Mack clung to her father's hand as he poked around the mysterious room they had found themselves in thanks to the angels. "What's going on, Daddy?" she asked, looking up at him. "I'm not sure yet, bug," he told her, squeezing her hand gently. It made sense that they had taken him- the angels had had him swear his service to them- but he didn't understand why they would drag Mack along with him. Turning, he found the table suddenly had a platter of burgers and a bowl containing ice and beers. "Daddy?" Mack asked curiously. "Don't touch them, bug."
"Hello, Dean. You're looking fit." Dean glared at the two angels that had just appeared. "Well, how 'bout this? 'The Suite Life of Zach and Cas'," he quipped. Zachariah and Castiel both looked confused and he rolled his eyes. "It's a... never mind. So, what is this? Where the hell are we?"
"Call it a Green Room," Zachariah replied. "We're closing in on the grand finale, here. We want to keep you safe before showtime." He gestured to the burger platter. "Try a burger. They're your favorite. From that seaside shack in Delaware. You were eleven, I think." Mack looked up at her father, but he was busy staring down the angels. "I'm not hungry," he said. "Well, maybe the young Miss Winchester wants to try one?" Zachariah looked over at Mack and she shrunk closer to Dean's side.
"Don't," Dean growled threateningly. "Why is she even here? She doesn't have any part in this." Zachariah smirked, looking back at him. "Oh, she's here as insurance. We understand she's important to you and wanted to make sure you wouldn't back down from your word." The father set his jaw, annoyed that the angels would dare even consider using his daughter to manipulate him. "I want to know what the game plan is."
"You let us worry about that. We want you... focused, relaxed."
"Well, I'm about to be pissed and leaving, so start talking, chuckles," he growled. Zachariah sighed. "All the seals have fallen. Except one." Dean raised his eyebrows in surprise. "That's an impressive score. That's... that's right up there with the Washington Generals."
"You think sarcasm's appropriate, do you? Considering... you started all this?" Dean's expression soured at the reminder that he was the one who broke the first seal when he gave into Alastair's offer in Hell. "But the final seal... it'll be different," Zachariah continued. "Why?" he asked curiously. "Lilith has to break it. She's the only one who can. Tomorrow night- midnight."
"Where?"
"We're working on it."
"Well, work harder," Dean growled. "We'll do our job. You just make sure you do yours," Zachariah assured him. "Yeah, and what is that, exactly? If I'm supposed to be the one who stops her, how? With the knife?" Zachariah's expression and tone remained impassive. "All in good time." Dean was becoming more and more frustrated. "Isn't now a good time?"
"Have faith."
"What, in you?" he spat. "Give me one good reason why I should." Zachariah stepped forward, getting in his face, and Mack hid behind him. "Because you swore your obedience. So obey." Dean looked past him at Cas, who looked down guiltily.
"Daddy, I wanna go home," Mack whined. Dean looked at his daughter with a sympathetic expression. "I know, baby," he said. "I'm working on it, I promise." She sighed, burying her face in the top of Skittles' head while rubbing circles on its ear with her thumb. Dean's heart broke seeing her like that. He was just as fed up with being in the small room as she was. There was no telling how much time had elapsed or when the angels would return.
Refocusing on the phone in his hand, he decided to make the call he'd been avoiding for a while now. "Hey, it's me..." he cleared his throat. "Look, I'll just get right to it. I'm still pissed... and I owe you a serious beatdown. But... I shouldn't have said what I said. You know, I'm not Dad. We're brothers. You know, we're family. And, uh... No matter how bad it gets, that doesn't change. Sammy, I'm sorry." He hung up, scrubbing his hand over his face tiredly.
Walking over, he sat down against the wall beside Mack and pulled her into his side. "Whatcha thinkin' about, bug?" he asked her gently. "I'm scared... What if Lilith breaks the last seal? What would we do?" Dean groaned internally. She wasn't stupid; she had picked up on all the conversations over the months and knew what was going on. He had thought he was doing a better job of sheltering her, but apparently it didn't matter. "We'll figure it out, sweetheart. Me, Bobby... Uncle Sammy... We'll figure it out."
