A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the long wait. I've been under the mercy of college work and exams. Exams are now over and college lets out in two and a half weeks. Quite sad really; they have this great place to write fanfiction called the LRC (Learning Resource Center) which is the place where you do your homework in your free periods...or write fanfiction...like me!
Disclaimer: Not mine except for Mal and Kaloc.
The black Impala pulled up in front of the old house, which looked eerily creepy in the darkness and silence of the early evening. Dean turned off the engine and got out of the car before opening the door to the backseat. Sam was supporting Mal somewhat, the worrying frown on his forehead increasing slightly as the minutes ticked by. Bobby got out too and walked round the other side of the car to assist Dean if he should need it.
"Do you need any help?" Sam asked as Dean lifted Mal out of the car.
"No, that's okay; I got it." Dean assured his brother quietly. Sam nodded before he too got out of the car and closed the door.
"Where the hell is he then?" Bobby growled, his eyes scanning the area for any sign of Kaloc.
Dean whispered a few reassuring words to Mal as the boy whimpered slightly again.
"There he is." Sam said and pointed towards the road they had just come, where a big, black wolf was running towards them.
As the wolf neared them it slowed down to a walk before Kaloc stood before them in human form. He cast a look at Mal, though his emotion behind his eyes was unreadable.
"Let's go." Kaloc said, his voice quiet and deep.
Dean indicated for the demon to lead the way and was glad to see that both Bobby and Sam had their guns at the ready. Kaloc lead them quickly round the back of the house and Dean had a vague suspicion he knew where Kaloc was taking them; he only hoped he was wrong. They stopped in front of a worn wooden door where Kaloc pulled out a key and unlocked it. He slipped inside and flicked a light switch on the wall, which cast a dim light on the wooden staircase leading down into the basement, confirming Dean's suspicions.
Kaloc walked ahead of the down the stairs followed by Bobby, then Dean with Mal and Sam bringing up the rear. Dean had to take it slow so as not to loose balance on the creaking steps. Dean looked around the room once he reached the floor and was at least grateful that there was not as much blood as there had been the last time he had been there, though everything else stood as it had before.
"How come all of this stuff is still here?" Dean asked, looking over at Kaloc who was fiddling with a lock on one of the cabinets lining the opposite wall from the staircase.
"Not so many people are keen on coming anywhere near when there is a wolf lurking about." Kaloc answered him without looking around.
"Did you kill anyone?" Sam questioned the demon.
"No, but I think I landed a few in the hospital." Kaloc said, turning around as he did to look at them.
"And no one came to get rid of this wolf?" Dean asked, adjusting Mal's weight slightly in his arms, as the boy started to feebly push him off.
"There was no wolf there when they came, and once they were gone, the wolf was back." Kaloc finished and turned back to the cabinet. "You can put him on the bed."
Dean looked at the bed and thought that it seemed more like a torture instrument, which he supposed it had been, but at least the bloodied sheets had been removed, leaving only a stained mattress behind. Dean did not want to put the boy on that bed ever again, but his arms were starting to feel heavy from carrying Mal around, and the boy's attempts to push him off were not helping. He sighed and slowly took a few steps towards the bed.
Mal mumbled something and pushed slightly against Dean again. Sam walked close to Dean and Mal while Bobby kept an eye on Kaloc, who had finally got the cabinet open and was shifting through various glass bottles. Dean carefully lowered Mal onto the bed, taking care not to knock his head on the bar at the front of the bed, which he figured, with slight disgust, must have been where Kaloc tied the boy's hands to.
It seemed that mal only lay there for a couple of seconds before he tried to get off the bed faster than any of his limbs were ready to co-operate.
"Mal, easy, take it easy, okay?" Dean mumbled as he tried to get the boy to lie still.
"No…please…don't…" Mal managed to gasp through his ragged breaths.
"Hey, hey, hey, Mal come on, it's okay." Dean tried desperately to calm the boy, worried that this would only speed up the process of his deteriorating condition.
