece of shit." The demon that shot me seethed, smiling wickedly and lifting his gun again.

His ego was what destroyed him. Taking the time to grin devilishly gave me more than enough time to lift my gun and fire before him. As his body was thrown back with the force of the bullet that passed through his chest, his arms flung upwards uselessly, and even as he squeezed the trigger the shot merely hit the ceiling, sending white dust raining downwards.

I hid behind a contraption in the centre of the room, what looked like the energy source with special computer programming controls. The man on the other side of the room paused, and there was no other sound but my panting breaths. I listened closely, and heard a footstep to the right, so I took a silent one to the left. Another to the right, and I was aware that he was trying to circle me. I readied my gun, checking the ammunition, and resisted the urge to groan every time I moved my injured leg. I allowed myself to play his game, until I saw the lever which activated the sirens. I shimmied over slightly, then rested my fingers on the handle, hearing the last demon continuing his circling. He was closing in on me, but I was aware that my only chance would lie in this risk.

One step.

Two more.

A click of a heel that nearly brushed mine.

Slamming down the lever, a wailing scream tore through the tower. The demon jumped backwards. At his rear, I brought the gun to his head and pulled the trigger.

I'd killed six of his kin at least, and his was the only black smoke that I watched wash into the vent.

I could hear more men slamming their fists into the metal door that barricaded their path. I looked left and right, and happened to glance outside. Going through the establishment wasn't an option, I didn't have enough bullets and I'd lost my quickness to utilize closed quarter combat with my bum leg. My only options were to jump out of the window, which was a terrible idea- they'd see me on foot before I got to my car and take me out easily- or to go back down the ladder from the escape route. Either way my leg was making things a lot harder, and I found my mind going fuzzy around the edges when I felt the numbness spreading throughout the limb.

Knowing what I had to do, I forced myself back into the vent. I went feet first, so that I could place my feet properly without falling, and shimmied forwards on my elbows.

When my heels left hard ground and dangled, I moved as far onto my side as the small structure would allow, settling my good foot on a rung. Without the ability to place my other foot securely, and feeling even more blood flooding from the wound, making my dizzy, I took this opportunity to squeeze myself up into a ball, getting my hands secure on the top rung, I shifted uncomfortably, and let my weight hang for a second, with my hands supporting me, before I managed to hop my good foot another rung down. After another, and another, I was a bit more stretched out and able to move my hands down as well, moving like an inch worm down the later by squeezing up and then stretching out as fast as I could.

Until my hands found the slippery rung and, as I let my weight hang, my grip left the structure. With only a minute of reaction time and a fourteen foot drop beneath me, I screamed.

I heard my impact before I felt it, with a raw rub against my deadened leg and a searing throb through my muscles. I groaned, shifting and sobbing thickly. I didn't want to move anymore. This was too much. Too much pain, too much distance to my car, too many guards that still roamed, here and across the river.

Don't you trust me? I'd asked Rufus as I'd hung up the phone. As angry at my idiocy as he'd been, I knew he did. I knew he trusted me. I had to get through this and prove that his trust was well placed. I needed to make sure that Lucy adapted well and was okay.

Taking a breath, I reminded myself that there could be no rest. Not while so much loomed over our heads; my head.

With shaking arms, I heaved myself off the ground. I crawled to the guarder. I stumbled to my feet.

I limped under cover of trees, tears streaking down my face, my teeth attached so tightly to my lower lip that I felt warmth mix with the sweat on my face, both from exertion and pain.

Voices bellowed from the window upstairs to someone closer to the ground level. The siren's wailing drowned out most noise, but my heart beat and harsh breaths were thundering in my ears.

I was moving slowly, but at least I was moving. Someone's shadow raced towards me, I could see it in the lights that had turned on due to the dusk hours, and I turned and fired two shots into their chest- the last of my bullets.

My hands met the warm hood of my car, and I wondered when they'd gotten so cold. As soon as I yanked the door open, I pulled in my limp leg and set the other between the two pedals. I jammed my keys into the ignition, shifted gears, and stepped on the gas as fast as I could, my wheels spinning out as I escaped down the road.

At least six other demons fired at my car as I roared off, but no bullets connected successfully enough to do real damage.

As scatterbrained as I was in that moment, I held one clear thought as I fired my way past stop signs and tried to escape the danger zone:

Had people listened? How many were evacuated safely?

If I hadn't already been crying, I'd probably have begun bawling when I saw the ghost town I'd left in my wake. The siren's song was beautiful, and I allowed myself to rest, knowing that even if I hadn't protected a seal, I had saved innocent lives.

I got to mid town when I heard the rushing water behind me. The ground quaked, my car along with it, the reverberations of a disastrous wave a distant promise on the horizon.

Imagine the crushing weight of confusion and defeat that coursed down upon me when I noticed the massive, tsunami wave heading towards me from the north. Slamming my brakes and spinning around, my world shattered around me.

There were two waves. They'd broken more than one dam, and the demons had to be using their aquakinesis to manipulate the water to such impossible means, this much water would've have flooded otherwise. It was being risen, to stretch over the town, to submerge everything in water.

