The Archangel Azrael had done what could not be done.  Lucifer stood in the middle off his chained cage in shock.  He knew she had completely changed the timeline because he remembered everything � the timeline he had so carefully constructed was just a memory, like a story someone had told him a long time ago.  This other reality had replaced the dream.  And this reality seriously sucked. 

He stepped to the front of the cage, grasped the chains that formed the impenetrable bars.  Lightning zig-zagged in the darkness behind Azrael, showing the rot that infested her wings.  Lucifer grinned, because that fetid putrescence was like a cancer.  �Azrael, my dear sister.  You misunderstand me, and my intentions.  I know your soul is more than half into the dark.  The rot that has taken your wings is seeping into your heart.  Its progression cannot be stopped.  I only meant to create a world where your darkness could thrive and blossom to its full potential.  Perhaps you do not see the truth at this time.  But you will, in time my love, and then you and I will be together, as it was meant to be.  You will release me from this cage, my sister. Not now, but perhaps tomorrow or the next day or the day after that. Time is on my side, as it always has been. And forever shall be.�  Lucifer for once was not speaking in riddles or half truths.  Azrael must know the inevitability of the disease that infected her, and which could not be undone. 

But she vanished from the realm that trapped Lucifer, leaving him alone in the void, trapped inside a cage from whence he could not escape. 

At least not without help. 

So he waited.

Tick tock.   

Valued Reader � Move to the Last Post in Toy Soldiers Highway to Hell  

Lucifer was bolting through the space-time continuum, something he was adept at doing. He knew precisely where and when that other version of Azrael had been.  She might not be there now, or when Lucifer was scheduled to arrive, but the thing is that he could turn the clock back just a few minutes, just long enough to grab the pendant from that time, before she disappeared on her mission to thwart him.  If he had even one of the pendants, she would not be able to do what he suspected she wanted to do.  Which was to completely alter the timeline and undo this pleasantly evil and chaotic world in which he reigned supreme. 

As he flew through the void, he began to glimpse a stormy landscape in Romania. A volcano, a dragon of all things, and� yes, the pendant.  Nortia�s pendant if he was correct.  He reached his hand forward, ready to rip it from Azrael�s grasp, and then� Lucifer was spun around and violently hit a wall.  If he�d been human he would have been crushed and dead, so devastating was the collision.  As it was, he was just angry, and confused.  He felt in the dark for the obstacle, and there was none.  He sharpened his gaze so he could see in that emptiness devoid of any light.  This was a place Lucifer did not recognize, which sent just a brief shiver of fear through the ruler of Hell, something he had not felt in eons.  He quickly considered the possibilities. There was one that he had rejected early on, one he felt Azrael was incapable of.  Had he underestimated her?  If he had, things were very very bad indeed.

�Oh Hell.�   

�You can do that?� he asked of Azrael. �So you�re saying you can take this pendant, go back in time to before Lucifer messed with it, grab that past pendant and hide both this one and that one?  So, theoretically, no one can change the natural order of things, whatever that might be, after you hide it, or them.� 

Dean puzzled over all of this, which was partly out of his depth and a few feet over his head.  Dean was slash and smash guy, not the great thinker.  That was Sammy�s role, but of course, Sammy wasn�t here, and wouldn�t ever be again unless they did something.  Which the alternatives seemed to be do nothing (unacceptable), smash the pendant and risk major changes in the continuum, which from Kat�s perspective, might not be too bad, but it might be that none of them would even be alive in that world, or Azrael could just reverse what had been altered with the pendant since Lucifer messed with it.  No one knew exactly when he changed things, but most likely it wasn�t too long ago.  Lucy was an in-the-now sort of guy. He wouldn�t have used the pendant 1000 years ago to make something happen now. 

