Title: Armageddon

Rating: T

Warnings: Major spoilers for "Utopia", "The Sound of Drums" and "Last of the Time Lords"; violence; mild language; allusions to rape (but I promise nothing explicit or graphic)

A/N: As always, thank you so much for the reviews guys! I really appreciate it! I wanted this to be up Wednesday so that it would be a week early, but unfortunately I was extra busy and then I had some trouble with a couple of scenes so it took longer than I wanted. Still, this is the second part of the last chapter! I hope you enjoy.

(Also, I'm on spring break next week so I won't be posting anything next Wednesday, but I'll have something for the following Wednesday for sure. We'll be back on track with my every-other-week updating schedule then.)

Enjoy!

Armageddon:

Part III: The Year of Hell

Chapter Forty-One

Jake lifted his head slowly when he heard footsteps and breathing. His vision was blurry and he couldn't remember the last time he had eaten. Everything ached, with every beat of his heart he discovered some new pain that flashed through his body. A cold hand pushed his head back down and he groaned, blinking up at Alistair. His eyes were pure black and unblinking.

"You know, Jake, I've tried to be patient. I've done everything I can to make you see things my way, but you just won't crack." He sounded sad, but Jake just squinted up at him and shook his head. Talking would have taken too much effort at that point.

"I really didn't want to resort to this," he said slowly. "But you aren't giving me any other options… It took some searching, but I finally found something that I think will motivate you." He paused dramatically and Jake turned his head away, uninterested in what he had to say.

"Oh, don't be like that! You haven't even heard what I've got to say," He made a wounded noise and shook his head. "Besides, you should be thanking me. I found your family! You were worried about them, weren't you?"

Jake's head snapped back to Alistair and he stared at him, eyes widening painfully. "What did you do?" He forced the words out, ignoring the ache in his throat.

"Me? I haven't done anything. Mommy and Little Sister are fine. They're in one of those factories, safe and sound in North Dakota."

Jake's breathing was heavy. He stared at Alistair, waiting.

"They'll stay that way," Alistair continued. "I can guarantee their safety and maybe even their freedom. You'd like that, wouldn't you? All you have to do is go in there and kill Sam Winchester. It's not that difficult. It'll be easy."

Jake swallowed. For a moment, he could picture it in his head. His mom and his sister free and away from the Master's clutches. Somewhere protected. He looked away and shook his head. "You're lying," he hissed.

"Oh, I'm not," Alistair assured him. "Honest. Demons are bound by their deals, Jake. We can't go around breaking them; it isn't allowed. If you help me out here and do what we want, you're family will be safe. They'll be more than safe, protected and set for life…" He trailed off for a moment and the black flickered out of his eyes. "But if you don't… well, we wouldn't want them to have an accident, would we? They're so common in the factories."

Jake's heart sped up and he clenched his eyes shut. The fight drained out of his body and he went almost entirely limp.

"I'm not a killer," Jake said.

"You don't have to be," Alistair said. "Just do us this one favor. Fight him, kill him. Then your family will be safe."

He was quiet for a moment, his mind warring with itself. He thought about his family – his mom and sister all alone and scared. He thought about the nightmare that the world had turned into. Taking out one person wasn't going to make that much difference, and he could still help stop the Master after. His family would be safe.

His sister's face flashed through his mind – the last time he had seen her, when he'd shipped out for Afghanistan. She'd hugged him and kissed him on the cheek and told him to get back as soon as he could. He could still see the fear in her eyes.

He looked up at Alistair. "Okay. …I'll do it." His voice cracked and he felt his gut tug painfully with guilt, but if he could save his family… he would do anything.

~/.\~

The sun was coming up when Dean heard the knock at the motel door. He pushed Adam down and grabbed his pistol, gripping it tight as he peered through the peep-hole in the door. He put the gun away and pulled the open when he spotted Garth, Tony and Morgan.

