Chapter 26: The Devils Vinyl Part 10

AN: I am using the actual transcript so there are some bits that aren't seen in the episode, but I'm putting them in anyways.

John curls up on the ground in agony. A trickle of blood rolling out one ear. It would appear to be the end. Until the studio doors burst open. A close up on stylish tasseled leather loafers. Tilt up to Papa Midnite, gun in hand.

"You never mentioned this either! What if there were lasting side effects?" Chas glared at the exorcist.

In rapid succession, he blasts one speaker then the other. The sound of the recording dies. The studio personnel are stunned or passed out. John, having heard less, sits up groggily.

A breath of relief as the wails cut out.

"Nice shooting."

Mitnite lovingly regards his gun, "Ace of Winchesters. Never misses. Forged by a mystic in the Old West. Sold his soul to gain the expertise required to make the weapon."

"I imagine you have quite a war chest of toys like that."

"Don't you? And soon one more."

"Maybe..."

"You know I can't let you take that."

"And you know you can't stop me." Midnite turns for the soundproof booth. Traylor opens the door. Creed works the controls in the booth, trying to bring back the lost signal. Midnite angrily points the gun at Traylor. "Stay right where you are."

"You can't stop it - it needs to be played -" Traylor gasps out.
Behind Midnite, John raises a hand and speaks rapidly and intensely, barely above a whisper. "Exorcizamos te, omnis immunde spiritus, omnis satanic potestas, omnis infernalis adversarii, in nomine et virtute domini nostri Jesu."

Stein smiled. He enjoyed watching magic being preformed. It went against pretty much everything he had studied. It was fasinating.

As Midnite reaches the soundproof booth, the door abruptly slams shut on its own accord. Midnite feels and hears a low rumble, "What's happening?". It looks and feels like an earthquake. Dropping the shotgun, Midnite throws himself at the door, wrenching the handle, but it won't open.

John smirked. He enjoyed seeing midnight like that.

"There's only one true way to deal with the recording - to send it back to where it belongs." John tells Midnite.

To the horror of Creed and Traylor, they begin to see the darkness seeping in from the walls. Just like it happened with Willie Cole. The glass of the booth begins to ice up.

"No! It belongs to me! It's mine!" Midnite pulled at the door once more.

"It belongs to no one." Surprisingly it was Snart who said this. A number of the audience looked surprised. "What? Just because I'm a thief doesn't mean I don't know when something should be left be."

Through the frosted window, we see Creed and Traylor, panic stricken and frightened. Traylor raises his gun, fires at the window, but it only ices up. Darkness fills the booth, a primordial roar rises, and a virtual geyser of blood explodes against the frozen glass. Then, as fast as it started, it's over. Midnite yanks the door open.

"They kind of deserved it." Renee said. When she got confused and surprised looks, she elaborated "They tried to, and succeeded in some ways, to kill dozens or maybe hundreds of people. Anyone who does that deserves what they got there."

It's empty inside. Completely empty. The walls are dripping in blood but the entire contents of the booth has fallen into a bottomless shaft in the earth where the floor once was. Sparks from shattered light fixtures fall into the pit.

"So if I jumped down, would I end up in Hell?" Ray asked, eyes wide.

Everyone turned towards him, "Are you thinking of testing it out?" Ray shook his head at the question.

Midnite stares down in rage. Behind him, foggy-headed studio personnel slowly start to sit or help each other stand. John runs down the hall as fast as his legs will carry him.

"Constantine!" Midnite yells from off screen.

John bursts outside, shoving a trash can in front of the door to block it, then running like hell. He finds that Zed has dragged what appears to be Chas's dead body from the wrecked car. In the distance, we hear sirens approaching.

"That wasn't a fun day..."

Zed bounds on Chas's chest, trying to get a pulse. "He's not breathing!" she calls out to John.

"He will. No time to explain now. Angry Voodou priest with a rifle on my heels."

Que the laughter at his hurried exclamation.

"John, I think he's dead."

"You aren't wrong there."

"For the moment. Help me load him up." They drag Chas toward Zed's car, as the sirens grow louder.

They are back at Ian's mansion. Someone knocks. Ian opens the front door, "She's inside. Hurry."

John and Chas stand at the door. Chas's hand rests firmly on the shoulder of Anton the Soul Broker, who's not happy to be there. "Sorry for the delay. Took a while to track this one down." John says. Chas shoves Anton inside. John and Chas follow.

The parchment rune is on the coffee table. There are only faint final letters remain. Jasmine sits on the couch, pale and shivering. She is curled up with a throw around her shoulders. A window behind her is frosted over as is the cup by her side. Her breath is visible from the cold. Ian leads his visitors to Jasmine.

"Is she going to be okay?" Kendra asked out of habit. She knew everything would be fine, but they were cutting it close.

"Are you sure this'll work?" Ian asks worriedly.

"It'll work. In a fashion. The Fallen One will lose his claim on your wife's soul, but what she traded for - your health..." John shakes his head solemnly.

Jasmine, overwhelmed with emotion, turns to Ian. "Ian. I can't let you do this."

"You don't think I can beat cancer? Twenty years ago, I didn't stand a chance. But there are treatments now, and I got the money to pay for 'em. Not to mention, I got a lot more to fight for."

"Still can't believe you went platinum, mate."

"Triple platinum." Chas corrected.

"Doesn't matter. The fact he even got one..."

John turns to Anton, "You're up, rat boy. You brokered this deal, you're the only one who can break it. Time to eat the contract."

"I can't... I won't. If I break a contact with the Dark One, I'll never be allowed to write an infernal deal again."

"Who cares? Her life is at stake!" Kendra exclaims.

"I'm crying on the inside. Let's go. She's out of time. Give the lady her soul back."

Anton, ever an opportunist, turns to Ian. "How much will you pay me?"

Mick frowned as Snart said what was on everyone mind, "Filth..."

On synchronized instinct, Chas wraps one arm around Anton, pulls his buck knife with the other, and holds it to Anton's throat. At the same time, John crumples the parchment, then crams it into Anton's mouth.

"He'll pay you sod all. You've done enough to hurt these good people."

Chas presses the knife closer, "Chew."

"Mm-kay." Anton begins to do so.

Ian turns to John, "When you said eat the contract you weren't kidding."

"Where do you think the expression comes from? It's as old as the Aramaic on that rune."

Everyone had disturbed looks on their face when they saw it onscreen.

"Swallow."

As John watches Anton painfully force the document down, his voice over starts. "We all negotiate deals with forces bigger than us. We feel powerless over fate, so we make wagers and create stakes that might not even exist."

Reflective after the Jasmine experience, Zed sits on the edge of her bed and pulls up a small necklace from under her shirt. The necklace carries the distinctive sword/cross of the Resurrection Crusade. Conflicted, Zed turns the cross in her fingers... then, making a decision, she pulls the necklace over her head and puts it aside.

Close in on a punching bag, hanging in the corner. Fists work over the bag with skill. The camera slowly pulls back as John's voice over continues.
"If I work harder, or quit smoking, or do what I'm told, I'll gain my just reward. But who are we truly negotiating with?"

Reveal Zed training on the bag. Who is she anyway?

"And that's the end of the episode. Who's ready for lunch?"

End Episode:

QOTC:

AM: Lots of helpful info to how can get a car. I can so look at ppl.