The next day was reasonably the same. The ghosts kept coming from all angles this time, not just at the warding's weakest point.
The Hunters were doing everything in their power to keep them at bay, but there were simply not enough of them to control all the spirits.
"Alright, so what's new? Any word from the outside?" Dean asked as he, Sam, Eden, Willow, Castiel and Rowena walked through the graveyard where Jack had died, as the Witch had come up with a plan.
"The ghosts are still at it, trying to break down the barrier." Sam explained, looking briefly down to his phone for any messages before putting it back in his tan jacket pocket. "I left some Hunters at the gym to keep the peace, the rest are set up around the perimeter in case-"
"In case the spell breaks and the ghosts come bustin' out." Dean finished for him, looking back to Rowena. "This better work."
"It will work." The Witch retorted, holding her head up high as they continued to walk. "The 'Rafforza l'incantesimo' is a powerful transubstantiation spell. It can turn a gossamer into concrete. Like I said, get me close to the epicentre, find me a nice, ghost-free space... I'll patch those crumbling walls right up and we'll all be home in time for high tea."

They passed the cavernous pit to Hell on their way through, souls still vacating the space in their dozens. Sam and Dean brought them to a stop a couple of dozen feet from the crypt they'd hidden in a couple of days previous.
"Great. A nice, protected space." Cas uttered, shaking his head.
"It's the best we've got that's close enough to the pit." Eden pointed out as they began walking again.
As soon as they entered the small building, the brothers immediately got to work. They pushed iron bars through the door handles, just as they had done before, and traced lines of rock salt at every possible entrance.
Rowena took off her grey cardigan, fully revealing her ankle length, baby pink satin gown as Castiel placed her bags down on the floor in the centre of the room.
In the bags were the Book of the Damned, a copper bowl and various ingredients.
Eden, Willow, Belphegor and Castiel watched as she began to pour the right amounts of each into the bowl before being interrupted by loud banging on the doors.
"That was fast..." Eden commented. "I would've thought they'd be too busy focusing on the warding to come at us."
"Just means we need to get this spell up and running a whole lot faster." Dean replied.
Rowena stood up and raised the bowl out in front of her with both hands, taking a deep breath before reciting a lengthy spell.
Her eyes glowed a bright lavender as the spell enacted. Sam got a text from one of the Hunters and so took out his phone.
"Looks like it's working." He announced as Rowena's chants continued.
The Witch's eyes flickered for a moment. She shook her head, breathily trying to keep the spell going.
She looked terrified and in pain. Her hands shook as she yelled one last chant.
The bowl's contents exploded with the purple glow, snapping in two as Rowena fell to the floor.
Eden and Willow rushed over to help her up, steadying her.
"Rowena?" Dean's eyes were wide with shock and worry.
"We're all going to die." The teary Witch whimpered. "Drink."
"Of course." Sam panted, rushing to her side. "Dean."
The older brother nodded, kneeling by one of the bags to grab a metal decanter filled with water.
"A real drink!" Rowena protested, sighing heavily as Eden and Willow sat her on the floor to lean against one of the crypt pillars.
"Right..." Sam looked to Dean, silently beckoning for the flask he knew he had on him.
Dean sighed, rolling his eyes as he took the flask from the inside pocket of his dulled brown jacket, handing it to Sam, who passed it on to Rowena.
"Well then, now that we're waiting for the Witch's hooch to kick in, can we finally admit the obvious?" Belphegor shrugged.
"That you're as useless as ever and need to be put down?" Eden glared.
"Uh... No. That she failed." The Demon replied. "So, if we're keeping score, that's one for the Demon and none for the Witch."
"The enchantment couldn't work. No magic could!" Rowena argued. "The spell put me into a... A communion with the wall. I could feel how weak it is - how close to collapse. And I could feel why... I could feel them... All of them."
"All of them. 'Them' Who?" Sam shook his head, confused.