"You got here fast," Dean said, ushering in them inside and glancing around the lot. There was no one there – not even a car. They must have dumped their car before coming into the city. They all stowed their weapons and looked around.

"Nice place," Tony said, looking away from the blood stains on the chair and floor. "We moved fast."

"Have you got anything on where the demons might be?"

"They like big, abandoned buildings," Garth said. "I saw a couple of 'em set up shop in an old warehouse once. Anything like that around here?"

"Most of the place has been abandoned," Dean said. "We didn't do much digging around last night, but they said most of the activity is coming from east of the factory. We'll start there." He looked to Tony and Morgan. "Garth give you a rundown of what to expect?"

"Super-strong, black eyes, allergic to salt and holy water," Tony said. Morgan held up a small plastic water pistol full of what Dean assumed was holy water.

"We packed the shotgun shells with salt on the move," Morgan explained. "We're ready."

Dean nodded and then turned to rifle through his bag again. He pulled out a thick leather journal and forced himself not to think too much as he flipped through it, glancing at Garth. "We've got an exorcism copied down in here," he said. "Sam had it memorized, but…" he sighed. He had about half of the thing down, he knew, but he didn't have Sam's memory.

"If we get in a tight spot, this might be our only option to take the thing out. Holy water and salt will piss 'em off." He looked up at Garth, "You know how to trap demons, right?"

"Devil's Trap," Garth nodded. "I'm not an idiot, Dean."

Dean made a face, like he wanted to argue that point, but he just nodded. Finally finding the exorcism, he yanked the page free of the binding and stared at it for a moment.

"Exorcisms on the fly don't work unless you do it fast. We'll have to hit 'em hard and fast and get the Devil's Traps set up before we send them back to hell."

"We're ready," Morgan nodded.

Dean took a breath and glanced over at Adam. "I want you to stay here,"

"What!? But I –"

"Look, I know you want to help and I let you tag along this far, but we're talking about demons, Kid. That's dangerous even for professionals. You remember Crowley, don't you?"

Adam made a face and shook his head. "I can help! I can make the traps or –"

"Or get yourself killed. I'm not letting you die on my watch. You don't know what you're up against!"

"Neither do they!" Adam argued, waving in Tony and Morgan's direction. "Dean, you said –"

"Thought you boys were here to fight a demon," a familiar voice suddenly cut Adam off and Dean and the others spun around to see Gabriel standing by the door, a vaguely smug look on his face as he watched them.

"Gabriel!" Tony was the first to speak again. "What are you doing here?"

"Keeping you from getting yourselves killed. You're going after the demon that took Sam and Jake, right? Let me help. I can find him faster than you and take him out faster, too."

"You can find the demon?" Dean demanded, his eyes already sparkling with interest.

"I can smell them," Gabriel's nose crinkled. "They about five miles west of here. An old warehouse near the factory. It shouldn't be hard to take him out."

"And you'll help us?" Dean asked, anxious.

Gabriel blinked, "I've been helping you fight the Master, why wouldn't I help now?"

Dean didn't say anything, but there was still a hint of suspicion on his face.

"I'll help," Gabriel assured him. "But I'll need you to do something for me. The building needs to be surrounded by salt to keep the demon in. And a few Devil's Traps would be a good idea just in case… But more importantly, I need you do ward the building."

"Ward the building?" Garth asked. "From what?"

"Angels," Gabriel said. Paper and a marker appeared in his hand and he started drawing symbols. "This is Enochian. It's a warding to keep angels from seeing. If you want to save them, the others can't see me helping; they don't know I'm alive and I want to keep it that way."

He passed the paper to Dean and Dean squinted at it. The markings were bold and scraggly. "We can do this," he said, nodding.

"You won't need help inside?" Morgan asked, frowning.

"I can handle a demon," Gabriel said. "I'm an archangel." A silver blade slipped into his hand and he smiled. "Trust me; I know how to use this. You guys keep the place guarded and warded. I'll take care of everything else."

Adam stepped forward and glanced at Dean. "If we aren't going to fight the demon… I can help set up the traps and wait outside."

