I knew our luck was running too well.

We had made it into Tartarus and then back to the city boundary relatively unscathed. I knew with certainty that our good fortune couldn't last. Things were never that easy. At least, that was what my life in the supernatural had taught me so far.

I hated being right.

It started with a prickling on the back of my neck. Someone was watching us – the touch of their gaze burning into my flesh. I didn't have to look to know that trouble had arrived.

"We're being watched," I warned in a low voice before glancing at the warriors behind me. "Be on guard."

Lucius's orb thudded painfully against my chest as I came to a halt. I had taken a piece of the leather from the beast's nest to fashion a sling and, though it had held up under the weight of the orb, its comfort had worn off quickly. My chest felt bruised and tender from the repeated impact of the orb against my flesh. Still, I pushed through the pain because it was small in comparison to what it would mean if I could give Lucius what he had been missing.

The castle doors were within sight yet still too far away. The rough and rocky terrain of Tartarus has been replaced by more civilised surroundings but it offered little comfort. I could feel danger lurking close by. Far too close for comfort. For a moment I almost sure I felt them breathing down my neck. Eyes alert, I tightened my grip on my sword as I scanned the surrounding landscape. It was as if all of held their breath. There was the same eerie stillness that had existed in Tartarus but here it felt wrong.

Usually there was evidence of life everywhere, even if it was the underworld. But now, the air was strangely devoid of everything. There was no distant chatter from the town. There were no chuckles of the castle patrols as they attempted to pass time. All of these sounds were just – absent.

Castiel had paused a few feet ahead, sword held aloft and knees bent as he prepared for an attack. He met my eyes for a second and offered a stiff nod.

Rolling my shoulders, I pressed my hand on to the orb to ensure it was still secure, before allowing my sword to become corporeal. The comforting weight filled my hands as gripped it firmly with both hands.

For a moment everything hung on a precipice, both sides waiting for the signal to begin.

And then there was a loud crunch as one of the warriors behind me shifted on his feet. It was far too loud in the stillness and, as if it was the starting pistol, noise erupted around us. They emerged from behind trees, walls and bushes in a rapid wave. It was just one large surging mass of angry demons of all shapes and sizes. They flooded in from every direction until they quickly surrounded us on all sides.

Adrenaline coursed through my blood and I felt myself slipping back into the familiar battle stance. Back to back with Castiel, my sword was poised and ready to strike as I stared up into the angry faces of our enemy. Their lips were curled into feral snarls and their eyes were cold. They were definitely not a welcoming party.

With a great lunge, the first demon hurled a dagger straight towards me. Moving lightly on my feet, I darted to the side and used my sword to deflect the blade. It clattered to the floor at my feet.

And then everything was moving so quickly I had barely a moment to think. My body moved on instinct, twisting and turning through the motions as I dodged, ducked, and weaved around the attacks coming my way. They were relentless. And so was I.

I jabbed my sword forward and it cleaved through fabric and flesh like a hot knife through butter. The light in the demon's eyes faded quickly. My stomach rolled uncomfortably in response. Taking a life was so easy and yet I still felt the weight of it upon my soul.

Yet there was no time to linger on how battered and torn my soul was going to be. As soon as I had withdrawn my sword with a sickening squelch, the demon's body dropping lifelessly to the floor, another filled his place. This one was larger, meaner, and packed more muscle than half of the fallen angels combined. His fiery red scaled skin only made him that more fearsome to look at. A brief jolt of fear coursed through me. A part of me would always be that human single mum who would have no clue what to do in a fight.

But now there was a part of me that was now something else.

Reacting on instinct, I used both hands to lift my sword as the axe came hurtling towards me. My opponent was strong, the brute strength behind his blow sent trembles along the length of my arms. It hurt. My feet slid across the ground as, with gritted teeth, I thrust him away with all of my strength. He stumbled back a single step. And if that didn't just add fuel to his rage.

His eyes grew more determined, his focus only on me.

My attacker tensed in preparation for his next blow. Watching his limbs coil, I sprung out of the way slashed my sword blindly in his direction in the process. The axe was too heavy and swept past me, burying itself in the ground where I had stood just a moment before. My own blade cut through the flesh of his arm, drawing a ribbon of dark blood that trailed down his arm.

