SamEpisode 1x11: “Doomsday”"FROM HELL TO HERE"Prologue:
Another bright flash and rather painful landing later, Sam found himself lying on a scratchy, hard surface that felt like the mattress of his motel room. Opening his eyes, Sam looked around and realized that he was in that very room. He was back in Motown.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Sam reached behind him, feeling in the waistband of his jeans to see if his gun was back where he had placed it before the stone had taken him back. To his relief, it was. And that meant that his phone was as well. Taking it out of his pocket, Sam called dialed Travis’ number. After only one ring, he answered.
“Hello?" A voice that wasn't Travis' asked. It sounded similar, but it was deeper, more gruff and angry.
“Who is this? Where's Travis Sheridan?"
"You're speaking to him. Who is this?" The voice was so deep; it couldn't be Travis.
"Sam Winchester. Now who is this?"
The man hung up. Sam stared at the phone in confusion for a moment before he redialed. "This isn't funny," the man said. "Sam's been missing for four years. So don't you dare call back pretending to be him or I swear to God, I'll hunt you down and I will kill you myself." The man hung up again.
Sam just stood there dumbfounded.
Four years? It couldn’t be. He walked over to the counter that he remembered the digital clock being on and it was in the same location. He stared in disbelief as the date that shone back at him was Wednesday, December 19th, 2012.
Sirens snapped Sam out of his trance. He ran over to the window and threw the curtains open.
What the hell? The streets of Motown were littered with bloody corpses, buildings burned, vehicles were flipped and turned to scrap metal. It was like looking at his brother’s prison. What he saw was like staring into Hell itself.
Sam exited the room and journeyed down the staircase. The paint on the wall was peeling, the wood underneath his feet rotting. As he arrived in the main lobby, he saw that the manager, a stubby red-haired woman in what appeared to be her mid-30s, lay dead on the floor, a splatter of blood plastered on the wall behind her. Sam shook his head.
What in the hell happened here?He soldiered on. The door to the outside world finally gave way after a long crunching, rustling sound of metal on metal. Sam took his first steps into the searing heat that came with the entire city burning. He had trouble breathing as there was no clean air. The putrid smell of the decomposing corpses only added to the discomfort.
Sam covered his nose and mouth and started walking down the street. He took off the jacket he had thrown over his red button-down shirt and tied it around his waist. When that still wasn’t enough to relieve his overheated system, he unbuttoned his shirt and let it lay over top of his body. It was a matter of stumbling through the streets, hoping to find his way through the smoky haze and debris strewn streets. It looked like a battle zone. An absolute battle zone.
Sam heard a scream and darted for the source. He ran down the alley and found a woman at the end of it. “Ma’am, are you okay?”
“Yes, sir, I’m fine,” the woman said. The young woman fought to control her shaking hands as she looked at Sam with an almost sheepish expression. “I’m sorry for the scream. I saw a rat. I’m terrified of rats. I’m terrified of everything nowadays.”
Sam looked around at the Hell on Earth. “I can understand why. But you probably shouldn’t be out here alone. Why don’t you follow me. At least we can keep each other company out here until we can find a safe place.” The woman reluctantly nodded, and as Sam turned and started to leave the alley, the woman called out to him. “Sir?”
“Yes?” Sam said, turning. He was thrown back telekinetically, slamming fiercely against the brick wall of the building beside him. He looked up in shock just as he saw the woman’s eyes change from their soft brown to demonic black.
Great, Sam thought.
Should have seen that one coming.The demon walked over to Sam and laid the woman’s hand on his cheek. It was so ice cold; the host body was long since dead. “Children shouldn’t play with dead things, kid,” she said, grinning maliciously. She punched Sam hard across the face, his head jostling only slightly despite the pain, as his body was pinned to the wall. “You know, I used to love this world,” the demon continued. “So many humans around to kill just for the fun of it. That’s not so much the case anymore. I’m gonna enjoy slowly peeling the flesh from your bones.”
She punched Sam again and again. His lip bled a little bit and so did his nose. His vision was blurring with the barrage of punches being thrown at him. Just before another hit connected, the demon’s wrist was grabbed and held back. “What’s up, bitch?” Sam heard a man say.
The woman’s head turned. A man, early forties, held onto the woman’s hand. He had a bit of a goatee and a pair of black sunglasses on. He wore a brown leather coat, blue jeans, and a rather cocky smirk. “It’s not nice to kick a man when he’s down, Marie.”
“I wasn’t kicking him. I was punching him. And if you’ll let go of me Josh, I’d like to get back to it.”
“Sorry, can’t let you do that.”
“How come? I thought we were friends.”
The man whom the demon called Josh shivered. “Don’t remind me. I’ve still got that demon’s stench all over me.”
The woman let go of Sam’s collar and stood up. She stared Josh down. “Where’s Mikhail?”
“Dead or in Hell, I don’t really care. All I know is that you’re gonna join him.”
Marie threw a punch at Josh, but he easily blocked it. “You fight well for a blind man, Josh.”
“Years of practice,” he snarled, Marie back against Sam. He pulled out a knife and jammed the blade into Marie’s chest. The body convulsed and then sparked as the demon within passed on. As her body slid to the ground, the demon’s hold on Sam dissipated, Sam collapsing to the concrete. Josh put his foot under the woman’s body and turned her over, off of Sam. He put his hand out for Sam to take. “Josh Dunn, General for the Australian Oblivion Chapter,” he said, introducing himself.
Sam took the outstretched hand and Josh helped him up. “The Oblivion Chapter? Not that I’m not grateful, but what the hell is that?”
"What the hell have you been smoking, kid? Come on… let's get you off the damned streets and explain later before the demons running loose out here beat your ass again.”
“Demons rule now?”
“Now? They have for months. Where have you been?”
“1822,” Sam confessed.
“1822,” Josh laughed. Then his tone changed. “I’m being serious here. We’re at war. There’s no time for jokes.”
“I’m not joking.”
“Hey, Josh!” A woman’s voice called. “Where’d ya go?”
