Chapter 8: Nothing but Ash


"I have never seen this much snow in my life."

"I thought your family was from the Imperial City?"

Dean snorted as he pushed his way through more snow, one hand one Khan's neck as he led the cart up the mountain. The snow wasn't that deep, but there were still some deep drifts that held the carts back. Cas was riding way out front looking for the trail, the only one of them who had been to this small village, though the road hadn't been so snowy the last time he was there.

"My sire lived in the City for a long time, true, but he and my dam are from the lower towns. If I have ever been there, I don't remember it."

"I've never taken this pass, though Cas had me memorize the way years ago." Anna replied, sitting atop her own war horse. She and Dean had been swapping all morning, since her horse wasn't as big as Khan and not trained to the harness. "Normally we take the lower pass if we go from the City to the farming villages past Crystal Lake Camp. Cas ran some of the patrols near the wall over the past year, and they always took Tung Shao to get there."

"One thing I can tell you, I am not made for the snow. I won't be happy until we get out of these mountains for good."

Anna shrugged, nudging her horse closer to Dean as Metatron's fat beast clomped past her. The scribe, not even deigning to glance at the soldiers he pushed out of his way, urged his horse toward the front of the formation, never happy to be in the back. Wrapped in furs that were far too expensive for trudging through snow in the mountain, Metatron had been sullen and grouchy for days, so the soldiers mostly just ignored him. "We might be camped at the village for some time, so you'll have to get used to the snow. You're young, but once you're a bit older your own alpha will keep you warm through the winter."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Yeah, is that how it works? I've always been cold when my family was fine, so I kinda doubt I'm going to be a Cas-level heater."

Anna was distracted from any answer she might have offered when Cas called a halt, ordering Bart to bring out lunch. Dean and Anna released the horses from the carts, tying them up nearby with their grain before joining the rest of the army for a quick meal.

"We're close," Cas announced. "Steve, Balthazar, Benny, Charlie, and Anna will ride to town with me and we'll leave the carts and the rest of you here until we can rendezvous with the main army. Inias, take over command of the carts and keep an eye on the canons."

The small party set out as soon as they finished eating, six war horses pounding a steady rhythm in the snow. Claire wanted to go, but without a trained warhorse she wouldn't have been able to keep up, so she stayed behind with Bartholomew. Metatron, eager to arrive to the village where his position in the Emperor's Court would guarantee him a good room and a warm meal, joined the party, struggling to get his lazy horse to keep up. The others paid him no mind.

Dean, riding beside Castiel, felt some deep sense of foreboding that he couldn't explain, but Khan could tell that he was uneasy so he kept his ears pricked forward, determined to find the danger before it hurt his rider. Kevin and Cri-Kee had tucked themselves into the familiar safety of his armor, tiny heads peeking out from under his green sash when they were sure no one could see them. Dean listened to the soft whine of the wind and jingling of the horses' tack underlaid by the muffled pounding of their hooves, starting as he finally realized what was making him so uncomfortable.

It was absolutely silent.

"We should hear the army already," Dean murmured, tightening his grip on his reins. Without any conscious command, Khan jumped into a canter, moving to full gallop a few strides later as Dean urged him to get to the village as fast as possible. Cas and the others were beside him a moment later, all of them realizing that something could be very, very wrong.

Cas reached the end of the road first, pulling up short at the site that met his wide blue eyes. Dean stopped behind him, the other soldiers a little further back as they all tried to take in the devastation laid out before them.

The entire village had been burned to the ground, charcoal tainting the pristine snow as a tattered rope hanging near the gate beat futilely against the village bell with every gust of wind. The unnatural silence was deafening, bodies half-hidden by the stone and wood rubble as flames still crackled further up the hill. Dean felt more than heard Kevin's sharp exhale, even the small dragon stunned by the magnitude of the devastation before them. Cas regained his composure first and moved his horse forward, looking around the burned buildings for a sign of life. This was not his first war, but it was always jarring to see the toll that a conflict could take on the civilians, those who could not defend themselves against the armies vying for control of China.

"Search for survivors," he ordered, moving his pale horse forward to do just that. Dean and the others spread out, somber and silent, dismounting near some of the larger buildings in hopes that not everything had been destroyed, that not everyone had been killed. A burning beam cracked and fell nearby, startling Cas's horse as Dean dismounted to search a structure that had been mostly stone. He wasn't sure, but it was large and near the center of town, so it might have been their council house. Kneeling down, he lifted a tiny cloth doll from the ruins, glancing at the few bodies nearby. No one could have survived this attack.

