First Born Recap

Jasper Springs, Mississippi...1863

A man in a Civil War uniform enters a log cabin where other soldiers are already waiting. One of the soldiers inside says "he's coming" and they have to stand their ground no matter what happens because the knight must be protected. The other soldiers reveal themselves to be demons (black eyes).

A bearded man enters and proceeds to smite the first demon. Then the second, and continues on until all are gone.

The bearded man carries something that looks like a large jaw bone.

Back in the present, Dean is checking out a waitress at a bar. Crowley appears next to him and tells him that Gadreel has left the building (along with a few other Crowley-isms, like telling Dean that the waitress he is checking out is "trouble with a capital VD").

Crowley tells him that, with Gadreel not around, there is a more pressing matter; killing Abaddon. Crowley tells Dean that one thing can kill a Knight of Hell...the "first blade". He's been chasing it for decades. He got close, but John Winchester nabbed Abaddon's protege who is the only one who knew something about where it was.

Crowley wants Dean to help him find the blade. Dean can't believe Crowley wants to hunt with him.

Dean pulls John's journal out from his jacket; he leaves through it and finds the page confirming that John did nab the protege. There are numbers in the margin and Crowley asks what the numbers mean. Dean tells him they lead to one of John's storage facilities. Crowley is ready to go. A trucker demon hears it all a ways down the bar.

Back in the bunker...
Cas is slowly eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as Sam comes in. Cas tells Sam that the sandwich tastes funny; now that he's back to being an angel; he can taste every molecule and it's overwhelming and disgusting. (Cas also informs us that when he was human, he liked peanut butter and jelly, but not jam...jam he found unsettling.) Cas says they need to continue healing Sam; they are almost done.

Cas puts his hand on Sam's forehead but then stops. Sam wants to know why. Cas says it's nothing and Sam calls him a terrible liar. He asks Cas what's wrong. Cas tells Sam that Gadreel has left something behind inside Sam. Cas wants to call Dean, but Sam says no, Dean wanted to go and he's gone. Sam says he and Cas will handle this.

Elsewhere...in John's storage facility...Dean takes the hood off of Crowley that he made him wear so that the location of the storage locker would remain a secret. Crowley asks if the hood's really necessary because "I've been inside your brother; we're practically family." This sets Dean off and he grabs Crowley and slams him against the wall saying they are the furthest thing from family, "d i c k b a g".

Dean looks around the locker, but Crowley can't go in because of the Devil's trap on the floor.
Dean finds a file. It says John was working with another hunter; Tara; when he nabbed Abaddon's protege. They nabbed the demon and exorcised him but not before the demon mentioned the first blade. The rest of the file in empty.
Back at the bunker...

Cas reads in one of the Men of Letter's book that when an angel leaves, something is left behind; Grace. Cas says the Grace is fading each time he heals Sam. He says it's harmless, but the Grace might be helpful. The book says the remaining Grace could perhaps be used to track Gadreel. If you could get the Grace out, the Men of Letters thought you might be able to perform a tracking spell, but they were never able to test the theory.

Sam offers to be a guinea pig; Cas is confused asking where they have a guinea pig. Sam explains he's offering to be the guinea pig. Cas asks if Sam has any idea where in the bunker they might find the very large hypodermic needle pictured in the Men of Letters book that is supposed to be used to extract the Grace.

Elsewhere, Dean and Crowley enter a pawn shop. A very fit middle-aged woman looks up from what she is reading and confirms that she is Tara. Dean mentions John. She asks if he is Sam or Dean. He confirms he is Dean to which Tara says, "Didn't you grow up pretty," and asks if Dean is still in the family business. Tara's knee looks like it's causing her pain.

Dean asks about the job she did with John, but Tara pulls a shotgun from under the counter, pointing it at Crowley and explaining that ever since '92 she gets a tingle in her knee whenever a demon is around. She has Crowley's number. Crowley tries to snap out of the place, but he's caught in a devil's trap under the rug. Dean starts to explain that his "associate" Crowley...and Crowley jumps in saying he and Dean are besties; to which Dean says, "Not helping!" and Tara quickly adds, "Not caring." Tara splashes Dean with holy water. Dean says Crowley is helping him.

Dean explains to Tara they are looking for the first blade in order to kill a Knight of Hell. Tara says the Knights are all dead, but Dean tells her that Abaddon came back.

Tara says that after she and John interrogated and exorcised the demon, they had a lovely weekend together and then went their separate ways. But she couldn't forget about the blade since something like that could really help a hunter. She searched all over the world for it without any luck...all she could find was a location spell. She couldn't finish the spell because she could never get her hands on any "essence of Kraken"; a necessary ingredient. Crowley says he can get some. Dean says that Crowley wants Abaddon as dead as he does. Tara frees Crowley from the devil's trap so he can go get the last ingredient.