“I’m over here, Maddie!” A woman rounded the corner to the alleyway. She was roughly the same age as Josh, though a little bit taller. “There you are. Who’s this?”
“That’s a really good question. I found him getting his ass kicked by Marie. What’s your name, man?”
“Winchester. Sam Winchester.” Josh and Maddie both stopped short and gapped, eyes wide in shock.
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Opening Credits:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_AqUE4ywfQTheme Song: “Bring Me to Life,” Evanescence
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Chapter One:
“Look, neither of you have explained to me how you know who in the hell I am.” Sam hadn’t wanted to follow two complete strangers. He had wanted to find Travis and Ruby and get the hell out of here. There were many things that he couldn’t argue at this point. Firstly, Travis had hung up on him as if he hadn’t believed it was really him. Then after that demon attacked, these two showed up, Josh polishing her off like a professional, like a hunter. Then they seemed to know him. It kind of made sense; hunters knew other hunters. But at the same time it made no sense at all.
Sam moved down the back alleyways of a city that at the moment he couldn’t even recognize from the destruction and desecration it had suffered, following behind the pair. Maddie was leading the way with Josh following behind, tracing her footsteps. Sam remembered the demon that attacked saying that Josh was blind; he was apparently following by the sound of her footsteps.
“We know all about you, Sammy boy,” Josh said.
“Don’t call me that,” Sam warned, his voice low and not bothering to hide the threat in it.
Josh chuckled. “Oh that’s right. I’m not Dean, now am I?” Sam grabbed the man’s arm, pulling him to a stop. Maddie stopped and turned to face the men.
“How do you know about my brother?” Sam snapped angrily.
“Sam and Dean Winchester,” Josh said. “The children of Mary and John Winchester. Your brother died back in 2008, right?”
“Helicopter explosion,” Sam countered quickly, “in Monument, Colorado.” Maddie grinned, stepping closer to Sam.
“We’re not civilians, Winchester. So don’t feed us crap. Your brother was ripped apart by Hellhounds because he saved your ass.” Sam couldn’t have been more shocked if this woman walked up to him and slapped him. He took a step back, ready to reach for his gun when Maddie laughed. “Firstly, we’re just as fast as you on the draw, Winchester. Secondly, we’re on the same side, so we wouldn’t kill you. But that doesn’t mean we wouldn’t blow out a kneecap. Of course, that would make the boss decently pissed. So be good and keep the piece where it is.”
“Then fill me in,” Sam demanded. “Who’s your boss?”
“If you’d stop talking, we could get you out of the streets and show you,” Josh said.
“Come on, Maddie, keep moving.”
The woman led the way, Josh taking off behind her. They didn’t have to look back to know that Sam would be following them. But as Sam walked behind them, he wondered why they weren’t afraid that he might run, or might shoot them in the back? Either they really were on the same side, or were insane. But the only way that he could find out, and find a way to get to Travis and Ruby, was to follow them. So he kept moving behind the pair, winding down the back alleys, sidestepping charred debris and long dead corpses.
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Seemed like an ordinary building. Sam could only assume that it had once been a night club or run down bar at some time. But from the years of decay and the apparent wars in the streets that had been suffered in this city, the outward structure had been ruined, giving way to board-up windows, graffiti, and the stench of age. Josh pushed open the back door of the building, Maddie looking around curiously before they all made their way inside. The room was surrounded in darkness as the door was shut, but that was quickly solved as Maddie switched on a halogen light. All around the room, Sam was amazed to see the amount of religious symbols painted on the walls that were from almost every culture that he could ever remember. Including a Solomon’s Pentacle just at the floor of the door.
“Over here,” Maddie called out, causing Sam to look up. He saw the pair moving behind what looked to be an old bar area, towards a back room. He followed, moving into what was once a kitchen, now tarnished and covered with years of dust. In the back was a small service elevator to a lower level. Josh seemed to be able to move around the area so well, as if he knew it by heart. He swerved around objects and kitchen appliances towards the service elevator, holding out his hand to a small black plate on the wall. It hummed and crackled suddenly, lighting up with a blue glow as his hand touched it. A second later the doors of the elevator opened for them. The pair moved inside, but although Sam was hesitant, he realized that he had come too far to go back now. He had to find Travis and Ruby, and these guys seemed to be his only link to figuring out his situation and finding his friends. So he got on board the elevator, albeit reluctantly.
The ride down took very little time, though it made for a bumpy, rickety trip in the rustic device. As it finally came to a stop and the doors opened, Sam felt his jaw drop open in shock. Maddie and Josh stepped out into the open expanse of an area that was four to five times the size of what the basement for a building of the bar’s size should be. The entire place was scrubbed clean and sterile, the walls lined with machines of every kind. Various computer stations, radar systems and trackers lined the walls. Printers, scanners, even military regulation sonar/radar devices. Several large tables sat in the middle of the room, their oak finish gleaming in the bright light of the room. And directly in front of him was a screen that spanned from the ceiling to almost the floor with a man sitting in a chair directly underneath it, typing away at a keyboard. While he worked, music blared from a stereo nearby, echoing loudly off of the iron walls:
Radio waves fighting for space,
Elbows pushing your face against the grate.
Tyres treading thin on unstable roads,
Broken speed camera
Look what they’ve done…“Adrian!” Josh called. “Turn that crap down and get off that thing for one minute, will you? We have company, and you’ll crap your British pants when you find out who.” The man at the computer reached over and pressed a button, turning off the radio. He went back to the console, typing away to turn the machine off.
“I know you’re blind, Josh, but I didn’t know that you were deaf. You wouldn’t know good music if it bit you in the ass.” Josh chuckled, shaking his head.
“Bite me, limey.”
“Oh, not now, love. I have a headache.” A few more clicks of the keyboard, and the man that spoke pushed the chair back, standing. He turned to face the group, and Sam took in the face of yet another stranger. The man was roughly about a foot shorter than Sam, but shared many similarities. The same color hair, just as shaggy and sleep tousled, and the same hazel eyes. A rough five o’clock shadow graced the man’s face, a glare sparking from him that showed that he was not one that you wanted to piss off. He sized Sam up, shrugging at Josh and Maddie. “I give up,” he said. “Doesn’t look like anybody important to me. But considering he’s a human that’s made it this far in a world full of supernatural freaks, the tall bloke gets some brownie points.”
