CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO: Just One Word

Jo barely even had time to comprehend what was happening before she was immediately flashed with a blinding white light. She squeezed her eyes shut and held up her hands for protection before she felt a gust of wind blow her hair. Slowly opening her eyes, she noticed they were now outside the bunker.

Castiel released Meg and Jo's arms before shaking his head remorsefully. "This is not good."

"What are we gonna do?" The blonde asked, guilt and regret seeping into her tone as she felt overwhelming hopelessness overcome her thoughts.

"I say celebrate."

Both the young hunter and angel abruptly whipped their heads to where they were facing Meg who had a smug grin firmly plastered to her face.

"I mean, I went through all that trouble, might as well thank Lucifer himself the ritual worked." The demon elaborated, crossing her arms.

Jo's stomach dropped as she began to feel like she was going to puke. "Meg, what the hell are you talking about?" The hunter hissed through clenched teeth although she was scared she already knew the answer.

A cruel chuckle escaped the brunette's throat as she eyed Jo with pity, pursing her lips. "When I told you I didn't serve Crowley, I didn't mean I didn't serve anyone." She pointed out nastily. "Come on, get the hurt puppy look off your face. This is a good thing!" She exclaimed, watching as a silver blade dropped from Castiel's sleeve into his awaiting palm. "Cool it, Clarence. I'm leaving." With a quick wink, Meg disappeared right as the angel charged forward.

"Dammit…" He breathed, obviously picking up new habits from spending so much time with the Winchesters and company. He glanced at Jo who looked on the verge of tears. "Jo, what is troubling you?" He asked, his voice stiff and gruff.

"I just…" She paused, taking a deep breath as she ran shaky hands through her hair. "I can't believe she played us. What… What are we gonna do? What do we tell the others?" Her questions came out in a rush as she processed how they still had to explain what had happened to the group inside.

More importantly, she had to tell them what she had done. If she was being honest with herself, this would've never happened if she hadn't gone into that damn convent halfcocked and without fact checking. She imagined briefly the looks of anger her friends and family would have when she told them.

Cas looked up to the starry night above them, seeming thoughtful before speaking softly. "The toughest will is first to break: like hard, untempered steel that snaps and shivers at a touch when hot from off the forge."

"What is that?" Jo asked, her brows scrunching in confusion as the angel smiled bitterly.

"A prophecy. I was foolish to not think of it before." Cas reprimanded himself, turning to face the hunter staring at him in bewilderment. "The first seal is broken when the strongest will is shattered. I can't believe I didn't think of this before…" He trailed off, silently cursing his incompetence. "Dean broke the first seal when he was held captive in Hell, I heard a few murmurings on the matter but I waved them off as mere rumors."

"So, what happens now that Lucifer's topside?" Jo asked, beginning to feel as if there was a weight on her shoulders getting heavier as the angel continued to speak.

Castiel grew sorrowful. "He will be searching for a vessel and if the first half of the prophecy rang true, I'm afraid the rest may be just as accurate."

The blonde listened carefully, absorbing all the information Cas had. If she thought they were fucked before, man was she wrong.

…

Sam didn't even think before he quickly appeared in the Bunker's dungeon, the need to protect his brother fueling his adrenaline.

The first thing he saw was Tim standing over Dean, pulling out a needle viciously from the demon's neck. His pure instincts drove him forward causing him to tackle the Legacy to the ground. He wrapped his meaty hands around his neck, squeezing harshly.

"What the hell did you do?!" Sam spat, glancing worriedly towards his now unconscious brother whose head had lulled forward to where his chin was resting against his chest.

"Get off-" Tim managed to get out as he clawed uselessly at the demon's arms.

John rushed into the room and came to an abrupt halt as he took in the scene before him. His eyes darted between Dean and the scuffle on the floor.

Allison screeched as she saw her fiancé's face start to turn purple. She ran toward them, grabbing a hold of Sam's shoulder and begging him to stop.

The eldest Winchester began to put two and two together as he saw a syringe lying haphazardly on the floor. Merely reacting, he lunged for the container of holy water that was resting on a table in the corner.

Sam instantly released Tim as he stood up, roaring with rage as his torso and face burned as the purified liquid trailed down his face. He brought black eyes to his father, his nostrils flaring with hatred.

"Son, calm down. Tim was trying to help!" John explained, his voice gaining volume as the long-haired demon advanced towards him.

