Endless Epitaph

The Players : Dean and Sam Winchester, Anyone in the area
Where : Salem, Mass.
When : February 1, 2009.
Rating : PG13
Notes : Dean and Sam just finished working a haunting in a nearby town. Time to move on to another town.

The brothers had stuck around Salem to make sure that the ghosts haunting the old reform school. It had been two days and all was clear. No more demonic spirits or regular spirits haunting that place.

Sam and Dean are packing their bags.

"So, where we headed to next," Dean asked.

"Decatur, Illinois. Over the last month three people were killed by a mysterious flying creature."

"Flying demon huh? Like Jeepers Creepers," Dean asked.

"I don't know. Maybe. Also gives us a chance to check out the Lincoln Theater."

"Oh yeah....isnt that one of the haunted theaters? One-Armed Red I think is the name of one them."

"So, the stories say. As for this creature, I'm not sure what we're going to be up against. It doesn't sound like anything we've come across."

"Well, with Lilith and her games and the Apocalypse beating down our back door, I think we might be seeing a lot of things we've never come across before," Dean said with a shrug.

Dean pulls out his cell phone and checks something on it.

"What," Sam asked.

"Nothing. After we handle the job, we'll head to Chicago. That's where Bobby said that antique shop is right? The one that can store the card?"

"Yeah. So, no calls?"

Dean shook his head and pocketed his phone. "Let's go Sammy," he zips up his bag. "New monster to kill."

After loading up the Impala, the car roared down the road to the next town.

The Players : Dean and Sam Winchester, Anyone in the area
Where : Salem, Mass.
When : January 30, 2009.
Rating : PG13 – R for language maybe.
Notes : Dean and Sam just finished working a haunting in a nearby town. They're eating before heading to their next destination.

Sam and Dean walked into the cafe clearly exhausted. The duo had spent all night in a haunted building that once served as a reform school in the early 1900s.

"Dean, promise me no more evil spirits for at least a couple months," Sam said as the two headed for a booth in the back of the cafe.

"Oh, you're just upset cause that she-ghost possessed you for a minute. But that guy...what was his name again?"

"Jarod Barker. How many times did he toss you around the room when he locked me out?"

"Enough," Dean said rubbing his shoulder. "Almost took my shoulder out its socket."

"Well, he wont be hurting anyone else. So, where we off to next?"

"Don't know. Was thinking of taking a couple days off. I mean we've earned it after the last couple weeks. Lilith's still in hiding, so I say a couple days wouldn't hurt us."

Sam gave Dean a weird look.

"What?"

"Dude, you never want to take time off...You're not happy unless your hunting. You go crazy if we don't have something keeping us busy."

"Yeah, well things change Sam."

Dean's time in Hell and being brought back by angels to save the world and hunting non-stop was starting to take its toll on him. He just wanted a small break.

"Anything look good," Dean asked trying to change the subject.

"They got apple pie."

"Love me some pie," Dean said with a grin.

Who: Dean and Sam Winchester
When: January 25th
Where: Lincoln, Nebraska
Rating: PG 13
Notes: Sam and Dean are on a road trip. Trying to stop the seals from being opened and the Devil himself from being released. Brothers are investigating mysterious deaths.

Sam was now tied to a chair in Dr. Garrison’s office struggling to get free.

“Why are you doing this,” he asked angrily.

“You men. You’re the cause of all of this. Michael Carmichael was a womanizer. He wasn’t going to change. I was their marriage counselor. For months he was spitting out his drivel of how much he loved her and he’d change. Cutting off ties to the women he was with. But when she wasn’t looking…the way he looked at me…he had to be stopped. When I found this card, and discovered what it could do, I knew we could have our revenge against scum like him.”

“And Spade?”

“Thought he could do what he wanted with all women. Broke their hearts not caring how much it hurt them. Something I’m sure you and your partner know all about. At your core, all you men are alike.”

“Think you’re the one who needs some therapy,” Sam said still trying to break free.

“And I think you shouldn’t push me,” she said holding out the card. “I’ve killed quite a few men with this thing. And once your partner gets here, you’re both going to die.”

Meanwhile…

Dean roared the Impala to the clinic trying to get there as fast as he could. Sam was in serious trouble.

Their code word…Thunderstruck. It was to let the other know they were being held against their will. Things weren’t making much sense until the pieces in Dean’s mind fell together.

