Unexpected Destinies Chapter 75
Title: Unexpected Destinies
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: up to and including Exile on Main St., AU from the end of season 5
Warnings: AU, slash
Word Count: 3,067
Summary: Michael and Dean begin the Rite of Contressa.
PAST
Dean was a little startled to find how intently Castiel was watching them when Michael turned around to look at his brothers, but then he realized that it was his lover's way of not thinking about what had happened the last time they had been here. The realization was enough to allow the memory he'd been avoiding to rise to the surface and it was only with the help of a little nudge of Grace that he was able to shove it back down again.
"Thanks," Dean acknowledged.
"I know enough of what happened to know that there are certain events from back then which I do not wish to witness," Michael replied. "It is as much my own selfish desire to avoid them as knowing that you do not wish to view that memory."
"Still, thanks."
"Here," Raphael said, handing across the vial with Daniel Codman's blood. "Castiel and I shall begin mixing together the ingredients for the libation while you prepare the ground for the Rite."
"What?" Dean questioned.
"In order for the libation to be able to penetrate through to Hell and the cage, we must open a portal to it," Michael explained.
"Open a portal? Won't that give Lucifer a chance to get out?"
The mere thought was enough to make Dean almost panic. Yeah, he knew that the Devil was about to break free from his cage soon anyway, but he really didn't want to risk that happening any sooner then necessary! If the Rite of Contressa was going to give Lucifer that opportunity, then it was better if they didn't do this just yet but rather waited until the cage was almost entirely broken down anyway. He got that doing it that way would mean that he'd have to constantly be Michael's vessel for an unknown length of time, but he'd take that over risking the Devil's freedom now.
"Normally, yes, this would mean allowing things out as well as in, but not in this case," Michael replied. "That is why we needed for this blood to be a willing donation from a repentant sinner. Together with the first incantation it will make the portal one way only."
"That'll piss Lucy off."
"Yes, it will."
Michael uncorked the vial and methodically poured a few drops on the ground at the cardinal points around the area of ground under which the cage lay. Dean could still see Lucifer below them as he followed his older brother's actions with suddenly narrowed eyes. The rage was still there as evidenced by the snarl like expression on the faces that could do so and the continued rapid changing between the different faces. It chilled him even as a part of him cheered at being able to piss the Devil off so much even indirectly. No matter how conflicted he felt about his brother right now, he would never forgive Lucifer for what he'd done to Sam.
"Am I right in understanding that this way of opening a portal is completely new to you?" Dean asked.
"Yes."
"So basically Lucy doesn't have the first clue as to what you're doing right now."
"That is correct."
"Does he know that you can't just fix the cage?"
"Yes. He was able to witness my desperate attempts to do so when Raphael pulled me free. The cage was in flux at that time and I know that some things leaked in due to the fact that certain things leaked out."
"Okay."
All of that basically meant that Lucifer was probably very curious as to what they were up to even if he was wary at the same time. Dean kinda wished that he were in control of his meatsuit just now as he'd love to taunt the Devil given the situation, but then if he were in control of his meatsuit, he wouldn't be able to see the fallen archangel so, really, the point was mute. Plus then there was also the fact that a, not insignificant, part of him was loath to go antagonizing the being he could see below them. An archangel's true form was a scary and amazing thing. Seeing it easily brought back Castiel's words about exactly what an archangel was.
"Archangels are fierce. They're absolute. They're Heaven's most terrifying weapon."
Castiel's tone of voice when he'd said that, so serious and just a little afraid, still struck a chord within Dean. It was also made highly ironic given the fact that his lover was now an archangel himself. Had Castiel ever stopped to think about that? About the fact that he was now rightly considered one of Heaven's most terrifying weapons? And, if so, what did he think about it given his previous misgivings about them? It was something he'd have to ask his angel at some point when they had the time.
