Chapter Two
Daniel 8:16
November 30, 2009
It took all of his self control for Sam not to let the relief he was feeling show on his face. The Trickster's face had melted from amused to apathetic as the alternate reality they had been forced into faded away. He clapped mockiningly and looked at them carefully as he spoke, "Well played boys. Well played. Where'd you get the holy oil?"
Dean didn't miss a beat as he responded seriously despite the absurdity of his statement, "Well you might say we pulled it out of Sam's ass."
Sam shot his brother a look but quickly turned back to the trapped angel.
"Where'd I screw up?"
There was a mild curiosity in the question and Sam responded coldly, "You didn't, but nobody gets the jump on Cas like you did."
"Mostly it was the way you talked about Armageddon." Dean added.
The man tilted his head and asked, "Meaning?"
"Well, call it personal experience, but nobody gets that angry unless they're talking about their own family."
Silence met Dean's statement, and there was a clear annoyance on the being's face. Sam decided to push forward, "So which one are you? Grumpy, Sneezy, or Douchey?"
There was only a moment's pause as the being's eyes met his, and for a moment Sam could actually feel the barely restrained power of the angel standing in front of them.
"Gabriel, okay? They call me Gabriel."
"Gabriel? The archangel?"
Sam couldn't keep the anger out of his question. How dare he? How dare an archangel lecture them on playing their roles when it was clear he'd fled his siblings fighting. The archangel grimaced for a moment but tilted his head, "Guilty."
Dean was about to ask a question but seemed to decide to go a different direction,
"You're gonna bring Cas back."
"Am I?"
The mocking question had Dean narrowing his eyes and Sam heard the protectiveness creep into his brother's voice.
"You are, or we're going to dunk you in holy oil and fry us up an archangel."
Sam shot his brother a concerned look but turned back to Gabriel when it was clear his brother was singularly focused on his goal. Gabriel and Dean were staring each other down, and after a moment the archangel raised his hand with an aggravated look and snapped his fingers. They both looked over as Castiel appeared next to them and some of the tension melted from Dean's shoulders.
"You okay Cas?"
"I'm fine," Castiel's voice was tight as he was singly focused on Gabriel, "Hello, Gabriel."
It had been a while since Sam had heard such a venomous greeting. Gabriel smirked at Castiel and snipped back, "Hey baby bro. How's the search for Daddy going? Let me guess. Awful."
A pained look that passed over the archangel's face that spoke volumes about how he felt about that particular situation.
"That's it. We're done here."
Dean snapped, and turned around to leave and Sam was about to follow him when Castiel spoke up, "Dean, wait."
His brother stopped and turned toward Castiel with a strange look, "Why?"
"We need help. This may be our only chance."
Sam froze at the reminder that they still didn't have a way to face Lucifer. Gabriel's eyes narrowed as he looked between the three of them. Dean seemed to mull over Castiel's words and turned back toward Gabriel.
"Alright answer us this, asshole. Could you face up to Lucifer?"
Dean's question seemed to startle the archangel. Gabriel looked thoughtful for a moment before he shrugged and responded, "Could I? Probably. We're built rather equally in terms of raw power."
"Good. Then you'll-"
"Now Dean-o, I didn't say I would. Just that I could."
Dean scowled at the archangel and snapped, "You're our only chance at fighting Lucifer. We don't have any other weapons. Our last hope was The Colt!"
Gabriel snorted and Sam watched as he looked away from Dean, "Well, it's a good thing you didn't try that. Would be like chucking a bomb into the sun."
Sam froze at Gabriel's comment. Maybe he was overthinking it, but it was strange to hear Gabriel use the same analogy as Crowley. The odds in that weren't good, and Sam quickly asked, "Do you know a demon named Crowley?"
Castiel and Dean shot him a confused look, and Gabriel turned to him with a strange look. It was as if he were amused and offended by the question at the same time.
"Crowley. Crowley. Let me think."
Sam remained silent, knowing the archangel was likely just playing with him, but when a thoughtful look actually passed over his face, the hunter found himself second guessing his thoughts.