“Sam Winchester,” Maddie said, gesturing to the man, “Meet Adrian. He’s the General of the European branch of the Oblivion chapter.” Maddie’s words were escaping her just as Adrian was turning back to the massive super-computer. But he stopped mid-stride, turning slowly to look at Sam again.
“What did you say?” Adrian moved to stand in front of Sam, his eyes not leaving him. Sam was getting irritated by it; he wasn’t a piece of art or something.
“You want to stop staring at me like I’m on display or something?” he said to Adrian, to which the man managed a smirk.
“Nice. I like that.” He looked at Maddie and Josh. “So, the boss wasn’t crazy. Man, he stormed out of here right hacked off over that earlier. He won’t believe this.”
“You guys keep talking about this boss of yours,” Sam said. “But who in the hell…”
“My God. It really is you.” Sam turned to the sound of a familiar voice. From a far doorway, he saw a slightly older, much more battle-worn Travis Sheridan.
And he was missing one arm.
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Chapter 2:
Travis stood in shocked silence, staring at the man before him. Sam had vanished four years ago and since that time, Travis and Ruby had looked everywhere for him, trying to find some clue as to what had happened to him. After the first couple of years they had to assume Sam was dead, which had hurt more than he had liked to think about. But there Sam was, standing in front of him, looking the same as the last day that Travis had saw him
Travis moved closer, slowly, almost afraid that Sam would disappear again if he approached too quickly. It took a moment for him to decide that he wasn’t seeing things, finally rushing Sam with a laugh and a smile. He wrapped his arm around the man in a tight hug which Sam returned as Travis patted his back. “Good God,” Travis said, pulling away. “I thought you were dead. You were… God, it’s been four years! Where in the hell have you been?”
“It’s a long story,” Sam said. He looked around the room, in. “But something tells me that I better start explaining. And that you should too.”
“Then let’s go somewhere and talk,” Travis said. “We’ll trade stories. Adrian, keep things running. MJ and Axel should be making their way back from patrol soon.” Adrian nodded, moving back to the chair he had been at previously. “And you two,” Travis said, pointing to Josh and Maddie. “Give Adrian your patrol report.”
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Without waiting for a response, Travis turned, motioning towards the door that he had just entered from. Sam stood for a moment, his eyebrows raised. Travis had such a take charge attitude with these people, barking out orders and people following in line to do as he said. He was even motioning for Sam to follow and then simply walking off as if he expected nothing less. Travis was a leader now, not just a member of the trio that rode around in an old muscle car, hunting evil where they could find it. Sam’s smile spread across his tired face as he felt pride swell inside him over the realization. By whatever hardships, Travis had grown.
Sam followed Travis through the door and down a tight corridor that led to a very large war room. The room was covered wall-to-wall with various computers and technological equipment, a round table sitting in the center. Travis shut the door behind them as Sam looked around slack-jawed. “My God, Travis,” he said. “What in the hell have I missed?”
“A lot,” Travis said, sitting down. “But you go first. The last time Ruby and I saw you, we were just outside of Iowa. It was right after Halloween. You said you had to get something from the car and you never came back. The Impala was there, but Ruby and I never found you.”
“Speaking of which,” Sam interjected, “where is she?”
Travis’ face dropped, looking down at the table as silence fell. “She’s dead, Sam. Lilith got hold of her. She could have done it a million different ways but…” Travis paused, looking up at Sam as the words choked in his throat, “she killed Ruby with her own knife. We managed to recover it. Josh normally packs it now.”
The words hit Sam like a truck and he really hadn’t realized until that moment just how much he had come to look at Ruby and Travis as friends. Hearing something like this made him feel as if a piece of his soul had died, just as it did when Dean died.
“So what happened, Sam?” Travis words snapped Sam back to reality, making him look back up at his friend, forcing focus. “Where did you go that day?”
Sam sighed, realizing that he was going to have to tell him sooner or later. “I took the Vicis Oculus down to the hotel laundry room. I used it to find out about Carson, to get more information on him. It took me straight to the early 1820s where he was a sheriff. But instead of sending me back to 2008 when I was done, it sent me here.”
Travis sat in dead silence for a moment, just staring at Sam. And it was the kind of look that Sam couldn’t read; he wasn’t sure if he was about to get punched, or if Travis was simply taking everything in. This new side of Travis was unnerving. It made him proud on one side of the coin to see such strength from an already strong man, but on the other side, it made Sam feel guilty and afraid. None of what had happened to either Travis or Ruby would have happened if he hadn’t gone to Carson’s past.
“Okay,” Travis said. “Guess that explains a lot.” Travis stood, moving over to a computer behind him. Pressing a button on the console, he spoke aloud. “Adrian, have the others checked in yet?”
“They just got in,” Adrian replied over a speaker.
“Good. Everyone get in here. We have a lot to catch Sam up on.”
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The room Sam and Travis had been talking in was now full of the men and women that for the past four years, Travis had been leading. Or at least the individual Generals. According to Travis, the men and women in this room were in charge of different factions of hunters all over the world under the Oblivion Chapter. All of them he had met so far except for the two newest editions.
MJ Takahashi was sitting to the right of Adrian at the large table. She was rather short, but her long dark hair and dark eyes couldn’t help but get your attention. Sam had to admit that the woman was very attractive. She bore the same kind of stern, battle hardened glare that Adrian did. But she could manage quite the disarming smile as well.
Axel, however, didn’t seem to be the smiling type. He was tall, dark, and made of the kind of fierce strength that even Sam didn’t want to try and push against. Yet when he spoke, his voice was soft and pleasant, almost fatherly. It was confusing, but not something Sam was going to argue with. He didn’t have time to anyway. It was time to get down to business.
