Chapter 36: Ancitif and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, very bad Day

The skies above cast deep, red sunlight against the ever flowing Waters of the swamp below turning it to the color of blood. The eyes of alligators poked from under the cool, dark waters. They blinked against the every dying sunlight as bugs buzzed around their heads.

Large dragonflies moved lazily through the reeds and undergrowth of the wetlands, their wings beating in a rhythmic fashion as they moved through the trees. The grumble of frogs got louder as the darkness started to settle in, crickets singing to the full moon above.

Settled in the heart of southern Louisiana the swamp was mostly unbothered by tourists and wasn't often hiked through. Ancitif stepped over a fallen tree with his phone light turning his pale skin to blue. The lizard that wrapped itself around the demon's shoulder lifted its head lazily as the man continued onward. It was hotter than he had expected, having to take off his knitted beanie to keep the heat out as he picked his way through the musky swamp.

He came to a long, wooden bridge that sat deep in the heart of the Atchafalaya Basin. It led to a giant tree that cast it's long, thin branches over the rivers below. The water here ran the opposite way as if the land was haunted, causing the earth to flood and destroy many of the plants around the large tree.

The inside of the oak was carved out, a building had been made to sit inside and around the ever growing tree that sat in the middle of the crisscross river. The wooden bridge raced over the water, just hardly kissing it causing some of the large wooden panels to rot.

A sign sat sideways in the water, covered in green moss with the wooden plank it was nailed to, seeming only seconds from breaking.

'Danjal's bar; Family owned, password only.'

Ancitif moved slowly over the wooden planks below, being careful not to bother the alligators that watched him with curious eyes. The soft noises of the swamp brought him comfort as he made for the large, wooden door. He knocked lightly, a slit in the front was pushed open to show a pair of narrowed, blue eyes.

"Password," the man behind the door grunted, Ancitif snorted lightly, the skink on his shoulder licked at the air as Ancitif attempted to recall the password he was given.

"Come on Danjal, you called me here," he huffed

"Not the password,"

The demon rolled his eyes, racing his fingers through his short choppy hair.

"Do I have to say it?"

"Do you want to get into my bar?"

"Fine," the man bit his lip, crossing arms over his chest. "Pork chop,"

"Was that so hard?"

"You could have come up with a cooler password," Ancitif murmured as the door let out a low groan and swung inward. A man stood before him now, holding a beer, his large frame taking up most of the doorway.

"Saying pork chop isn't the same as eating one," he pointed out.

His face held a serious expression with a furry, large mustache that covered his lip making it near impossible to tell the others expression. Grey hair dotted in the demon's large beard, skin a cool white, he wore his hair neat and combed back, his eyes looked tired as he stepped back to let the demon in.

"What took you so long?" Danjal asked as Ancitif stepped into the bar. He was hit with the smell of body odor mixed with stale alcohol, marijuana and cigarette smoke.

"Traffic" Ancitif replied absentmindedly

The lights shone yellow down on the large crowds of creatures below, demons, werewolves, vampires, even a Sasquatch crowed the room. All laughing, drinking, chatting. They huddled around a few pool tables in the middle, some stood on a balcony on the second floor, the room reached high into the tree. A bar top sat to the right, a woman with snakes for hair passed out drinks to the creatures that crowded the wooden tables.

"Added new additions huh?" Ancitif asked the other as the men started to move past the crowds, going towards the bar where a few televisions played the news. Though the demon couldn't hear what the woman on the screen said he eyed the picture of Abel that was being shown.

"Yeah well, I got two hands and a lot of time," the man grunted, taking a seat on one of the wooden bar stools.

"Hey Callista!" Ancitif said with a cheerful voice as he sat down, the bartender turned to him with a smile. Her pupils slits, snakes covered the top of her head, sitting happily among one another. They flickered their tongues at the demon as he waved her down, sharp, venomous teeth sticking from the serpents gums.