Dr. Garrison worked with all the women who’s significant other was killed under the ‘poetic justice’ of Athena. Her partner was leaving with clients, so she had to stop him.

She was behind it all.

Dean hated this part of the job. He and Sam weren’t murderers, so they’d never take a life. Stopping demons, vampires, monsters, and evil spirits they could handle. But finding a way to stop a human without killing them was always easier said than done.

As he parked in front of the building he popped the trunk. Looking at his display of weapons he grabbed his sawed off shot gun and grabbed some rounds before heading upstairs to the good doctor’s office.

Dean scanned the area, it seemed they were all alone here.

Perfect.

Dean ran up and kicked down the doctor’s door and took aim. Sam was tied to a chair and the woman was sitting on the desk flipping the card around her fingers idly. A wicked grin appearing on her face.

“Its about time you showed up.”

Behind her the clouds quickly darkened as lightning began to form.

“Crap,” Dean muttered under his breath. He had to be very careful how he played this or the Winchester boys would be extra crispy like the last guy.

“I know what you’re thinking. And I’d advise against it.”

“Really lady? Then just what the hell am I thinking?”

“Firing that gun…Killing me…saving your partner? That about cover it? You shoot that thing, it better kill me. Cause before I die, I’ll take you and your brother out in a very special way.”

Dean stares her down. He sees the truth in what she’s saying. If he and Sam didn’t do this right, they’d all end up dead.

“Sammy, you okay?”

“Fine…”

“So, you killed those men using that thing? How’d you get it if you don’t mind me asking?”

Keep her talking, Dean thought to himself.

“Auction of some old lady’s estate. Woman probably didn’t even know what she had. Or might have considering how rich she was. Who knows these things really?”

“I get that you want to get back at people who wronged you, but seriously…murder?”

“Just the way the card works. If you ask me, murder was a going easy on them. They deserved so much worse.”

“You really are a wack job you know that?”

“I’m still standing here. And you’re not dead yet, so I’d say I’m not that crazy. But yeah, killing those guys might be crazy to you, but they won’t be hurting anyone else.”

“You get that Sam?”

“Every word,” he replied.

She turned slowly to Sam. He was no longer tied up to the chair and he was holding up his cellphone. He had caught every word of her confession.

Fire raced through her eyes. She was not happy.

“Regular Houdini aren’t you? Lets see if you can get out of this one…”

She squeezed the card and it glowed blood red.

“I don’t think so,” Dean said. He shot her just as a bolt of lightning streaked across the sky bursting through the window.

All three hit the ground.

“Sam you okay?”

Sam picked himself up off the ground. “Fine. You?”

“Been better,” Dean said getting up.

“You shot her?”

They both heard a curse.

“Used rock salt rounds. You know we don’t kill people.”

“Big mistake,” Dr. Garrison said standing up.

Her card was in her hand, once again glowing. She tilts her head back and when she brings it back up her hair had snakes on it.

“Well that’s not good,” Dean said getting a little worried.

Her eyes glowed white, Dean and Sam ran and dove over the couch for cover as she shot beams of light from her eyes. The beam misses the brothers but hits the couch…turning it to stone.

“Oh that is REALLY not good,” Dean said. “So, Brainy Smurf got any ideas on how to dodge getting stoned by Medusa over there.”

“Only got one…the mirror on the other end of the room is reflective. Might deflect the beam and hit her.”

“Yeah, if she doesn’t hit us first.”

“Its all we got,” Sam said.

Dean cursed under his breath. “Fine…You better hope this works.”

“On three,” Sam said. Dean nodded.

“Three!”

The brothers ran as if in slow motion. Garrison shot the beams at them as they ran the beam cracking against the glass as they ran. As they reach the mirrored wall they dove to the ground.

The beam hit the mirror and bounced back hitting Dr. Garrison. She let out a painful scream she turned to stone.

Sam looked up carefully seeing that she was now completely stone. His idea had worked.

Dean got up and walked up to it and poked it.

“Damn. Talk about pilar of salt.”

Sam takes the card that is in her hand out of her grip. It was the only thing that wasn’t turned to stone.

“It didn’t turn to stone either,” Dean asked. Sam shook his head. “Well, lets just rip it then.”

“Dean…”

Dean grabs it and tries to rip it up. He struggles with it trying to rip it but it wont rip.

“Damnit.”