"This demon, does he have a taste for nice suits and a snarky British accent?"
"Yeah, that's him."
Dean snapped out the response while Sam waited with bated breath. Was it possible they'd stumbled into Crowley's 'contact' without even meaning to? It would be better luck then they'd been having lately, but one hell of a win. One they desperately needed.
"Crowley, I don't do raw deals," the shitty attempt at an accent actually saw a crack in Dean's annoyance but it was quashed quickly, "King of the Crossroads?"
"Wasn't aware about the first part, but yes him. Do you know him?"
"I know of him. Heard a lot of stories. Seems decent enough. For a demon."
The backhanded compliment killed any hope that Sam had that they'd struck gold. Perhaps the expression was just something that angels used, and Crowley had heard it along the way. Castiel always did talk about how angels' true forms were a sight to behold. Perhaps the sun analogy made sense compared to that.
"Why ya asking, Samsquatch?"
The question was very pointed, and Sam turned away from the soul piercing gaze of the archangel.
"It doesn't matter. He won't help us guys."
Sam hated how dejected his voice sounded, but he was getting tired of losing. Maybe they had been too quick to dismiss Crowley's offer of help. He didn't relish the idea of crawling back to the freakin' King of the Crossroads and asking for help, but it looked like that's how it would go.
"Of course I won't help you. It's your destiny to become my brothers' vessels. Why would I try fighting the inevitable?"
Dean looked like he was about to rip Gabriel's head off. Sam stepped forward to drag his brother away only for Castiel to step up and glare hatefully at the archangel. Sam could only stare in shock as the shadow of Castiel's wings snapped around them for a moment. Dean looked surprised as well and the both of them could only watch as Cass ripped into Gabriel.
"You're forgetting your destiny, brother," the familial title was hissed and Gabriel looked as surprised as Sam felt at Castiel's venom, "You're job is to protect humanity. As an archangel, it's one of your only purposes."
"Stand down, Cast-"
"No! It's time for you to come home and deal with this! You don't get to hide away and ignore the world burning around you."
Sam just stared at the furious angel and his eyes moved to Gabriel who went from surprise to a quiet fury. He pulled himself up to his full height and despite the ring of holy fire the shadows of Gabriel's wings stretched out behind him. It was clear that he was trying to cow Castiel into submission but the younger angel didn't look scared. Gabriel seemed to ignore him and Dean, and Sam was grateful for that.
"You will remember who you're speaking to, Castiel. I've been dealing with Lucifer and Michael's crap longer than anyone else alive,-. except Dad. I've done my part, and now it's time to let the story play out."
"You act like I wasn't there, Gabriel. We've all been dealing with this. All of us."
Castiel's snarled rebuttal had a dark look passing over Gabriel's face. Sam found it strange the way Castiel had stressed the word all, as if he was talking about someone specific without wanting to say their name. He shot a look at Dean, and his brother seemed to have picked up on the weight of the word as well and gave a slight nod as he turned back to the two angels. Gabriel's voice carried a barely laced rage as he spoke.
"You were a fledgling, Castiel. A child. You also never had the misfortune of having to deal with Michael and Lucifer's fights in person. You never had to convince your brothers that fighting wasn't what dear old Dad intended for us. That responsibility never fell to you, so don't you dare say you've gone through what I have."
Castiel scowled but before he could cut in Gabriel continued his rant, his voice rising in pitch as he started to lose control of his temper. The air in the warehouse seemed to get heavier as the situation between the two angels deteriorated and it left Sam struggling to take deep breaths.
"You weren't in the throne room as the infighting between the archangels began. So you will remember your place before I remind you, do you understand me Castiel?"
The threat was clear, and Sam thought Castiel would back down. Gabriel's statement though seemed to throw oil all over the roaring fire that was Castiel's anger. The younger angel stepped closer to the fire and the air got just a touch heavier as the normally calm angel raised his voice even more.
"How dare you make it sound like you were the only one fighting for peace, Gabe."