"Well if it isn't Ancitif! And Alan," she chuckles, leaning forward and petting the blue tongued Skinks head. The lizard simply blinked.

"What brings you here?" She asked, pouring the man a Coke and dropping it in front of him. He snatched it up, taking a few gulps of the cold soda.

"Danjal called me," he replied with a smile at the other.

"Still off the alcohol, huh?" A demon to his side asked.

"I can't relapse now," He mused, "even though I want too,"

"Especially with what's happening," a werewolf snorted, he sat beside another wolf. Their eyes bloodshot from the blunt the two men shared, dark skin glittered with sweat. He took a drag of the drugs, letting the smoke billow for a few heartbeats.

"Did you see Chamuel?" The other werewolf asked, he ripped up a paper napkin at the memory.

"And wars wings will signal the end,"

The creatures around Ancitif murmured to one another, he let out a sigh as he drank the cold soda. His eyes fell to the tattoos on his fingers, the collection of different arrows and a bow always brought him comfort.

"Well we just have to keep living until that Winchester comes and busts down the doors," Danjal murmured as he swallowed the last of his beer. Leaning back in the chair. Everyone muttered among themselves again, Ancitif looked down at his drink with a frown on his lips.

"Hey, you still working for that bitch?" Callista asked, placing another beer in front of Danjal.

"Obizuth? Yeah, unfortunately,"

"Why do you even bother," Danjal asked, "I hate that bitch. Thinks she's Satan's gift to the world because she helped make the darkness."

"Yeah man, it's not worth it," a demon beside him added, a few whispered their agreement. The bar falling quieter around him.

"I know," he groaned, "when this all started I didn't...see how deep into this Obizuth was. She came to me and told me she wanted the Chamulet. Offered me a good chunk of change. Next thing I know I'm being thrown around by Baal and I'm trapped. I've tried to get out but it's like that bitch has her claws in me!"

He groaned, rubbing his temples with a shake of his head.

"That's because you can't say no," Callista huffed.

"Baal's one of us at least," Danjal retorted.

"He's one of them now," Callista said with a nod to the television screen.

"He's still a reformed demon," Danjal retorted, "and a good friend of mine."

"Friend or not, he's with the Winchester. For all we know that's it for us, Baal could bring him right here and we're done for!" The darker skinned werewolf barked, slamming a fist lazily to the wooden table.

His friend nodded his agreement, "for all we know they're coming to get us right now,"

A chill rolled over the bar, the music continued to play but it was as if everyone's attention was suddenly on the conversation at hand. Everyone whispered to one another at this.

"Now hold on!" Danjal said, standing up so his voice would carry more, "Baal understands that not all creatures are evil. He knows us for Faith's sake! He understands we're trying to be better, why would he bring the Winchester here?"

"Because that's a Winchester, they've been the bane of the Supernaturals existence since Adiel Winchester came home from war." Someone piped up.

"Yeah, they're not exactly known for being friendly and forgiving," a vampire snorted from where he stood by the pool table.

"You fought Abel, didn't you?" Callista asked, tilting her head at Ancitif with a fearful look in her gaze.

"Yeah, he's smart. He's a lot like his father," the demon whispered, causing the group to murmur to one another again. Their voices were concerned, fearful.

"Well," one of the werewolves whispered, taking a drag of the blunt "He is a king of Kings, aren't they supposed to be…" he waved his hands in the air as if attempting to find the right words, "I don't know, compassionate? Forgiving?"

"Come on Ziggy," the darker skinned wolf snorted, "he's a Winchester! When have they ever shown compassion? They kill first, ask questions later."

The group whispered their agreement, Ancitif swallowed the last of the bubbling soda. His skink let out a soft grunt as it bit at the demon's ear, causing the man to offer his hand to the creature instead. The lizard bit down on Ancitif's skin, drawing blood but the demon didn't seem to care. Pushing his jacket sleeves up to prevent blood from staining the yellow hoodie. He felt Danjal's eyes on the healed marks that dotted the demon's veins in the middle of his arm.