She fell silent, and then looked up at him with big green eyes just like his. "What happened to my mama?" she asked, shocking him. "Why did she leave me?" Dean swallowed, unsure how to answer right away. She'd never really asked about her mother before, too young to fully grasp it. All she knew was that her mother wasn't around, but she had a father who loved her very much. "I, uh... I don't know why she left you, bug. Why are you asking about your mama?"
"All the other kids at the park have moms," she muttered. "They all know who their mama is." He was silent again, processing her words. He thought about all the times in between jobs when they stopped somewhere to let her play and stretch her legs. She had mostly just sat and watched the other kids. He hadn't realized what she was really doing, the reason behind it. "Who was my mom?"
"I... I don't really remember your mom," he answered truthfully. "All I remember is her giving me the best gift I've ever received in my entire life." Mack hung on to his every word as he spoke. "She gave me you, bug. And I love you more than anything in the whole world."
Dean frustratedly tipped over a figurine of an angel on one of the many mantelpieces around the room, watching lazily as it smashed to pieces on the floor. He glanced over at where Mack was curled into a ball asleep guiltily at the loud noise, but she hadn't stirred, and then turned around to face Castiel, who had appeared right when the figurine smashed. "You asked to see me?" Cas queried. Dean cleared his throat, casting another glance at his daughter. "Yeah, look, I, uh, I-I need something."
"Anything you wish."
"I need you to take me to see Sam." Cas didn't even blink. "Why?" The angel's apathetic attitude was really getting under his skin. "There's something I need to talk to him about," he intentionally remained vague, just to see if it would get a rise out of Cas. It didn't. "What's that?" Castiel asked in the same neutral tone. "The B.M. I took this morning. What's it to you? Just make it snappy."
"I don't think that's wise," Cas replied. "Well, I didn't ask for your opinion," Dean shot back. "Have you forgotten what happened the last time you met?" He set his jaw, feeling that muscle twitch again. "No. That's the whole point. Listen, I'm gonna do whatever you mooks want, okay? I just need to tie up this one thing. Five minutes- that's all I need." He would return for Mack as soon as it was taken care of. However, the angel had other plans. "No," Cas told him flatly. "What do you mean, no? Are you saying I'm trapped here?"
"You can go wherever you want," Cas answered.
"Super. I want to go see Sam."
"Except there."
"I want to take a walk."
"Fine. I'll go with you."
"Alone."
"No." Dean gave a frustrated huff, turning on his heel. "You know what? Screw this noise. I'm out of here." He had taken all of two steps toward the door when Cas spoke again. "Through what door?" He turned back to face him, frowning, because he was going through the door he was walking toward, genius. But when he turned back toward it, there was only a smooth wall. Castiel had also vanished. "Damn it!" Enraged, he grabbed a pedestal and started using it to smash through the wall. The noise woke up Mack, who shot up in surprise. "Daddy? What are you doing?"
"Getting. Us. Out. Of. Here," Dean growled, accenting each word with a hit. He continued smashing until he hit the foundation of the wall, and then paused for just a second to give his arms a short break, and the wall repaired itself again. He threw the pedestal to the floor, making Mack jump. "Son of a bitch!" he yelled. "Quit hurling feces like a howler monkey, would you?" Zachariah asked him, appearing in the room. "It's unbecoming." Mack watched with fear filled eyes as her father rounded on the angel. "Let us out of here," he snarled. "Like I told you: too dangerous out there. Demons on the prowl," the angel responded.
"I've been getting my ass kicked all year. Now you're sweating my safety? You're lying. I want to see my brother." Zachariah had the decency to at least show a little more emotion than Cas had, though not much. "That's... ill-advised," he said slowly. "You know, I'm sick of your crap riddles and your smug, fat face. What the hell is going on, huh? Why can't I see Sam? And how am I gonna ice Lilith?"
"You're not..." the angel started loudly, then reigned in any anger that had begun to slip through, "going to ice Lilith." Dean blinked. "What?" Zachariah sat down on the edge of the table as he answered. "Lilith's going to break the final seal. Fait accompli at this point. Train has left the station." Dean swallowed, "But me and Sam, we can stop..." He trailed off as he had an epiphany. "You don't want to stop it, do you?" Zach smiled. "Nope. Never did. The end is nigh. The apocalypse is coming, kiddo, to a theater near you."
