Chapter 9
Author's note: I finally found some time to add a chapter. I hope you enjoy it.
Previously: "Pack up everyone, we leave to Montana in ten." With this she turned around and disappeared in the hallway.
"I will be meeting you there." Cas said and disappeared.
Soon the four Winchesters were at the impala, ready to begin their journey.
Not even 16 hours later the Winchester quartet found themselves on an old country lane surrounded by nothing but beautiful nature. Well, not even 16 hours is an understatement they made it in 12, because Dee didn't believe in speed limit. Even Dean was a little impressed.
"Okay, that's how far we can go by car. It should be around one mile through the woods here." Samantha said when they reached the end of the road, where Dee put the Impala into park and got out. The others followed.
"Man, I am never ever riding in the backseat again" Dean thought when his joints cracked and his knees buckled a short moment when he slowly peeled himself out of the car and moved to the trunk. "So, what do you think we should pack? Witch killing bullets? Silver?"
"That won't be necessary, Dean", Cas spoke out who suddenly appeared behind him.
"What the fuck, Cas?" Dean jumped and looked angrily at the angel.
"I told you I'd meet you here." Cas said a little confused, "Packing silver or witch killing bullets won't be necessary."
"Why? Because they are white witches and good? When have we ever met something really truly good?" Dee voiced her doubt and opened the trunk.
"Yes. They are white witches. But the reason you don't need more the gun you already carry is that they may have enhanced powers and abilities, but they are still human and killable like such."
"Okay, but most likely they are dead for years now. Who knows what else settled down there in the meantime. So better be safe." Sam considered and also moved to the opened trunk. "What the hell?" He suddenly asked and pulled out a hula hoop.
"Well, this is for Sammy's girly workouts on the road, right Sammy?" Dee quipped.
"Really funny Dee." Samantha shook her head and pointed to the hula hoop. "It is filled with salt. Ever tried to tell a civilian to stay inside the salt circle? In my experience they rarely do or the circle is broken by a gust of wind. Give them a hula hoop with salt they will stay inside, because they can move with it and give into the basic instinct of flight, without being unprotected. Plus it is much harder to break the circle."
"Smart" Sam replied.
"Oh no, we won't put one of those in my car" Dean whispered harshly in Sam's direction, because he knew the look in Sam's eyes and wanted to make clear there won't even be a discussion about that matter.
"Enough with the smalltalk, ladys. Let's get this freak show on the road", Dee decided, handed the basic hunting gear to everyone with a few well trained fast moves and slammed the trunk shut.
Sam never thought one mile through the woods could be this demanding. He had hunted wendigos in the deepest forests or the extreme training hikes with his father which hadn't only been one single mile. Yes, he was older now, but still he wasn't an old man or even out of shape. "At least this is what I thought" Sam thought and used his hand to wipe of some sweat from his forehead. If he didn't know better, he would say they put back twenty miles not less than one. But it almost seemed like the trees, roots, twigs and whatever the heck else grew here were trying hard to make their passage as hard as possible. Sam glanced at the two women in front of him. With their smaller stature and agile movements it was hard for him to keep pace. It was moments like this when Sam's logical brain area secretly wished to be smaller. But only this part of his brain. He'd never tell anyone but he enjoyed being taller than Dean. A little childish maybe, but he couldn't help it.
"Damn. This forest must be cursed." Sam mumbled when the branch of jet another tree almost hit his face.
"Guess you are lucky than, I can see a clearing ahead." Dee called over her shoulder as she cleared a few branches of her way and her eyes landed on something really beautiful that she thought would only exist in Hollywood productions. In between this hostile looking forest surrounded by old trees was this piece of land covered in beautiful flowers (yes pretty cheesy). She took the last step through the trees and a miracle happened. Dee Winchester was speechless.
"Holy shit", Dean exclaimed one second later, just as both versions of Sam whispered stunned "What the...?"
"It is truly beautiful, isn't it?" Castiel said with more emotion in his voice than you'd think an angel possessed. The energy he felt around him was just this foreign and yet it felt so true and clean.
They were able to see the whole clearing and everything on there now.
"It is divided into four parts" Sam whispered still too surprised to speak aloud, but still able to use the logical half of his brain.