"Well, if Baal's with him I trust him," Danjal snorted. Though something about the man's voice told Ancitif that he knew more than he let on.

"Well, wasn't this all put together by Faith?" Ziggy asked, his eyes moved to his friend, "right, Edgar?"

The other werewolf nodded, "yeah! That's true, Faith was all about love and-- mushy garbage," the man laughed.

"Oh yeah," Danjal snorted, "when she was still around everyone and their mother had a soul mate. Now? I hardly see it."

"You think everyone in that group are just gonna pair up and fuck themselves to death? We won't have to worry," Callista laughed, leaning against the counter top and messing with the snakes on her head causing them to hiss in annoyance.

"Maybe, if Faith is really behind all this it's possible they're all soul mates in some way or another," Danjal mused.

"Why does Baal get a soul mate?" Another demon snorted, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I deserve a soul mate! I haven't done anything terrible for at least a year,"

"Because no one wants to date your ugly mug," a woman laughed, nudging the man beside her.

"So if Faith is behind all this then they're going to save the world with love!" Callista said, pretending to gag, causing the few around the bar to chuckle.

"Hey guys shut up," A vampire piped up, pointing to the TV. Callista grabbed a remote and turned the volume up, "they're talking about the darkness."

"--the darkness is growing, though we know little about it we've been able to evacuate those who live near it for now. We have reports of a group attempting to stop this so-called 'darkness' but so far we haven't heard from them since their original announcement."

The creatures murmured to one another, Ancitif took the remote from Callista and turned the volume up more. Eyeing the television with narrowed eyes,

"Thanks June!" A man said, showing the inside of the studio of the new station. "The group took New York by storm, from hell hounds to Pishacha. Here's what happened, and our advice on how to stay safe in this new world."

"We're so dead," someone whispered as the TV showed clips of the group fighting against the creatures and monsters. As it showed the clip of War blasting off the building, nearly leveling a few floors under the weight of his power, the talking in the bar got louder as a few panicked.

"We can't survive against that," someone shouted fearfully, a sob in their voice.

"That angel's under the thumb of a Winchester, it's going to turn us to salt!"

"He'll kill us all, he won't feel anything either."

"Why can't they leave us alone, we're trying to turn over a new leaf, that's why we have this bar!"

"We need to find a more underground place to relax,"

Ancitif couldn't handle it anymore, he shut off the television and got to his feet. Facing everyone now, fear pumping through his veins as he attempted to swallow his anxiety.

"Everyone shut up!" He yelled, but they continued, their voices echoed in the bar filling the tree trunk with their sounds.

"Hey!" Danjal shouted, his voice boomed around them as he pounded the bottom of his large glass of beer on the table. The group fell silent, all eyes moving to the short, scrawny demon with the lizard on his shoulder.

He swallowed hard, shakenly climbing up on the bar.

"L-Look every creature," he started, glancing around him with fearful blue eyes. "I'm on the inside. I...I know all of their plans," he wasn't sure why he was speaking to them, but something tugged at his skin giving him the courage he didn't know he had.

The group whispered again but Danjal cleared his throat causing everyone to fall back into silence.

"I'm going...to see if I can...talk to The Winchester,"

"What! That's a death sentence!" Callista gasped, slamming his fist on the wood below her.

"It wasn't for Baal," Ancitif pointed out, "maybe...we should trust in Faith's choice for her King,"

Everyone whispered to one another, all eyes on him.

"Look, I don't know Abel that well," he continued, "but we don't want to die, we don't want the Earth to die."

"I hear that!" Edgar laughed, holding up a beer with a grin. A few others muttering their agreement.

"So...I say we help him,"

Silence followed this, "I know we want to stay quiet, keep our heads down and hope hunters don't find us but...I don't think we have a choice. If we show the king there was no threat...maybe...maybe!"

