Tyler panted as she forced herself to climb the hill, ignoring the blood streaming down her tattered leg, Castiel and Benny on her heels. One hour. It had only taken one measly hour for everything to go to shit. She growled in pain, but didn't slow. I'd rather cripple myself permanently than let them catch us. She dared a glance over her shoulder. The leviathan were still following her. Damn it! Come on Tyler, think! Think of something; to shake them off, to keep them back, to make sure Castiel and Benny get out of this alive at least. She'd given up hope that she would make it out of Purgatory alive. Not with her wounds.
Her left foot slipped on the wet grass, and she almost fell, but she righted herself just in time. Think! Think! THINK! But her mind stayed frustratingly empty. All she could think about was putting one foot in front of the other, running for her life, and not looking back. Benny came to her side, the angel on her other flank, their worried looks louder than shouts. They're worried about me? Some saviour I am.
"Tyler, you're done," said Castiel. "If you put any more strain on that leg, you're going to be crippled both here and out there!"
"Don't think I'll make it out there, " she said with a mad grin. "But don't you worry, I'll get the two of you out, even if it kills me."
"Don't say stuff like that!" Benny hissed. "Either we all go, or none of us go."
"We the three musketeers now?" Tyler joked, but both men looked at her without mirth in their faces. Gallows humor not their thing, huh? She shrugged and soldiered on. "Look, in the grand scheme of things I don't matter. But Castiel, you're an angel. You can do a hundred times more good than I can in one lifetime. And you Benny...well, you're all right."
"Thanks a lot," Benny mumbled. But Castiel was shaking his head violently as he half carried, half pulled Tyler with them.
"Is that an excuse the Winchesters will accept?" he asked. A silence fell. Both of them knew it wasn't. But what other choice did she have other than throwing herself to the wolves to create a diversion? To give them a chance to get out of this hellhole that wasn't Hell? Thinking of Hell made her shudder, trigging suppressed memories, but it also caused an idea to form. A dangerous idea. And if it failed, well...they'd be nothing more than exploded pieces of flesh and soul. But if it worked? A smile found its way onto her face.
"You've got a plan, don't you?" Benny asked, as they slid down the hills, Tyler gritting her teeth trying not to scream out in pain.
"It's a quarter of a plan, but it'll have to do," Tyler said as they stood. "Grab hold of me, and don't let go. You understand me? Don't ever let go!" With those words Tyler turned to Castiel, and plunged her hand into his chest. For a moment she feared that she was wrong, that she hadn't actually remembered it but that her desperate mind had just made it up. But then her hand began to glow and the flesh of Castiel's vessel gave way for it.
"Whatever you plan to do," Benny screamed, "do it now! They're coming!"
Tyler took a deep breath, pushed further in until she found the angel's heart. I remember now. And there she felt it: the angel's grace. I saw you do it. I fought it then, because I didn't understand. She grabbed hold of it, closed her eyes and sent her will into it. I'm taking us home. Thank you, granddad. Thank you for showing me. Once again, you've saved me. Her scream of pain mingled with the screams of Castiel and Benny as the angel's grace began to burn brightly. The leviathan coming down the hill were forced to raise their arms to shield their eyes. The ones closest to their intended victims were incinerated when the blast hit them. The others were left alone at the foot of the hill, a crater where their prey had been.
Dean jumped out of the chair as Tyler's scream sounded from upstairs. For a moment all four of them were rooted to the spot, then they ran up the stairs and into the bedroom. Her body was seizing violently, and Sam and Dean moved to keep her down, to keep her from hurting herself. Missouri watched the amulets she'd placed on Tyler's body burn bright and blue, then they dissolved into ash.
"Bobby," she shouted. "She's coming! Hold on to me!" Missouri didn't even wait for Bobby to obey before she took hold of Tyler's hands and grabbed hold of the tether between her body and her soul. She felt Bobby's arms around her, and pulled hard. Something was fighting her, something tried to keep Tyler from returning to her body, but Missouri wouldn't let Purgatory keep the girl. Not while she lived.
She pulled and pulled, felt tendons in her arms snap, but she didn't let go. Come on, Tyler! Come on! The strain on her arms suddenly lessened and she fell back. Two unknown men fell with her, striking the ground hard. And Tyler's eyes snapped open.