This was the great flood all over again. There was no escape.

I got out of the car, moving around it slowly, and sat softly on the trunk, folding my hands and resting them on my lap. The shaking sobs that made my breathing tremble every time I exhaled slowed, and stopped, as did the tears that had cascaded down my cheeks without break. I looked up at the sky, ignoring the waves on either side, and examined the colours which streaked across the pink sky. My hands trembled as the intensity of the shaking beneath my feet increased, and I clenched them tighter together.

I closed my eyes. I remember, when I was younger, being told that when you die, your life supposedly flashes before your eyes. Well, I agree to disagree. Because as I closed my eyes, it wasn't memories of school, or college, or hunting, or my old home that passed through my mind. With vivid intensity, it was the people who made life worth living that lingered there.

I'm so sorry, I whispered, seeing Lucy, and Rufus, and Gabriel in my mind, smiling at me; promising everything would be alright.

I opened my eyes as the first traces of water began to fall on my form, the waves blocking out the last of the light.

"I love you all," I breathed out loud, as a force slammed into my stomach, sending me hurtling over the top of my car, the rubber bottoms of my shoes scrapping against the metal momentarily. I took a deep breath and held the air in my lungs as a last, fading chance to make it through this impossible seal.

Lucy

I woke to the sound of something boiling. After taking a walk around outside to cool off for a good couple of hours, I felt a good rest on the legs was needed. I realized now that I must have fallen asleep without realizing. Slowly, I'd raised myself into a sitting position on the couch and scratched my head groggily while yawning. Suddenly my attention was caught onto the feeling of something soft and woolly in my hand. I looked down, and sprawled across my legs was a small brown blanket that I didn't remember being there when I went to sleep. My lips pouted in question.

"You looked cold." I heard Bobby say. My head quickly turned the other way, where I saw him standing in the kitchen looking over whatever was on the stove. "I figured you would sleep better if I'd given you some extra warmth."

"You did this?" I ran my hand over the woolen blanket and smiled softly. "Thank you."

"No problem." the man grunted and kept his eyes awkwardly glued to what he was doing. I held in a short chuckle and suspected that acts of tenderness probably wasn't something Bobby was used to. He turned back around a few seconds after. "You hungry? I just cooked up some soup."

I nodded to him and took a look out the window. The sun was setting, signalling the start of dinner hour. I must have slept longer than I thought.

"So, um, how are you holding up? Is it comfy enough here?" Bobby asked me while I took a seat at the table near him.

"It's comfortable, yeah. You don't have to worry about me, I'm not too picky. Especially after you've gone out of your way just to let someone you barely know live under your roof."

"I already told you, it's-"

"A safety thing, I know." I finished his sentence and gratefully accepted the bowl of soup he'd handed to me. I stirred my spoon in the broth a few times before starting to eat it quietly, while Bobby stole the chair next to mine to join me at the table. His eyes pressed on mine.

"So how are you really doing?"

I hesitated for a few seconds, staring him down and then staring into my bowl and sighed. "I'm terrified, I'm upset I... I'm a lot of things." I shrugged and grinned wearily. "But it's whatever, right? I can't sit around moping and feeling sorry for myself. That wont help my situation."

"No one blames you for feeling scared, you're only human."

"I know, and I understand that. But I just... I don't want to sit around doing nothing either. It's my life, I want to be in charge of it. Living on permanent lock down isn't living. So I figure if I want to regain control over it again, the best thing to do is embrace all this bullshit that's being thrown at me and learn how to deal with it."

"Yeah, well..." Bobby sighed. "It ain't an easy life. Lots of people get hurt, including those you care about."

My lips pursed together as an image of Sarah flashed in my mind.

"And while it may not be the smartest choice... I think what you're doing is very brave."

Suddenly my face softened and I focused on the older man again. I couldn't help but crack a smile. "I'm glad somebody thinks so."

I wasn't sure why it was so easy to open up to Bobby, but something about his presence made me comfortable with sharing my thoughts to him.

"Man, this sure blows though. I was going to travel the world, meet all sorts of different people from everywhere. But now... It feels like all my hopes and dreams just got flushed down the drain for good."

Bobby chuckled a little and laid a hand on my shoulder. "Welcome to the club."

"I was going to try all kinds of different things, and make sure my life never had a dull moment." I laughed wryly and shook my head. "Well, I guess with what I'm about to get into, my life still won't be boring, in a way."

"Hey, there is an upside!" He joked and I laughed into my soup.

We spent the next little while talking about other things. I finished up the last of my soup while clutching the brown blanket I still had wrapped around my shoulders. And for the first time in a while, I finally felt like I could breathe again.

Author's Note: Hellooooo! School work hasn't exactly been piling up but it took quite a while to complete, edit, and merge this chapter into the final product. However, could there have been a better time to update with the premiere of season 10 in a few hours? I think not! Read, Favorite, and Review if it suits your fancy. Take it easy.