After Alex explained why the vampire had appeared in Sioux Falls, his gaze involuntarily settled on Alex Jones—the very Annie Jones, the girl who had been kidnapped by vampires as a child and forced to serve as bait.

When Annie was still a child, the vampires used her not only as living bait, but also as a kind of portable blood container—a reserve they could feed from whenever they wished. The female vampire who abducted Annie had lost her own daughter and decided to replace her with the girl. That was why she began calling Annie by the name Alex.

Over time, guilt began to eat away at Annie from the inside. She couldn’t take it anymore and tried to run away. That was when she first met Jody. Jody saved Annie by killing the vampire who had come to drag the runaway back to the nest. After that, Jody called Sam and Dean so they could deal with the vampire nest together.

But even then, the story wasn’t over. The vampires managed to take Annie back and turned her into one of them. Fortunately, Sam and Dean knew of a cure that could turn a newly made vampire back into a human—provided they hadn’t yet tasted human blood.

When everything was finally over, Jody decided to take Annie in, giving the girl a chance at a new life. They were united by a shared tragedy—the loss of everyone they loved. Back then, Annie believed that despite her past, she could live a normal life.

And now the girl was sitting in Jody’s living room, crying after learning that her boyfriend Henry had been lying to her all along. He had gotten close to her on the orders of a vampire who had come seeking revenge. Alex, Dean, and Sam watched the scene with heavy sighs.

When Annie finally calmed down, Jody took her back to her room so she could rest and sleep. She returned about half an hour later and said that Annie had fallen asleep from exhaustion. But Jody herself had no time to rest—four vampire corpses left behind by Alex were waiting for her.

Alex gave her the addresses where the bodies were located, and Dean and Sam decided to go with Jody to deal with the aftermath.

After they left, Alex remained in the living room. He sat calmly on the couch, scrolling through the latest news on his phone and pointedly ignoring Claire’s insistent stare.

“How did you find them?” she finally couldn’t hold back.

“Find who exactly?” Alex asked lazily, lifting his gaze slightly.

“The vampires. You just sat there, had dinner, went out to buy cigarettes… and then came back and said you’d killed them all,” Claire said with a frown.

“Nothing complicated,” Alex shrugged. “I just paid Jody back for a hearty home-cooked dinner. Or were you really expecting me to walk you through the entire process?”

He rested his cheek against his fist and looked at Claire with a faint smirk.

“I tracked them for weeks, and you handled it in, what, an hour? I want to know how you did it,” she said stubbornly, nodding.

“You forgot something, Claire,” Alex remarked gently with an amused smile. “When you ask someone for something, it’s customary to start with one magic word.”

Hearing Alex’s words, Claire froze for a moment and hesitated. She knew perfectly well what he wanted from her, but she wasn’t used to saying things like that. Usually, Claire acted brazenly—she just demanded things without thinking about how it looked from the outside.

Noticing her reaction, Alex only smirked and shook his head, returning to reading the news on his phone.

He believed that if Castiel did decide to adopt Claire, then in time she would become his niece. And that meant that, as a future uncle, he was simply obliged to instill at least some basic manners in her. Moreover, Alex wouldn’t mind training her later on and eventually placing her in Valerie’s group—so Claire could gain real experience, if that was truly what she wanted.

Claire looked at him, opening her mouth—then immediately closing it again, as if the word got stuck in her throat. Alex, meanwhile, made it very clear with his entire demeanor: if she didn’t say it, he wouldn’t say a single word—no matter how much she begged or demanded.

“Fine…” she exhaled. “P-p-please, tell me how you managed to find those vampires.”

The words came out with difficulty; her teeth were clenched, as if she were forcing herself.

“Nothing complicated,” Alex replied lazily. “When I passed by Annie, I caught the smell of blood. At first I thought, well, women have their days—it happens.”

He waved his hand, as if recounting a boring everyday story.

“When I went out to buy cigarettes, I first stopped by Bradenton Point, just to take a quick look around. And there I felt the exact same smell. I put two and two together and realized Annie couldn’t possibly have been in a place like that that day. After that, I finally went to get my cigarettes. And guess what?”

