Hey there!
Got the final chapter finished ahead of schedule! I'm still looking for a Beta, just so you know lol. Anyway, I'll let you get right to it. I apologize for the many errors, and ...
Enjoy!
Chapter Twenty-Four:
Cage
It was two weeks after the funeral when the group came together to discuss the plan. No one was for certain if Lucifer and Michael had suspected anything, but that was on of the things they were going to talk about, among many others. Chuck was the center of attention once everyone was gathered.
"I think, we should stick to the original plan," he shrugged, "There are signs showing that Michael or Lucifer know about the Cage."
The room was silent with contemplation and after a few moments, no one spoke against the plan.
"On a different note," Ashton cleared her throat, "Someone needs to stay behind to look after Annabel."
All eyes fell on Sam and Brey, they were the only ones that did not have a crucial role with the Cage.
"No way," Brey protested, "I need to kill that witch whore, Rowena!"
He glanced at Crowley, "No offense."
"Like I give a shit about her," the demon scoffed.
Ashton looked to Sam, but he shook his head, "I need to have Dean's back, sorry."
"Well I don't know who else to call," Ashton sighed.
"Gabriel?" Dean suggested.
"He would be a great asset to the fight," Castiel interrupted.
Ash rubbed her forehead, "I can't take Annabel with me, and she can't stay here alone."
"What about Jody Mills?" Sam asked.
"Who?" Ashton frowned.
"She's a friend of ours, she's good with kids," Sam explained.
"You trust her?"
Sam nodded.
"Good enough for me," Ashton smiled, "Give her a call."
She could see Crowley shift uncomfortably, but Ash ignored it. Sam picked up his phone and called Jody, who was happy to take on the babysitting mission.
"You didn't tell her what Annabel was?" Ashton raised a brow.
"That should probably wait until you meet her," Sam said.
Ashton nodded and all eyes were on Chuck, "Are we good?"
No one said otherwise, so the consensus was that they were all good with the plans.
They spent the next three weeks getting prepared for the second battle against Lucifer and Michael. They rallied the angels and demons, went over their roles again, and made adjustments to the plan as needed. They needed to change it up, or else it would be predictable. Gabriel was a huge help. He kept the moral up and helped strength the angels. There was an extra spark among the soldiers. Even the demons seemed to have a little extra hope.
On April 18th, the army was ready for a fierce battle. Brey was steely with determination, but it wasn't just him, everyone had that look in their eyes. They were not going to lose. It was four in the morning, an hour before the battle, and Jody had arrived at the bunker. Ashton greeted her at the door with Crowley.
"Hi, sorry if I'm la-" her eyes fell on Crowley, "You!"
She reached for her gun, but Ashton stopped her, "Wait! Wait! I don't know what he did to you, but he's changed!"
The brunette narrowed her eyes, "Uh-huh, I'm doubtful."
"Please," Ashton pleaded, "He's not the sa-"
"Not the same demon that took me on a date and almost killed me?" Jody raised a brow.
Ashton turned to her fiancé with an expression that said 'are-you-serious?' She then slapped his arm, hard, and turned back to Sheriff Mills.
"I'm sorry about that, but he has changed," Ashton smiled, "I promise."
"Fine," Jody sighed, "But I don't trust the prick."
"I don't blame you," Ash sent Crowley a glare and led Jody into the bunker.
She brought the Sheriff to the library where Castiel was holding Annabel. To Ashton's surprise, the angel grew quite fond of her daughter.
"What's her name?" Jody asked in a sweet voice.
Castiel handed Annabel to Jody and wandered out of the library.
"Annabel Hope," Ashton smiled.
"What a sweet name, to such a sweet little girl," Jody's face softened.
It was quite apparent to Ashton that Jody was a mother.
"There's something you need to know about Annabel."
Jody looked at her with a slight frown, "Oh?"
"She's not human," Ashton avoided Jody's gaze.
"I have an adopted teenage daughter that was a vampire," Jody chuckled, "I can handle anything."
"She's a cambion," Ashton explained, "A human-demon hybrid. She's extremely powerful, especially since Lucifer is roaming about."
Jody's face froze on a blank expression, "O-oh."
I wasn't an unhappy "oh", but it wasn't a happy "oh" either.
"Don't worry," Ashton smiled, "She's an easy baby."
Jody nodded, but suddenly looked at Ash in shock, "So you and-" she gave a quick glance at Crowley, who had been standing there quietly.
Ashton held up her engagement ring, "Yep."
"Now I've seen it all," Jody gave a timid smile.
"Famous last words," Crowley said under his breath.
Ashton jabbed her elbow into his gut, while smiling at Jody. The two women discussed Annabel's care and before long, it was time for Ashton and Crowley to leave. They gave Annabel kisses on the forehead and thanked Jody before leaving.
Just like the time before, they waited in the desert for the two archangels to appear, and like before, they were right on time. Michael's eyes pierced through Ashton.
"Something is different," his eyes narrowed, "Where is the infant?"
"Somewhere safe," Ashton replied as Crowley sent the text message.
"We will have the child," Michael crossed his arms.
"Sometimes we don't always get what we want," Gabriel appeared with a grin, "Right, brother?"
Ashton and Crowley pulled back to where Dean and Castiel were waiting. They had to leave the fighting in the hands of their friends and allies. All they could do was help patch up the wounded and wait until Chuck gave them the signal. Gabriel was leading the angels against Lucifer, while the demons fought against Michael. It was Sam and Brey who were fighting against Rowena. They spent a lot of time tiptoeing around each other, avoiding each other's attacks.
