Chapter Eight: Boiling Water

"Now what?" Sam asked, looking up at Dean.

"Hang on," Dean said. He let go with his left hand and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. "No service, it couldn't be that easy could it."

"Lets get up to its nest; maybe we'll get a signal there." Sam told him somewhat tiredly.

They continued climbing until they came to a large ledge. While Sam checked around the ledge and found the cave the Thunderbird used for its nest, Dean checked his cell again, but there was still no signal.

Together they entered the cave. "In your vision was the girl alive when the Thunderbird brought her to its nest?" Dean asked Sam.

"Yes, just like the boy. It wants to play with them first." Sam replied. "So we wait here, save the girl and waste that thing."

"Yep, that's the plan." Dean replied, "Do you smell that?"

"Something's dead in here," Sam told him.

They had been walking steadily to the back of the large cave, flashlights out getting their bearings and looking for a good place to wait. The smell of decay was stronger the further back in the cave they went. When they reached the back of the cave they found the cause of the stench.

Three burial towers had been erected at the farthest point in the cave. Carefully wrapped in burial cloths were the bodies of three people. Two were apparently children and the other one was larger, the size of a small adult.

Sam and Dean looked at each other, "Something terrible," Dean said quietly.

"Dean, come on. I get that it's terrible to lose your family, but to kill innocent children because of it."

"Hey, you're talking to the choir Sammy boy. I agree with you." Dean said, "But this must have been what sent it over the edge."

"If it comes back with that little girl we will have to kill it." Sam said. "If it doesn't maybe we can talk to it."

"You want to talk to it?" Dean was a bit taken back by that suggestion. "Before or after it tries to kill us just for being here? No Sam! I don't think so."

"Dean…"

"No Sam. No argument we waste this thing, period." Dean wasn't taking any chances. "And don't you do anything stupid like putting your hand into boiling water either!"

"Huh?" Sam tilted his head and looked at Dean a quizzical look on his face. What the heck was he talking about? Boiling water? He was about to ask, but the sound of something heavy landing on the ledge outside made him spin around instead.

Dean turned, yanking the rifle up and aiming at the Thunderbird that was using its beak to pick something up off the ground. Sam knocked the rifle to the side before Dean could fire. "NO! It has her!" he said quietly. "We have to wait until it puts her down again."

"I was going to wait!" Dean hissed at him. "I'm not stupid you know."

The Thunderbird held the girl upside down by her leg. She was silent, unmoving. They couldn't attack while there was a chance they would hit the girl. They had to wait for it to drop her. Both brothers were getting worried by the girl's silence when, almost gently, the Thunderbird shook the girl and she started screaming. As soon as she did it flipped its beak and tossed her deeper into the cave she didn't move, but continued to scream.

Sam bolted for the girl and as he bent down to pick her up the Thunderbird reared back and Screamed. The sound was deafening in the confines of the cave causing Dean to drop the rifle and hold his ears.

Sam didn't have the luxury of covering his ears, he was holding on to the girl trying to get as far away from the Thunderbird as possible. But he didn't make it. One short hop and the Thunderbird used its hooked beak to knock him down. Sam covered the girl protectively with his own body and the thunderbird, seeing that he was down grabbed Sam's leg with its claw and held him down. It screamed again but this time it was followed by the reverberating sound of a gunshot and the splat of a bullet striking flesh.

The Thunderbird released Sam and backed up. Sam got up and, carrying the screaming girl, hobbled quickly further back into the cave.

Dean did so not like this new Sammy at the moment. What was he thinking? Throwing himself in front of the Thunderbird that way. Crossing right into Dean's line of fire like that could have gotten him killed! Of course since Dean had dropped the gun when his ears nearly popped out of his head that wasn't really very likely. But still…

Dean reloaded and shot the beast again, and again, and again.

"Where the hell is its heart!" he screamed at Sammy. He was filling the darn thing full of silver, but apparently kept missing the heart. His ears were ringing from the screams of the Thunderbird, so if Sammy was answering him he didn't hear it. He just kept shooting hoping for a hit. When he ran out of bullets with the rifle, he threw it down and reached for his .45. He unloaded the full the clip into the wailing Thunderbird.

Dean turned to Sam who threw him the gun from his pocket. Then he turned again to face the Thunderbird, only, it was no longer a Thunderbird he faced. The thing had shifted into human form and stood bleeding from the many wounds Dean had already inflicted. The Indian fell to his knees before Dean could shoot again. Dean walked up to warrior that now knelt before him gun aimed at its heart.

"You are a great warrior." The Thunderbird said. "It is good to die at the hands of a great warrior."

"It would be better not to have to die at all. Dean told him, and asked, "Why? Why kill the children. Why make them suffer?"

"Because their fathers caused the suffering of my children and my woman. Those who would do such a thing deserve to have it returned to them."

"But their children were innocent!" Dean told him shaking his head.

"So were mine," replied the Thunderbird quietly.

"Believe me, I understand vengeance, but you shouldn't have gone for the children." Dean told him. Then as the Indian started to fall Dean caught him and laid him gently on the ground.

"When I am gone will you place my body with those of my family that we may be together in the afterlife?" Dean nodded and watched as the last breath slipped from the creature. Then he stood and shot him once in the heart. He walked quietly to Sam who had gotten the little girl to calm down and was wiping the blood from her head. "How is she?" he asked.

"Other than this, her arm was dislocated but I put it back in place. She has a couple of scratches on her arm and one in her side and a real nasty bruise on her leg. I think she's going to be okay. We should get her to the hospital as quick as we can."

"Take her out to the ledge and wait. I'll be there as soon as I clean this up."

Dean carried the body of the Thunderbird and laid him with his wife. Then he rummaged around in the duffle bag until he found what he needed.

The brightness of the sun was almost blinding as Dean walked out of the cave. It was done. Almost. Now all they had to do was hike till forever back to the car, get the girl to the hospital and come up with a plausible explanation for the sheriff.

"You're right," Sam told Dean as he came out of the cave. "I should have thought of a four wheeler or two."

Dean looked at Sam who was sitting, with the little girl clutched in his arms. "How's your leg?"

"I'll live."

"Sam…"

"I know, it was a stupid thing to do."

"Actually, I was going to say, I was impressed. It's what I would have done." Dean told him. "You ready to get off this rock?" he asked as thick black smoke started poring out of the entrance to the cave.

Sam looked at the smoke, then at Dean, "Salted and burned?"

"Uh huh. I wasn't taking any chances with that thing."

"There's a rope in the duffle bag." Sam told him.

"Well, at least getting down is going to be a whole lot easier than getting up." Dean said tiredly.

Once they reached the base of the cliff Dean looked at Sam, "How are we going to find the car?"

Sam grinned at him, "I placed a second tracking device in it."

"Dude, you LoJacked my car?" Dean yelped.

"Don't worry," Sam laughed at him, "it's sitting on the seat, and you can toss it when we get there."