Night had fallen.
The Impala cut through the empty highway, its headlights carving a path through the darkness.
Dean drove.
Ben sat beside him, staring at the road ahead.
Neither of them had spoken for several minutes.
The cassette player rested on the dashboard.
Sam's message still echoed in Dean's mind.
Finally Ben broke the silence.
"So let me get this straight."
Dean kept his eyes on the road.
"Go ahead."
"Your dad and your uncle turned this car into a supernatural lock… to keep some ancient gate sealed."
"Pretty much."
Ben leaned back in the seat.
"And now a demon wants you to open it."
Dean nodded slightly.
"Yeah."
Ben exhaled slowly.
"Just checking."
The road stretched endlessly in front of them.
Then suddenly—
Dean's phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
He frowned and answered.
"Yeah?"
For a moment there was only static.
Then a voice spoke.
Calm.
Familiar.
The demon.
"Evening, Dean."
Dean's grip tightened on the wheel.
Ben looked at him immediately.
"What?"
Dean put the call on speaker.
"Where are you?"
The demon chuckled.
"That's not the important question."
A pause.
Then something else came through the phone.
A muffled voice.
Ben's voice.
But not the one sitting in the car.
A recording.
"Dean… if you're hearing this…"
Dean's blood ran cold.
Ben turned pale.
"Wait… that's—"
The demon spoke again.
"You really should check your rearview mirror."
Dean looked up.
The highway behind them was empty.
Except—
A black SUV speeding toward them.
Fast.
Too fast.
Headlights blazing.
Ben grabbed the shotgun.
"Dean!"
The SUV slammed into the back of the Impala.
The car swerved violently.
Dean fought the wheel, tires screeching across the asphalt.
The SUV forced them off the road.
The Impala skidded into the dirt and stopped near the edge of a dark forest.
The SUV stopped behind them.
Three figures stepped out.
Demons.
Black eyes glowing in the darkness.
The phone crackled again.
"Relax," the demon said smoothly. "They're just making sure you come to the meeting."
Dean's jaw tightened.
"Where?"
The demon sounded pleased.
"Follow the road into the woods."
Thunder rolled across the sky.
"You'll find the gate waiting."
The call ended.
The three demons stepped aside, silently gesturing toward the forest road.
Ben whispered:
"This is a trap."
Dean stared ahead at the dirt path disappearing into the trees.
"Yeah."
Ben tightened his grip on the shotgun.
"So what do we do?"
Dean shifted the Impala into gear.
The engine rumbled like a warning.
His voice was calm.
"We spring it."
The Impala rolled forward into the darkness.
The road twisted deeper into the forest.
The air grew colder.
Heavier.
After several minutes, the trees opened into a wide clearing.
And there it was.
A massive stone structure buried in the earth.
An ancient door.
Covered in burned sigils.
Cracked.
Waiting.
The Gate of Ash.
The demon stood beside it.
Hands behind his back.
Smiling.
"Welcome, Dean."
Ben stared at the enormous door.
"That thing is not supposed to exist."
The demon's eyes gleamed.
"And yet… here we are."
He looked at the Impala.
The sigils beneath the chassis began to glow faintly.
Dean felt it immediately.
The car was reacting.
The gate was responding.
The demon spread his arms slightly.
"Go ahead."
Dean stepped out of the car slowly.
"Why me?"
The demon's smile widened.
"Because only a Winchester can wake the seal."
The ground trembled faintly.
Dust fell from the ancient stone.
Ben stepped beside Dean.
"Don't do it."
Dean looked at the gate.
Then at the Impala.
Then back at the demon.
His voice was cold.
"You think you've already won."
The demon tilted his head.
"Haven't I?"
Dean smiled slightly.
A Winchester smile.
Dangerous.
"You've clearly never met my family."
The sigils under the Impala suddenly flared with light.
The ground shook harder.
The Gate of Ash began to crack open.
And something ancient started to move behind it.
The demon's smile widened.
Because his plan…
Was finally working.