Dean pushed all of those types of thoughts aside as Michael pocketed the empty vial (and he made a mental note to remember to bin that as he doubted the archangel would) and stepped back. Michael then raised their hands and looked up at the sky for a moment before the archangel started chanting in a mix of Enochian and some other language that he'd never heard of before. It sounded ancient though, feeling weird as it tripped off his tongue with an ease and familiarity that he knew really shouldn't be there but nevertheless was due to his angelic hitchhiker.
At first Dean couldn't see anything happening, but he could certainly feel it. He didn't know what it was precisely, but there was definitely prickling at the edge of his awareness, or rather at the edge of the archangel's awareness and he caught it by default. It was edgy and powerful, kinda like the feel in the air before a really big thunderstorm, only a thousand times stronger. Then Michael looked down and his breath caught in his throat at the shimmering energy that rippled across the ground in a latticework pattern between the blood droplets. It looked like the energy was alive, zapping around madly as if trying desperately to escape and he could feel it trying to do so as well, straining against Michael's grasp but failing to break free from his Grace's control.
He had no idea how long his archangel fought to bring the energy under control, but when it finally did, Dean heaved a sigh of relief even as he caught sight of Lucifer once more. The Devil was now no longer standing still and watching them, but was now a blaze of power, battering at the Light, Intent and Will that made up his cage. The earlier fear and awe sprang to life within him once more as he watched. The fallen angel no longer appeared to be mostly humanoid but was now rather a mass of Light and Grace, shifting shape far too quickly for him to keep track of even with his archangel enhanced vision.
"Shit," Dean muttered.
"I had always wondered if you truly comprehended an archangel's power and abilities whenever you resisted us," Michael said. "I have my answer now."
Dean snorted. "That's not exactly something that a human can possible understand without seeing it."
It was awesome and amazing and sickeningly awful all at once. There was wonderment and a terror so great Dean was sure that he'd never felt the likes of it before in his life, not even in Hell. Never had he been able to imagine a being so immensely powerful and to know that it hated him with a vengeance and would do its utmost best to make his life as miserable and painful as possible in ways that even he couldn't possibly imagine despite Alastair and all of his torture and games was enough to paralyze him.
"Shh," Michael hushed, Grace soothing his soul. "I shall not let him have you and neither will Castiel or Raphael. You are safe, Little One."
The safety and warmth that cradled him were misleading, Dean knew, but he clung to them nonetheless. Michael had been honest when he'd said that he couldn't guarantee his safety before, but at the same time he knew that the archangel would do his utmost best to protect him if it ever came down to that type of situation. Besides, he had three such beings on his side, looking out for him. He really tried to focus on that; on the fact that all that he was seeing now, in that horrible cage down in Hell, was simply the fury of an archangel. An archangel just like Michael, Castiel and Raphael. Oh, sure, he knew that not all of them were equally powerful, but when it came to that kind of power, those minute differences really didn't make any difference. At least not when looking at it from a puny human's perspective.
"You are not puny, Dean," Michael stated fiercely.
"Compared to you guys, I am."
"And yet you have managed to outmaneuver us all."
Well, there was that, Dean had to admit. Great power wasn't of much use if one didn't have the opportunity to use it or one was too arrogant to do so. "Only my playing on your sheer arrogance." For a moment he thought he'd gone a step too far, but then Michael's Grace seemed to almost sigh against his soul.
"Pride is a sin that too many of my brothers and sisters have indulged in as of late and one from which I myself have not been immune."
With that, Michael turned them back around to look at Raphael and Castiel only to find the two looking at them.
"We require the blessing you collected in order to complete the next step of the libation," Castiel stated.
The large, cauldron-like thing that Castiel had gotten from God knew where was now bubbling away over a, no doubt Grace fuelled, green fire and Dean paused briefly to wonder when exactly his life had become so amazingly bizarre (even for a Winchester) that this whole situation didn't strike him as far more weird then it did. After all, seriously, here he was in a graveyard with no less then three archangels, concocting a potion that they were then going to pour down into Hell over the Devil himself while chanting an incantation to prevent Lucifer from slipping inside his brother, or anyone else for that matter, and wearing him to the prom like some prized suit.
Yeah, someone could wake him up any time now, he was more then ready for this nightmare to end.
