Chapter 19
Dean spun Pestilence’s ring on Bobby’s desk, aimlessly. Him, Sam and Castiel had just returned from getting Pestilence’s ring, but weren't too happy about it. Alex had decided to stay with Bobby and the guys for a while, having nothing else to do.
“Well, it’s nice to score a home run for once, ain’t it?” Bobby said as Dean tossed the ring a few inches away from him onto the desk. “What?” Bobby asked, noticing the three men’s unhappy expressions.
“The last thing Pestilence said. ‘It’s too late’” Sam said simply.
“Did he get specific?”
“No.” Sam shook his head.
“We’re just a little freaked out that he left a bomb somewhere. So please tell us you have actual good news.” Dean explained.
“Chicago’s about to be wiped off the map,” Alex sighed from where she sat on Bobby’s bed/couch.
“Storm of the millennium,” Bobby continued. “Set’s off a daisy chain of natural disasters. Three million people are gonna die.”
“I don’t understand your definition of good news.” Castiel commented from where he stood leaning against a shelf.
“Well, Death, the horseman, he’s gonna be there. And if we can stop him before he kickstarts this storm, get his ring back-” Bobby explained.
“Yeah, you make it sound so easy.” Dean said sarcastically.
“Hell, I’m just trying to put a spin on it.”
“Bobby, how’d you two put this all together anyway?” Sam asked.
“We had...you know...help…” Bobby shrugged a little.
Alex chuckled a bit, “Yeah. Help…”
“Don’t be so modest.” They all turned to see Crowley pouring himself a drink in the kitchen. “I barely helped at all..” He walked towards the library, “Hello boys. Pleasure, etcetera.” He leaned against the door frame.
He smelled the drink he poured, then put it down. “Go ahead, tell them. There’s no shame in it.”
“Bobby? Tell us what?” Sam and Dean turned back to the man in the wheelchair.
“World’s gonna end, seemed stupid to get all precious over one little...soul…” Bobby grumbled.
“You sold your soul?!” Dean asked.
“Oh, more like pawned it. I fully intend to give it back.” Crowley corrected.
“Then give it back!” Dean ordered.
“I will.”
“Now!”
“Did you kiss him?” Sam interrupted.
“Sam!”
“Just wondering…” Everyone turned to Bobby and Alex had to keep herself from laughing.
“No!” Bobby defended himself.
Crowley cleared his throat to get their attention and they turned to see him holding up his phone with a picture of him and Bobby kissing on the screen.
“Why’d you take a picture?” Bobby asked angrily.
“Why’d you have to use tongue?” Crowley retorted, smirking.
“Alright you know what I’m sick of this.” Dean stood up and turned to Crowley. “Give him his soul back, now.”
“I’m sorry, I can’t.”
“Can’t or won’t?”
“I won’t, alright! It’s insurence.”
“What are you talking about?” Dean asked, angry and confused.
“You kill demons. Gigantor over their has a temper issue about it. But you won’t kill me. As long as I have that soul in the deposit box.” Crowley explained roughly.
“You son of a bitch.” Bobby growled.
“I’ll return it. After all this is over and I can safely walk away. Do we all understand each other?!” Crowley raised his voice.
~
Alex helped Castiel and Bobby pack up a truck later that night, they had learned from Crowley that Niveus Pharmaceuticals was planning on giving out croatoan virus as a ‘cure’ for swine flu.
Castiel sighed and stopped packing. “What’s your problem?” Bobby asked, him and Alex stopping too.
“This is what they mean by ‘the eleventh hour’ right?” Castiel asked.
“Yeah, basically.” Alex placed another duffel bag into the truck.
“Well, it’s the eleventh hour and I am completely useless.” Castiel complained. “All I have is this, what am I even supposed to do with it?!” He held up a shotgun.
Alex chuckled, pitying the angel somewhat, kid doesn’t even know how to work a gun.
“Point it and shoot.” Bobby said obviously.
“What I used to be-”
“Are you really gonna bitch, to me?” Bobby asked, rolling over to Castiel. “Quit pining to the varsity years and load the damn truck.” He threw one of the last bags into the angels arms.
“Alright, well, good luck stopping the whole zombie apocalypse.” Dean said when they had all finished packing.
“Yeah,” Sam breathed. “Good luck killing Death.”
“Yeah,” Dean sighed.
Sam chuckled, “Remember when we used to just hunt windigos? How simple things were?”
“Not really.”
“Well uhm,” Sam pulled out the demon blade, “You might need this.”
“Keep it.” Crowley suddenly appeared, holding a small rusty scythe. “Dean’s covered.” He handed the scythe to Dean, “Kills, golly, demons and angels and reapers and rumor has it, the thing itself.”
“How did you get that?” Castiel asked.
“Hello, King of the Crossroads. So, shall we? Bobby, you just gonna sit there?”
“No, I’m gonna riverdance.” Bobby retorted dryly.
“I suppose, if you want to impress the ladies…” Crowley muttered. “Bobby, Bobby, Bobby. Really wasted that crossroads deal. Fact, you get more if you phrase it properly. So, I took the liberty of adding a teeny little sub-a clause on your behalf. What can I say? I’m an altruist.”
“I convinced him to do it actually.” Alex smiled smugly.
“You just gonna sit there?” Crowley asked again.
