The Impala's engine roared like a caged beast as John Winchester pushed it well beyond the speed limit.
Rain pelted the windshield, wipers barely keeping pace with the downpour. Dean sat rigid in the passenger seat, white-knuckled grip on the dashboard, while Sam leaned forward from the back, his lanky frame wedged between the front seats.
The tension inside the car was thicker than the storm clouds above.
"So let me get this straight," Dean finally broke the silence, voice controlled but vibrating with fury. "You've had two other sons this whole time? In Minnesota?"
John's jaw clenched. "It wasn't like that, Dean."
"Then what was it like, Dad?" Sam's question came softer but no less pointed.
John's eyes remained fixed on the rain-slicked highway. "Kate and I... it started after a hunt in '89. Werewolf in Windom. She patched me up at the hospital."
"And you just happened to start a second family?" Dean's voice cracked slightly.
"It wasn't planned," John said. "But when Lucien was born, and then Adam... I couldn't bring them into this life. They deserved normal."
Dean slammed his palm against the dashboard. "And we didn't?"
The question hung in the air, unanswered.
"What I don't understand," Sam said, "is how you could leave them unprotected. You know what's out there, Dad. You've drilled it into us our whole lives."
"Sam-" John started.
"No, he's right," Dean cut in, anger fully unleashed now. "What if the yellow-eyed demon found them? What then? They wouldn't even know what hit them!"
Rain hammered harder as John's grip tightened on the steering wheel, knuckles white.
"I taught Kate the basics," John defended. "Salt lines, protective symbols. I check on them every few months."
"Well, clearly that worked out great," Dean snapped, gesturing toward the road ahead. "One of your sons is dying because of unknown reasons- probably some supernatural bullshit, and the other one's probably traumatized."
John's face hardened. "I was trying to give them something I couldn't give you boys. A normal life."
"Normal isn't safe," Sam said quietly. "Not in our world. That's what you always say."
The green highway sign emerged from the darkness: Windom - 30 miles.
"You should have told us," Dean said, voice dropping to a dangerous quiet. "All these years, all the times you disappeared for days with no explanation... you were with them, weren't you?"
John didn't answer, but his silence was confirmation enough.
"We thought you were hunting," Sam said, realization dawning. "But you were playing catch with your other sons."
"It wasn't like that," John insisted.
"Then what was it like?" Dean demanded. "Because from where I'm sitting, you've been living a double life, and we've been the ones getting the short end."
"I did what I thought was best," John said firmly. "For all of you."
"By keeping us apart?" Sam asked. "By compartmentalizing your life so completely that we didn't even know we had brothers?"
"Again, I took precautions," John continued, as if needing to justify himself. "Taught Kate what to look for. I wasn't completely irresponsible."
"Except Lucien's dying right now," Dean pointed out harshly. "So something most likely got through. You yourself said- the kid was as healthy as horse last time you saw him."
The lights of Windom Community Hospital appeared on the horizon, and John pressed the accelerator harder.
"We can hash this out later," he said grimly. "Right now, Lucien needs us."
The hospital's fluorescent lights cast everyone in a sickly pallor as they strode down the corridor, following a nurse's directions to the pediatric intensive care unit.
The antiseptic smell burned Dean's nostrils, reminding him of too many post-hunt patch-ups.
They found Kate Milligan outside room 217, a foam cup of hospital coffee clutched in her hands. She looked up at their approach, exhaustion etched into every line of her face.
When she saw John, something between relief and anger flashed across her features before she collapsed into his arms.
"John," she whispered. "Thank God."
Before anyone could speak further, rapid footsteps echoed down the hall.
"Daddy!"
A small boy, no more than seven, barreled toward John, wrapping himself around his father's leg. His blue eyes were red-rimmed from crying, sandy blonde hair sticking up in all directions.
"You came," the boy sniffled. "You have to save Lulu, Dad. You're a hero, and heroes save people."
Sam and Dean stood frozen, taking in the scene before them. This was Adam - their little brother. A brother they hadn't known existed until hours ago. Dean watched as John knelt, pulling the boy into a tight embrace.
