The Boyking-Chapter 9
Masterpost and series summary here.
Word Count: 2.3k
Chapter Warnings: Just a bit of fighting, nothing too crazy ;)
A/N: Thank you to @impala-dreamer for being my beta. You’re the best!
The meeting in the charting room had been brief. Ruby hadn’t put up a fight when Sam announced that Dallas was tagging along, but Dallas could see the protest in her fiery eyes. Dallas was thankful for the presence of the other demons that held Ruby’s obstinance at bay, but she still felt a mix of unease and excitement for the task ahead. It involved some creature of Hell. Ruby wanted to move quickly, so Dallas had little time to hear the details.
She was still excited to do something, anything. She had an itch for some action that Hell had not been able to scratch so far. But having Sam and Ruby as her backup… well, that was less than ideal.
The group was already topside when Dallas’ mind began to conjure up bad scenarios. She began to wonder if this would be an easy way for them to get rid of her without too many questions asked. A fragile human fighting amongst demons and the king of hell, she died too quickly for them to do anything, is what she imagined them saying to Dean after they returned without her. She felt sick to her stomach and maybe she was pale too, because Sam glanced back at her as they were approaching the target building, and concern immediately lit up his eyes.
“You ok?” he asked.
Dallas quickly gathered herself. “Of course,” she replied, staring straight ahead.
It was evening. The sun had just set, so it wasn’t quite dark out yet, but it would be soon. With the remaining light, Dallas could see the building up ahead, just across the street. A multi-level office building that could use some renovations. They were situated in a quiet part of… some town. Dallas hadn’t asked where, though now she wished she had. But there didn’t seem to be any on-lookers. This part of the town seemed to be the old business district, with plenty of for sale and abandoned buildings around.
The remaining daylight also allowed Dallas to see when Ruby and the other five demons smoked out and flew towards the building in their vaporous forms. Sam and Dallas remained behind, approaching on foot.
Sam stopped on the other side of the street behind an overgrown tree whose roots had lifted the concrete underneath and whose branches had grown long and wide. He looked at Dallas with stern eyes.
“Stay close to me. Do not go off alone.”
“Do you mind telling me exactly what we’re up against?” Dallas asked, annoyed and worried. Had Sam brought her along on this dangerous mission to have her killed?
“A small faction of Lilth’s followers who would gladly kill you while opening this seal.”
Sounds promising, she thought. “I keep hearing this ‘Lilith’s’ name. Who is she?” she asked out loud.
Sam furrowed his brow, suddenly realizing something.
“I’ve neglected to tell you some things,” he said, concern laced through his words, “But that will have to wait until after we’re done here. It shouldn‘t take long, but regardless, it’s still dangerous. They somehow stole three of my hellhounds and are going to use the blood in a ritual.”
Dallas’ mouth went dry. “Hellhounds?” She had heard them talk about “beasts” back in Hell, but there had been no name mentioned.
“Again, another time. I’m sorry for not explaining more. But we need to go now. Here, take this.” Sam pulled a slim, silver blade with ornate markings on the hilt and presented it to Dallas. “It will kill a Hellhound if needed. Normally you can’t see them, but I have the power to make them visible. But all humans will be able to see them so it's imperative that we keep them in the building. I have a feeling they will be under Lilith’s command. But you only need to worry about the demons. I’ve got the hounds. Think you can handle that?”
She took the blade, scoffing in return. “Obviously.”
“OK, the hellhounds are large. They’re loud. But stay close to me and you’ll be ok.”
Dallas held back the urge to roll her eyes. “This ain't my first rodeo.”
Sam gave a pained smile. “We’re out of time. Let’s go.”
Sam walked with a quick pace across the street. Dallas followed right behind him, sticking close-by like he said, for now. She’d assess how dangerous the situation was once she got inside, and what she would do from there.
Inside the dusty building, Sam found the staircase and they started climbing flights. A cloud of black smoke appeared on the third floor landing and a demon gradually formed. It was one of Sam’s. “Sixth floor,” he said, and then smoked out again.
“Why aren’t you teleporting us?” Dallas said as they continued to climb.
“You would be too queasy to fight. It takes some getting used to for a human.”
For a human. The poor, weak human was making them climb the stairs. Dallas was annoyed but shook it off.
Once they reached the sixth floor, Sam carefully opened the door into a dark hallway. He looked both ways before signaling for Dallas to follow him through. Dallas gripped her blade tightly, knuckles white, eager for something to jump out so she could have some fun.
But all was quiet for a time. She only heard their own soft footsteps, and the crunch of dirt and dust on the broken laminate flooring. A piece of paper crinkled as Sam took a step ahead of her.
The hairs on the back of her neck stood and she stopped, turning around. Sam said nothing, but she felt him move, standing very close behind her.
Dallas squinted, straining to see through the darkness of the hallway. Something had tipped her senses off, she just wasn’t sure yet.
She got her answer when Sam suddenly grunted behind her. She whipped around. It all happened quickly, she barely registered it. A demon had appeared–one of Lilith’s for sure–attempting to catch the king of hell off guard. It had stuck a blade into Sam’s shoulder from behind him. But Sam spun around fast–too fast–pinning this demon against the wall and plunging his own blade into the demon’s heart. Lights flickered in the demon’s eyes before going out. Sam let the body go and slump to the ground.
Dallas watched wide-eyed as Sam took the other blade out of his shoulder without so much as a wince. There was some blood, a small stain where the blade had been, but it didn’t seem to bother Sam. He studied the blade for a moment before sheathing it inside his jacket.
“Let’s go,” he said, and continued walking.