�I like your plan, Azrael, if you can pull it off. Maybe just one tweak, though. Let Lady Fate know where you hide that thing, just in case she needs it.�

The big dragon blinked and added, �It seems like the most prudent solution.  And I may get my castle and treasure back.�  

�Isn�t it arguable that no one deserves the power to alter the continuum?� she didn�t understand why anyone thought they had the right to change things. It manipulated the world. All the lives it affected had no say in the alterations that were bestowed upon them. �Reversing it all would put the world back to where it was meant to be,� fate and destiny would take over as it was always planned. Realizing the alterations may have an undesirable result for all involved. It was a chance they had to take. She had faith. Her ability would allow her to see the infinite possibilities, but she couldn�t begin to imagine all the changes to the time line. Trying to predict the outcome would over load her. It would be too much for her to mentally sort through. It could drive her mad. It wasn�t something she dared to attempt. She left the ultimate decision in Dean�s hands. 

The dragon took its time in answering.  The big reptile was operating on dragon time. But he didn�t seem to be angry or even perturbed about losing his home for the last 700 years or whatever it had been.  Not to mention the treasure he�d accumulated, which was now buried under tons of rock and rubble.  But maybe that was the way of dragons.  They take a long perspective on things, and from that vantage, there will always be ups and downs, the mission is to ride them out, like a boat riding 50-foot swells in a storm.  Just go with the flow, bitch.  Try to fight it or get too wound up about it and that�s when the next wave swamps you and pulls you under.

Then Dvritra spoke, once again in that rumbling, deep, volcano of a voice.  Speaking of volcanos, the sky was raining ash, which looked a little like snowflakes.  �The catch is that, just as I said, all alterations of time that have ever been wrought with Nortia�s pendant will be reversed.  The pendant hasn�t only been used by Lucifer.  There were dozens before him that made small or not so small changes to the time continuum.  Nortia herself used the pendant much more than Lucifer.  Even Lady Fate herself has employed the pendant from time to time.  Your world, as you know it, and as I know it, is constructed of a natural ebb and flow, the path of least resistance, if you will, tweaked over the millennia by those who have used the pendant�s energy to alter that ebb and flow.  Smashing the pendant does not just reverse Lucifer�s alteration of time, it reverses every alteration ever made with the pendant, with unpredictable results.  Who is to say that the world without the pendant would be unrecognizable, perhaps even worse than Lucifer�s world?  On the other hand, it might be immeasurably better than the world you seek to restore.  But for certain, it will be different than that world or this.�

The big dragon sighed and watched the volcano across the valley for a moment, back on dragon time.  Dean was ready to just take a rock and smash the damned thing. To hell with the risk.  The important thing now was to thwart Lucifer.  Then Dvritra spoke again, �And it isn�t just this world, the pendant has echoes of itself in all time continuums, all dimensions.  They are all connected.  The pendant has different names and may look a little different in those places, but they serve the same purpose, to make adjustments in the continuum. Smash this one and the others are affected as well, perhaps in small ways, perhaps in larger ways.  I really don�t know.�  

There was so much death and destruction, the leveling of the forest and the landslide. It saddened her. She remained withdrawn and silent. It seemed her endeavors only escalated matters. It had only been her intention to keep Dean safe. She wasn�t attempting to start a war with an innocent creature. Or encourage Azrael to destroy the landside to defeat the dogs by herself.

So Nortia was dead, but the pendant was still here. Smashing it reversed the damaged that was caused with it. The catch was to be expected. There was always one. How could it be worse than the reality without taking this action? It would of course have some unforeseen affects. Changing various things in the time line would change other events snowballing. Sort of like the time Balthazar prevented the sinking of the Titanic.  Azrael read her mind questioning the dragon. 

Dean was still flying high.  In the grasp of a dragon!  Just like in some fantasy novel by Anne MacCaffrey or E.E. Knight.  Dean didn�t often indulge his inner geek, but when it came to dragons, he was as big a fan as those uber nerds that go to Comicons dressed up as Xena, the Hulk, or Darth Vader.  Of course, Dean was too cool to ever actually cosplay like that in public.  But behind closed doors?  Look out, America!