The snarled nickname seemed to cause the archangel physical pain and Castiel took the opportunity to push forward, "You're disgraceful, making Sam and Dean think that all the archangels were involved in this pathetic fight besides you! Worse, you're no better than Lucifer. Crying over the unfairness of the past instead of trying to create a better future."
The silence was deafening, and Sam thought Castiel may have actually won the argument. Then his ability to breathe was stolen from him. He shot a look over to Dean and saw him struggling to stay standing as well. For the first time since the argument had started Castiel looked scared. Not, 'oh, look a spider' put off, no his blue eyes were shining with pure terror and Sam wondered if the angel had gone too far against his brother. Gabriel opened his mouth and the next thing he knew his ears were killing him.
He snapped his hands over his ears in an attempt to drown out the high pitched wail and saw that Dean was in the same position. Sam could barely make out Castiel taking several steps back, and once more shadowy wings were wrapped around him and Dean. It muffled the sound slightly but it still left his ears ringing. He looked over at Gabriel who seemed to finally take note of what Castiel was doing and he closed his mouth. It finally ended the horrid sound and the shadowy forms of Castiel's wings were slowly pulled away. For a moment, Sam saw a flash of regret in Gabriel's eyes but as his gaze went back to Castiel it was replaced by fury.
"They were not your siblings, Castiel. You looked up to us more like parents then you did brothers and sisters.. You were one of the last angels born, and this disobedience shows that. You will keep a civil tongue in your head when speaking to a superior, or when I get out of this ring of fire, I'll give you a physical reminder."
Sam shot a look at Dean as his older brother pulled himself to his feet, a look of uncontrolled rage flashing through his green eyes at Gabriel's threat. Castiel though took on the look only a child could muster. Sam knew he'd worn it before. Back when Dean would give him directions as children and he'd spitefully snap that Dean wasn't Dad.
"You have no right to remind me of anything, Gabriel. You're not my superior."
"No, you're right, and I couldn't be more happy. I'd never want such a disloyal angel in my flock."
Sam frowned at the implication. Did Gabriel know that Castiel had turned his back on Heaven and chosen to fully side with them? It probably wasn't a well kept secret, but he hadn't expected everyone to know already. There was a flash of pain in Castiel's eyes and he quickly snapped back.
"She's long dead Gabriel. So many died during the fall, and there wasn't time to cling to the past. I had to make choices to survive, and Michael was better then Raphael. The other's abandoned me! What would you have me do? Remain flockless and adrift? Run like you did?"
Gabriel didn't respond at first, and Sam found himself wondering what the hell the two angels were talking about. He'd thought Gabriel had been referring to Castiel turning his back on Heaven. Instead, now it sounded like he was talking about Castiel having served a different angel. He remembered Castiel mentioning he was once part of Anna's garrison and that Anna reported to Michael, but beyond that the angel hadn't revealed much about the Heavenly Host.
"Where were you, Gabriel?"
For the first time in this argument Sam noted that Castiel's voice was dripping with pain. Gabriel broke eye contact with the angel at his impassioned plea, and Castiel's voice melted back into anger in response.
"Where were you, Archangel Gabriel, when you were needed? I would have joined you in a heartbeat!"
The silence was deafening and when Gabriel finally spoke his voice was hollow and emotionless.
"I've already lost my sister and brother. That's a price I should never have been forced to pay, and they weren't the last ones. I won't help you, so the three of you can fuck off."
Castiel looked conflicted and finally turned away. His eyes were a maelstrom of emotions and Sam could only watch as he stormed toward the door. The angel stopped for a moment and he turned his head slightly, not even bothering to fully look at the still trapped archangel.
"If she were alive, she'd help us with this. Even if it cost her life."
The snipped statement had a startling effect on the archangel. Gabriel's shadowy wings were back with a vengeance and Sam couldn't help but stare as the archangel's eyes became a startling gold color. His power snapped out and the holy fire seemed to rise higher than it ever should have. It set off the sprinkler system in the warehouse and Gabriel glared at Castiel.
"We'll never know that, will we Castiel? Lucifer made sure of that."
