A/N: I finally have internet again! And TV just in time to catch S10's premiere last night, which I won't say anything about to avoid spoilers. Thank you everyone for the reviews, including guests! Now, I know this chapter is shorter than typical, but that's just the way the flow dictated it happen. So to make up for it, I'll post the last one sometime tomorrow. I can't believe the story is almost over!
Chapter 11: All For One and One For All
Castiel stared uncomprehendingly at the baku. It stood seven feet tall now, with a length of nineteen feet from snout to tail. Tipping its head back, the chimera finished gobbling up the corner section of the gladiator ring, swallowing the Dean apparition. Castiel's memories of Hell had fed the beast more than he could have anticipated. The baku let out a loud, satisfied belch, and a stab of pain lanced through Castiel's head. Dean had been correct—he wouldn't last much longer. Which meant neither would the Winchesters.
"Uh," Dean stammered. "You want to try that baku-san thing again, Sam?"
"I think we're way beyond that," the younger Winchester replied in a hushed voice.
Castiel rolled his shoulder, wincing at the echo of pain in his wings and the motley of other injuries to his body and grace. He could not see a way to defeat the creature.
Sam eyed the beast warily. It had turned to begin demolishing the rear wall of the arena. "If we get it to shed more spikes, that'll open up vulnerable spots we can get a shot at."
"If we don't get skewered in the process," Dean grunted. "Those things will punch soccer ball size holes in us."
Sam threw his brother a dirty look. "You have a better idea?"
Dean didn't respond, but his glower was answer enough.
Castiel drew his angel blade. "I will antagonize it."
"No, we'll do this together." Dean turned to Sam, mouth set in a grim line. "Ok, first we egg it into going all Sonic the Hedgehog on us—" He raised a hand at Castiel's confused expression. "Then we shish kabob it."
Castiel quirked a brow, but didn't bother to ask what Dean meant; he assumed "shish kabob" was another hunter vernacular for killing something. Though he had no idea who Sonic Hedgehog was, or how a tiny, piglike mammal would be of use in this situation.
Sam swept his gaze around the stadium and made a small noise of discovery. "Now that's what we need." He pointed to a dark alcove where several weapons' racks held iron axes, maces, and spears.
Dean strode over and eyed the assortment. Castiel recognized the detached mask that fell over the hunter's face as he tried to push down memories. Castiel was fairly certain Dean had never fought in the ring; he hadn't been in Hell long enough for that. The torture came first, and only after a bloodlust had been nurtured for a century or more were souls pitted against each other. But he had likely been forced to watch.
Dean grabbed a pitchfork and passed it to Sam, then two spears, handing one to Castiel. "Let's go poke the wasps' nest."
"And try not to get stung," Sam added.
Castiel gave a subtle head shake; he was too tired to keep trying to parse out the boys' metaphors.
Together, the three of them approached the baku's rear. The spicules along its back were laid flat, and the metallic edges grated along each other as the massive body swished and jiggled with its munching.
Sam got only as close as he needed before jabbing his pitchfork at the chimera. The prongs struck between the sheeted quills, but didn't puncture flesh. Dean moved in next with his spear, but the arrowhead seemed to bounce off the baku's hip as though made of rubber. The hunter's face screwed up in consternation and he stabbed again. Angling a doubtful look at his own weapon, Castiel also thrust the pointed tip at the creature, but it pinged off the tough hide without leaving a mark. None of their prods elicited a response from the baku either.
After several more futile attempts, they backed away.
"I believe we are inconsequential to it now," Castiel said wearily.
"That, or it's just immune to dream weapons." Sam tossed his pitchfork aside.
Dean lobbed his spear at the creature, but it ricocheted off the pelt like a toothpick and clattered on the ground. "Hey, ass-hat!"
His brother snorted. "Yeah, that'll get its attention."
"Feel free to chime in, Sam."
The younger Winchester threw his hands up. "The thing's only vulnerable to its own quills! But unless you know where they stash a hammer, I don't see how we're gonna get those to do much damage." Sam gestured to the three and four-foot stakes lying on the ground where they'd set them. They were too large and bulky for the Winchesters to use effectively, but perhaps Castiel could.
He walked—or hobbled, much to his chagrin—to the spikes and picked up the largest one. Gripping the narrow point, he tested the weight and balance. Then he arched his arm back and threw. The skewer flew end over end through the air with a whistle before the sharp tip sank two feet into the baku, just above the hip.
The beast reared up with a screech that shook the colosseum. An ear-rattling chitter followed, and its quills shot upright, vibrating with coiled energy. In the next moment, they detached to zing through the air in multiple directions.
