Chapter 6

As Sam's brain swam up through a murky haze, two things occurred to him. First, his head was throbbing like a bitch, and second, his chest was buzzing. It took a long moment, but some small, still-functioning part of his brain connected the buzzing with the vibrate setting of his cell phone.

Opening his eyes, and immediately regretting it, Sam fumbled with his left hand along the flap of his jacket. Finally, his lumbering fingers closed around the plastic case and pulled the phone out.

Hitting the button to answer it, Sam dragged the cell to his ear and mumbled "Hello," or something like it.

"Sam? It's Bobby."

"Bobby?" Sam asked dumbly, mind still groping to remember where he was and why his head hurt so much.

"Sam, you okay, son?"

"Um," Sam began ingeniously, his brain slowly coming back online. "Yeah. 'Sup?"

"I just wanted to tell you, Rufus and I think we might have found something. We were going through one of my old books, and we found something that could have left those tracks, and sorta looks like that video image you emailed this morning."

"Okay…" Commotion behind him drew Sam's attention. The sounds of rushing water, shouting, gunfire…and maybe the roar of an angry Tyrannosaurus filled the air.

Bobby continued. "We don't know for sure, but we think it could be a hydra."

Sam struggled to his feet and staggered out of the alcove in time to see a twenty foot high reptile charging after his brothers. Only belatedly did Sam realize that Bobby was still talking.

"Wh-what?" Sam asked, struggling to multi-task when half his brain was numb.

Bobby spoke more slowly. "Sam, listen close. We didn't think they even existed, but this might be a hydra."

Dean and Adam were running full out, exiting the building with the monster right on their tails. Sam saw Dean dive around the corner of the doorway, where the controls were mounted.

At the same time, his mind frantically dug up remnants of the Ancient Greek Mythology class he had taken with Jess at Stanford, a lifetime ago.

Hydra. Hydra. HYDRA!

In a flash, Sam read his older brother's mind and saw what was about to happen. Sam dropped the phone from his ear. "Dean, wait!"

It was too late. The security door dropped in less than a second. The heavy metal edge acted like a guillotine, severing all five of the hydra's heads several feet down the necks. Sam was already moving in that direction. He raised the phone again as he sprinted, all pain forgotten in a horrible moment of clarity.

"Bobby, I'll call you back!" He turned off the phone. Maybe. He ran for the door at a full sprint, almost careening into the columns on the slippery linoleum floor. A growing bout of vertigo didn't help, but he managed to keep moving.

The hydra's body was still. Sam skidded to a halt by the door and pressed the inside "Open" button without pause. Blood and fluid drained from the severed arteries in the five necks, but the flesh and cartilage were already undulating and pulsing beneath the leathery skin.

The door groaned and struggled to rise again, the metal still recovering from the earlier drop. Sam ducked beneath it as soon as there was enough room. He had to sidestep the remains of the five detached heads, moving around them to the side, careful to avoid touching them as he recalled that, in mythology, the blood was reportedly poisonous.

Dean and Adam were beaming out in the parking lot, burning off their adrenaline. They lit up when they saw Sam emerge from the building.

"Thank God! You all right, Sammy?" Dean moved to meet him and pointed at the downed creature. "Did you see it? Slam! Just like that!"

They met him halfway as he dropped off the loading dock. Sam shoved them back when they met. "We have to get out of here, now!"

Dean's celebratory grin twisted into a frown. "What? Why?"

"Dean, it's a hydra—"

"Oh, no!" Adam muttered from behind.

Sam turned. The hydra was already climbing back to its feet. The ends of the five necks were twisting and bulging, and from each two identical heads sprouted remarkably fast. They started out smaller than the originals, but swelled quickly to full size.

Dean was pulling at Sam's arm, and the three of them had only taken a few steps back when the enraged hydra let out a roar from all ten of its new heads and leapt out of the doorway. It came down in the Winchesters' midst.

Sam was bowled over, landing on his butt about five feet from the angry beast, in the direction of the freight containers parked behind the ozonation building. Dean and Adam were flung in the opposite direction, toward the distant Impala.