With that the sound of multiple wings flapping filled the warehouse as the ring of holy fire failed and Gabriel was gone. For several moments there wasn't a single sound. Castiel hadn't even bothered to turn around at the archangel's snarled parting. Sam slowly walked over to the angel and could see the tension and anger seemed to have bled away to be replaced by exhaustion.
"What the hell was that?!"
Dean seemed to have finally lost his fight with trying to reconcile what had just happened. Castiel didn't say anything for several long moments before he sighed and turned to Dean.
"Can we talk about this somewhere else?"
The tired question seemed to surprise Dean. His brother shot him a questioning look and Sam just shrugged slightly. Dean scratched his head and gave the angel a searching look.
"Yeah, sure. As long as you promise to answer our questions."
"I will to the best of my ability. For now, let's get out of here. It reeks of smoke and cowardice."
The snipped comment had Sam exchanging a look with Dean. It was as if the angel thought Gabriel was still nearby and wanted to get one last potshot in at his brother. Castiel walked out of the warehouse and all Sam could do was follow after the angel along with his brother, hoping that the explanation made some sense.
Line Break
Castiel sat down at the table in the small motel room. Dean sat across from him and Sam sat down on his bed. He was feeling more exhausted than he'd felt in a while, and with everything going on, that had to be some type of record.
"So drinks?" Dean asked, and Castiel nodded. As the hunter went to grab the offered drinks, Dean also huffed in aggravation. "Damn it."
The statement was hissed as he slammed the mini fridge shut and his brow creased. Castiel could just make out Dean tapping his fingers impatiently against the beer bottles. Dean handed one off to Sam as he walked back to the table, and then slid the other across to him as he sat down again.
"I can't believe this shit. Are all angels, no offence Cas," Castiel just snorted at his friend's reassurance but didn't say anything, "such cowardly dicks?"
"I don't know Dean, but we're running out of time, and we're out of options."
Sam's voice was soft, but there was an undercurrent of trepidation as he spoke. Dean just shook his head and took a deep swig of his beer without further prompting. Castiel slowly brought the beer to his lips and frowned slightly at the taste. When had food and alcohol started to taste good to him?
"I can't believe we're going to have to go crawling back to that smug ass demon."
Dean's voice was a mix between a whine and growl, and Sam's frown deepened at his brother's announcement. Castiel knew Sam couldn't be more anti-Crowley if he tried. The younger hunter had learned the hard way where trusting a demon got you, and now he stood firmly on the side of never wanting to see the King of the Crossroads again. Castiel couldn't blame Sam, but if they didn't find another option to halt or at least slow down Lucifer there was no telling what would happen.
"We could keep looking."
Sam's voice was tight as he voiced the option. It was clear he didn't quite believe what he was saying but felt he had to say it. Dean sighed, breathing heavily through his nose as he took another sip of his drink.
"For what? Sammy, we're out of the fight. Finding out the freaking Trickster was the Archangel fucking Gabriel may have been our one ace. 'Cept the bastard would rather turn tail and run then pony up and lend us a hand. That leaves us with no other option but Crowley."
"He's a demon. We aren't supposed to be working with demons, Dean."
"No, and Sam, don't think I don't see how against this you are. Trust me, I get it."
Sam looked away from Dean when his brother pinned him with a pointed look. There were several moments of silence before Castiel decided to speak up, "So what's the plan?"
Dean tilted his head, drumming his nails against the beer bottle as his brow scrunched in thought.
"We have to contact Crowley. I'd feel much better if I knew exactly what that bastard was getting out of this, though. I don't trust a demon, and I trust an apparently honest demon even less."
"From what you said, he made his intentions quite clear, Dean."
The hunter shot him a strange look and asked, "What are you talking about Cas? He only said he had plans."
"And aren't those plans obvious to the both of you?"
Castiel couldn't keep the disbelief out of his voice. Two sets of blank eyes staring back at him had him shaking his hand and taking a deep swig of his own beer in response before he spoke.
