Supernatural: Chronicles of the Order 6

Chapter 18: A White Crow's Lament, Part 2

(DISCLAIMER: No, I don't own Supernatural because it belongs to Eric Kripke and Warner Bros. So, enjoy the show! Rated M for graphic violence, adult content, and adult language.)

Minara was in a train on its way to the stop we were all in as he had a gut feeling that Julilla and her cronies from the Executive Division would be there to stop the allied forces in their tracks. Even though he had a stern warning from Styre yesterday, it wasn't enough to convince him to steer away from the path of vengeance that he was put upon as he vowed to live by the motto that he once carved on the beach near Chateau de le Mer on Essos. He even had it penned in his journal as it was a reminder of seeking justice for the loss of his loved ones. He never forgot how he saw them die as he couldn't let their memory go in vain. By the time the train stopped at the station, he noticed the Medical Corps arriving on the scene as they were busy burying the dead and tending to the injured in the latest skirmish that occurred last night.

Stepping out of the train, he saw Dean outside as he returned with his body encased in diamond before reverting to normal. With the war still going, it was hell as we had lost and regained our allies in this mess that was conjured up by the Executive Division with illusions of grandeur at their fingertips. It was messy and ugly at the same time as there was also the second volley coming from the faction that nearly crippled us in the first place, for there was no end to their dangerous scare tactics anytime soon.

"Look who finally joined the party," said Dean as he was staring at Minara.

"I came to see Ryosuke," he said.

"It's about that suicide bombing that occurred when he was here at this popsicle stand, wasn't it?"

"It wasn't all, Dean. I got a call from Julilla in which she's still goading me on. She even wants to ruin my wedding with Mizuwa in which she'll stop at nothing to get what she demands."

"Looks like the ice queen's not gonna give you up without a fight just yet."

"If she comes towards me, I'll gut her to death. I won't let her ruin my life even further right now because of the fact that I will marry Mizuwa and rebuild it in the process. She's already ruined me once after I lost my beloved Penelope and Lentulus when she hung them in the gallows. What she did to me was more like a wound that became infected in which it will never heal. She took my beloved Penelope away from me, Dean. She took Lentulus away from me. Now, I'll do the same to her in which she will never darken another doorway again when this war is over."

"And you think it will propel you to seeking justice for what you lost?"

"It's better than allowing a serpent in the garden slithering freely. I won't allow Julilla to live after what she did to me and taking Lentulus' life as an Elder is a serious offense and crime that can't be absolved nor washed away clean. She even took my beloved Penelope away from me without showing a hint of remorse of what she's done to me. Both my wife and father-in-law were very close to me and I had those ties, only to have that bitch snip them from me. She will pay for what she did to me and I will end her the moment I see her in person. She will know anguish in which she will suffer greatly, I swear on that."

It wasn't long until Kazuo was outside as Dean and Minara spotted him with a stern look on his face. In his days in the Medical Corps, Minara knew of his old superior's look very well as he was in the doghouse for his rhetoric against Julilla, who killed two of his loved ones. When he saw Kazuo walking closer towards him, he was struck in the jaw by his former superior's fist as he fell onto the snowy ground. The blow bruised his face as he got back up again, only to see that Kazuo was not too thrilled to see him talk in the form of vengeance after all that has happened.

"Idiot!" he yelled. "How dare you cling to the path of vengeance in this time of war?! You know very well that this form of behavior doesn't solve anything, for it will make the one driven by that thirst for revenge suffer much worse! You can't let this form of vengeance cloud your position as Elder of this Order! If that ever happened, then you will go down a very dark path in which you will never be able to grasp the light ever again, are we good?! We may lose loved ones by our aggressors, but we can't let this form of dark behavior cloud one's judgment! And another thing, karma will bite you in the end if you plan out your murder objective to do away with Julilla Paxton, for the gods see all and will haul your soul towards Hell where Milverton's gambling dens rule below!"

