[electricity crackling softly]
- You're a bunch of vultures!
You'll never know what it's like.
[singing in French]
♪
[siren blaring]
- Hey! [overlapping shouting voices]
- Incoming!
[boom]
- [whimpers]
No!
[voices, explosions stop]
- [heavy breathing, snarling]
[ominous music]
♪
The hell?
- [snarling continues]
Who are you?
- [bass voice, echoing] Destiny.
♪
- Uhh--
[eerie music]
♪
- Fighting the battle between good and evil
isn't easy, especially when the first monster
you have to face is the one inside yourself.
[soft dramatic music]
- Come on.
Okay, all right, let's take a break.
- No, I was just getting warmed up.
Yeah, I missed this,
how we used to do this sunup to sundown in basic,
AKA gym class with grenades. - [laughs]
- That wasn't my line. That was all Murph.
He'd have been on "The Tonight Show"
if he hadn't...
- Come on.
- All right. [breathes deeply]
[both grunting]
- All right. Oh, come on.
I was just getting started. - I know. Change of plans.
You need to get something out of your system,
you need to punch something that's gonna punch back.
Okay? - Okay.
[grunts]
Monsters aren't gonna play nice,
and neither should you. Come on.
What you got, John?
Come on.
What you got?
[both grunting]
- Better luck next time, champ.
- Am I interrupting whatever hetero mating ritual this is?
- Um, we were just sparring.
- Is that what the kids are calling it these days?
♪
Get inside, you filthy degenerates.
Lata and I come bearing news.
- Thanks. - You good?
- Yeah.
Never better.
I let you have that one.
- Who starts? - I start?
- I would like you to start. - But I never start.
- Okay, you can start this one. - Okay, well, someone
has to start.
- I was out for drinks with my buddy Manny last night
when he mentioned of a strange death
happening at Hannibal Park Hospital.
It's the talk of his vets bowling league.
- I-I just didn't see you hanging out with that crowd.
Veterans. What?
- Wait, he doesn't know?
- I didn't volunteer like some people I know,
but yeah.
Navy, task force 116. And don't take it personal.
I'd much rather go door to door for Nixon
than talk about my time fighting for old Uncle Sam.
- Now that he knows, could we get back to your bit
so we could get to my bit?
- Thomas Patches Pasternak, decorated World War II veteran
found dead in the locked room
in the Hannibal Park psych unit.
Staff is saying it's a suicide.
- Which, sadly, is quite common amongst vets, but--
- But Manny was there.
He got curious, poked his head inside,
and said he saw singe marks on the floors and walls,
even on the ceiling.
I mean, to Manny, the singe marks
are just some strange icing on a deeply sad cake,
but to Lata and me...
seems like Patches had company...
of the "on fire" variety.
- I'm thinking it could be a Persian manticore.
They're these massive lions with flaming manes.
I mean, they're rare, but giving the monsters
we've had come out of the woodworks lately,
I'm not ruling anything out.
- Yeah, and it could be a dragon,
but those usually go after virgins, so...
- At least I'm safe. [chuckles]
Or maybe Patches was saving himself
for the right person. Don't judge.
- Well, I say we go find out.
And look, a hospital full of patients--
that's open season for a monster.
- Hey, easy, soldier boy.
One false move, and a psych unit
will lock down faster than you can say lobotomy.
We should start by checking out Patches.
- Excellent, I'll call the hospital
and see if they have the body. - Okay.
Lab coats, fake IDs?
- Ugh, give me a moment to open the boutique.
Hey, is this all hitting a little too close to home
after everything with Murph? - I'm good.
I just need a quick shower, and I'll be good to go.
- Okay, um, not in there.
[soft dramatic music]
Th bathroom's down the hall.
- Okay.
♪
- That's Maggie's old room.
No one's been in there since...
- She was killed on a hunt, right, yeah.
[dynamic music]
- Stop right there.
We weren't expecting any more arrivals.
- Power outage at the Buchanan office.