"He won't kill us," Danjal finished for the other, getting to his feet.

"Look family, we all have denounced our evil ways and from what I can see this Abel is in over his head. If we can help them, maybe, we can help win this war," Danjal continued, taking a few sips of the cold beer.

"And what if he tries to kill us?" Callista whispered. Her eyes troubled as she stroked the heads of her snakes.

"Then we fight for our lives. Either way, I think we're screwed, the only positive part of all this is that Baal is in their group. I know he'll stick up for us,"

"Yeah, but for all we know his soul mate is Sam Winchester, and Sam's killed plenty of us!" Someone shouted out, the group nodded to one another.

"It's either help the Winchesters, or sit on our asses and die with the rest of the world," Danjal snorted.

"You don't have to help," Ancitif said, "I'm...going to try and stall out however I can," he said with a gulp, silently wishing he hadn't been a part of all this.

"Just don't get caught," Callista murmured, "I used to be close to Obizuth, she's no push over."

"You're telling me," Ancitif snorted, "it's worse than that, she's also annoying,"

He glanced around him again, feeling his chest tighten, "Arphaxat is visiting Abel in his dreams,"

The crowd broke out in whispers, Danjal looked dejected at the news. Running his fingers through his air as if trying to calm the raging anxiety through his system.

"I didn't realize he was part of this,"

"Shut up!" Ancitif shouted, causing the group to fall back into their silence.

"How long? How long has Arphaxat been visiting Abel?" Someone asked

He shuffled uncomfortably, he knew the news wouldn't be taken well. Arphaxat wasn't a popular man, being the demon of distorted realities the man could break just about anyone without a lick of remorse.

"...few months," he finally uttered.

"And the guy hasn't got Abel's soul yet?" A woman asked.

A man with large red eyes blinked up at Ancitif, his large wings flickered as he spoke.

"Is it due to the angel? Maybe the two already figured out Faith's plans." His voice was deep, yet it had a small buzz to it.

"Maybe, but that won't matter if Arphaxat has anything to say about it."

"What happens if his soul is taken?" The moth asked, tilting his head at the other.

Ancitif sat down at the bartop now, feeling exhausted from speaking for so long.

"I don't know," he admitted, "Obizuth is keeping things from me. She doesn't trust me,"

"Well," Danjal snorted, he held up his beer to the air, "from this day forth, this bar is joining Heavens Traitors! Who's with me?"

Everyone glanced around at each other until Mothman grabbed his drink, holding it in the air with a glitter in his gaze.

"I am," he shouted, this set off a chain reaction.

"I am,"

"We're in,"

"Count me in,"

Ancitif smiled wide, jumping off the seat, grabbing his now full cup of soda and smashing it against Danjal's glass with a laugh.

"Let's help save this shitty world!"

***

Ancitif stood beside Danjal, the snow under their feet. Their breath billowed from their lips as they dug their shovels into the frozen ground below, the men didn't say a word as they worked. Ancitif shivered in the cold, the overly large yellow hoodie hardly kept him warm against the angry snowy air. It was deep in the night, he could hardly make out anything in front of his face as he worked but it didn't matter.

"Almost there," Danjal grunted, piling the frozen dirt to the side. His eyes hidden behind a pair of glasses as he attempted to focus on the task at hand,

"Why are we doing this again?" The scrawny demon asked, glancing at the bigger man.

"I got word from someone on the inside that Cain is going to try and kill Abel on Saturday," he grunted, "and if we can surround the lake with these beads," he held up the large, wooden beads. They shone in the harsh light of the moon, teeth could be seen between a few of the large circles with carvings dug into the yellow bones.

"That'll keep the werewolves at bay, darkness can't take over a werewolf if there aren't any,"

Something growled in the undergrowth causing both men to pause what they're doing, glancing around them in fear. The men huddled closer together, Danjel pulled a handgun out of its hiding spot on his belt.