“You smelled blood again?” Claire asked suspiciously. “But how? I was sitting right next to her and didn’t sense anything like that.”

“I just have a very good sense of smell,” Alex answered calmly. “In the store, the smell was coming from a guy wearing a football club hoodie. I followed him. Turned out it was Henry—Annie’s boyfriend. Or her already-dead ex-boyfriend.”

He fell silent for a moment.

“Anyway, he told me everything. Then I went after the second one—the janitor. Then two more. That’s the whole story.”

Alex pulled a candy out of his pocket and unhurriedly unwrapped it.

“And here’s my advice to you, Claire: before you decide to become a hunter, work on the basics. Right now, the only thing you’re capable of is becoming monster food. You have no experience, no knowledge. You just see monsters everywhere. Even where there aren’t any.”

“Oh, sure, of course,” Claire snorted with open sarcasm. “Because every other person knows how to hunt monsters and would be thrilled to teach me.”

“You have Jody,” Alex replied harshly. “Just stop being ungrateful while living in her house. Do what she asks. When she sees that you’re ready to change, you can ask her to train you.”

He leaned forward, staring straight into her eyes.

“Or do you think that if you keep acting like a spoiled little bitch, everyone will keep indulging you? Or did you decide that since Jody took you in, you can hang off her neck and create one problem after another?”

Alex’s voice remained calm, but there was iron discipline in it.

“What happened to you doesn’t justify your behavior. You can get offended, you can call me an asshole—whatever you want. But when you live under someone else’s roof, under the care of a person who owes you nothing, you are obligated to show respect. At the very least.”

He paused.

“You can run away. But do you know how that ends? You’ll become just another missing girl. One people forget about in a couple of days. So start using your head.”

“You… you don’t understand a damn thing!” Claire shouted, shaking with rage. “It wasn’t your father who was kidnapped by some feathered bastard! It wasn’t your father who was reduced to atoms!”

She jabbed a finger at him.

“It wasn’t your mother who ran away from home trying to find the one who stole her husband’s body! And it wasn’t her who ended up in the hands of another feathered bastard who fed on her! I have no one left!”

Tears streamed down her cheeks; her jaw was clenched to the point of pain.

“I understand how you feel…” Alex said quietly, rising from the couch.

“No, you don’t understand!” Claire snapped.

Alex slowly walked over to her.

“There, there… don’t cry, child,” he said gently. “You’ve been through a lot. And you know I’m right. Every night you relive those moments again and again. Everything you lost left deep scars on your heart.”

He sat down beside her.

“You decided to become a hunter so no one else would have to share your fate. I understand that. But having lost one family, you found another. If you disappear, you’ll cause Jody immense pain.”

Alex carefully wrapped his arms around Claire.

“They say time heals. That’s not true. You just need to accept what happened. Think of your father as a hero. He gave his body to the one who helped save the world, so his daughter could have a future. A future that might not have existed otherwise.”

He spoke softly, almost in a whisper.

“Let no one else know about it. But you and we know. Jimmy Novak was a hero. He was your hero.”

Hearing Alex’s words, Claire could no longer hold back. Tears poured from her eyes in an endless stream, and she clung to his clothing, burying her face in his chest. Loud, heart-wrenching sobs filled the living room.

Alex simply sighed quietly and held her, slowly stroking her back. He didn’t rush her or try to say anything—he just stayed there, helping Claire release all the pain that had built up inside her over the years.

He knew perfectly well the reasons why Claire had chosen to become a hunter. Such a path isn’t chosen out of desire—it’s chosen because life leaves no other option. Ask any hunter, and they would all say the same thing: they didn’t take up arms out of boredom or thirst for adventure. Each of them had lost something. And what began as a quest for vengeance eventually became a way of life.

As he continued to gently stroke the crying Claire’s back, Alex understood that this was the least he could do for his future niece. Castiel had neither the experience nor the social skills to help her cope with emotional pain.

Alex caught himself thinking that, given the number of similar conversations in his life, it was high time he started charging for psychological counseling.