Lots of thoughts were bubbling in Dallas’ mind. Sam was quick and powerful. If she had turned around a second later, she would’ve missed his response altogether. But he did bleed. She swallowed hard, thinking about how his power was impressive and terrifying already, and how inconsequential the bleeding had been. She only hoped the archangel blade would do more damage—when she could get her hands on it again.
They hadn't walked much further when another cloud of smoke appeared, this time Ruby was the one who took shape.
“We found the room they’re in.” She stopped, eyeing his shoulder. She had a puzzled look on her face. “You’re bleeding?”
Was it unusual for Sam to bleed?
“It’s nothing, let’s go,” he replied. Sam turned around once last time, focus and worry contained in his eyes, as he repeated his command for Dallas to stay close.
At the door, Sam and Ruby silently communicated. Looking at each other, he nodded, and Ruby broke open the door with her shoulder.
Dallas stayed behind Sam as they hurried into the room.
As Sam and Ruby stopped moving, Dallas stopped and looked around. Sam’s other demons had smoked in through the walls at the same time, quickly turning into solid beings. But what held Dallas’ attention was the three, large creatures chained to the floor in the center of the room. Dallas now understood Sam’s solemn warnings before. Asleep, the creatures heaved giant breaths. Collars with spikes would warn anyone not to get too close— if they could see the creatures. Laying on the floor, Dallas knew they were at least twice her size lengthwise. She shook at the thought of how tall they would be once they stood.
Dallas had little time to contemplate this, however, because in the second that it took them to enter the room and the other demons to smoke in, Lilith’s demons had begun to attack. There were only four in the room. Sam’s demons easily kept the opposing side at bay while Sam quickly moved towards the sleeping dogs. Dallas stayed a good length behind, alternating her attention between the beasts and the fighting demons.
“Ruby, destroy the altar!” Sam yelled.
Ruby nodded, but as she turned around, two more demons appeared in front of her, preventing her from making it to the makeshift altar that had been constructed on an abandoned, wooden desk. Dallas could see it easily, and with everyone else busy, she took the initiative to take care of the job herself. King of hell or not, Dallas would help to stop a demon’s plans.
She ran towards the old desk, but just as had happened to Ruby, a demon appeared in front of her.
Dallas skid to a stop, twirled the blade in her hand, and smiled at the demon as she lifted the small sword and lunged forward. The demon dodged the attack, quickly circling back, taking a swing at Dallas. She turned just in time, lifting her arm to block the demon’s blade. She went to plunge her own into the demon’s open chest, but something hit her legs, knocking her off her feet. She hit the ground with a thud.
Quickly opening her eyes, she noticed the other demon that had appeared. She jumped up. Now facing the opposite way, she could see how the others were faring in their fight. Sam’s demons were intact, Ruby was fighting, Sam was fighting, and Lilith’s demons continued to appear.
She turned her attention back to the two demons in front of her. She lifted her hand to swing, then faked them out by running left towards the altar. All she had to do was knock the things off and the demons’ plan would be over. But she wasn’t quick enough. One of the demons grabbed the back of her shirt, pulling her against him into a bear hug.
She swung her leg behind his, using all her weight and strength to knock his feet out from under him, both of them falling to the ground. The demon's body softened Dallas’ landing. She sat up, turned, and stabbed her blade into the demon’s heart.
As she was on the ground, the other demon lunged forward. She rolled, dodging the attack and standing quickly to her feet.
Looking up, she could see how close she was to the altar. Just a couple more feet to the desk, she could get there if the demons would stop spawning.
A harrowing, deep growl made both Dallas and the demon pause. She turned towards the center of the room to see the creatures–the Hellhounds–awakening. One had already stood and its height alone made Dallas’ blood go cold. It bared its teeth, the length of which could easily go through anyone’s chest.
It attempted to move but was stopped by the chains attached to its collar. The metal seemed thin and frail compared to the size and strength of the beast, but for some reason it was holding the creature back. It growled once more, angry at its captivity. It tried a little harder to pull at the chains, but with no luck.
Dallas was going to turn back and face her demon since the creatures would be kept at bay, but a small movement towards the beast made her pause again. One of Lilth’s demons held a hatchet in the air. Dallas looked for Sam but his back was turned, and she watched in horror as the demon brought the hatchet down, breaking the chain with a chilling snap.
Sam heard the chain break. He quickly looked around, eyes first landing on the broken leash. Then his eyes found Dallas and went wide with fear.
She ignored him. Dallas had no choice but to take care of the demon in front of her and then get the hell out of dodge. She heard the growl of the best, and the frenzied shouts of Sam and his demons as she lunged at the one in front of her again.
Dallas heard screams from behind her and another thunderous growl followed by the sound of bodies hitting the floor. She dared not look behind her. But the demon she was fighting was distracted enough to let her guard down, which was more than enough time for Dallas to attack successfully. She lunged forward, shoving the demon against the nearby wall. The demon swiped at Dallas, giving her a cut on her arm. Dallas swiped back, landing a blow into the demon’s chest.
Dallas pulled her knife out and beelined for the desk. She began knocking off the books, random parchments, and other items, making sure the bowl of suspicious liquid was dumped and all candles blown out.
When she was done, she looked up. Sam was yelling something at Ruby. The Hellhound was being held at bay by Sam, somehow. It didn’t make sense. Ruby looked around the room, her eyes landing on Dallas. Sam turned in her direction, too.
“Get out!” he yelled as the beast thrashed, wanting so badly to break free from whatever hold Sam had on it. Sam stood, hand outstretched, muscles in his back and arms straining.
Ruby ran towards Dallas, the two demons that were left following close behind. She grabbed Dallas’ arm, dragging her to the door. Dallas kept her eyes on the center of the room, watching as the beast lunged at Sam. And then the door slammed shut as Ruby pulled her down the dark hall.
