Ch 20

Pamelas funeral was held in a beautiful meadow near Bobby's house. The sky was a brilliant sapphire blue, the wildflowers were in full bloom and the singing of birds and buzzing of bees almost drown out the soft sounds of crying from the gathered mourners. The psychic was given a hunters funeral, she had earned it long before she died helping the Winchesters. Dean, Sam and River stood in the shadow of a large pine tree all three avoiding the other mourners. Bobby led the memorial with a quick memory of Pamela, followed by several others. They left as soon as the funeral pyre was lit.

River climbed into the backseat of the Impala and let out a deep sigh, rubbing the wound in her shoulder. "Leave that alone so it'll heal." Dean harped at her from the front seat. She rolled her eyes and leaned back against the soft leather seat. River and Dean still weren't on friendly terms but over the last few days she had started talking to him for more than one to two sentences at a time.

"Ruby called me this morning. She's been following some leads on Lilith. She wants to us to meet her in Cheyenne," Sam said as the smoke from Pamela's funeral faded in the rearview mirror. "I know she's not on your guys Christmas card list, but she's trying to help."

Dean caught River's eyes in the rearview mirror and she quickly looked away, her eyebrows furrowed. "Work with Ruby or don't. I, for one, don't give a rat's ass," Dean grumbled.

"What's your problem, dude?" Sam asked.

"Pamela. She's dead because of us."

"She knew what was at stake."

"Stopping the apocalypse. Right? I told her that…." River said quietly staring at the dark grey sky as fat storm clouds rolled in.

Dean let out a deep breath, "I'm just tired man. I'm tired of burying friends."

"Don't get tire, get angry. If we can catch a fresh trail-"

"Then we follow it," Dean said.

"We kill that white eyed bitch." River added.

They agreed to meet Ruby in Cheyenne and stopped at a motel after midnight. "I'll get the rooms." River told them climbing out of the car. She walked to the small office and rang the bell. She was about to ring it again when a short, greasy man appeared from behind a beaded curtain. He wore a stained undershirt that at one time had probably been considered white.

"Can I help you?"

"I need two rooms please," River said tiredly. She rolled her stiff shoulders, the hours cooped up in the car causing her healing shoulder to throb. The man nodded, staring openly at her bruised face as he slid a clipboard with papers to her. She had tried to lessen the ugly black and blue marks on her cheek with makeup but they stood in stark contrast to the paleness of the rest of her features. He glanced over her shoulder as Dean and Sam crowded into the office behind her. "I said I got it," she said without looking up from the registration paperwork. The man made a cursory glance at the papers and pocketed the cash River threw on the counter.

"My lady likes it rough too," he said winking at Dean and handing River the room keys.

"What'd you say?" Dean started.

River grabbed his jacket and pulled them out of the office, "Not worth it. Let's just get some sleep. She checked the number on her room key and stopped at the correct door. "Smells like feet…" River mumbled unhappily as she stepped into the dingy room. Dean and Sam followed her inside and did a quick safety check. They had decided no one settles down in their room without a full inspection; checking for hex bags, signs of demons, or any other potentially hazardous materials. Deeming the room safe they moved onto the brothers.

"Home crappy home," Dean called as they walked in and turned on the lights.

"Winchester and Winchester and their whore," Uriel stood in front of them. Hands in his pockets and looking like a parent ready to scold a child for staying out past curfew. Castiel stood in the shadows, leaning quietly against a wall.

"Come on, man." Dean said.

"You are needed," Uriel continued.

"Fuck off," River said exhausted.

"Watch your tone with me, mud monkey."

"You watch your tone with us! We just got back from Pamela's funeral," Dean said stepping towards the angel, "You know, the psychic. You remember her? Hey, Cas, you remember her? You burned her eyes out, blinded her." He took another deep breath. "How about you quit pushing us around like chess pieces for five freaking minutes?"

"We raised you outta hell for our purposes, don't forget that. You owe us your gratitude, your life," Uriel said threateningly.

