A thick cloud of gray fog slowly enveloped the entire town of Hope Springs, gradually swallowing the streets, houses, and all its residents. Those who didn't manage to hide from the fog instantly fell under the influence of what this dense gray cloud carried within it. Those touched by this fog immediately fell to the ground, clutching their throats and feeling a strong suffocation, as if all the oxygen had been squeezed out of their lungs.
People writhed on the asphalt, desperately trying to take at least one breath. But the suffocation soon receded when the bodies of these unfortunates began to be covered with black veins — a sure sign of infection with the Darkness, which brought the darkest, most negative emotions to the surface. In their heads stood a maddening loud hum of voices that screamed only one thing: kill everything you hold dear.
Very quickly, the residents of Hope Springs who had been affected by the fog began attacking each other. Those who were still standing on the streets froze in place, hearing the terrible screams coming from the dense veil of fog. Everyone tried to peer into this gray haze, trying to understand what was happening there.
Hearing the strange sounds of fighting and furious screams, people didn't understand what was happening inside the fog, and this caused general panic, forcing them to stand still from shock. But all these people were pulled out of their stupor by a loud, decisive shout that urgently demanded action.
"Everyone quickly into the police station! Stop standing there!" Dean shouted, waving his hand and urging the frozen people to move.
Dean's shout brought the residents out of their daze, and they immediately rushed to run to save themselves from the approaching fog. Police officers ran out of the station, seeing Alex and Sam dragging Jen Harris inside.
Seeing the strange black marks on Jen's body, the officers rushed outside after the sheriff, who decided to personally check the situation. Once outside, they froze in place, seeing the thick cloud of fog and hearing the horrifying screams coming from its depths.
"Don't just stand there! Immediately help people get into the station! Quickly!" the sheriff shouted, pulling his subordinates out of their stupor.
Hearing the order, the officers came to their senses and rushed to help the residents of Hope Springs get to the station. Dean also didn't stand still and actively helped people. He knew very well what was happening inside the fog right now. And he could characterize it with only one word — massacre. Dean had already seen something like this with his own eyes in the past, and those events were hard to forget.
He didn't even try to understand why the Darkness-infected they had encountered afterward behaved so aggressively and acted more collectively. At the same time, those who became infected with the Darkness specifically from the fog went mad and attacked everyone who was nearby, like bloodthirsty zombies.
Right now Dean wasn't thinking about any of that — all his thoughts were occupied with helping as many people as possible get to the police station. Helping a woman with a child, Dean looked back and saw that the fog had almost reached him, and the screams from its depths were becoming louder and more desperate.
"Sheriff, start sealing all the windows and ventilation! Do it quickly before the fog reaches us!" Dean said, handing the woman with the child over to the sheriff's hands.
"Agent, what's happening?" the sheriff asked, trying to comprehend this whole nightmare in his quiet town.
"Everything is very bad. Get inside. I'll be right back," Dean replied and ran toward his Impala.
Running up to his car, Dean opened the trunk and began quickly searching for the vessel with holy oil. Finding the jug, he grabbed it and instantly closed the trunk. When Dean closed the trunk of the Impala, he saw that the thick gray fog was already just a few meters away from him.
Understanding that there was almost no time left, Dean rushed back into the police station. Running inside, he tightly closed the doors behind him and began quickly looking around. Finding something to plug the gaps under the door, Dean set to work before the fog began to seep in.
"Agent Winchester, can you explain what's happening with this fog? People are in a panic, and I have to tell them something," the sheriff said, running up to Dean.
"There's no time for explanations right now. Have you closed all the windows? Didn't forget about the ventilation?" Dean replied, once again making it clear that explanations could wait.
"My people are working on it… Did someone spray a virus on us?" the sheriff asked cautiously.
"Even if I tell you, you still won't believe me, Sheriff. Better calm the people and tell them that everything will be okay… Have you seen my colleagues?" Dean said, shaking his head and looking around.
"They took Officer Harris… To the temporary holding cells… She was struggling and screaming the whole time that this is the end. Will she be okay?" the sheriff asked in a heavy tone, looking toward the doors leading to the cells.
"We'll find out now. Sheriff, you make sure everything is tightly sealed for now. If the fog seeps in… You yourself understand how this will end," Dean said, heading toward the temporary holding cells.