"What tribes of werewolves are on our side again?" Ancitif whispered to his friend, hiding behind the other.

"The pack who's land we're on should be friendly enough," he whispered, the growling continued.

Ancitif eyed the brush around them, the ice made it impossible to pinpoint the exact spot their enemy stood. He could hear the soft patter of feet on snow,

"I got this," Ancitif whispered, he closed his eyes, whistling softly into the air. Within seconds the loud roar of a hell hound could be heard. The creature exploded from the undergrowth with angry eyes, pinning down a shape to the icy snow.

"Mark! Off!" Ancitif ordered the dog, it looked to the brunette then down to the human under it. With a snort the demonic hound stepped off them, making its way to Ancitif and standing in front of him.

"Your connection with animals is bullshit, I can't even get a cat to come to me," Danjal whispered.

Amaryllis scrambled to their feet, snarling and spitting as they did so. Their skin shuttered, their eyes turned to slits.

"Amaryllis, to what do we owe the child of Veles?" Danjal asked, dropping his shovel to the ground.

"I could ask you the same," they hissed, "trying to ruin the king's plans?"

"Cain isn't the king," Ancitif snorted.

"He's one of them," they hissed out, slithering towards the pair. Spitting venom to the floor beside the men causing the hell hound known as Mark to growl at the snake-like person.

"One of them? What does that mean?" Ancitif asked, but his question was ignored.

"You can't stop our plans," Amaryllis continued.

"Werewolves can't cross the sacred teeth of Joan." Danjal pointed towards the beads and teeth in his open palm. "We already placed four, one more and this entire area of the forest will be safe."

"You think I'm that foolish? Hah," they let their head fall back, snorting with laughter, "Abel's going to die here, and nothing and no one will be able to stop it,"

Before anyone could react a vivid light washed over Amaryllis' being, the human body morphed to that of a werewolf with snake-like eyes. It glared down at the group with a wicked smile,

"When in Rome," they giggled between sharp teeth.

The two took a few steps back as Amaryllis leapt towards them, the hell hound roared in anger as it charged the other dog creature. The canines slammed into the snow, turning the ground red with blood. The two demons quickly placed the beads into the hole they had dug, Danjal whispering Latin as they covered it with frozen dirt.

The hell hound let out a yowl of agony, catching Ancitif's attention. Amaryllis had their sharp, snake-like fangs deep into the hell hound's neck, black and red blood drenched the dog's thick fur.

"Mark!"

A snap could be heard all around them as the hell hound fell to the floor in a heap. Unmoving.

"Get out of here," amaryllis snarled towards them, licking the blood from their open maw. "Or you'll be next,"

Before Ancitif could say or do anything he felt Danjal grab him and the pair vanished. Amaryllis stared daggers at the spot the two had stood, they moved their large body towards the hole in the ground that was badly patched up. Digging their claws into the frozen earth, plucking the beads out and crushing them between their teeth with a satisfying crunch.

Ancitif blinked as the men appeared in his apartment, the glow of the reptile lights and soft sound of dripping water from his broken shower brought a light comfort.

"What do we do?" Ancitif asked, turning towards his friend with shaking hands.

"I...think we need to talk to Baal," be whispered finally, "I didn't want too, but if the king is in trouble,"

"Oh you're not doing that,"

Both men turned to the sound of the voice, Arphaxat stepped into view with a grin on his features.

"I knew something was odd about you, you're a traitor to Lucifer, huh?" Arphaxat chuckles, Ancitif felt his heart drop as he saw the blond was holding his beloved pet. Alan didn't seem to notice, nor care, as it dozed lazily against the demon. Enjoying the man's warmth.

The world around them turned to black as the demon took a few steps towards the pair, his eyes glowed against the blackness. His smile was so wide it took up his face, red rimmed glasses stood out against the dark colors.