Castiel took a small step from the wall and looked at the hunters, "Dean, we know this is difficult for you to understand."

"And we…don't care," Uriel said cutting the other Angel off with a glare. Castiel stiffened up and retreated to the wall. River and Dean watched as Castiel stood at attention allowing Uriel to remain in charge. River could see the faint outline of Castiel's dark black wings folded up defensively around his shoulders. "Seven angels have been murdered over the last three days. All from our garrison. The last one was killed last night."

"Demons?" Sam asked. Uriel gave a quick nod of the head.

"How are they doing it?" River asked.

Uriel looked at her, "We don't know."

"Then what do you want us to do about it?" Sam continued. "Demons with enough mojo to kill an angel is way out of our league."

"We can handle the demons. Thank you very much," Uriel told them.

"Once we know who it is," Castiel interjected. Uriel shot him another look and he went rigid again.

"So you need our help hunting a demon?" Dean asked.

"Not quite. We have Alastair," Castiel said stepping forward.

Dean smiled, "Well, great. He can name your triggerman."

"He's not talking…That's why we need you." Castiel said staring at Dean.

"What? Why would you need Dean?" River asked.

"We've arrived at an impasse with Alastair, his will is strong."

"Yeah, well thats because he's a black belt in torture. What ever you've been doing to him is like a spa day in Hell." Dean said.

"Yes, we know that. That's why we've come for you. His student. You're the most qualified interrogator we have at our disposal." Uriel said sneering at him.

"Dean?" River asked quietly. Dean looked at her silently, she tilted her head slightly and stared at him asking for an explanation.

"She still doesn't know does she?" Uriel suggested.

"You are our best hope, Dean. Our brothers and sisters are being murdered."

"No." Dean answered. "You can't ask me to do this, Cas. Not this."

Uriel strode towards the hunter. "Who said anything about asking?" he said dangerously. In the next instant, the angels unfurled their invisible wings and with a flutter they and Dean were gone.

"No! Shit!" River yelled when he disappeared. Sam cursed and kicked a chair.

Dean reappeared in a warehouse. Castiel led him to a metal door and they looked through a small, dirty window. Alastair was chained to a huge iron pentagram, the floor underneath him was painted in an intricate devils trap. "That devil's trap is old Enochian. He is bound completely Dean."

Dean took several shallow breaths, panic starting to fire up his spine, "Well, that's swell. Where's the door?"

"Where are you going?" Uriel asked.

"Hitching back to Cheyenne. Thank you very much."

"No, I don't think so. Angels are dying boy, you have a duty to us," Uriel continued.

"I get it, you're all powerful and now you're dying. You can make me do whatever but you CAN NOT make me do this."

"I know it is too much to ask. But we must ask it, Dean." Castiel stared unblinking at the hunter.

Dean rubbed his eyes tiredly, "I want to talk to Cas. Alone."

Uriel stared his fellow angel and at the back of Dean's head, "I'll go and seek…revelation. Perhaps we have further orders." He disappeared leaving Castiel and Dean alone.

"Cas, what the hell man? What's wrong with you? You're letting Uriel muzzle you?" Dean said, looking back through the window at Alastair.

"My superiors feel it is for the best," Castiel said slowly. "They feel I am beginning to show emotions which can lead to doubts in faith. I have become to close to the humans in my charge."

"Is this what you want, Cas?" Dean asked.

"Want? No. But I have been told we need it."

Dean placed his hands on either side of the small window and leaned down, "You ask me to do this. To walk through this door…you are not gonna like what comes out on the other side."

"For what's its worth, I would give anything to not have you do this," Cas told him quietly.

"Where the hell did they take him?" River yelled. "I need a map." Someone knocked on the door and River quit yelling. "Who the hell is that Sam?"

Sam opened the door and Ruby was waiting on the other side. "Hi, Sam." Ruby said smiling up at the tall man.

"You better be here to help us find Dean." River told her.

Ruby's face scrunched up, "Eh, I don't really see what the problem is…"

"I am not in the mood for your demon bullshit, Ruby." River told her quietly.

