CHAPTER 20 – STAIRWAY TO HELL
~SOUNDTRACK: Jeff Beck – Live in the dark~
Bathing in blood had been, hands down, the grossest thing Emma had ever done. She had needed about a dozen showers afterwards, and she still hadn't been able to wash off the rotten smell of the blood of those hell hounds. But there was no time for lingering over how dirty her skin still felt, even though she was still sore in some places from how hard she'd rubbed them off.
No, there was not much time for anything else. Tommy Smith was down in hell, and she couldn't even begin to fathom the idea of a ten-year old undergoing the torture this Crowley had in stock. Her second trial consisted of freeing an innocent soul from hell. Emma couldn't think of a soul more innocent than that sweet little innocent boy who'd opened the door for them only yesterday.
"Hey," Dean's voice from the driver's seat brought Emma from her reverie. "You good there, short stuff? Feeling funny yet?"
Emma sighed. They were on their way to that portal that led to hell and went through purgatory, since they couldn't afford sparing too much time on technicalities. Seeing as she had to put up with three overprotective jackasses, she had had to agree to Melody coming along, since she and Dean were fairly accustomed to the sights. There had been an argument about who got to come along, which her sister and her boyfriend settled like adults. Playing rock, paper, scissors. The Bennett sisters in action, just like old times, Mel had said. But throughout the rush and the adrenaline from the hell hound thing and rushing straight into the second trial, Emma hadn't even paused to think whether she felt any differently.
"A bit, I guessed," she answered after a few seconds of silence. "I can't really explain it, but it's like the little angel grace that has been dormant so far is getting a bit tingly. I'm good, save for feeling like I just chugged down a few vodka shots."
"That's good," Sam hurried to reassure her. "It means the grace is working to heal you already. The trials are supposed to alter the structure of the souls, and I remember I felt it pretty rough throughout them. If you're hanging tight, then we were more right about your odds than we thought."
Melody rolled her eyes playfully. "Now say that again, but try to make it sound less morbid."
Emma mustered a chuckle. Well, Sam did try, but there was no making this less morbid. And as reassuring that angel grace hum felt within her, she couldn't shake off this feeling that they were going on a limb here. There was no way to tell what her odds truly were, there was only hoping for the best, and even though none of them wanted to acknowledge it out loud, it was clear by the tension in all of their shoulders that each one of them knew it.
In no time, they all stood in front of the door that led to purgatory, where Jace waited for them, since they needed someone to carry them there in the absence of a reaper. He'd been reluctant to offer his help, but eventually, Jace had agreed to help. And, surprisingly enough, the hostile look exchange between him and Sam that usually suggested they wanted to rip each other to pieces never happened. Melody nearly choked from shock.
"You just can't resist getting into trouble, can ya, angel boy?" Melody teased him, and he offered back a crooked smile.
"Maybe I just can't stay away from you," he replied, and she playfully glared at him, chuckling. She was even more shocked when Sam didn't huff and puff and growl at Jace for the flirty remark.
"It's great seeing you again, Jace," Emma cut in. "Every help we can get is appreciated."
Jace clicked his tongue. "Well, if I couldn't talk you out of it, might as well lend a hand and help you not die."
"So generous," Dean mumbled under his breath and Emma elbowed him in the ribs.
"Shall we, ladies?" Jace clapped his hands once, and Emma and Mel held their breaths. Emma from anxiety. She didn't know what awaited her behind this door and how she would face up hell. Melody from excitement and anticipation. Oh, how she loved the rush and the raw energy that killing in purgatory provided.
Sam and Dean stayed behind. Jace took their hands and the door opened. A minute later, they stood in purgatory.
~SOUNDTRACK: Blues Saraceno – The River~
Emma hated it down here. It was too quiet and she could hear the frantic beatings of her heart ringing loud in her ears. The sound of ragged breathing felt like a beacon in the depth of these woods. She felt exposed and she felt vulnerable to threats, the grace humming inside her in anticipation. She felt them lurking and she felt their presence hanging heavily in the air around her. She let out a shaky breath and Melody turned to her with a wicked grin plastered on her face.
"Nice, huh?" her sister clicked her tongue, and Emma's eyebrows rose.
"It's giving me the creeps," she admitted, but Melody's smile only widened.
"I know, right? It's awesome." She noticed Emma's shocked stare and chuckled. "It's okay, Ems. You're too nice for this place. Too pure. These woods are insatiable for anger and despair. I've got plenty of that."
Of course. Emma remembered talking to Dean about that. For tormented souls such as Mel and Dean, this purgatory must have provided the perfect punch bag. Melody found release in killing. Emma didn't understand, but she supposed she could accept that as a therapeutic method of coping. Who was she to judge how the people she loved moved on from what haunted them? In what concerned her, this place still gave her the creeps.