When they are alone in the store, Tara tells Dean it's not worth partnering with Crowley for this. Dean says Abaddon is much worse than Crowley and he'll deal with Crowley later. He asks her to trust him. Tara says that Dean sounds just like John did when he said he'd call her.

Crowley is back with the last ingredient.

The three of them mix everything up, pour it over a map, and light it. The map burns down to just one location in Missouri. Crowley asks Tara if she'd like to join them. She says she'd join Dean anytime, but would never join Crowley. Dean thanks her and she wishes him luck.

The Impala drives to Missouri and stops in front of a white house with a deep front porch and a lovely classic pickup truck in the drive.

Crowley stops and says he's feeling something dark. Dean asks incredulously, "What, darker than YOU?"

A bearded man in a beekeeping outfit appears. Crowley says they have to leave. The man is the "father of murder"; it's Cain.

"Cain and Abel" Cain.

Suddenly Cain appears behind them and they spin around as Cain says, "you're not going anywhere...Crowley".

Later they are sitting in Cain's living room under a stained glass window depicting a beehive. Dean asks why Crowley hasn't just snapped out of there. Crowley says he'd never leave his "domestic partner in crime", but Dean figures out that Crowley can't leave. Crowley says Cain is doing something to him & his powers.

Dean asks Crowley about Cain.

Crowley says that after Cain killed Abel, he became a demon. A very deadly one. Then he just disappeared and everyone thought he was dead.

Cain walks in with tea for them. Crowley seems so nervous that his teacup shakes in his hand. Cain asks what the King of Hell and a Winchester are doing at his house. He wonders how they found him and why they were looking for him. Crowley starts to explain and Cain silences him so he can't speak. Dean tells Cain he has to teach him how to do that.

Dean tells Cain that they are looking for the first blade in order to kill Abaddon. Dean knows Cain is retired, but he needs some help. Cain still wants to know how they found him. Dean tells him about the location spell. Dean tells him no one else knows they are there.

Back at the pawn shop, Tara's knee gives her a flash of pain as a demon enters. She shoots him.

Back at Cain's house...Cain asks Dean and Crowley to see themselves out. Dean says he's not leaving without the blade.

Cain says Dean has quite a reputation and the part about him being brave is obviously true. Dean says he's an "all-in" kinda guy. He wants to kill the last Knight of Hell.

Cain tells Dean that if Crowley could talk, he'd tell Dean that Cain built that whole order; he trained the Knights of Hell himself. Abaddon included. Cain says that no one outside of Abaddon knows that it wasn't the arch angels who slaughtered the Knights, it was him; Cain. Dean asks why Cain turned on his own. He doesn't want to answer Dean's question and again tells them to leave and never come back.

Crowley wants to leave. Dean thinks they are too close if the blade is their only chance at killing Abaddon. They decide to come back when Cain is gone to search for the blade.

Back in the bunker...
Cas is asking Sam about the trials. Cas points out that Sam and Dean chose each other instead of making the ultimate sacrifice. Sam confirms that yes, they did choose each other, but then Dean went and made a choice FOR Sam by letting Gadreel in to heal him. Cas tries to defend Dean. Sam says he still has to close the gates of hell. He has to find Gadreel. Sam says that being human means settling your debts. He wants to find Gadreel, so Cas needs to start extracting the leftover Grace from Sam.

Back at Cain's house...
Crowley and Dean break in while Cain is out. Crowley tells Dean it's the dumbest idea he's ever had. Dean replies, "Yeah, well, it's early," and they start searching the house for the blade. They don't find the blade. Dean finds an antique photo of a woman on the mantle wearing a ring similar to the one he had noticed Cain wearing.

Outside, a truck full of demons pulls into Cain's driveway. The demon calls for backup, saying they won't believe who Dean and Crowley found. He says they should "send everybody".

Back at the bunker...
Cas is extracting the Grace from Sam with a really big needle. He tells Sam it's going to hurt. Cas says he has to push it in deeper; they need to get enough Grace to work the spell. Cas is afraid it will permanently hurt Sam, but Sam tells him to do it. Sam goes through a bunch of flashbacks and when Cas pulls the needle out, he tells Sam that Sam's body is regressing to the state it was in before Gadreel possessed him. Sam asks if they have enough Grace for the
spell yet. Cas says no. Sam braces himself for another round.

Back in Cain's house...
Dean tells Crowley that Cain must have had a wife (the woman in the photo).