“You remember your lore on the year 2012, Sam?” Travis asked.
“Short version,” Sam said, “is that it varies. Some prophecies tied in with the lore link the year to the end of the world. Others link it to the awakening of supernatural powers… the time when everyone with abilities will come into focus and all paranormal creatures will lay claim to their place in the world.”
Maddie nodded from her seat beside Sam. “Winchester really was a nerdy boy. This is good.” She looked at Sam, her face darkening. “Well Sam, what would you say if we told you that it was both?”
Sam looked around at the group in confusion. “I’d say start filling me in.”
Travis nodded at Adrian, who responded in kind before standing up. Turning on the large super-computer similar to the one in the main room, Adrian began typing away as maps, virtual documents, and video clips of all sorts appeared. “The Mayan Baktun Twelve,” Adrian said, pointing to the display. “It begins on December twenty-first of this year. No records of any previous Baktuns have been found before Seven. But they predicted at the hour and minute of Eleven-Eleven on that date, this would happen.” Adrian flipped the screen over, a new map coming up.
“Egypt,” he continued. “Their 2012 date is listed as December Twenty-Third. The Hopi Native Americans? They predicted the Twelfth of December as well. It’s even a conspiracy tie-in to the Bible. Revelations mentions the 12 original tribes with 144,000 people that will be taken in the Rapture at the end of the world. That’s the same number that appears in the Baktun. Revelations mentions at the end of days, the 144,000 are sealed. Coincidentally, at the end of a Baktun, those 144,000 days are sealed. Yet, Baktun 12 ends in 2012.
“So many bloody cultures tie in the changes in the world with this year, that it’s insane to even try and keep count. But the Mayans so far, have shown to pinpoint our problem. They have a theory that they called the 1.16 String Theory.” Adrian pulled up a 3D rendering on the computer screen of the Earth spinning, pointing to it. “Our world and time rotates in a single dimensional environment. This theory states that when the world begins to go into a three-dimensional rotation, that many events will begin to happen that will forever change mankind. These events can be from hurricanes to tornadoes, earthquakes to tsunamis. And then there’s the paranormal aspect that’s been the biggest pain in our asses.”
“And Lilith took advantage of it in the past couple of years,” MJ said. “She’s been building up her army, found ways to get more out that weren’t already loose. And they have made our lives a living hell ever since.”
“Every demon that ran with the prick that took down your parents runs with her now,” Travis told Sam, “either by fear or by choice. She got her wish; she’s large and in charge. There isn’t much time left before the entire Earth is wiped out. Sam, Hell is on the rise and if these prophecies come true, we are a mere 48 hours away from the end of the world.”
Travis’ face was stoned as he looked at his old friend. “But now, we have better news than we’ve had in a long time, man. We have the one thing that can trump her race.”
Sam sighed, looking down at the table. Ever since the night Dean died, he had known all too well what was going to come of his life when it came to Lilith. She was afraid to have him alive, and he was able to take her down. It was a fight that was destined to happen.
“Me,” Sam replied and Travis nodded.
A sudden thought hit Sam that he couldn’t ignore and he had to voice it. “If the Vicis Oculus hadn’t shot me forward into this year, I could have been there to stop this. Ruby would still be alive… Travis, the three of us could have taken her down and avoided all of this.”
Travis gave Sam a look of understanding and pity, but said nothing. He obviously held some guilt himself that he wasn’t voicing. That was the thing about the type of lives they led. Even after they got rid of literal demons, hunters had plenty of emotional ones they had to try and sleep with. It was never easy.
Before another word could be said, the computer behind Adrian began to beep and whir. Everyone turned to see the monitor lighting up in the form of a massive city grid as Adrian sat down at the chair in front of it, typing fiercely on the keyboard. “She’s here,” he said to the group. “She’s inside of the city, about ten miles away.”
“Who’s here? Lilith?” Sam asked, to which Travis nodded. “How in the hell…”
“Long story, Sam,” Axel said. “With the world overrun by demons, it’s hard to find their whereabouts by weather reports and crop turnouts. We had to find new ways to work through it all and luckily we did.”
“How?” Sam asked, looking to Travis.
“I don’t carry that pendant around on my neck anymore, Sam.” It took a moment, but it sunk in. The demon who killed Travis’ family, the one Travis he kept with him at all times to remind him of what it was he fought for. He had given it over for analysis so that they could be able to use it in the radar systems of this high tech base the Oblivion Chapter had built. The demon was a guinea pig for tracking other demons.
“That’s brilliant,” Sam replied.
Travis smiled and then continued. “It’s go time, everyone,” he said, addressing the other Generals. “Adrian, track down how many are moving with her and where they are heading. We’re heading after her.”
“I’m with you,” Sam said, standing up.
Travis nodded in agreement before looking to the rest of the group again. “Sam has been at this game since before he could walk. You all know his story. No one needs to stand in front of him; he can handle himself. He might not be a General, but he is your equal out on that battlefield, end of story.”
Sam smiled in thanks, to which Travis winked. Travis had come quickly to understand in their time together that Sam had fought hard to carve his own ability and place for himself. He respected and loved his brother-in-arms.
“We leave in five minutes,” Travis said. “Everyone saddle up.”
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Chapter 3:
Adrian had gotten the numbers from the computer while the others had geared up. It was reassuring to know that while the world around him had changed in these few years as well as the technology, the weapons to fight the overrunning demonic army were still what Sam was used to. It made Sam feel more at ease, but not by much. There were still many things that he didn’t know how to handle, how to figure out. Was he ever going to get back to his time? Considering that he was about to have the final confrontation with Lilith, did he even want to if this could be able to end it all?
This was it. This was the fight that Sam Winchester had been preparing for since the day that Lilith had first shown her ugly little demonic head. It was all he had thought about, dreamed about at night, for months. The obsession of it had almost cost him the lives of his friends, and in the end, Ruby still paid that price at Lilith’s hands. And now, he had the chance to end it.
As everyone moved back into the War Room, loaded up and ready to go up the elevator, Sam took a deep breath to steady him. It was time to get it done.