"You described him as a planner. Someone who was three steps ahead of you from the moment you crossed the ward line. The hierarchy of Hell is a mess currently. Lilith is dead. Alistair is dead. Azazeal is dead. That leaves behind a power vacuum, and when Lucifer is finally defeated that vacuum will only grow."
"Your point? I didn't exactly get the 'politics of Hell' class during my time downstairs, Cas."
Dean's snapped question was greeted by an exaggerated roll of Castiel's eyes.
"Think, Dean. I know you're smarter than that. If all these leaders are dead or indisposed, what will happen?"
"I'd assume chaos, but how does that differ from Hell on a daily?"
Sam gave a sharp breath and Castiel looked over at him with a raised eyebrow. Sam quickly pulled himself together and spoke quickly.
"It's supposed to be organized chaos, right? At the end of the day, Hell does actually serve a purpose. That means Hell needs a leader who is at least somewhat competent."
Dean cursed low and slammed his beer down on the table and that was the signal that let Castiel know both brothers were on the same page.
"That crafty, cunning, bastard. He's setting up a takeover! Fuck, if he's always this far freaking ahead, he may actually get it."
Castiel raised an eyebrow at the mild awe mixed with the heavy disbelief in Dean's voice. Sam was giving his brother a side eye and asked, "Did you just compliment him, Dean?"
"GOD DAMNIT!"
Castiel snorted at Dean's shouted expletive which was more out of annoyance than actual anger. Even Castiel had to give the crossroads demon credit. He'd set the board up quite well, given the insanity of the Apocalypse.
"Crowley aside, what were you and Gabriel talking about Cas? Hell, what was that whole angel speak bullshit? He almost blew our eardrums out."
Dean's question caused Castiel to sigh, and he ended up downing half his beer before he answered the probing questions.
"The things Gabriel said in our true tongue were far from flattering. I doubt you want me to regale you with the details."
"What did he do? Curse you out in Enochian?"
Dean asked the questioning jokingly but Castiel winced nonetheless. His friend seemed to notice and frowned slightly, "He did, didn't he?"
"In a sense. As I said, it was nothing polite and many things he said I can't directly translate as Enochian relies heavily on context."
"Some big brothers you've got Cas."
The mildly sarcastic comment held a decent amount of apology in it and Castiel smiled slightly at Dean in thanks. Gabriel's words had stung, and to be called a coward, traitor, and disgrace all at once by someone he used to look up to was a lot to take in, even for an angel. It didn't help that somehow that was the least hurtful of the things his older brother had said. He found himself lost in thought for several moments before Sam cleared his throat with a concerned look.
Castiel shook his head and sighed, "I'm guessing you both have other questions? Please, just start asking. I'd like to get this conversation over with, honestly."
The brother's exchanged a look and Dean started the volley but not with the question Castiel had expected.
"Is it normal for the archangels to threaten other angels?"
Castiel blinked in surprise a few times before giving a slight chuckle. Dean gave him a strange look but Castiel shook his head.
"No. My, well my commander used to. It was never meant as a threat per se though. More just a way to push us to do our best in training. No one wanted to fight the commander."
"Michael that much of a slave driver?"
Dean's question cut right to the crux of the matter and Castiel winced. He really didn't want to rehash this, but he knew the Winchesters wouldn't let it lie until he at least partially explained the situation.
"No. Michael was actually quite against it. After all, an archangel shouldn't fight a mere angel. It wasn't a fair fight."
Sam and Dean looked at him in surprise and Sam quickly spoke, "Whoa, wait a second. You're saying there's another archangel?"
"There was another archangel. She's dead now. Died during Lucifer's fall under suspicious circumstances. Michael ruled that it was Lucifer who killed her, but Lucifer denied it until he was thrown into the cage."
There were several seconds of silence before Dean spoke up, "So, what was her name? You and Gabriel seemed to both know her pretty well."
Castiel shifted and started down at his beer in thought. He wasn't sure how much he wanted to reveal about his past. If he explained too much, it would reveal one of the few things he felt a deep sense of guilt and regret about, and he wasn't ready to face that yet.
"Her name was Azrial. She was the fourth archangel created after Michael, Lucifer and Gabriel."