"The spirits! Their anger and their hatred, writhing and raging. They're pressed up against those walls, breaking them down. There are too many and they're too wild and desperate and angry." Rowena sobbed, taking a deep breath before she continued. "Together they are too strong. Those walls will fall and there's no magic on Earth that can stop it."
"How long do we have?" Castiel asked, taking a few steps forward.
"Hours, if we're lucky."
"Then we get out there." Dean said as he and Sam rose to their feet. "We take out as many as we can until those walls fall. Rowena, mix up some of those crystals you got."
The Witch let out a breathy, disbelieving chuckle.
"It wouldn't matter." Her voice was shaky. "Those things? It'd be like tossing mouse traps at the Great Plague. I am telling you, it's over! Perhaps if I'd have got here sooner, there would've been any number of spells I could've tried to close the gate to Hell before it got to this point. But now, it's too late. The cat's out the bloody bag..."
Belphegor's brows raised, motioning that he was rolling his proverbial eyes as he sighed and headed for the crypt doors.
"Where the Hell are you going?" Dean demanded, only to be ignored. "Hey!"
"I got him." Castiel grumbled, following the Demon out.
"We're not just gunna give up!" The older brother called after the Demon, turning down to Rowena. "That's not who we are! Let's go out there, let's take care of 'em!"
Sam held out a hand, stopping his brother's outburst before kneeling beside Rowena.
"Rowena, hey. You okay? Do you need anything?" He asked, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"A moment..." She whimpered, turning away from him.
"Of course. Sure." He uttered, putting his hand down.

Dean began loading up his weapons as Rowena sat on the steps by the crypt doors, throwing a belt of rock salt shells around his torso.
"What do we do now?" Willow asked, stood in the far corner of the room with Eden, who was painfully watching Rowena in her spiral of hopelessness.
"I'm not quite sure what we can do." The Dark Angel sighed.
"You're the Queen of Hell. Surely you can do something. Order the Demons to recapture the souls and bring them back to Hell or something!" The girl suggested.
"It wouldn't do any good. With that pit opened up, the spirits wouldn't take any notice. They have a free pass out of Hell and they're only hours away from breaking through the only thing standing between them and the rest of the world. Like Rowena said, those ghosts are unchecked and desperate. Demons wouldn't be any use right now."

Meanwhile, Sam approached Dean as he finished loading up the guns.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm not gunna give up. That's what I'm doing. I'm not just gunna sit in this crypt and wait for the walls to come down." Dean growled, looking up at the ceiling.
"You heard Rowena-"
"Yeah, I heard her, okay?" Dean cut his brother off, pointing a finger to the floor to emphasise his words. "Ghosts are gunna bust out and they're gunna swallow this world. And you wanna, what? Just relax? Take a knee? No. No, we are gunna end this, Sam. Like you said. We're gunna be free."
"I know, Dean. I just..." The younger brother paused to sigh deeply and think his words over. "This feels bigger than us. You know? And I'm out of ideas and I'm freaked too."
"Oh, I'm not freaked." Dean shook his head. "I'm angry, okay? I'm pissed."
"At God..."
"Yes!"
"Me too..." Sam nodded.
"I mean, this whole mess, this sloppy ass 'ghostpocalypse.' That's Chuck's ending? No." The older brother scoffed. "No, I don't think so. After everything that he has put us through? I'll be damned if I'm gunna let some glorified fanboy get the last word."
With that, he looked back to his weapons in an open duffel bag, continuing to pack them up with uttered acknowledgment from Sam.

Outside, Eden and Willow walked up to Belphegor and Castiel, who were stood on the edge of the pit as spirits continued to fly out.
"I don't care what the Witch calls it. It's not a door or a gate." The Demon started.
"Then what is it?" Castiel asked.
"It's a tear." Belphegor replied. "God stamped his foot and..."
"Hell ripped open." The Angel and Eden finished.
