The large black van with its detailed airbrush design stood out like a torch in darkness and Dean quickly spotted the vehicle amid the standard family sedans and business saloons of the hospital car park. Turning off the main street, he guided the Impala alongside the van and peered up into the front cab, finding it empty.

"Where is he?" Sam urged in annoyance.

Dean gave a shrug of his shoulders. "Asleep in the back, maybe?" Switching off the engine, he climbed from the car and headed round to the van.

Sam opened the passenger door and swung his feet round onto the ground, startled by the sudden shrill tone of his phone. He grabbed the handset from his jacket pocket and saw the ID. Standing quickly, he caught his brother's attention and answered the call. "Andy? Where are you?"

"At the rear entrance." Andy answered rapidly, "Dude, something's going on. The police are here and they're not letting anyone - "

"Stay there!" Sam ordered quickly, slamming the door shut and hurrying towards Dean. "We'll be right there!"

Dean watched Sam in concern and followed quickly as he was led towards the trunk of the car.

"Detective IDs." Sam requested in a panic, reaching into the trunk to grab a 9mm from the weapons bag and checking the clip before tucking it into the back of his jeans.

"Is it happening?" Dean asked quietly, selecting his own hand gun before then moving to the driver's door to lean in and grab the tin of IDs.

Sam met Dean at the front of the car and looked across at the small four-story hospital. "Yeah. I think so."

Reaching the back entrance to the hospital and seeing the staff and patients who were being herded onto the grass by security personnel, Sam caught sight of Andy standing by the glass automatic doors and headed towards him.

"Hey!" A security guard stepped into the path of the two brothers and held up his hands to stop their advance. "That's far enough."

"It's okay, they're with me."

The guard turned and saw Andy walking quickly towards them. "Oh … sorry Dr Gallagher."

Sam glanced at Andy in amusement and saw the brief nod of assurance he was given. He turned back to the guard and smiled in greeting as the guard shrugged and backed away from them.

"Guys, am I glad to see you!" Andy exclaimed in delight, hurrying forward and holding out his arms as if to embrace the pair of them.

"Wo!" Dean quickly raised his hands and took a step backwards, chuckling nervously.

Andy's smile faltered and he turned to Sam. "She broke out."

"What?" Sam gasped, a twinge of pain in his head making him wince as a quick flash of his vision entered his thoughts.

"I got here a few minutes ago - just as the police arrived." Andy explained, "There was complete chaos, man! Alarms blaring and people running from the building." He shook his head sadly and dragged a hand through his hair. "What I've gotten from some of the witnesses and staff is vague at best. No one knows how she got out but she attacked her orderlies and - " Seeing the sudden pain that crossed Sam's face, Andy frowned up at him and then suddenly understood. "You knew!" He gasped and clutched both hands to his head. "You saw this. That's why you called. Why you said to meet you here."

Sam nodded slowly in confirmation.

"Oh my god!" Andy continued quietly, staring up at Sam in disbelief. "Why the hell didn't you warn them?"

Dean quickly stepped in front of his brother defensively and held up his hand. "That's not how it works, Andy. And you know that."

Andy shook his head, unable to tear his eyes from Sam's sorrow-filled face. "But - "

"What was he supposed to do, man?" Dean urged quietly, "Call the switchboard and tell them one of their patients is about to go Resident Evil on their ass?"

Andy frowned at the analogy and shrugged his shoulders, his flushed face full of apprehension.

"We need to find her." Sam stated quietly.

"What?" Dean and Andy both demanded in unison.

Sam looked between their worried faces and gave a small nod. Glancing back at the hospital, he shrugged his shoulders and frowned in thought. "Every one of these guys gives us more clues as to what the hell is going on …"

"Hell being the operative word." Dean grated under his breath, noting the warning glance his brother shot at him.

"Well." Andy pointed towards the building and his face lightened. "I can get you in there. No problem."

Sam smiled and turned to his brother.

"Fine." Dean agreed reluctantly. "But, just for the record, this is against my better judgement."

Sam laughed gently, "Dude, do you have a better judgement?"