The hydra was beyond pissed, and it didn't seem to care who felt its wrath first. Twenty yellow, squinting eyes locked onto him with laser-like focus.

Three things occurred to Sam simultaneously: he was unarmed, he was separated from his brothers, and he was in a lot of trouble.

Sam spun and bolted, heading for the parked containers, seeking cover. He didn't have to look back to hear the hydra pounding after him. The impact tremors could be felt even as his own feet pounded the pavement.

SPN SPN SPN

Dean was momentarily stunned. He'd hit the pavement hard enough to knock the wind from his chest. Struggling to his feet, he saw Adam had landed a few feet from him.

"You okay?" Adam wheezed, as he regained his feet.

Dean coughed, leaning on his youngest brother for support. "Sam?" he called. He spotted his brother racing into the maze of cargo containers, the hydra in hot pursuit. Dean cursed, indignant. "How the hell are we supposed to kill that thing? Decapitation should be enough for anything!"

Adam pounded his fist against his forehead, eyes squeezed shut, trying to remember. "Ummmm…" Then he snapped his fingers. "Hercules burned the necks!"

"What?" Dean demanded irritably.

Adam explained frantically. "In mythology! Hercules burned the hydra's necks so the heads wouldn't grow back! Fire, Dean!"

"Are you sure?"

It was Adam's turn to be irritable. "Wh-what kind of question is that? I don't know! Fire!"

The sound of a container crashing across the ground drew their attention. Sam was in trouble, and they didn't have time to work out the details.

Dean thought fast. "Okay, come with me."

He took off for the Impala, Adam right behind at full speed. They cleared the thousand feet or so to the car in record time.

Dean jammed his key into the trunk and yanked the cover off the weapons cache. "God, let this work."

It took a few seconds, desperately shoving the various guns and blades aside, but Dean found what he was looking for. He pulled the heavy, black weapon out and popped open the magazine to load it.

Adam was gaping at him. "Is that a grenade launcher?"

Dean couldn't suppress the grin as he dropped the explosive charges into the revolving chamber. "It was Dad's. He bought this in Mexico like…ten years ago." He reached down and grabbed one of the emergency gas cans and thrust it into Adam's hands. "Here. Follow the fence line and circle around those containers. Don't let that big bastard see you. Come in from the other side, and try to find Sam."

To his credit, the younger man didn't even blink at the orders. He nodded and started moving around the car. "Then what?"

Dean pointed to the gas can. "Then you wait for an opportunity. You'll know when you see it."

Adam took off, bolting in the direction of the containers and the still rampaging hydra. Dean left the trunk open and ran across the lot, back toward when they'd come from, and desperately tried to remember the safe range on his dad's grenade launcher.

SPN SPN SPN

Sam dove behind one of the ends of a container. They were lined up in rows, forming a maze that he prayed he could lose the hydra in, but so far the angry lizard was relentlessly tracking him. Fear was a motivator, and Sam knew rage could be, too.

The hydra stopped at the other end of the container, all ten heads growling and snarling. It seemed to be trying to decide the best way to outflank him. When it paused, Sam grabbed some loose rocks off the ground next to him and hurled one to his left as hard as he could. It bounced off a container two rows down with a loud clang.

He felt the container he was backed up against rattle as the hydra shifted to find the source of the noise. Encouraged, Sam hurled another, striking the same container again. The hydra emitted a sound somewhere between a bark and growl.

Apparently, Sam overplayed his hand. The whole container behind him flipped over and violently rolled away, exposing his hideout. The hydra had thrown its whole body weight at it and sent it careening into another row. Sam took off, sprinting down the length of the next container in line, then diving into a roll at the end.

He got to cover just in time as twin gouts of flame from both the hydra's new central heads shot past on either side of the metal container. The heat was intense, and even the metal walls of the container started getting warm.

When the flames ceased, Sam didn't wait. He dashed to his right, crossing rows. He went across two, swung left, then turned right and slid to a stop down the length of another container. Only then did he dare look back. So far, so good.

Adrenaline was still filling his veins, but Sam's vision was blurring. A knot the size of a grapefruit had formed on the back of his head, and when Sam probed it, his hand came back bloody. The rapid movement so soon after the concussion was making him nauseous. He wasn't sure how much longer he'd be good for running around.