- Been thawing in traffic for over an hour.
- If we don't get him into a drawer,
this hallway's gonna smell like week-old meatloaf.
- Second door to your right.
[blues rock music]
- Okay, check the drawers.
♪
- [grunts]
A little help?
I dressed you clowns.
Why do I have to be the one in the bag?
- Because you suck at rock, paper, scissors.
- There is no logical world
where paper beats rock.
- Look at the edges of the wounds.
They've cauterized.
Whatever singed the hospital room got him too.
- The cuts are too clean to be claws or teeth,
so that rules out manticore.
These came from a blade, which must be why
they're assuming it's a suicide.
- Well, these cuts are deep, so whatever did it was strong.
- A burning blade sounds more like a component
of a sacrifice.
[voice fades]
[uneasy music]
- I'm gonna get you through this.
♪
- [screams] - Murph, no!
[clicks] John...
[muffled voices]
- Carlos, get back in the bag. We'll have to
get him out of here. - Seriously, again?
- Losy, just do it.
- Ugh. Watch the hair, watch the hair!
- Okay, I'm watching it. Just shush.
- Go, go, go.
[approaching footsteps]
[muffled] Ow.
- Excuse me.
I'm here to pick up my husband's effects?
- Mrs. Pasternak, I'm Joan Mitchell,
Forensic Autopsy Technician, and this is my associate
Graham Nash.
We are so sorry for your loss.
- Is that Patches' cross?
- Uh...
Mrs. Pasternak, on behalf of everyone
here at Hannibal Park, I'd like to thank you...
for your husband's service.
Excuse me for a minute. Sorry.
[door clicks open]
[clicks closed]
- Everyone's been so kind at this hospital.
I'm sorry Patches couldn't get along
with the folks here better.
- What do you mean? - He was part of
an inpatient therapy group
on account of his anger issues he came home with from the war.
An orderly told me that he got into it
with one of the doctors on the day it happened.
- Which doctor are you talking about?
- Whomever it was, I'm sure that they were just trying...
Funny, you're the second person
who has asked me that in the last few days.
- Who was the first?
- Oh, um, it was a nice, young reporter.
- I know him.
- [panting]
[uneasy music]
♪
[gunfire]
[sounds escalating]
- John.
[heart thumping]
[gunfire continues]
[dramatic chords]
[music escalates]
- Are you okay? - Bad breakfast.
Feeling better now. - Are you sure?
- Yeah, I'm fine.
So what's going on? - Okay.
Well, while you were busy, we came up with a plan.
Lata and I are gonna check out a reporter
Mrs. Pasternak talked to,
but we still need to get inside the psych unit,
get eyes on Patches' doctor and his fellow patients, so...
I hope you and Carlos are ready to tell your best war stories,
because you're enrolling in Patches' therapy group.
[country music]
♪
- Is there a parade today?
- Carlos and I are chasing down a lead
in a veterans therapy group.
There's a memorial for one of the members beforehand,
so I gotta dress the part.
- Now I wish there was a parade.
- Yeah, me too.
Yeah, the thought of sitting around
talking about how I feel...
- Never been our strong suit, huh?
Talk is cheap, kiddo.
It's our actions that matter most.
[bell rings]
[rock music]
♪
- Carlos, this is my mom, Millie.
Mom, this is Carlos.
♪
- Seen you around before.
That's quite a different look.
Everyone loves a man in uniform.
- Including other men in uniform.
Okay, you ready to open the floodgates
and let the healing begin?
- If they start trying to blame it all on the mother,
you're out of there. Got it? - Course.
We all know it's Dad's fault anyway.
- I think this is all the information we need.
- Thank you so much for helping us today.
- After what happened with our bowling buddy Patches,
we both decided that we also need help.
- Let's go ahead and get you checked into your rooms
and into your first session with Dr. Kaplan.
- Dr. Kaplan.
Was that Patches' therapist?
We know they didn't exactly get along.
