Until We Meet Again, My Angel

Chapter 12: Fight and Flight

   Dean slammed the car door shut, He, sam, and Cas has dropped everything and ran to the car without another word, save Gabriel's adamant protests. Though it was still far from dark out, Dean activated the headlights out of habit. Dean lowered his head to find the button to turn off the lights and, when he resurfaced, he saw Castiel's older brother standing in front of the car. Dean jumped at the surprised, and angrily barked, "Get out of the way, dickbag!" Gabriel, offended but desperate, shook his head violently as he refused, "No, Dean, listen to me- if you do this, you will die! All of you!" Dean revved the engine and returned, "If we don't do this, Claire will die! Now get out of the way, you feathered faker!" Without another second, Dean slammed his foot on the gas, Gabriel disappearing after realizing the threat.

   After about two minutes of driving, Cas asked, "Dean, what are we going to do?" Not taking his eyes off of the road, Dean answered, "We're going to get in there, kick some Angelic ass, and save Claire." Castiel opened his mouth to say something, but decided against it and stayed silent. A few moment after, there was a whoosh and Gabriel suddenly appeared in the backseat. Dean, Sam, and Cas all jumped, and yelling "Son of a bitch!" and swerving the car to avoid running themselves off of the road. Panicked and talking at lightspeed, Gabriel explained, "Okay, look, I came here to protect my little brother, and that's what I'm going to do, but I don't want to die!"
"So?" Sam asked angrily.
"So," Gabriel went on, "We need a plan, Sunshine!"
"We have a plan," Dean said, "Cas, want to repeat what I just told you?"
"Look, Cas," Gabriel pleaded with his brother, "You know very well we need an actual plan! This is insane!"
"Gabriel," Cas sighed, "I'm going after Claire."
"We don't even know if they actually have her!" he protested.
"It's her," Sam confirmed, "I heard her voice in the background."
"That's all the more reason for a plan! This girl is in trouble," Gabriel put his hand on Dean's shoulder, "Your girl is in trouble."
   Dean sighed, pulled the car onto the side of the road, and hung his head. Rubbing his eyes, Dean submitted, "Fine. What do we do?"
   Gabriel exhaled, relieved, and began, "Alright, good. Well I can''t go in with you, right off the bat- they see I'm working with you guys, we'll lose our only surprise element. So, what I'll do, is I'll wait. I'll listen for the signal."
"And what will this signal be?" Castiel asked his older sibling.
"Angel song." Gabriel replied, matter-of-factly.
"Angel song." Cas echoed, "You want me to signal you... with Angel song?"
"Okay," Sam interrupted, "What the Hell is Angel song?"
"It's an Angel's scream," Cas answered.
"Look," Gabriel said, "Angel song can be heard only by the nearest Angel, and it can only be emitted if you're in extreme pain."
   Dean, clearly surprised and slightly afraid, pointed at the Angels and said, "No Angel song."
"We have no other option." Gabriel protested.
"We'll find one!" Dean spat back.
"Dean..." Cas said quietly, "He's right."

   After about an hour, the Impala pulled up to the empty factory. The sun was just starting to sink as the Winchesters climbed out of their beloved Chevy, Cas having already teleported out of the car. The building was almost box-shaped, dank and desolate after years of abandonment. Dean searched the eyes of his savior, who nodded. A split second later, Sam and Dean slammed against the heavy wooden doors, busting them open. Cas walked through the now open doorway, searching for his daughter. The room was very large, and completely empty... except for a trio of people dressed in suits, the middle of which was holding a blonde girl by the throat.
   Flanked by his Hunter companions, Castiel walked straight toward them, stopping about five feet from Claire's captor- obviously the leader. Dean, however, was the first to speak, asking, "Who the Hell are you?"
   The first Angel stepped forward, his brown eyes the same color as his buzz-cut hair, and smiled as he replied, "My name is Mallius. I am the commanding officer of the 23rd Garrison. This," he gestured to the tall male on his right, "is my second in command, Samael." The Angel gave them a sharp but hateful nod, in which his tawny hair swept across his hazel eyes. Sam nodded to the woman on Mallius' left, "What about her?" Mallius smiled broadly and replied, "Ah, this lovely woman," his hand pointed to the pale Angel with blonde hair and blue eyes, "is a new recruit- Adriel."
"Please," Cas begged, "Don't hurt Claire. I'm the one you want."
"Cas," Dean warned quietly, "Watch it."
"Relax, Castiel," Mallius said in an unexpectedly smooth voice, "We had no intention of hurting the girl. We just had to get you here."
"Don't worry, Dad," Claire spoke up, "I'm okay."
"Do you know, Castiel," Mallius began, "What your one mistake was?" After a second of silence, Mallius grabbed Claire roughly by the arm and solved his own riddle, "Keeping this human around."
"Yeah," Claire agreed, "I'm his mistake." She looked up and her captor's face and smirked, "But do you know what your one mistake was?"
   Mallius, annoyed, asked, "Not taping your mouth shut?" Claire chuckled, "Funny, but no. Your one mistake..." her smirk turned into a look of focused anger, "was leaving me untied."
   As soon as Claire had said this, she bent down, reached into her boot, pulled out her machete, and slashed all the way down Mallius' arm, drawing enough blood to kill a human.
   Shocked, Castiel and the Winchesters stood there as the leader of the 23rd Garrison looked down at his arm in surprise, switched his attention to stare at Claire with an intense hate, and slapped her with the back of his hand. Furious, Castiel roared with anger and lunged at Mallius, who threw Claire aside.

       The battle had begun.