"You are not dreaming, Little One."
"Thanks, Mike, I really wasn't sure of that one," Dean snarked.
There was a brief pause. "You are not being truthful."
Dean couldn't help it, he laughed. Trust this particular archangel to be able to break the tension completely without meaning to by just being himself.
"It's like one of those figure of speech things," Dean explained.
"I see."
Whether or not Michael truly did understand, the archangel put it aside for now and Dean could feel him instead reaching deep within his Grace to where he had safely tucked away the blessing they had received from the little Belgian boy. As it had before, the blessing stirred a whole host of unexpected feelings within his soul even though Michael had taken care not to let it touch him as they didn't quite know what would happen then. There was love, awe, adoration and such a pure, unadulterated happiness that it nearly made him weep, especially when he found that he was completely unable to recall a time when he had felt that way himself. The last time that particular revelation had led to a sympathetic stroke from the archangel's Grace and this time was no different. He reciprocated the gesture and watched as Michael drew the blessing out of their meatsuit.
It glowed softly in the palm of their hand and Michael held it aloof for a few seconds before drawing their hand away so that the blessing descended into the cauldron. Dean watched it go and it flared brightly as it touched the boiling potion. There was an odd, high pitched sound and then the libation was no longer boiling but was rather a serene liquid that shifted from a clear, colorless to a watery blue and back again.
"Castiel, it is time," Michael said, looking up at his youngest brother.
Dean felt a pang of protest within him as he realized that his lover would need to pluck one of his own feathers, but he quickly suppressed it. Not only had Castiel known this would be needed going in, but he really didn't want to feel himself doing the deed even if he logically knew that it would actually be Michael doing it. Either way, it would feel to him like he was the only doing it and it seemed totally wrong do that to one of his lover's magnificent wings. The quick look of pain that crossed his lover's face when Castiel pulled a feather proved that it hurt and he wanted to reach out and soothe the wing, but he tried to reign that in as well. He knew that the upcoming part of the Rite would be the most challenging for Michael and he really didn't want to add to the archangel's burdens just now.
After the feather went in, there were only a few more ingredients left and the libation was ready within half and hour. The last thing to go in was the blossom from the Hidden Valley and Dean watched in amazement as it seemed to almost drain of color before seeming to vanish by blending into the potion. He knew that he didn't have the best grasp of witchcraft or potion making in general, but he really didn't think that was normal, though that was probably a good thing. The further from normal this whole thing was, the less likely that Lucifer would find a way to break the Rite of Contressa anytime soon.
By now the sun was fading and it was rapidly approaching dusk, which was a good thing, Dean knew as the archangels had believed that dusk would be the optimum time to perform the Rite. Something about the alignment of the stars and the libation's key ingredients or some such gobbledygook, he really didn't know what precisely, just that dusk had been best.
"You could understand if you but tried to," Michael stated.
"Nah, Sammy's the smart one when-"
"You are not stupid, Dean Winchester!"
"Whoa, whoa, don't get your panties in a twist there Mike," Dean replied, startled. "I'm just saying that this stuff's not really my thing."
"You do not need to pretend with me and most especially not with Castiel, we will not judge you and you may be surprised at what you can do when you truly try."
That sounded suspiciously like a chick flick moment right there and Dean shifted uncomfortably within the archangel's Grace. He hadn't meant to put his foot into it there and he wasn't entirely sure just how he'd done so even though it was quite clear that he had. Luckily for him, the timing of the Rite seemed to take precedence over whatever issue Michael had with what he'd said and instead he just watched in bemusement as the archangel wearing his meatsuit lifted the heavy cauldron as if it were nothing.
Raphael and Castiel remained where they were as Michael returned them to the ground marked off with the blood and energy. Dean winced as he stopped to think about that and he was glad that the FBI now thought him dead as he had absolutely no idea what they'd make of this scene if they were to come across it in a few days time. The thought of anyone poking around what was, in essence at least if not truly reality, so close to Lucifer's cage quickly took any humor out of the situation and he carefully blanked his mind instead.