We talked to some of the friends before the service,
but, um, they did say that Patches' therapist
was the best. - Dr. Zimpano?
Yeah, he is,
but I'm sorry.
The psych unit staff is stretched thin these days,
so Dr. Z is all booked up.
- Robin, is it? - Yes.
- Yes, a beautiful, beautiful name.
Look, I don't want to ask for any special treatment,
but, uh, would you mind switching us?
I mean, look, my buddy here is a tough nut to crack.
Even the best you got might not be enough.
- Let me see what I can do.
- Do you want to talk about it?
- Talk about what?
- You know, Maggie's room.
It's been a year, and I thought I was in a good place,
but the second that door started to open...
- Yeah, it's her room. It's closed for a reason.
It has been since my parents invited her to move in.
- Sometimes I wish she was still here
just so I could ask her how to get over
the fact that she's not.
Even with hunting, she always found a way
to see past the darkness.
I wish I knew how.
- Well, promise me if you figure it out,
you'll let me know, but in the meantime,
do you have a dime? - A dime, why?
- Because that is the reporter I ran into at the movies.
- Oh. [chuckles]
That's "Omega Man."
You did not tell me he looked like that.
- Because I knew you were gonna act like this.
Okay, just hang back and act casual, okay?
Casual.
- Got it. - Okay.
- I'm really glad you called. - Thank you for meeting me.
Oh, and, um, before I forget...
- [chuckles] Wow.
You take your debts very seriously.
- Um, I didn't come here just to pay you back.
I had a great time the other night,
and you're a really good guy, and...
there's really no easy way to say this.
- Everything okay?
- A friend of the family just passed away.
- I'm so sorry. - Thanks.
But it's actually a really weird coincidence.
His name was Thomas Pasternak,
but we always called him Patches.
- Yeah, I interviewed his wife Stella a few days ago.
Jeez, Mary. - I know.
It's a small world, right?
When she told me you'd talked, I decided to check in,
and I just wanted to make sure you weren't somehow,
I don't know, exploiting his story.
- I saw Mr. Pasternak's autopsy report.
All those wounds...
didn't read like a suicide to me.
I wanted to get to the bottom of things,
make sure this is the last time that this happens.
- Wait, what do you mean the last time?
- Well, the whole reason I'm in Lawrence
is because I've been chasing this story.
Other vets have been killed in psych units
just like your friend
all across the country.
[soft dramatic music]
♪
- All right, there's our guy.
You keep an eye on Z and distract him.
I'll sneak out of the session, dig into his office,
and see what I can find.
- How am I supposed to distract him?
- I'll show you once the session starts.
- [whispering] Carlos.
[indistinct chatter]
- Don't waste your time on those donuts.
Day olds.
Place is cutting the corner too far, you ask me.
Fruit cup.
Best part of the whole shebang. - Thanks.
- Oh, Jimmy Mixon.
Nice to meet you. - John Winchester.
So, uh, how about this Dr. Z?
It seems like there's nothing he can't do.
- Manage your expectations.
Doc's worse than the donuts.
- Talk's cheap, huh?
- Bet your ass, brother.
[applause]
- Thank you, Gustavo.
Who's next?
An eager newcomer. I don't think we've met yet.
Why don't you tell us about yourself?
Carlos Cervantes, um, navy medic.
My whole life was in a van--
my clothes, my records, my guitar.
I lived life off the grid, free as a bird.
But then I got arrested,
and judge said it was either jail or service,
and I wasn't about to give up freedom on the open road
for a cell, so next thing I know,
I'm in the Mekong Delta taking second watch
surveilling the coast
with the worst haircut of my life.
[chuckles]
I remember there were these...dots in the jungle.
I didn't know what they were, but...
They were beautiful.
Like...
blinking Christmas lights.
[soft, moody music]
But then I realized they were the cherries
from the Viet Cong's cigarettes.
I was watching them...
and they were watching us.
I still see those dots sometimes.