“She had the entire block covered,” Adrian said. “Buildings all around sectors seven and eight are covered with at least two on every other floor.”
“So we have a mini army on our hands,” Josh said. “That’s reassuring.” The group got into the elevator, continuing their conversation as they moved up.
“Are all the OC units in the streets already?” Travis asked, to which Adrian nodded.
“I have all our units within reach converging in the area. We’re covered. Or at least we can hope. Otherwise we’re gonna have our balls handed to us.”
“Speak for yourself, Addie,” Maddie said, to which Adrian grinned.
The elevator reached the main floor, and when the doors were opened the group moved out and onto the street. Looking around, Sam gripped the shotgun gently, still amazed at the changes in the world. It was unreal to even think about, but he was standing in the middle of it. There had to be a way to stop this. When this fight was over, he had to get back to his own time. The Vicis Oculus had to let him go back.
Travis led the way down the street towards the district that Lilith had been sighted in.
It gave Sam even more insight into the way that things were now.
In an instant, his mind flashed to the ending of the first Resident Evil movie… the heroine standing with a shotgun in the middle of a ransacked street, the city around her destroyed and desolate. Sam was walking through the same thing at that moment. Debris littered the road that they walked down, broken down cars that had been gutted long ago for parts lined the sides of the road, the occasional skid mark of blood left by an attack by one or both of the war’s sides, and the year was almost up. Lilith would have this day in December that would mean the definitive win for everything demonic, everything that he fought against. Everything the Oblivion Chapter now fought against.
Like hell she will, Sam thought to himself, gripping his weapon as the group marched on.
“Axel,” Travis said. “Check that our crew has the area secured and is ready.”
Axel reached up, pressing the button down on an earpiece he wore. “Sectors two through four, do you have the area locked down?” From Sam’s earpiece he could hear the response given to Axel.
“Area secure, sir. Devil’s Traps covering each street exit surrounding the perimeter and the terra cottas are in place in every building.”“Terra Cottas?” Sam asked, looking at Travis.
“Babylonian Devil’s Traps,” Travis said. “A fun new variation on the Solomon Pentacle that we dug up in research. They have the same effect as the pentacle, but you can hide them a hell of a lot better than a big painted symbol.”
Sam smirked, nodding in agreement. Sounded like a pretty wild find, he had to admit. And it would come in handy. Whether he returned to his own time, or if he even managed to survive this fight, that was something to remember.
The group made their way through the streets, reaching the area that was marked off by the symbols that were freshly painted. The group stepped over them carefully so as not to smudge the paint, Sam looked around the empty buildings and wondered whether friendly soldiers or demons would be lurking in any of the windows.
It was the strangest feeling to Sam, standing in the street in the midday sun. This wasn’t a hunt. This was an offensive. The world had been ravaged by all manner of disasters as the end of days had approached, and the supernatural creatures that Sam and all other hunters had fought against their entire lives had taken control, and were now the dominating link in the food chain. They ran the streets now. What Sam had reminded his brother of years ago was now true more than ever:
‘We’re at war…’Reaching into his pocket, Sam gripped the Vicis Oculus one more time. Ever since he had arrived here, he had tried to make it work again. But there was no warmth, no surge of energy. It was as dead in his hands as any rock from the ground. He could only hope that the Oblivion Chapter could figure it out. If he couldn’t help them stop Lilith here, then his only chance was to go back to 2008 and stop her there.
“So when do we start the party?” Adrian asked, looking around curiously, warily.
“We can start now.”
Everyone turned to the sound of the voice behind them. Sam didn’t recognize this face, and by the malicious grin on his face, he wasn’t on their side. He stood extremely tall, broad shouldered, with a stubbing five o-clock shadow on his strong jaw line. Dark and piercing eyes glared at them all, his short dark hair kept neat. He was expertly dressed for a manner of excellence in slacks, a thick-knit white turtleneck, and loafers. To any other person, this man would appear to be a passerby, another soul in the pool of humanity, but Sam knew better. In this place, in this time, with the world crumbling around them, Sam knew the man was not as he appeared. His fears were confirmed when the man’s eyes flashed white. He was worse than a demon… he was Lilith’s equal.
“Oh, I smell the blood and the soul in you from all the way outside of this lovely trap your lackeys have set up,” the man said, eyeing Sam. He stood just outside of the area that the traps had been set up in, just where they had all passed moments before. “Sam Winchester. We thought you were dead. Well… at least we hoped, considering your long absence.”
“That’s a hope that I’m familiar with,” Sam replied. “But I don’t think I’m familiar with you.”
The demon laughed even as Sam tightened the grip on his shotgun. “My apologies. Lucien is the name, young man. Forgive me if I don’t address you as “My Lord,” Mr. Winchester. But the Boy King was replaced before he even got started.”
Turning his head, Lucien smiled. “And here’s your replacement now.” A young woman that could barely be eighteen to twenty approached Lucien, wrapping an arm around his waist. Long blonde hair fell across her shoulders, a gorgeous smile on ivory skin. She smiled up at the demon, kissing him on the cheek gently before she turned to look at Sam. Her eyes flashed an all-too-menacing murky white.
“Hello, Sam,” she said gleefully. “Remember me? I found a pretty grown up girl to play with. I’m a big girl now.” She glared maliciously at Sam, grinning as she held out a hand. “And now the big girl is gonna play with her new play toys.”
“Fan out!” Sam screamed even as he felt the gun jerk from his hands. He saw the men and women of the Chapter being tossed left and right as Lucien and Lilith moved in, completely ignoring the markings on the ground. They were willing to get trapped inside if it meant slaughtering them all.
Screams echoed from the streets as black eyed humans charged in, following Lilith and Lucien into the trap recklessly, attacking the gathered soldiers. They were being bottlenecked, backed into the rear end of the street in the advance. Guns were going off left and right.
Sam shoved through the crowd, fighting to make his way to Lucien and Lilith. He was the only one that could fight against her, the only one that could withstand what she could throw out. Obviously she remembered that all too well, because she looked up at him as he advanced through the crowd of hunters, grinning before she tossed one of them into him.
