Prologue
The cawing crows of autumn heralded the last rays of twilight as night approached. The swirls of grey fog diffused the waning light, creating a halo around dark trees and kissing the black and lonely asphalt of the meandering bucolic two-lane road. The quiet countryside was disturbed by the roaring sound of an engine. The sleek, black beast sped through the rustic scene causing a murder of crows to take flight in its wake, protesting the disturbance.
Sam looked worried. He kept his hazel eyes locked through the rear window. His brother was driving like a mad man and Sam could only hold on. The whine of the Impala became high-pitched and Sam noticed that Dean pulled back on the accelerator.
"Why are you slowing down?" Sam nearly screamed at Dean.
Dean grimaced as he looked at the dash, noticing the needle slipping into the red at over 6000rpms.
"Sam, she can handle a lot but I'd rather she didn't drop an engine while we're fleeing for our lives." Dean turned his attention back to the road, only glancing occasionally into the rear-view mirror. "How close?"
Sam turned back around to look out the back window. His eyes grew wider. "Real close. Faster would be better, Dean." His voice was strident and Dean was feeling the fear as well.
They were fast running out of asphalt and Sam saw his brother clench his jaw and narrow his eyes. "Hold on." He said. Sam gripped the armrest on the door and faced forward, only now noticing what Dean planned to do.
Oh, shit. Sam cursed under his breath. He braced for the turn, looking to his brother to determine which direction they would go. I hope we don't roll, Sam thought. That would end this chase real fricken fast.
The Impala began to slow down and Dean tightened his grip on the steering wheel with whitened knuckles. Sam pushed his body back into the seat, tensing his legs against the floorboard in anticipation. His whole body was stiffened. Dean began the turn right before the crossroad. The brothers leaned into the turn as far as they could and were able to feel the car tilt slightly before landing back onto four wheels again. Dean gunned the car into fishtailing acceleration. They could hear an inhuman squeal that made their blood run cold. Dean floored the gas pedal to the ground and the car barreled toward one of the many wood covered bridges that were found all over the New England country-side. Sam looked behind them to see that they had not lost the giant black horse and its rider. Smoke and flames were left behind as the Horseman chased them down.
"Un-be-fuckin-lievable." Dean cried with a terse voice as he glanced briefly into the mirror. He hunched his shoulders as he started through the bridge. It took all of his strength to keep the Impala threading the needle at this speed through the narrow opening and on the rickety wooden slats. When they emerged through the bridge, Dean was feeling the pain of having been tensed for so long and having adrenaline pumping through him. He chanced a glance in the mirror.
He saw black smoke swirling in a vortex and the yellow-orange tinge of fire at the mouth of the bridge, but no Horseman.