Meanwhile, Dean, Sam, and Jody stood just outside the door. They had heard the entire conversation. Tears welled in Jody’s eyes, which she quickly wiped away with her hand. Dean and Sam remained silent—simply listening.

Summoning her courage, Jody grabbed the door handle and entered the house. The first thing she saw was Claire, crying in Alex’s arms.

Hearing the noise, Claire quickly pulled away, hastily wiping her tears, and looked at Jody. She hadn’t expected to break down like that—in Alex’s arms. And no matter how much she denied it, his words had genuinely helped her cope, even just a little, with the turmoil inside her.

Claire noticed that Jody’s eyes were red. In that moment, she realized Alex had been right—Jody truly cared about her.

“Jody… I… I’m sorry,” Claire said quietly, wiping away the last of her tears.

“I understand, Claire. Come here,” Jody replied softly, smiling and extending her arms.

Claire got up from the couch and approached her. As soon as she was close, Jody hugged her tightly. Claire returned the embrace and rested her head on Jody’s shoulder.

Dean and Sam carefully moved around them and looked at Alex. He appeared as if he were watching another family melodrama unfold from the sidelines. Not wanting to disturb them, the brothers quietly sat down beside him, observing Jody and Claire speaking in hushed tones.

After a few moments, Jody and Claire left, leaving Alex, Dean, and Sam in the living room. Soon, voices echoed from the hallway—Annie had joined the conversation.

Alex didn’t dwell on the fact that Annie had woken up and had probably overheard their conversation. Jody decided to talk to both girls. For a moment, Alex even considered setting up a full family therapy session for them… but he immediately shook his head, decisively dismissing the idea of becoming a professional mind-fixer.

“Dude…” Dean drawled, glancing at Alex.

“What?” Alex replied lazily, turning his head.

“Since when did you become a mind-fixer?” Sam asked, surprised.

“Yeah,” Dean chimed in. “We were gone for half an hour to deal with the bodies you left behind. And we come back—here’s tears, snot, and heart-wrenching talks.”

“So what’s the big deal?” Alex smirked. “Want some family therapy? For friends, I give a ten percent discount. My secretary handles appointments. Cash up front.”

“Go to hell,” Dean muttered with disgust. “I’m not listening to this crap.”

“And I thought, Dean, you’d start whining into Alex’s shoulder,” Sam grinned. “I’d love to see that.”

“You go to hell too!” Dean snapped, pointing at him. “If anyone needs therapy, it’s you!”

Sam just smirked and looked away.

Alex shook his head and pulled his phone from his pocket, ignoring the brothers’ usual bickering—something that happened with enviable regularity.

While the brothers continued arguing, Jody entered the living room carrying bedding so they could sleep there for the night. She sat with Alex, Sam, and Dean for a few moments, exchanged a few words, and then told Alex that Annie didn’t blame him for what he had done or how he acted.

“If she wants to talk about it, she can reach out to me,” Alex said calmly.

Jody just nodded.

Before leaving, she reminded everyone to keep quiet. Alex, Dean, and Sam nodded in unison and began getting ready for bed.

Alex didn’t care where he slept—he’d been in far worse conditions, so spending the night on the floor didn’t bother him at all. In the end, he settled into a soft armchair, wrapped himself in a blanket, while Sam and Dean argued over who would take the couch and who would sleep on the floor.

The argument quickly turned into a game of rock-paper-scissors. Sam won, and a grumbling Dean had to accept the floor.

“By the way,” Alex asked lazily before closing his eyes, “what did you do with the bodies?”

Dean frowned slightly.

“The Bureau badge took care of most of the problems. The case was simply closed.”

Alex nodded and, before falling asleep, sent a request for the official closure of the case involving the five bodies, so as not to draw any unnecessary attention. Then he put his phone away and drifted off.

The next morning, Alex woke to the smell of freshly brewed coffee. Opening his eyes, he saw Dean sleeping on the floor and an empty couch—Sam, as usual, had gotten up first.

Stretching and yawning, Alex shook off the blanket and got out of the chair. Then, without ceremony, he kicked Dean in the leg with his toe.

Dean’s eyes snapped open, and he looked around. Recognizing Alex’s familiar grim morning stare, he yawned and started to get up, stretching. His joints cracked unpleasantly after a night on the floor.