Cas joined Dean outside the large building, slipping off of his horse and staring at the careworn doll in the omega's hands. "I don't understand," he murmured, looking around; "my brother should have been here." Zachariah had taken the entire army to block the pass, and the recent letter calling his forces to the front had come from here, too. The village was burned recently; much of it was still smoldering, so this must have happened after the army arrived. Where could they have gone?

Metatron, who had ridden to the north edge of the village before sliding off of his horse, called out, a faint hint of horror in his scent. "Captain!"

Cas raced over, red cloak snapping behind him in the deceptively gentle breeze as he crested the hill and looked down. What he saw took his breath away, and he shook his head in denial. He watched, shaking his head almost imperceptibly as his soldiers climbed down into the darkened field, walking past hundreds of dead bodies in search of any survivors. Everyone was silent, not sure what they could say or what they should say; except for Cas, none of them had seen war before, none of them had even seen much death. Dean had to fight every omega instinct he had in order to keep walking, keep searching, and not run in terror toward the most dominant alpha on the field for protection. He felt Kevin's tiny claws sink into his chest, breaking him out of his omega panic state, Dean silently thanking the dragon as he moved another tattered flag and tried to find at least one survivor of this terrifying massacre.

Charlie cried out as she found something, turning back toward the hill as her fellow soldiers fell in behind her, reasonably sure that no one had survived this battle. She slowed down as she reached Cas and Metatron, holding out a helmet colored in gold and decorated with striped feathers. "The general," she managed, her voice breaking as Cas took the helmet. He stared at the beaten metal, the hint of blood along the edge, and tried to come to terms with his brother's death. "There . . . there aren't any survivors, sir."

Cas gritted his teeth and turned his head to hide his reaction, struggling to keep his alpha under control. He wanted to destroy whoever had killed his family, whoever had destroyed the entire Chinese Army, but Dick Roman was nowhere to be found. Somehow the Huns had managed to overwhelm the main army, so his trainees might be all that stood between the remaining Huns and the Emperor. He had to maintain control. "Hester, Uriel, and Raphael? All of them?"

"They're all gone, Cas," Balthazar whispered, swallowing back his own tears. "They took out a lot of the Huns, but no one could have survived that."

Cas closed his eyes and turned away from the battlefield, still unable to speak. Zachariah was dead, the half-brother who raised him and trained him, the man who had been more of a father to the alpha than the ever-busy Emperor. He knew the reality of the loss would sink in later, but right now he was just numb. Cas slowly walked away from the soldiers toward a rocky outcrop that overlooked the battlefield, drawing his sword and sinking it into the ground. If the small company had more time, they would have stayed and buried the dead soldiers, taking the bodies of the nobles back to the Imperial City to be interred with their families, but they had no way to know how many Huns had survived this battle. Cas's responsibility was to take his soldiers to the city as quickly as possible to defend against any remaining invaders. He placed Zachariah's helm on top of his sword, kneeling and bowing to the makeshift memorial. He hoped that his siblings' spirits would not be offended that he had to leave, but he silently promised to return for them when the war was over.

Dean walked up behind the grieving captain, wringing his hands as he tried to decide what to say. He wanted to comfort his alpha, but he wasn't sure what he could say. He finally settled on a soft, "I'm sorry" before closing his eyes and bowing his head in respect. Cas pushed himself to his feet and turned to walk back to the cluster of soldiers, pausing to rest his hand on Dean's shoulder in a gesture of thanks. Stormy blue eyes met faded jade green, and for a moment they were the only two people on that silent hill. The moment passed as Cas walked away, Dean turning to the memorial with the doll he had found still in his hand. Carefully, he placed the small toy next to the sword, honoring the innocent villagers who had died here today, people just like his mother and brothers who did not deserve to be crushed by the machinery of war.

Cas returned to his horse and mounted, burying his grief as he took command of his men. He spun his stallion around and pointed at the two mountains rising to the east of them. "The Huns are moving quickly. We'll make better time to the Imperial City through the Tung Shao Pass. We're the only hope for the Emperor now. Move out!"

The group of soldiers returned to the main army as they reached the road leading to the pass. Dean slipped off of Khan and hooked the horse back up to the cart holding the canons, Anna joining him to help him get everything attached quickly. Cas strode through the group and examined his soldiers, considering the options before him. "Bartholomew, take all of the carts except the cannons and lead most of the army through the pass to the Imperial City. I know you remember the path."

"I do. Where will you be?"

