Chapter 6:
Dean could have continued to sit there and let himself drift off to sleep. The feeling was becoming overwhelming. But of course they needed to keep moving. Who knew how many more demon dogs were out there, or what else was going to come jumping out of the bushes. For a moment his thoughts drifted back to the demon in the basement. The demon had told him that he was going to be a sacrifice to some god. Dean had laughed to himself. If he was supposed to be something special for a sacrifice, he had a feeling that whatever god was going to be mightily disappointed. He was nothing special, he knew that. Sam on the other hand was special. Dean knew he was getting more and more powerful by the day, even if they didn't talk about it. That demon had picked the wrong brother. Of course, Dean was happy he did choose wrongly, but none the less, Sam was the special one. Dean knew that there must be some reason for his new found powers. He had a feeling his brother was meant for something big. So he had to make sure Sam lived to see that day. He mustered up his strength and pushed away from Sam.
As he looked at Sam he grew concerned, "Sammy, you're bleeding." He said, pointing at Sam's chest.
"Just a scratch. It's not deep."
"Just the same, let's patch it up and then get back on the move."
Sam nodded. He really wasn't hurt that badly, but Dean wouldn't let it go. And they did need to get moving, so he let his brother go back into take care of him mode just so it didn't slow them down. Sam winced as Dean quickly cleaned his wound and placed a wrap over it. He couldn't help but notice how his brother's hands shook. Sam still could not believe his brother was even conscious. He suddenly had a bad feeling that Dean was going to die in these damn woods before he could get him out. He shook his head. No. No way. They were the Winchester brothers. They could fight anything and win.
As Dean finished he sat back and his eyes began to close. It was getting hard to breathe again. That damn dog had made him land hard and his back and ribs felt like they were on fire. He was never going to make it. With eyes still closed he quietly said, "Sam...maybe it's time you go."
"What?" Sam asked, hoping his brother wasn't saying what he thought he was saying.
"You know what I'm saying. I'm gonna slow you down. Just go Sam. It's important you get outta here." His head began to roll back. He felt unconsciousness coming.
Sam bolted up, ignoring the pain in his chest and head. He grabbed both bags and slung them over his neck. Then he pulled Dean's knife from the one demon dog and placed it in his boot. He then stomped over to his brother. "Dean you stupid jerk, get up!" He screamed as loud as he could, startling his brother. "Quit being an idiot! We're leaving now, together!" Sam was pissed now. Enough was enough. They were both getting out, alive, and that demon was going to be sorry he met the brothers. It was time Sam took charge. Knowing Dean did not respond well to soft words and gentle treatment Sam decided to take another route. He was going to be pissed and start barking orders. Without a thought to his brother's pain Sam reached for him, yanking him up hard. "Now get off your ass and move! You are not a fucking quitter. We are gonna fight and win, you hear me!"
Dean winced in pain as he was yanked to his feet. But he said nothing. Sam was pissed. He wasn't even being his mushy girly self. Dean couldn't believe that with all his injuries his brother just yanked him up like that. If he could of made his arm work right, he would have knocked his little brother out for a stunt like that. For now, he let it go and hobbled along side Sam.
The boys made it back to their original camp site by the creek by the time the sun was beginning to set. Sam had been riding Dean's ass the entire way, yelling at him to move faster, to shut up when Dean tried to protest over Sam not leaving him, and to keep quiet so they could hear anything. But when they made it back to the campsite, Sam could see that Dean couldn't take anymore. If he kept pushing, he was going to collapse. So he made their decision. This is where they would make their stand.
"All right Dean. We stop here. You need to rest and I need to think about how to stop this thing."
Sam unrolled Dean's sleeping bag and ordered him lie down. Dean didn't fight the order. He was out before his head was all the way down. Sam watched his brother for a moment, making sure his breathing was all right. It was quick and sharp, but at least he was still breathing. Sam quickly got up and placed their weapons within arm's reach, making sure to place a gun and Dean's knife next to his still form. He circled them in salt and then grabbed their Dad's journal. It was time for answers.
As he began to read, he heard the whispers again. The sun had finally set and beside the small fire he built, it was pitch black. Sam's eyes darted around, but he could see nothing. He could feel it though. His hair on the back of his neck stood and he felt a cold run through him. But nothing showed itself. Sam tried to make out what the whispers were saying, but it was jumbled. He decided to ignore it and turn back to his reading. He had found what he was looking for. Now he just had to put a plan into motion.
Then suddenly the whispers stopped and he heard one clear voice. "I will have him."
Sam's jaw clenched. 'Over my dead body' he thought.
The voice called back, 'That can be arranged.'
Sam was on edge. 'That can be arranged'? It was the last thing the voice said. Now all was quiet. Yeah, I'll arrange it for you, you fucker. Sam thought. He laid the journal down and checked on Dean. He was still dead to the world. Sam let a loud sigh escape his lips. He had finally found what he was looking for in the journal. His suspisions had been right. This was the same thing Dean and his dad had faced before. Well, slightly different, but it could be fought. After reading what their dad had wrote, Sam shuddered. It sounded stupid, but this demon was probably more evil than most. If that was possible. But by nature it was a torturer. Not only physically, but mentally as well. It took extreme pleasure in destroying a person's mind and soul, as well as body. Sam could only imagine what had really happened to Dean in that basement. What had it said to him? How did he stay so strong? Sam didn't want to imagine. What he did want was his brother to wake up and tell him how they were going to settle this, and get their way out of here. But that wasn't going to happen. It was up to Sam this time.