“Think that is one evil card Dean.”

“Well then how do you suggest we keep it safe?”

A little while later at their motel, Sam closes a hex box.

“Worked for the rabbits foot. Should work to contain this until we figure out what to do with it,” Sam said placing it into their trunk. “So, where we headed now?”

“Salem. And please no witch jokes. You know I hate those nasty bitches. Read some reports of kids going missing after trying to stay a night at Logan Castle. Abandoned outside of town. It was a reform school…lots of mysterious deaths. Angry sprits. Sounded like a party to me.”

The boys got in the car and Dean cranked up the music.

“But if we run across any witches…we are so out of there,” Dean said putting on his sunglasses as they headed down the road.

Who: Dean and Sam Winchester
When: January 25th
Where: Lincoln, Nebraska
Rating: PG 13
Notes: Sam and Dean are on a road trip. Trying to stop the seals from being opened and the Devil himself from being released. Brothers are investigating mysterious deaths.

Sam and Dean sit across from each other at a diner, Dean is eating a large hamburger while Sam is working on a lean salad.

“Sammy, you need to learn how to eat man food,” Dean said with his mouth full.

“I eat man food. I just don’t want a heart attack before I’m 30,” Sam said while he was doing some internet research as he ate. “So I did some more research on our mistress and Megan. Both of them dated the same kinds of guys. Older men, some married. Rich. All left them high and dry. Some of the women even tried therapy. I checked into mysterious deaths and the ones close to what we’re looking for started a few months ago. A total of 6 men before we got the bassinet guy.”

“That’s nine guys. So, we have any kind of connection?”

“Make that ten.”

“What are you looking at now?”

“Local police report. Seems late last night a guy was killed in his car,” Sam paused. “By lightning.”

“Merciful Zeus,” Dean replied.

“Exactly. Another strange death attributed to the mysterious Justice killer,” Sam said.

“So, who was the Don Juan this time around?”

“He wasn’t. Did a search on the guy, and he was a model citizen. Eric Winters, happily married, worked at a clinic here in town as a therapist. Helped a lot of people and couples, won a lot of awards.”

“Then why would this person go after him? He didn’t seem to fit the bill for needing Justice.”

“No clue. I suggest we go and investigate his practice and interview his wife. Find out for sure if he was the model husband and employee,” Sam said sipping his drink.

“Okay, I’ll check the practice, you meet up with the good doctor’s wife,” Dean said finishing his drink. “See if he was as good as he seemed.”

“Just be careful Dean. We don’t know who’s behind this yet and the last thing we need is to get killed by the wrath of Athena.”

“You too Sammy. And no using your Sith powers either.”

“Dean…”

“I’m serious Sam. I don’t want Castiel and his buddies killing you cause you can’t control yourself. I went to Hell to keep you alive, and I’m not going to let you make the sacrifice I made for nothing. Understand?”

Sam nodded.

“Now, first person to find something calls the other. Agreed,” Dean asked.

“Agreed.”

( Mystery Revealed )

Who: Dean and Sam Winchester
When: January 23rd
Where: Lincoln, Nebraska
Rating: PG 13
Notes: Sam and Dean are on a road trip. Trying to stop the seals from being opened and the Devil himself from being released. Brothers are investigating mysterious deaths.

Dean looked over his little brothers shoulder as a website slowly opened.

“Come on, can’t this thing go any faster,” Dean asked.

“Well, the hotel service is a little slow. Plus, all those Asian porn websites you’ve been going to aren’t helping the speed any,” Sam retorted.

“It’s research.”

“Yeah…call it whatever you want, just make sure you wash your hands before touching my keyboard again okay?”

Dean smacked Sam upside the head. “Shut up…now are you going to keep me in suspense or are you going to tell me your theory.”

“Athena.”

“Athena…as in the Greek Goddess Athena? That would be new. We’ve faced everything else, why not a Greek goddess. That’s insane Sam.”

The site finally opened and Sam clicked on a story.

“Tell me if this doesn’t sound familiar. It’s the story of Cecrops of Athens… Athena gave his three daughters a box and they were told never to open it, inside was a future king, but when they opened it, the baby had a snake coiled around its body. It’s said that the two sisters that opened it went insane or were killed by the snake.”

“Okay…What else you got? The spider bite thing…how is that connected to Athena.”