Following the smell of coffee, Alex and Dean headed to the kitchen. Jody was preparing breakfast, chatting with Sam, who was already sipping his coffee. Hearing footsteps, they both turned and saw two sleepy, sullen men.

Jody couldn’t help but smile—Alex and Dean looked surprisingly alike in the mornings.

At the same time, she felt genuine gratitude toward Alex for everything that had happened the night before. He had helped not only by preventing future problems for Annie but also by giving Claire the chance to open up. Yesterday, Jody had spent nearly the entire night talking with both girls, especially Claire. In the end, they reached a truce: Claire promised to behave, and Jody agreed to train her in hunting—no objections from either side.

“Thanks again for your help,” Jody said, placing a mug of coffee in front of Alex.

“Always,” he smiled, taking a sip. “If you ever need a therapy session yourself, I’ll give a family discount—thirty percent.”

“What the hell? Jody gets thirty, and we only get ten?!” Dean protested, staring at Alex.

“Because you’re both idiots,” Alex replied calmly, pointing at him. “Jody fed me a home-cooked meal, gave me clothes to change into, and didn’t even complain when I killed four vampires with her kitchen rolling pin.”

He squinted.

“And from you, all I hear is: ‘What’s for lunch?’ ‘What’s for dinner?’ or ‘If you’re going out anyway, buy a damn pie.'”

“Well… in a way, he’s right, Dean,” Jody laughed, leaning on the counter. “If I were in his place, I’d have hit you a couple of times already.”

“Let me drink my coffee in peace,” Dean grumbled, blowing on the hot mug. “I haven’t even properly woken up, and I’ve already been insulted like ten times.”

Alex just smirked, sipping his coffee, while Sam quietly chuckled, watching Dean grumble and try to wake up with the help of his hot drink. Even Jody couldn’t resist a small smile as she continued preparing breakfast.

After a while, Claire and Annie entered the kitchen. Both looked tired from lack of sleep. Claire had gotten up so early because of her arrangement with Jody: she continued going to school like a normal teenager, and in return, Jody would begin teaching her how to hunt. Annie, meanwhile, had barely slept for obvious reasons—too much had happened the night before, including realizing that her dead ex-boyfriend had turned out to be a vampire.

Both Claire and Annie felt awkward around Alex—after all, he had been the catalyst for everything that happened yesterday. Alex, however, paid no attention, calmly sipping his coffee while scrolling through the news and new reports.

Sam, sitting nearby, sneaked a glance at Alex’s phone, trying to figure out what had caught his attention. After reading another report, Alex lightly rubbed the bridge of his nose. An event he had thought there was plenty of time for was approaching far too quickly. Moreover, its first signs had already begun affecting the world around him.

Sam skimmed the text as well—the report about a surge of aggression in the city they had already discussed earlier. He remembered Alex’s words: before the start of a new cycle, everything would become clear without any explanations.

Sam patted Alex on the shoulder.

“Send me those documents,” he said quietly.

Alex nodded and forwarded the report. Sam immediately dove into reading, and with every passing second his face grew darker.

Dean, chatting with Claire, Jody, and Annie, noticed Alex and Sam frowning and quietly discussing something between themselves. And the most unpleasant part for Alex was that similar events were no longer happening in just one place—elsewhere, things were also rapidly gaining momentum.

“What are you two whispering about over there?” Dean asked, shifting his gaze from one to the other. “Like two schoolgirls who spotted a hot guy. Care to share?”

“Looks like we’ve got a family road trip to the state of Maine,” Alex said, placing his phone face down on the table.

“And judging by everything, it’s going to be a long one,” Sam added.

“Don’t tell me it’s what I think it is,” Dean said slowly.

“Unfortunately,” Alex sighed, “someone decided that one pile of shit wasn’t enough and served us a second helping. On the house.”

Dean groaned, rubbing his face with his palms. Jody, Claire, and Annie exchanged uneasy looks—the tone of the conversation made it clear that something serious was coming. And they weren’t wrong.