Panting, I repositioned my blade, watching in my peripheral vision for the possibility of other attackers or even a rescue. There would be no help. We were outnumbered at least ten to one. Castiel was taking on six demons at once, his features fiercer than I had ever seen them as he stabbed and slashed at his opponents.

For this fight I would be on my own.

I swallowed past the dryness in my throat. The red skinned demon glanced down at his flesh wound slowly and growled. And then he smiled, his jagged teeth coated in blood with bits of someone's flesh stuck between his teeth.

Suddenly the blows were coming in a flurry of unyielding strikes; the small wound accelerating the demon's temper and I was his only focus. I dodged and met each attack with equal ferocity.

Breathing heavily, I readjusted my grip on my sword as I prepared for the next hit. With a roar, his axe came down once more. This time, ready for my tactics, his meaty hand crashed into my ribs as I jumped out of the way of the falling axe. With a grunt, the impact knocked me to the side.

My focus wavered as I fell, my sword dematerialising in the process. Thrusting out one hand to brace my fall and curling the other protectively around the orb resting against my chest, I tried to brace for the impact. My hand landed on something wet and warm a moment before the rest of my body hit the ground. Pain erupted along the entire length of my tired body. I clung onto only one thing even as the pain begged me to remain on the ground. I was still alive – for now.

But not everyone had been so lucky. As I lifted my eyes, I found myself staring at the lifeless form of one of the demon warriors. My stomach rolled at the realisation I was laying in his blood.

Loud heavy steps approached behind me. I felt the axe screaming through the air even as the demon's growl reached my ears. Rolling to the side as best as I could, a yelp was torn from my lips as the sharp lethal edge buried itself into the spot where I had been just a moment before.

Scrambling to my feet, my sword reformed in my scraped palm. Despite the sting, I gripped the blade tight. Despite the clash and clang of metal striking against metal, I focused only on my opponent. He grunted as he wrenched the axe from the ground, his eyes trained only on me. His muscles tightened and as he pulled back his axe. However, before he could bring it back down, I stepped forward and swung my sword towards his neck. The skin ripped open as if it was were made of tissue paper. Blood seeped from the wound.

Bile fought it was up my throat but there was no hesitation as I jumped back out of his reach. Large strong hands swiped after me, the demon taking a moment to register the mortal wound. Slowly his hands reached up to his neck. His gasped for breath, his dark blood bubbling up on his lips as he opened and closed his mouth.

And then he was falling. The ground shook as he hit the ground. His eyes held mine in their shock and I found myself unable to look away. I saw his fear and felt it as if it were my own. His fingers opened and closed several times, stretching out towards me, before they finally fell still.

His eyes dulled as his life left him. I swallowed and looked away. It didn't matter how big or strong he had been, he still died like anyone else.

A shudder coursed down my spine as I glanced around me. Only a few of our attackers remained on their feet but, one by one, they too were dispatched. But not without cost. Less than half of our group remained. The corpses of the other fallen warriors littered the floor.

Castiel made his way to my side. There was a large slash down the side of his face and his clothes were slashed and bloodied. Despite how terrible he looked, a part of me felt relief. Castiel had survived worse. Much worse. He had been captured by one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse and had been left on the verge of death. But he was strong and he had pulled through.

"Are you okay?" I asked, fighting the urge to mother him.

"It's nothing." He muttered, wiping at his brow to stop more blood from running into his eyes. "This was but a fraction of Terran's followers. There's something bigger happening here."

As if in answer to his words, a bright flash suddenly lit up the sky. A second later there was a loud boom of an explosion which sent the ground shuddering beneath her feet. Wincing at the assault on my eardrums, I spun around towards the source.

Fire burned brightly, flaring as a second explosion followed. Plumes on black smoke churned up into the air from the castle, the front entrance now a gaping mouth of fire and rubble. Even from the distance, I could hear the screams.

I sucked in a sharp breath. It felt as if my heart had seized within my chest at the picture before me set in.

Danny.

Lucius.

The blood drained from my face as I turned to meet Castiel's gaze. "We need to get back. Now."

Castiel nodded his head, his lips pressed into a thin line as he turned to face the group of battle worn demons. "Two of you stay and search for any of our wounded. The rest of you follow me."

Pressing my hand against the orb resting against my chest, reassured by the warmth of Lucius's soul within, I fell into a jog behind Castiel as we headed towards the flames.

This battle had been won but the bigger fight was only just beginning.