“A weaver named Archane said she was better than Athena. And being a god she was prone to being arrogant. They had a contest. Archane depicted pictures of the not so great moments of the deities. She got cranky again and turned her into a spider.”

“So,” Dean said pacing the room. “Whatever is causing these deaths is related to Athena?”

“She was more than a just a goddess, she was the goddess of strategic warfare, wisdom, and heroic endeavor. They built statues to her just because she remained a virgin.”

“What if, whoever or whatever is behind this, is using Athena stories to get back at men. Say an ex-girlfriend who went a little homicidal maybe?”

“Michael’s mistress.”

“Would be a good start. Unfortunately, his wife may not know who her husband slept with or how many affairs. There could be a lot of women out there with a grudge against him. Maybe he promised to leave his wife and never did.”

“You’re right Sammy. That’s why we’re gonna go talk to some of Mikey’s buddies. Maybe some of them know who which girlfriend went Glenn Close on the husband and…”

“And if we find out who the other guy who died was dating…”

“We find a match. We have our girl,” Dean said with a smirk. “Dude, we should totally have been detectives. But not the lame kind.”

“What? Like Dick Tracy?”

“Madonna was hot in that wasn’t she?”

“Dean…go get us some food. I’m going to see if I cant find out some information on our spider guy.”

Tech Town…

Sam and Dean, dressed in suits, went inside Tech Town, the town’s electronics store. The guy who was bit by the spiders, Samuel Spade, worked here. So the duo went in as detectives to talk to some of the other employees.

“Hello, Welcome to Tech Town. Can I show you some of our plasma screens,” a salesman asked.

Dean pulled out his fake ID and badge.

“I’m Detective Chris Bale. This is my partner Mike Cain. We’d like to ask you a few questions about Samuel Spade. Guy who use to work here?”

“I thought they ruled his death accidental. Spider bites. Why’d the send cops?”

“We’re just looking at it from a different angle,” Sam said. “Now, was Mr. Spade dating anyone or recently break up with someone?”

“You’re joking right?”

Dean looked at the man with a straight face. “Sir, we don’t joke around in our precinct. People end up dead. Now answer my partner’s question.”

“Spade was a hound. He had his share of conquests. Was a real love them and leave them.”

“Any particular woman you can think of got maybe a little too obsessive with him? Thought there was more going on than there actually was,” Dean asked.

“There was one a couple months ago. Megan…something. I can’t remember her last name. Went out with Spade for a couple weeks. They were pretty hot and heavy, until he got tired of her. She didn’t take it very well. She came here a few times causing a scene. He even had to get a restraining order on her.”

“Do you know where she lives,” Sam asked.

He only knew the neighborhood. So the brothers headed out in that direction.

“Okay Sammy. Any of the addresses in that book match a Megan in this direction?”

“A Megan Weston. Lives a few blocks from here.”

“So, we both on the same page. Thinking she’s our girl?”

“It’s pretty likely. I mean same neighborhood and first name. She’s probably the one.”

Dean looked uncomfortable. “How do we handle this? I mean, its not often our bad guy is human. She’s just a little obsessed with greek mythology. What if she gets mad at us and chains us to a boulder and has buzzards peck out our livers?”

“We probably shouldn’t do anything just yet. We have to be absolutely certain it’s her. And if it is her, we have to figure out how she did it.”

“If it is her…she has to be working some kind of mojo. These two deaths were way to weird to be done by some kind of psycho-bitch.”

After a short drive they arrived at Megan’s house. Dean knocked on the door, a young woman opened the door. She was a little over five feet, long brown hair and piercing blue eyes.

“Can I help you,” she asked Dean who was staring at her.

Dean couldn’t help but stare. He knew that it was possible she was evil, but she was a smoking hottie. She had a Megan Fox look going for her.

“Uh…yes,” he held out his ID badge. “Chris Bale. My partner, Mike Cain. We’re here to talk about Samuel Spade. Can we come in?”

“You don’t think I killed him do you? I haven’t seen him or even thought about him in weeks.”

“We’re just covering all our areas,” Sam said politely.

She let them in and she discussed their relationship as Dean walked around the room, looking for any kind of evidence the woman was working a magic spell or something.

“I’ll admit I didn’t handle the break up well. I loved him. I gave him my heart and soul and he threw me out like yesterday’s trash. I hate guys like that. They think they’re God’s gift to women.”