"I'll take a smaller patrol ahead, try to beat the Huns to the city and warn them. Zachariah had most of the army, but the Imperial Guard is still in the City and they should be able to mount a reasonable defense until you arrive. We'll take just one cart with the cannons and some supplies and push toward the capital as fast as we can. Metatron, I would recommend that you stay with the main army and offer them your . . . guidance." Cas bit out the last word, but the scribe would have been perfectly happy to stay with the part of the army not rushing at top speed to the city even without the suggestion.

Claire met her father's eyes, struggling to hold back her tears as she realized what he must have found in the village. "All of them?"

"I'm sorry, Claire," Cas murmured. "We will grieve later, but right now the rest of our family is in danger. We are soldiers and we have a duty."

"Yes, Father." Cas offered Claire a comforting shoulder squeeze before mounting his horse and trotting to the side, watching as Steve moved the cannon cart to the front and grabbed his supply roll from inside. Each of the soldiers traveling with Cas tied their supplies to their saddles as well as a small pouch of food, checking their steeds and moving into line near the cannon wagon. Most of their tack was already wrapped in cloth to protect the horses from the cold metal, but everyone checked for anything that might make noise during their march.

Steve pulled Khan forward, checking the depth of the snow before nodding at the captain. Cas pulled on his reins and his white steed trotted forward, the other horses falling in line behind him as Steve moved the cart to the rear of the formation and hopped onto the driver's platform. Cas looked toward the east and his home, trying to determine how long it had been since the Huns were in the destroyed village. He knew that that there were two ways to reach the pass, one to go north through the valley and one south along the more treacherous mountain paths. The Pass itself divided the two major clusters of mountains guarding his home, but if they moved fast enough they could reach the pass itself before the Huns and then only have an easy march after that. The Huns were unlikely to know about the harder but potentially quicker path, and they didn't have many options in any case. Bartholomew helped organize the rest of the army as the patrol headed out, offering a horse to the camp physician as most of the rest of them were hooked up to the carts. Metatron grouched something rude at the tall alpha as the group faded out of sight, as always complaining about things that no one could control.

Dean sat on the edge of the cart and guided Khan, not that the warhorse needed any instructions to know to stay with the rest of the patrol. He was one of the few stallions among the army recruits and easily the strongest horse behind Castiel's mount, so keeping up with the others even at such a quick pace was easy work. Kevin and Cri-Kee were tucked in with the cannons, hiding in some folded fabric just behind the driver's seat, oddly quiet for the trip. Dean settled into the monotony of the ride, unable to get his mind off of the carnage they saw in the village or the threat of the Huns who could be just ahead of them. The first part of their journey had been jovial, full of stories and friendly bonding, but now it was too dangerous to talk and Dean knew that the others were just as worried as him.

The group moved from the pass higher into the mountains, following a path covered in snow but still easy for Cas and his stallion to find. It was wide enough for the cart, but there was a sheer drop on one side and Dean kept an eye on it every time the path narrowed. Mountains, still wearing their blankets of winter snow, towered to the north, unbroken for hours, until the patrol reached a huge open gap between two ranges. A tall ridge rose to their north and cliffs fell off toward the south, leaving a great expanse of blown snow between them. Even Dean, who had never traveled through the mountains, knew that this was the most dangerous part of the march, tightening his grip on Khan's reins as the group slowed to a fast walk. This cleft between the mountains, which the Imperials recognized as the Pass itself, was much more likely to carry sound and alert the Huns of their presence, so stealth was key.

Unfortunately, Dean forgot to tell Kevin that.

A bare handful of minutes after the troop started to cross the pass, a cannon shot out of the cart and exploded in the heavy clouds overhead, the sound of the explosion echoing between the nearby peaks. Dean jerked Khan to a halt and spun to face the gaping hole, glaring at Kevin who shook his head and pointed at Cri-Kee, as if the cricket was capable of producing flame. Cas rode up a moment later, fury sparking in his azure eyes as he spotted the hole in the cart, though not the small dragon who was responsible for it. "What happened?!"

"Uh . . ."

"You just gave away our position!" Cas flung his arm in the direction of the open pass, his scent and stance radiating fury. "Now we're—" An arrow flew in from the north, striking Cas in the armor over his shoulder with enough force to knock him from his horse. Struggling to catch his breath from the sudden impact with the ground, Cas ripped the arrow free and threw it away, staring at the sky as it darkened with the next volley. "Get out of range!"