Minara didn't say a word as he walked inside of the inn where we were staying at. As for his own personal vendetta against Julilla for killing two of his loved ones, he still swore to make her suffer as he was on the verge of going dark for his actions. Still, he never forgot the tragedy that he witnessed as he could never get the images of his wife and father-in-law out of his head. That awful memory was too much to bear as he wanted to make Julilla pay for her crimes, for she did him wrong the worst…

I was in a hospital room as I was incapacitated in a bed once again. The defense that I displayed to save our allies was a high point that made me extremely exhausted as I did nothing but stare at the ceiling. By the time I sat up, I saw the door to my room open up as I noticed Dean coming in here after slowing some of the enemy forces outside above. Still, I notied him to be a mess as he was in dire need of a bath after what he went up against, for the forces under Julilla and the Toller Family's second branch were a force to be feared in this ongoing war. The dirt and diamond residue all over him was a clear sign that I was ready to let him have it if he didn't get cleaned up, for he needed it badly after his latest skirmish.

"You look like crap, Sammy," I heard him say as he saw me in my bed.

"Well, at least you don't smell like a toilet," I said.

"I just used my latest arsenal by throwing diamond projectiles at those asshats above, but the fun's not over yet."

"I see what you mean, but I sense that Minara's here."

"Yeah, but he got clocked by Kazuo earlier. The guy's no stranger for being the Medic General of the Medical Corps, but he's also lost his siblings at the hands of the combo platter all over the galaxy."

"It's been almost two years since Ippei's death at the hands of Darbus Toller, but Jun died by saving the life of the one who had the plans of the Sol Project. If it were either one of us losing our siblings, we would end up bitter like our resident prophet out on the field."

"Well, it's not happening, Sam. We have our reasons to be pulling together and we're not about to lose to the Executive Division yet. For the record, I'd rather be giving the enemy forces the heave-ho than be put under the bus."

"Still, I have a bad feeling that Ryosuke would give an emergency meeting here instead of Zetian, but with me being absent..." I begin to get up out of bed as I saw Dean's arm become diamond hard and ready to shoot projectiles at me. "Revert your arm, Dean..."

"You're not getting out of bed, you hear me? After going ultimate into saving our asses yesterday, I suggest that you get some more rest or else I'll use your ass as a dart board. I'm serious about this, Sammy, 'cause you need all the rest you can get after all that you've done for us. Still, we're all grateful that you even blew up General Wets-His-Pants and dismantling his plans for Project Apollo, but you can't just pull that heavy load on your own and that's what family's for."

I didn't say another word as I saw Dean shed the diamond exterior from his arm. With a mess of diamond shards on the floor, my older brother decided to get out the broom and dustpan to pick it up as he was ready to throw it away in the trash can next to the sink. Without a moment's hesitation, I got up from my bed as I crept slowly towards the bathroom and closed the door behind me. Even though I made it past Dean and his diamond-hard warning, I had a point in doing so as I began to do my business after being in bed for a while. By the time I finished relieving myself, I flushed the toilet as I later washed my hands. After I got out of the bathroom, I returned to my bed as I also noticed that Ryosuke was there in which the emergency meeting had been postponed and moved here in my hospital room. Therefore, I had to adhere to protocol as I was most likely to be briefed about the current situation that concerned the war that was unwanted in the first place.

"Looks like you're held up in bed again, Sam," said Ryosuke.

"It wasn't my fault this time," I said.

"For the record, I spoke with some of the wounded who attacked us yesterday, only to see you stop them from eradicating us in this popsicle stand."

"I couldn't let our allies die out there, so I had no other choice but to protect what we had left. I can't just sit there while our troops are being scrapped in this ongoing war like that."

"Well, if you think that the latest group of artificial grunts from Darbus Toller's leftovers are bad all over…," Ryosuke fishes out a piece of gold armor from his satchel as he shows it to me. "Then this is a hell of a lot worse." I was handed the piece of gold armor as I examined it directly. "There's a runic spell in Enochian in which it gives the leftovers from Darbus' spring collection a huge boost as if they were on steroids. Luckily, they weren't expecting you to pop up and blow them around a bit or else we would've lost this battle altogether."

I began to feel the pinch of exhaustion getting the better of me as I laid back down on the bed. Still, I was happy that everyone here was safe as I was also not allowed to get out of bed right now. With the usual antics of my misfortune weighing heavy on me, I had no choice but to abide by staying in the usual rectangular prison complete with bedclothes and pillows. I was no stranger to being bedridden, but yesterday's demonstration of my raw power was a pivotal point that was eager to protect the allied forces in this ongoing war so far.