"We need to get him to drink this." Kaloc said and Dean looked up for a moment to see Kaloc holding a small vial, with a rather think, beige coloured liquid floating around in it.
"That looks vile." Dean said.
"Be glad you're not the one to drink it then." Kaloc said simply before walking over to the bed.
"Look, I swear that if this is another one of your twisted attempts to get the human out of him, I will kill you." Dean warned, still trying to keep Mal on the bed, now with some assistance from Sam.
"Do we really need to go through all of this again?" Kaloc sighed with a pointed look at Dean.
Dean mumbled something before sitting on the bed, one leg brought up on the mattress as he pulled Mal towards his chest.
"Alright; give it." Dean said, holding out a hand towards the vial. Kaloc gave it to him with a silent nod.
"Wait a minute." Bobby said and they all but Mal turned their attention towards him. "What will that do to him?"
"It will make him very ill," Kaloc admitted, "but while it does that it will also repair the damage done by the medication."
"So he should be alright…in the end?" Sam asked, clearly not ready to trust Kaloc in any way, shape or form.
"Yes, he should be alright." Kaloc answered with a slight note of irritation in his voice.
"Okay." Sam sighed, though he still seemed far from approving the idea.
"Sam, can you give me a hand here?" Dean asked but looked up when Kaloc moved forward. "Not you, though."
Kaloc seemed slightly angered but he kept quiet. Sam moved over to the other side of the bed and helped him hold Mal, who had stopped fighting but was instead shaking again. Dean kept muttering reassuring words in Mal's ear as he pried the boy's mouth open and poured the contents of the vial down his throat.
Mal started coughing and gagging immediately and would have doubled over had Dean and Sam not helped to hold him up. Unfortunately Mal's coughing fit meant that some of the liquid still remained in the vial and Dean had a vague idea that the boy had to down it all. Dean tried to hold Mal still again but this time the boy fought harder to throw off Dean's weight.
"Get off of me," Mal demanded as firmly as he could even though his words were slurred.
"Can't do that, kid," Dean said calmly and continued to try and minimize the boy's movements. This was something Dean hoped they had never come to. Who knew what the boy was thinking? It seemed he had recognised the basement somehow and was aware of Kaloc's presence. On top of that it was Dean holding him down; it was Dean who made sure he could not leave. That alone made Dean feel sick.
"I could help, you know." Kaloc said with a tone that almost suggested boredom.
"You just stay the hell away from him." Dean demanded and he was quite sure he saw Bobby tighten the hold on his gun. It was good to know that he was not alone.
Kaloc held up his hands in mock defence and backed up against the wall. Dean kept and eye on him for a moment, but the demon seemed to be keeping still. The eldest of the Winchester brothers turned his attention back to the teenager still fighting against him.
"Hey, Mal! Stop it, okay?" Dean almost pleaded with the boy. "We're trying to help you; trust me on this."
His words had no effect but Mal's movements started to weaken making it easier to hold him still. Sam had kindly taken to holding the vial while Dean tried to still Mal.
"And you're sure he has to have all of it?" Sam asked as he looked over at Kaloc for confirmation. Kaloc's eyes said it all but he made one small nod of the head as an answer.
"Bobby, just keep an eye on him." Dean said as he saw Bobby throw a hesitant glance in Dean's direction.
"You are quite the trio you three." Kaloc drawled. "I mean, you have faced the big, bad monsters of the night, but the mere task of getting a teenager to drink something that will save his life seems impossible."
"Shut up, Kaloc." Dean mumbled.
By now, Dean was giving up trying to be all friendly with Mal. He had hoped the boy would listen to him but it seemed that safety walls had erupted around Mal's mind, not allowing any word to penetrate. He forcibly grabbed Mal with one arm and closed it around Mal's chest, pinning the boy's arms to his sides. Mal tried with feeble attempts to push Dean off but Dean was determined not to let go.
"Sam." Dean prompted holding out his free hand towards the vial which Sam quickly handed to him.
