Two of Nemesis's least injured warriors teleported them back to Bobby's house. Nemesis herself was still alive, but just barely. A human now, her temple offered no protection to anyone, and she planned to leave it as soon as possible. Her warriors hadn't offered to stay when they brought them here, instead glaring at them hatefully as though they were the cause of all the world's problems (to be fair, they are the cause of at least a few of them).
Dean and Bobby sat by Sam's side. Despite how confused he must have been by Dean's exhausted explanation and the Doctor's silence, he had been wonderful, moving Sam into a bedroom and making sure that they were all ok.
Sam looked peaceful as he lay on the bed. No one would have guessed that he was in so much pain. Dean almost wished it could last forever.
The Doctor had gone back to his TARDIS without a single word. Dean would have demanded he stay and help somehow, but the Doctor flinched every time he looked at Sam, seemingly full of self- hatred. Dean knew how that felt and let him leave.
"What the hell are we gonna do now?" Bobby asked.
Dean stared at Sam's motionless body as though he was waiting for him to sit up and call Dean a jerk. "I have no idea," he finally admitted. "Do you got anything on that symbol Cas showed me?" Dean had drawn the symbol as soon as he'd returned from the temple. Bobby had been searching his books for it while Dean stayed at his brother's side.
"I think I might have." He stood up and picked an old leather bound book from the nightstand next to bed. "I found out who Amoriel is."
"Who is it?" Dean asked, peering at the book without moving. There was a picture of a woman with blond hair in plain white robes. Light glowed from behind her head. Several people surrounded her, bowed down as though in worship. She gazed down at the with an expression that could only be termed as loving. Dean felt a strange sort of calm looking at the picture. As though everything was going to be ok.
"She's an angel. She's never mentioned in the Bible, but she is in a book on angel mythology from the 1300's. According to the lore, she loved humanity above all else, even her father. Sort of an anti Lucifer. She's supposed to be capable of loving and forgiving anyone."
"What the hell does that have to do with the symbol?"
"Remember how you summoned Balthazar before?"
Dean thought back to the ritual. "Yeah."
"Well you needed a symbol to do that, one that was specific to him. I think that this might be Amoriel's symbol." "
So you think Cas wants us to summon another angel? Don't they all still hate him after he killed all of Raphael's followers?"
Bobby shrugged. "Maybe she forgave him. I did say 'forgive anyone', remember?"
Dean contemplated the information quietly. Finally, he stood up and said, "I guess it's worth a try."
Dean sat next to Sam's head while Bobby and the Doctor prepared to summon Amoriel. They'd wanted him to help, but he was in no state to even stand up.
Dean felt guilty looking at his brother. He should have saved him, gotten to him sooner, killed Makhai sooner, anything. Now Sam was all but destroyed, Cas was gone God knows where, and Dean actually hated himself more than usual.
He hoped the ritual worked. He hoped Amoriel helped them. He hoped she could help them. He hoped he got to talk to Cas again. Not that it would matter, as was Cas only interested in the Doctor now. It wasn't really fair of him to think that, but he wasn't in a fair mood.
It was his own fault really, he decided. He had denied his own feelings, to himself and everyone else. No wonder Cas liked the Doctor better. He was cheerful and kind and smart and honest about his own feelings (probably). Plus, he wasn't a weak little human.
Dean wasn't even sure why Cas stuck around. After all, Dean was single handedly responsible for every bad thing that had happened to him.
Dean finally decided that it didn't matter. They would find Cas and then Dean would spend the rest of his life either pretending he didn't have any feelings for Cas or without him completely. It was more than he deserved.
Dean stood behind a table that was in front of a ring of holy oil outside. Bobby stood with the Doctor, ready to light the holy oil. Cas may have wanted them to summon Amoriel, but that didn't mean that she was going to take it well.
The table had all the symbols and ingredients he needed to summon the angel. Amoriel's sigil had been drawn with Dean's blood in the middle, and was surrounded by ivory candles. Carefully, he lit a match and dropped it into a bowl of summoning ingredients.
A white light glowed for a moment before the angel appeared. She looked young, either late teens or early 20's, and was small and pale. Her vessel's hair had been dyed silver with the tips electric blue. The summer dress she wore the blue perfectly. She had silver leather boots that had some sort of lacy pattern pressed into them. Her bright blue eyes were wide and friendly, reminding them all of Cas. Her features were soft and inviting. If she was surprised or angry at being summoned, she didn't show it. She simply smiled serenely at the three of them. Dean remembered how earlier he'd felt a sense of calm from looking at the picture of her. What he felt now was like that, but stronger. He didn't understand how anything could be wrong in the world as long as she was there.
Amoriel started to walk around the circle, pausing to look at each of them in turn. "Dean Winchester. Bobby Singer." Her smile faltered for a moment before she said, "Doctor. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
Dean's felt as though he shouldn't say anything around her. This felt sacred, and he was certain it would become less so if he said anything. But she kept waiting for him to speak. Finally, he said, "It's Cas."
She tilted her head in confusion. Dean's heart clenched. The gesture reminded him of Cas. "I do not know of any 'Cas'."
"He means 'Castiel'," the Doctor explained. Dean rolled his eyes.
"Ah. That makes more sense." Amoriel had stopped smiling, her expression completely blank with no emotion. The calm feeling left him, and he turned very cold. Dean realized she was angry, but didn't know why. "What is wrong with him?"
"He's been taken," Dean told her.
"Taken?" She tilted her head again, confusion spreading across her features.
"Kidnapped." "I understand that." Her head returned to its normal position. "By whom was he taken?"
