Alright, this is it. The final chapter. Thank you so much for sticking with me on this. I appreciate all of the comments I received. And I truly appreciate all of the readers who came back chapter after chapter! Anyway, here it is.

Cindy.

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Dean rubbed a shaky hand over his face and then through his short hair. As Sam had relayed the previous evenings events, Dean had felt like dropping to his knees and sobbing like a five year old who had just found out his mommy had thrown out his coveted security blanket. The thought of Sam contemplating suicide, much less actually going through with it shook him to his core. He knew Sam was in pain. He knew the unwarranted guilt he carried. And hell, he for sure understood Sam's need to protect him, having that same overpowering need himself. What he hadn't known was how deep the pain and guilt that Sam felt ran. And the need to protect, to save Dean was so much stronger than Dean could ever have fathomed. It was strong enough to convince Sam that the only solution was to down a full bottle of sleeping pills. Oh, and let's not forget trying to drown himself first. Sam swore that wasn't his intent, that at that moment he was planning on running away. But Dean thought there was more to it than that whether Sam believed it or not.

Dean didn't know what upset him more. The fact that Sam was so distraught that he swallowed a bottle full of sleeping pills, or that it wasn't he who had saved him, who had done everything to protect him. Someone else had done that . Or something else. The jury was still out in Dean's mind on just who that was. Isaral. A messenger from God. It sounded to Dean like a corny line from The Blues Brothers. 'I'm on a mission from God'. Dean let out a humorless laugh and both Sam and Bobby looked at him in confusion. Dean stood and began to pace the floor in front of Sam, who sat nervously on the sofa. Bobby stood next to the burning fireplace, his hand resting on the mantel.

"So, you took the pills, then changed your mind and tried to throw them up but couldn't. You collapsed on the floor and just about when you were close to d..." Dean rambled, unable to say the word. "You were on the floor and this guy just walks in, crosses the salt line, and tells you he's a messenger from God?"

Sam looked up at Dean, his tired eyes following his brother as he paced back and forth. "Yeah. I asked if he was an angel and he said no. I asked if he was a demon and he said no."

"Demons lie Sammy. How do you..."

"Dean. He crossed a salt line. He saved my life. He healed my hands! If he was a demon, why would he save me?"

"I don't know Sam! I'm just trying to wrap my mind around a messenger from God," Dean shot back. He had never really believed in God, but here this was staring him in the face. Isaral had not only brought Sam back from the brink of death but had also healed his hands, completely. The only sign that there had even been a problem with Sam's hands was the scars the spikes had left and even those had faded somewhat since yesterday.

"Dean...he wasn't a demon. When he touched my hands I felt such warmth and comfort. It was like touching...grace."

"What? Who's Grace?" Dean was completely baffled now.

"Not who. What. You know, the Grace of God. I felt peace. The first time in a very long time." Sam lowered his eyes, recalling the overwhelming feeling of well being that had washed over him at Isaral's touch.

Bobby's cell phone rang and he excused himself quietly, exiting the cabin. Dean watched him leave, then looked back to Sam. He marveled at Sam's unwavering belief in a God that he himself had a hard time believing could exist. With everything they had seen, all the evil that they knew existed, it was hard to imagine that there was an all enveloping goodness too. Sam's argument was that there had to be a balance. You couldn't have evil without good to balance it out. The one thing that kept Dean from completely dismissing the existence of God was Sam. There was such goodness in his brother that it was hard to believe that he was just born that way. With all the evil in the world, how could one person be so pure, so good without something or someone placing that goodness there? Dean could go crazy thinking about it.

And how could he explain Isaral? No matter how he tried to reason it out, he came back to the same conclusion. Isaral was not a demon. He was not evil. He had saved Sam. He had healed him. So if he hadn't come from Hell, where had he come from? The answer to that went against everything Dean believed . If he didn't come from Hell, that left Heaven. And if Heaven existed, then God had to exist too.

Dean sank down on the sofa next to Sam. Sam looked up, his eyes wide as he watched his brother. Dean looked at Sam and a tremendous feeling of warmth and protectiveness washed over him. Without thinking, he reached over and pulled Sam into a protective hug. Sam slowly wrapped his arms around Dean and sank into the hug, absorbing strength from his brother. Dean's body shook with relief and love and fear.