"I'm going to try, buddy," John promised, his voice gentler than Sam or Dean had heard in years.
Kate's gaze finally shifted to the two young men standing awkwardly behind John. Her eyes widened slightly in recognition.
"You must be Sam and Dean," she said softly. "John's told me about you."
"Funny," Dean replied, unable to keep the edge from his voice. "He never mentioned you."
"Dean," John warned.
Kate shook her head. "It's okay. I understand." She extended her hand. "I'm Kate. I wish we were meeting under better circumstances."
Sam stepped forward, taking her hand. "How is he? Lucien?"
"The doctors don't know," Kate answered, voice breaking. "They've never seen anything like it."
Adam tugged at John's jacket. "Who are they?" he asked, pointing at Sam and Dean.
The simple question landed like a punch to Dean's gut. He knelt down to Adam's height, surprising himself with the protective instinct that surged through him at the sight of the boy's tear-stained face.
"We're your big brothers kid. My names Dean, girly hair over there is Sam," Dean said with a forced smile- he didn't blame Adam or Lucien for all this, never that. His greatest source of anger he realised at this very moment is having family out there- in danger.
Unprotected.
Sam too caught up in all this, didn't even give one of his 'bitch faces' as Dean calls them for that final comment.
Adam studied him solemnly. "Will you help save Lulu? He's the best big brother ever. He always checks for monsters under my bed."
Dean's eyes flicked to John, who had the decency to look away.
"We'll do everything we can," Sam promised, awkwardly patting Adam's shoulder.
They entered Lucien's room together. The nine-year-old boy lay still against white hospital sheets, his face unnaturally pale.
Monitors beeped steadily, tracking vital signs that made little sense given the circumstances. John moved immediately to his son's bedside, a hand reaching out to touch the boy's forehead.
"He's ice cold," John murmured, concern etching deeper lines into his weathered face.
A doctor entered, clipboard in hand and exhaustion in his eyes. "Mr. Winchester? I'm Dr. Brennan. I've been overseeing your son's case."
"What's happening to him?" John demanded.
Dr. Brennan shook his head, bewilderment clear in his expression. "Honestly, I've never seen anything like it. We've run every test imaginable, some of them multiple times with different equipment."
"And?" Sam prompted.
"His cellular structure is... changing. There's something in his blood we can't identify, something that doesn't match any known element or compound."
The doctor flipped through pages of test results. "It's as if something has been added to his very DNA, altering him on a fundamental level."
Dean and Sam exchanged knowing looks. This indeed wasn't medical - it was supernatural.
"Has he been anywhere unusual lately? Come in contact with anything strange?" John asked, slipping into hunter mode.
Kate shook her head. "He was just watching Star Wars with Mrs. Peterson babysitting. I was at work when it happened."
"Any strange smells in the house? Cold spots? Visitors you didn't know?" Dean asked.
Kate looked confused. "No, nothing like that. Why?"
'Taught her what she needed to know my ass,' Dean thought internally with a growl as he glared at John's back.
John ignored him, as he placed a hand on Kate's shoulder. "Kate, you know what I do. What I've told you about. This sounds like something... not natural."
Understanding dawned in her eyes. "You think it's something supernatural? Like the things you hunt?"
"I don't know yet," John admitted. "But whatever it is, it's beyond what these doctors can handle."
Dr. Brennan cleared his throat. "Mr. Winchester, I don't know what you're implying, but your son's condition is critical. His core temperature continues to drop despite our warming measures. We're doing everything medically possible."
"Is he going to die? He can't die. Lulu promised to always be there. He promised." Adam asked suddenly, his small voice cutting through the room.
Kate pulled him close. "He's not going to die, sweetie. The doctors and your dad are going to help him."
Dr. Brennan's expression betrayed his uncertainty. "We're doing everything we can, but I have to be honest - we're in uncharted territory here."
Sam stepped closer to the bed, studying Lucien's face- it was quite bizarre. This was his younger brother- he's never been the older brother before. Especially not to someone who already looks so much like himself when he was that age.
