Naomi looked around the Roadhouse. She was no more comfortable here now than she had been on her last visit but when an archangel ordered you to appear before him, you did not say no. Even if that Archangel had been down on Earth playing Pagan God for the past few thousand years. So when Gabriel said Come, Naomi didn't question it.

The place was as usual teeming with human hunters although several angels were also present. Samandriel on the other hand was looking around at everything like a newly hatched fledgling. Taking Samandriel's arm she led him over to the table where the Archangels were sitting with another Angel that Naomi had never met. That didn't matter, Naomi knew exactly who she was. She stopped a few feet away and dropped to her knees pulling Samandriel down with her.

"Stand up." Dean/Michael said. "That's a bad habit to have during a war."

For this meeting both vessel and angel were sharing the body equally which explained the bacon cheeseburger and fries sitting in front of him. Sam/Lucifer was also doing the same and his nose was wrinkled in distaste at the bowl of Cobb Salad in front of him.

"You give away the position of your leaders and make them targets." Sam/Lucifer said lifting a bit of lettuce toward his lips and regarding it with the same trepidation a toddler regards cough syrup.

"Oh just eat it Lucifer!" Dean/Michael said. "How do you think Sam got such a beautiful and healthy body? Cheeseburgers and Twix?"

"Leave my nutritional choices out of it." Gabriel said as he worked his way through his second bag of fun size Twix washing it down with a strawberry malt.

"I don't know how you haven't falling into a sugar coma by now." Sam/Lucifer said.

"Do you know how much energy I just burned? " Gabriel asked as he popped another piece of Twix into his mouth and slurped at his malt. "Flying at 10 times the speed of light takes a lot out of me."

"Boys eat your food. Naomi, Samandriel; Michael is right. Stand up." Seraphiel said. "I need to know what has been happening in hell Naomi. Samandriel will act as runner for us. Whenever you receive new information, you will send Samandriel to relay that information to me or one of the Archangels, is that understood?"

"Yes Seraphiel." Naomi said bowing her head.

"Now here is what we want you to concentrate on finding out. What has Crowley done that terrifies his demons so badly that they risk coming topside to hide." Serphiel looked at the other other angel for a moment. "Naomi you are dismissed return to your duties. Samandriel sit."

Gabriel helped out by snapping a chair into existence next to him.

"Tell me Samandriel," Seraphiel pinned him with her gaze. "Who do you owe your loyalty to?"

Samandriel looked around the table at the gathered archangels before looking at the Seraphim in confusion. "I don't understand."

"It's a simple question. Let me rephrase it then. Who cradled you in his arms as he bore you up from Perdition?" Seraphiel leaned back in her chair.

"Gabriel did." The young angel answered.

"Good, remember that." Seraphiel said. "Never forget where your loyalty belongs. Nothing that you hear spoken among us should be spoken of to Naomi, including this conversation. Now run along and wait for Naomi to find out something."

The archangel's waited until the young angel had left before turning inquisitive gazes on Seraphiel. Gabriel finally spoke up. "What was that all about?"

"By her very position she had to have known where Samandriel was, she left him there allowing Crowley the opportunity. She bound Castiel to spy on the vessels without his knowledge when he first returned from Purgatory. She was the one who arranged to get him out and cost the lives of several angels in the process. She then barred him from Heaven." Seraphiel said. "I find very little reason to trust her."


If there was one job in hell no demon wanted, it was caring for the hellhounds. The creatures had nasty aggressive dispositions and had never heard the phrase 'don't bite the hand that feeds you'. In fact they had been known to savagely attack demons who got too close to them. Only two beings had ever been able to control them, Lucifer and Crowley.

When Lucifer had been in control of hell the damned things were allowed to roam free, but they were much better behaved only attacking those Lucifer willed them to attack. Crowley at least had caged the beasts but when they got loose without specific orders they would attack anything that crossed their path., and now Crowley wanted them released to roam freely in hell hoping to find whatever it was that was slowly picking off demons one by one and partially devouring them.

The demons had to give Crowley credit, he was taking steps to find the damned thing even if it was motivated by Crowley's desire to keep his own ass of of the menu. Crowley had even gone so far as questioning the many serial killers who had taken up residence 'down underground'. But no one had any idea of what could kill demons so easily except angels. But angel's don't eat flesh.

"Crowley still says it's Gabriel." The first demon said. "

"Gabriel, an archangel chowing down on his victims?" The second demon snorted. "Come on man, you don't buy that do you?"

"Crowley said Gabriel spent some time as a pagan God, Loki. He used to run with Kali and That is one bloodthirsty bitch." Demon one said.

"There's only one problem with that theory, man. Even if that freaking angel was taking sacrifices, it sure as hell wouldn't be demons. Sacrifices have to be like virgins or pure or something." Demon two said. "The only sense that any of these victims have been pure, is pure evil."

The two demons stopped as they approached the door leading to the kennels. It was hanging off the hinges. Creeping forward they noticed two things, a couple of dozen of the hellhounds were missing and of those that weren't something had eaten all of their internal organs.


Sam/Lucifer, Dean/Michael and Samuel Colt were sitting outside of the roadhouse on the newly acquired wood plank porch. Colt leaned back in his rocking chair and lit a thin cigar.

"So you boys are a lot more experienced than you should be be at your ages. You ain't old enough to have decades of experience under your belts." Colt said.

"We grew up in the life." Dean answered. "Our Dad started hunting when I was four, Sammy was six months. It's the only life we've ever known."

"Damned shame that." Colt said. "This ain't a life a man should be forced into."

"It's not a life you can just walk away from either." Sam said. "I tried, our mom tried and we got dragged right back into it. Hell I've tried more than once. Kind of hard to walk away when you're Lucifer's vessel."

Colt looked at Sam. "He's in there now ain't he?" Sam nodded. "Well I have to admit then, the devil ain't exactly what I was expecting. I don't know if we forget or just refuse to remember he started off as a angel. Them two things just don't seem to fit together right."

"The devil isn't the only one who doesn't live up to his reputation." Dean said. "Michael is not exactly the perfect being that humans think he is. When all the apocalypse crap was going on, he was a real dick."

"But they get along now?" Colt asked. "I don't see em fighting right now."

"That's because we have a different battle to fight." Michael said taking over. "And Sam and Dean can fight and argue and still get along. I think that was Daddy's intention all along by making them our vessels."

Sam suddenly stood up. He peered into the darkness before taking a step down off of the porch. A chorus of low growls and whines seem to come from the darkness. Dean now also stood up.

"I think maybe you should go inside." Dean said fearfully.

"What is it?" Colt said standing up and trying to see what it was that had drawn Sam's attention.

"Hellhounds." Sam/Lucifer said. "A large pack of hellhounds. A couple dozen of them and they are all terrified of something."

Sam stepped outside of the wards placed around the roadhouse and reached down as the animals crowded around him seeking comfort.

Gabriel suddenly appeared next to Michael angel blade in his hands. He watched awed at the hounds bumped each other vying for Lucifer's attention. "What the hell are Luci's pets doing here?"