In the one part they were standing in the ground was covered with beautiful flowers. Sam was able to spot poppies, daisies and snapdragons. Typical summer flowers he noted, not that he shared it. Even for him it sounded like nerd knowledge and at this point this knowledge wasn't essential. What was more essential were the butterflies between the flowers. It wasn't their form or size, but the fact that they weren't moving and seemed frozen in the air. Now that he looked around nothing was moving. The whole clearing seemed to be frozen, it appeared like the time just stopped and everything else with it. The leaves that were falling from the colourful autumn tree in the quarter to the left of them were also just unmoving and seemed to lie in the air. Just as the snowflakes in the quarter opposite to theirs. There even was a half finished snowman. With all the stillness it didn't even appear as a landscape but a picture of one. And what do you think Sam could spot in the last quarter to his right? Exactly. Crocuses, tulips and lily of the valley, this was spring then.
"Looks like the four seasons" Sam deducted.
"The Four Seasons in New York or in Los Angeles?" Dean joked.
"Wait. You know what the Four Seasons is?" Sam asked amused.
"No of cause not" Dean answered confidently and quickly changed the topic "so here, what is that thing in the center?"
"It looks like a Stonehenge" Cas answered.
"Not only a Stonehenge, but THE Stonehenge. A smaller replica of it but still this is the famous Stonehenge" Samantha discovered excitedly. Not caring too much about the strange feeling of moving in a place where everything else stood still she carefully stepped closer. "Look at the formation and the shape of the stones. It looks exactly like the one in England."
The others slowly followed her. The silence and the motionless surrounding made Dean's hunter instincts kick in. He had seen angels freezing the time but this seemed different and felt odd. One side glance at Sam and he knew his brother felt the same.
"You know what is wrong with this place, Cas?" Dee suddenly asked, as if she had heard the questions in Dean's head. Or just had the same. He can't deny that there were some similarities between the two of them.
"Everything seems to be frozen in place. As if the time stopped moving" Cas said.
"Well thank you, Sherlock. I think you solved the mystery. I mean do you know why everything is in this state?" Dee replied sarcastically and rolled her eyes. Sam had to hide a little smile. He couldn't help but notice that just like Dean Dee also rolled her eyes not in this typically circular eye-movement, but more in an L shaped movement. Jep, two of a kind.
"I am not certain" Cas answered truthfully. He was a little confused. Did Dee just compliment him, because he knew how much she liked the show Sherlock, but she also used her sarcastic undertone. Confusing those Winchesters. "There were those words I heard some brothers say around the time the folk of Altis died, but I thought they were poetry. They said:
The day he avenged the big mistake and restored the order, the powerful brother of mine,
over there it went silent and everything stood still to keep the memories of the brighter time.
It appears as if the time and nature just stopped where they used to live. It actually makes sense. When we think of their magical power as a symbiosis between them and the natural life force…"
"Okay, thank you Cas." Dee interrupted him to save herself from one of Cas's lengthy explanation no human was able to comprehend. "So basically your big brother Raphi killed them and this happened. Okay, than let us hope the portal or whatever they used to get to Altis is still active and not frozen too."
The others had to agree to that.
"Maybe something in this Stonehenge opens a portal." Sam suggested "many people thought it might was created to be able to travel between worlds."
With no other ideas they all started to inspect the stones. After some minutes of nothing, Samantha realized that this couldn't be the solution and began to inspect her surroundings. Her eyes suddenly fell on the sunlight. It should be coming from a different direction. Maybe it was frozen too. Somehow it fell directly through one of the stonegates from the Stonehenge. And those stones casted a shadow on two especially old looking trees some steps behind it. The space between the two trees glowed slightly in the sunlight.
"You got something?" Sam asked and followed her gaze and suddenly he noticed it too. "Good job!"
"What is it?" Dee asked.
"Well, the Henge isn't the solution it is just a hint" Samantha explained and when she looked into two identically incomprehensible faces she added "Just follow me!"
Reaching the trees she held out her hand and touched the bark. Suddenly everything around them went dark.
When the light came back they gasped. The portal had worked! They weren't on the strange clearing anymore, but stood in front of an extensive ledge on what could only be the mountain of Altis. Directly in front of them was an opening that indicated that there was a massive cave behind it.
"Do you think this is where the folk of Altis lived and died?" Sam asked somewhat reverently.
Dee only replied "Well I think the more important question is: Where the hell is Dean?"
Sam turned around and found the place where his brother stood just seconds before empty. But there wasn't much time to worry as Samantha suddenly shouted: "Or what the hell is this?"
When Sam turned again he saw something giant making its way through the opening. Something they could only describe as monster, that didn't seem happy about the strangers who disturbed it.
TBC
Author's note: I can't believe they are airing the final episode today. I haven't seen anything of season 15 yet, but it still makes me nostalgic. I will miss the show and the boys.