Stage of Salvation

1.02 Stage of Salvation

We arrived back at the motel about an hour later. Sam sits at the table, rubbing his temples in exhaustion after he tells us (mostly John and I) about his weird migraine he's been having. And I was surprisingly somewhat right about it. Dean and John sit on the end of each bed while I'm sitting on a small chair near the counter.
"A vision." John speaks flatly, breaking the silence.
"Yes. I saw the demon burning the woman on the ceiling." Sam mutters slowly.
"And you think this is going to happen to this woman because..."
"Because these things happen exactly the way I see them."
"It started out as nightmares," Dean began. "Then it started happening while he was awake." He rises and crosses to the counter behind Sam to get more coffee.
Sam winces. "Yeah. It's like the closer I get to anything to do with the demon the stronger the visions get."
"Alright." John says as he looks towards Dean. "When were you going to tell me about this?" It was more of a statement than a question. His tone was authoritative and left no room for argument. Sam and Dean stop and turn to look at their dad in unison.
"We didn't know what it meant." Dean replied harshly.
"Alright, something like this starts happening to your brother, you pick up the phone and call me." This immediately struck a nerve with Dean. He dumps the coffee jug and cup back on the counter and strides over to his dad.
"Call you? Are you kidding me?! Dad, I called you from Lawrence alright. Sam called you when I was dying. I mean, getting you on the phone? I got a better chance of winning the lottery!" Dean's words got under John's skin. I could tell from John's altered body language but he doesn't deny what his eldest son had said.
"You're right." John said. "Although I'm not too crazy about this new tone of yours, you're right. I'm sorry."
"Look guys, visions or no visions, fact is, we know the demon is coming tonight." I say with a sigh.
"And this family's gonna go through the same hell we went through." Sam responded.
"No they're not. No one is, ever again." John reassured him. Suddenly Sams' phone rang unexpectedly. He answers it and brings it to his ear. Sam's expression darkens as he hears a woman's voice on the other end of the phone line. They chat for a few moments before Sam hesitantly hands the phone over to John.
"This is John." John said, putting the call on speaker.
"Howdy John. I'm Meg. I'm a friend of your boys. I'm also the one who watched Jim Murphy choke on his own blood... Still there John-boy?"
John's grip on the phone tightens. "I'm here."
"Today I'm in Lincoln. Visiting another old friend of yours. He wants to say hi...." The woman named Meg exclaimed.
"John, whatever you do don't give—" A man on the other end of the phone line warned.
"Caleb?" John remarked in disbelief. I notice Dean and Sam reacting to the name instantly, going on alert. Caleb was the hunter John was talking on the phone with earlier who told him about Jim Murphy's death.
"You listen to me. He's got nothing to do with anything. You let him go." John pleaded.
"We know you have the Colt, John." Meg remarked. John then looks at the small black revolver sitting on the counter near me. I suddenly realized what that small black revolver was. The Colt is a supernatural revolver created by the hunter Samuel Colt. According to legend, anything shot by this gun, using one of its thirteen bullets, would die, including supernatural creatures normally immune to all weapons. My grandfather didn't believe it existed but here it was in the possession of my new hunter acquaintances.
"I don't know what you're talking about." John lied through his teeth.
"Oh, okay." Meg scoffed, clearly not believing him. "Listen to this." We all hear Caleb on the other phone line gasping, choking on his own blood, then nothing. John at first rages, saying he's gonna kill Meg, but after he listens to Caleb die, he agrees to bring her the Colt. Meg gives him directions and hangs up. John then comes up with a plan to hand Meg a fake gun, since no one has seen it or knows what it looks like. Dean expresses doubt that she's not going to notice, but John says he just needs to buy a few more hours.
"You mean for Dean, Toralei, and me. You want us to stay here and kill this demon by ourselves." Sam exclaimed.
"No, Sam. I want to stop losing the people we love. I want you to go to school. I want Dean to have a home." John said. Dean looks at Sam at that. "I want Mary alive... I just want this to be over." Sam looks at Dean then to me. In unspoken agreement, we agree to go forward with the plan, although the brothers and I clearly don't like the idea.
Later, Sam, John, and I load up John's truck on a muddy back road, and Dean comes back with a small black revolver from an antique shop.
"You know this is a trap, don't you? That's why Meg wants you to come alone." Dean said.
"I can handle her." John replied, referring to Meg. "I got a whole arsenal loaded. Holy water, Manadaic, amulets..." The four of us assumed Meg was a demon or being possessed by one.
"Dad, promise me. This thing goes south, just get the hell out. Don't get yourself killed, alright?" Dean remarked.
"Same goes for you." A long pause came from John. "They made bullets specifically for this, there's only four left. Without them, the gun is useless, so make every shot count. I've been waiting a long time for this fight, now it's here and I'm not gonna be in it. It's up to you guys now. It's your fight, you finish what I started, understand?" Sam and I nod. Dean glares at him, hearing that speech for the goodbye that it is. Then John turns to me. "Toralei, after this is all over I want you to go back home. I understand who your family is and I respect the hunters that they are. I appreciate that you're here for this fight but you don't deserve any of the ugliness that this is gonna get." I nod as John takes a deep sigh. There's a hint of sincerity in his tone. I know I wasn't supposed to be here in the first place, but it's nice that John somewhat recognizes my presence in this unpleasant situation. When this is all over and the demon is gone, I know I won't be able to do what John asks. I can't go back home when my sister isn't there. When it feels like my entire world is crashing down around me. John hands Dean the Colt.
"We'll see you soon, Dad." Sam finally says. John claps Sam on the shoulder.
"I'll see you guys later." John said. The boys and I watch him get in his truck and drive away, the weight of the moment and what we all know it probably means for us.
"Later..." Dean sighed slowly.