"It's hell, but we have a tough fight on our hands," I said in a trembling voice.

"Are you alright, Sam?" asked Ryosuke.

"It's just a pinch of exhaustion..."

"A pinch of exhaustion, my ass," said Dean as he was suspicious of what was going on with me right now. "Something's wrong and I can sense it. You could also be tripping Hell's Bells by staring at Soulless Sam with a shotgun in his hands pointed at you by now."

"I told you, it's nothing, Dean… It's just that-"

"Stop. You could be suffering from a lot worse and not telling us is just as bad as putting it on the back burner. For the record, I know that you had a bad vision that you won't tell us about 'cause you're afraid of the repercussions it can bring out. Mason told me all about how you kept dreaming about dreading meathooks and chains at every corner in which you even woke up once in a cold sweat."

"Fine…, I'll tell you everything. This dream I had was far worse in which I noticed a man naked and imprisoned with the usual meathooks and chains in a white room. When I got a closer look at him, I noticed him to be none other than my past self, but he was nothing but emaciated from starvation when I saw him."

"I've heard of this pattern before," said Ryosuke. "It's when one refuses to focus on the self-love that was deprived for so long, only to see one's reflection in the usual prison draped in white. It's an old Elven fairy tale in which it was told by those not to abandon themselves while helping others in front of him or her. It's also a tale of caution in which even Ippei Mitani once told it to his grandchildren before he was killed. For the record, you should spend what you have on yourself just as much as the rest of us or else you will never be able to recover from your predicament, is that clear?"

I reluctantly agreed as I also had to watch what I do in the near future. As for the current situation that was stemming outside, the hell and damage out there was getting more monotonous than normal as I wanted to join in the fight against the Executive Division like the rest of our allies. I had a family and friends to protect. I also had so many people who stood by my side as they were the most precious and the most vulnerable in this dark time of war. For the record, I was caught in this ongoing battle that was about to get ugly as I also had to make an effort into helping everyone get through this tough time of uncertainty. Therefore, I couldn't abandon my calling, no matter what I did, for this was something that can't be ignored at all so far…

Later on in the evening, Carly was in the bathroom after she got her bath earlier as she was brushing her teeth in the sink. After having her meals like the other civilians here in this sanctuary bunker, she finished up as she left the bathroom and was about to get ready for bed. Just as she was about to join Kanna to be in the same room they shared, she saw a familiar nuisance appear as it was none other than Soulless Sam standing in front of her. She never saw him before, but this was very new to her as she was scared to death of him due to the gun he pulled on her. She was shaking as she wanted to run towards me in this time of terror, for she was frightened at what Soulless Sam was about to do next.

"Hello, Kitty…," he said in a cold and emotionless voice as he was ready to pull the trigger with the gun in his hand. "Where is your guardian at? I just want to shoot him in his bed after all..."

"Mr. Sam is resting!" yelled Carly. "He just used his raw power to stop some of those meanies from tearing this train stop apart!"

"I already know that he's resting because I'm a part of him. Now, if you don't mind, I suggest that you let me pass and I don't stop for stragglers, including innocent bystanders who get in my way."

"I won't let you hurt Mr. Sam, you big meanie!"

"And I'm here to give your guardian a stern warning!" Soulless Sam seizes Carly by the scruff of her nightclothes as he lifted her up for no reason. "Tell him that he needs to get his act together and join the Executive Division or else more innocent people will suffer just like those allies who were nearly killed by Clegenny Marquand's forces yesterday."

"Let go of her!"

Soulless Sam released Carly as he saw me standing in front of him in my weakened condition. I couldn't let him harm her as I couldn't let him do that. I was ready to put my foot down as I didn't want him to do his worst on the close family I had. Still, I was there to defend Carly as I saw her running behind me, for she was shaking with fear after what she saw earlier.

"It's alright, fusspot," I said. "Just go in the room with Kanna, alright?"

