Chapter 18

Castiel was feeling better once the morning routine was completed and he had gotten cleaned up and was downstairs eating breakfast. While the shower had been a struggle, it wasn't nearly as bad as he had expected and Dean had been very careful about respecting his privacy, something Castiel was very grateful for.

Bobby was polite to him in his usual gruff manner and Castiel suspected that the older hunter still wasn't very fond of him. But any concern of that was quickly forgotten when Bobby sat down a tall glass of water next to Castiel's plate. Castiel was delighted to discover it was the same delicious beverage Bobby had given them to drink the previous evening. He was happily drinking the sweet water when Ellen came upstairs from the basement.

"Sam's sleeping," she said, the relief evident in her voice. "Thank the Lord for having connections. Those sedatives I gave him are working wonders. Hopefully he can sleep through the worst of it."

Dean nodded, pushing aside his empty plate. "Yeah. At least now he wants to get better. That has to help some."

Ellen nodded. "It does. I don't know how long it'll take before it's out of his system… but hopefully not that long."

After breakfast the group moved into the living room where Bobby had amassed a mountain of books that covered the coffee table and the floor around it. He motioned for them to take a book and sit down.

"This was everything I could find that I thought might help us," Bobby said as he picked up one of the books. "Not sure if any of them will, but it can't hurt to look."

"Figures Sammy has to be out of commission for this part," Dean grumbled as he picked up one of the leather-bound tomes.

Castiel picked up an older looking book, also leather-bound and rather thick. He doubted the book would inform him on anything he didn't already know, but he was still curious enough to read it. He was amazed; however, to discover that while he knew the material being discussed, the writing was entrancing. The book was Dante's Inferno and it's descriptions of Hell were shockingly accurate, although not nearly as detailed as what he had seen himself when he had gone to rescue Dean. He became quickly absorbed in the book, practically forgetting what they were originally supposed to be doing.

Dean looked up from his book and couldn't help but smile at seeing Castiel's look of intense concentration while he read. Leave it to his angel to be a complete book-nerd! It made Dean feel better, though, to see Castiel finally looking so calm and content. He couldn't help but wish that the situation was different. That if Castiel had to fall it would have been at a different time. A time when the end of the world wasn't being held over their heads and they had to find a way to stop it. There were so many things he wanted to introduce Castiel too. Swimming in the ocean. Roller coasters. Parties. Bars. Alcohol. Girls…

OK, maybe he wasn't quite so eager to introduce Castiel to girls. He had no doubt in his mind that once the female population got a gander at the fallen angel's wide-eyed innocence they'd be falling over themselves getting to him. And, well, as much as he hated to admit it, Dean was a pretty jealous guy and the thought of another girl, or anyone else for that matter, having their hands all over his angel… well… it certainly wasn't something Dean enjoyed thinking about…

Although… the thought of watching Castiel get hot and heavy with someone while Dean was in the same room watching was a bit of a turn on…

Christ, I have issues, Dean thought with a shake of his head. He forced himself push aside the images of Castiel naked with a girl on his lap and refocus on the task at hand, although it was with great difficulty.

The hours ticked by and the four were absorbed with their work, although Ellen did break away occasionally to check on Sam. It was late in the afternoon when finally Bobby set down his book and stretched his arms over his head.

"Well, I'm not getting anywhere," he said with a sigh. "All this crap is stuff we already know. Guess there's not much literature out there on how to destroy Satan himself."

He stood up and headed for the kitchen. Dean stood up and followed, relieved to have an excuse to finally stop reading.

"I guess we're going to have to try something else," Dean admitted. He flicked on the TV sitting on Bobby's kitchen counter and settled himself down at the kitchen table.

"Been searching the Internet since you called me last week and that's been a bust too," Bobby said as he began pulling stuff out of the cupboards for lunch. "Everything I found on there is crap about Jesus and how Jesus already defeated Lucifer."

Dean scowled. "Well, if Jesus already defeated Lucifer then why the hell did the fucking Apocalypse start? Maybe Jesus should get down here and take care of Satan himself and save me the trouble."

Bobby smirked at Dean's words as he got the lunch meats out of the refrigerator. Dean sighed and returned his attention to the news on the TV. He listened to the reporter talk about the story they were reporting on and slowly Dean's eyes widened. He cocked his head in confusion and sat forward in his chair, listening to TV more intently.

"Bobby," Dean said, motioning for the older hunter. "Dude, check this out."

Bobby turned around and turned the TV volume up. On the screen showed a young female reporter standing outside in what looked like a large field. There was a stage area set up with a large group of people gathered around it, watching the stage in awe. On the stage were two men. The first man was young, maybe in his late 30's. He had dark brown hair and a lean build. He was dressed in dark dress pants and a light blue dress shirt. He was talking excitedly to the crowd, gesturing wildly. He reminded Dean of the televangelists that were often on TV. Behind him sat another man, in his early 30's. He had dirty blond hair and was dressed in blue jeans and a dark green button-down shirt. His hands were clasped and resting in his lap. He was much calmer than the other man, simply sitting there and silently looking over the crowd, a small smile on his lips.