The soldiers let their training take over as they obeyed the command, Dean jumping from the cart and pulling Khan forward toward whatever safety the nearby low ridge to the south could offer. The other soldiers were not much faster, hampered by the deeper snow of the pass, but thankfully none of the arrows found targets. A seasoned warhorse, Khan was frantic to be rid of the cart and free to fight, jerking his head as he rushed forward and tried to reach the rest of the soldiers. The Hun archers, apparently positioned on the upper flanks of the mountains they had just passed, switched to fire arrows for the next volley, most of them fizzling out in the snow but a handful hit their mark.

Dean turned his head in horror as flames licked the edges of the cart, knowing that the cannons and their powder were incredibly flammable and they were suddenly in more danger from their own munitions than the enemy. Cas spotted the smoke at the same moment, jumping off his horse and grabbing for the edge of the cart. "Save the cannons!"

Balthazar obeyed the command first, taking three cannons from the captain before running toward the ridge, his horse having already bolted in that direction. The others dismounted also and took two or three each, also, Dean grabbing one in his left arm as he used his sword to cut a terrified Khan free of the burning cart. He managed to swing himself up as the stallion bolted, trying to get some distance between himself and the cart before the fire reached the black powder supply and destroyed it.

Moments later, Dean was thrown from Khan as the horse was bowled over by the force of the explosion, fragments of wood falling around him as he tumbled and landed face-first in the snow. Grateful for the soft landing, Dean pushed himself to his feet and grabbed the sword that had flown from his hands, Kevin and Cri-Kee falling into the snow in front of him. Kevin sat up, smoking from the explosion, and glared at the omega. "Sure, save the horse."

Dean grabbed Kevin and sheathed his sword, snatching the cannon as Cri-Kee jumped into his armor. He bolted for the small group of soldiers, some small part of him wishing that he had been chosen to stay behind in the slow group, to avoid this confrontation with the Hun army that already outmatched the best that China had to offer. Silencing those thoughts, Dean tucked Kevin away and grabbed Khan's reins as he reached the horse, somehow getting both of them to safety on the small ridge.

Benny and Balthazar were already firing cannons at the archers, Charlie and Anna lining them up as Cas measured the distance and gave the command to fire. The rest of the troop, consisting of Ishim, Muriel, Inias, and Isaac were aiming their own arrows into the peaks, the shifting shadows and gloomy day making it difficult to see if any of them were hitting their mark. Two cannons flew into the side of the closer of the two mountain perches, exploding with satisfactorily large plumes of black smoke, halting one of the groups of archers as the second one increased their hail of arrows. Charlie grabbed three of the remaining cannons, handing them to Benny and Balthazar as she and Dean stuck the ends of their own in the snow and aimed them all toward the enemy on the peaks. Cas raised his arm and gave the command again, "Fire!" and four dragon-faced cannons sped toward the bare cliffside.

The smoke cleared slowly, but it was obvious that both groups of archers had been decimated, either all killed or called back due to the casualties. Huns didn't have cannons, they didn't know how to make black powder, but they certainly feared it, usually enough not to cross the Wall. The soldiers, who had all covered their ears when the cannons exploded, looked up cautiously at the bare stone left behind, hoping against hope that the fight was over. Benny, who hadn't looked up to see the damage done, settled a cannon into position and grabbed his flint, freezing when Cas raised one hand. "Hold the last cannon." Benny looked over his shoulder, having lost count, but it seemed that the captain was right and they were at the end of their weapon stash.

Silence gripped the small battlefield as the four archers lowered their bows, the flag that Isaac had been carrying blowing fitfully in the mountain breeze. The other soldiers joined Castiel, cautiously staring at the Pass as smoke from the bare, wizened western peaks floated across the gap toward their snow-choked taller brethren in the east. Dean forced himself to breathe, hoping that they had won and could continue their journey. The horses, trained for battle though only two had seen it, shifted uncomfortable from their line behind Anna, Khan watching his master with pricked ears as he stood somewhat apart from the group.

The smoke cleared to reveal a single man on a dark, stout horse, a breed with a thicker coat only seen far north of China, the man's steed and his heavy clothes marking him as a Hun. As the soldiers watched, five more Huns joined their leader, the color draining from Dean's face as five became five hundred or more. The entire Hun army stood on the ridge to the north, their weapons raised as they roared out their battle cry and it echoed through the pass. This was the army that had decimated General Zachariah and the finest warriors that China had ever known; what chance did this small handful of raw recruits have against that?