Dean pressed his lips together. He wanted to say no. It was still far too dangerous. But Adam was giving him a look that he recognized from Sam – his eyes all dewy and puppy-dog like. He caved.

"Fine. But stick by my side, Kid. I'm not going to let you die on me."

~/.\~

Jenny hadn't felt so much adrenaline pumping through her veins since she had first stepped foot on the ship. Her grip around the gun was sure and it felt familiar and good. She hadn't held a weapon in so long that she had feared she might have forgotten.

She and Michelle stuck close together as they moved up through the corridors. They were walking fast, but not running. They didn't want to draw any unnecessary attention to themselves. No guards had past them on patrol yet, but they would. They wouldn't go unnoticed for very long.

Just as she had started to let herself relax a little a beam of light shot out and hit the wall next to them, singing it a bit. A high metallic voice suddenly rang out, telling them to stop and drop their weapons.

Jenny's heart-rate skyrocketed and she was running before she made the conscious decision to do so. Michelle ran at her side, slightly faster than her. The Toclafane behind them was buzzing along idly, not even bothering to pick up speed. It fired another shot and they ducked, just barely missing the beam.

"Make a left!" Michelle suddenly yelled, snatching her by the arm and veering off down another hall. The metal echoed around them and then the sound of buzzing was joined by the sound of pounding feet.

"Faster!" Michelle was tugging her along by then, their feet unsteady on the floor as the walls blurred around them. The first bullet went wide and missed them by about a foot. The next one, however, came dangerous close to Michelle's head.

The guards were upon them.

Letting Michelle keep up their direction, Jenny wrenched her hand free and spun around. She spotted three guards and let off two shots. Neither was lethal, but one went clean through the kneecap of a pursuer and he went down. The second bullet hit a female guard in the shoulder and slower her down, but didn't incapacitate her. The third guard kept coming and fired another shot. Toclafane were buzzing behind them loudly then and several lasers lit up the hall.

The light hit Jenny before she could move and she prepared herself to die, but it just knocked her to her knees and left her whole body shaking. It was a warning shot. She doubted she would get that lucky a second time.

"Come on, Director!" Michelle was pulling her up and running again. Jenny had to wonder for a moment how she could move so quickly, but she didn't have time to put much thought into it when several bullets and lasers went off at once, making the hall bright and loud. Her ears rang painfully and she was still shaking from the Toclafane's blast.

Her knees nearly gave out as they turned a sharp corner and then Michelle stumbled and fell, taking her with her. Her body armor had protected her from the bullet, but she was shaking almost as bad Jenny when she tried to help her up. She forced herself up.

"Two more right turns," Michelle said. "Come on. We might make it."

They took off just as the guards rounded the corner. Something tore through her leg and she fired another shot blindly behind her, hearing Michelle do the same. The roar in her ears picked up and she wasn't sure where sounds were coming from anymore. Michelle was mouthing something at her – or maybe she was shouting. Jenny couldn't hear it, whatever it was.

Before she could ask what she was saying another beam shot out and hit Michelle. Michelle went down and Jenny skidded, knees wobbling, blood gushing from the bullet wound in her leg. Michelle lay face down and didn't get up. Her gun lay just a few inches away.

Something inside of her snapped and she snatched the gun. Her leg was on fire and she only had a few bullets left, but she spun to face the guards chasing them and let them all loose, not caring who or what she hit. She barely felt the next two bullets. One in her arm, another in her gut. She stumbled to her knees as she fired her last shot and then a bright light slammed into her chest and she was down, body unnaturally bent and horribly still. One gun was still clutched tightly in her hands.

~/.\~

Gabriel left the others outside, watching them spread the salt along the doors and paint the warding sigils. The angels might noticed when the building vanished, but they wouldn't know how or why and that would give him time to take the demon out without being discovered.

The stench of blood and sulfur was strong inside and it took him a moment to pinpoint where it was coming from. There were two separate areas, full of coppery blood and stale sweat. Voices were coming loudly from one of them, yelling.