"Ancitif," Danjal whispered to the other, Ancitif turned to his friend with wide, fearful eyes. He was shaking violently as he attempted to not freeze in fear.

"Run," The demon roared out, slamming his fists to the floor sending a wave of Earth at the blonde who gasped in surprise at the sudden attack, stumbling backwards just barely missing being blasted into the air. The skink didn't enjoy the sudden movement, it planted its teeth into the other's hand causing Arphaxat to yowl in pain.

Dropping the lizard to the floor it raced towards Ancitif who snatched Alan up and held him against his chest. The lizard dug its claws into the yellow hoodies fabric.

"Eat shit," Danjal hissed at Arphaxat who started to laugh. His head falling back, his shoulders rolled, his legs bent as he continued his chortling.

"You think you can best me? With some dirt!" The blonde laughed, turning his head to Danjal only to shoot forward as if his feet had wings on them. He snapped his fingers, shooting a blast of darkness towards the other.

"Get out of here Ancitif," Danjal whispered, "if I die the family needs you to guide them,"

"Me?!"

Danjal roared, two horns exploded from the man's head as he leapt from the path of the darkness. Slamming his foot to the floor, sending a shock wave of Earth at the floating demon who grunted in pain as he was knocked backwards.

"I can't help any of them!" Ancitif shouted, "I'm a coward!"

"I don't have time for this," Danjal hissed at his friend. "Just go!"

Ancitif took a few steps away from the other, he looked around in the darkness of the room. He could just make out his window, the world around it shuttered as it distorted as though glitching. He wasn't sure how long the opening would last as the demon of reality shifted the world around them.

Ancitif stumbled towards the window, silently thankful he lived on the bottom floor and scrambled his way out of the home. He heard Arphaxat shouting something but the boom of Earth being forced upwards made it impossible to make out.

Ancitif dropped from the window with a grunt, holding the skink to his chest as he fell into a bush. The snowy branches poked at him, he held the upset lizard close to him to prevent the creature from being stabbed by the sharp wood. Pushing his way out of the frozen bush the man took off running down the cold, empty streets, taking in air as he went. Tears racing down his cheeks, for all he knew he just signed Danjal's death warrant.

He continued down the street only to freeze in his steps, the apartment building exploded behind him. He whipped around with wide, fearful blue eyes. A large rock was jetting out of the bottom of the small apartment complex, stabbing high in the sky in an ominous manner.

'I need to help the innocent!'. He thought to himself, taking a step forward towards the complex, only to step a few inches back and turn around. He raced away down the street, he couldn't stop, he didn't want to, he was too afraid.

***

He sobbed into the glass of soda before him, he found himself back in the bar with the skink wrapped around his neck. Licking absentmindedly at the demon's neck, a few bite marks on the man's skin but he didn't seem the least bit worried knowing his pet had just been afraid.

"He told you to run," Callista whispered as she leaned against the counter top. The sun high in the skies now, the bar was closed for the day until nightfall leaving the bartender and the demon alone, he looked towards her with red rimmed eyes.

"You think he's dead?" He choked out, "I'm such a coward, I should have gone back! But I don't have any powers like that, I'm just a low level scum of hell!" He wailed.

Callista shushed him, pulling a small soda gun from the counter and filling the half full glass.

"Drink your coke," she said, giving a small smile. The snakes on her head asleep as she moved, careful not to wake them.

"He's probably fine, it'll take more than Arphaxat to take him down. He is a higher level than Arphaxat too," She mused.

"He told me I had to lead! I can't lead. I'm not a leader, I'm a coward! I can't even tell Obizuth to fuck off,"

Callista tilted her head lightly, reaching forward and racing two fingers down the lizard's back. The skink blinked at her, licking at the air.

"Animals really seem to like you," she murmured, "demons, humans, all the creatures of the world? They're just animals."

She crosses her arms over her chest, the woman's sepia skin glowed in the orange lights of the bar.