The sheriff looked at the departing Dean and slowly shifted his gaze to the tightly closed glass doors. Because of the thick fog, it was impossible to see what was happening outside, but the screams of people coming from the street were hard to miss. Even with all his experience as a police officer, the sheriff didn't want to know what was happening on the streets right now.
These insane screams and sounds of fighting would haunt him for a long time, and the sheriff understood this very well. Meanwhile, Dean walked past the civilians, who stood with panicked faces, whispering to each other and trying to understand what was happening.
Looking at these people, Dean understood how scared they were. But right now the main task was to survive and find a way to save these people by getting them to a safe place. Dean didn't want to think about it, but he knew that this was an almost impossible task.
Approaching the doors leading to the room with the cells, Dean heard Jen's muffled scream and the conversation between Alex and Sam.
"Alex, we need to get all these people out before things get worse," Sam said in a serious tone, sealing the ventilation with duct tape.
"I already told you, I can't do that. All this nonsense with the natural order literally ties my hands. I can help save them, but I can't just take and pull everyone out myself," Alex replied, raising his hands so Sam could see it again.
Sam turned to Alex and noticed how barely noticeable white threads wrapped around his arms. At that moment, Sam could only click his tongue irritably. Dean had told him in the past about his experience when he became Death for a day, and what consequences violating the balance carried.
Massaging his face, Sam shifted his gaze to Jen, whom they had barely managed to tie to the cot. Jen had been trying to break free the whole time and continued screaming. Even through the gag, her voice remained loud. Hearing the sound of opening doors, Alex and Sam turned their heads and saw Dean, who was holding a jug of holy oil in his hands. Dean entered the room with a grim expression on his face and approached them.
"Let's first help Officer Harris, and then we'll think about how to get the others out. We don't know when these madmen will break into the station," Dean said, taking a handkerchief out of his pocket.
Alex and Sam nodded, agreeing with Dean. Alex broke off an iron leg from the bed and handed it to Dean. Taking the improvised torch in his hands, Dean wrapped the handkerchief around it. Opening the jug of holy oil, he generously poured it onto the fabric. Sam approached Officer Harris and began holding her in place, in case she broke free. Dean lit the handkerchief soaked in holy oil and brought the flame to Jen's body.
The closer the flame got, the stronger Jen resisted, as if whatever was inside her rejected this flame. When the flame got close enough, she began convulsing, letting out a loud, pain-filled scream. The black veins covering Jen's body began to peel off like smoldering flakes.
A moment later, Jen's body was cleansed, and she lost consciousness from the intense pain. Sam immediately checked her pulse and breathed a sigh of relief when he realized she was alive. Sam looked at Dean and nodded, showing that everything was fine. Dean immediately extinguished the improvised torch, throwing it into the toilet.
"What are we going to do? We won't be able to teleport. There's no connection. We have about twenty people we need to get out. And raging Darkness-infected are outside," Dean said in a heavy tone, looking at Alex and Sam.
"God knows how to get out of this situation. We can't sit here forever. Sooner or later, either the fog will seep in, or those outside will break in," Sam said, standing up from the bed where Jen was lying.
"I'm afraid we don't have time to think anymore…" Alex said, brushing his hair back.
"What do you mean…" Sam began to say, feeling a very unpleasant sensation inside.
At that same moment, a crash sounded from the main hall where all the people and officers were, and panic rose. Alex, Dean, and Sam simultaneously looked at the doors, and it wasn't difficult for them to understand that the Darkness-infected had decided not to wait any longer.
Running out into the main hall, they saw two police officers propping up the doors, trying to hold back those who wanted to break in. Sam immediately ran up to them and tore an iron pipe out of the wall. He inserted it between the door handles so the doors wouldn't open, and immediately began plugging the gaps between them.
"Everyone inside until they break through! Quickly!" Alex shouted, pulling people out of their daze and waving his hand.
Hearing Alex's shout, everyone came out of their stupor and with panicked faces began running into the room with the temporary holding cells. Dean ran up to Sam, helping to hold the doors so that those on the other side couldn't get inside. At that moment, Dean and Sam felt like they were in a zombie apocalypse movie.