To say it was difficult to get the boy to drink anything would have been nominated as understatement of the year. Mal repeatedly turned his head away with mumbled pleads to leave him alone.
"Need any help?" Sam asked as he watched his brother struggle.
"I would have loved to say no, but I think that…er…" Dean rambled.
"Dean…" Sam said simply.
"Yes." Dean answered his brother's original question. "Could you hold the vial again?"
Sam took the vial from Dean's outstretched hand and plopped down on the bed on the other side of Mal.
"You know that if you just accepted my help this would go a lot faster." Kaloc said with a sigh, his eyes resting on the brothers and Mal.
"Not going to happen, Kaloc." Bobby growled and this time Dean was certain he saw the hunter's fingers tighten around the handle of the gun.
Kaloc mumbled something neither of them could hear before leaning back against the wall.
Dean used his free hand to grab Mal's jaw, hoping with all his might that when all of this was over Mal would have forgotten this specific episode. He hated forcing Mal to do anything against his will – who knew how many times that had happened before. Kaloc was not exactly the type to simply ask politely; it was more a matter of 'do it or else'. Dean made eye-contact with Sam and nodded once when his younger brother asked the silent question of whether Dean was ready.
Sam's eyes showed his hurt over the situation, but Dean tried to ignore it as he gripped Mal's jaw tighter in an effort to hold the boy still and pry his mouth open. Both proved difficult but Mal's weakened state made it all the easier and Dean quickly had Mal in the position he wanted. Sam hurriedly poured the rest of the contents from the vial down Mal's throat, and once Dean was sure the boy had swallowed he released the hold on his jaw.
Mal's body immediately fell forwards in a series of coughing spasms, only being prevented from falling off the bed completely by Dean's arm around his chest. Dean slowly realised that he was starting to feel physically sick over the situation but he pushed the feeling away.
"Dean?" Sam's worried and agitated voice brought Dean out of his thoughts.
"What is it, Sam?" Dean asked as he looked up at his brother and was slightly surprised to see how freaked out Sam looked.
"Is that supposed to happen?" Sam questioned with a nod at Mal.
Dean quickly lifted Mal's chin up to look at the boy's face though it was slightly hard considering he was still coughing. Blood was slowly dripping out of Mal's nose and down onto the mattress of the bed, resulting in the fresh blood joining the old blood stains already present.
"What the hell is happening to him?" Dean demanded as he looked Kaloc directly in the eye, daring the demon to lie.
"I told you he would be very ill." Kaloc said in a rather bored tone.
"You said he was going to be very ill, not start bleeding." Dean shouted at the demon.
"You think he is bad now?" Kaloc asked, looking at Dean with a stare so cold it felt as it he was looking straight through him. "He is only going to get worse."
"You said it would save his life!" Dean yelled as he freed himself from Mal, placing the boy in Sam's arms instead.
"Did Daddy never teach you not to trust the words of a demon?" Kaloc said mockingly as a smirk crept onto his face.
"Why are you so determined to kill him?" Dean asked, feeling his anger rise by the second, but he knew he was not the only one as he heard Bobby growl, "son of a bitch."
"Who said I was determined to kill him?" Kaloc said as he slowly paced before the cabinets. "Last time I checked I was not the one to pour that stuff into him." The words hit Dean harder than a physical blow because he knew that somehow Kaloc was right. He was the one who had trusted Kaloc enough to accept his help. He was the one, with help from Sam, who had made Mal drink whatever it was Kaloc had given them. Hell, the moment Sam had found out Mal was not completely human he had come storming into the motel room, gun loaded and at the ready.
"You goddamn son of a bitch!" Dean shouted, his voice rising with every word.
"I am deeply honoured to be on the receiving end of your anger." Kaloc said, clearly unfazed by Dean's outburst. "Besides, I didn't say he was going to die." That got the hunters' full attention. "If the demon in him is still strong enough to put up a fight – the human too – then he will survive. If not…well…" He made a decreasing whistling sound and a hand movement of a plane going down before stopping the motion and making the sound of an explosion. "Boom. He's dead."