Over by the wall, Mack had Skittles in a death grip as her breathing quickened and her chest constricted with anxiety. Neither her father nor the angel seemed to notice her anxiety attack, too busy arguing. "What was that crap about saving seals?" her father snarled. "Our grunts on the ground- we couldn't just tell them the whole truth. We'd have a full-scale rebellion on our hands. I mean, think about it. Would we really let sixty-five seals get broken unless senior management wanted it that way?" It was a fair point, honestly, and one that only fueled Dean's anger. "What happens to all the people during your little pissing contest?"
"Well... you can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs. In this case... truckloads of eggs, but you get the picture. This isn't the first planetary enema we've delivered." Zachariah noticed Dean's eyes flickering to one of the other figurines on a mantelpiece. "Uh, no, Dean. Probably shouldn't try to bash my skull in with that thing. Wouldn't end too pleasantly for you. And I don't think you want your daughter to see that." At the mention of Mack, they both looked over at her, and finally realized the state of panic she was in.
"Bug..." her father went over to her side, pulling her in close, then looked back at Zachariah. "What about Sam? He won't go quietly. He'll stop Lilith." Zach gave him a little knowing smirk, inhaling deeply. "Sam... has a part to play. A very important part. He may need a nudge in the right direction, but I'll make sure he plays it." Dean glowered, "What does that mean? What are you going to do to him?"
"Sam, Sam, Sam. Marcia, Marcia, Marcia. Forget about him, would you?" Zachariah stood up, straightening his suit coat. "You have larger concerns. Why do you think I'm confiding in you? You're still vital, Dean. We weren't lying about your destiny. Just... omitted a few pertinent details. But nothing's changed. You are chosen. You will stop it. Just... not Lilith, or the apocalypse. That's all."
"Which means?"
The angel gestured to one of the paintings on the wall: Saint Michel terrassant le Dragon by Josse Lieferinxe. "Lucifer," he replied. "You're going to stop Lucifer. You're our own little Russell Crowe, complete with surly attitude. And when it's over... and when you've won... your rewards will be... unimaginable. Peace, happiness... two virgins and seventy sluts." Zachariah chuckled to himself. "Trust me- one day, we'll look back on this and laugh."
"Tell me something," Dean said, voice breaking slightly. "Where's God in all this?" Zachariah's eyes darkened. "God? God has left the building." The angel vanished without another word. As soon as he was gone, Dean turned his focus on his daughter, anger melting away into concern. "Bug... Hey, baby, breathe with me, alright?" He took her hand in his, rubbing slow circles on the back with his thumb and making his breathing slow and exaggerated so she could follow along.
It took a few minutes, and Mack started to backslide a few times, before she finally got herself calm and under control. "Daddy, I'm scared," she whispered tearfully, burying her face in his shirt. "I know... I know, Mack. Me, too." He hugged her close, rocking her gently as he soothed her, whispering calm assurances into her ear.
The father ran his fingers through his daughter's hair while she slept in his lap, trying and failing to get a signal in order to contact his brother again. When he tried dialing, he could only hear static. "You can't reach him, Dean," Cas said, appearing in front of him. "You're outside your coverage zone." He glared at the angel, keeping his voice at a normal volume so he wouldn't wake Mack up. "What are you gonna do to Sam?" he demanded. "Nothing. He's gonna do it to himself." Well, that sounded vaguely ominous. "What's that supposed to mean?" Castiel looked down. "Oh, right, right. Got to toe the company line. Why are you here, Cas?"
"I sensed her distress... and we've been through much together, you and I. I just wanted to say, I'm sorry it ended like this." Dean scoffed at that. "'Sorry'?" he spat. If he didn't have a child laying in his lap, he would have punched him. "It's Armageddon, Cas. You need a bigger word than 'sorry'."