"Put aside all your sorrows and your sufferings, my friends! Our salvation is here… right here on this stage today! Forget about that silent God you've been praying to and hasn't given you any answers! That God is dead and forgotten! Today, we stand before a man… no… a new God! A God who we can see… can hear… can feel… not some far-off being in another world… our God is here today! He has come to us and heard our cries for help! He will reward those who give themselves wholly to his service! He will heal your sicknesses and give you riches far beyond anything you have ever dreamed of! Come as you are, my friends! He cares not about those 'sins' that were always frowned upon! Our new God wants you to take in the pleasures of this world! Give in to your desires and take in the joy that this life can give you! Take in the pleasures of this world that he will give you once you are in his service!"

At that point a frail young woman was helped onto the stage. The dark-haired man took her hand and led her to the center of the stage.

"Tell me your name, child," he said as he put his arm around her.

"Abby," she said, her voice trembling.

"Tell me what brings you here today, Abby."

Tears began to flow down the woman's cheeks.

"Well… I… I've lost everything… got into drinking… my family kicked me out of the house… my church turned their backs on me… I'm all alone… and now the doctor's tell me I have cancer… and I've been praying every day to be healed… but… but God hasn't answered!" She broke down into sobs.

The man gently patted her back and nodded understandingly. "But now, Abby… now you're here with us… forget about the false church… forget about the dead God… you now stand before our new God and he does hear your prayers!"

With these words the silent man stood up and walked to the center of the stage, watching the young girl intently. Abby stepped forward and dropped to her knees and raised her hands before him. The camera zoomed in on the pair.

"Please…" she said, "Please heal me! Let me live the rest of my life without suffering! I want my life back!"

The silent man walked over to her and rested his hands on her shoulders. She closed her eyes as he leaned forward and whispered something in her ear. Her eyes opened and she nodded emphatically.

"Yes! Yes, my Lord! I will serve you wholly and unquestioningly! I give myself entirely to you!" She exclaimed.

He nodded with a smile and cupped her face with his hands. He closed his eyes and bowed his head. Suddenly, she let out a gasp and her body lurched as though it had been jolted by a hundred volts of electricity. The pair froze for a moment before he finally stepped away and she collapsed to the floor.

The crowd was breathless for a moment before she slowly stood up, her eyes wide.

"The pain," she said in awe. "It's gone! I'm healed! I'm healed!"

The crowd erupted into cheers and applause. The dark-haired man wrapped his arms around her in a huge hug and then lifted one of her arms in triumph.

"Bear witness, my friends! Give yourself over to our new God! Our God that is here before us! That hears our cries for help! He is here now! He is here to bring about a new world!"

The "God" silently walked back to his chair and sat down, unaffected by the excitement he had caused. He resumed his previous position of sitting quietly in the chair hands clasped before him.

The camera flashed back to the reporter.

"This new 'God' appeared only yesterday with his friend, only known as Jasper, and has already caused quite the stir as you can see. So far, even the most hardcore skeptics have been unable to determine how this man has been able to heal the people he has come in contact with. But the people here believe they already know the answer."

The camera shot switched over to an older woman, her eyes lit up with excitement.

"It's just like Jasper says," she exclaimed excitedly. "We have a God here on Earth! He is a miracle worker in the flesh! He's here to save us all!"

The camera switched back over to the reporter.

"While the idea that this man is 'God' is in question, there is no doubt of impact he has already had on the people he's met."

The camera shot switched back over to the seated man, who smiled almost knowingly at the camera. Suddenly, from behind Dean and Bobby there was a loud bang. They both spun around to see Castiel standing in the kitchen doorway, the book he had been reading had fallen from his hands. He stared at the TV screen, his eyes wide with shock and fear.

"Cas?" Dean looked at him with concern. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"It's him," Castiel whispered in horror.

Dean felt his stomach drop. Bobby swallowed nervously.

"It's who, Castiel?" Bobby asked slowly, but Dean could already tell Bobby knew the answer.

"It's him," Castiel repeated. "It's Lucifer."

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See? Told ya I'd get more into the meat of the story! : )

Just a little disclaimer now before we go any further: this is based on my own personal beliefs and it's not meant to reflect poorly on any other religion or lifestyle or any of that stuff! I'm just writing what I think the Apocalypse would be like and I think Satan would looooooove to fuck with some people, cuz, well, he could!

OK. Now that all that is out of the way, I hope you enjoyed and looking forward to the feedback! (I think!)