Lucien he saw looked almost peaceful despite his condition, as if he were simply dreaming rather than fighting for his life.
"Has he said anything since it happened?" Sam asked. "Anything unusual?"
Kate shook her head. "He hasn't regained consciousness."
A sudden beeping from the monitors drew everyone's attention. Lucien's temperature was dropping again, the digital readout flashing in warning.
"This doesn't make sense," Dr. Brennan muttered, checking the equipment. "It's like his body is generating cold from within."
Without warning, Lucien's body arched off the bed, his back bowing at an impossible angle. The lights in the room flickered violently, and the temperature plummeted so rapidly that their breath became visible in white puffs.
"What's happening?" Kate cried, pulling Adam behind her.
"Get back!" John ordered, moving protectively toward Lucien.
Sam and Dean flanked their father instinctively, years of training kicking in. The medical equipment began to rattle, instruments vibrating across metal trays. Glass vials shattered, and the monitors' screens flickered with static.
Then came the wave - invisible but unmistakable - erupting from Lucien's small body with such force that it seemed to distort the air itself.
It passed through John, Kate, Adam, Sam, and Dean without effect, but Dr. Brennan was thrown against the wall, crumpling to the floor unconscious.
Medical equipment flew across the room as if caught in a tornado, monitors exploding in showers of sparks.
Adam's terrified wail cut through the chaos as Kate clutched him tightly. As suddenly as it had begun, the phenomenon stopped, leaving the room in eerie silence save for the soft hiss of ruptured oxygen lines.
John didn't hesitate. He moved to Lucien, checking his pulse and breathing before scooping the small boy into his arms.
"John! What are you doing?" Kate gasped.
"We need to get him out of here," John said firmly. "This isn't medical, Kate. It's supernatural. They can't help him."
Kate looked around at the destroyed room, then at her unconscious son. "Where will we take him?"
"I know someone who might be able to help," John replied. "But we need to move now, before security comes."
Dean had already lifted Adam, who clung to him with surprising trust. "It's okay, buddy," he murmured. "We've got you."
Sam in hunter mode like Dean and John kept calm and collected and helped Kate gather essential belongings. "Is there anything specific he needs? Medications?"
"Just his blanket," Kate said - forcing herself also to remain calm despite seeing the absurdity that her son just did while unconscious - grabbing a worn Star Wars throw from the end of the bed.
"He can't sleep without it."
They moved quickly through the hospital corridors, ignoring shouts from staff as they passed.
The Impala waited in the parking lot, rain still hammering its roof.
John laid Lucien gently across the back seat, his head resting in Kate's lap.
Sam squeezed in beside them, with Adam between them, while Dean took his usual place in the passenger seat.
"Where are we going?" Dean asked as John started the engine.
"Missouri," John answered tersely.
"The state?" Sam asked.
"The psychic. In Lawrence." John pulled out of the parking lot with a spray of gravel. "Call Bobby. I know the two of us aren't on good terms right now, but tell him what's going on. We need all the help we can get."
Dean pulled out his phone, dialing a number he knew by heart. "Bobby? It's Dean. We need your help. It's about a kid- Lucien, apparently Dad's other son."
He paused, listening. "Yeah, that was my reaction too. Can you meet us at Missouri Moseley's? And bring your books. All of them."
As the Impala sped away from the hospital, rain drumming on its roof, no one noticed the strange calm that had settled over Lucien's face - almost as if, somewhere else, he was having a conversation of his own.
----------------------------
Lucien's soul stood in the hospital room, watching as his family carried his physical body
"Curious, isn't it?" came a refined voice from behind him. "How one small boy can change the very fabric of existence."
Lucien turned to find a thin, old looking, elegant man in a black suit watching him. The man leaned casually on a silver-headed cane, his ancient eyes holding the weight of eons.
Death had arrived.
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(Author note: Hello everyone, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.
Do tell me how you found it.
Just to reiterate- no one, and I mean no one, knows Lucien to be a reincarnator, not even Chuck and Amara, so Death also doesn't.
Well, I hope to see you all later,
Bye!)