There was a brief flare of reluctance from Michael as they stood at the edge of the portal and Dean managed to keep his mouth shut for once. There was no doubt in his mind as to the archangel's commitment to this task and he could more than understand the anguish that he was going through right now, being forced into this position and having to perform something like the Rite of Contressa on a little brother. Although he remained silent, he did reach out with his soul and attempted to convey solidarity, understanding and compassion. He hoped it worked, but either way, something seemed to spur Michael into action once more.
Without another moment's delay, the first angel created started chanting in Enochian and the other language from earlier. It was kinda mesmerizing and Dean found himself drawn in by it, lulled into a semi-hypnotic state where he became even more fully aware of his own meatsuit then normal while sharing it with Michael in addition to feeling the archangel's Grace more acutely. Part of him was aware enough of what was going on to be surprised that he didn't panic, but he didn't feel threatened, just closer to Michael then he had before. His own thoughts about why Lucifer couldn't be free to roam the Earth in a vessel started to rise to the top of his mind and he let them, not resisting the process at all.
When Michael reached a set point in the chant, the archangel began pouring the libation down through the portal and into the cage, over Lucifer's true form. Dean felt pleased when he saw the Devil snarl and fight even more, but the fallen angel was unable to avoid the libation as Michael followed him around his cage as Lucifer moved within its small confines. When the libation was gone, the cauldron was tossed aside and Michael sped up the chant.
The sudden, shocking pain that tore through Dean was as unexpected as it was brutal and he screamed before he could stop himself, hearing Michael echo his cries. It was a pain he was intimately acquainted with and he knew that they'd been run through with something even before Michael lowered their eyes and he saw the blood coated point of an archangel blade protruding from their chest.
A.N.: Woot! Chapter 75, another big milestone that I hadn't thought I'd ever reach with this fic. I've given up thinking that this will end before 100 now and am wondering if it'll reach 125. I'm so doomed. Especially since I've picked up an Everlasting Birthday prompt and signed up for the Dean & Cas Big Bang. Stupid me.
Chapter 76
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: up to and including Exile on Main St., AU from the end of season 5
Warnings: AU, slash
Word Count: 3,067
Summary: Michael and Dean begin the Rite of Contressa.
PAST
Dean was a little startled to find how intently Castiel was watching them when Michael turned around to look at his brothers, but then he realized that it was his lover's way of not thinking about what had happened the last time they had been here. The realization was enough to allow the memory he'd been avoiding to rise to the surface and it was only with the help of a little nudge of Grace that he was able to shove it back down again.
"Thanks," Dean acknowledged.
"I know enough of what happened to know that there are certain events from back then which I do not wish to witness," Michael replied. "It is as much my own selfish desire to avoid them as knowing that you do not wish to view that memory."
"Still, thanks."
"Here," Raphael said, handing across the vial with Daniel Codman's blood. "Castiel and I shall begin mixing together the ingredients for the libation while you prepare the ground for the Rite."
"What?" Dean questioned.
"In order for the libation to be able to penetrate through to Hell and the cage, we must open a portal to it," Michael explained.
"Open a portal? Won't that give Lucifer a chance to get out?"
The mere thought was enough to make Dean almost panic. Yeah, he knew that the Devil was about to break free from his cage soon anyway, but he really didn't want to risk that happening any sooner then necessary! If the Rite of Contressa was going to give Lucifer that opportunity, then it was better if they didn't do this just yet but rather waited until the cage was almost entirely broken down anyway. He got that doing it that way would mean that he'd have to constantly be Michael's vessel for an unknown length of time, but he'd take that over risking the Devil's freedom now.
"Normally, yes, this would mean allowing things out as well as in, but not in this case," Michael replied. "That is why we needed for this blood to be a willing donation from a repentant sinner. Together with the first incantation it will make the portal one way only."
"That'll piss Lucy off."
"Yes, it will."