I guess it doesn't matter how I got there
or how I felt about the war.
Circumstances might be different...
But our trauma is the same.
♪
- Thank you for sharing, Carlos.
- Well, thank you for giving me the space to share, Dr. Z.
I think I'm gonna go freshen up.
My friend here would actually love to go next.
Right, John? - Carlos, Carlos.
- See you.
- Nice to meet you, John.
Tell us about yourself.
- No, I'm--thanks, guys. I'm good just--just listening.
- Something tells me you didn't come all this way
just to listen. What's your story?
- Uh, was a marine in Vietnam.
Um...
my company was involved in an operation
in the mountains south of Da Nang.
Uh...
things went bad.
We were ambushed.
My buddy stepped on a land mine.
I saw it happen.
- I'm so sorry for your loss, John.
- Yeah, my friend died, and...
all I got was a lousy scar.
- What else can you tell us about that day?
[tense music]
♪
- Losing a friend like that must have been unbearable.
If you can, tell us what's coming up for you.
- Give him a break, Doc. We were raised to bottle it up,
be a man. - Look where that got us--
sitting in a hospital. - Wasting time.
I've about had it with this damn group.
You don't listen to us.
You for damn sure didn't listen to Patches.
[indistinct chatter]
- All right, that's quite enough.
Everybody, let's take ten.
Jimmy, my office.
- Yeah, like hell.
[chair clatters]
- Jimmy, wait up.
Hey, Jimmy, wait up.
What happened between Dr. Z and Patches?
[eerie music]
♪
- Who the hell are you?
You better get away from me, buddy, right now.
Aah--
[heart thumping]
- John?
- So this Jimmy had a fight with Dr. Z,
and you followed him?
- By the time I caught him, he was gone.
The same cauterized wounds as Patches.
I-I didn't see anyone, okay? I...
I couldn't stop it.
- John, easy.
- Carlos, what did you find in Dr. Z's office?
- Well, according to his notes, Patches was haunted
by images of a man with a horned mask
holding a spear.
That description ring any bells?
- It sounds like
a preclassical mythological figure,
but that doesn't exactly narrow it down.
- Dr. Z was with the group when it happened, okay?
So whatever this is, he isn't it,
but he knew about it.
- You think he was covering it up?
- I don't know, but I'm gonna find out.
- Hey, just keep an eye on him and hang tight
until we figure out what this monster is, okay?
- Got it.
- You won't find anything here.
I've been doing inventory on the clubhouse's library,
and, shocker, a bunch of old white men
weren't big on pre-Christian lore and myths.
If it's a mythological creature we're looking for,
I know where we can find them.
- John?
John, this isn't the answer.
- Who's the man in the horned mask?
- What? - The one that Patches
saw before he died, the one I saw.
- Son, I'm sorry.
I know how hard today has been.
First Patches, and now Jimmy. I'm feeling it too.
But there is no man in the horned mask.
- Come on, John. Take it easy.
[tense music]
♪
- What Patches, what you are seeing,
it isn't real.
There are no monsters in this hospital.
- You have no idea.
- Please pardon my friend.
I actually, um, really enjoyed our session today.
- Thank you.
- You saw the man in the mask?
- Back at the morgue, I saw Patches' cross necklace.
It took me back.
- Well, did you talk about it in the group?
- In group?
Dr. Z?
Tell me you're not buying into all this crap.
- When I got back from 'Nam, I thought the less I said,
the better, but today, sharing what I went through,
I completely forgot about this case and why we're here.
Talking about it actually helped.
Listen, well, we're out of suspects,
but at least we know what we're looking for.
So while Mary and Lata hit the books,
let's you and I split up, search for
more of these burn marks, and see if they lead us
on the trail to where the man in the mask is hiding.
[intense music]
- It's gonna be okay.
I'm here if you need me. - Me too.
[soft music]
♪
You know, she used to say good night to him
every night when she went to sleep.
- Ancient myths and creatures
clearly weren't Maggie's only obsessions.