"She's not going anywhere, Sam," said Soulless Sam as he was pulling his gun on me. "On the other hand, neither are you because the more you abandon yourself, the more stronger I become. Hell, I've gotten visible in front of Marshal Calvert and that little brat in which there's no way you can stop me from raining on your parade. Well, Sam, are you ready to say yes to becoming Julilla's mate or are you willing to put more innocent people at risk?"

"What a load of stink-on horse shit!"

It wasn't long until Totsuka appeared out of nowhere and used a spirit ward on Soulless Sam in which he disappeared for now. With a sigh of relief, I was thankful that the weaponmaker was there to save the day as he was aware of how my own personal id was slowly manifesting and becoming nearly whole. Still, I dreaded the ever-growing presence of Soulless Sam as I feared for the worst of it, for he would soon attack those I love the most.

"Dude, you should at least heed to Ryosuke's advice after what he said to you earlier," said Totsuka.

"I'm sorry about all of this," I said as I was maintaining my balance in my weakened state.

"You're lucky that I came here at the last minute while I boarded the same train as Minara, who still has an itchy trigger finger just to do away with the queen bitch of the Executive Division."

"Mister, are you a friend of Mr. Sam?" asked Carly.

"I came here not just to keep tabs on Minara, but I came here at the behest of Sybil Bonnefoy and she's pissed. She said that you keep abandoning yourself just to save everyone from certain death in which she sees a vision of your past self all looking like Kate Moss in her waif days."

"Carly, you need to go to bed, alright?" I said. "Besides, it's bedtime, fusspot."

Carly obeyed as I saw her go to her room for the night. As for my encounter with Totsuka, I was most likely to be hearing how Sybil Bonnefoy knew about my own predicament as I wasn't about to wriggle out of it anytime soon. Therefore, I had to face it as I had no other choice but to hear out the rest of the details before it all went off the rails.

"Are you certain that Sybil saw this?" I asked.

"She saw this 'cause the image of what your past self once stood for is chained up in a white room without any clothes on, only to see himself starving from things other than food. He's starving from the constant love and attention that keeps getting deprived from him. I know that you fear for the lives of others due to the constant dangers that we face, you must face this form of fear head-on in the spirit pool."

"But there's only one on Alecrast and it's in the Kurosawa Mountains that border the town of Mifune."

"There's one here and it's close to this popsicle stand you're staying at. It's also said that it was once a pool of healing one's ills in which it was also abused by old warlords on this planet. Sadly, it got sealed off by the Draaza in which no one else can touch it after multiple wars and such."

"I guess that I don't have time for it after all..."

"Actually, you do 'cause there's a secret path that's hidden in this sanctuary bunker in which I spotted the real Colt that Crowley pilfered. This place itself is a fortress like the castle on Alecrast, but this is also a place for preserved artefacts and weapons here."

I followed Totsuka into a vast room as it had many weapons that were once used in the time of the Elder Days. The place itself was an archive room in a class by itself as I noticed a familiar bone encased in crystal. With a plaque that said the words, "The Righteous Bone," etched onto it, I noticed it to be a powerful one as it also had a warning label on it as well. To my curiosity, I saw numerous weapons that were from the Old Guard as I saw an array of sorts stemming from a pair of brass knuckles with runes on them to an egg that was once used to trap Lucifer in the Elder Days. It's chance that I get to see the usual high-tech gadgets that the Old Guard used in which they were once proven useful… until they got confiscated and put in this little museum."

"Totsuka…, I hate to say this, but-"

"I know what you're gonna say, Sam. The Order's main headquarters on Alecrast got busted up and destroyed by the Executive Division. You're not the only one who wants to nail those asshats for doing thin, but all main headquarters of the Order maintained a balance of harmony until despair came along to damage it. All four departments maintained and kept the peace and regulated everything in which we all lived peacefully while stopping monsters and other criminals who harm the innocent. After the bust-up in the main base on Alecrast, there had been reports of an uptick of black ooze that was contained where Sgriccia was wiped off the map. When I got there to investigate, I noticed that the ooze was so dangerous that the remaining locals had to build a wall to prevent it from touching the ocean."