"River, she's my friend and I invited her here." Sam warned.

Ruby smiled at Sam then turned her black eyes towards River. "I can find him. It's not like the Angels are worried about being found. Pompous dicks aren't used to anyone challenging them." Ruby pulled a large map out of her bag, unfolded it and laid it out on the table. She began reciting a spell and the map caught fire and began engulfing the paper. "Don't worry, Red. The only important part is the 'Where's Dean' part." The fire extinguished leaving a small area untouched. "Dean's there." Ruby pointed looking up at Sam.

"Well, ok then. Lets go," River turned towards the door. Sam stared at Ruby a moment longer. "Sam?"

"Go back to your room. I'll come get you when I'm ready," Sam told her.

"Fuck you. Get your shit and lets roll," River countered staring at the much taller man. Sams jaw clenched and he glanced back at Ruby. The demon crossed her arms over her chest and raised her eyebrows. "Sam, what the shit dude?"

Sam grabbed her around her upper arm and drug her towards the door, "I said get out." He opened the door and pushed her out into the dark parking lot. She stumbled but quickly regained her balance and ran back towards the door as Sam slammed and locked it in her face.

"Sam! You fuck!" she kicked the door angrily and then screamed in frustration. She kicked the door again before storming back to her room.

"Enough teasing Ruby. It's been too long and you know I need it," Sam said quietly.

Ruby smiled again, dragging her tongue slowly over her bottom lip, "I know Sam. It's ok. You can have it." She grabbed Sam by the waist and made him sit on the bed before straddling him. They kissed harshly, their lips and tongues crashing together. Sam grabbed a fistful of Ruby's dark brown hair and pulled her head sideways giving him access to her throat which he sucked and bit.

"I need it." He groaned into her neck.

Ruby smiled and pulled a small knife out of her boot. She slid the sharp edge across her forearm and her dark blood oozed slowly from the wound, "It's all yours Sam." He pressed his lips around the slit in her arm and sucked greedily at the blood, swallowing mouthful after mouthful.

River sat heavily in the musty armchair in her room and fumed. Rubbing absently at the bruises forming around her arm where Sam had grabbed her. "Son of a bitch, fucking Winchesters…" she grumbled angrily to herself. She heard the roar of the Impala's engine from the parking lot and ran towards her door, she flung it open and saw the tail lights disappear as Sam drove away. "SAM!" she yelled. River turned back towards her room and saw Ruby standing in the darkness. The demon winked at her before disappearing. "Fuck my life," she muttered before retreating to her room.

"You think your gonna walk in here with your toys and I'm gonna spill my guts Dean?" Alastair said laughing as Dean slowly walked towards him pushing a cart stacked with torture equipment.

Dean smiled, "One way or another you're gonna spill your guts. I just don't want to ruin my boots." Deans ran his fingers lightly over the pliers, knives, and vials of holy water. "Just give me a name Alastair. Who is killing angels?"

Alastair sneered, "Oh, Come on Dean. I taught you better than this. You don't want any payback for all those things I did to you in the pit?" Dean turned away from the demon. "No? How about all those things I did to your daddy? Now, John Winchester, that was one tough cookie. He wouldn't crack no matter where I pulled, or poked, or cut." Dean closed his eyes and smiled. "Oh, there he is… Hello, Dean welcome back."

Deans hand closed over a syringe and he held it up to inspect it. "You know I could still dream down there, in the pit. And every night I dreamed of this." Dean put the tip of the syringe into a jug of holy water and drew back the plunger, then he attached a long, sharp needle to the end and turned towards Alastair. The demon smiled nervously as a flicker of fear passed over his angular features. "I dreamed up so many terrible things I wanted to do you," Dean whispered quietly. His screams echoed through out the empty warehouse. Castiel turned away from the door and tried to ignore the sounds of anguish coming from the demon. Dean let his anger wash over him, drowning out everything else until he saw was Alastair. While Dean reveled in Alastair's pain an unseen force was working its way into the torture room, slowly turning the knobs on the fire sprinklers.

