Disclaimer: I only own this story, not Supernatural or Sam and Dean!
Sequel to Nightmares and Breakdowns.
In the last chapter...
Dean was screwed. A few more minutes and the water would be over his head. He couldn't see anything, and there was no way out.
And then, as if whatever gods there were had finally smiled down on him, he felt hard rock against his finger tips and as he moved his hand downwards... an opening.
Meanwhile...
Before the Siren could respond, Sam ripped the machete sideways across the Siren's neck. The Siren's mouth opened in a deafening scream of pain, blue-black blood rolling down over its neck. Sam pulled back as a strange, silvery smoke began to seep out from the wound, curling towards the sky. Sam flinched as the Siren's body jerked and then dissolved into water leaving nothing but a damp patch on the ground behind it. Sam rose to his feet, grabbing the machete again. He turned towards the rocks, breaking into a run.
"Okay, Dean," he whispered. "I'm coming."
Now...
For a few moments, Dean just couldn't believe his luck. Then he forced himself into motion and ducked down through the small, round opening. Outside it was dark, but he could now see stars above him and a few lights on the shore far away to his right. A huge wave crashed against him almost as soon as he had cleared the hole, and threw him back against the rocks. Dean managed to suck in a tiny breath before he was pitched forwards into the water and the rocks beneath his feet vanished.
Salt rushed into his eyes, nose and mouth, making them sting sharply. Without thinking, Dean automatically swallowed a large gulp of sea water and choked, bubbles streaming from his open mouth. His heavy clothes dragged him downwards, a strong current pulling him back at the same time so that he ended up falling diagonally. His heart thundered in his chest and his lungs screamed for air as the water pressed down on him.
Move! MOVE!
The command leapt into his brain, pushing aside his panic. He looked towards the surface and began to kick, slowly clawing his way upwards. He was going to make it, he was going to be okay...
Icy hands grabbed him by the shoulders and dragged him down, fingers digging right into his flesh. Dean let out a silent cry, and a new group of bubbles bloomed from his mouth. He twisted and looked down to see Alica behind him, her skin ashen, her silvery hair flowing around her face, her eyes a burning, acid, yellow, her teeth pointed. She grinned at him, and then sank downwards. The water seemed to move to help her, pressing him down, and he yelled in fustration and panic. He struggled against the Siren's grip, but she just tightened her hold and slipped up to kiss him hard, her lips freezing cold against his. He felt his own body go lax, felt weakness spreading over him again. His necklace slipped over his head and floated free, vanishing into the darkness, and he felt a jolt of fury.
No, no way, I am not gonna die here...
Dean feebly lashed out at her but his hand went straight through her body. She laughed, thousands of tiny bubbles rushing from her mouth.
"I have to say, I'm impressed," she told him, smirking. He blinked in surprise at the fact that he could hear her just as clearly as if she had been talking on land. Her voice barely even wavered. "There's only ever been one other to find their way out of our caves. Of course, like you, he was too late. He didn't make it as far."
Dean tried to pull free from her but she tightened her grip on him, her arms snaking around him in a cold embrace. She laughed again. Dean felt a stab of pain in his chest as his lungs searched desperately for air. The little he could see was beginning to dissolve into nothing, black dots clouding his vision.
"Shame, you really are hot. But don't worry: I'm sure I'll find someone else just as good looking pretty soon."
Dean stared up at her, the salt stinging his eyes, and something red wafted across his vision. For a moment he thought it was just his eyes. Then he realized that his nose was bleeding, and that he could taste coppery blood as well as salt in his mouth. He remembered seeing the same effect on the Siren's previous victims and realized with a jolt that this was how it ended. This was how he was going to die, alone somewhere far beneath the surface of the ocean with a Siren sucking away every last breath he had.
Air... have to get to air... but there was no air. There was nothing left to save him, no final way out.
Sam... what a way to end things between them - arguing and splitting up. Of all the things that could have happened between them before one of them died, it had to have been this.
Pain speared through Dean's chest and his body convulsed, his eyes slowly closing against his will. He heard Alica's sweet, soft laughter close to his ear and wondered how he could still find it beautiful when it was the thing that was going to kill him. He was aware of one last stinging pain in his head and chest, and in his last moment of consiousness he could hear someone calling his name from somewhere very far away. Then darkness closed over him.
SWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDWSWDW
The sand slipped around beneath Sam's feet, forcing him to run painfully slowly to avoid falling over. He kept the machete held tightly in one hand, glancing out towards the sea every now and then just in case Dean or another Siren came into sight. He no longer cared if some random person saw him, because the tide really was coming in. The Siren hadn't lied. If he didn't reach Dean soon, his brother was going to die.
And Sam couldn't let that happen.
The sand abruptly gave way beneath one foot and Sam skidded, but managed to regain his balance and run on without missing a beat. He reached the dark rocks and leapt onto the first one, grazing his knee as he climbed up onto it. He leapt onto the next one, sprinting between them, jumping the smaller rocks and any gaps he came across. He could hear his blood roaring in his ears, mixing with the snarl of the ocean. He reached the end of the group of rocks and stopped on the last rock, the wind tearing at his clothes. He stared out over the sea, panting.