"Bite me." Dean retorted lightheartedly and followed Andy towards the building.

XXXXX

It was exactly as simple as Andy had suggested to enter the building. Firmly believing the trio to be one of the escapees doctors and two detectives, the security personnel stepped from their path and they made their way to the second floor.

The secure psychiatric unit and the adjoining wards had been cleared of all unnecessary personnel and the patients evacuated to the neighboring ward. It was eerily quiet as the three of them walked carefully along the pale green corridor and could hear little evidence that anyone was about.

Turning the end corner, they had their first glimpse of the damage; one of the tempered glass doors shattered and hanging off of its tracks. They edged around the end of the corridor and paused inside the entrance to the secure ward, taking a moment to absorb the mess.

Crime scene officers milled around the bodies scattered throughout the centre of the ward and the medical examiners took multiple photographs, scattering bright flash light through the corridor.

"Holy shit." Dean whispered, aware of his two companions nodding in agreement. He then turned to look at his brother and saw Sam peering around the scene in intrigue. "You think one of your psychic friends is capable of this?"

Sam frowned and took in the damage to the doors of one of the rooms on the side of the ward and then noted the bent, mangled remains of a metal security gate at the far end.

"I guess …" Andy offered quietly.

Dean glanced at him and then turned back to Sam. "Damage like this takes superhuman strength, bro …"

Sam seemed to at last hear his brother's concerns and seemed to startle from his thoughts. He turned to Dean and renewed fear filled his eyes. "You think …?"

Dean reached into his pocket and took out a small silver hip flask. "Better safe than sorry."

"Why? What's that?"

"Holy water." Dean replied easily. "Our girl might be possessed." Aware of his brother giving a slight gasp, he turned to him and saw his suspicion. "What?" Dean shrugged, "He needs to know what he's getting into."

Sam looked back inside the ward and dragged his good hand through his hair, resting his fist at the nape of his neck and closing his eyes. "It might explain the Latin, as well."

"Erm …" Andy raised his hands nervously and then pointed into the ward. "I think we've been spotted."

Dean spun towards the CSI officer and smiled warmly. "So deal with it." He hissed to Andy through closed teeth.

"Can I help you?" The officer asked warily.

"Detective Ripley." Dean replied easily, holding up his fake ID and then nodding to Sam. "My partner Detective Hicks."

"I see." The officer nodded and gave a thin smile of welcome. "Come on in." He turned away from them and headed back towards one of the bodies strewn across the lino floor.

Dean shot Andy a delighted grin, "Dude … I would have so much fun." He observed lightly and headed into the ward.

"Her shrink thinks she's somehow not been taking her meds." The officer explained as they followed him along the corridor. "She burst from her room and attacked with expert precision." He indicated the bodies around them and frowned slightly. "Clean brakes. All of them. Necks snapped like kindling."

"Oh, man …" Dean groaned.

"Never seen anything like it." The officer agreed quietly, "The doc thinks its her mental state that gives her such strength but …" He shook his head slowly, "She's 5 nothing and 120 pounds, if that. How she managed this …"

Dean glanced at Sam and saw the same thoughts crossing his tired eyes.

"The doc insisted on staying. Says he can maybe talk her down or - "

"What?" Sam urged rapidly, "Where is he?"

"In the office at the end," The officer pointed back towards the entrance.

Sam spun and hurried along to the staff office, knocking lightly before stepping inside. He peered round the door and saw the greying man receiving treatment, the EMT carefully wrapping a sling under the doctors arm.

"Yes?"

Sam met the doctor's wary gaze and stepped further into the office. "Dr Kavanagh?" He watched the older man nod an affirmative and then held up his ID. "Detective Hicks. I need to ask you a few questions."

Dr Kavanagh smiled thinly and beckoned Sam to enter the office further. He thanked the paramedic and watched him packing away his supplies before then leaving promptly.

"You okay, sir?" Sam asked carefully, indicating the bruising to the doctor's face and neck.

"That's a loaded question." Dr Kavanagh replied quietly.

Sam shrugged slightly and crossed the office to take a seat across the desk from the doctor. "What can you tell me about Tori Lakin?"

"God …" The doctor rubbed at his bandaged arm and sighed heavily. "Not that much, I'm afraid." He replied, frowning in thought. "She was something of an enigma. Even after three months of study and therapy."

"Three months? Is that how long she has been here?" Sam urged.

"Yes. She was found wandering in the city and in a complete mess." Dr Kavanagh took a deep breath and stroked his injured arm idly. "She was dehydrated, malnourished, rambling incoherently. The police traced her back to a missing persons report filed nine months beforehand."

Sam added the figures together and could feel a pounding in his chest as if his heart was misfiring. "She went missing a year ago?"

The doctor nodded, "Just up and walked out of an anatomy class. Everyone was shocked. She was apparently well liked and a grade-A student - in her third year of studying to be a veterinarian."

Sam could feel adrenaline still lingering in his system and took a deep breath. "And … what did you make of her?"

"It was an easy diagnosis." Dr Kavanagh gave a small shrug and leaned back in his chair, removing his glasses and wiping his eyes with his fingers. "But she didn't respond to any treatment. In fact … she only ever seemed to become worse. No matter what we did."

"The witnesses spoke of hearing her screaming in Latin." Sam ventured warily.

"Yeah." The doctor gave a short laugh and reached across his desk to grab a small digital recorder. He held it up to show Sam and then pressed play.

Sam leaned forward and hung his head as he listened to the female voice chanting. Closing his eyes, he strained to hear anything other than the woman speaking and found no evidence of any other presence in the recording. And then something the voice said made his skin crawl. "Wait." Sam flicked his head up and held out his hand. "May I?"

"Sure." Dr Kavanagh held out the device to him.

Sam scanned back through the recording and repeated the playback, his head spinning as he heard the words.

"What is it?"

"Nothing." Sam smiled quickly and pressed stop, handing the recorder back. "What can you tell me about Tori's drawings?"

"Hmm. You've seen her room, I take it."

Sam adapted quickly and gave a brief nod.

"The yellow-eyed man was the focus of her paranoia." The doctor explained, "It's quite a common theme among patients with her type of illness. A figure manifesting from confused thoughts and becoming something almost corporeal to aim emotions at."

"Emotions?"

"Hate. Rage." Dr Kavanagh gave another shrug. "Every bad thought or emotion is blamed on some controlling figure who is causing them."

Sam considered the psychiatrists words for a moment and then nodded slowly. "Thank you for your time."

"Of course."

Standing, Sam turned to head from the room and then spun back with a slight frown. "Can I ask you why you think she didn't kill you?"

Dr Kavanagh seemed to shudder and clutched at his injured arm protectively. "I know why … she told me." He closed his eyes for a moment, the color draining from his cheeks. When he looked back up at Sam, his face was filled with fear and he took a deep, shaken breath. "She said that I had to tell the world what she had done. To warn people that the end is coming."

Sam was sure he could feel the turn of the earth under his feet and leaned his arm on the back of the chair to steady himself.

"And …" Dr Kavanagh struggled for a moment and seemed to be fighting back tears. He smiled suddenly and shook off his sudden melancholy. "Well … that's the most coherent thing she has ever said in all the time I've known her."

Nodding in understanding, Sam wandered from the office and looked around for his brother and Andy. He then heard a familiar voice and hurried after the sound, reaching the battered door of what was presumably Tori's room and peering inside. "Holy crap …"

Dean spun round and saw his brother standing in the doorway, his mouth hung agape as he looked around at the grafitti on the cream painted walls. He saw something of a familiar dread in Sam's eyes and stepped towards him.

Sam could not tear his eyes from the yellow pairs that stared right back at him from everywhere. Eyes that he had seen before. Eyes that had glared at him from within his own father's face.

"Dude."

Suddenly aware of his brother standing before him, Sam forced himself to look away and met Dean's anxious frown. "We need to find her." He managed through his tight throat. "Fast."

"Okay." Dean agreed quietly, stepping a little closer. "They've got teams looking in the building and the grounds. I'm sure - "

"No, Dean! We have to find her!"

"What? Why?"

Sam shook his head and leaned against the broken door frame, resting his cheek against the white wood. "Because I have to hear what she needs to say." Lifting his head back up, he looked into Dean's worried face and shrugged his shoulders. "Before they silence her with sedatives again."

"I think I know where she might have gone." Andy called out suddenly.

Dean and Sam both moved further into the room and watched Andy crouching down beside the wall, reading some of the scribbled text that lay underneath one of the many drawn pairs of eyes.

Moving closer, Sam rested his hands on his knees and bent forward, reading the rough handwriting for himself. Amid the repeated jumble of sentences that said something about many voices and noisy dreams, he saw some Latin writing and reached out to touch it. "In nomine patri et fili …" He trailed of and suddenly laughed softly. "Of course!"

Dean held out his hands and gazed at them both in confusion. "Anyone wanna clue me in here?"

Sam stood up straight and dragged his good hand through his hair. "On the recorder she was reciting an exorcism rite."

"She what?" Dean demanded.

"She was convinced she was possessed. Or that a demon was present." Sam explained with a sigh. "She must have met that yellow-eyed bastard face to face and then when her powers emerged …" He groaned softly, "She must have been so scared …"

Dean's frown grew and he looked between his brother and Andy. "Okay, is there some sort of psychic thing that I can't pick up on? Guys?"

"She was Roman Catholic." Andy explained quietly, pointing at the writing on the wall. "Hence the Latin."

"Shit." Dean sighed, seeing the connections and beginning to understand. "Then …" He turned to Sam and watched him nodding in confirmation.

"She's gone to find a priest." Sam acknowledged quietly.

XXXXX

The afternoon light filtered through the newly cleaned mosaic of colored glass that filled the north window of the church and cast a rainbow of patterns over the beige tiled floor. The many colors glinted on the gold encrusted ornaments and empty goblets that were arranged across the white linen altar cloth.

She knelt down on the cold stone floor before the altar and hung her head, interlacing the fingers of her clenched hands and letting out a heavy sigh.

"Can I help you, child?"

She opened her eyes and turned slowly to watch the priest who carefully approached her. Smiling in relief and blinking away tears, she held out her hands and nodded in earnest. "You must banish the demon within me, father. Before it is too late!"

The priest paused a short distance from the strange girl and took in her bedraggled appearance, unable to see her face clearly behind the tangle of dark curls. Her hospital-embossed pajamas were grubby and her skin bruised and scratched. He took a step closer and then noticed the name tag secured around her wrist. Aware of movement behind her on the other side of the church, he glanced up at the cleaner who had been dusting in the east transept and gave a slight nod.

"Wait!" Seeming to sense the signal, the strange girl leapt to her feet and crossed the short distance over to the priest in a heartbeat. In one swift motion she had grabbed his arm and twisted it up behind his back, forcing him to sink to his knees with a cry of pain. She then laced her arm around his neck and glared a warning at the stunned cleaner, seeing the terror in the elderly lady's face.

"Do not call anyone!"

The cleaner nodded quickly and raised her hands in a gesture of calm.

"Get over here!"

The priest gasped as the grip around his throat was adjusted and white spots of light began to dance in the corner of his vision.

"Who else is here?" The woman demanded in fury.

"No one." The white-haired cleaner assured quickly. "Just Father Thomas and myself."

"Good." She suddenly released her hold and let the priest sink away from her, ignoring his rasping coughs as he doubled over and rubbed at his aching arm. "Now…" She moved round to face him and sighed in annoyance. "I need you to - " She stopped suddenly, her attention taken by something in the shadows at the far end of the church. Frowning she peered along the aisle towards the large oak front doors and suddenly smiled.

The priest followed her gaze and could see nothing in the dim corners behind the thick stone pillars. He looked back up at the strange girl and rubbed at his bruised throat.

"I was beginning to lose all hope." The girl offered sternly, her smile growing as she kept her gaze on the entrance to the church. "Hello, Sam."

Tbc ...