Sam was alive, his hands healed and Dean had no explanation other than God himself had sent a messenger to heal him. This spoke volumes of how important his little brother was and it terrified Dean. No wonder Sam had seemed to have such a huge target on his back when it came to the evil bastards they hunted. They were afraid of him, of his importance in saving the world from the darkness that sought to destroy it.

Sam and Dean were brought out of their musings, and hug, when Bobby came back through the cabin door. Bobby stopped, shifting uncomfortably.

"Uh, sorry," he started.

"It's okay Bobby. What's up?" Dean said, his face turning a deep pink.

"That was a buddy of mine. I called and asked him to do a little research for me. According to Mack, Isaral was...is a messenger of God. He's a messenger also entrusted with the gift to heal." Bobby lowered himself onto the chair opposite the brothers.

"So, he really was sent by God to heal Sam?"

"Seems so."

Sam sat, wide eyed, shaking his head. This was all a little too much to absorb all at once. On one side he had demons who wanted to either use him or kill him, and on the other he had God sending messengers to save him. Why was he so damned important? Sure, he had visions that scared the shit out of him and sometimes under extreme stress he could move things with his mind, but he had no control over his abilities. He never asked for any of this and didn't want it now. All it had brought him was pain and heartbreak. He had lost so many that were close to him, and countless others had lost their lives as a result of the demon's quest to own him.

Sam didn't feel he was worth all the lives that had been lost and all of the ones that were bound to be lost in the future. He just wanted to get away from all of this and live a normal life, but he knew that was impossible. He had an important role to play, albeit he didn't know what it was. He wouldn't run away from it. He would face it head on, no matter what it was. As scared as he was, he knew he had Dean to stand beside him all the way. He also had Bobby and Ellen, Ash and Jo. He would fight this war and hopefully win it. If he was important enough for God to send someone to save him, then he would try his hardest to uphold his end of the bargain, even if it cost him his life in the end.

"Uh...earth to Sammy. You in there?" Dean queried as he snapped his fingers in front of Sam's eyes.

"What? Huh?" Sam sputtered as he was pulled from his musings.

"There you are! I thought I'd lost you for a minute there. So, where'd you go space boy?" Dean quipped, clapping Sam on the shoulder.

"Oh, uh...I was just thinking."

"Well, that's always scary. What were you thinking about?"

"We need to get out of here and put together a plan to start hunting down every demon we can find. The war's beginning and we need to be ready." Sam fidgeted a bit on the sofa then looked up at Dean.

Dean watched Sam questioningly, raising an eyebrow. "So, why the sudden change of heart? What happened to wanting to be normal?"

"Dean, we both know that's not possible and it never has been. It was just a pipe dream. My fate was sealed the night Mom died. If it was important enough for a messenger to be sent to save me, then I just can't turn my back on it anymore. I don't understand my importance in all of this, but I can't deny it." Sam rose from the sofa and began to gather his belongings together. He paused, looking from Bobby to Dean who both stood dumbfounded, staring at Sam with their mouths hanging open. "What? What are you guys looking at?"

"Uh, I don't know. Are you sure about this Sammy?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I really don't have any other options. So...you coming with me?"

"You bet your ass I'm coming with you! I'm not gonna let you have all the fun little brother."

"How about you Bobby? I'd understand if you wanted to stay out of this," Sam said, gazing at the older man.

"Naw. You boys are my family and family sticks together. Besides, I couldn't stay out of this even if I wanted to. I'm already a part of it. Let's get the hell out of here and hunt us down some demons!" Bobby replied as he began to gather his own things together.

"Now that's what I'm talking about! Kicking some demon ass! Ain't nothing like it!" Dean quipped.

The three men gathered their belongings together and loaded themselves into their vehicles. They drove off, away from the cabin and toward a war that none of them had started. One was heading to his destiny and the other two were along for the ride, his protectors. They all knew the road ahead was dangerous and that they might not survive, but down that road they went, determined to fight this war and end the evil that sought to control humanity. Once and for all.

THE END

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Well, it's done. I hope the ending did not disappoint! I will start converting the sequel to Word and should be able to start posting in a few days. The title to the sequel is Fight the Good Fight. I hope to see you all there! Thank you all so much!

Cindy.