John felt the wind get knocked out of him as his back hit the wall, his feet dangling helplessly. He looked at his youngest son in confusion who was in the same position he was across the room.

Mary walked in between the two, obsidian orbs glaring at them pointedly before she went over to her eldest son. "Dean?" She tried, shaking his shoulders slightly. "Dean!" She insisted, this time slapping him hard across the face.

The Knight of Hell's head snapped to the right as his eyes flew open, still pitch black orbs training on her as he let out a moan.

The blonde let out a sigh of relief as she took a step back and turned her attention to the couple still huddled close on the floor. "I don't care what your intentions were." She began, an accusatory finger aimed in Tim's direction. "I don't want you to come in here, ever. You understand me?" Her voice was deadly quiet and it only took the Legacy and his fiancé a moment before they were both scrambling from the room.

Dean cleared his throat as his mother let Sam and John go, the pair falling to the floor.

"I thought we agreed not to do this." Mary said slowly, trying to keep her voice calm as she directed her gaze to her husband.

"Mary, I was with you! This was all Tim but before we left I didn't get a chance to tell him we weren't going to try it." He ended guiltily, wishing now he would've taken the time.

Sam squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What exactly was this?"

The blonde demon glanced at Dean who was panting hard and figured this was not a conversation to have in his presence. Motioning for the pair to follow her, she left the room.

…

"You're family misses you."

Nick quickly sat up in bed, a thin layer of sweat coating his forehead as he hastily looked around the room.

"I can bring you justice."

He glanced to his left, the voice that has been plaguing his every waking moment drifting in and out of his mind.

"God did this to you, Nick. He ruined your life. I can make him pay."

"This isn't real…" Nick muttered as he watched his dead wife materialize in front of him, her short brown hair wrapped in a bun.

"I'm not your wife, Nick." The hallucination spoke, its voice soft as it took a step toward him. "I'm an angel. My name's Lucifer."

He tried not to snort as he eyed it with skepticism. "Alright, if it's no bother to you Satan, I'd really like to wake up now." Nick quipped as pain at hearing his wife's voice washed through him.

The figure shook its head, seeming sad. "You people call me names like the Devil. But I got cast down because I loved God too much. Tell me, is my crime worth the punishment?"

Nick didn't know what to say to that so he just moved on, hoping he would wake up soon. "What do you want from me?"

"You're the one Nick, you're chosen. I need to take control of your mind and body so I can make God pay for his horrible acts, including how he didn't intervene to save your family." The hallucination trailed off at the end, trying to sound persuasive as it spoke. "All you have to do is say yes."

"Can you bring them back?" He asked desperately as he brought his grief stricken gaze to look his wife in the eye.

"Unfortunately I can't. But I can give you the next best thing: Justice." It stated, watching intently as Nick considered it for just a moment.

With very little thought, Nick just nodded solemnly. "Then yes."

…

Uriel was standing there, just a mere few feet from Castiel and the girl, as he watched the angel explain the prophecy to her. He thought about making himself known to them but figured he might as well allow him to finish.

When Cas finished, he watched as he ushered the blonde inside, claiming he needed a moment.

The second he was alone, the dark-haired angel spoke. "Can I help you with something Uriel?" He spoke, sounding nonchalant.

The African American vessel took a step forward, his angel blade falling from his jacket into his open palm. "Raphael wishes to see you. See, this little rebellion of yours has pissed him off."

Cas pursed his lips, seeming unbothered as he armed himself with his own blade. "You can tell Raphael to, as a wise man once said, bite me."

Within a split second Uriel was charging forward, Castiel barely reacting in time to block the silver blade with his own from connecting with his shoulder. The dark-haired angel maneuvered and sliced at Uriel's forearm, the other angel letting out a growl as the sharp edge met his flesh.

With quick movements, Cas stepped forward and hit the angel's wrist with his weapon before using his other to help in the task of unarming Uriel.

Uriel's eyes grew with panic as his blade fell to the ground and Castiel's was pointed at his neck.

"I suggest leaving." Cas insisted, his voice filled with an unspoken threat.

All of a sudden Uriel busted out laughing, eyeing Castiel with amusement. "You honestly thought I'd come alone?"

Before Cas had time to even look around him, he felt the sharp pain of a blade hilt hitting the back of his skull and two sets of arms grabbing his shoulders.

…

"What I don't understand is why Tim would think curing Dean would fix things." Sam said curiously after hearing just exactly the Legacy had been trying to accomplish.