The sound of steel crashing into steel rang out. More containers had been upended, and a cloud of dust was billowing not far from where Sam had just come. The hydra roared angrily. From the sound, it was slowly getting closer. Sam could see the concrete retaining wall that marked the end of the lot from where he knelt.

Sam was running out of room to hide.

"Psst!"

Sam twisted around. Adam was crouched at the end of another container, about fifty feet away in the direction of the eastern retaining wall of the plant. His younger brother beckoned him, glancing cautiously around the corner of his own hiding spot. With a quick glance down the aisle, Sam stood and ran down the row, skidding in beside Adam.

"Hey," Sam panted, clapping his sibling's shoulder. He noticed the gas can in Adam's hand. "What's that for? We gonna burn it?"

Adam grinned. "Ah, so you did learn something in history class, Stanford!"

Sam sneered at the barb and the nickname. "How do we get close enough?"

"We wait for our cue," Adam replied. He motioned for Sam to follow, but threw Sam's white-knuckled grip on the corner of the container a serious look. Instead, Adam nudged his shoulder under Sam's arm and hoisted him up, supporting his brother's weight as they moved along the back row of containers in the general direction of the Impala and Dean.

As they moved, the hydra was still tearing through the rows, seeking Sam. Then, a new sound joined the mix. In the distance, Sam heard a muted fwoomp. It was followed half a second later but the loud, heavy bang of an explosion. Then the hydra roared in pain.

They came to the end of the row, and from there had a clear view of the new action. Sam saw Dean standing a few hundred yards downfield, carrying what looked like their dad's grenade launcher. He turned to ask Adam about that, but his little brother's eyes were focused on their bigger problem.

The hydra was about four rows up from them, exiting the maze of containers to meet the new attack. Dean fired again, and the second grenade stuck just a few yards short of the advancing beast. The blast staggered it back, and it roared angrily, stumbling against one of the containers.

Adam took off from Sam's side, running directly at the creature. He reared back and hurled the gas can like a discus when he was halfway to the monster. The can spun through the air and slid to a stop perfectly at the hydra's feet. At the same time, Dean fired his third and fourth projectiles.

As Adam dived for cover behind one of the containers, the grenades reached their target. Sam wasn't sure which hit the can, but an explosion shook the lot. When Sam looked back, the hydra was flat on its back, burning from heads to tail.

Dean sent the last two grenades of his six into the burning carcass, blowing it apart. The hydra was dead.

The next few moments were a blur. Dean ushered Sam to the Impala, while Adam ran into the building to retrieve their discarded shotguns. Sam could walk, but Dean kept a steadying hand under his arm while they moved.

"You okay, little brother?" Dean asked as they reached the car. "You took a hard hit."

"I'll live," Sam sighed as they finally reached the passenger side door and Dean eased him onto the seat. "Pretty sure I've got a concussion though. When I looked at that thing, I saw five heads."

Dean blinked at him for a moment before noticing Sam's smirk. "You're a real comedian, Sam."

Sam could hear sirens in the distance. Someone must have heard the fireworks and called the police. Adam arrived carrying their discarded equipment and dumped it into the seat as he climbed in the back.

Moments later, the car was moving, and they were already heading for the freeway before Sam had a chance to put another thought together in his aching head. "Hey Dean?"

"Yeah, Sammy?" Dean replied, watching the rear view mirror.

Sam tapped the empty grenade launcher on the seat between them. "I didn't know this thing worked."

SPN SPN SPN

Astro Motel,

San Bernardino, California

Dean drove about an hour and a half before stopping at a motel. He doubted the cops were on to them, but he didn't want to take any chances. They got a room in a deserted corner of the building to keep out of sight of the highway.

He looked Sam over thoroughly, but his brother had survived his run-in with the pipe fairly well. The lump on his head would hurt for a few days, but there was only a small gash. The concussion seemed to be minor, and while his chest and side were bruised from where the tail struck him, nothing seemed broken. Not bad for someone who'd played the baseball to the hydra's bat.