Hands grabbed Castiel and thrust him down a split second before the prongs soared overhead. Rock cracked and splintered as the metallic projectiles struck the surrounding walls. One barb went clean through an archway, collapsing the corridor under an avalanche of stone.
The ground rumbled as the baku stomped around to face them. Hot breath spewed from flaring nostrils and it pawed the dirt. With a high-pitched shriek, it charged.
Castiel rolled out of the way, ending up on one side of the creature, Dean and Sam on the other. And the blasted cretin had turned its attention toward them. The Winchesters darted under an overhang for cover as the baku swung its head after them. Its gigantic tusks crashed through support pillars, threatening to bring down the top floor on their heads.
Staggering to his feet, Castiel gripped his angel blade. It would inflict injury on the chimera, but he'd have to get close. The beast roared and plowed into the wall the brothers had scampered behind, and Castiel froze in a moment of terror until he saw them stumble out the other side before the stone crumbled. Unfortunately, the demolition seemed to harm the baku as little as the dream weapons had.
But the creature shouldn't have dismissed Castiel. He leaped at the saurian, dragon-like head while it was turned away, plunging his blade into the side of the face. Though his sword did pierce flesh, it wasn't deep enough to penetrate the brain. The baku jerked upward, and the blade slipped down to catch on the cheek bone.
Wither another enraged howl, the monster swung its head violently. The smooth side of its tusk caught Castiel in the ribs, knocking him back. He flew through the air and hit the ground hard, sparks exploding across his vision. The world turned fuzzy, and he marveled at the speckles for a moment—dazzling stars shining despite the toxic, churning sky. Someone shouted his name, followed by another panicked voice yelling at Dean.
Blinking the stars away, Castiel pushed himself up in time to see Dean roll under the baku. Fear clenched his chest. What was he thinking? Dammit, Dean Winchester never thought; he simply dove in.
Dean held the twenty-inch spicule from when the baku had been a mere canine size, hardly a formidable weapon against the behemoth before them. The hunter flipped onto his back and thrust the stake up into the creature's soft underside. With a horrendous screech, the chimera's hindquarters buckled. Terror spiked through Castiel as he lost sight of Dean under the titanic mass.
No…
He crawled to his knees, chest heaving, unable to take complete breaths for some reason. Then the baku limped forward, and Castiel caught a glimpse of Sam hauling Dean to safety. Thank God.
With effort, Castiel rose to his feet again, swaying slightly. Those glittering stars were gracing his vision once more, only this time he fought to see through them. He saw Sam gesturing at one of the massive, recently fired quills, nearly two feet in diameter and six feet long. Dean followed his brother's lead, and the Winchesters scrambled over to heave it up. Bracing the base inside a notch in the crumbling wall, they angled the gleaming tip forward.
"Cas, you gotta drive it this way."
Castiel nodded once, acknowledging the silent prayer. He no longer had a weapon, but it didn't matter; his strength was rapidly waning, leaving only one course of action.
He strode around the baku's front, directly opposite of where Sam and Dean stood ready to impale the monster. Gurgling spit and blood from its cloven cheek, the chimera pawed at its face in an effort to dislodge the angel blade. It finally succeeded, and the sword clattered to the ground. Nostrils flaring, the baku snapped a savage glower at Castiel. It pulled its lips back and hissed, pinkish saliva spritzing the air.
Castiel drew his shoulders back, ignoring the twinge in his chest and the slight burning in his lungs. His grace quivered as he summoned it, but he poured every mental and physical faculty into the heart of his being. His power contracted a fraction before exploding in a burst of pure, blinding energy.
Sam and Dean were shielded behind the baku's hulking form, and the creature took the blast full in the face. It reared up with an agonized screech, pitching backward right into the pointed prong.
Castiel didn't have time to see whether the Winchesters were squashed, for blinding pain split his head and he dropped to his knees. The baku flipped onto its back, its own quill protruding all the way through center mass. Its legs twitched, and soon its whole frame was writhing as ichor squirted from the wound. With a gasping wheeze, the chimera opened its maw and expelled a wave of inky refuse.
The pressure on Castiel's chest and head increased as the creature wretched up what it had devoured, deflating like a balloon as it did. In a matter of minutes, it had shrunk down past its normal size, until it curled in on itself and suddenly imploded. A concussive force slammed into Castiel, flattening him against the ground.
Through his darkening vision, he watched the stone walls bend and the air refract into curls of smoke. Hell's landscape melted away as Castiel's eyelids slipped closed.