�So its Dvritra?�  Dean gazed up into the enormous, jeweled eye of the dragon.  �Pleased to meet you, sir.�  Dean felt like he should bow, but didn�t.  No need to be melodramatic.  �And Azrael, you�re responsible for all of this�� he swept his hand around at the mass destruction.  �Remind me never to piss you off.�

Then he went back to addressing the dragon, �Mr. Dvritra.  Sir.  Before the ground began to shake, I was talking about how the world was all screwed up?  We�re here to fix it, if it can be fixed.�  Dean went on to explain how Sam had cut a deal with Lucifer, a deal that had gone wrong.  Sam had been taken to hell, and Lucifer was using Sam�s vessel on earth to wreak havoc.  And how Lucifer had some evil plot in mind that would eventually unleash a horrendous virus that infects people and turns them into murderous zombie-like creatures with varying degrees of intelligence, ranging from cruel and cunning to savage and mindless.  Dean explained how 5 years from now, he and a small band of the uninfected would be battling to save the world, but that things looked desperately bleak.  Lucifer had altered time somehow, changed its course to his advantage.  Their best chance for averting that dire future was to change the course of things now, which was what they were trying to do.  The dragon patiently waited and listened, propping its great head up on one fisted paw. 

�So we came to Romania to defeat the Guardian and then to steal Nortia�s pendant, which we would then use to change the sands of time back to how the world is supposed to be. To foil whatever plan Lucifer has cooked up.�

The dragon blinked, a long slow gesture, then huffed before speaking, �Nortia has been dead these past seven years.  Killed by a time shifter.  The Guardian left this plane of existence shortly thereafter, leaving Castle Dragomir to me, and me alone.�  Dvritra surveyed the rubble that had been just a short time ago a spectacular, 9^th century medieval castle, and Dvritra�s home for more than 700 years.  �The pendant though, which Lucifer no doubt used to alter the tapestry of time has been here all along.  It is in the castle.�  Dvritra raised up on his four, powerful limbs, and waded into the rubble.  �It was locked away in the highest tower, which is lucky, because otherwise it would be buried and likely unattainable.�  The dragon used its tail to sweep some of the debris aside, then it nosed through the stone blocks that had been a pinnacle tower.  Dvritra gingerly picked up between its jaws a wooden trunk decorated with shimmering jewels.  He walked back towards the others and set it down.  As he did, he crunched the box just enough to open it up.  With his nose, he flipped back the lid.  �There on top, the pendant with the ruby jewel in its center.  That is Nortia�s pendant.  I am no expert on this topic, but I believe if you smash it, all alterations of time that have been wrought with the pendant will be reversed.�  

The dragon cocked his mighty head, �But there�s a catch.�   

Dean wanted to throttle Kat.  What part of �nobody�s gonna kill the dragoon� did she not understand?  And now the beast was really fired up.  Kat had gone down hard, but she was struggling back to her feet.  Meanwhile Puff was stoking the fires deep down in his throat, ready to fry everything in sight.

Dean faced the dragon and held up both hands in what he hoped was a universal sign of �chill out dude, let�s talk�.  �Wait! Cool down.  We come in Peace.�  He turned to glare at Kat.  �Seriously we do.�  The dragon paused and cocked its gigantic crested head to consider the minute human.  �You�re old enough, been around long enough to know this world is royally screwed up.  Way off course, and we�re at a tipping point.  If you think things are bad now, you don�t want to see what�s coming.  You must be the last of your kind or pretty damned close to it.  Well, we�re here to set the world right again.  To save the endangered species.  To� save the dragons.� 

Amazingly, the dragon raised an eyebrow.  The fire that had been boiling in its throat, which could be seen as a red glow through its scaled skin, was cooling � the red turning to orange and then brown-orange.  �So I apologize for my friend here � Katarina.  She�s just hot-headed.  Not like me.  I�m cool as a cucumber.  And if you really need to fry me, go right ahead.�  Dean meant that.  Their job here was to do the unexpected, to derail whatever train Lucifer was piloting.  Offering himself up to the dragon was part of that.  �And we don�t want your treasure, although it�s a really cool treasure.  Lots of fine stuff here.  Kudos!�  He turned around to show the dragon the sword in the sheath on his back.  �I have the Sword of Methuselah here.  I know you can sense it.  And she�s a half angel.  We have an Archangel outside named Azrael.  So you know we�re not just lightweights here.  We�re serious about setting things rights.  But� we need your help to do it.�

That�s when the earthquake hit.