The man went flying into his chest, sending Sam to the ground with a grunt. He was quick to realize that the hunter that landed on him was already dead, the heavy weight of the body bearing down on him. Sadness and pity for the man welling up, Sam shoved the hunter from his chest, pushing himself to his feet. He was met with Lucien directly in his face, and before he could move out of the demon’s way, a knife was driven towards him.
Sam moved swiftly in time to avoid it going into his chest, but it still drove straight into his shoulder. He cried out in pain, stumbling back as the knife went straight up to the hilt into his body.
Damn it! he thought angrily.
How many times in my life am I gonna wind up with a knife in me?He crumpled to the ground, dizzy from the pain, Lucien hovering over him. Grinning maliciously, the demon kneeled down, yanking the knife from Sam’s shoulder, eliciting a sharp cry from Sam as he jerked involuntarily from the pain.
“See you in Hell, Winchester.” Lucien prepared to drive the blade again, but Sam was unable to see where it was coming. His eyes were dulling in their focus.
“Oh… no, you… don’t…” Sam pushed himself to sit up, only to have Lucien’s foot in his face. Sam’s already dizzied frame was thrown back to the ground. Trying to shake off the stun as well as force himself to stay conscious from the injuries he’d already sustained, Sam pulled himself along, seeing Axel and MJ fighting to cut off Lilith and Lucien’s escape.
All the willpower in the world wasn’t keeping Sam upright, however, and he felt his
shaky legs buckle under the loss of blood and the dizziness buzzing in his brain. The street around him swirled even as the noise of the fight buzzed in his ears.
He watched Lilith and Lucien turn on Axel and MJ, but they didn’t raise their hands. Through his blurred vision Sam swore that he saw a flash of color in their eyes. Not black nor white, but radiant, bright. They continued to stare at the pair, even as he heard Axel and MJ start to scream in agony before hitting their knees.
God, what were those bastards doing to them? Sam forced his unsteady feet forward, intent on taking them down. But he was stopped short by Adrian, who grabbed him by the arm.
“Sam? Sam, come on we…” He paused, looking at Sam’s blood soaked shoulder. “Aw, bloody hell…”
“MJ,” Sam said. “Axel.”
“We’re too late,” Adrian said. “Come on, you’re gonna die if we don’t move.”
Sam turned his head as Adrian pulled him along, watching as Axel and MJ fell to the ground at Lilith’s feet. Rage boiled through him as he tried to free himself from Adrian’s grip. He had to get back there. He had to try and save them! “Let me go! NOBODY’S DYING TODAY!”
“They’re already dead!” Adrian shouted, pulling Sam forcefully. “We’ve lost too damn many and we can’t afford to lose you!”
Maddie was on them in an instant, helping to pull Sam by force off of the battlefield. He watched with anger as Lilith and Lucien walked away, his weakened vision even more hazy with rage now. Almost as if they knew to follow their leader, the demons began to retreat as well, realizing all too late that unlike the extremely powerful creatures that had just came and left the fight, they were still confined to the traps that held them.
“Think he’ll survive?” Maddie asked Adrian.
“He’s tough enough,” Adrian said. “He’ll make it. We just have to be quick enough to get him back.”
Sam looked over at Adrian in confusion. For a moment he thought that they were talking about him. But realization began to sink in and Sam’s heart jumped. He was right there; they couldn’t have been talking about him. There was only one other person that wasn’t there.
“Travis.” The name escaped Sam’s lips without him even noticing it. Adrian nodded grimly and Maddie was on the verge of tears. With the emotional strain and the physical pain becoming far too much, Sam fell to his knees. “NO!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter 4:
“Damn it, get us online now!”
The entire group was running around the Oblivion Chapter’s headquarters in the underground compound, fighting like mad to get the details they needed and wanted. Those who survived were going on pure adrenaline despite their battered and bloodied appearance. Sam himself was still clutching his shoulder, conceding to having it bandaged only after a long and exhausting argument with Maddie over the lack of blood he had already sustained. His face was gashed and caked in blood, an eye already swelling, and several of the other men and women running around in the underground OC headquarters were in the same shape. But all were on a mission fueled by anger over what had transpired.
Several men had been killed, including two of the Generals. Plus, Travis was taken. And whatever Lilith and this new demon Lucien had done to the others…
So much was swimming through Sam’s head that pain was the last thing he was focusing on.
“You have the run of Travis’ computer system.” Adrian’s voice came from behind Sam, causing him to turn around. Sam had been sitting at the War Room’s conference table with some of the other soldiers, going through all of the books they had while Adrian continued to boom out orders to everyone else. The group at the conference table had been researching all of the maps, trying to do what they could. Adrian’s words, however, shocked him. “The password is Curious George,” the General continued. “It was his son’s favorite book.”
“You’re his Second,” Sam said, confused. “I don’t understand why…”
“You should know damn well why by now, Winchester.” The words came out in a ragged and low growl as Adrian leaned in close to glare at Sam. “You’re his most trusted friend. He believes in you. We know your story, Sam, what you were supposed to be.” Adrian looked around at the room full of the battered yet not broken, causing Sam to look as well. As they looked around the room full of dedicated hunters, Adrian turned to face Sam again, eyeing him with purpose. “You can’t stand the thought of leading those bastard demons, so lead the good guys.”
Sam turned, looking at Travis’ very large computer system. Everything that Adrian was running from came from Travis’ main system, and more. He was in charge. And it was the last thing that Sam had ever wanted, even on the right side of things. He was too afraid that even the smallest taste of power or leadership would set him on the path that he would rather die than be a part of, would make him want to be in control. Would make him want to have more power. Or worse, want to be like Lilith. But God only knew what Travis was going through out there, or if he was still alive.
They had to find him, had to stop Lilith. Time was running out.
“We have a group that’s working on something to get you back to your time,” Adrian said. “They won’t stop until they find a solution. But until then, we need you.” Looking at Adrian, Sam nodded firmly. It was now or never and time to see what he was capable of in this war.
