Rabids

Rabids
Powers and Abilities	Increased aggression Infectious blood
Vulnerabilities	Holy fire Short lifespan
Appearance	Human with black tendrils running up their necks and heads
Episode(s)	11.01 Out of the Darkness, Into the Fire 11.02 Form and Void 11.20 Don't Call Me Shurley

Or we just wait for him to die. There was a -- whatever you want to call it -- a 'rabid' attacking the closet door, and he just died. These things have a shelf life. – Sam Winchester, 11.01 Out of the Darkness, Into the Fire

History

The rabids are humans who, after the Darkness was released, became homicidal. People around the town of Superior, Nebraska, appeared to be the first affected with the mutation. After becoming infected himself, Sam Winchester was able to find a cure through the reaper, Billie. Sam gleaned that rabids are "unclean in a biblical sense." Searching the Bible online, Sam was able to find that holy fire could be used for a biblical purification and tried it on himself. The holy fire destroyed the rabid infection in Sam's body, and after curing a small group of rabids, Sam successfully cured the surviving people in town.

Characteristics

Rabids can be characterized by the black tendrils that run up their necks and and heads. While they have increased aggression, they do not appear to be mindless zombies, as they have been shown to have enough composure to drive vehicles and speak. The mutation, however, does have a shelf-life, with the infected dropping dead hours after fully succumbing to it. The rabids can be stunned by electricity like any human and can be restrained by chains. Rabids can be cured by close proximity to holy fire.

Powers and abilities

• Enhanced senses – Rabids are capable of sensing if a human has been infected, even if no physical symptoms have manifested.
• Increased aggression – The rabid infection will cause an increase in aggressiveness in humans. While in this heightened state of aggression, humans still retain a semblance of their mental faculties, such the abilities to drive a vehicle and communicate.
• Infectious blood – Ingestion or any blood-to-blood contact with a rabid's blood will pass the infection. This method of infection is not instantaneous, unlike coming into contact with Amara's fog, and can take hours to fully transform a human.

Weaknesses

• God – The arrival of Chuck Shurley in Hope Springs, Idaho, cleansed the entire town of the rabid infection sent by Amara through her fog.
• Holy fire – Proximity to holy fire can cure the infection by burning it away.
• Human weaknesses – Despite their increased aggression, rabids are still prone to normal human limitations and can be stunned or killed via any of the usual methods.
• Short life expectancy – After being infected, a person's body will "burn out" after a few hours, killing them.

Episodes

11.01 Out of the Darkness, Into the Fire

Having been released, the Darkness barrels through the town of Superior, Nebraska. Its dark smoke causes people to mutate and become filled with violent rage. Deputy Jenna Nickerson is the first to answer a 911 call for a family in distress; when she arrives at the scene she sees several "hostiles" attacking the family, eventually killing them. She is able to kill three of the attackers, becoming injured herself in the process after seeking cover. When Sam and Dean arrive on the scene, they are confronted by a road worker that has gone "rabid." While they attempt to talk him down as he advances on them, Jenna quickly acts and kills the would-be attacker. On the defensive, she immediately demands to see Sam and Dean's necks to make sure they are not infected with the Darkness.

A group of "rabids" descend upon Sam.

As Sam and Dean take Jenna to the local hospital to tend her wound, they find that the Darkness has hit the town, leaving dead bodies in its wake and the hospital seemingly empty. As Dean stitches Jenna up, Sam goes searching the hospital for any survivors. He comes upon a rabid road worker slamming at a supply closet door, and takes cover. Before the rabid can notice Sam, it is distracted by the sound of a baby's cry and resumes attacking the door before suddenly collapsing and dying. Seeking the source of the cry, Sam finds a man, Mike Schneider, and his newborn daughter. He takes them to Dean and Jenna, where Mike describes what happened, having believed that a tornado hit the hospital. Needing to collect himself after the birth of his daughter and death of his wife, Mike steps outside when a truck load of rabids arrive and begin killing anyone in their way. He reveals he was infected, and as Sam, Dean, and Jenna argue about what to do about him, he tells them he will lock himself away and wait for the infection to kill him, only asking that Jenna protects his daughter.

As Mike leaves them, another truck load of rabids arrive. While Dean wishes to go through them by killing them, Sam talks him into letting him try and figure out a cure instead. Sam volunteers to serve as a distraction while Dean and Jenna make their escape. While Sam lures the rabids away, Dean and Jenna are confronted by a fully-turned Mike before they can exit the hospital. With his last ounce of energy, he names his daughter Amara before he begins choking and eventually dies. Meanwhile, Sam has holed up in a supply closet while the rabids on the outside try to break in. He is attacked by a rabid nurse and in the ensuing struggle slashes her throat, getting her blood in his mouth. Not long after, the rabids succeed in breaking down the door. Two rabids grab Sam and pin him to the wall, while a third approaches and sniffs Sam before calling the others off of him. After talking to Dean, Sam looks in a mirror and pulls down his shirt, watching as the black tendrils begin to appear on his neck.

11.02 Form and Void

Sam, infected by a rabid, attempts to cure himself with holy fire.

Having been infected, Sam begins searching for a cure for the rabids, capturing an infected man named George to find information on the condition. Sam's efforts prove to be fruitless and he is informed by a reaper named Billie that he is "unclean in a biblical sense" and will die. Sam desperately prays to God for help but, aside from a vision of him being tortured that he does not understand, finds no answers. As the rabid infection starts to consume him, Sam remembers what Billie said about him being "unclean in a biblical sense" and searches the Bible for biblical purification. Sam finds that holy fire can be used for such a purification and uses a sponge doused in holy fire on himself. The holy fire burns away the infection and cures Sam. Now with a viable cure, Sam lures three rabids into the hospital chapel and traps them in a ring of holy fire. The holy fire cures the three and they set out to cure the surviving rabids in Superior.

11.20 Don't Call Me Shurley

Sam and Dean catch a strange-sounding murder/suicide case in Hope Springs, Idaho. While looking over the M.E. reports, they notice the black veins of a rabid on the corpses. Later that night, Deputy Jan Harris comes into contact with the Darkness fog and becomes infected. She takes her shotgun and murders her husband with it. Sam is able to track Deputy Harris' vehicle and finds that she is coming straight for the Sheriff's Department. When she arrives, she admits to murdering her husband and then attempting to commit suicide, but reveals that Amara would not let her. She tells Sam and Dean that Amara's voice has been echoing in her head since going rabid and tells Dean that Amara is showing them the truth, that the Light was just a lie. She raises her gun and is quickly shot down by Sheriff Macready. Before dying she tells Dean, "It will all be over soon. He's not gonna save them. It's all going away... forever. But not you, Dean."

Soon the Darkness fog begins rolling into town. Sam and Dean attempt to get as many people indoors as they can before it hits. Inside the station, they see the people still outside collapse after breathing in the fog. As Sam and Dean attempt to fortify and seal the station, the rabids come to and lay siege to the building. As the fog begins to seep in, a brick is thrown through the window, allowing the fog to spill in, infecting Sam. Dean rushes the infected Sam and tells him he is never going to leave his side. With the whole town seemingly infected, Dean takes a deep breath of the fog, but he does not change. Dean then notices a light coming from Sam's jacket pocket, and retrieves his old amulet, which is burning with a brilliant white light. As he and Sam look at it in shock, Sam appears cured of the infection, as does everyone in station and the town.

11.21 All in the Family

Amara releases her fog again, infecting the residents of Lewis, Oklahoma. While thousands of people become rabid and die, Donatello Redfield is the only survivor, having been activated as a prophet upon coming into contact with Amara's fog/power.