- [chuckles]
- Don't tell me she had time to have a pen pal.
- It doesn't look like it.
They're all in her handwriting.
- "Uncle Sam yelled at me.
"I missed the shot.
Mary and I got chili fries on the way home."
She wrote down two bad things and one good thing
on each of these. - For every hunt.
You were wondering how Maggie saw past the darkness.
I think this is how.
- Mary, look.
Mars Neto, a Celtiberian deity based on the Roman god Mars.
Do you think this is him?
- It's a fiery spear, a horned mask
just like patches described. Forget monster.
We've never faced anything like this.
And John and Carlos have no idea...
- That they're up against a god.
[tense music]
[indistinct PA announcement]
♪
[helicopter blades whirring]
[man yelling over loudspeaker]
♪
[gunfire, yelling voices]
[indistinct voices]
- Carlos?
Carlos.
[eerie music]
♪
Carlos.
[birds chirping]
- How's this gonna work?
- You're the in we need to help John and Carlos.
The hospital only allows family visitations.
- And what else do we know about this Neato guy?
- It's Neto, and he's not a guy.
He's a god.
All we know is that he's incredibly powerful,
capable of altering the reality of his adversaries
during battle, literally using the fog of war
to trap and kill them.
Oh, and also he's, uh, he's immortal.
- You sent John into battle against a god who's immortal?
- There may be a way to stop him.
Tell her about the vase thingy.
- Yes, according to the lore on Neto,
he has a totem, a kind of vase called an amphora.
It's a symbolic item linked to his immortality
While he visits Earth.
If we can find it and destroy it,
John and Carlos will be able to kill him.
- John and Carlos are trained soldiers.
They can hold down the fort until we arrive.
- That's what I'm worried about.
John's been a fighter since he was four years old.
You put him in a dangerous situation with an enemy,
and he's gonna run straight toward that enemy
every single time.
[soft dramatic music]
[birds chirping]
- Carlos?
♪
Carlos?
- Oh, John.
You okay? - Yeah. All right.
We gotta get out of here. - We can't.
Every time I think I find the exit,
I get turned back around again.
It's like a maze had a baby with a jungle.
- So this place is real.
- To you and me, yeah.
Real as the sweat soaking my new velvet shirt.
I've tried any way I can to escape,
but I don't think we can just walk away.
I think we have to face what's in here
if we want to get out.
- You mean who's in here.
Monster with the horned mask,
the one that killed Patches and Jimmy--
if he wants a fight, he'll get one.
- Wait, no, John, hold on.
[click]
John?
- Don't move. Okay, Carlos?
Everything's gonna be okay. I promise.
Just don't move. - I wasn't planning on it.
[heavy footsteps]
- Men of action are so hard to come by.
Welcome, Corporal Winchester.
- How do you know who I am?
♪
Jimmy.
I--I saw you die.
- Gods can't die, but we can bleed
and be made to look, well... awfully messy.
- You're telling me all of that was theater?
- Everything I did for you was to get you
to embrace your anger, to get you ready.
- Ready for what?
- The Akrida.
♪
I know The Akrida are already here.
You and your hunter friends are too weak
to stop them, but you, a hunter and a soldier...
you could be sharpened into a powerful weapon.
[ominous music]
♪
- If I agree to help you...
will you let my friend go? - John, please.
There's gotta be another way. - Carlos, just--
- Fight me and draw first blood.
You join me, and your friend goes free.
And if you don't,
it's the spear for both of you.
- John, please.
- All right, let's do this.
♪
- You know what to do?
- Is Yoko Ono unfairly blamed
for the breakup of the Beatles?
Yes.
- Excuse me, do you have an appointment?
- I'm Millie Winchester, John Winchester's mother.
He's a patient here.
I'd like to check him out immediately.
- The psych unit is in lockdown due to an unforeseen emergency.
If you'd like to come back tomorrow--
- If you don't let me in, the whole world
is gonna hear about your lockdown.