Michael uncorked the vial and methodically poured a few drops on the ground at the cardinal points around the area of ground under which the cage lay. Dean could still see Lucifer below them as he followed his older brother's actions with suddenly narrowed eyes. The rage was still there as evidenced by the snarl like expression on the faces that could do so and the continued rapid changing between the different faces. It chilled him even as a part of him cheered at being able to piss the Devil off so much even indirectly. No matter how conflicted he felt about his brother right now, he would never forgive Lucifer for what he'd done to Sam.
"Am I right in understanding that this way of opening a portal is completely new to you?" Dean asked.
"Yes."
"So basically Lucy doesn't have the first clue as to what you're doing right now."
"That is correct."
"Does he know that you can't just fix the cage?"
"Yes. He was able to witness my desperate attempts to do so when Raphael pulled me free. The cage was in flux at that time and I know that some things leaked in due to the fact that certain things leaked out."
"Okay."
All of that basically meant that Lucifer was probably very curious as to what they were up to even if he was wary at the same time. Dean kinda wished that he were in control of his meatsuit just now as he'd love to taunt the Devil given the situation, but then if he were in control of his meatsuit, he wouldn't be able to see the fallen archangel so, really, the point was mute. Plus then there was also the fact that a, not insignificant, part of him was loath to go antagonizing the being he could see below them. An archangel's true form was a scary and amazing thing. Seeing it easily brought back Castiel's words about exactly what an archangel was.
"Archangels are fierce. They're absolute. They're Heaven's most terrifying weapon."
Castiel's tone of voice when he'd said that, so serious and just a little afraid, still struck a chord within Dean. It was also made highly ironic given the fact that his lover was now an archangel himself. Had Castiel ever stopped to think about that? About the fact that he was now rightly considered one of Heaven's most terrifying weapons? And, if so, what did he think about it given his previous misgivings about them? It was something he'd have to ask his angel at some point when they had the time.
Dean pushed all of those types of thoughts aside as Michael pocketed the empty vial (and he made a mental note to remember to bin that as he doubted the archangel would) and stepped back. Michael then raised their hands and looked up at the sky for a moment before the archangel started chanting in a mix of Enochian and some other language that he'd never heard of before. It sounded ancient though, feeling weird as it tripped off his tongue with an ease and familiarity that he knew really shouldn't be there but nevertheless was due to his angelic hitchhiker.
At first Dean couldn't see anything happening, but he could certainly feel it. He didn't know what it was precisely, but there was definitely prickling at the edge of his awareness, or rather at the edge of the archangel's awareness and he caught it by default. It was edgy and powerful, kinda like the feel in the air before a really big thunderstorm, only a thousand times stronger. Then Michael looked down and his breath caught in his throat at the shimmering energy that rippled across the ground in a latticework pattern between the blood droplets. It looked like the energy was alive, zapping around madly as if trying desperately to escape and he could feel it trying to do so as well, straining against Michael's grasp but failing to break free from his Grace's control.
He had no idea how long his archangel fought to bring the energy under control, but when it finally did, Dean heaved a sigh of relief even as he caught sight of Lucifer once more. The Devil was now no longer standing still and watching them, but was now a blaze of power, battering at the Light, Intent and Will that made up his cage. The earlier fear and awe sprang to life within him once more as he watched. The fallen angel no longer appeared to be mostly humanoid but was now rather a mass of Light and Grace, shifting shape far too quickly for him to keep track of even with his archangel enhanced vision.
"Shit," Dean muttered.
"I had always wondered if you truly comprehended an archangel's power and abilities whenever you resisted us," Michael said. "I have my answer now."
Dean snorted. "That's not exactly something that a human can possible understand without seeing it."
It was awesome and amazing and sickeningly awful all at once. There was wonderment and a terror so great Dean was sure that he'd never felt the likes of it before in his life, not even in Hell. Never had he been able to imagine a being so immensely powerful and to know that it hated him with a vengeance and would do its utmost best to make his life as miserable and painful as possible in ways that even he couldn't possibly imagine despite Alastair and all of his torture and games was enough to paralyze him.
"Shh," Michael hushed, Grace soothing his soul. "I shall not let him have you and neither will Castiel or Raphael. You are safe, Little One."