"Let's get going," she prompted, and the three of them started moving.
They moved slowly and Emma felt the small hairs at the nape of her neck rising. Leaves and branches ruffled beneath their boots and every breath they took in felt too loud. Surprisingly enough, though they moved cautiously and didn't dare take a single step out of place, no threat rose in their paths.
"How much further?" Emma inquired eventually.
"Almost there," Jace replied. "Just a little longer. I hope you have a plan, though. I still feel like it's painfully stupid, what you've got planned."
Melody snorted. "Save it, angel boy. Literally nobody cares."
"Cute," Jace mumbled under his breath.
"What my sister probably means," Emma intervened, shooting Mel a glare before she could object about how she was perfectly able to mean what she wanted to mean, "is that you've made your point once before. And we've made a call whose consequences we'll deal with. Like this kid who's stuck in hell because of his parents' stupid calls. He deserves better and I'll deliver him to it."
Jace nodded once. He did see her point. Strongly disagreed with it, but he could see it. He hadn't had the chance to spend time and connect with the elder Bennett sister, but he could now distinguish how different Emma and Melody were. They both had plenty of heart. The difference was that Melody had double the heart and the guts, and Emma had double the brains. So he couldn't help but ask again.
"What about the plan?"
Emma fell uncharacteristically quiet. She drew in a shaky breath. "You and Mel stay behind and wait for me. I'll figure something out on the spot."
Melody turned to her sister, eyes wide. "Emma, you can't figure something out on the spot. This is hell. You've gotta be prepared or else you die. You get me?"
"Yes, yes, I got you," Emma sighed loudly. "I'll be fine."
"You'd better be," Melody grabbed her elbow and whispered through gritted teeth. "Jace and I will be waiting for you here and make sure the area's clear. But Emma, if you're not back in 20, I'm coming down for you."
Emma opened her mouth to argue, but she knew there was no point in it by the way Melody clenched her jaw. Her mind was made up. So Emma simply nodded as they stood in front of the rocks under which the door to hell waited for her. She bid Jace and her sister goodbye and went through. Before they were out of ear shot, she heard them argue.
"You know there's no way I'm letting you go down there again, right?" Jace said, and Mel huffed.
"Like you could stop me. I'd love to see you try to stay in my way when it comes to saving my sister, angel boy."
Emma almost smiled. She just hoped there's be no need for that.
~SOUNDTRACK: Adam Road – If God don't follow me~
The first thing that hit Emma was the smell. Like rotten eggs, which was the sulfur from the demons, but that suddenly became the most bearable one. Rotten flesh. Burned flesh. The rusty smell of blood. Like decay.
She braced herself. The second thing that hit her was the screams. From everywhere around her, tortured souls begged for help, for release, for oblivion. She shuddered when she thought about how Melody and Dean had been like that. How those screams could've been theirs. How the smell of burned, torn apart flesh could've been theirs. She couldn't even fathom the idea that her sister and the man she loved had once sat on those racks.
She put it all away from her head and stepped forward, gripping tight the angel blade in her hand. Her whole body was shaking, but she had no doubt that, should circumstances require it, she'd be able to pull herself together and cut some demon throats. She was more than ready. She had amends to make. She had loved ones to avenge and a child to rescue.
She kept walking down the long tunnel until there were cages to her left and to her right. And in those cages, broken humans. They all sat in their corners, like scared rats, their bodies in tension and not daring to move a single muscle. It was horrifying and dehumanizing. Emma understood now, what Dean had told her about what hell had done to his soul. She understood now why he'd been so scared about forgetting his humanity. She understood now why he said that every demon had once been a human that hell had broken. If her task hadn't been fully focused on little Tommy, Emma couldn't have picked. She didn't care what some of these people had done to land in hell, as far as she was concerned, most of them were innocent souls. Who would deserve spending eternity like this?
She didn't know for how long she walked down that tunnel surrounded by cries until she found the cage she was looking for. She glimpsed at her left and stopped dead in her tracks, drawing in a shaky breath. Right there, in a cage, sat little Tommy, curled up in a corner, rocking back and forth and sobbing. His clothes were torn and there were fresh scars on his whole body. Jesus Christ. It had been less than two days since he'd been dragged down here. But in hell terms, it must have been so much more. He'd lived through way too many horrors.
Emma gripped the bars tight, until her knuckles turned white.
"Tommy? Tom? It's Emma. Do you remember me, sweetie? I was there with your parents the day… the day they took you. I'm here to save you."
Tommy didn't look up. His arms braced his knees even tighter than before and his muscles tensed.