Dean glanced quickly at Mal who had finally stopped coughing but was instead growing paler than before.
"What was it?" Bobby growled as he clicked the safety off the gun which was pointed directly at Kaloc's face.
"What was what?" Kaloc sighed.
"You know what." Bobby snarled.
"Yeah, I know what." Kaloc returned coldly. "It's called Daemonkuren. Look it up."
"Will do as soon as I've killed you." Bobby answered, his voice dangerously low and calm.
"Take your best shot." Kaloc said, throwing his arms out to the sides, exposing his chest, a smirk plastered on his face.
Dean whipped out his gun and fired three shots in succession, but as the bullets left the gun, Kaloc's human form disappeared. Dean looked around, confusion lining his features as he tried to figure out what had just happened. Kaloc had disappeared. Dean eyed the floor as he took a step forward and just caught sight of a big, black rate disappearing through a hole in the wall. He fired at it even though he knew it was too late.
"That is your truest form yet, bitch!" Dean shouted as he kicked at the hole a few times in a frustration.
"Dean, come on, we need to get out of here." Sam said anxiously and Dean turned to see him standing with Mal in his arms, the boy's head resting against his shoulder.
Dean took a deep breath in the hope of calming himself down a bit before nodding and walking towards the stairs leading out of the basement. He could not wait to get out of there. He heard Sam following with Mal and Bobby behind them, but he could not bring himself to turn around in case he should catch another glimpse of the torture chamber. He could hardly believe that Kaloc had managed to get away again.
He gulped in some air as soon as he kicked the door. He barely resisted the urge to hit or kick something and also managed not to shout out in rage. That was exactly what he felt, but most of that rage was directed at himself. However, he knew that he had to bottle those feelings for a while as that would do nothing to help their current situation.
Dean kept his gun out, as did Bobby, when they hurriedly made their way back towards the Impala, which was dully reflecting the bright light from the moon. He glanced back quickly towards the house, but could see no sign of Kaloc.
"How's he doing, Sam?" Dean asked as they reached the Impala.
"Not good." Sam replied honestly as he got himself and Mal situated in the backseat while Bobby took to riding shotgun.
Dean looked at Mal and his worry increased when he saw the pale texture of Mal's skin and the dark circles that were appearing under his eyes. The blood from his nose had thankfully stopped, but the kid did by no means look as if he was improving.
"He can never have an easy day, can he?" Dean muttered as he slipped into the driver's seat. He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face before stuffing his gun back into his trousers and turning to the others. "So, where to?"
"See how quickly you can get back to my house. I'll see what I can do there." Bobby answered.
Dean immediately started the engine and quickly put the car in gear. It was not long before the Impala was speeding on the road back to Bobby's house.
"Bobby, have you ever heard of this, Daemonkuren?" Sam asked some ten minutes later.
"The name rings a bell but I can't remember exactly." Bobby replied and Dean was quite sure he heard a note of frustration in the older hunter's voice. "Can't this old piece of junk go any faster?"
Dean's jaw dropped for a second as a gaped at Bobby. Nobody insulted his baby, no matter the situation. He eased the pedal down to the floor and felt a tuck in his body as the Impala quickly increased its speed.
"You're a brave man, Bobby Singer." Sam muttered from the backseat, clearly not daring to say too much.
"Satisfied, old man?" Dean questioned with a quick pointed look at Bobby.
Bobby merely grunted in response.
Mal's coughing fits increased in severity during the journey, each worse than the one before. The only thing to be grateful for was that his nosebleed at least had stopped, but that satisfying thought did nothing to dull Dean's fear over Sam's frantic words and hour and a half or so into the journey.
"Oh God, he's coughing up blood."
Sorry about the cliffy. ;-)
Please leave a review to tell me whether I can just as well pack up and go home after the long wait. ;-)