"Gods. Eris, the Master, and Eris's kids." "Master? There is no god named Master."
"He's new." Dean shrugged awkwardly. He was suddenly aware of how beautiful he was and how tired and filthy he was and looked.
"Of course. What is it you need of me?"
"We were wondering if you could help us find him."
"Why should I?" She didn't sound angry. Rather, she seemed genuinely confused, as though the idea of helping them made no sense at all.
"Because he's your brother!" Dean snapped. He wasn't being affected by Amoriel's presence anymore. Now all he could think of was how scared Cas had been when they took him. He was determined to get him back, and was infuriated that Amoriel didn't seem to care.
"I have many brothers and sisters, some of whom Castiel killed. I have forgiven him as I forgive everyone, but that does not mean I have forgotten his deeds."
Dean sighed and rubbed his eyes tiredly. "Please. We need your help." He didn't like begging, but if that was what was necessary than it was what he would do. "Cas gave us your symbol. He wouldn't have done that if he didn't believe that you would help us. And just so you know, he is more sorry than you could ever imagine."
Amoriel looked at Dean with her expressionless gaze. She wasn't sure if she believed him. But that did sound like Castiel. And he was her brother, had been since the day they were created. She remembered how good he'd been, and he had acted in what he thought was their best interest. Amoriel believed that he would help her if it ever came to that. Finally, she said, "Alright. I shall help you however I can."
Dean let out a breath of relief. "Thank you."
Amoriel nodded. "Eris has recently taken control of Olympus," she said without preamble. "She has almost certainly taken him there. Unfortunately, I cannot go without being invited without the Fates punishing me."
"Great."
"It is not great. In fact, it is quite bad." Amoriel seemed to share her brother's lack of understanding sarcasm. "However, there is someone who can go there freely who may be willing to help us."
"That's great! Who is it?" The Doctor asked.
"Nyx."
"This isn't gonna work," Bobby decided, looking down at the black flowers and dried herbs that Amoriel was carefully arranging into a circle with a crescent on either side of it.
"It will work. Possibly." She said.
"Possibly?" Dean repeated from his position on the other side of the circle with the Doctor.
"Earlier, you said it would definitely work!" "That was an exaggeration. And I never used the word 'definitely'. There is an 80 90% chance this will work."
"That's it!" "It's far better than nothing, which is what not summoning Nyx will bring."
Dean sighed. "Fine. What are the chances that she'll actually help?"
"I'm uncertain. We're asking her to betray one of her children, after all, and Nyx has always been one of the beings least likely to do that. However, you say that Eris nearly killed Nemesis, and it may be that Nyx wants justice for that particular crime. And she has broken several ancient laws. Nyx is one of the beings responsible for punishing such crimes. She may decide to punish Eris or give her a chance to seek penance. Either way, we have a chance." She used an angel blade to slice her arm open, using the blood to form a circle in the middle of the symbol. Amoriel stood up, looking over the symbol carefully before nodding. "We're ready." She stood just beyond the circle and started chanting in ancient Greek. None of them understood a word she was saying. Well, the Doctor understood some of it, but not much.
At first nothing happened. But Amoriel kept chanting, and eventually the area filled with dark gray smoke that was too thick for them to see anything else. A person began to take shape in the middle of the circle. Nyx made no attempt to appear human. She easily towered over them with pale gray skin and black hair that fell around her feet and was semi transparent. Her eyes glowed purple. A black dress fell loosely around her body.
For a moment, Nyx stood there surveying them with a look that made their skin crawl. Finally, she asked Amoriel, "Why have you summoned me here?"
"We require your assistance." Dean was impressed by how calm she was. He was doing everything he could not to melt into a puddle under Nyx's gaze.
"My assistance? With what?"
"Your daughter, Eris, has taken my brother Castiel, possibly to Olympus. We require your help in recovering him." Nyx scoffed at her. "I see no reason to help you."
"Your daughter nearly killed Nemesis, all but destroyed a man's mind, and kidnapped a being from another religion. Two of these actions broke ancient laws, and the other one angers me personally as the man was human, the species I have sworn to protect. Were I you, I would have Eris pay for her actions. Or at least have her undo what she can."
Nyx glared angrily at Amoriel who held her gaze steady. Finally, Nyx said, "I shall seek out my daughter and undo as much damage as possible. Not as a service to you, mind, but for her own protection."
Amoriel bowed her head respectfully. "I thank you none the less."
"What do you need specifically?"
"We wish for Castiel returned to us and Sam Winchester's mind healed."
"Very well. I shall do these things."
"What shall you require?"
"I will need to take Samuel Winchester if he is to be healed."
"Of course. Is that all?"
"That is all."
Nyx started to fade from their sight.
"Wait." Dean said.
Nyx looked at him sharply. "What?"
If Dean was scared (he was) he didn't show it. He just said, as calmly as possible, "Eris took my friend and hurt my brother. I want… I need to go with you."
Nyx scoffed. "I should kill you where you stand."
For a moment, it looked like she would. Before she could say anything else, Amoriel stepped forward and said, "Nyx, given that Samuel Winchester will need to be taken to Olympus for healing purposes, it may be wise to send Dean with him. Also, my brother Castiel trusts Dean and will be greatly calmed by his presence. I suggest you take him."
Nyx looked at her with distaste. Up until now, she had seemed to have an unwilling respect for the angel. That was gone. But Amoriel was still a very powerful being with very powerful allies who could go after Nyx if she so chose.
"Very well," she said finally. "Bring your brother. We leave immediately."