"And General Wetzel used me to destroy that town in his obsession to harness Project Apollo, only to be consumed by his own self-destruction. I destroyed that town and I might have a plan to restore what I wrought because of what General Wetzel did by using me for it."

"Just wait until the battle is over, alright? Besides, even Charlie is concerned about what's been going on since the fall of Sgriccia and New Hanover almost a year ago, but the rest of us are gonna have to wing it after all that has happened so far. Anyway, Ryosuke's still waiting for the second volley that the enemy forces are trying to pull, but-"

BOOM!

A loud sound filled the bunker as it slightly shook it due to what was going on from up above. I was worried as I wanted to get out there to help until I was barred by Totsuka directly. He was afraid for my safety as he didn't want me to become a target for the Executive Division to abuse all over again, for they weren't about to stop until they got what they wanted.

"Dude, not now," he said.

"Dean's out there," I said worriedly. "James Farragut and all of our other allies are out there. I can't let them die because of my presence and I won't let them suffer from that awful wrath."

"Sam, the enemy's doing their best to goad you out there. Besides, Dean has better uses of what the imprint of raw power can actually do and that is to reverse the magic that is etched into the armor of the enemy forces that are coming to demolish this popsicle stand. He's got a lot of reasons to stand up to those asshats and you should also put your faith in him, are we good?"

I reluctantly agreed as I was also worried about Dean's safety. Still, I had to have faith in what everyone around me were capable of as there was war everywhere, for there would be no end to our battles just yet…

Dean was outside as he was seeing the second volley approaching. He was aware of what they wore as he wasn't afraid to take them down first. Still, he bore a grudge against the Executive Division for trying to destroy the galaxy as he was getting fed up with their ongoing scare tactics. When he was ready to report in, he saw a fireball approaching as it crashed towards the wall in front of the station stop by leaving a crater in the train tracks. Sprinting towards the site where the fireball did the damage, he saw Clegenny standing in front of him as he had his massive sword with him. He was standing firm as he was ready to cleave my brother in half with his large sword in his hands. He had a menacing gaze that scared those who got in his way, but Dean wasn't fooled as he was ready to stand his ground into protecting the civilians who were safe in the underground sanctuary below.

"Dean Winchester in the flesh," said Clegenny. "From what I heard, you were the captain of the Hunter Corps' seventh squad and have your own ship, the Kurokage."

"How do you know about me?" said Dean. "From what I heard, you caused a ruckus in Chugoku's captial of Chekiang on Alecrast and in the seaside town of Lillium on Essos. So far, your former leader, General Wets-His-Pants, bit the stardust when the Sol-1 went down in which his second-in-command, Julilla, is now calling the shots in his nefarious dog-and-pony show."

"The Executive Division is not just about claiming your little brother for his raw power. We stand for a much greater ideal to eradicate the Order of Letters and what it stands for."

"So, you and your war whore have a thing for snuffing out the Order of Letters and their allies in which they've kept the peace even after the resurrection of the Alpha monsters who died in the time of the Elder Days."

"For the record, the destruction of Sol-1 and failure of Project Apollo gained results in our favor by harvesting parts of Alecrast's core power for our own desires. Sooner or later, we will capture Sam Winchester once again and we'll use him for Project Ra to cause havoc on this planet, Drakonus."

"What the hell are you talking about? Spill it or I'll rip off that gas mask of yours!"

"Part of the Alecrian core energy is known for its black ooze that killed those who were lost in the wake of the previous destruction during the First Galvanic Uprising. The ooze itself also has a use to generate more artificial troops that were copied in the image that the late Darbus Toller brought out before his demise. His ideal vision to cleanse the entire Ashizoka System and repopulate with his obedient creations will be absolute, for it will be in our favor soon enough."

"Like hell, you and those petty asshats will!"