The lightbulb above Cas's head exploded and looked up, "Anna. You should not be here."

The Angel appeared before him, smiling sadly. "Neither should you, Castiel. Neither should Dean Winchester."

"I have a duty. I have orders."

"Whose orders, Castiel?"

"Our fathers."

"Are you sure? Do you really think our Father would want something like this?" Another scream echoed from the chamber. "Is this righteous, Castiel?" Castiel remained silent, fighting with his inner thoughts. He wanted desperately to run to Dean and make him stop, take him away from this place of death and pain. "That feeling, Castiel, that's doubt. I felt it too. We've always been so alike, you and I."

Castiel turned towards her seething, "Alike? I am nothing like you! You fell! You betrayed our father. Now leave!" Anna spared one last look towards the metal door behind which Dean continued torturing Alastair in the name of their father and disappeared.

"Bobby, I don't know where they are!" River yelled into her cellphone. "Castiel and that fuck Uriel kidnapped Dean. And then Ruby showed up and did some freaking spell to track him. And then Sam kicked me out of his room and almost ripped my fucking arm off in the process!" She paced around her small room, running her free hand through her hair.

"Sam tossed you outta his room?" Bobby asked unbelieving.

"Yes, Bobby he threw me out and slammed the fucking door in my face… And then He fucking left me here in the middle of no where Cheyenne…I guess he's going after Dean."

"River, sweet heart, calm down. I'll be there in a few hours and we'll find both of them."

"You calm down! Papa Bear, I am fucking calm!" she yelled again disconnecting the call and slamming her phone on the table.

"Now Dean, that kind of smarted." Alastair coughed up a thick glob of blood and spat it on the ground near his feet. " Where were we? Oh, yes, your daddy…my-my-my I had a century with him. I made the same deal every night with him that I did with you; I'd put down my knife if he'd take it up…for a hundred years he said no. Hmmm made of some tough stuff that John Winchester. How disappointed do you think he'd be knowing what a pussy you are? You barely made it thirty before breaking." Dean grabbed the demon knife of the table and stabbed Alastair in the stomach, the demon groaned and spit up more blood.

"You want to give me a name yet?" Dean whispered, twisting the knife ever so slightly.

"Have I told you 'thank you' yet?" Alastair asked through blood stained teeth as Dean set the knife down and wiped his hands on a filthy towel.

Dean picked up his bottle of whiskey and took a long swallow, "For what Alastair?"

"Everything you've done for us. None of this would have been possible without you, Dean. It was supposed to be your father he was supposed to bring it on. But like I said, he was made of tougher stuff."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Do you remember that night, Dean? The night you said yes to my offer. The first time you picked up my razor." Deans hands shook and he closed his eyes, the memory as fresh now as it was in hell all those years ago. Alastair bringing him the bodies of his dead sons, the sounds of Rivers screams echoing in the chamber; he couldn't bear it and begged Alastair to let him accept the offer. "Do you remember her? That weeping bitch you sliced into, I picked her just for you…red hair, blue eyes, freckles. Thought she'd remind you of that little bitch you left topside. The way you made her scream; that was ecstasy. That was the first seal and you broke it."

Dean stepped back towards Alastair and held the demon knife to his throat, "You're lying."

Alastair smiled, " 'And it written that the first seal shall be broken when a righteous man sheds blood in hell. As he breaks so shall it break.' Had to break the first seal first. Only way to get to Yahtzee." Dean staggered away from the demon, taking deep breaths. "When it all burns, when we destroy this world, we will owe everything to you. Believe me," Alastair paused looking up at the rusted pipes above his head, the bolt around the sprinkler loosened a few millimeters by the same unseen force and fat drops of water started splashing to the floor washing away the salt lines of the binding sigil, "I wouldn't lie about this Dean."

Dean shook his head, "I don't think you're lying…it doesn't matter. Even if the demons win, you won't be there to see it." He turned back towards the demon and gasped in surprise. Alastair was free of his binds and smiling.

