Sam woke up with a start, he was sweating profusely and biting into his pillow ferociously. He rolled onto his back with a small grunt of pain, he had been having a nightmare. Dean – or the shape shifter version – had been torturing him again, the white hot sensation of the poker being held against his bare skin had jolted him awake. Dean was sitting on his bed, hunched over and watching Sam carefully, his little brother had been crying out the whole night.

"What're you staring at?" Sam grumbled.

"You okay Sammy?" Dean asked, his hands clasped between his knees and a worried expression on his face.

"Fine." he replied, "Dean I'm fine." he repeated seeing the unconvinced look on Dean's face.

"You were crying out in your sleep."

"Just a nightmare, I promise Dean I'm fine." he sat up, "Shut up Dean."

"I didn't say anything!" he held his hands up in a mock surrender.

"Jerk." Sam said and shoved his face back into the pillow.

"Bitch." Dean laughed and picked up his laptop, making sure Sam couldn't see the screen. He began searching for Zoroastrian symbols. He scrolled down clicking on links that led no where interesting.

"Whatcha looking at," he thought for a second, this was his brother, chances were he was looking at porn "Actually I don't wanna know."

Dean chuckled again and snuck a look at Sam's burn, it was still red and white but would probably scar.

"Stop staring dude, you're making me feel uncomfortable."

Just at that moment John Winchester walked in, "The desk clerk is dead." he was carrying a shotgun loaded with rocksalt and a pistol loaded with iron rounds. "Something must have followed us from the warehouse."

"Yes sir." Dean said and grabbed his silver knife and pistol, "Sammy get behind me." he handed his baby brother a gun and helped him out of bed, Sam wobbled a bit but refused Dean's help. He wouldn't appear weak, plus he'd only slow his brother and father down. Dean and John left the room and Sam followed behind as quickly as he could. His entire body protested, the wounds still throbbed but he was determined to ignore it. Dean would call his a woos otherwise. He hobbled along behind them and stopped when he saw the clerk's dead body.

Calum was sat at his desk, feet propped up on the desk, nose in another comic book. He was so engrossed in the story that he didn't notice the second presence in the room. The shadow of a humanoid creature with long sharp claws hung on the wall behind Calum's shadow. It stuck it's claws straight through the man's back. They pierced his lungs and heart. The creature removed it's claws and crept away from the paling body of the young man. His face was pale and thick, deep red, blood slowly covered the victim's white shirt. Soon the shirt became red and blood seeped onto the chair from which it fell with a steady drip. The comic book fell from his still fingertips and landed upside down on the floor. Blood trickled from his arm and onto the front cover. Drops of blood slowly began to seep into Captain America's face.

Dean stared at the body, it looked fresh. Too fresh for his liking, he liked it better when they were just a pile of rotting bones, that way he couldn't see the agony stretched across the victim's face when it finally bit the dust. John checked Calum's pulse. Nothing. No movement.

"Definitely dead. Poor guy."

Dean looked around he could see nothing, no one. It was all too quiet. The EMF in his back pocket was also dead as Elvis. "Any ideas Sammy?" Dean asked.

"Nothing." he replied. All of a sudden something wrapped around his neck and he was hoisted into the air. The lampshade fell to the floor with a clatter. John spun round, the sight of Sam kicking wildly as the lamp cord tightened around his neck froze him for a few seconds.

"Dean watch our backs!" he ordered and hastily pulled up a chair beneath Sam's feet, thanks to his long body Sam was able to put his feet on the top of the chair back. John stood on the chair and tried to cut the cord. Out of nowhere something shoved into him and sent him careering into the lobby vending machine. The thing batted Sam's chair away and left the kid hanging there and struggling for breath. All Sam could see of it was it's shadow. It swiped out with it's long claws.

"DEAN!" Sam yelled in warning as he saw the shadow swinging it's arm at Dean's back. The chord tightened around his throat and cut off his voice. Dean spun out of the way just in time to avoid a fatal blow to the heart. Gashes were open right down his upper arm and he yelled in pain.

"Sammy!" Dean called out, always with more concern for his brother's health than his own.

Sam clawed at the cord around his throat, "D...va..." he said weakly.

"What?" Dean tried to ignore the agonising pain in his arm.

"..ae..v" he tapped his chest where the burn mark was and motioned for Dean to cut it. The Daeva cut across Dean's cheek and sent him flying over the counter and into the dead man.

"Gross." Dean grumbled, blood was trickling steadily down his face and onto his shirt. "What is this thing dad?!" Dean demanded.

John put two and two together, the symbol and the invisible monster, "It's a Daeva! Invisible!" Sam went limp and in a mad burst of fury he grabbed a flare from his jacket pocket and lit it up. The Daeva's shadow vanished in the intense light. Black smoke vanished off into the ventilation shafts and Sam's neck was released. He fell to the floor with a loud thump, Dean crawled over to Sam, cradling his injured arm.

"You okay Sammy?" Dean asked weakly. Sam groaned and gasped for air, his hands instantly jumped to his neck but the chord was gone. John hid his limp as he walked over to his sons. "What was that thing?" Dean asked, leaning against the front desk.

"A Daeva. They're invisible, you can only ever see their shadow. The flare should have killed it but we have to be sure." he took out his silver lighter and flicked it on, the small flame burst into life. He moved Sam's shirt up his chest. Sam tried to complain but he was too exhausted.

"What are you –" Dean started to ask but shut up receiving a 'look' from his father.

John held the flame closer to Sam's chest, "I'm so sorry kiddo." he touched the flame to the Zoroastrian burn and Sam's body jerked away, he held the flame there for a couple of seconds then closed the lid of the lighter with a flick.

"Argh, what was that for?!"

"I wasn't going to just cut your skin off to get rid of that mark!"

Sam looked daggers at John and rolled onto his side, his back facing his father and his head resting on Dean's knee.

"I'll pack up, we've got to leave." John said and left down the hallway.

Dean reached up over the blood spattered mahogany counter and swiped a was of cash from the open till. "What?" he asked receiving a dirty look from his brother, "It's fair game." Sam rolled his eyes, "Come on sasquatch." he said and picked up his baby brother in the same way he did when Sam was still only a little kid. Sam protested and squirmed and Dean whacked him softly on the back of the head.

"Jerk." Sam grumbled and let his brother carry him into the car.

"Bitch." Dean replied with a smile and closed the door.