"Even so," he sniffled, rubbing his eyes as the tears continued to fall. His nose stuffed up, "I don't have any weapons. I...can do the claws and that's it!"

He practically wailed this out at her, she rolled her eyes at him and ruffled the man's hair.

"Hey, stop it. Being a demon isn't just about how to manipulate things around you," she looked around her. Danjal kept a good assortment of guns but she knew the other wouldn't accept it, it'd remind him too much of hunting. Besides, a gun felt too Winchester anyways.

An idea flashed before her eyes, "wait here," she said to the man. Walking from around the counter of the bar, she pet the lizard as she moved past him and towards a door with the words 'employee only' tapped to the front. Ancitif sniffled again, rubbing his nose against the wrinkled band shirt. Having hung his hoodie up, not afraid of the woman seeing the track marks on his arms. He felt terrified, why of all demons would he be the one to lead these other creatures? He was hardly anything. In fact, even when he lived in hell, he was often tortured by higher up demons. That was until he decided to flee to Earth.

The demon glanced towards the lizard on his neck, it was gnawing on his shirt. Lazily chewing as if he was falling asleep,

"I wish I was a lizard sometimes," Ancitif murmured towards his pet, reaching up and scratching the animal's head.

"Then you couldn't shoot this!" Callista laughed as she walked out of the room she vanished into only heartbeats ago, holding up a bow with a set of arrows. The arrows nestled into a bag, the bow reminded the demon of Robin hood as he reached forward and took them from her. The blue wood matched his eyes as if it were made for him.

"How did you…know I could shoot these."

Callista snorted out a laugh, "baby, whenever you used to get drunk all the time you would always brag about it. Besides, Danjal told me."

He smiled at his friend, wrapping the bag of arrows around his body. He felt an odd sense of belonging suddenly.

"Looks good on you, Robin Hood," she said with a nod. He grinned up at her and back down at the bow.

"It's just a start, maybe you can find someone who can make you better arrows than just those old ones," crossing her arms over her chest again, her bright Amber eyes glowed.

"Find someone who can make them explode or something, I don't know, but what I do know is if Danjal said you were suppose to be our leader than I trust him,"

The reality of it all fell back over the demon, his smile faded. He felt tears burning into his eyes again at the large responsibility of possibly leading a group of untrained misfits into any sort of battle.

"I'm a coward with a bow and arrow, how can I possibly do anything? Danjal can lift whole chunks of Earth! I can hardly tell Obizuth 'no'" he whispered.

"Well, you might not have a choice." She said with a shrug, grabbing a rag from under the counter top and starting to dust off the bottles of alcohol on the wall behind her.

"I was afraid you'd say that,"

"Maybe the real hero is Alan." She mused, her voice lighter as she attempted to cheer the man up.

He snorted, smiling at the lizard that climbed halfway down his arm and stopped. His eyes closed as he dozed halfway to his destination,

"Are you the leader, Alan? Are you gonna go talk to Born Again for me?"

The lizard opened one eye halfway before closing it.

"One thing I do know," Callista murmured, causing Ancitif to glance up at her.

"If Arphaxat saw you as a traitor you might have more problems on your hand than just talking to a Winchester." She whispered.

A loud bang rang out around them, both turned their heads to the doors of the bar. Danjal stumbled into the room with a grin plastered on his face. Blood covered his head, hands and shirt but his eyes were on fire.

"You're okay!" Ancitif shouted, his smile grew wide as Callista scoffed.

"Told you," She whispered, "Now that you're here I am going to go clean the ice machine, someone needs to babysit," She teased the demon.

"Sounds good, grab me a beer first," Danjal huffed as he made his way to the spot besides Ancitif, sitting down at one of the bar stools with a sigh.

"What happened? I saw that giant rock and gunned it!"

The demon laughed as he picked up the cold bottle in his dirty hands, racing his fingers through his messy locks that usually sat perfectly neat on his head.