The safety and warmth that cradled him were misleading, Dean knew, but he clung to them nonetheless. Michael had been honest when he'd said that he couldn't guarantee his safety before, but at the same time he knew that the archangel would do his utmost best to protect him if it ever came down to that type of situation. Besides, he had three such beings on his side, looking out for him. He really tried to focus on that; on the fact that all that he was seeing now, in that horrible cage down in Hell, was simply the fury of an archangel. An archangel just like Michael, Castiel and Raphael. Oh, sure, he knew that not all of them were equally powerful, but when it came to that kind of power, those minute differences really didn't make any difference. At least not when looking at it from a puny human's perspective.
"You are not puny, Dean," Michael stated fiercely.
"Compared to you guys, I am."
"And yet you have managed to outmaneuver us all."
Well, there was that, Dean had to admit. Great power wasn't of much use if one didn't have the opportunity to use it or one was too arrogant to do so. "Only my playing on your sheer arrogance." For a moment he thought he'd gone a step too far, but then Michael's Grace seemed to almost sigh against his soul.
"Pride is a sin that too many of my brothers and sisters have indulged in as of late and one from which I myself have not been immune."
With that, Michael turned them back around to look at Raphael and Castiel only to find the two looking at them.
"We require the blessing you collected in order to complete the next step of the libation," Castiel stated.
The large, cauldron-like thing that Castiel had gotten from God knew where was now bubbling away over a, no doubt Grace fuelled, green fire and Dean paused briefly to wonder when exactly his life had become so amazingly bizarre (even for a Winchester) that this whole situation didn't strike him as far more weird then it did. After all, seriously, here he was in a graveyard with no less then three archangels, concocting a potion that they were then going to pour down into Hell over the Devil himself while chanting an incantation to prevent Lucifer from slipping inside his brother, or anyone else for that matter, and wearing him to the prom like some prized suit.
Yeah, someone could wake him up any time now, he was more then ready for this nightmare to end.
"You are not dreaming, Little One."
"Thanks, Mike, I really wasn't sure of that one," Dean snarked.
There was a brief pause. "You are not being truthful."
Dean couldn't help it, he laughed. Trust this particular archangel to be able to break the tension completely without meaning to by just being himself.
"It's like one of those figure of speech things," Dean explained.
"I see."
Whether or not Michael truly did understand, the archangel put it aside for now and Dean could feel him instead reaching deep within his Grace to where he had safely tucked away the blessing they had received from the little Belgian boy. As it had before, the blessing stirred a whole host of unexpected feelings within his soul even though Michael had taken care not to let it touch him as they didn't quite know what would happen then. There was love, awe, adoration and such a pure, unadulterated happiness that it nearly made him weep, especially when he found that he was completely unable to recall a time when he had felt that way himself. The last time that particular revelation had led to a sympathetic stroke from the archangel's Grace and this time was no different. He reciprocated the gesture and watched as Michael drew the blessing out of their meatsuit.
It glowed softly in the palm of their hand and Michael held it aloof for a few seconds before drawing their hand away so that the blessing descended into the cauldron. Dean watched it go and it flared brightly as it touched the boiling potion. There was an odd, high pitched sound and then the libation was no longer boiling but was rather a serene liquid that shifted from a clear, colorless to a watery blue and back again.
"Castiel, it is time," Michael said, looking up at his youngest brother.
Dean felt a pang of protest within him as he realized that his lover would need to pluck one of his own feathers, but he quickly suppressed it. Not only had Castiel known this would be needed going in, but he really didn't want to feel himself doing the deed even if he logically knew that it would actually be Michael doing it. Either way, it would feel to him like he was the only doing it and it seemed totally wrong do that to one of his lover's magnificent wings. The quick look of pain that crossed his lover's face when Castiel pulled a feather proved that it hurt and he wanted to reach out and soothe the wing, but he tried to reign that in as well. He knew that the upcoming part of the Rite would be the most challenging for Michael and he really didn't want to add to the archangel's burdens just now.