You want to explain yourself to Walter Cronkite
on the nightly news, be my guest.
- Doctor.
Hi. Um, just got a call from the morgue.
Jimmy Mixon's body... disappeared.
- What, like, it just got up and walked away?
It must be somewhere.
I have to deal with this. Ladies, have a blast.
[dramatic music]
♪
- All right, I got us in.
Now where's this totem we need to destroy?
- Well, you said Neto needed it nearby, right?
So he's probably hidden it somewhere.
- But where do we even begin? This building is huge.
- Well, that orderly just said
Jimmy Mixon's body went missing.
That was the last victim.
Sounds like the best lead we've got.
- Sounds like the only lead we've got.
♪
- [grunts]
- Uhh--
- I'm not seeing any vases.
- It has to be here somewhere. Just keep looking.
- You're still holding back.
I know the anger you have inside you.
Set it free!
- You don't know anything about me.
♪
- There is centuries of violence and rage
in your blood, John.
Become what you were born to be!
- [grunts]
- Bingo.
- [coughs]
- Your scars are holding you back.
Your past is holding you back.
Let me wipe the slate clean.
[sizzling sound]
[John groans]
- Got it.
- Ah, the details are exquisite.
- On your feet, soldier.
This one belongs to you. Claim it.
♪
- Ironic, isn't it?
That a god's immortality be tied to something
that appears so...
Fragile.
- We do not have time for irony.
Now, how do we know if it worked?
[epic music]
♪
- [groans]
[coughs]
I was right.
You are just like me.
- No.
- You're ready
for the war
against Akrida.
- John!
I don't know what you did, but it worked.
The mine's gone.
[soft dramatic music]
♪
- Mom? - You okay?
- What are you doing here?
- What's it look like? Saving your rear.
- He created this...
this battlefield out of an empty ward,
and he said that the only way out
was for John to fight him. - Just John?
Why?
- I guess he just saw something in John,
but he was wrong. John won.
- Carlos.
Listen, I hope we didn't scare you off.
The hospital's handling of these patient deaths
has left a lot to be desired. Well, not anymore.
I am personally committed to making sure
that we do right by our veterans.
- I think I have someone you could talk to who could help.
- I'll give him a call.
I also wanted to say
I see a lot of potential for growth, for healing.
- How are you feeling?
- Well, um, on the upside, I might have a new therapist,
but, um, on the other hand,
I'm still shaken up, and I might not be able
to sleep in the van tonight.
- Do you want to stay with me?
I might even have an extra room available.
- Do you mean Maggie's?
- I can't keep the door locked forever.
At some point, I'm gonna have to face what happened,
and I think I know how.
- Mar, I can't thank you enough.
- Maybe save the thanks until after
you've survived a night with several Donny Osmond posters.
- Actually, sounds quite soothing.
[laughter]
- I can take you two home.
- That'd be great.
- Hey, Winchester, before you go...
I just want to thank you for what you did back there.
- You're welcome.
- If you ever want to talk...
You let me know, okay?
- Yeah, I will.
[Harry Nilsson's "Everybody's Talkin'']
[folk pop music]
- ♪ Everybody's talkin' at me ♪
♪ I don't hear a word they're sayin' ♪
♪ Only the echoes of my mind
♪
♪ People stop and stare
♪ I can't see their faces
♪ Only the shadows of their eyes ♪
♪
♪ I'm goin' where the sun keeps shinin' ♪
♪ Through the pourin' rain
♪ Going where the weather suits my clothes ♪
♪
♪ Bankin' off of the Northeast winds ♪
♪ Sailin' on summer breeze
♪ And skippin' over the ocean like a stone ♪
♪
♪ Everybody's talkin' at me
♪ Can't hear a word they're sayin' ♪
♪ Only the echoes of my mind
♪
♪ I won't let you leave my love behind ♪
♪
♪ No, I won't let you
♪ Leave
- [whistles melody]