Bobby slowly moved one foot, then the other, and stood up. “Son of a bitch…”
“Yes, I know. Completely worth your soul. I’m a hell of a guy.”
“Thanks.” Bobby breathed.
“This is getting maudlin. Can we go?” Crowley walked off. Alex smiled at how happy Bobby and the brother’s looked.
~
“Yes, to Lucifer. Then jump into the hole…” Castiel repeated the plan Sam explained to him. Alex sat farther back in the truck on the ground because their was no more seating. Not like she cared really. “It’s an interesting plan.”
Bobby scoffed, “That’s a word for it.”
“So, go ahead and tell me it’s the worst plan you’ve ever heard.” Sam sighed.
“Of course. I am happy to say that if that’s what you want to hear. But it’s not what I think.”
“Really?”
“You and Dean have a habit of exceeding my expectations. He resisted Michael, maybe you could resist Lucifer.”
“I agree with Wings!” Alex said from behind the three.
“But there are things you’d need to know.” Castiel continued.
“Like?”
“Michael has found another vessel.”
“What?!”
“It’s your brother Adam. You must have considered this.” Castiel explained.
“Yeah we were trying not to.”
“There’s another Winchester?!” Alex talked mostly to herself as the others continued talking. I wonder what he’s like..
“Sam, if you say yes to Lucifer then fail, this fight will happen. And the collateral….It’ll be immense….” Castiel said, then added, “Then there’s the demon blood.”
“What? What are you talking about?!” Sam exclaimed.
“To take in Lucifer, it would be more than you’ve ever drunk.”
“But...why?!”
“Strengthens the vessel.” Castiel informed. “Keeps it from exploding.”
“But the guy he’s in now-”
“He’s drinking gallons.”
“Yeah. I’ve seen it. It’s gross as fuck.” Alex wrinkled her nose.
“And how is that not the worst plan you’ve ever heard?!” Bobby questioned.
Nobody answered him, instead they all just sat in silence for the rest of the drive.
~
“Yup, they’re loading up hot shots of croatoan in the trucks.” Bobby said, looking through binoculars at the building. “Ok. First truck don’t leave for an hour. We get in, we plant the c4 every twenty five feet, then we pull the fire alarm.”
“Uh, that trucks leaving.” Castiel interrupted, pointing to one of the large yellow trucks leaving the building.
“Balls!” Bobby exclaimed, “Ok, new plan.”
Alex ran up to the building with Sam and Bobby as the all of the doors closed. “Side door!” Alex yelled, running over to it.
“Get back!” Sam yelled to the people trapped inside, then he shot out the lock.
The three entered the building and looked at a pack of people infected with the croatoan virus. Well this’ll be fun. Alex smiled a little, despite it being a serious situation, and lifted her pistol, the other two doing the same.
The croats began to charge at them, but didn’t get very far as the three shot at them and killed them easily. “There’s still people here.” Sam said, hearing a woman screaming in the distance.
“Sam, no!” Bobby warned.
“Wait here.” Sam handed Bobby the demon blade.
“I’m gonna take care of the demons.” Alex said and walked off in the opposite direction Sam went after Bobby nodded to her.
“Alright, where are you….” Alex kept her gun ready, looking for anything trying to attack her.
“The boss won’t be happy about this.” Alex turned around to see a demon standing there. “One of us, with the Winchesters?!”
“I’m not one of you.” Alex growled, putting her gun away and getting her angel blade. “And I’m actually doing what I was told.”
“Then you are just like us.” The demon smirked, coming to attack her. “Obedient. Just like a puppy.”
Alex easily stabbed him and pushed him aside when he died. “You demons don’t know when to shut up do you?”
She heard growling behind her and turned to see a group of croats coming her way. Alex managed to kill a few, before one of them knocked her blade away. “Shit.” She looked around for one of the others, but couldn’t see any of them. “Fine. Then I’ll just do this.” Alex placed her palm on one of the infected people’s forehead, her other hand on another. At the same time she smited them.
She continued this on the others, easily finishing them off. “Thank you, Gabriel.” Alex smirked. She had learned the trick from the archangel when he was trying to teach her to control her powers. Which hadn’t worked well.
Alex couldn’t hear any more gunshots in the factory, meaning all the croats were dead. “I never get to have any fun…” She muttered, heading back to Sam and Bobby. Or at least not a lot of it.
“We good?” She asked when she saw Sam and Bobby, with Castiel.
“Yeah. I think we got all of them.” Sam nodded.
“Cool. Now back to plan A?” Alex assumed. Sam nodded and they all began to place the c4’s everywhere.
~
Alex walked into her dark hotel room and took off her jacket. “The boss would like to see you.”
She pulled out her gun and turned toward the voice, “Who’s there?” Alex turned on the light with her mind, not wanting to turn away from whoever was there.
“Father want’s to see you. So I suggest you come quietly.” Alex recognized the voice to be the demon Meg’s. She had two other demons with her.
“Meg.” Alex growled. “Why would he send you.”
“I was in charge of you, remember?” Meg smiled. “We had so much fun together!”
“Why doesn’t he just talk to me himself?”
“He wants to see you in person. We’re getting close, can’t you tell?” Meg was still smiling. “And once again you ruined a horseman’s plans, so I’m guessing you’ll talk about that as well.”
“Fine. I’ll come.” Alex agreed, not lowering her gun, even though it wouldn’t do much.
~