Without wasting time, Alex, Dean, and Sam quickly packed up. As much as Jody wanted to ask for details or offer help, she understood that right now they needed to focus on something else.

Alex changed into his own clothes, which Jody had managed to wash clean of blood, and ten minutes later they were sitting in the Impala, heading back to the Bunker.

On the way, Alex contacted the girls and told them they needed to hurry and deal with the monster—a banshee that had been terrorizing the elderly. After hearing the explanation, the girls understood without unnecessary questions.

As the car sped down the highway, Alex rapidly formed plans—there was almost no time left to think.

“Listen, Alex,” Dean asked without taking his eyes off the road. “Can you now explain properly what the hell is going on?”

“Remember our visit to the Oldest House?” Alex began, still typing on his phone. “I asked you to keep an eye on certain people and places. Well, the members of the Order have left Silent Hill. They’re searching for Harry Mason and his daughter, Cheryl. It’ll take time, but they’re already on the move.”

He paused.

“And secondly, outbreaks of violence and fear have started in Derry. Which means we’ll have to deal with everything at once.”

“And very fast,” Sam added. “We’ve got four locations, four problems, and a potential mountain of bodies.”

“So,” Dean said slowly, “on the horizon we’ve got a killer clown who loves kidnapping and eating kids, a cult of psychopaths dreaming of building a ‘perfect world,’ a dead serial maniac turned ghost for the sake of a resurrection ritual involving his so‑called apartment-mother, and a town where people have been conditioned to sacrifice their children for prosperity. And all of this—in one state. Did I miss anything?”

“More or less, no,” Alex nodded. “The plan is simple: kill the clown, wipe out the cult, put down the ghost, and disrupt three rituals.”

“That leaves the main question,” Sam said thoughtfully. “Where do we start? With the clown we don’t even know how to kill, or with trying to stop the rituals? We’ve got four towns that need saving.”

“We start by getting back to the Bunker,” Alex decided, slipping his phone into his pocket. “We’ll see what the books have. I don’t believe this bunch of nerds didn’t gather any information—especially about an entity that pretends to be a clown.”

Dean and Sam nodded, understanding that a lot of work lay ahead of them. From Alex, they had already learned what he had done with his powers of Death—essentially, he had created his own clone, which now fulfilled the role of Death itself. Alex, meanwhile, had been left with only a few minor “bonuses” he could use when necessary. According to him, all of this had been done solely to preserve balance.

Dean and Sam accepted Alex’s explanation at face value, and from that moment on, the subject of his true capabilities was no longer brought up.

After returning to the Bunker, they immediately got to work. More precisely, to searching for any information that might help in some way: books, archives, old Men of Letters records. Not only Castiel had to be brought in for the search, but also GIR, MIMI, and Stitch, who took on the role of a sort of search team.

Within a few hours, the library looked as if a hurricane had torn through it. Stacks of books, boxes of documents, scattered papers, and old journals filled with all kinds of information lay everywhere. Slightly off to the side stood a large board with maps and blueprints of cities pinned to it. Each map was accompanied by photographs, notes, and markings.

Alex stood in front of the board, a cigarette between his fingers, silently studying the scene laid out before him. Behind his back, Dean, Sam, and Castiel were reviewing the available data—not only from the Bunker’s archive, but also from the repositories of the Bureau of Control.

Fortunately, the Bunker also contained books on rituals, including mentions of the ritual of the twenty‑one sacraments.

Alex still didn’t understand how the Men of Letters had managed to obtain copies of the Order’s books from Silent Hill. The only reasonable explanation that came to mind was that one of the Men of Letters had once been a member of the Order of Valtiel. After fleeing Silent Hill, he had joined the Men of Letters, taking forbidden knowledge with him.

“And how the hell are we supposed to stop these three rituals?” Dean grumbled, slamming another book shut. “No matter how much I read, I don’t understand a damn thing. What are these twenty‑one sacraments, what kind of descent of a god, and what sacred vessel?”

“It’s all described here, Dean,” Sam replied without looking up from the Book of the Holy Mother’s Order. “It’s an attempt to create a so‑called heaven on earth. But the ritual of the twenty‑one sacraments really is strange. You have to kill ten people, then perform the Assumption—whatever that means. And the final sacrifices must correspond to certain qualities: compassion, chaos, wrath, envy… And the last one—the Mother. All of it for the descent of the Holy Mother.”