"Jake, you don't have to do this!"

"I'm sorry, Sam… It's my family,"

"Demons lie. They could already be dead, you –"

"They're not dead!"

Someone grunted in pain and Gabriel started to go to them, to stop them from killing each other, but then he felt the demon's presence behind him and he turned around.

"One angel was a surprise," the demon drawled, "but two? I thought you guys were extinct."

The blade slipped into Gabriel's hands and his face hardened. He eyed the demon carefully and tilted his head. "I know you demons aren't exactly hygienic, but would it kill you to bathe once in a while? You guys reek."

The demon's eyes went pitch black and he smiled. "You guys are a lot cockier than I remember,"

Gabriel smiled as the demon lunged for him, hands raised and poised to fight. His form vanished like smoke in the demon's fingers and he appeared behind him, grinning wider as the silver blade shot out of his chest.

The demon shook and screamed, eyes flaring white. "Lucifer taught me that," he said. "Ironic, don't you think?"

He let go of the body and let it drop. He had to admit, it felt pretty good to be an archangel again, even for just that one moment. But then he heard a scream and the sounds of the fight coming from farther inside and he let the blade vanish, hurrying forward.

Sam Winchester was holding a long metal pipe in his hands, his eyes fierce and sad. Jake Talley was armed with a knife, his expression frighteningly determined and guilty. Jake made a move toward Sam and Gabriel stepped in.

"Hey, whoa, whoa, whoa, boys. No need to fight,"

Jake and Sam both froze and after a moment, the weapons clattered to the floor.

"Gabriel?" the spoke at the same time, staring at him like they thought they were crazy.

"To the rescue," he said brightly. "Come on. Let's get you healed and out of here. You don't want to be here when the other demons show up again."

~/.\~

The little bunker was full of the sounds of people working – Ash and McGee working on getting the new weapons started while Garcia and Abby worked back and forth with the Torchwood group to iron out new ideas and travel plans to set up weapons in farther places. The TV was buzzing away in the background and for once, things didn't look quite as bleak as they had before. Gibbs was sitting with Rufus, discussing the possibility of raiding one of the factories when Tony and the others returned, when Jack suddenly turned the volume up.

"You guys need to see this," he called, leaning forward as he stared at the television. "The Master's broadcasting footage from the ship…"

They were gathered around the small set and the computer monitors as soon as Jack spoke. Every screen was filled with the image of Jenny Sheppard and one of the Master's guards that Gibbs vaguely recognized. They were running down the halls, making an escape and being pursued by Toclafane and guards alike.

Gibbs' gut tightened and his hands went numb around the drink he had in his grip. His eyes were glued to the screen, watching Jenny and her companion try to out-race their attackers. A small sense of pride shot through when she managed to get in several good shots, but that was quickly washed away.

He couldn't do anything but watch as she fought her way to her very last breath, shooting at the guards with a determined, furious look on her face. When she stopped moving, Gibbs' heart sounded loud in his ears. He felt rage building up inside of him and then the Master's smug face appeared on the screen and he started talking about futile escapes and suddenly Gibbs' vision went white.

His fists clenched around the small plastic cup he was holding, bending and snapping it in his hands. He turned away from the TV before he realized it and let out a furious snarl before launching the cup across the room. The Master would pay for this. He would see to it personally.

~/.\~

A/N: And there you go. This was supposed to be part of last chapter, but life screwed that up. Hope you guys enjoyed it!

Originally, Sam was going to kill Jake (because karma) but then I decided that I had the power to let them both live and Jake was totally redeemable before he killed Sam so I gave it a happier ending. Ish. Still.

I feel awful about Jenny and Michelle. I debated long and hard about whether or not they would survive. I just felt that this was more realistic than them actually making it out. (FYI: that scene gave me the most trouble of this whole chapter.)

Anyway, please don't forget to review! Your opinions mean the world to me!