Dean was thrown off his feet.  Rocks began to rain down from the ceiling. The chamber was beginning to collapse around them.  The dragon raised its wings to shield Dean and Kat from the shower of rocks, then turned a paw, palm up on the floor and said in a deep, resonating voice, �Hurry, climb on!�  Dean looked at Kat, and the two of them climbed into the open palm of the dragoons paw.  It then curled its talons around them and pumped its huge wings downward, exploding up through the collapsing ceiling into the sky, away from the chaos of the earthquake below.  From between the talons of the dragon�s claw, Dean and Kat watched as the forest was leveled for as far as one could see.  Half of the village of Batu Mari, Romania below was covered by a landslide, the other half was on fire.  Dean thought briefly about that pretty blonde waitress with the pigtails.  Across the valley a volcano that had lain dormant for millions of years was beginning to erupt, tossing ash, missiles of molten rock, and smoke into the sky. 

When the temblor finally subsided, the dragon alighted in front of the rubble pile that had been Castle Dragomir, with Kat and Dean safe and sound.  Dvritra released the two from its clawed paw and then addressed the Archangel in that deep, booming voice, �Azrael, a millennium must have come and gone since our paths last crossed.�

�Azrael,� she uttered under her breath. She was worried about her. Hell hounds were fierce competitors. Azrael was a worthy adversary. She was a skilled warrior. Part of her wanted to go back to help, but someone had to watch over Dean. She shook her head at his offer.

He led the way through stone corridors.  �Ewww,� there was something squishing under foot. She stared down at her feet, but it was too dark to see the flooring. It was horrible. She caught Dean before he fell. The tunnel came to an end. They stood at the edge of the chamber staring at the dragon. She held a finger up to her lips telling the hunter to be quiet. She motioned for him to follow tip toeing around the beast hoping not to wake him from his slumber. A misplaced ruby caused her to stumble. The stone projectile out from underneath her foot to clank with the coin.

The dragon�s eye lids began to flutter. Kat froze looking at Dean. It looked like it was going back to sleep, no such luck. Suddenly it stood up glaring at the two of them. It let out a sharp high pitched roar. It then stretched out its neck bellowing fire at the pair. Fire was Katarina�s element handling flame came naturally to her. She caught the blaze tossing it back towards the monster. She took command of it manipulating it to wrapping around the dragon�s neck choking it. Unable to breath it could not billow flame at them. Kat was confident she had bested the beast. This was not the end. It whirled around whipping it�s tail out in a sweeping motion knocking Dean off his feet and slinging Katarina hard into the wall. 

Hell hounds suck, and not just because they�re invisible.  Although that part is just unfair.  Big-assed hairy, toothy, werewolf-sized beasties, and they have to be invisible, too?  Good thing Kat could see them.  Azrael too.  Otherwise Dean would have been just so much Purina hound chow.  But being teleported here and there out of harm�s way, and then having his wounds healed sort of made him feel like a defenseless third wheel.  Not like Dean Winchester, Hunter Superb. 

He pulled his arm away from Kat, �Thanks.  For getting me out of there.  You can go back for Azrael if you like.  I�ll be just fine.�  He had the Sword of Methuselah in a sheath over one shoulder.  Plus a demon blade.  He was not defenseless.

But she apparently wanted to stay.  To protect him.  Make sure he didn�t get into trouble.  Whatever. �Alright then, this way.�  Dean led Kat out of the candlelit chamber with the warm fireplace into a dank, cold stone corridor.  Torches protruded at an angle from sconces on the wall, but none of them were lit.  The only light was coming from the end of the corridor to Dean�s left, and it was dim and yellow.  Probably a torch. 

They padded along towards the light.  The ground under foot was damp, squishy and slippery.  A sort of mold or algae grew on the floor making the footing treacherous.   Dean nearly slipped twice, but they were able to make their way to a precipice without incident, which was good, because if they�d fallen and splashed into the mud, it certainly would have awoken the dragon.

Standing on the edge, Dean and Kat looked down into a vast chamber illuminated not by torches, but a golden glow coming from the rocks.  Bioluminescence perhaps.  Curled up like a cat atop a pile of coins, jewels, and other treasure was a massive green dragoon.  Probably a hundred feet long, the beast was fast asleep, eyes closed, gently snoring with the end of its tail curled into a ball under its chin.  Dean grinned and said under his breath, �Cool�.