Chapter 7: Piece and Quiet
Menace was another two hours from Fairbanks. It was two hours of increasingly poor quality roads and higher and higher snow banks until the brothers arrived at the outskirts of the former fishing village. As the car neared the single road that led into the town they slowed down as a blockade appeared in the distance. Well, calling it a blockade may have been generous. There were two cars parked on the sides of the road with a single wooden A-barrier placed in the center of the road labeled "Government Investigation Site". So much for subtlety.
The Impala pulled to a stop shortly in front of the barriers. As Dean put the car into park two men wearing dark suits exited from the car on the left-the other man sat in his car on the right nursing a large thermos of coffee. "Can we help you boys?" The taller of the two men asked.
"We're with the CIA. We're here to investigate the disappearances." Dean nodded at Sam as both brothers flipped open their badges.
"So you're the 'specialists' we've been waiting for." The shorter man said, slight irritation evident in his tone.
"Yup." Dean replied.
"Alright, give us a minute to move the barrier, then you're free to investigate." The taller man paused, "I doubt you'll find anything, we searched the whole town and everything seemed perfectly normal. But what do I know, I'm not a specialist." He motioned for the shorter man to grab the other side of the barrier and soon enough the road was clear.
"Much obliged." Sam said as Dean pulled over the gravel and headed toward the town.
Menace wasn't much of a town, in fact, it barely qualified as a settlement. After pulling into the center square it was evident that the area hadn't changed much in the sixty years it had existed. There was a decent sized brick building to the north of the center square-the only brick building in the entire town-which bore a wooden sign hanging over the second story declaring it to be the "Town Hall". To the south were a handful of small homes mostly made of wood or stone as well as a church (evidenced by the steeple) and a schoolhouse (evidenced by the swings outside), and to the east was a row of shops. The west had a few homes, but seemed mostly empty as it approached the dock that led out into the bay where the main source of food and employment for the town had been.
"What was the population of this place?" Dean asked as he shut the car door.
"According to the last census, 893." Sam replied as he looked around at the deserted town.
The total silence was eerie, not even a bird crowing was heard in the entirely empty village. "This place is way too quiet. It's like an empty movie set, everything looks exactly like it should, but there's nothing happening." Dean gestured to a bench out front of the town hall. On it sat a hat and scarf, neatly folded, as well as a book flipped over to hold its page. "Aside from the missing people and smell of rotting fish, everything seems normal."
"It's definitely strange, there aren't any signs of struggle." Sam said as he pointed to a nearby home. The front door was open and a car was parked in the driveway-both completely untouched aside from a slight layer of damp from the rain. "It looks like everyone just up and left at once."
"I'm gonna call Cas. I have a feeling something seriously wrong happened here and I don't think a little angelic assistance would hurt." Dean said as he glanced around at the unnervingly still surroundings. After a quick silent prayer the angel appeared standing only a few inches from Dean. "Ahem, a little personal space please?"
Cas nodded and took a half step back. "I sensed potential distress in your request-" He stopped himself as he turned to face the church. "-I can see why."
"What do you mean, 'you can see why'?" Sam asked as he turned to follow Cas' stare.
The angel abruptly turned back toward the two men, "How long has this town been like this?"
"A little over two weeks. Getting out to a place like this takes a while." Sam said as he and Dean looked at each other, confused at what this had to do with Cas' earlier assertion.
The angel's brow rose slightly, a rare visible sign of his shock. "That is not good."
"A town of missing people rarely is." Dean quipped.
"While I am aware that your senses are more limited than mine, are you able to smell the air right now?"
"Yeah, it reeks. Rotten fish isn't exactly what you want for a cologne."
The angel glared, "That smell is not rotten fish. It's sulfur."
"Wait. Are you saying demons were here?" Sam said, shocked.
"That's impossible, right? Demonic possessions are rare, and I've never heard of nearly a thousand of them getting together to take over a town. There would've been signs." Dean added.
"In a place as remote as this I doubt anyone would have noticed them." Cas said. "Follow me."
He led the brothers down an alleyway toward the church. As they approached it was clear that the smell was intensifying. While the white chapel appeared normal enough on the outside the interior was another story. The entire floor was covered in a fine layer of yellowish powder.
"Holy shit." Dean gawped.
"No. No, no, no. Demons can't cross onto hallowed ground!" Sam looked down at the sulfur.
"Normal ones cannot, but those with sufficient power can." Cas said. "This is a sign of their power, they wanted someone to find this; they made their hosts come here before they went elsewhere."
"So, what, we're dealing with nearly a thousand super-demons who are possessing a bunch of former fishermen?"
"Not quite. I think they prefer the name 'Lucifer's Army'."
**SPN**
"So how exactly did this demonic battalion manage to get out of the fiery pits without us noticing? Sure demons can claw their way out, but a thousand at once?!" Dean inhaled deeply on his cigarette as he tried to steady his nerves. The three were back on Manhattan courtesy of an angelic puddle-jump from Alaska in the Impala.
"If I knew it means heaven would have prevented it." Cas lamented as Sam took a bite of his sandwich. The automat was close to the center, and the two humans made it clear that with being squeezed into non-existence and deposited nearly 4,000 miles away they needed something to deplete their already mostly empty energy reserves.
"So what do we do now, given that we have enough demonic soldiers on the loose to do some serious damage? I mean, obviously we'll tell R, but even one demon can be a handful for skilled hunters." Sam asked.
"I will return to heaven to report this disturbing turn of events. For now you two can do the same with your employer and attempt to find evidence of their intents." And with that the angel disappeared leaving two decidedly uneasy men sitting at the table where they tried to make sense of the ramifications of their discovery.