“This is about creating an entity,” Castiel added in a calm voice. “An ancient evil, born from the emotions of people who yearn for and believe in an ideal world.”

“Yeah, an ancient evil that requires sacrificing kids,” Dean muttered darkly. “We’ve got a bastard clown that feeds on children. We’ve got a group of cultists ready to slaughter kids for their ‘paradise.’ And in the end—four damn cities. And only one of them is even remotely stable, and that’s just because there’s only one damn apartment there. And thank God for that.”

Alex listened to their conversation with half an ear, continuing to stare at the board. His gaze lingered on the map of Silent Hill.

He realized that Cheryl had been an adult for a long time now. It was obvious: the events connected to Alessa’s sacrifice had taken place back in the eighties, when the girl was only seven years old. She had been burned alive for the sake of the so‑called ritual of a god’s descent.

The more Alex thought about it, the stronger his anger grew. Thoughts of Alessa turned into a dull, heavy, all‑consuming fury. He knew for certain that he would go to Silent Hill. He would save Alessa. And he would butcher the entire cult—every last one of them.

Lighting a new cigarette, Alex shifted his gaze to the map of the city of Derry and let out a heavy sigh.

The problem with Pennywise couldn’t be put off either. What Alex hated most was that Derry seemed torn out of reality itself, serving as this creature’s personal feeding ground. He understood perfectly well: killing one Pennywise wouldn’t solve the problem. Reality in Derry was too thin because of its presence.

Alex wearily rubbed the bridge of his nose, feeling a headache creeping in.

The simplest option was to force Pennywise into an induced sleep and deal with him later, after the issue with Chuck was resolved and Amara took the reins of this universe into her own hands.

The second option was to kill him in such a way that no one would notice anything.

Pacing back and forth, lighting one cigarette after another, Alex wracked his brain over how to pull off the impossible: kill a cosmic entity without attracting the attention of the main actor, while he was busy playing hide‑and‑seek with his vengeance‑hungry sister.

“Alex, what are you thinking about over there?” Sam finally spoke up. “That’s your fifth cigarette in a row.”

“Thinking about how to kill the Clown,” Alex replied, exhaling smoke. “There’s zero information on him. And the worst part is—he’s not from here.”

“What do you mean, ‘not from here’?” Dean frowned.

“This entity arrived from another dimension, one inaccessible to mortal sight,” Castiel explained calmly. “However, while it exists in this world, it is subject to its laws.”

“Okay, hold on,” Dean raised an eyebrow. “You’re telling me this clown is some kind of cosmic being from another dimension, and we’re supposed to take him out? How?”

“With our hands,” Alex shrugged. “How else? If I understand correctly, he’s from the same dimension as the Hiss and the Board. The difference is—they don’t have physical bodies, and the Clown does. Which means he can be killed. The only question is how.”

“Well, if he can be killed, then we’ll kill him,” Dean nodded. “You’re the genius here—you figure out how to finish off this damn clown. We’ll deal with how to disrupt those three damn rituals in the meantime.”

Alex raised his thumb, signaling that he would find a solution.

The only thing he didn’t like was the possibility that Pennywise could simply roll back in time to his previous awakening cycle. Escape. Start everything over. But the thought didn’t last long.

The solution came almost immediately.

They needed to anchor Pennywise to one specific point in time—permanently, with no possibility of rollback. And after that… kill him. And, to be honest, doing so was far simpler than it might have seemed at first glance.

Thinking about the Clown, Alex bared his teeth in a grin. The idea of the hunt genuinely amused him. It would be fun to watch a creature that was used to feeding on fear suddenly realize that no one was afraid of it anymore.

More than that—Alex suddenly wanted to frighten Pennywise in return. Truly frighten him. To make fear become his own for the very first time.

When Alex let out another quiet laugh—short, vicious, almost villainous—Dean, Sam, and Castiel didn’t even pay attention.

The laughter stopped only when the phone rang.