Alex helped people enter the safe room, looking around. He understood that he needed to wait until the situation escalated to the point where it could be called desperate. He didn't like having to wait in such moments, but he knew he had to do it.
Because the doors were being pounded from the other side, the fog still began to seep inside. Seeing this, Alex quickly ran up to the doors, grabbed Sam by the collar, and threw him back. Sam didn't have time to realize what had happened before he felt a jerk and was already lying on the floor.
Raising his gaze, Sam looked at Alex, who along with Dean was holding the doors, not letting the Darkness-infected break inside. Getting up, Sam wanted to approach, but Alex raised his hand and shook his head, showing that he shouldn't. Sam saw how fog began to seep from the gaps above the doors. He covered his nose with his hand and took a step back.
"Sammy, take the holy oil and go to the others. We'll handle it here. It doesn't affect us anyway," Dean said, pressing his back against the doors and looking at Sam.
"I understand… Damn! Be careful," Sam said, grabbing the jug of holy oil from the floor.
Before running into the room where all the people were gathered, Sam grabbed a wooden chair and smashed it against the table. Grabbing the broken wooden legs, Sam looked at Alex and Dean and nodded to them. Alex and Dean continued holding the doors while the Darkness-infected pounded from the other side.
When Sam ran into the room with the others, he closed the doors, and panicked voices of people wanting to know what was happening immediately sounded from the other side. Seeing that the doors were closed, Alex and Dean remained propping them up, understanding that they could be destroyed at any moment.
Lazily leaning against the doors, Alex lit a thin cigar. Taking a drag, he raised his head to the ceiling and thought that the current situation reminded him of the time when he was saving a world where a zombie virus epidemic had broken out. Back then he had also had to prop up doors so that the dead wouldn't get inside.
Dean, standing next to Alex, felt every hit on the door. And with every moment his irritation only grew because of the situation they found themselves in. Turning his head, Dean looked at Alex, who even in such a situation preferred to smoke.
"Found time to smoke… Or is this your last cigar before complete fuckery?" Dean said with a grin, feeling how the pressure on the doors from the other side was becoming stronger.
"Why the last one? Haven't we been through this before?.. We'll get out somehow. As always," Alex said in a carefree tone, with a grin on his face.
"Heh. That's true… We'll get out somehow. As always," Dean replied with a grin, nodding his head and pressing harder against the doors until they were knocked out.
Alex and Dean grinned at each other, continuing to prop up the doors. The gray fog seeped more and more strongly through the gaps and covered Alex and Dean. Alex didn't care about this fog, because it was impossible to influence him with something like that. Dean also didn't care because he was protected by Amara's power.
And when the fog touched Dean's skin, he felt a strange sensation that was difficult for him to describe. But he definitely felt a barely noticeable difference. Because of his connection with Amara and the power she had given him, Dean didn't feel Amara's power that should have been in this fog. And when Dean realized this, he began to feel even better that this Fog had been created not by Amara, but by someone or something else.
From such power that was in the fog, Dean felt a chill run down his spine, as if it was something much worse than the Darkness. About to say this, Dean turned to Alex, when at that same moment the Darkness-infected stopped breaking down the doors. Sensing that the doors were no longer being knocked on, Alex and Dean exchanged glances and began listening to what was happening on the other side.
"Do you think they decided to leave?" Dean asked in a quiet tone, turning his head toward Alex.
"Yeah, they thought they wouldn't be able to break down the doors. And so they went to buy ice cream to bribe us," Alex said with a serious expression on his face, looking at Dean.
"That would be nice… I feel like eating something sweet right now," Dean said, nodding his head and listening to the noises behind the door.
Alex rolled his eyes at Dean's words, but the next moment he jerked his head to the side. One of the windows of the police station was broken, and one of the Darkness-infected jumped inside. Without wasting time, Alex ran forward. Jumping onto the table, he jumped further and instantly found himself next to the infected.
Alex thrust his knee forward, delivering a blow to the face. The knee with the crunch of broken bones slammed into the target. From the knee strike to the face, the infected flew back, flying over the table and crashing his back into the wall. Knocking him out, Alex turned to Dean and raised his finger up. Dean snorted and raised his thumb in response.