"Belphegor, why were you looking for this?" Cas frowned, turning to face the Demon properly for the first time since he invaded Jack's body.
There was a short silence as the pair maintained eye contact.
"That's the longest you've ever looked me in the eyes." Belphegor commented nonchalantly.
"You don't have eyes." Castiel retorted.
"True." The Demon shrugged, looking back down at the pit. "Okay, I got an idea, but, uh... You're not gunna like it."
"As if we like anything you have to say." Eden rolled her eyes.
"Okay, ouch. But fair, I did kinda take over your dead kid's body. But, hey. You wanna hear the idea or do you have another option?"
Eden, Willow and Castiel gave each other uneasy glances.
"Out with it." The Dark Angel sighed.

After Belphegor had explained his idea to the trio, a highly sceptical Eden led him back into the crypt to re-explain it to Sam, Dean and Rowena.
"Wait, what do you mean 'Lilith's crook?'" Sam frowned, watching the Demon pace a small area of the room, rubbing the nape of his neck.
"Yeah, you know those curvy ended canes that shepherds use? Little Bo Peep?" He looked around at blank faces. "It doesn't matter, it's just a nickname. Thing's actually more of a horn."
"Would you just get on with it?" Eden huffed.
"Yeah, sure, anyways..." Belphegor shook his head. "When Lilith began sending Demons off to do her bidding, there was a little problem. I mean, yeah, she commanded absolute loyalty in Hell, but there was no guarantee that once her minions were topside, that they wouldn't just take advantage of the situation. She needed to control her flock. So..."
"So, she forged the crook." Sam nodded.
"Slash horn." Dean mumbled.
"It could – can – retrieve all of Hell's lost creatures and bring them straight back home." The Demon snapped his fingers.
"And why haven't we heard about this before?" Cas asked.
"She never needed to use it." Belphegor replied. "When she ruled, it was enough for us that we knew she could. And when Crowley took over, he had other forms of discipline, endless lines, endless paperwork – not that he liked to spend a lot of time down there anyway with us."
"Where is it?" Dean was starting to get bored of the tell-tale.
"Last I heard, it was in Lilith's chamber, which has been sealed for ages." Belphegor pointed with both hands at the group.
"Yeah. Not even I could get in there. And believe me, I tried." Eden added.
"Did you know what it did? Can you confirm his story?" Willow asked.
Eden shook her head.
"I've heard a few different stories, so I can't know for sure. But Belphegor's version is one I've heard. I never bothered with it though. I didn't even know it still existed." The Dark Angel shrugged. "Having said that, another story about it I heard was that it's the key to ruling Hell."
"Is that what this is about?" Dean growled at the Demon.
"The throne of Hell? God no. Way too much drama." Belphegor scoffed. "Eden can keep it for all I care."
"If it does what you say it does, now that all the doors in Hell are open-"
"It's just sitting there ripe for the taking." The Demon cut Sam off. "I get the crook, sound the crook, we suck all Hell's ghosts back into Hell. Then, if the Witch is feeling up to it..."
"I slam the doors shut behind them." Rowena interjected.
Belphegor held up a finger, wagging it in her direction.
"Wait a second. How?" Sam asked. "Magic from the Book of the Damned?"
"A spell of my own devising." Rowena offered, earning looks from everyone to elaborate. "The Sanetur Acre Vulnus – a healing spell of a kind. If this gate to Hell isn't a gate at all, but a wound - a rupture, I can use the spell to undo the damage Chuck did and the hole will heal – close itself up. We'll have to time it perfectly." She pointed a finger to the Demon and expressed a frown. "If you're in Hell when all this goes down, how will we know when to start?"
"Trust me. You'll know." Belphegor snorted.
"What are you gunna need?" Dean asked the Witch.
"A few ingredients, nothing too exotic. Lavender, myrrh, skull of an owl, quiet to perform the spell and an assistant or two. Dibs on Samuel and Eden."
"What?" Sam frowned.