John just shook his head, none the wiser on the young man's motives.

"So, I think at this point we only have one option." Mary stated, looking defeated as she admitted it out loud. "But, Dean definitely won't like it."

"Whatever it takes to save him." Sam said sternly, not seeming effected by the potential of lying to his brother.

"When we went and talked to Cain and he said someone could remove it, I think the person he was talking about was Lucifer." The blonde said in a rush, wanting to get the crazy idea out there as fast as she could.

The two Winchester men were silent as they digested what had been said. After what felt like hours, Sam chuckled humorlessly. "Why the hell not. Might as well try anything."

"I thought he was under lock and key down in Hell?" John asked, remembering that from all the research he's done over the years about demons.

"I guess we break him out." Mary said a little too casually, as if it were that easy.

"That won't be necessary." The group all turned to Jo who had appeared out of nowhere, eyes wide and questioning.

…

Lucifer had to admit, it was damn nice to be once again walking the Earth. But, he still had one more thing to accomplish before he could begin his true mission.

This entailed finding Sam Winchester.

He thought it'd be easy but for some reason, the young demon was nowhere to be found. He scoured the continental United States, quickly growing impatient as he continued to come up empty handed.

Finally, after searching for longer than he intended, he seeked help from the filth of the land, finding any demon and asking them what they knew of Sam.

Over and over again, Lucifer heard that the young Winchester was a traitor, consorting with humans and angels, his brother and him taking off and claiming souls for their own. This made him smile, happy to see his prized vessel was already causing trouble.

When he heard they were seen spending time with an angel named Castiel, he then set out to find said angel only to arrive late to the party as he watched him be taken by his own kind outside a very large fortress.

Figuring he had nothing to lose, Lucifer walked over to the Men of Letter's Bunker door and yanked on the handle, growling when it wouldn't budge. Fucking warding… he cursed before taking a deep breath and knocking three times.

…

Once Jo had mentioned that Castiel had remained outside but still hadn't come in yet, Sam felt instant worry surge through him for the angel's safety.

He excused himself from the discussion on how the blonde had managed to free Lucifer himself and made his way to the main area of the bunker.

He had only begun to ascend the steps when he heard three swift knocks at the door. He rolled his eyes and chuckled, not knowing how Cas had ended up getting locked out.

The youngest Winchester had barely opened the door when he was firmly grasped by the shirt and dragged out, the bunker door banging shut.

"What the-" Sam's blood ran cold as he looked at the man currently holding him up against the cement wall by his collar.

"Sammy Winchester. What an honor." Lucifer purred, enjoying the way he could make the demon squirm.

Gaining his composure, Sam's look of fear was replaced with a smug grin. "Here I was wondering how the hell I was gonna find you, didn't even consider you might be trying to find me."

Lucifer smirked, amused by the youngest Winchester. "Why would you be looking for me?" He asked, his interest peaked.

"I need you to remove the Mark of Cain from my brother." Sam demanded as he tried to not seem intimidated by the powerful being in front of him.

Lucifer erupted with laughter as he released the demon, knowing full well he wouldn't go disappearing on him as long as he wanted to talk to him. After his chuckles slowly stopped, Satan cleared his throat. "Why would I do that?"

The shaggy-haired demon's lips tugged at the end as he remembered what he had been told about angels for years. "Because if you remove the Mark, I'll give you my consent." He offered, coming to terms that he of all people was handpicked to be Satan's vessel. But, Jo had told them exactly what Cas had told her. Now, he just hoped she had been right.

Lucifer looked thoughtful as he considered his options. "How do I know you won't go back on your promise?" He inquired, not knowing how much he could trust him.

"I make deals for a living. I keep my bargains." Sam reassured, not even caring about the repercussions of what he was about to agree to.

Lucifer took a threatening step forward, a cruel grin curling his lips. "I will remove the Mark of Cain from your brother's arm and in exchange, when I come, you will say yes." He restated, making sure the terms were clear. When Sam nodded, he continued happily. "Do we have a deal?"

"Deal."

…

TBC

Guys, I'm so sorry that my updates have been so sporadic. I've just had a lack of motivation lately. But, I promise I will never abandon this story. So as long as you all are still willing to read, follow, favorite and review, I will still be willing to update. Thanks for sticking with me even through these huge gaps between updates. I hope to start updating more often once school ends and my schedule calms down a bit. Thanks for reading and have a good week!