"Oh I nailed him!" The big man laughed, "Grabbed him by the head," He took a long swig of the beer, letting out a burp.

"Knocked him clean into that rock,"

Ancitif's eyes widened as he imagined the look on Arphaxat's face when he collided with the hard earth. His eyes followed Callista as she walked into the back before turning his attention back on Danjal.

"Then I grabbed the son of a bitch," He continued, "Teleported his ass to a place the innocent don't roam around and beat him into the floor. For a high level demon he's not too strong," The man snorted, taking another few gulps. "Took me a bit to get back here, was too tired to fucking teleport. But now, I'm back!"

Ancitif nodded slowly, looking down at his drink. He was happy his friend had returned relatively unharmed but the anxious energy in his body caused him to bite his lip.

"So, Robin Hood, are you happy to see me?"

he felt his face flush at the nickname, almost forgetting the weapons he held around his person.

"I'm more than happy, I was worried I'd have to lead some weird-- demon war," He chuckled, taking a long drink of the coke and placing the empty glass down on the table.

"Can you imagine? Ancitif fighting beside Born Again, piles of once evil creatures behind me. My hair flowing in the wind!"

The two laughed, Danjal shook his head and sighed,

"Yeah, that's still true though, you're still going to lead us," He laughed.

"What?" Ancitif snapped his head towards the other now with wide eyes, feeling his energy deflate like a balloon.

"Well yeah," The larger demon chuckled, "You were picked by Faith,"

"No I wasn't, did you hit your head in that fight?"

"Look, I called you to the bar for this exact reason. I saw you, on the television," He nodded towards the large flat screens.

"You were with Obizuth, in a room. Those hell hounds, man, some cool stuff. I didn't know you could control them,"

"I-I can't, I was never trained, they just listen to me,"

"Like your little shoulder friend," He chuckled, poking the lizard in the nose causing him to glare, snapping his sharp teeth at Danjal.

"So what! Obizuth just came to me and dragged me to do this, I don't even want to. I had to call back the dogs before they mauled these two idiot FBI agents with a super soaker!"

"Listen," He turned his body towards the other. Letting his hands rest on his knees, his bushy eyebrows narrowed.

"Faith must have picked you, I know Faith. She was the nicest creature that has walked this Earth. Thousands respected her, demon and angel alike. She was kind to anyone, anything it didn't matter. But she also had this way about her, she liked to grant miracles from outta left field, you see. She predicted the darkness from day one, and when I saw you with that Winchester. I just knew. I saw you, you let him get that bottle, you didn't fight back against that other human. You could have wiped the floor with him. Faith, she isn't subtle. She picked you." He pointed at the other.

"think about it, what kind of crazy luck that you quit drinking, got off drugs, happened to move to New York to buy an ugly lizard, only to be dragged into the middle of this with the other demons and you're the only good one.

That isn't some coincidence, Faith never believed in those anyways. She's driving this, somehow, she is and I knew she was the second that darkness came to the surface. That's why I have that," He nodded to the bow and arrow in the other's grip, "There's a reason you were always the best shot in the group. Tell me, why did you start doing archery?"

He stared at the other, the man's deep voice boomed, he looked so intense that it almost scared him. He could see nothing but fire in the other person's face.

"Well?"

"When I first got this vessel his mother, Faith, gave him an archery set before she passed,"

The man nodded slowly, "Faith. Gave you the archery set. Faith picked you."

He turned away from the other, clenching his fists as more tears raced down his cheeks.

"I can't I'm nothing,"

"You're not nothing,"

"I can't fight, I have nothing,"

"You have arrows!"

"Wow, I'm terrified, here comes Robin Hood with his arrows,"

"And you have them," He pointed to the TV that played the clip of Abel and Chamuel flying into the skies of New York.

"Why did the gods put you all on Earth in the same place, at the same time, if not to make history?"