Title: Desolate
Fandom: Supernatural
Spoilers: All of the show
Characters: Castiel focused, mentions of other main characters
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Scenes of violence, mild language/blood, character death
Word Count: 1,699
Disclaimer: Alas I own nothing,(Kirpke does) strictly for fun, no profits were gained during the making of this fanfic(unless you count time, in that case I owe many people a lot .)
Summary: Semi-AU Post apocalyptic Castiel reflecting/musing on the world.
Beta: lovely_lady_j (and a few friends not on LJ .) Luffles you all ^.^
A/N: First ever supernatural fic, I have created my own little world here based off all of Supernatural up until 4.07 and a bunch of crap up in my head. I just had to write this though because I love Castiel to bits.(not as much as dean though . sorry Cas) Also an important note, I know very little in regards to any religion and "God." Originally this was supposed to be a rather sad fic, I don't think it quite turned out that way but I am pleased none the less.
Deep blue eyes gazed about the damage that had once been a beautiful and lush forest full of life. Birds had sung wonderful songs, leaves swayed at a winds grace, life ended and began here anew many times over, or at least it had. Humans would never again walk through its vast green foliage admiring the mysteries and natural delights it had to offer. Such a pity so much of the earth's beauty had been destroyed during the war, only one of the many losses that could not have been prevented.
A large battlefield is what earth had become; it was the landscape and the humans that paid the price of Lucifer's rising. His resurrection had not been a pleasant one, and although the war on earth, between heaven and hell had not been very long by human standards, the damage had been done. Cities destroyed, people slaughtered mercilessly, trees, grass, animals, land... everything had been decimated in various areas across the globe. Nothing had been left untainted by hells rising, most of the battle grounds reduced to mere ashes and dust similar to the wasteland Castiel was standing in.
It was standing here observing the barren land that a quote from Genesis III came to mind. "For dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return". It was not a pleasant thought for this world as it were, for what he was observing now had not naturally occurred and so this simple truth had been tainted as well. Soon though, as the angels worked by Gods will to repair this broken world, nature could resume its course and the earth would flourish again.
Castiel's wings silently carried him to many of the battle grounds, some of which he had fought in, others he had never been to before. Each of them looked relatively the same; dust, ash and so much blood that the ground was stained red. Sadly most of it was from humans both possessed and hunter alike. Their losses had been the greatest, still it was nothing compared to the six billion that could have died had Lucifer won. Time had been a factor they hadn't had enough of, so they could not spare it to care about the mortals whom the demons were possessing. Castiel knew this was a necessary sacrifice to make, but like Dean, did not agree with it. Both had tried diligently to find some other way but neither could come up with plausible solution.
Dean Winchester was a human like no other. He had been raised to live a life no one would ask for, had so much responsibly thrust upon him at a young age. He, despite his lecherous and gluttonous habits, was a pure creature. The reason he helped people, the reason why he lived was one of the purest. He lived the life he did so others didn't have to. It was far from a pleasant life and it was no secret that the Winchester hated it to his core that he wished he could live like those he saved. He accepted just why he had to carry on living as he did, because all the lives he saved were saved because Dean lived the way he did, no matter how miserable it was.
Castiel had watched over Dean from heaven since the boy's birth. He was the one charged to guarding his soul, and so when it came time to assigning an angel to pull the hunter from hell, it was no surprise he was the one chosen. Actually meeting Dean on the other hand was another story. No matter how pure his soul might have been he was still a loud mouthed, disrespectful, sarcastic, ass. Despite his short comings Dean shouldered the responsibilities placed upon him and bore it with courage rare amongst men. Castiel had been intrigued while fighting along side the human, Dean looked for the solutions others would have missed or even dismissed. He continued to follow what he thought was the right path and didn't look back. He had complained, he had complained a lot, cursed, grumbled and made it no secret how displeased he was about his situation. In the end he was a great leader, one the greatest the armies of heaven had ever seen.