He couldn't see any caves.
Sam swore softly, turning in a full circle as he examined the area around him. The spray of the sea leapt up and snapped at his jeans, flecking him with salty water. The night had painted the ocean in dark blues, purples and black, making it look ominous and threatening. It was now very different from the turqoise water which lapped at the beach in the daylight: the waves thrashed and roared beneath him like a wild animal. Sam stared down at the darkness in horror. Dean could be down there somewhere.
"Dean!" he yelled, his voice swallowed by the roaring of the ocean. "Dean! DEAN!!"
He listened, straining his ears, but got not reply. He stepped forwards so that he was standing at the very edge of the rock, teteering precariously on the edge. He filled his lungs and screamed out Dean's name again, as loud as he could.
"DEAN!"
His only answer was the snarling of the churning waves. Sam swallowed hard, his heart in his mouth. Dean had to be here, he had to be okay... maybe Sam had missed him somehow. He began to turn towards the beach, thinking about heading back around and searching the shore again, and something glinting in the water beneath him caught his eye. He crouched down, reaching into the icy water, and his fingers tangled in a thin leather cord. He lifted out the object and his stomach lurched. It was Dean's necklace, the one Sam had given him for Christmas when they were little. Sam stared at it in shock. Did this mean... no.
He's not dead. I'm not gonna let him die.
Sam shrugged out of his jacket and folded the necklace safely into its pocket. Then he stood up, took a deep, steadying breath, and dived into the icy water.
The water closed over his head and he bit back a shout of shock at how cold it was. Still holding the machete in one hand, he forced himself to move his arms and legs, clawing his way back up to the surface. He took a few deep breaths, and then ducked downwards again. He forced his eyes open, ignoring the stinging the salt caused, and looked around as best he could. He couldn't see anything but dark blurs. He fought his way up again and swam out a little before diving downwards again, squinting through the mist.
C'mon, Dean, come on...
Something pale caught his eye and he swam towards it, praying, hoping...
First, he saw silvery hair flowing around ashen grey skin. Then he caught sight of a body clad in jeans, a blue shirt.
Dean!
Almost as if he had spoken aloud, the Siren pulled away from Dean and turned to face him. She bared her pointed teeth in a snarl and struck out for him, leaving Dean to sink slowly towards the ocean floor. Panic lurched through Sam as he realized that Dean's skin was abnormally pale, his lips blue, and his eyes shut. Blood was running from his nose and mouth, causing a small red cloud around his face.
He's not dead, he can't be dead...
The Siren reached him and made a grab for him, but Sam slipped aside just in time. He swam quickly up to the surface, sucked in another deep breath and then dived downwards again. The Siren surged up to meet him, her face twisted with fury, and she snatched for his jacket with spindly webbed hands. Sam allowed her to grab his free arm and then rolled over so that she was above him. She faltered, disorientated, and Sam twisted his hand to grip her wrist so that they were locked together. He lifted the machete, the weapon heavy and dragging in the water. Fear flashed through the Siren's eyes and she tried to pull away, but raw fury allowed Sam to move like lightning. Blue-black blood seeped outwards, entwined with silver as Sam slashed the machete across the Siren's throat so hard that he felt her spine grate against the blade. For a few moments, her yellow eyes gazed at him in shock. Then he head fell backwards, almost completely seperated from her neck, and her grip on him slackened. Her blood wafted into his face and he pulled back, disgusted. She flickered and then dissolved into the sea.
Only the silvery substance that had emerged from her throat remained. It twisted towards Sam as if it were alive and he pulled away, watching as it wriggled out of sight into the dark water. He waited for a few moments, making sure that it was really gone.
Dean. Gotta get to Dean.
Sam looked down, panicking when he couldn't see any sign of his brother in the dark water. He wanted to go straight down and look for him, but his lungs were beginning to complain from lack of air. If he went now, he wouldn't have enough strength to get them both back up to the surface. Hating himself, Sam swam back up to the surface again. His head broke through the water and he took a few deep breaths before heading downwards again. The machete slowed him down, so he let it go and swam past it. He could buy another one of them. He couldn't buy another Dean.
He felt the pressure building in his ears as he clawed his way down through the black water, but he ignored it. He had to find Dean, and he didn't care what happened while he was searching. He wasn't going back up without him. His heart began to beat faster as he got further and further down and there was still no sight of Dean. He had to be here somewhere, Sam just had to find him.
Come on, Dean, come back, he thought desperately, pausing for a moment and looking around. Nothing. He started to swim again, his lungs already feeling tight.
What if he couldn't find Dean? What if he was too late? What if he had left it too long?
What if Dean was already dead?
Big cliffie there, sorry! Next chapter should be up soon if I get some more reviews. Thanks to all the people who have reviewed so far. Tell me if you like it or not!
Yours, SUPRNTRAL LVR.