"Careful, another one is climbing in!" Dean shouted, seeing how another Darkness-infected was climbing through the window.
Hearing Dean's shout, Alex turned his head toward the window and saw how another infected was climbing over the frame. Quickly running up, Alex delivered a direct kick right to the face. At the same time, the doors that Dean was holding began to be pounded with even greater force. Dean leaned against them, trying to hold them.
Holding the doors, he noticed that the door hinges would soon break. Dean shifted his gaze to Alex and saw how he was not letting the infected break through the windows. Grabbing the head of another infected, Alex threw him out the window just as another one was trying to climb inside.
Feeling that the doors were barely holding, Dean put all his strength into keeping them in place. Dean's arms began to be covered with Darkness, and black fog began to rise from them. Dean understood that in this situation there was no point in holding back his power.
"Dean, let go of the doors! The fog has already seeped in anyway!" Alex shouted, throwing another Darkness-infected out the window.
Continuing to hold the doors, Dean turned to Alex and frowned slightly, noticing that the entire hall was already filled with thick fog. Understanding that there was no point in holding the doors anymore because the infected would get inside anyway, Dean released them and ran toward Alex, jumping over the table.
Turning around, he kicked the table with his foot, pushing it toward the doors. From Dean's kick, the table began sliding across the floor until it hit the almost knocked-out doors with a characteristic dull sound. Pushing the table toward the doors, Dean ran to Alex. Dean immediately knocked down a Darkness-infected who wanted to attack Alex from behind. Knocking the infected to the ground, Dean raised his hand and delivered a punch to his face.
After a couple of punches to the face, Dean managed to make the infected lose consciousness. Knocking out the infected, Dean quickly got up from the floor and sighed heavily. Alex, standing next to Dean, looked at him, noticing that he had decided to use Amara's power in this situation. Listening to the rumble of the almost knocked-out doors, Alex reached into his pocket and took out two silver knuckles.
"Here," Alex said, handing one knuckle duster to Dean.
"What for?" Dean asked, taking the knuckle duster.
"We'll just knock them out instead of killing them. Maybe we'll get lucky and hold out long enough for the fog to just leave," Alex said, putting the silver knuckle duster on his right hand.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. Well, okay. We usually get lucky in situations like this, maybe we'll get lucky this time too," Dean said, also putting the silver knuckle duster on his right hand.
When Dean put on the knuckle duster, the metal immediately turned black, and small spikes appeared on it. Seeing what changes had occurred, Dean looked at Alex with a silent question if this was normal. Alex was also quite surprised, but there was no time for reflection — new infected began climbing through the windows and breaking new ones.
Alex and Dean exchanged glances and immediately began to act. Alex kicked the table, launching it into the air. The table crashed into the window frame and got stuck there, not letting new infected climb inside. Dean did the same, grabbing the edge of the table with both hands and flipping it toward the window.
Using tables to block the windows with the help of tables, Alex and Dean attacked the Darkness-infected who had once again managed to get inside the police station. One of the infected ran at Alex, swinging a fire axe. Alex calmly stepped aside, dodging the blow.
Dodging, he set a trip, and the infected began to fall face down. Before the infected hit his face on the floor, Alex hit him in the back of the head with his fist. Knocking out another one, Alex turned to Dean. Dodging sweeping blows, Dean kicked the infected in the chest with such force that he got stuck in the wall.
"It's hard to hold back when you need to not kill anyone. Especially with such power," Dean said, turning his head toward Alex.
"When we get out, I'll give you a quick course on how to use your power," Alex said with a smile, raising his thumb up.
"Something about that offer doesn't appeal to me at all… I'll probably refuse… When we get out, I'd rather drink beer, eat my unhealthy burger with pancakes instead of buns, and watch 'Scooby-Doo'," Dean said, refusing Alex's offer.
Alex looked at Dean with a calm gaze, and at the same time a plan was maturing in his head to make Dean undergo special training. Dean really didn't like Alex's gaze at that moment. But the situation was not one where there was room for long reflections. At that same moment, the doors blocked by the table finally broke and with a crash knocked the table onto the floor.