"Try to understand- this is long foretold. This is your-"
"Destiny? Don't give me that 'holy' crap. Destiny, God's plan... It's all a bunch of lies, you poor, stupid son of a bitch! It's just a way to keep me and keep you in line! You know what's real? People, families- that's real. And you're gonna watch them burn?" Mack had shifted in her sleep a little, whimpering as he raised his voice in anger. He quickly resumed running his fingers through her hair to calm her back down. "What is so worth saving?" Castiel asked, tilting his head in confusion. "I see nothing but pain here. I see inside you. I see your guilt, your anger, your confusion. I see her fear. In paradise, all is forgiven. You'll be at peace. Even with Sam."
"You can take your peace... and shove it up your lily-white ass. 'Cause I'll take the pain and the guilt. I'll even take Sam as is. It's a lot better than being some Stepford bitch in paradise. This is simple, Cas! No more crap about being a good soldier. There is a right and a wrong here, and you know it." Cas turned away from him. "Look at me!" Dean demanded, and the angel turned back guiltily. "You know it! You were gonna help me once, weren't you? You were gonna warn me about all this before they dragged you back to Bible camp. Help me- now. Please."
"What would you have me do?" Cas asked quietly. "Get me to Sam. We can stop this before it's too late," he pleaded desperately. "I do that, we will all be hunted. We'll all be killed," Cas shook his head. "If there is anything worth dying for... this is it," Dean said, but Cas just shook his head again, looking down. "You spineless... soulless son of a bitch," he hissed, looking down at Mack and focusing on the feeling of his hand on her head. "What do you care about dying? You're already dead. We're done."
"Dean-"
"We're done!" he said more forcefully. When he looked up, Cas had disappeared.
Mack watched her father pace, and then he paused in front of the platter of hamburgers, considering. Right when he reached out to take one, Cas reappeared, grabbing his shoulder and slamming him against the wall with a hand pressed over his mouth. Mack stumbled to her feet as Cas took out a knife. Her father and the angel stared at each other for a moment, and then her father nodded slightly beneath Cas's hand. Cas let him go, drawing the knife across his own forearm. Taking the blood with his other hand, he smeared it on the wall in the form of an angel banishing sigil. Zachariah appeared as he was finishing it up.
"Castiel! Would you mind explaining just what the hell you're doing?" Cas slammed his hand against the finished sigil, and Zachariah vanished in a violent flash of white light. Mack ran to Dean's side, clutching his arm. "He won't be gone long," Cas said. "We need to find Sam, now."
"Where is he?"
"I don't know. But I know who does. We have to stop him, Dean, from killing Lilith." Dean furrowed his brow in confusion. "But Lilith's gonna break the final seal," he stated. "Lilith is the final seal," Cas corrected him. "She dies, the end begins." Dean's eyes widened in shock. "Alright, so who knows where Sam is?"
"Chuck," Cas replied, reaching out and placing a hand on Dean's shoulder. They were suddenly in Chuck's filthy living room, and the prophet stared at them in surprise. "Wait. T-this isn't supposed to happen," he stammered, then spoke into the phone pressed to his ear. "No, lady, this is definitely supposed to happen, but I just got to call you back." He hung up. "I..."
"No time, Chuck," Dean cut him off. "Where's your latest project?" Chuck picked up a stack of papers on the desk in front of him. "Right here, but-" Dean walked forward, snatching the pages from him and beginning to skim through. "St. Mary's? What is that, a convent?" He looked over at Chuck. "Yeah, but you guys aren't supposed to be there. You're not in this story."
"Yeah, well..." Cas glanced over at Dean. "We're making it up as we go." Dean felt his heart swell with pride a little, despite the situation they were in. Just then, Chuck's computer screen flickered as a great rumbling began, accompanied by a blinding white light. "Aw, man. Not again," Chuck groaned.. "It's the archangel!" Cas yelled, looking at Dean. "I'll hold him off! I'll hold them all off! Just stop Sam!" He clapped Dean on the forehead, sending him away, then realized Mack was still in the room.
"Get her out of here," he ordered. Chuck grabbed Mack's hand, leading her into one of the back rooms of his house while Cas turned to face the approaching archangel.
Dean landed in the convent, then looked around frantically. "Mack!" He did a full circle, but there was no sign of his daughter. "Son of a bitch!" Realizing there was nothing he could do about it, he hurried down the hall in search of Sam. He rounded a corner, and the sight of what was going on in the sanctuary made him pause. Sam and Ruby had their backs to him, and Lilith was sitting pinned to the altar by Sam. Ruby looked over her shoulder and spotted him, smiling. She put out a hand, and the doors closed, cutting him off from whatever was happening next.