Cain returns to find them and makes them hand over the photo.

They realize there are a bunch of demons outside. One demon says they killed Tara; peeled all her skin off. The demon asks for Dean and Crowley to take back to their new master Abaddon. They claim they will leave Cain alone.

Cain tells Dean he can keep the demons out for awhile. But Dean exposed Cain and his home and he's going to have to pay. If Dean survives, he can join Cain for lunch before Cain disappears again, now that he's been found, he has to move on.

Back in the bunker...
Sam urges Cas to keep going with the extraction. It's obviously doing damage to Sam. Cas is reluctant to keep going. He doesn't want to hurt Sam. He asks why the Winchesters always run toward death. Cas tells Sam that his experience being human made him realize that all life is precious and must be protected at all costs "even a life as pig-headed as a Winchester's". Sam says his life is not worth any more than anyone else's and asks Cas to please help him do this one thing right. He wants him to keep going.

Back at Cain's, Dean is barricading the doors. Cain calmly peels several ears of corn at the table. Dean can't believe Cain will sit there and do nothing. Dean says it's not like Cain's a coward. Cain can't believe the great Dean Winchester would ask for help. Dean's not living up to his reputation, in Cain's opinion. Cain thinks maybe Dean's lost a step and says "let's find out". Cain snaps his fingers, allowing two demons to enter the house. It's obvious
Cain's not going to fight them; it's entirely up to Dean.

An absolutely great fight scene follows (and it was all Jensen; no stunt doubles). Dean takes on 3 demons, killing them one by one with Ruby's knife. Dean fights with anything the can get his hands on. Crowley kills only one demon who comes in a back door, using an angel blade. He doesn't help Dean at all.

Crowley and Cain both calmly watch Dean fight for his life and kill the last demon intruder.

Dean asks if this was some kind of test.

Cain says he and Dean are very much alike; that he felt connected to Dean from the beginning as if they were kindred spirits. Dean points out they can't be that much alike; Dean didn't kill his own brother.Cain says yes, Dean saved his brother. Cain asks why Dean saved Sam. Dean says that you never give up on family; ever. Cain insightfully asks, "then where's your brother now?". Dean looks uncomfortable. Dean says he doesn't know what kind of game they are playing; he just wants the blade.

Cain says he doesn't have it. It's gone.

Back in the bunker...
Cas continues the extraction as blood flows out of Sam's nose. Cas decides he has to stop. Sam asks what he's doing.

Cas puts a hand on Sam's forehead and heals him (the blood disappears). Cas says they'll
have to try the spell with the Grace they have already extracted. Cas says he wants to find Gadreel too, but nothing is worth losing Sam. He won't go any further in trying to get more Grace out of him.

Cas says that being human changed his view of Sam. He can relate to Sam now. Cas tells Sam that the only person who has screwed things up more consistently than Sam, is him (Cas). Now Cas knows what that guilt feels like and what it means to feel sorry. Sam knows Cas feels sorry for what he did. Cas says the old him would have jammed the needle into Sam's neck until he died because the end always justified the means. But after what Cas went through, he knows angels can change so maybe Winchesters can too. Sam looks thoughtful as Cas leaves the room with the syringe full of glowing Grace.

Back at Cain's, Crowley doesn't believe the blade is gone because the location spell led them to Cain. Cain says the spell led them to the source of the blade's power. Cain rolls up his sleeve to show Dean and Crowley a raised scar.

Crowley crosses himself (!) and Dean can hardly believe he just did that. Crowley tells Dean that it's the "bloody Mark of Cain" they are looking at on Cain's arm. Lucifer gave it to Cain. The mark and the blade work together. Without the mark the blade is useless; without the mark, it's just an old bone.

Dean fills in that it was the jawbone of an animal. The jawbone that Cain used to kill Abel because Abel was God's favorite. Cain tells Dean that Abel wasn't talking to God...he was talking to Lucifer. That Lucifer was going to make Abel into his pet and he couldn't bear to watch Abel be corrupted so Cain made a deal...Cain's soul in hell for Abel's soul in heaven. Lucifer accepted as long as Cain was the one to send Abel to heaven. So Cain killed Abel and Cain became a soldier of hell. He became a Knight and then he created more Knights. The Knights did terrible things for centuries...until Cain met Collette (the woman in the photo).

Cain says that Collette knew what he was and still loved him unconditionally. She forgave him. She only asked for one thing; that Cain stop the killing.

The other Knights found out that she had asked Cain to stop and they took retribution by taking Collette. Cain says he picked the First Blade back up again and he slaughtered the Knights of Hell. All but one.