"Go away," he said in a broken voice, and it occurred to Emma that maybe the tortures had been of this sort, too. She wondered, horrified, how many times had Tommy's parents had supposedly come for him, bathing him in false hopes, just to bring him to another round of torture with his family as tormentors.
"It's really me, Tommy," she told him softly. "Trust me. I'm here for you."
The little boy looked up, his eyes clouded and tormented. Emma's heart clenched to see him like this.
"I don't know if I should believe you," the poor kid admitted. "I don't wanna go back there. Please don't make me go back there. I'm scared. I want my mommy."
Emma bit her lip to hold in a few tears and pulled on her best encouraging face. "You're not going back there, Tommy. I'm gonna bring you to your mommy." Not entirely true, but she didn't have the time to explain the technicalities of Heaven to him. "But you need to trust me and we need to hurry, okay?"
Tommy simply blinked, seeming a bit reluctant to bear hope. "For real?"
Emma smiled. "For real?"
And before Tommy could say anything else, she pulled out her lock picker and started working on the locks of the cage. It was fairly easy, seeing as she doubted anyone was concerned about people escaping. Where would they even go? She walked inside the cage and reached for Tommy, watching him flinch away from her touch instinctively.
"It's alright, Tommy," she soothed him. "Let's get you out of here."
She caught his hand and pulled him forward, feeling his trust slowly build up. She couldn't waste any more time trying to reassure him. Her luck was bound to run out eventually and she couldn't tell for how long she'd been down here. She was sure she'd gone right past Melody's 20 minutes and she couldn't have her sister coming here again. So she kept dragging Tommy forward and she was more than grateful that he put whatever little strength he had to use and kept running.
She was almost there, by her estimations. The portal was close and the road had been pretty smooth. She allowed herself to hope she would finish the race without any trouble, that she'd finish this trial without any bumps in the road. But as soon as the glimmer of hope was bred in her soul, she knew it wouldn't be long-lived.
There'd been no warning. No sound to tip her off. No shadows. Before she could realize what was going on, a demon stepped into her path, eyes onyx black. She froze for an instant, remembering demon Dean, but she willed herself to snap out of it. Dean was healed and the demon wasn't coming back. And now Tommy's life was worth too much to afford freezing.
"Going somewhere?" the demon inquired, and Emma gripped Tom's hand tight. The poor kid looked on the verge of a breakdown. Understandable. She could tell he'd allowed himself to hope they'd get out, too, and they'd come so far only to be caught in the last moment. She could tell he thought hell had gained two prisoners instead of losing one. But Emma wouldn't let this happen.
"Home," she hissed at him. "Now get out of my way."
The demon snarled and barked a laugh at her. "Don't think so, no. There's a rack back there with your name on it."
"I don't got time for this," Emma mumbled under her breath and pulled out her angel blade. No way was she staying down here. No way was she abandoning Tommy. She'd drop any demon who stood in her way.
She was about to lounge at the demon and attack when she heard a loud bang and his whole body convulsed before he fell to the ground. Emma looked at him in confusion before raising her gaze and meeting Melody's only a few feet in front of her. Mel had her hand extended, holding a smoking gun and wearing a wicked grin plastered on her lips.
"Took your time, I see," Melody lowered the gun.
"Melody," Emma breathed, looking from Mel to the demon and to Mel again. "What are you… You shouldn't have come down here."
Melody snorted, tucking her gun away. "Please. I'm a guest of honor down here, sis."
Emma ignored the implications of that statement and the way it turned her stomach upside down, seeing as her sister didn't seem too fazed by it. Her eyes kept darting back to the demon who was still convulsing on the floor. He wasn't dead, so these weren't lethal bullets, but normal bullets didn't affect demons, either, so it must have been something in between. Melody followed her gaze and shot her sister a half grin.
"A little trick Dean taught me," she explained. "Devil's traps carved into bullets. With the trap literally inside them, makes them unable to move."
"But why?" Emma shook her head. "Why not kill him? We don't really afford showing them mercy."
"Mercy?" Mel huffed. "Hell, no. I'm just thinking ahead. You need to cure a demon for the third trial. This poor bastard should do."
"Impressive," Emma mumbled, and Mel's eyes finally fell on little Tom.
"Hey there, fella," she saluted. "Ready to get outta here?"
Tommy gulped and looked up to Emma. "Are you taking me to my mommy and daddy?"
Emma crouched in front of him quickly, knowing they were on a clock to truly break the little boy out of here. "No, Tommy. Your mommy and daddy wanted me to tell that they love you and that they're sorry. But we're not taking you to them. We're taking you somewhere so much better."
"W-Where?" his lower lip started to quiver.
"Somewhere you'll be able to spend forever with your parents, happily ever after. We're taking you to Heaven."