Closing his eyes and letting out a soft breath to clear his mind Castiel allowed himself to appear in the final battleground. The faint sound of feathers rustling could be heard in the deathly silence that consumed the war zone. It was nothing but dirt, a large vast land that was reduced to dust. Here is where the last stand was taken, and it was here that Dean and Sam took their final breaths. Memories assaulted the angel and he closed his blue eyes against them, so many had died here. He could still hear their screams, feel their despair but most of all he remembered their hope, their faith that in the end heaven would win and save the earth. Hope that their sacrifice had not been in vain. It was Sam Winchester, the lost one who had, in the end, been saved and in return, saved the human race. It had taken a great toll for Sam to find redemption, and that toll was the death of his brother, heavens' chosen one, Dean. Lucifer had killed the elder brother in a display of such inhuman brutality everyone around was helpless but to watch in horror. Castiel and his brothers had been powerless in preventing their champions' demise and it was in that very moment that all of Castiels' hopes of Dean somehow surviving the war and obtaining the life he wished were dissipated. Not only did Deans' death imbue Sam with the will to defeat Lucifer, and in turn his death had given heaven its victory.
If it weren't for Dean Winchester and even his brother Sam, the world would be a very different place right now. Although Castiel knew that God had willed that the humans, whom the two brothers had given their lives for, were none the wiser to how close the world had been to ending but it felt well... unfair. Those two went through so much both before and during the war, had made far too many sacrifices throughout their lives and for the world to not even know their names… it was somehow wrong. Dean and Sam were two people that the humans could look up to as idols, could see what they had suffered and sacrificed for them. Know what the brothers had done every day of their lives, and because of it have more faith in God, that there were good things in life. None of that mattered though for it was God's will to have the humans forget and God's will be done.
Crouching, he dragged his fingers across the bloodied ground, the worn beige trench coat draping about him, covered in blood, ruined from the many battles it had endured. Long gone was the soul that had once owned the body. During one of the battles he had fought a demon that attacked him with… well the angel wasn't sure what he had been attacked with, whatever it was, it had separated the Human's soul from his body. The soul had been sleeping in the back of his mind, unaware of the battles Castiel went through with his body. The man had been rather average, he worked in an office, was unmarried and had no children, lived alone with no pets, his life was mediocre at best but he was very devout. Prayed every night and was thankful when the Lord had chosen him to be a vessel for one of his angels. Even during his slumber within his mind the man continued to pray, and his faithfulness would have been rewarded had the demon not killed him. It was another loss during the war; one Castiel had no one to blame but himself.
It was while he was crouched there, fingers touching the earth, feeling it for what was surely his last time that Castiel discovered Deans' pendent. Picking it up he ran his thumb over its face which was covered in blood but it wasn't just anyone's blood, it was Sams' blood. He knew this for it was gripping this very object that Sam found the strength in his abilities to kill Lucifer though it had cost the cursed boy his life. Azazel's blood had gifted Sam with abilities no human could fathom, but they of course came with a price. It was through his exertion in killing Lucifer, when his brain could no longer handle the pressure forced upon it and shut down, that it became evident how large a price had to be paid. With a slow shake of his head Castiel pushed the thoughts from his mind and carefully pocketed the pendent as he rose.
Standing he rubbed his fingers together and watched the blood and grime fall from to the ground. Looking around he observed the damage, both his brothers and the demons had caused here. The sight of the desolate land gripped the angel with a strong sense of sadness. Though it could have been worse the losses they had suffered was still a tragedy and one would have to be heartless to not feel anything. The world and humans were like beautiful works of art, ones Castiel appreciated for their flawed beauty. Perhaps he had been in this vessel too long, for he had never experienced emotions with such force before and he didn't want to give up these feeling, didn't want to give up how it felt to be human.
"Castiel!" a deep voice barked drawing the angel from his thoughts.
"Yes?" he answered passively looking towards the one who had addressed him. He hadn't even realized his brothers had arrived.
"Your work is done. Leave your vessel to be disposed of and go," he commanded before turning to give orders to the others.
A small sigh passed by Castiels' lips and when the other angel turned to look, the vessel crumpled to the ground as an empty shell. Castiel had returned to his Father.
End~
A/N: So there we have it, my stand alone prologue to a bigger story, that will be based off the world I have created here ^_^