"Eden's an Archangel of sorts and I can channel her if I need some extra oompf for the spell. Meanwhile, you're the only person closest to a seasoned Witch as we've got in this remaining lot. Oh, and I'll need someone out there by the rupture." Rowena explained.
"Why?" Cas frowned.
"I need to do the spell in the safety of the crypt, but we need someone close to the edge to serve as a fulcrum; a carrier. Well, to put it in American action movie terms, they'll be carrying a bomb, I light the fuse, they toss it in... Boom." She replied. "Whoever does this, they'll be unprotected. No salt circles... All manner of angry spirits right up in their grill."
"Sounds like fun." Dean smirked.
"I can be your protection." Willow offered. "I'll keep them at bay with a shotgun whilst everyone else focuses on their part. Would that be okay?"
"I... Don't see why not. If you feel prepared enough for this, dear." Rowena shrugged as the Demon raised his hand. "Yes, Belphegor?"
"Um, who's coming with me?" He asked, gesturing to himself with the still raised hand. "I'm sorry, but I'm not going down to Hell, getting passed all those pissed off ghosts and Demons that are maybe loitering down there and sounding the Crook all by myself."
"So, you want company?" Sam scoffed.
"I want protection." Belphegor corrected, his gaze flickering between Castiel and Eden. "Muscle."
"Yeah, Cas'll go." Dean replied, earning a look of disgust from the Angel. "You've been to Hell before, and we can't exactly risk the kid with that kinda job." He gestured to Willow. "She's better off with me and the ghosts."
"Well, it sounds like I don't have a choice." Cas mumbled after a moment's silence.
"Good. Great." Dean nodded, turning to Rowena with an unimpressed smirk. "Go team."
Rowena looked less than convinced.

With Castiel and Belphegor taking the short and most available route down to Hell, Dean, Willow, Rowena, Sam and Eden remained in the crypt, with the Witch studying the Book of the Damned for anything other than Eden to charge up her spell.
A young African American woman with a snowy buzzcut walked in with a white male in tow, both carrying duffel bags.
"Salt. A couple of guns from the back of the Impala and, for the ginger, Witch stuff." The woman; Stevie said as she handed Dean and Rowena their respective bags.
"Forget something?" Rowena asked, rummaging through the bag.
"Right." Stevie scoffed, walking back over to her as she reached into her jacket pocket to retrieve something wrapped in a torn white cloth. "One owl skull."
"R.I.P Hedwig." Dean commented.
"Awe. Look at you, making Harry Potter references. That's character growth, right there." Eden smirked, earning a resting bitch face from the Winchester.
"You're welcome." Stevie nodded to the Witch.
"Alright, so, how bad is it out there?" Sam asked.
"Is the warding still intact?" Willow added.
"The wall's barely holding it up and the people are restless, but we're keeping a lid on. Getting here through the quarantine zones, I stuck to the corners. Only got attacked a few times." The Huntress replied.
"I'm sure it wasn't anything you weren't more than capable of, Stevie." Eden smirked, earning a matching expression and a nod back.
"I think most of the ghosts are at the edge of town working to bring down those walls." Stevie gave a small huff. "So, what are you planning in here? Another long-shot, magical hail Mary?"
"Yeah. Except this time, hopefully, it works with a little dose of Eden juice." Dean muttered.
"Please do not talk about my... Juice." Eden scrunched up her nose in disgust.
"So, we need you and the other Hunters armed up and ready on the other side of that wall. 'Cause if this goes sideways, you'll be the only thing standing between those ghosts and the world." Sam explained.
"No pressure, right?" Stevie uttered as Dean's phone vibrated in the back pocket of his jeans.
"Ketch. Says he's ready to get back in the game." He read.
"A bit soon, don't you think?" Eden cocked a brow, folding her arms across her chest.
"Maybe. But we need all hands on deck so, if he says he's ready, that's good enough for me." Dean shrugged.