"You should really get someone to check the pipes," he said. Alastair grabbed Dean by the shirt and slammed his fist into the hunters face. Dean staggered back but Alastair was faster, he grabbed Dean again and slammed his bare knuckles over and over into his face. Dean quickly became dazed, grasping weakly at Alastair's shirt as the demon abused him. His eyes were already nearly swollen shut, his nose broken, his lips cut and bleeding down his chin. Alastair gave Dean a hard kick in the gut causing him to slide along the ground and slam into the iron pentagram that he had been strapped to. "Dean, you disappoint me." He bent down and grabbed Dean around the throat, lifting him off the ground, "You still have so much to learn." He tightened his fingers around Deans throat causing him to take short grunting breaths, "I'm signing you up for remediation and I expect to see you in class first thing Monday morning!"

Castiel rushed in without a moment to spare and stabbed Alastair with the demon knife causing him to lose his grip on the hunter. Alastair turned to face the Angel and sneered looking down at the knife sticking out of his shoulder, "Looks like god is on my side today." Castiel reached out with his grace and twisted the knife in Alastair's shoulder causing the demon to double over in pain. The pain didn't last though as Alastair ripped the knife out and dropped it to the floor. He used his demon power to send Castiel flying across the room, impaling him on a broken piece of pipe. The angel struggled to pull himself off the jagged piece of metal. Alastair slowly walked towards him, clucking his tongue. "You celestials, you're like cockroaches…I wish I knew how to get rid of you. But alas, all I can do is send you back to heaven." He began reciting a demonic spell causing Castiel's grace to flare as it was loosing it's grip on his vessel. "Omnipotentis Dei Potesvo-" Alastair gagged suddenly, choking as though an invisible vice had encircled his throat. In the next instant he was sent flying across the room and pinned to a brick wall.

"Hey Papa Bear," River jumped into Bobby's car as soon as she heard its rattling muffler pull into the motels parking lot. "Head North on I-17. We're looking for some warehouse about 60 miles from here." Bobby spun the car around without another word and they raced away.

Alastair fought against the invisible force holding him against the wall. Sam Winchester walked quietly out of the shadows and stood in front of the demon. "Welcome to the party, little brother."

Sam sent another waive of psychic energy at the demon causing him to grunt in pain, "Who's killing the angels?"

"I'm not telling you anything." Alastair murmured defiantely. Castiel unsteadily pulled himself to his feet, glancing between Sam and Dean, who lay unconscious where Alastair had dropped him.

"How are they doing it?" Sam tightening his fist and Alastair screamed in pain, gagging as his demon essence desperately tried to escape his vessel. "HOW?"

"I…don't…know!" Alastair yelled.

"Tell me!" Sam increased the force he had around Alastair. "How are the demons killing angels?"

"It's…ughh…it's not us!" Alastair pleaded. "We…aren't…doing…it!" He gagged again, shuddering in pain.

"I don't believe you," Sam said quietly. Castiel however stared at the demon, the implications of his words to much to comprehend. The tendrils of doubt that been swirling in his mind where now taking hold.

"It's not us!" Alastair screamed again, "This…this is not Lilith's doing…So go ahead, Sam. Send me back."

Sam scoffed, "Oh, I am so much stronger than that now." Sam raised his hand to the demon, "Now I can kill." Alastair started convulsing against the wall, gurgling and thrashing, bright flashes of grey light exploded through his body as the demon was killed. With one final scream, Sam destroyed Alastair. His broken, human vessel fell to the floor dead.

Bobby pushed his rusted old car to nearly 80 miles per hour causing the entire frame to shake and rattle down the interstate. Rivers phone vibrated in her pocket and she pulled it cursing as her fingers shook, "Sam! You asshole! Where are you?" River stopped talking as Sam told her where to meet him. She set her phone down in her lap.

"Well, what's goin' on?" Bobby asked from the drivers seat.

"We need to go to Balsam General Hospital. Dean's in surgery. Sam said it's pretty bad."