Chapter 11

Visions Returned

They all parked back in front of their motel. Dean quickly cut the engine and dashed over to the Impala, waiting patiently where they left her. He stroked her dusty black hood with evident affection.

"Oh, baby, I'm sorry. I'll never leave you like that again."

Johnny cut his engine and hopped off to meet Sam; both awkwardly witnessing the tender moment between man and car.

"If you could just hurry it up there, sport, we have to find a new place to hang, 'cause the demons know where we are now and you and I still have cops on our tail. So anytime you're ready," Johnny explained.

Dean reluctantly stepped away from the car. "Yeah, you're right. Let us just pack up quickly. You stand watch out here."

Johnny nodded. Sam and Dean made their way into the motel room and started packing their belongings.

Sam glanced outside to see if Johnny was far enough away. Satisfied, he turned to his older brother with concerned eyes.

"Hey, Dean... How're you doing in all this?"

Without looking up he responded, "Great. Never better."

"Seriously. We haven't had a chance to talk about this since Johnny joined us. This demon's after you, Dean. And this is bigger than anything we've ever faced before. I just wanna know what's going on in your head."

"I'm fine, Sam."

"Dean..."

Dean stopped packing and looked up at Sam. His tough veneer waivered, revealing a glimpse of his true vulnerability beneath.

"What do you want me to say? I'm scared? Yes, I'm scared. 'Cause I don't think there's a chance in Hell that we can beat these demons. Sure, we have the Rider on our side, and we could call up a bunch more hunters – Bobby, Ellen, Jo, they might know people too – but you heard what Sam Elliot's stunt double said. These demons go back to the beginning of humanity. They all have some crazy super powers, and god knows what else. We barely escaped that warehouse. I honestly don't know what we're gonna do."

Sam didn't know what to say to comfort his brother.

"We should just get in the car, and put this city in our rear-view mirror. I know they'll probably come looking again, but the farther we get now, the better."

"You don't think we should try to stop them?" Sam asked.

"And lose our lives in the process?" He laughed ironically under his breath. "You know, I'm the first one willing to sacrifice myself for a cause, right behind dad. But I'd rather save as many other lives as I can before they come knockin'."

Sam nodded in agreement, but before he could say anything further, a shooting pain ignited his skull and he dropped to his knees, head in hands.

"Sammy!" Dean rushed over to Sam's aid, but was utterly defenceless.

Sam closed his eyes and the visions began.

Blurred and fragmented images skipped about in his mind, all vying for attention. A muffled hoarse voice was whispering something in Latin. The images finally settled and Sam could see clearly its contents. Malphas, leaning over a small wooden bowl filled with a thick red substance that could only be blood, chanting an incantation. His eyes were black as night. He suddenly stopped chanting and the blood began to boil.

As he spoke, he did so in intervals as if someone in the bowl was speaking to him. "We found them. The Winchesters. They've made friends with the Rider... No, I made a promise to you. You know I wouldn't harm the boy, I know he's yours... As I told you when we made the deal, my revenge comes first. Then I will carry out what you-...Yes, I understand... It will be done. Soon... Yes, of course..." A sudden rage came over him as if a bold remark was spoken by the voice in the bowl. "You impudent-!... How dare you speak to me that way! I am your-..."

The conversation must have been cut short as if the voice hung up on the call. Malphas threw the bowl across the room, hitting the wall and splashing the contents upon impact. The blood dripped down the wall and met a pool of blood gathering around a body – its source. The lifeless victim, unknown to Sam, stared blankly ahead. Blood continued to spill from the victim's neck and the pool expanded around her.

Sam snapped back to reality and opened his eyes to see a worried Dean hovering over him. He was gripping Dean's lapel with white knuckles to subside the pain. Upon noticing this, Sam released his grip and took deeper breaths to calm himself.

"Sam, you with me?" Dean asked finally.

"He was talking to someone. Another demon," Sam explained, still lost in the visions he was just witnessed.

"Who?"

"Malphas. There's more than the five we met. There's someone higher. Or someone they've made a deal with."

Dean slowly helped Sam to his feet.

"A deal? What deal?"

"I don't know, but there's definitely a bigger plan at work here. He wants revenge, but there's something more. Something he promised this other demon."

"Like we didn't have enough problems," Dean remarked.

"But, Dean, you're missing the bigger picture here."

"What do you mean?"

"My visions. They've only ever been related to the Yellow-Eyed Demon. The flashbacks I had of Johnny were different. Maybe some weird glitch or a psychic connection since he's supernatural, too. But Malphas... this was no flashback, this was a premonition. That can only mean one thing."

"You can't mean..."

"What if Malphas is working with the Yellow-Eyed Demon?"

They stood in silence, taking in Sam's notion, knowing full well what that would mean, and knowing running was no longer an option.

"Hey, how long does it take you two to throw some underpants in a duffle bag?" Johnny questioned, now entering the room.

He saw the brothers standing before him with looks saying all Hell just broke loose.

"Did I miss something?"