"Wait one goddamn minute here," Dean roars, making Charlie jump and the others turn to face him. "I think I need to know what's going on. No more telling me to read the book. Someone catch me up with the Cliff notes version, now!" Day four of having no memories, that's all this is. Dean's innocence of the situation may kill him, and his ignorance could get him, or them, killed. So Sam makes an executive decision after staring intently at his brother.
"Dean, man. We don't have time to bring you up to speed or work on fixing you right now. We have a more immediate problem." Sam draws himself to his full height, an impressively big man even as gaunt as his sickness has made him, but he really should know better than to try to loom over Dean because Dean is intrinsically a fighter. It's not all learned skill from their father's training. Towering over Dean to intimidate him just makes him dig in his heels and set his jaw. He'll go down fighting.
Fortunately, Castiel recognizes the blind spot in both Winchesters (each other), and he steps in before they come to blows. "We are in no immediate danger as long as we stay inside and the food holds out. Fortunately when I awoke earlier today, I went to the store and resupplied us. There is no need to panic." Cas feels good about the fact that he took the debit card and shopping list and walked to the convenience store before anyone else was awake this morning. Without his powers, he frequently feels useless.
Of course, Cas is also kicking himself for not knowing Dean was outside around the back of the bunker when he returned from the store. It's hard to protect someone if you don't know where they are, he tells himself. Instead of assuming Dean was still asleep, he should have checked.
"Ha!" Kevin's angry exclamation redirects the brothers staring contest. "We're surrounded by angels and demons -and you're worried about food? I just…" He nervously runs his hands through his hair. "I just really gotta wonder about your priorities, Cas."
"It's a strategy game, Kev. Like Civilization 3." The three older guys turn puzzled faces to Charlie as she addresses the young prophet. "We're in an impregnable base with enemy forces arrayed against us. As long as our food, water, and barricade hold out, we're safe inside. So, chill, dude. Let's let them figure out who our allies are and how to get word to them."
Before they met Charlie, neither of the Winchesters thought gaming was a way to learn strategy. Instead the planning and preparation of a confrontation was drilled into them by their father, and, as was usual, Dean took it more to heart. Before Charlie met the Winchesters, strategy was a game. She was happy that her background allowed her to explain things to Kevin in a way the young man could understand and not be overwhelmed with.
"Do we have allies?" Kevin asks, and that's the gist of the problem.
Sam grinds his teeth, trying to stay composed. He needs Kevin to drop the subject because he is convinced it will be easier to gain Dean's cooperation that way. He needs to be their unquestioned leader right now, but he doesn't want to act like a drill sergeant like their father had. "Kevin, you and Dean are non-combatants unless it gets really hairy. Okay, so, here's what we are going to do right now. Kevin, you take Dean into another room and give him the condensed version of his life. Don't make things up. If you don't know, say so, and jot it down. I'll answer that later." He waits until Kevin and Dean nod agreement.
"Charlie, I promise I am not being sexist, but would you go figure out something easy to eat for all of us. We can't just graze through the food in case this takes a while. From now until we finish this, we eat only at mealtimes. So, Charlie try to figure out how many days we can hold out too, okay?" Sam gestures between him and Cas. "We are going to see who we know still alive who will be on our side. If that's okay with everyone, let's get to work. We'll talk again when the food's ready."
. . . . . . .
Things outside the bunker haven't been going as smoothly as the video feed to the people inside made them believe, but it is a meeting at this point - not a confrontation. Earthbound angels to a fallen angel and her minions. Inias is glad Dean escaped. Having him in their possession gave the demons an unfair advantage. After Dean made his way inside the bunker, the angels felt the warding going up, though, and it showed Inias that Castiel did not trust him. Inias frowns while he considers the implications.
Inias turns toward Juan, the oldest and highest ranking angel present. "Why have you come, brother? And what do you need of me?"
The older man turns toward the bunker, and he gestures at the three with him. "We have been following the only signal we can find. It led us here." He brushes a shaking hand through his dark hair. "We can tell that Castiel is here though too. And that man, that man is the Righteous Man, is he not?"
Inias is not used to being turned to by an angel of higher rank. Angels have an established hierarchy, but that has been thrown into chaos over the past few years. First there was the split among the angels about the aborted Apocalypse, and then the death or disappearance of all the Archangels except one. Castiel played a role in that. And then Raphael, the sole remaining Archangel, and Castiel, a Seraph, went to war. The Civil War in Heaven caused a terrible rift and hoards of angels died fighting for one side or the other. When Castiel won by becoming immensely strong on souls stolen from Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory, he had slaughtered every surviving angel from Raphael's army. Every death was broadcast on angel radio and the loss of their brothers and sisters traumatized the remaining angels. Deaths are messy and problematic; angels like order and structure.
Instead of fixing Heaven while he had the power, Castiel concentrated on Earth. Inside Heaven, power struggles erupted and Naomi's group of black ops angels were the best organized. A organization that once was rarely used, Naomi's group surged into the gap left when the garrisons were decimated. When Castiel lost his power and released the Leviathan, the angels thought he was dead again. Castiel resurrection again proved to them that God was not dead.
Three times their Father has brought Castiel back, but this time Castiel – in completing the ritual for Metatron – was turned into a human. And this time the Father is not interfering. God isn't taking care of his angels; he is not returning them to their home; and he is not punishing Metatron. The angels are homeless, angry, splintered, and roaming Earth. Their elder sister, one of the original fallen angels stands before them as both a comfort and a warning. Angels can live cut off from heaven, but as time passes, they will become like Abaddon.
Juan gazes at the Knight of Hell with fearful eyes. He remembers her being thrown from their home, and he is afraid of her. "Abaddon." He struggles to find words. "Sister? Why do you bring hellspawn to the place of the prophet?"
The current reigning monarch of Hell laughs mirthlessly. "Juan, sisters, I thought never to see you again unless Lucifer ascended. I think we need to talk. We do not understand what is going on and who is supposed to be in charge."
Inias gestures toward the bunker. "We must plan how we are going to approach those inside this human shelter. Besides the prophet and the Righteous Man, Lucifer's true vessel is inside and our brother Castiel, who is a human now. Plus, this is the stronghold of the angelic lines, the Men of Letters. Inside is all the lore we have ever gifted the bloodlines of possible vessels to help them fight the forces of evil."
As the group outside prepares to make decisions, Abaddon sends her minions away. "No sense having you here. It's like chumming the waters." The ancient being smirks at her underlings. "Ava, you can practice some of your new techniques on Crowley. Find out everything he knows about the prophet's association with the Winchesters. Children, watch her. Hell needs to get back to normal." She tosses her tousled hair. "Standing in line, bah." She cannot help herself from muttering.
The small group's attention is immediately pulled away by snipping sounds near a small copse of trees that run along a dry creek bed, and all but Abaddon breath a sigh of relief. The angel Joshua – the keeper of the garden and God's closest friend - is quietly puning away dead branches, humming a hymn under his breath. Something in the sudden silence alerts the angel, and he turns towards them slowly.
"Welcome my brothers and sisters. I am happy you remembered the meeting place. Now that I have your attention, I think we need to talk."