"Azrael? You mean the angel of death? I thought he was a myth, and you know, a dude."
Sam's question had Castiel laughing despite himself. Really, there were times he was sure his sister would be overly amused at how humans had skewed her image. She was never portrayed as an archangel, and it was rare that she was ever portrayed as a woman.
"Azrial," he corrected the pronunciation and he could see Sam mouthing the name to make sure he got it right, "and her title was the Angel of Death. She served as Death's right hand and her purpose was to obey him above all else. Beyond that, she was the Lieutenant of Heaven's army."
"Hefty title. How'd she die if she was all that?"
Dean's casual question had Sam snapping at his brother, "Dean! You can't just-"
"It's fine, Sam. It's been a long time."
Sam gave him a strange look but nodded before settling in to listen to the rest of the explanation.
"Michael and Lucifer had been fighting violently. When the fight ended Michael found that his spear was missing. His spear wasn't a normal weapon. It had the ability to destroy an angel, or even an archangel, piece by piece. It would rot you from the inside out until there was nothing left."
Castiel's voice wavered slightly but he did his best to push away the mental images that always creeped up when he thought about what had happened to his sister.
"That's freaking sadistic."
Dean's disgust was clear in his voice, and Castiel nodded in agreement.
"It was, but it was meant as the ultimate punishment. Never a weapon he'd carry into battle. So when he found it was missing, he suspected Lucifer. That the fight he'd had that day was nothing more than a distraction to gain the spear."
Castiel was silent for a few moments and Sam spoke up softly, "Lucifer killed her, didn't he? With the spear."
"From what we can figure, yes. Raphael reported finding the spear near her. She was dying and Raphael was there when she took her final breath before burning out completely. She didn't know who'd stabbed her because her back was turned. To Michael though, the answer was obvious. He went after Lucifer that same day, and that was the day Lucifer was locked away in the cage."
Sam and Dean were silent after he finished his explanation, and Castiel found himself doing his best to push down the bile in his throat. He remembered the eldest archangel's reaction clearly. The transition from shock as Raphael presented him with his spear, to pain upon hearing of his sister's death, before an all-encompassing fury overtook him. He also remembered Lucifer's face upon hearing the news of Azrial's death. It was something that would haunt him forever. The archangel had seemed unrepentant in his actions until Michael had accused him of Sororicide. Lucifer had vehemently denied it. He'd gone to the cage proclaiming his innocence of the act all while Michael belittled him and told him to at least own up to his actions. It was a day that still haunted many angels in Heaven. Some considered that the moment Michael had become fanatical in his obedience of their Father. Castiel couldn't help but agree with those angels.
"So just to clarify something," Dean's question broke Castiel from his thoughts, and he nodded to show he was listening. "Gabriel accused you of being disloyal. He wasn't referring to helping us, was he?"
"No. No he wasn't. Perhaps he also meant that, but his issue is with me serving Michael."
"Why though? I thought you'd always served Michael."
Castiel shook his head making Dean frown. He didn't want to go much deeper into this topic so best to be honest and clear about this so he could put it to rest.
"No. I started serving Michael a few hundred years after Azrial's death. It was that or join with Raphael. I chose Michael because he commanded his flocks in a similar fashion to what I was used to."
"So the traitor accusation was bull. You did what you had to survive, period."
Dean's voice carried a steel edge and heavy confidence. Castiel's lips twitched at the declaration and he tilted his head in agreement with the hunter. He was glad Dean understood, and when he saw Sam nodding in agreement with his brother Castiel felt a weight lifted from his shoulders. He hadn't realized how much that choice had weighed on him until Gabriel had accused him of betraying Azrial with his actions. To have the Winchesters agreeing with him had a warm feeling settling into his chest.
"So," Sam cut into the conversation, "what now?"
Dean scowled and finished off his beer. "Now? We catch some shut eye, get on the road, and prepare to go crawling back to one smug ass demon who will likely stab us in the back before this is all over."
Sam sighed and fell onto his back glaring at the ceiling, "Great. Just another day at the office."