It wasn't long until Dean saw Clegenny swing his large sword at him as he dodged it quickly. With precise thinking, he became encased in his diamond-hard form as he used his projectiles to snap at the tubes that connected to Clegenny's gas mask in which he saw the latter beginning to gasp for air. Just as he was about to finish him off, he saw several enemy soldiers appear from the sky as they swooped down and carted Clegenny away before the rest of the battle was clear. Even though Dean stood his ground, he wasn't about to bow down to the Executive Division whatsoever as he noticed me emerging from outside again. This time, I was using my raw power to enact a bonechilling wind against the second volley that was attacking everywhere. It wasn't long until the bonechilling wind froze the nearly invincible enemy forces in which they shattered into pieces. I couldn't let the enemy go towards the civilians as I was holding my own to protect those who were caught in this dangerous war. By the time I returned to my normal, but silvery super-charged form, I fell to my knees as I felt the exhaustion of my raw power taking a toll on my, for I had to do so in order to protect those who were in need.

"Sam!" yelled Dean as he helped me up. "What the hell were you thinking?" We both feel the cold wind blowing as we were shivering from the cold. "C'mon, we gotta get the hell back in the underground bunker before we become popsicles, alright?"

I agreed as we both got back towards the secret underground bunker once again. Even though I saved the day, the looming image of the white crow perched on a lamp post was more than enough to unnerve anyone who dreaded of further dangers, for this wasn't the end of what we all endured so far…

Julilla was in her hideout on Claudius as she was indulging in a bath after causing harm to those who got in her way. The progress of subjugating her victims to her whim was a thorn to everyone's side as she finished up her bath and got out of the tub while draining the water from it. After she got dressed in a revealing nightgown and robe, she left the bathroom as she was going towards her room in which she was ready to call it a night. By the time she entered inside, she saw Ailnoth standing in her way as he had a cold smile on his face. Naked and standing, he was ready to put the ice queen in her place as he couldn't let her ruin her targets even further. For the record, the demon himself was pulling the strings as he wanted to keep it that way, for his use for Julilla proved to be useful after all until he was ready to deliver the bad news to her in a nutshell.

"You should stay away, demon," she said.

"Oh, I'm not here to just bear the brunt of bad news, Julilla," said Ailnoth. "I've come to see you welcome me even further."

"My useful attraction to men has garnered a reputation, but they all fall in front of me the moment I have my way with them."

"The lucky ones who got away from you are still wrapped around your finger, but you changed one of them to go dark at any time by simply… doing away with his wife and father-in-law even after he agreed to bed you."

"Lentulus Varus and his daughter have been thorns in my side the moment I caught my eye on Minara. I wanted him all to myself until I saw that wedding ring on his finger."

It wasn't long until Ailnoth lifted Julilla up with his telekinesis as he pinned her on the bed. With her revealing nightgown exposing her breasts, Ailnoth was ready to "teach her a lesson" as he was most likely to be using her own sexual wiles against her. Even though he was the main puppeteer in this ongoing war, he wasn't about to let his own puppets do their own thing as he wanted to keep it that way right now.

"Julilla, Julilla, Julilla," he said as he walked closer towards her while lifting up the rest of her nightgown. "You've put yourself in a tizzy the moment your soldiers ended up getting killed by a bonechilling wind."

"The weather isn't on our side right now, is it?"

"Sam Winchester is a force to be reckoned with, but your attraction towards him will come to an end the moment you continue to focus on the task at hand by eliminating those who stand in our way."

"What the hell are you going to do to me now, demon? Spank me?"

"No…, my darling Julilla…, I'm here to teach you a lesson that you will never forget."

It wasn't long until Ailnoth began to feel at Julilla's soft breasts as he began to feel aggressive to the core towards her. Still pinned, Julilla was struggling to get free as she felt Ailnoth's soft breath hot towards one of her nipples. She felt his mouth over it as she began to moan erotically at the forced touch that she endured for a while now. What she felt from him was that he was sucking something out of the breast he latched onto as she began to moan even louder the moment she felt his hand touch at the soft flesh between her legs. Still, she wanted him to leave as she was struggling to fight him, but was overpowered by a roaring lust that kept her wanting for more. With his member hardened, Ailnoth began to spread Julilla's legs wide open as he entered deep inside of her, despite the fact that the temple beneath had been infused with the essence of Claudian tree frogs during her time under the dangerous experiments she endured.