Inside the room, Sam walked toward Lilith. "I've been waiting for this... for a very long time," he told her lowly. "Then give me your best shot," she smirked at him. He reached out a hand, throwing power at her. White light shone on Lilith, and she cried out in pain. Sam lowered his hand again, and the light faded. "Sam! Sam! Sam!" Dean's voice carried through the door. Sam turned back, hearing Dean's voice faintly in the distance, as the sound of a thundering heartbeat was overtaking most of his hearing. "Dean?" he asked.
"What are you waiting for?!" Ruby asked him, sounding more faint than Dean. "Now! Sam, now!" Then, one laugh rang out, clear as a bell compared to Dean and Ruby's voices and Sam turned back to look at Lilith. "You turned yourself into a freak," Lilith continued laughing. "A monster. And now you're not gonna bite? I'm sorry, but that is honestly adorable." The heartbeat quickened in his ears, and Sam raised his hand once more. His eyes turned demon black as he concentrated his power and hurled it at Lilith. She convulsed several times, her body glowing and flickering. Then, she fell limp and Sam's eyes returned to normal.
The heartbeat slowed down and stopped as blood started to flow from Lilith in a steady stream in what appeared to be a very deliberate direction. Sam watched it in confusion. "What the hell?" he asked. "I can't believe it," Ruby grinned, watching the blood stream as well. "Ruby, what's going on?" Sam asked her. "You did it. I mean, it was a little touch-and-go there for a while, but... you did it."
"What? What- what did I do?" he demanded. "You opened the door. And now he's free at last. He's free at last!" Sam's eyes widened as he realized she was talking about Lucifer. "No," he shook his head in denial, "no, no. No, he- Lilith- I stopped her. I killed her!" Ruby was still grinning as she began to recite fervently, "And it is written that the first demon shall be the last seal. And you bust her open." Sam put his hands to his head in distress. "Now guess who's coming to dinner."
"Oh, my God," he breathed. Ruby shook her head with a little smirk. "Guess again." Dean had started pounding on the door with a large candelabra, trying to break in. Ruby was still staring at the blood with an air of reverence. "You don't even know how hard it was! All the demons out for my head. No one knew. I was the best of those sons of bitches! I was the most loyal! Not even Alastair knew! Only Lilith! Yeah, sure, you're a little angry right now, but, I mean, come on, Sam! Even you have to admit- I'm- I'm awesome!"
"You bitch. You lying bitch!" Sam thrust out his hands, trying to use his powers, but he crumpled to the floor and clutched at his head instead. "Don't hurt yourself, Sammy," she smirked. "It's useless. You shot your payload on the boss." He stared up at her in anger. "The blood... You poisoned me." The demoness crouched down, kneeling in front of him. "No. It wasn't the blood. It was you... and your choices. I just gave you the options, and you chose the right path every time. You didn't need the feather to fly, you had it in you the whole time, Dumbo. I know it's hard to see it now... but this is a miracle. So long coming. Everything Azazel did, and Lilith did. Just to get you here. And you were the only one who could do it."
"Why? W-why me?" Sam asked, tears in his eyes. "Because... because it had to be you, Sammy. It always had to be you. You saved us. You set him free. And he's gonna be grateful. He's gonna repay you in ways that you can't even imagine." Dean finally broke through the doors, drawing the demon blade, and Ruby stood up to confront him. "You're too late," she taunted. "I don't care." Dean advanced on Ruby and Sam stood and grabbed her from behind, holding her in place while Dean stabbed her. She flickered with light, falling to the floor, dead.
"I'm sorry," Sam apologized to his brother brokenly. The blood pouring from Lilith had finished its pattern on the floor. A brilliant white light shot up from the central point in the pattern and the convent began to tremble. "Sammy, let's go." Dean dragged his baby brother toward the doors, but they slammed closed, shutting them in. Sam clutched at Dean's shirt as Dean grabbed his jacket, staring toward the light. "Dean... he's coming," Sam breathed. The light blinded them and they turned away, shielding their eyes.