Dean tasked Adam with handling the first aid, since the kid needed the practice. He helped position Sam face-down on the bed and arranged all the supplies they'd need. As soon as his brothers were settled, he called Bobby.

"You sure it's dead?"

"Oh, yeah," Dean stated emphatically. "It's dead. Either it's dead or I'm getting out of show business."

"Well, that's good. Rufus and I had no idea those things even existed, let alone in our neighborhood."

Dean frowned, watching Adam patch up the cut on the back of Sam's head. "Sam says those things are Greek myths. What are they doing in America, anyway?"

"Who knows? The monsters and critters have all been acting funny since the Apocalypse was stalled. But at least we know they exist now. We can be ready the next time one shows up."

"Well," Dean snorted, "you tell Arthur he owes us. And next time, he's the one who hunts the hydra."

"Will do." Bobby hesitated.

Dean raised his eyebrows expectantly.

"So, uh…are you boys headin' back to Baja or what?"

Dean had expected the question, and he noted the faint hint of hope in his friend's voice. He wished he had something more definite to tell him. "Don't know yet. We still gotta talk about that."

Bobby paused, but Dean suspected the older man understood. "Well, you let me know, huh?"

"I will." Dean smiled. "Either way."

Bobby said his goodbyes.

As the phone on the other end dropped away, he heard Rufus' growling voice. "Let me talk to the boy!"

"Shut up, Rufus!" Bobby said.

Dean ended the call before he got roped into that domestic dispute. He dropped the cell onto the table and strolled over to the bed where Adam was stitching Sam's head wound.

"Ow. Ow. Ow. You're gonna leave a scar!" Sam protested into the pillow, reaching back to stop Adam's hand.

"I'm gonna leave a scar on your mouth!" Adam threatened, swatting Sam's paws away.

Dean plopped down in a chair at the table and enjoyed the show. Adam would have made a fair doctor. In another life. "You think it hurts now, Sammy, just wait until he douses that with whiskey."

"If I can get the whiskey through this mane," Adam griped, pushing Sam's hair out of the way so he could work. He'd already shaved a small strip of hair along the back of Sam's head so he could dress the wound, but the thick layers of hair were still spilling over in the way.

Several minutes passed in comfortable silence. Dean wasn't sure how the next moments would go, though. They had some talking to do, and maybe some voting. He didn't know what would happen.

Adam seemed to sense something in the room, and he glanced at Dean briefly in between stitches. "So…where to next?"

It was a loaded question. Dean wanted to ease into it. "Well, I'm getting a few hours shut-eye, then hitting that Biggerson's we saw down the street for their breakfast buffet."

Sam chuckled at that.

Adam stopped working and sat back in his chair, staring at Sam's back. He didn't look at Dean. "And then?"

Adam wanted back in the game. It was the worst-kept secret in the room. They knew it. He knew they knew. They knew that he knew they knew.

Dean exhaled slowly. "Well, if I had to decide…I'd say we head back…."

Adam's shoulders fell a little, and despite an obvious effort to hide it, disappointment flared across his face.

Dean suppressed a smile and finished his sentence. "To Sioux Falls. Visit Bobby for a while. Maybe see if we can find a poltergeist along the way."

Adam looked up at him sharply, openly surprised. He clearly struggled to keep his voice calm. "Really?"

"I have to admit, I had fun tonight," Dean added. "No demons, no angels, no BS. Just us versus the monster of the week. I'll be honest, I missed that."

Grinning, Adam nodded slowly. "I know what you mean."

Dean sobered, leaning back in his chair. "But it's gotta be unanimous. We're all in, or we're not." They'd worked too long and too hard to scrape a family together, through Heaven, Hell, and all the crap in-between. They weren't splitting up now. He shifted his gaze to Sam, who hadn't spoken, and who was staring down at his knuckles. Adam was looking, too.

Sam tilted his head, apparently in thought, then turned slowly to look at Dean. When he spoke, he echoed another conversation from years before. "Saving people, hunting things?"

Grinning, Dean nodded. "Yeah. The family business."

Sam looked at him a moment, then looked over his shoulder at Adam, who was waiting for his answer, and smiled. "I can do that."

END