She felt Ailnoth's member thrusting hard and deep inside of her as she was overwhelmed by the insatiable lust that pinned her to the bed she laid on. The lust emanating from the Knight of Hell was more than enough to succumb to his sexual urges she felt his mouth touching at her other breast. She was in the throe of the moment as she felt him going for the climax that would seal her fate in this sexual conquest. By the time they tired out, Julilla felt Ailnoth's hot seed spewing into her as he was fully satisfied with conquering her tainted body, for he was immune of the toxins that were injected into her body.

"I am done for the night, ice queen, for I will always be doing this to you till the bitter end," said Ailnoth as he pulled out of Julilla. "I am not human, for I will always be a Knight of Hell just to breach your defenses."

"You think you have won, but I will entice and seduce the lucky ones who got away from my grasp," she answered. "Sam and Minara won't shake me off for long, for I always keep tabs on my victims."

Without warning, there was a knock on the door as Ailnoth disappeared without a trace, leaving Julilla alone for the time being. Putting on a robe, she went towards the door to her room as she opened it up, only to see a familiar member of her own ranking come here, for she was adamant into giving her the bad news that she didn't want to hear.

"The hour is late, Liesel," said Julilla. "What is your report?"

"Clegenny's remaining troops have fled the train stop near the Order's main headquarters on Drakonus, General," she said. "There's also the factor of Clegenny needing another set of tubes for him to breathe. It also turns out that Dean Winchester was the one responsible for causing the plight for our forlorn son of Menelaus."

"I've seen Dean in action during his efforts to scale back our forces in which his body changes into a diamond-hard form that even shoots projectiles at his enemies. You should be careful when you go against him in the future."

"Oh, I'll be careful, alright. All I'm gonna do to that pie-loving bastard is to cut his head off and allow Clegenny to shit down his neck. We will win this war and we'll do it with the guidance that was once brought to us by the late General Wetzel. We owe him that and we will avenge him."

"It's late, Liesel. Try again in the morning, is that clear?"

"Yes, ma'am."

It wasn't long until Liesel left as Julilla closed the door. Still, she was no stranger into being violated, but the presence of Ailnoth coming towards her to pin her down and take her was more than enough to bear as she didn't have time to reflect on such a bad omen like that. When she saw a white crow perched on the balcony ledged, it began to caw loudly as it brought a smile to her face, for she was biding her time to take an advantage of her situation so far…

I was in the bathroom as I was dragged in here even after I had a bath earlier. With Dean standing in front of me, he wasn't about to let me slide as he was concerned about my health. Even though I wasn't too thrilled to get a bath, all I wanted to do was to go to bed as the exhaustion I suffered from was making it difficult for me to even get in there in the first place. Therefore, I couldn't flee as I was at the mercy of my older brother, who had his bath earlier, for he wasn't about to let me wriggle out of it anytime soon.

"So, are you ready to get in the bath, Sam?" he said to me.

"I… don't need a bath right now…," I said as I shivered from the cold.

"You're getting one whether you like it or not, are we good? You used your raw power to send a bonechilling wind to wipe out most of the enemy forces who were causing damage to this place."

"And Clegenny Marquand?"

"I tore at some of the tubes that he is connected to in order to breathe. The guy's messed up, but he's no stranger to coming here for no reason." Dean notices me shivering even worse as I began to cough from the wintry aftershock from outside. "C'mon, let's get your gargantuan ass in the bath."

"I can do it myself, Dean… I'm-"

"-Not five anymore?" Dean removes the clothes I wore as I was stripped bare while he tossed them into the hamper. "You've been independent all because you were wanting to go by yourself all those years ago, but all of that was drilled into your brain in which you even forced yourself to get with the program under the cruelty of Sylvanus so he wouldn't harm me. So far, you did everything by yourself, but who will do it for you when you're running out of options?" I notice Dean turn on the hot water in the bathtub as he put in the plug where the drain was. "Let us do the legwork with you and don't even try to push it away, alright?"

I reluctantly agreed as I got into the bathtub while the water was running hot. When I noticed Dean get out a small scoop and a bag of epsom salt soak, he took some out of there as he dumped it into the hot water where I was relaxing in. It wasn't long until I saw him get out a cap full of bubble bath as he put it into the tub as well, for the suds were rising with the hot water that came along with it. By the time the water filled up to the brim, I saw him turn it off as he was concerned about my health and safety after saving everyone from the wrath of Clegenny Marquand and his forces earlier, for I couldn't let them suffer from the ongoing wrath of the Executive Division directly.