He took in a deep breath, let it out slowly, and then moved toward the computer chair. Typing in the password, Sam booted up Travis’ system, turning in the chair to shout at everyone in the room. “I want reports now! Every location, every sector, every country! With OC Generals down, the demons in other areas will be rising up and getting ready for D-Day.”
“Kenya is already massing,” Maddie said from her station. “They’ve heard about Axel. Canada is pushing borders…Christ, Sam…”
“Hong Kong is flooding over with the bastards,” Josh reported, his special radio headset that was attached to his system relaying the visual info by audio. “The hole that opened up by the supernatural amassing during the start of the year has opened wider with the end of the year closing in. They’ve obviously heard about MJ’s loss too, and they’re loving every minute.”
“Birmingham is gone,” Adrian said. “They took Dublin, Paris…Oh God….they destroyed Reading. There’s nothing left of it.”
Sam kept typing away on the computer, pulling up various files, including the city grid map. As it spanned the wall length monitor, he shouted over his shoulder. “Adrian, turn the European tracking over to someone else. I need you helping me on locking down Lucien or Lilith’s signals.”
“Yes, sir,” Adrian said. “But there’s also something else that might help us find Travis. I’m going to pull that up to.”
“Care to enlighten me, General?” Sam asked, not taking his attention away from the computer or fingers as they flew over the keyboard.
“Let me pull up the signal and I’ll show you instead of tell you, boss.” Adrian pecked away at the keyboard for a few more moments, pulling up what appeared to be a type of signal tracking grid. But the longer he typed the more frustrated he seemed to get, until the man suddenly banged his fist on the console, growling. “Dammit!”
“What’s wrong?” Sam asked. Adrian swiveled the chair around to look at Sam. He sighed, running a hand through his tousled hair in frustration. “Sheridan’s tracker,” Adrian said, shaking his head. “It’s not working. The bloody thing isn’t working!”
“Wait a second,” Sam said, holding up a hand. Now he was confused. Why hadn’t this been mentioned before? “What tracker? Are we talking cell phone GPS?” Adrian gave a droll look to Sam.
“I already believed that you were from the past, but now I don’t have a choice but to believe it. Things have changed from your time, mate. We’ve got a hell of a lot stronger tricks than GPS navigation to keep tabs on people. That’s the signal trick that I was mentioning.” Adrian turned back to the computer, typing away. Sam moved to stand beside the man, watching the wide screen viewer in front of them as Adrian pulled up several windows showing other Oblivion Chapter members.
“See the necklaces?” Adrian pointed to the screens, and Sam noticed something that he felt foolish in not seeing before. Each one was wearing a silver cross on a chain. Looking down at Adrian, he saw the General was wearing one as well. Adrian pointed to his own. “These babies are fitted with radio transmitting devices set to our own personal biorhythms. Only two possible ways for the trackers to stop registering our location. One is if we take them off, which we only are to do when showering. And I don’t think that I have to tell you the other one, Winchester.”
Sam turned, closing his eyes as a sick feeling went through him at the thought. No. No, he refused to even think that. Travis couldn’t be dead. He wouldn’t think that way. He wouldn’t even consider it. They wouldn’t be too late to save him. This might not be his reality, might not be his time frame, but it was still Travis. Right or wrong, it was still his friend. And he wouldn’t give up on him. Not now and not ever.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Music. The faint sound of it pierced the veil of Travis’ groggy unconsciousness. It was as hazy and blurry as his vision at first. But slowly it began to come clearer as he batted his eyes open.
Here I stand
Helpless and left for deadIt took Travis a moment for him to realize that he was lying down. He was still so out of it that quite honestly he didn’t understand how he was lying down, where he was, or how he had gotten there. His shirt was off. So was his necklace. Damn not the necklace! He needed that cross on!
God, why is everything such a haze, Travis thought as he tried to will away the haze in his mind.
I won’t stay long
In this world so wrongHis eyes slowly began to clear, his vision more crisp again. As his head and eyes cleared, Travis saw a figure approaching from the far side of the darkened, dank room. Carrying something in his hands, he chuckled as he sang along with the music playing.
“Say goodbye, as we dance with the Devil tonight…” The voice was almost gleeful as it sang the lyrics, sadistic in its enjoyment. “Don’t you dare look at him in the eye…”
Travis remembered now. The fight in the streets. Axel and MJ… so many of his soldiers. The others had escaped. But Lilith had taken him. Lilith and Lucien. It was Lucien that was approaching him now.
Instinctively Travis jerked in anger, but found himself chained to a stone slab with Lucien circling him predatorily, hunger in his eyes as he wielded a freshly sharpened ax.
"Where is Sam Winchester?" Lucien asked, getting straight to the point. “Where would your men have taken him?”
"I don't know," Travis answered groggily.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Lucien cooed, "Wrong answer, hunter." Lucien slammed the ax down on Travis' left and only arm. He screamed in pain as his other arm was severed from his body in blinding white hot flash of pain, of crunching bone. "There,” Lucien said, smiling. “Now you're symmetrical."
"Bastard!"
"Awww,” Lucien cooed. “Now you've gone and hurt my feelings.” He leaned in, his playful look vanishing to sheer anger. “I'll give you another chance. Where is Sam Winchester? I saw him out there in the streets, Sheridan. I’m the one that gave his shoulder a souvenir. But, I know he’s still alive, and I know the Oblivion Chapter is hiding him."
Travis had to fight to stay conscious, had to suck in breath after breath to steady his need to howl in pain again. "I told you,” he managed with a groan. “I don't know."
Lucien laughed, seemingly amused by Travis. "Listen, hunter,” he said, keeping a level tone, “I know you're lying to protect your friend. Believe me, I've done my homework. You used to be the Winchester boy's hunting buddy." Lucien slammed the ax down on one of Travis' legs. The hunter screamed in agony again as the same, now too familiar pain sliced through him from just above his knee. "Now, one more chance or you'll be limbless. Where is Sam Winchester?" Lucien enunciated every syllable of his question.