He knew what needed to be done, but how was he going to do it? And alone. He couldn't ask Dean to help him. Hell, as much as he felt bad for thinking it, he couldn't count on Dean right now. But he couldn't do it alone. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a grumbling from his stomach. God he was hungry. He pulled out a bag of beef jerky from his sak along with a bottle of water. He would need his strength to fight, and being tired from hunger wasn't the way to go. After he finished off the bag he laid next to his brother. His head was pounding. Of everything they packed, they forgot aspirin. He rubbed his temples and closed his eyes, only for a second.
But in that one second of his gaurd being let down, they came. Sam heard the footsteps and bolted up. He heard the familiar growl. Not again. He didn't think they were too close, yet. He had time. Quickly and quietly he got their weapons together. He stratigically placed weapons along his body, as well as his brothers. Then when he was sure he was ready, if that could happen, he grabbed Dean by the shoulders and shook him. "Dean! Wake up, we gotta go!"
Dean didn't respond quickly, which caused Sam's heart to stop for a second, but he did open his eyes. "Sam? What are you doing?" It took Dean a moment to remember what was going on. Then his eyes widened, "What is it?"
"Get up now! We gotta move Dean. They're back."
Just as he got his brother up to his feet they heard the rustling behind them. They turned and saw the red glowing eyes, the black bodies hidden by the darkness.
"Shit!" Sam screamed. He grabbed Dean by the arm, hauling him up. "I'm pretty sure there's more than two this time. Move!"
Dean was stumbling, crying out in pain, and holding his ribs, but he was moving. In the darkness they weren't sure where they were going, they just knew they needed to go the opposite of the growls. Then the growls were closer. They ran harder. Sam turned and let off a shot in no specific direction, but it didn't deter the animals. They finally came to a halt when they reached the creek.
"Looks like wer're going swimming." Dean said panting.
The growls were right behind them now. The boys turned and came face to face with four sets of red eyes. For a moment time seemed to stand still. Neither the boys nor the dogs moved. Then in slow motion the dogs came at them. Sam fired a shot and they heard a yelp. The dog went down. But the other three were fast. They charged,two of them straight at Sam. He didn't have time to get a shot off before he was pushed out of the way and into the water. He heard his brother scream and heard the gun. He pushed himself up in time to see Dean and the two dogs also falling into the water. But Dean had got one and it was now floating. However, he was fighting the other one, and he wasn't winning. The third dog stood on the bank and was about to jump in the water also. It didn't even see Sam raise up with the gun and fire. It yelped and went down. Sam turned to where his brother and found that he and the dog had floated away from him. But at least the dog was no longer on his brother. Sam swam to his brother. The water wasn't actually that deep, but it was faster to swim than to try and wade to him. The last dog had made it's way to the bank and was watching them intently.
Sam got to Dean and hauled him up. There was blood trickling from his mouth and his arm had a fresh wound. "You stupid jerk! What the hell were you doing!"
Dean stared at Sam for a moment then said, "They were coming for you Sam. They were trying to get rid of you. Didn't really think I'd let that happen did you?"
Sam pulled his brother to the other side of the creek, away from the demon dog. "What do you mean they were coming for me? They tried to kill both of us."
"Yeah, but it wants to get rid of you. It thinks it will be easier to get me...if you're out of the way." Dean said quietly. The demon had already told him he was going to watch Sam die. He told him his worse fear was going to come true. But Dean wasn't about to let that happen.
Sam looked back at the last dog. It didn't seem to want to cross the water. "Come on Dean." He said pulling his brother along. "It's time to finish this."
"You figure out a way?" Dean asked.
"Yeah. But...uh...we gotta go back to the cabin."
Dean nodded. It always had to be the hard way didn't it, he thought.
"I wish we didn't have to, but I'll need your help Dean. You with me? You okay?"
"I'm right here Sammy. Let's fry this bitch."
Sam looked at his battered brother. "Yeah superman, let's get this bitch done."
They headed back to the cabin, both boys extra alert for any movement around them. "So what's the plan Sam?"
"I found some stuff in Dad's journal. It's basically the same as thing as that one demon you guys fought years ago. Remember, the..."
Dean cut him off, "Yeah I remember the one." Dean could never shake those memories. And after his fun time in the basement, he had already figured out what it was.
"Okay, so...I found a spell that we could use to bind it and get rid of it. But it's kinda long, and we're going to need to distract it."
Dean smiled, "Sounds like my kind of job."
Sam shook his head, "No way. This time you're reading, I'm distracting. Don't argue, it's an order."
Dean's brow furrowed, "An order? When did you become captain?"
"Argue with me later, all right Dean. But since I'm the one who's pretty much saved your ass this time around, I think it's safe to listen to me." He paused, "At least this once."
Dean was about to come back with a highly sarcastic remark when there was a flash of light. Suddenly Sam was grabbed by an invisible force and thrown backwards into a tree. "Sam!" Dean screamed, but he soon found himself on his knees, being held by his throat by the demon. The last thing Sam saw before he became unconscious, was the demon disappearing, along with his brother.
-TBC-