"Kazuo's gonna be pissed when he sees you all exhausted from using all that raw power you have in your noggin, Sammy," said Dean. "As for the freak windstorm that you conjured up, it lasted temporarily until the snow touched down."

"That's good to hear…," I said as I was feeling listless.

"Carly and Kanna are worried about you and they wouldn't stop pestering me about your recovery so far. Still, you need to take it easy or else you will end up dropping before you manage to get up on your feet. As for what's going on, there's no way in hell that-"

"Hey, are you almost done with your little 'bromance' powwow yet?"

I heard a familiar voice coming from the outside of the bathroom as I noticed it to be Sybil's of all people. She was getting impatient as I saw the door open up and noticed her barging into the bathroom to see me in the nude while taking a bath. The sight of me in bad shape was more than enough for the old woman to force me to bow out of the summit in Zetian as she had a bone to pick with me. Still, I was in the doghouse as I was also at the mercy of the psychic who came here to fetch me onto another trip to the spirit world, for there would be no end to what I was going through whatsoever.

"You've come a long way, Sybil," I said.

"You're damn right I came a long way, you overgrown Rapunzel wannabe!" she yelled. "Totsuka told me about how you keep having visions of your past self being naked, starved, imprisoned with the usual meathooks and chains, and trapped in a white room! Therefore, you still keep putting yourself off in which you continue to deny yourself all the self-love that was once taken away!"

"Is love for oneself more important than protecting those in need? I can't let the Executive Division cause widespread panic when it comes to them threatening those who were in the way."

"And what about the presence of Soulless Sam? He's gotten stronger and showing signs of being corporeal in which little Carly was scared to death of him. And what about your past self being trapped in that prison he's in? You can't deny yourself the love and attention forever or else your personal id wins and he'll even rain on your parade when it comes to causing trouble for you. And for the record, I'm waiting for you to go to the spirit pool that's been dormant in this recently broken down popsicle stand, are we good? There's a slim chance that your past self is in dire need of healing, but you continue to deny yourself of the self-love and care that will always be your great white whale that could never be caught. And another thing, if you're entering into the spirit world, you better come equipped with an understanding heart 'cause there's no room for judgment so far, you got that?"

I saw Sybil leave the bathroom as she closed the door behind her. With only Dean and me in the bathroom, I was left with a flurry of troubling waters ahead as I couldn't shake the fact that I had to face it in front of my past self, who is chained in his own misery. Still, I was left with no other choice but to abide by Sybil's rule as I also had to confront my worst fears in the form of a white room with meathooks and chains attached to it. Even though I was still relaxing in the tub, I wasn't out of the scrutiny clause yet as I noticed Dean glaring at me due to my neglecting of my own self-needs in favor of helping others, for this was a problem that I was stuck with so far.

"So, your past self's trapped in his own hell, isn't he?" he said to me.

"That's none of your concern," I said.

"It's my concern when it wants to be 'cause of the fact that you neglect yourself in favor of saving our asses time and time again. Hell, I even incapacitated Clegenny Marquand and he was the heavy-hitter who entered into Chekiang and caused widespread havoc over there before you hightailed it over to Essos for a while."

"Even though Sybil beckons me to face my past self in all his tortured glory, there's no way in hell that I can appreciate the self-love that keeps eluding me."

"Well, that white whale will be caught and you can say to yourself that you love yourself just as much as the rest of us and that's the truth. This isn't a joke, Sam. This is the fight for your own well-being in which you can't back out of, for we know how to protect those in need just as much as you do. I know that you want to protect us from the Executive Division's on-scale attacks, we can't let you remain docile and scared forever 'cause you have a lot more that you haven't tapped into just yet, are we good?"

I nodded sincerely as I had no other choice but to face the danger ahead in the spirit world. Even though I was worried to the extreme, I saw a white crow fly towards the bathroom window as it was perching there for an ominous reason, for there was further misery waiting for me in the near future…

To be continued...