After the feather went in, there were only a few more ingredients left and the libation was ready within half and hour. The last thing to go in was the blossom from the Hidden Valley and Dean watched in amazement as it seemed to almost drain of color before seeming to vanish by blending into the potion. He knew that he didn't have the best grasp of witchcraft or potion making in general, but he really didn't think that was normal, though that was probably a good thing. The further from normal this whole thing was, the less likely that Lucifer would find a way to break the Rite of Contressa anytime soon.
By now the sun was fading and it was rapidly approaching dusk, which was a good thing, Dean knew as the archangels had believed that dusk would be the optimum time to perform the Rite. Something about the alignment of the stars and the libation's key ingredients or some such gobbledygook, he really didn't know what precisely, just that dusk had been best.
"You could understand if you but tried to," Michael stated.
"Nah, Sammy's the smart one when-"
"You are not stupid, Dean Winchester!"
"Whoa, whoa, don't get your panties in a twist there Mike," Dean replied, startled. "I'm just saying that this stuff's not really my thing."
"You do not need to pretend with me and most especially not with Castiel, we will not judge you and you may be surprised at what you can do when you truly try."
That sounded suspiciously like a chick flick moment right there and Dean shifted uncomfortably within the archangel's Grace. He hadn't meant to put his foot into it there and he wasn't entirely sure just how he'd done so even though it was quite clear that he had. Luckily for him, the timing of the Rite seemed to take precedence over whatever issue Michael had with what he'd said and instead he just watched in bemusement as the archangel wearing his meatsuit lifted the heavy cauldron as if it were nothing.
Raphael and Castiel remained where they were as Michael returned them to the ground marked off with the blood and energy. Dean winced as he stopped to think about that and he was glad that the FBI now thought him dead as he had absolutely no idea what they'd make of this scene if they were to come across it in a few days time. The thought of anyone poking around what was, in essence at least if not truly reality, so close to Lucifer's cage quickly took any humor out of the situation and he carefully blanked his mind instead.
There was a brief flare of reluctance from Michael as they stood at the edge of the portal and Dean managed to keep his mouth shut for once. There was no doubt in his mind as to the archangel's commitment to this task and he could more than understand the anguish that he was going through right now, being forced into this position and having to perform something like the Rite of Contressa on a little brother. Although he remained silent, he did reach out with his soul and attempted to convey solidarity, understanding and compassion. He hoped it worked, but either way, something seemed to spur Michael into action once more.
Without another moment's delay, the first angel created started chanting in Enochian and the other language from earlier. It was kinda mesmerizing and Dean found himself drawn in by it, lulled into a semi-hypnotic state where he became even more fully aware of his own meatsuit then normal while sharing it with Michael in addition to feeling the archangel's Grace more acutely. Part of him was aware enough of what was going on to be surprised that he didn't panic, but he didn't feel threatened, just closer to Michael then he had before. His own thoughts about why Lucifer couldn't be free to roam the Earth in a vessel started to rise to the top of his mind and he let them, not resisting the process at all.
When Michael reached a set point in the chant, the archangel began pouring the libation down through the portal and into the cage, over Lucifer's true form. Dean felt pleased when he saw the Devil snarl and fight even more, but the fallen angel was unable to avoid the libation as Michael followed him around his cage as Lucifer moved within its small confines. When the libation was gone, the cauldron was tossed aside and Michael sped up the chant.
The sudden, shocking pain that tore through Dean was as unexpected as it was brutal and he screamed before he could stop himself, hearing Michael echo his cries. It was a pain he was intimately acquainted with and he knew that they'd been run through with something even before Michael lowered their eyes and he saw the blood coated point of an archangel blade protruding from their chest.
A.N.: Woot! Chapter 75, another big milestone that I hadn't thought I'd ever reach with this fic. I've given up thinking that this will end before 100 now and am wondering if it'll reach 125. I'm so doomed. Especially since I've picked up an Everlasting Birthday prompt and signed up for the Dean & Cas Big Bang. Stupid me.
Chapter 76