As soon as Alex answered, he knew who it was—one of the operatives tracking the members of the Order who had left Silent Hill. The very same ones who had gone looking for Harry Mason and his daughter, Cheryl.

After listening to the report, Alex simply ordered them to continue surveillance, but under no circumstances interfere with the search.

The operative didn’t ask unnecessary questions. He merely confirmed the order and reported that tracking the Order’s movements would continue.

Slipping the phone back into his pocket, Alex slowly shook his head.

He knew Cheryl couldn’t be brought back to Silent Hill by force. She had to return of her own free will—otherwise, the Order’s plan would simply fall apart.

But Alex needed Cheryl.

Because she was the good part of Alessa’s soul. And if he wanted to sever their bond, he would first have to separate them.

“I’m tired of reading,” Dean drawled, slamming the book shut. “Who wants a beer?”

“Grab one for me too,” Alex replied, wearily leaning against the table. “And get something to eat. We’ve been sitting here for four hours—I feel like my head’s about to explode.”

“Well, nobody forced you to come up with genius plans to save everyone,” Dean smirked. “All I know about plans is that they usually don’t work.”

“Can’t argue with that,” Alex snorted. “But you do realize we’re going to have to kill a lot of people, right?”

He looked closely at Dean and Sam.

“I’d like to say the cultists are still people,” Sam began calmly. “But after what they did to children… after what they were striving for… no. They’re better off destroyed. Without mercy.”

He paused.

“Especially those who sacrificed their own children. From the look of it, they stopped being human a long time ago. Now they’re just a bunch of ghosts stuck in one place.”

Dean silently nodded, agreeing with every word.

Alex wasn’t the only one who felt anger—Dean and Sam felt it too. The Bunker’s archives had told them far more than Alex’s surface-level explanations. Documents, reports, testimonies—everything the Order had done now lay before them in black and white.

People like that weren’t worth pity. Alex smirked when he heard the brothers’ answer. Once again, he was convinced—they could be trusted.

As for Castiel… Alex didn’t place any special hopes on his brother. He could help with only one thing—with Pennywise. And that was more than enough.

Alex knew that Castiel had no right to interfere in the ordinary lives of Creation. But that rule didn’t apply to beings like Pennywise or Chuck—creatures from other dimensions. Sensing the look, Castiel tilted his head slightly.

Alex smirked and tapped a finger against his temple, making it clear what he was about to do. Castiel gave a barely perceptible nod. In the next instant, Alex passed his plan to him. Castiel’s eyes widened for a moment, then he smiled—a rare, almost human smile. It was agreement.

Only one thing was required of him: help restore reality in Derry, anchor the Clown to a single point in time… and finish him off. Physical world or astral plane—it didn’t matter. Alex didn’t give a damn where Pennywise died. The only thing that mattered was that Chuck noticed nothing.

And with Castiel’s help, that became much easier. While Alex was already imagining how he’d chase the Clown through the sewers of Derry, Dean returned with beer and snacks.

“So, guys,” he said, raising his bottle. “To the beginning of preventing another load of crap in our lives.”

“You’re right,” Alex smirked. “It’s just another pile of crap on our path.”

“As always,” Sam added, lifting his bottle. “Find and kill the monster. Save as many people as possible. That’s our job.”

“Family business,” Castiel said quietly, a faint smile touching his lips.

“To family,” Dean said, tilting his bottle for a toast.

“To family,” Alex, Sam, and Castiel replied in unison.

Taking a sip of beer, Alex smiled.

He liked adventures like this. Yes, there would be more problems, more blood, and more headaches ahead. But in every new chaos, he found what he valued most—friends and comrades who shared his beliefs.

To be continued…

(As I’ve noticed, most people are waiting for Alex to hunt Pennywise, and all the votes have gone to Derry. Well, I think it’ll be a clown. But I’ll check the votes tomorrow, and if everything goes the same, it’ll be Derry first, then Silent Hill. I’m still debating whether to show three storylines for the three Silent Hills. I mean, Alex won’t do everything himself. He has help to solve all the problems.)

Early access to chapters on my patreon: p*treon.com/GreedHunter

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep