Chapter Seven
"Dean?" He raised up in the bed angling his head over the pillow as Sam shifted on the tiny love seat, restlessly. It was Ambre's turn to have the other bed…and Dean should have known where she would end up. He couldn't believe she hadn't woken him screaming. Dean scooted against the sheets rubbing at his eyes.
"Sam!" Dean called out all at once. Sam jumped and rolled off the love seat into the floor. He hit his hands and knees and the coffee table instantly levitated so fast and hard that it splintered against the ceiling spraying the room in wood fragments. Dean and Ambre both looked to Sam who shrugged with a sheepish smile. "Easy there, Tiger." Dean chuckled with a shake of his head as he pulled the covers back so that Ambre could get into bed with him. "Bed's free."
Sam slowly nodded. They were all accustomed to it now, so Sam was just beginning to wonder why Dean and Ambre didn't start out in the same bed every night instead of this constant middle of the night fiasco. "Thanks." Sam whispered as he pulled himself into the now empty bed and found the warmth of where Ambre's body had lain. "Night guys."
"Night, Sam." Ambre and Dean replied in unison.
Dean wrapped an arm around Ambre's side as she scooted over until her back nestled against his chest. "You want to talk about it?" He whispered referring to the nightmares. Sometimes she wanted to and sometimes she told him to shut the hell up and to go to sleep. So, he always took his chances.
"It was the farmstead." She whispered softly and he felt her body shudder against his. Dean wrapped his arm around her tighter. It was never easy to hear her talk about that place. Hell if he hadn't forced Nessa to go back, they may have never found her. Dean closed his eyes his own body betraying his unease with the topic of choice by a tremble that shot through him. "You know, climbing out…all the body parts." She swallowed the lump in her throat to go on. "I can still feel it all against my skin." her voice fell. "The blood." She trailed off again before clearing her throat in an attempt to hide the tears that were in her voice. "What made you come back? There shouldn't have been anything left of me in that crater."
Dean was quiet for a long time. The reality of the situation was that a part of him only wanted to go back as a show of force to Nessa, because after seeing that explosion. He had his doubts. Still, he wasn't about to walk away without knowing…and if possible then to resurrect her. There was something about sharing the burden of harboring gods that forged a bond. "We couldn't just leave. We didn't know If you were alive or not."
"Nessa, yanked Sam out of the way and jumped just before that whole place blew to kingdom come…it was a pretty good guess on her part to keep moving." Ambre argued in Nessa's defense. "Besides, you know she always meant well." There was an edge of sadness to her voice speaking of the departed.
"Yeah well. Her judgment was off from the beginning. She didn't know what she was dealing with…this was never something she should have been given alone. The Foci botched the whole job. Hell I wouldn't be surprised if the bastard was in league with Alturoc."
"Surely not." Ambre chuckled softly, but the laugh died out of her voice quickly as she thought on the possibility. "God, I'm never going to be able to go to sleep tonight." She whispered.
Dean pulled her closer to his body and tucked the blanket around them both. "All right now, we just have to get your mind on something else." he paused thoughtfully. As close as they slept together, they had never even kissed. Still he let those wayward thoughts go on their way as he reminded himself that her boyfriend was dead and that she needed time. They had started working out a system of reliving the better part of their childhood when Ambre couldn't get back to sleep from one of her nightmares. "So what'll it be? Summer at Gram gram's? The sophomore sleep over? " Dean paused. "That's my favorite one by the way." He smiled against her cheek. "Your Dad's marathon victory? Aunt Miriam's tea parties?" God he hoped she didn't pick the latter one. He had to remind himself not to bring that up any more. He'd never met Miriam, but she sounded like a freak and well…Dean shook his head at just what his imagination drummed up on the woman.
"How about something new. My senior trip in Cancun." She smiled as she relaxed her head against his chest.
"Oh now this I've got to hear." Dean smiled as well and settled in to the lull of her voice his mind flooding with visions of scantily clad women prancing up and down the beach to the tune of events that Ambre was playing with her tale. It wasn't long after she trailed off in mid sentence that Dean realized that her body had finally won the battle to get her to sleep and he finally settled in to get a few hours in.
Dean had just closed his eyes when he heard the skitter behind him. It sounded like claws against plaster in a fashion that could rip the plaster free, like it was tearing as it moved about frantically. Dean was surprise Sam hadn't come awake and broken something else in the room in a panic. He slowly unwound himself from Ambre and rolled over. He had just rolled onto his back when a flash appeared from out of no where and a woman's deathly visage stared down at him. "Inan." Dean heard himself whisper even as he realized that this had to be a nightmare…She trailed a finger across his cheek as he lay there paralyzed and he felt the skin decay on contact, rotting instantly.
Nessa twisted her wrists uncomfortable a she grimaced again at the loss of circulation to her hands. The damn prick. She watched him breathing deeply against the bed he had sprawled out in. He looked relatively peaceful. God how she would change that if she could just get her hands free.
The occupants of the room seemed to shift at once as Nessa noticed the soft morning light beginning to peak in through the center of the curtains that were bunched up around her. Cowboy's buddy sat up from the other side of Cowboy's bed and blinked as if he'd just woken from a dream and looked around a moment before settling back.
The hunter that had bested Selena and Rachel rolled over in the floor and after looking over the room and finding it settled he rolled back over and went back to sleep. The charge and her fiancée didn't stir, they didn't have they reflexes for it yet, the paranoia. And the other guy…he looked half past dead his breathing shallow on the other side of Ambre. "Hey Sugar." Nessa whispered to Sam who was now pulling the covers back and headed…stumbling into the wall to the bathroom. Nessa gave a smile with a shake of her head. That potion was something else. She felt like she'd mainlined an entire pint of Jack. This guy obviously didn't have her tolerance. "Lightweight." She whispered under her breath. She waited for him to return from the bathroom and tried again to get his attention…without waking Cowboy. "Sugar…" She called to him.
Sam finally seemed to notice her as began to make his way over pausing a few feet away as he remembered what Dean had said to Bobby about staying away from her. "Something wrong?" Sam asked softly.
Nessa let her mouth fall open in shock. Was something wrong?! She was handcuffed to a window! "You could say that. You know you're friend is going to get us all killed right."
Sam smiled pulling a chair up to sit a bit away from her. "You're seriously trying to mind trip me?" Sam asked in wonder. He'd seen Dean shoot and stab the women and she already looked better then most everyone in the room. Sam would take even broken Dean's word over hers any day of the week.
Nessa returned the smile. "I'm just telling the truth."
Sam paused. He was ready for someone to start talking…He looked back to Dean then returned his gaze to Nessa. "Yeah all I've heard from the get go is that we're in trouble…Whose Alturoc?"
Nessa narrowed her eyes looking from Dean to Sam in confusion. They seemed to be pretty close and she vaguely even remembered Sugar here calling Cowboy his brother…so how come Cowboy knew and Sugar here didn't. "Boy he sure keeps you on a need to know basis." She breathed.
"Things are a little weird right now." Sam admitted looking to his hands that were resting on his knees at the moment.
Nessa let her head fall back against the bars with a sigh. "Tell me about it."
"So who is Alturoc?" Sam hoped she would answer the question, because that was one less he had to try and pry from Dean.
"He's a demon Lord." Nessa replied angling her head in his direction though still resting lulled back against the bars. "He's making some pretty powerful plays lately."
"And he wants Ambre?" Sam smoothed his hands together rubbing them back and forth nervously. "Why?"
"They keep me on a need to know basis too." Nessa smiled softly.
"Foci Command?" Sam asked trying to piece together all the ramblings Dean had mentioned in the last little bit. She nodded. "And you're a guardian?"
"He really hasn't told you much, has he." Nessa frowned looking back to Cowboy in dismay. What if he wasn't lying back at that house? Had he really been sent back in time?
Sam shook his head. "He will."
"That what you tell yourself to make yourself feel better?" Nessa asked softly.
"He will." Sam replied defiantly. God he could see why Dean got so pushy with Nessa. She had some effect on people. Nessa chuckled.
"Sugar, I've been protecting people since the eighteenth century. I've seen and met soldiers from every walk of life." She nodded her head in Dean's direction. "And that man…he doesn't want to talk…he's waging his own private war right now. So whatever hope you're holding out for some quick and easy answers…I'd let it die and move on now."
"Inan!" Dean suddenly screamed out loud enough to rouse the entire room, then he was jumping from the bed scrambling to get to his feet shaking in a cold sweat as he seemed to be trying to frantically brush something off his face.
Sam pushed himself from his seat and moved in that direction as Bobby was scrambling off the floor and Nessa pulled herself up along the bars to get a better look at this. Ambre shifted in the bed pulling herself up against Ben as she suddenly realized that Shay was there and still unconscious, but didn't get to relish that for the fact that someone was screaming nearby. She looked to Dean trying to get her eyes to focus.
"Dean!" Sam called out grabbing him by the shoulders as Dean suddenly began to take in the room and the people. Breathing hard he had to remind himself that he had been sent back…that this wasn't the same room from his dream…that no one knew…Dean slipped back to the bed fighting to catch his breath his breathing becoming erratic. "Dean?!" Sam noticed it right away. He looked to Ambre, being that she was the only medical professional in the room at the moment. "Can you help him?!" Sam was calling as Bobby moved for his bag.
"Don't bother." Bobby called out quickly. "He's hyperventilating. He just needs to calm down."
"Hey, It's alright." Sam began as Bobby explained it and Sam sank to Dean's side on the bed. He placed a hand on Dean's shoulder trying to offer him some support. Dean quickly reacted by pushing him roughly off the bed.
"Don't touch me." Dean got out between clenched teeth as Sam fell flat on his bottom hitting the other bed with his back and a grimace.
"Hey…hey." Ambre rolled off the end of her bed making her way over, which stopped Bobby in mid-stride. Bobby had been about to go slap him. Ambre's approach seemed to be almost worse. "Look just take a slow breath…Like this." Ambre showed him the motions and waited until he slowly began to follow the directions. "Just slow and easy, everything is alright."
"Everything is not alright!" Nessa screamed out.
"You be quiet!" Sam yelled out looking from Dean struggling again over his shoulder to Nessa.
"Hey quit yelling!" Bobby called out loudly to Sam.
"What the…" Shay finally woke up sitting up in the bed with a start. "Ambre?" He spotted his fiance perched over Dean trying to get him to breath slower her face entirely too close to the man for Shay's liking.
"Oh this is rich." Nessa smiled. "Cowboy had a bad dream!"
"Nessa, I swear!" Sam began again.
"Sam!" Bobby called.
"Just breath slowly…" Ambre was saying as she tried to focus Dean's attention on her, though Shay was definitely now causing her to split her attention as she looked from Dean to Shay and then back to Dean.
Ben roused startled from all the screaming and looked from Nessa chained to the window to Shay crawling over Ben's battered form to get to his fiance to Sam rounding the bed and Bobby stepping in his way. "Uh…guys…" Ben whispered in confusion.
"Sam, calm down." Bobby was yelling holding him back from Nessa.
"Not until she shuts up!" Sam retaliated to Bobby.
"Bring it on, Sugar!" Nessa called just waiting to get a hold on someone to work out her aggression.
Dean took in the downward spiral of the room's occupants…the decent into disorder and confusion and he began to take slow even breaths. In one fluid movement he had Ambre off him, thrusting her into Shay's arms, as he pushed himself off the bed, and then headed for Sam and Bobby. Dean stopped near the middle of the room in front of the television. "Hey!" Dean suddenly panted out at a scream silencing the increasingly hostile group.
All eyes were caste instantly in his direction. "Sam, sit down somewhere!"
"Tsk. Tsk. Cowboy." Nessa started shaking her head with a wicked smile. "Shouldn't talk to your brother that way."
"Hey!" Sam started.
"Sam!" Dean called again. "Back off and sit down. Nessa shut your mouth."
"Make me." Nessa arched an eyebrow. Dean rolled his eyes then grabbed a roll of duct tape out of a nearby bag before walking right up to Nessa and stunning her with a punch to the gut before he slammed a piece of tape over her mouth. He then jumped back out of the way before she could kick his legs out from under her.
"Look what the hell is going on here?!" Shay screamed out holding onto Ambre protectively after seeing the way Nessa had been treated. Bobby was now moving to sit next to Sam rubbing his eyes as Ben tried to reposition himself on the bed.
"That's a good question." Sam said looking to Dean quickly. So far getting Dean to talk had been like pulling teeth and now it seemed like it might be the only way to get this group quieted down.
"Dean, I think everyone here is going to need a pretty good explanation, son." Bobby said softly.
Dean slowly nodded as he looked the group over. This was not the way he wanted to do this. "Alright…Ben, how you holding up?" Dean asked quickly before he could in good conscious continue.
"I'll live." Ben nodded to him. Dean nodded back. "Alright…this is the short and sweet."
"I thought you said you couldn't sum it up…" Sam started with a look of surprise.
"Sam." Dean shook his head and watched as Sam held up his hand defensively and backed off.
"Ambre is being hunted…Nessa, Sam, Bobby, and Ben have all been trying to keep her safe. Problem is Nessa doesn't like to work with people she doesn't know…and well she's a bitch." Dean started he was just shaking the dream over pure need at this point as everyone else was now in definite need of some sort of explanation.
Nessa immediately began to scream into the duck tape fighting her bonds. Dean ignored her though and went on. "See the fact is that Neither Nessa or I or the people Nessa works for understands why the bad guy…and that would be Alturoc wants Ambre. So we have to do what we can to lay low and keep Ambre safe. Now for the hard part …for you two." Dean motioned to Ambre and Shay.
Dean rubbed his hand across his face trying to still the emotions playing through him. God he'd given up everything for them to have a normal life and here he was shattering their reality in order to explain all this. To try and garner some sense of unity here. "I'd give anything." Dean's voice cracked under the strain. "Not to tell you this…"
All eyes stayed focused on Dean as Nessa started to calm her own movements so that she could hear him.
"Six months ago. Vanashi…" Dean looked to Nessa and swallowed. "You know the leader of the resistance…used to be big with your boss." He looked back to Shay and Ambre. "Vanashi, is a powerful bastard of a magus…or a magic user. I know this sounds crazy but just hear me out…cause crazy is all I have left to go on…Vanashi was desperate. He felt that Foci command – the people Nessa works for weren't doing their part to take out Alturoc who is a powerful demon lord making a vie for power her eon earth. So he decided to hunt down the remaining life force of the old gods…beings we don't hear about in religious texts because it was just that long ago. So he performs a ritual…and he released them…bound them to three vessels. The incantation destroyed the plane he was on…the plane that exploded a few days ago over Huntington."
Bobby cleared his throat. "You said six months ago…and now it was a few days ago?"
"I'm getting there…" Dean replied in a whisper. Bobby nodded and paced a few steps falling silent again. "So these gods went into three people…me…Sam…and Ambre. Alturoc knew about it, The Foci he knew about it, and we didn't have a clue. The Foci sent Nessa to guard us…and Alturoc sent armies to hunt us. And by the time we finally figured it out and by the time we finally found a way to access the power inside us…it was over. And Alturoc was just as screwed as we were, because the real enemy was one of the gods…and when…" Dean decided not to mention gender in order to keep the whole Ambre nearly killing them all out of it for now. "They made their play for power they killed over a third of earth's population in a matter of minutes. I've left a lot out…I'll grant you that…we ran and we fought…we fought along side The Foci and all his Magus and the guardians…we saw." And he looked to Nessa. "The resistance and the command reunited under Gabriel and everyone fought…it was war. And when everything got to the point where we had no other options but to fight and die I was given a choice. And I don't know if it helped…I don't know if it did any of us any good. But I took it. I chose to go back six months to keep Vanashi from releasing the gods…to level the playing field so we could take out Alturoc before he could make his power play. I just never realized that he would move this fast or that he would go after Ambre again…" Dean trailed off.
"This is insane…" Shay began. Dean scoffed choking on tears with a nod. Ambre though was rigidly silent, she had seen the shades at Ben's. She had seen the monsters that were coming. She had seen Nessa take three gunshots and keep moving…Ambre sank onto the bed out of Shay's arms trying to find someway to be able to take all that in. Because even with everything that she had seen it still sounded…crazy.
"Yeah well…I didn't say you'd all believe me…but everyone else in this room besides you two." Dean looked to Shay. "They know that this is all possible. Bobby here is a demon hunter…Ben, he's a magus in his own right and he just lost his entire coven to Alturoc. Sam and I we're hunters…ghosts, spirits, demons, we're not a picky as some…Nessa, she's a guardian. Has a huge white wing span that keeps hidden behind some veil so she doesn't freak people out." Dean looked to Nessa. "Care to enlighten the nonbeliever?"
She looked back breathing more evenly and narrowed her eyes down as if motioning to the duct tape. Dean moved on over and pulled it off fast. She opened her mouth wide trying to get over the pain the response elicited. "Who sent you back she changed the subject…you tell me that and I'll show 'em my wings."
Dean stepped back to the center of the room and looked to Sam apologetically. "Alturoc sent me back." He whispered.