Hours passed by like that, appearing like there were no obvious signs of slowing down. The sun moved from east to west, sending rays of heat into the desert. Sweat and blood moistened the dry earth. The sun was approaching the horizon when Chuck appeared on the battlefield. Finally, the four could play their part.
They made their way to the boulder that stuck out of the ground. When they got there, they placed their ring hands on the boulder. The circular marks gave a white glow as they removed their hands. They formed a circle around the boulder and grasped each other's hands. They all made eye contact and nodded.
"BVTMON TABGES ESIASACAHE," the four recited together.
A few metres away the ground began to crumble and fall into a dark pit. The wind began to howl as Ashton's hair whipped against her face, causing her cheeks to sting.
"Witch, close the door!" Lucifer yelled at Rowena.
They got Lucifer and Michael's attention. The redhead looked at Ashton, and their eyes met. If Rowena broke the circle, the door to the Cage would shut. She turned her back on her fight with Brey and walked towards Ashton.
"Don't turn your back on me!" Brey yelled and charged at the witch.
The tip of an angel blade stuck out of Rowena's torso. Her mouth formed a shocked 'O' as she looked over her shoulder at Brey.
"This was my favourite dress!" she screeched and with a flick of her hand Brey flew backwards.
She pulled the angel blade out of her torso and looked it over, "Thanks for the blade."
She grinned and continued towards the four ring holders. Ashton saw Brey push himself off the ground and go after Rowena again with his iron knife. As he drew near she turned around they collided. Ashton couldn't see what happened, but she could see the blood that started to fall to the ground. She watched with wide eyes, her heart pounding, as she waited to see what had happened.
Brey crumbled to his knees, his eyes wide, and the angel blade protruding from his chest. Ashton met his gaze and she instinctively squeezed the hands she was holding. Brey's face relaxed into a smile and she could see his lips form the word H-O-P-E, before he collapsed into the ground.
Ashton didn't look away and she didn't blink, as she watched Rowena pull the knife out of her chest with a pained look. She turned towards Ashton and took two slow steps, but stopped as blood poured out of her wounds. Rowena rambled a quick incantation and threw something on the ground. A large plume of black smoke engulfed her and flew away.
With Rowena out of the way, and the archangels preoccupied, the plan appeared to be coming together. The door to the Cage had grown seven feet in diameter and was continuously growing. Chuck and two of his archangels were in the middle of an emotional discussion.
"But Father," Michael frowned, "These humans are corrupted."
"They have faults," Chuck smiled, "That's what it means to be human."
"So you love them more than us?" Lucifer was also frowning.
"A father never picks favourites," Chuck sighed, "But he must discipline his children."
He raised his arms with a sad smile, "Forgive me."
With a single movement he sent the two archangels flying out of their bodies and into the Cage, leaving behind their vessels. Chuck nodded at the four ring-bearers and they broke their circle. The door instantly shut, leaving behind the same patch of earth that was there before.
It was calm, dead calm.
"Adam," Dean whispered and rushed to the boy's side.
Ashton ran to Brey, cradling his head in her hands, "Brey!"
His eyes were half opened and glazed over. He gave her a small, bloody grin, before he started to slowly form raspy words into a sentence.
"We did it," he coughed, "Well, almost."
"Don't worry," Ashton couldn't suppress the tears that rolled down her cheeks, "We'll get you patched up so we can hunt Rowena down!"
"Ash," he shook his head, "There's no patching me up."
"Castiel can heal you!" she pleaded.
"Ashton, no," Brey gave her his stern stare, "This is my last fight."
Ashton shook her head, "Not again."
"Listen to me," his blue eyes were steely with determination again, "Let me go."
"But-"
"I'll be with Hope," he gave a small smile.
Ash nodded and wiped away her tears while sniffling loudly, "Okay."
"I'll send everyone your love," he gave his full grin as he closed his eyes.
"Thank you," Ashton pressed her lips to the skin of his forehead.
When she pulled back, she knew he was in Heaven.
"Ashton," she heard Crowley's voice from behind her, "I'm sorry."
She gently rested Brey's head on the ground and stood to her feet. She turned to Crowley with a small smile and shook her head.
"He's with Hope," she sighed, "They'll be happy for the rest of their afterlife."
The demon wrapped his arms around his fiancé and let her bury her tear-streaked face into his neck. After a few minutes, the couple walked to where the Winchesters were gathered around Adam. Ashton looked at Dean, but he shook his head, with a defeated look.
"We can't save them all," Sam sighed.
"I'm sorry," Chuck bowed his head.
"He's probably better off," Dean washed away his pain.
There was a moment of silence before Ashton looked to Chuck, "What are your plans now?"
"I think," Chuck looked to Castiel with a smile, "I'll return home for a while."
"To Heaven?" Cas asked with wide child-like eyes.
"Yes," Chuck looked up at the sky, "They need me."
Without another word, Castiel and Chuck disappeared with the sounds of wings, leaving Sam, Dean, Crowley, and Ashton standing in the middle of the desert. With Crowley's help, they all made it back to the bunker and started to prepare for Brey's funeral.
It was midnight when everyone gathered around Brey. Crowley was holding Annabel, while Ashton poured salt and accelerant over his linen wrapped body. She lit the zippo lighter that Dean gave Brey and tossed it on the linen. In minutes flames engulfed Brey and grew, reaching towards the heavens. Everyone said their good byes, and when the flames turned into embers, they returned to the bunker to drink so whiskey and beer.
In the lives of hunters, there will always be struggles, there will always be death, and there will always be monsters, but no matter what, there will always be family.
The End