At that same moment, dozens of Darkness-infected began running into the room. Alex and Dean exchanged glances and immediately rushed forward. Finding himself faster than Dean, Alex delivered a kick forward, knocking down the first infected and sending him flying. The infected who flew off from the blow knocked down those who were behind him with his body.
Dean also didn't hold back and crashed into them with his shoulder, knocking several infected off their feet. Alex and Dean continued to knock down all the Darkness-infected who endlessly continued to run into the room. The number of unconscious bodies continued to pile up at the entrance, and at the same time the number of infected seemed not to decrease.
"Why does the police station only become such a popular place in moments like this," Dean said, knocking out another infected with a punch.
"That's true. Even in zombie movies, everyone rushes to the police station and hospitals," Alex said, holding an infected by the leg and using him as a weapon.
"Hey, be careful with your living weapon… You almost hit me," Dean said, dodging the living weapon in Alex's hands.
Alex looked at Dean and then threw his "living weapon" toward a group of infected who were trying to squeeze through the broken doors. At the same time, inside the room where the temporary holding cells were, there was strong panic among the people who had taken shelter in the police station.
Every sound of a hit, every sound of breaking glass made people flinch. Even the police officers were very nervous because of what was happening on the other side of the doors. The officers forced the civilians to move to the far corner, while they themselves held weapons in their trembling hands in case the doors were broken down. Sam frowned, looking at the doors and listening to the sounds from the other side.
Sam had found a way to prevent the fog from penetrating inside, and for that he had used rags soaked in holy oil that he had set on fire. Noticing that the flame had almost gone out, Sam poured oil again to keep the fire going. He didn't explain to people what he was doing, and he wasn't going to explain it in the current situation. He only cared about how they would get out of this mess and save people.
"Agent Winchester… Officer Harris has woken up. She says she has something to tell you," the sheriff said, placing his hand on Sam's shoulder.
Hearing the sheriff's voice, Sam turned his head back, and his gaze moved from the sheriff to Jen Harris, who had come to her senses. Handing the jug of holy oil to the sheriff, Sam quickly explained what needed to be done. The sheriff nodded, showing that he understood everything, and then Sam went to Jen.
Approaching her, Sam noticed that her face looked much better than at the moment when they were getting rid of the Darkness in her body. Jen was still tied up because none of the officers wanted to risk the safety of the civilians. Jen began to speak in a quiet voice, but Sam didn't hear anything. Understanding that Jen was experiencing severe weakness in this situation, Sam sat down next to the cot she was tied to.
"I must deliver a message to Dean Winchester and to you, Sam Winchester," Jen said in a weak voice, looking straight into Sam's eyes.
"What message? Is it from Amara?" Sam asked, frowning.
"I don't know… The voice in my head kept repeating that I must deliver this message to you… It said… That this time you won't change anything… It also said…" Jen said in a quiet voice, with difficulty pronouncing every word.
Sam frowned upon hearing the words Jen had spoken. Dozens of different thoughts flashed through his head. Sam had heard similar words more than once when they were told that they wouldn't change anything. But this time these words seemed much heavier compared to all the previous situations. Sam subconsciously felt that the current situation was only a small problem they had to endure, and that things would only get worse from here.
Gripping the edge of the bed, Sam frowned as he looked at Jen, who looked like she was staying conscious with her last strength. He wanted to know what else the voice Jen had heard while infected with the Darkness had said.
"What else did it say?" Sam asked, gripping the edge of the bed.
"It said… That you are no longer the main characters of this story… And your story is coming to an end…" Jen said with difficulty, after which she lost consciousness again.
"Jen! Jen! Wake up, what does this mean!" Sam shouted, trying to bring her to her senses.
From the last words Jen had spoken, Sam felt his heart clench, as if all the worst fears had been confirmed. He didn't understand why the voice in Jen's head had said that he and Dean were no longer the main characters of this story. Sam felt that behind the answer to this question lay a very unpleasant truth that neither he nor Dean had even suspected.
In such a tense situation, Sam couldn't think logically and therefore couldn't immediately remember the only hint that had been in the past. After all, he and Dean had been the heroes of a story written by one writer. But after so many years, Sam had simply forgotten about it and in such a situation couldn't remember.