Flashback to 1863....
The bearded man we saw earlier; Cain; finishes killing the demons in the cabin and walks into the bedroom to find Collette. She greets him, but it's soon apparent that she has been possessed by a demon; Abaddon. Abaddon begs Cain to come back to her and the Knights. Cain says he's done. Abaddon proceeds to cause Collette to break her own bones in her body. Abaddon speaks through Collette telling Cain that if she (Abaddon) can't have Cain, neither can Collette.

As Abaddon tries to smoke out, Cain stabs Collette and as she dies, Collette asks Cain to promise her that he will stop the killing.

Cain buried Collette and walked away from all of it. (Now we understand that the scene at the start of the show when the demon soldier said that the "Knight must be protected" meant that Abaddon was the last Knight alive that Cain had not killed; she was possessing Collette and the rest of the demon soldiers were protecting Abaddon from Cain.)

End of flashback...back in the present....

Dean keeps pushing for the location of the blade in spite of Cain's touching story about Collette. Cain says "no"; he won't tell Dean where it is.

Dean threatens Cain with the demon blade saying "you (Cain) may be done killing but I'm not". Cain grabs the blade Dean has pointed at him and plunges it into his own chest.

"You never give up on anything, do you?" asks Cain.

"Never," replies Dean.

Cain pulls the demon blade out of his chest; obviously unhurt.

Cain says he DOES give up, and disappears.

Outside it appears there's a demon army descending on Cain's house.

Elsewhere....
Cain appears next to Collette's grave. He talks to her, saying he's tried to live up to her ideal of him, but he knows what he is. He knows she still watches over him. He asks Collette to turn away so as not to see what he's about to do.

Cain kisses Collette's grave.

Cain re-appears back inside his house. Dean's getting whiplash with Cain disappearing and re-appearing. Cain says he can give Dean the mark. The mark can be transferred to someone who is truly worthy. "You mean a killer, like you," says Dean. "Yes," replies Cain.

Dean asks if he can use the mark to kill Abaddon. Cain says yes, but with the mark comes a great burden, a great cost.

Dean tells Cain to spare him the warning label, he had him at "kill the *****".

Cain wishes Dean luck and says he's going to need it.

Dean and Cain grasp forearms. The mark is burned into Dean's skin. After that's done, Dean asks where the blade is.Cain says that since nothing can destroy the blade, he threw it to the bottom of the deepest ocean; it was the only way he could keep his promise to Collette.

Cain says Dean needs to find the blade and kill Abaddon, but Dean has to promise him something first. When Cain calls, he has to come find him and kill HIM with the blade. Dean asks, "Why?" and Cain tells him that he'll have to kill him eventually for what he is about to do.

Cain snaps his fingers and the doors to the house open up as demons pour in. Cain zaps Dean and Crowley to safety outside and proceed to kill the hoards of demons who enter the house. The entire house glows red as they all die.

Dean and Crowley get into the Impala and make a run for it.

Back at the bunker...
Cas and Sam try to work the spell to locate Gadreel with the Grace, but it doesn't work. Cas says there wasn't enough Grace and they'll have to find Gadreel another way. Cas says he's sorry and Sam says it's alright; that Cas was right about everything. He gives Cas a hug and tells Cas this is the part where he's supposed to hug back. Cas awkwardly hugs Sam back.
Cas says that he thinks Metatron is the key to fixing everything and he's going to find him. He puts a hand on Sam's shoulder. As Cas leaves, he tries to get Sam to call Dean; they'll need all the help they can get finding Gadreel and Metatron.

Sam says they've got this; he won't call Dean.

Cas gives him a look that says he's not so sure.

Elsewhere...
The Impala comes to a stop. Crowley tells Dean that Cain was right...Dean IS worthy. Crowley tells Dean that Dean's problem is that nobody hates Dean more than he hates himself. Dean tries to stay on topic asking how they are supposed to find this blade. Crowley says that since Dean can't search the bottom of the ocean, he (Crowley) will and he'll bring the blade back to its new owner (Dean).

Dean tells Crowley he knows what he did back there at Cain's house. Crowley knew about the mark, and about Abaddon and Cain and he just sat back and played Dean. Crowley knew that Cain would want to see Dean fight; to see if he was a killer and worthy of the mark, so he set the whole thing up to show Cain what he wanted to see.

Dean points out that Tara died because of Crowley. Crowley really doesn't care; collateral damage. Dean punches Crowley. Dean tells Crowley that after he kills Abaddon, he's coming for him next. Crowley says that even with the blade, Dean will need all the help he can get against Abaddon. Dean tells Crowley to just go find the blade.

Crowley disappears leaving Dean with his new Mark of Cain (which looks like it hurts).