Sam glanced towards Dean. “Yeah, I know the type.”

Dean turned to his brother and glared at him.

“Guys like that just need to be dealt with.”

“Like Samuel.”

“No, they don’t deserve to die…you’re twisting my words. They just need to learn how to treat women better. After things with Sam ended, I went to therapy. She’s really helped me a lot with my issues. I’m not like that anymore.”

After about five more minutes of fruitless conversation, the brothers left.

“So, what do you think,” Sam said as they headed to the car.

“Girl has her issues. But I couldn’t find anything in that house that would lead me to thinking she’s packing some kind of wiccy powers or calling on some Greek goddess to do her bidding. Never say this Sammy…but this one really has me stumped. We need to go back to research mode. Find another link.”

“I’ll call Bobby. See if he has any ideas.”

A few hours later…

“Thanks Bobby,” Sam said into his phone. He closed it and sat on the bed. Dean looked up from the computer.

“Well, Bobby have anything.”

“He pretty much came to the same conclusion as me. Athena. However, he does have an alternative theory.”

“Shoot.”

“Bobby said he heard about this shop in Chicago that deals with antique items that, get this, are cursed by the devil.”

“That’s new. So, one of the women in this tangled web is using a cursed object?”

“He made some calls and it seems there was a pack of tarot cards at that store, but somehow all the cards were distributed to different people. Bobby thinks that someone might have a tarot card called The Justice Card.”

“Would make sense,” Dean said typing the card into Google. “Woman scorned out for some Justice. Men die in the way characters who crossed Athena did. But on the other hand, we still only have two deaths. Two points make a line. Not a connection.”

“Well, we can look into records to see if anyone else has died in a greek tragedy in this town…or others.”

Dean snapped and pointed to his brother. “Bingo. Now we’re cooking.”

Across town…

A man runs out of his office, quickly locking the door behind him. Its pouring rain at the moment and he forgot his umbrella in his car. He runs to his car so he doesn’t get too soaked, but he stops in his tracks.

“What are you doing here?”

“We need to talk,” she said.

“I told you, we have nothing more to discuss.”

She gets close to him and slips a card into his jacket. “I think we’re just getting warmed up.”

“We’re finished. Just get over it.”

“Fine…have it your way,” she said as she stormed off.

Lightning streaked across the sky. The man quickly gets into his car and tries to start it, but the engine won’t rev up.”

“Come on!”

He tries again. He shoves his foot on the gas, just as a lightning bolt streaks through his car window, killing the man instantly, but sadly it didn’t end there. The car explodes in a blazing inferno.

In the shadows, the woman watches a smile creeping on her face. She holds out her hand as the card mysteriously re-appears in her hand.

It’s The Justice card in a tarot deck.

She turns and walks the opposite direction laughing to herself as sirens sound behind her.

Who: Dean and Sam Winchester
When: January 21st
Where: On the road to Nebraska
Rating: PG 13
Notes: Sam and Dean are on a road trip. Trying to stop the seals from being opened and the Devil himself from being released.

The Impala roared down the back roads of some no name town as Dean Winchester rocked out to Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again”. His brother Sam rubbed his forehead as Dean sang loudly and off key along with the classic rock band.

“Dean.”

But his brother didn’t hear him. He was too busy rocking out.

“Dean,” Sam said louder this time turning down the music.

“Sammy we’ve been through this. Never touch a man’s music when he’s rocking out. It’s a law.”

“Yeah, I studied law. I don’t remember it.”

“You weren’t looking in the right books then. So tell me more about this case since you’ve ruined my fun,” Dean said turning a small glare to his brother.

“There have been a lot of mysterious deaths up in Lincoln. A couple guys. Married man found a bassinet out on his front door and when he opened it, it turned out to be poisonous snakes. Another guy was bitten by spiders.”

“Sounds like plagues. Think Lilith is some way involved?”

“Possibly,” Sam said flipping through one of his books. “But something about this is kind of familiar.”

“What else could it be?”

“Not sure. Won’t know until we poke around. Talk to the widow and spider guy’s family.”

“Awesome. Until then…”

Dean turns his music back up and speeds up as he the duo head to Lincoln, Nebraska.

A day later the two brothers found a motel in town and got into their suits. The first stop was to the widow of the man who had found a bassinet in his front porch.

They knocked on the front door and a tired looking young woman opened the door.

( More here )