Sam stopped thinking about it when he heard something crash into the doors. Quickly getting up from the floor, Sam approached the doors and saw a deep dent in them, as if someone had crashed into them with their whole body. Pulling out his pistol, Sam frowned as he looked at the doors.
"Agent… What was in this jug is finished," the sheriff said, turning over the empty jug of holy oil.
Seeing this, Sam frowned even more and lowered his gaze down. He saw that the flame from the holy oil had begun to slowly go out, and on the other side of the doors Alex and Dean were still trying to stop the Darkness-infected. He understood that as soon as the flame went out, the fog would begin to seep inside, and then everyone in this place would come to an end.
At the same time, Alex and Dean were already standing right next to the doors themselves leading to the room where Sam and the other people were. The entire hall in front of them was littered with unconscious bodies of Darkness-infected. Dean sighed wearily, wiping blood from his face, watching as even more infected entered the hall.
"Is it really that in zombie movies the main characters constantly have to deal with something like this," Dean said in a heavy tone, looking at another group of infected.
"Nope. By this point they are usually eaten by zombies… Although none of them received power from the primordial goddess," Alex said with a light laugh, clenching the thin cigar with his bloodied fingers.
"Can't argue with that… Alright, round ten… I guess," Dean said, pushing off the wall he was leaning against with his hands.
"More like the eleventh… Although I could be wrong. They keep coming endlessly," Alex said, clenching the thin cigar between his teeth.
"Let it be the eleventh… Alright, let's go. I have a feeling we've already knocked out most of the town," Dean said, raising his hands and preparing to continue fighting.
Alex chuckled slightly at Dean's comment and was already ready for another round against the Darkness-infected. Just at that moment, all the infected began to tremble, and then fell to the floor. Alex and Dean froze in place, watching as one after another the infected fell to the floor. Looking around and trying to understand what was happening, Dean patted Alex on the chest with his palm, pointing out that the fog had begun to retreat.
Seeing this, Alex and Dean breathed a sigh of relief. A few moments later the fog completely retreated, and the entire hall of the police station was partially destroyed: tables were broken, chairs destroyed, and there were distinct dents from human bodies on the walls. On the floor lay the unconscious residents of the town of Hope Springs, who had been lucky enough to survive this situation.
"Sammy, open up! It's over!" Dean said, knocking on the doors.
Hearing Dean's voice, Sam hesitated a little, but still opened the doors. When the doors opened, Sam saw Alex and Dean, who looked like they had been in a good bar fight. Those who had taken shelter with Sam also began to come out of the room, reacting in different ways to what the police station had turned into. Sam approached Alex and Dean, placed his hands on their shoulders and sighed heavily, glad that they were okay.
Sam wanted to tell them what he had heard from Officer Harris when he noticed a strange light coming from Dean's pocket. Sam pointed at Dean's pocket, and he immediately put his hand inside. Dean pulled out the amulet he had received from his father. Dean remembered that he had given this amulet to Castiel when he was busy searching for God.
Exchanging glances, Dean and Sam thought only one thing. Alex barely rolled his eyes, understanding that Chuck had still staged his spectacular appearance. Holding the glowing amulet in his hands, Dean headed toward the street, and Alex and Sam followed him. Holding the amulet in his hands, Dean went outside and saw that all the dead residents had come back to life. But his attention was not at all drawn to the revived residents of the town.
Alex, Dean, and Sam saw an ordinary-looking man dressed in a green jacket, under which was a white T-shirt and worn jeans. Alex, Dean, and Sam reacted differently to this man. Alex tried to hide his disgust and desire to instantly attack this bastard. Sam and Dean, on the other hand, were shocked in this situation that it was Chuck. And most importantly — the amulet in Dean's hands glowed very brightly in Chuck's presence.
To be continued...
(And so the villainous idiot appears on the scene. I kept wondering how this clown was supposed to jump out of his box. After all, in the original, everything was desperate, everyone was dying and all that. But here we have Alex, and Dean, who can clearly fight off those infected with the darkness for hours. So I made it so that Chuck simply appeared, dispersed the fog, farted in his hand, and supposedly saved everyone. No. But that's life, what can you do. And as for Sam getting a clue about what's really going on, the voices in my head already voted on that. Heh. Okay, I'm going to go eat. Peace, love, and I'm still standing.)
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