"Alright!" Travis exclaimed on the verge of tears. "I'll tell you where he is."
"Now that's a good boy." Lucien leaned into Travis, ready and waiting for his answer.
"If you wanna find Sam Winchester..." Lucien leaned in closer as Travis spoke. "Then go to Hell!" He shouted as he spat in the demon’s face.
Lucien stood up straight. He used his shirt to wipe off his glasses and his face that was now contorted in rage. Very calculative and casually, Lucien picked up the ax and removed Travis' final limb. Some pain you could get used to. Some would always be beyond a person’s wildest dreams. And as his final leg fell away, the hunter finally began to cry. "I gave you enough warnings, hunter,” Lucien growled angrily. “This is where it ends. This is where the Oblivion Chapter ends."
"You monster," Travis said after a few moments. He barely managed even that. The pain was searing, sickening. He was barely holding himself awake.
"No, hunter,” Lucien replied. “I'm not a monster. You're the monster; you and your kind. Us demons, we do what we're meant to do, designed to do. Most of us didn't even conform to our primal instincts until you hunters began to hunt us down like dogs."
"That's because that's what you are," Travis replied with malice in his eyes. “Dogs.”
"No, hunter. We are not dogs. We are the purest form of human instinct. That's what all demons are. Pure human instinct." Lucien looked away from Travis and out the mucky window onto the ravaged world below. "We're mere hours away from the Apocalypse. It's survival of the fittest out there and now humans are the ones that will be hunted down and slaughtered. It is time for our revenge!”
Travis watched as Lucien's eyes changed from the normal color of the human that he inhabited to their tell-tale black. But then, they began to glow in a radiant way. Many different neon colors floated through his pupils and Travis' eyes grew wide in shock. As he watched, he suddenly realized that he was no longer in control of what was left of his body; he couldn’t turn his gaze away, nor could he writhe underneath the shackles that held his body down. What was left of his body began to convulse violently. The veins inside of his skull could easily be seen as Travis roared in anguish. He felt as if his soul was literally being yanked from his body, as if it were attached to his skin, and Lucien were peeling it from that skin with a dull knife.
"This is what it’s like, hunter,” Lucien growled, his eyes still glowing. “This is what it feels like whenever you vanquish one of my kind. We are forced to feel the pain of all the souls we've taken! All the lives we've destroyed! And all this pain, the source of it all is people like you!"
Travis could no longer control his shrieks. They were the loudest he had ever screamed. He couldn’t recognize his own voice anymore through the haze of blinding pain, the screams of a thousand souls begging for help through his mind. Then suddenly, it all stopped as Lucien's eyes returned to normal. Travis took a gasping breath as the pain subsided, but stared Lucien down. "Go ahead,” he snapped, his voice full of anger, yet cracking from the pain. “Kill me! Be a man, Lucien, and freaking kill me!”
Lucien shook his head. "No, hunter. Killing is too good for you; death is too fast, too easy. You get to live. But you get to live feeling this agonizing torment." Lucien grinned, moving to the pile of clothes he had tossed aside and pulled the silver cross from it. He tossed it over Travis’ neck, chuckling. “Use that to pray to your God, hunter. You’re going to need it.”
Lucien's eyes started their trick again and Travis went back to his screaming. With his eyes still wild, Travis could hear Lucien say, "This is going to be fun..."
Trembling.
Crawling across my skin.
Feeling your cold, dead eyes
Stealing the life of mine.
Say goodbye
As we dance with the Devil tonight.
Don’t you dare look at him in the eye
As we dance with the Devil tonight
Hold on…
Hold on…~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“We’ve got it sir!”
Sam and Adrian both turned around to see two men running towards them, the shorter of the pair waving a piece of paper in his hand. He outstretched it to Sam who took it, examining it as the taller spoke. “The way to get Mr. Winchester…”
“He’s a member of the OC as much as the rest of us, and as of right now your Commanding Officer for the North American Branch, hunter,” Adrian chided. “You’ll address him properly.”
“Sorry, sir,” the man said. “We’ve found the way to get General Winchester home.” Sam looked up, stunned for the briefest of moments; he wasn’t sure how to react to being addressed in such a manner. In all honesty, it made him uncomfortable, but now wasn’t the time to pick that apart. He simply returned his gaze to the Latin written on the page, reading through it. The English translation was on the flipside of the page, but he didn’t bother. Sam recognized this incantation. He knew where this came from and knew how dangerous this was. Stupidity….
“This is blood magic,” Sam said, looking up in outrage. “You are seriously entertaining the thought of using blood magic to send me back? Are you serious? ”
“But General…” Sam stood up, cutting the shorter man off.
“But nothing. This is dangerous. The repercussions are far worse than the benefits and I’m not going to let any of you risk that.”
“Travis would want that for you, Sam,” Adrian said, standing.
“Travis isn’t here!” Sam snapped the words before he could stop himself, but the second he did, he regretted them. He hung his head, fighting to find the way to take back what he had just said. He couldn’t. But he wouldn’t let anyone be demoralized at the thought of never seeing Sheridan again. They had to find him.
“Just keep working on it, alright?” Sam said, handing the paper back to the soldier in front of him. “In the meantime, we’ll…” Sam was cut off as Adrian’s computer began to beep. The men turned, a smile spreading across Adrian’s face. He ran to his console, sitting down and pecking away at the keys. “What?” Sam asked, moving to his side.
“Alright!” Adrian said happily. “That’s my boy!” He pointed to the blip on the screen. “Travis’ tracker is back online. We have a location.” Sam wasted no time. Turning, he addressed the group in the room.
“Adrian, Maddie, Josh, you’re all with me! Alpha Team, you continue to research as instructed. Echo Team, you continue to monitor oversea demonic activity. Foxtrot, you guys are with us. Sierra and Tango, you two start watching the city. Knowing Lilith, something’s brewing. The Apocalypse, by lore, is going to happen at Midnight tonight. That’s an hour and a half from now.” Sam continued dulling out orders. “Move out!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