Castiel straightened his back and turned his head toward his men, his scent calm and powerful, an alpha leading his men. Something in Dean calmed at that, his soldier training reassuring him that he wasn't some weak, whimpering omega but a strong warrior equal to any alpha. Cas's words, however, reminded him that the odds were very much against them. "Prepare to fight. If we die, we die with honor." The nine soldiers drew their swords and moved to stand with their captain, watching silently as Dick Roman raised his sword and led the charge, hundreds of Huns thundering down the pass toward the tiny group of soldiers that stood between them and the path to the Imperial City. Cas turned to Benny, who was still standing beside the last cannon, and nodded toward the army bearing down on them. "Benny, aim the cannon at Dick Roman." If nothing else, he would ensure that the leader of the Huns would no longer be a threat to the Chinese Empire. Benny sheathed his sword and grabbed his flint, carefully aiming the last of their weapons at Dick, calculating the trajectory and deciding the best moment to fire.

Dean, standing behind Benny, watched in almost detached silence, trying to prepare himself for the reality that he was going to die here today, lose his life to preserve his honor, and he wasn't entirely sure if he was alright with that. He looked down at his sword, his father's sword with the stone dragon worked into the pommel, and the peak of the snow-covered eastern mountain was reflected back at him. He looked up and could see the thick blanket of snow, its precarious grip on the stone, but the noise of the army galloping toward them had not been enough to dislodge it. If he could find something louder . . . Dean's eyes settled on the cannon that Benny was wrestling with and he knew what he had to do.

Sheathing his sword, Dean leaned down and grabbed the cannon, dashing toward the open snow and the army rushing toward them, ignoring Benny's outraged, "Hey!"

Cas reached out as Steve ran past him, cannon wrapped securely in both arms, not sure what kind of suicidal stunt the boy was pulling but also not willing to let him die in the middle of the field on his own. "Steve, come back! Steve!" Even Khan jerked at his reins and tried to break free, to follow his master even to certain death.

Kevin, having recovered from the cannon cart explosion, slipped out of Dean's armor and grabbed onto his shoulder, staring at Dick riding hard in front of his army and praying that his ward had some sort of plan. He heard Cas yell, "Stop!" moments before Dean reached the center of the field, burying the butt of the cannon in the snow and aiming the nose toward the upper third of the snow-capped mountain. He fished his flint and striker out of his pouch as Kevin dug his claws into the boy's armor, staring at Dick as the Hun got closer and closer.

Dean struck his flint twice without a spark hitting the fuse, his hands almost shaking too much for him to hold the stone. His omega was shaking in the back of his mind, terrified beyond reason, but he knew he could do this one brave thing and prove that omegas have the ability to be warriors, no matter what alphas and betas thought. Kevin, seeing that Dick was almost upon them, tapped Dean's shoulder urgently. "All right, you might want to light that right about now. Quickly, quickly!"

Dean fell back and dropped his flint as an arrow from one of the surviving Hun archers flew right in front of him, barely missing its target. Frantic, Dean started to dig around in the snow, hoping that the archer wouldn't dare fire a second time with Dick so close. Far behind him, on the small ridge, Charlie, Anna, Benny, and Balthazar realized that Dean might not make it in time and the last thing they wanted was to watch their friend die while they were too far away to do anything. Even Castiel, their captain, had run after Dean, though it looked like he was going to be too late, too. Benny raised his sword and glanced at his friends, nodding toward Dean. "C'mon, we've gotta help." Nodding, the other three charged after him, swords held high as they offered their own battle cry to the approaching Hun army.

Dean looked up from digging in the snow to see Dick bearing down on him, sword held out to the side as he aimed for the single soldier standing before him. Dean turned and his eyes landed on Kevin, the red dragon digging through the snow with him, and he remembered that his tiny guardian dragon could breathe fire. Without giving himself a single moment to reconsider, Dean grabbed Kevin, pointed his mouth toward the fuse, and squeezed the dragon's belly, causing a shocked spurt of flame to burst forth, lighting the fuse at last. He let go of Kevin and grabbed onto the side of the cannon shell, holding it in place as it exploded forth, the dragon apparently along for the ride. Kevin's words, as the cannon flew past Dick's startled, rearing horse and headed for the peak overhead, were incredulous. "You missed! How could you miss? He was three feet in front of you!"

The cannon impacted in the heavy snow blanket on the western face of the mountain, a black trail of smoke marking its path to the top. The packed snow shuddered and cracked, starting to slide down the peak, pushing all of the lower snow with it until a mighty avalanche had begun. Dean grinning victoriously, had never seen one, but he had read about them and his father had told him stories about entire armies lost to unstable snow in the mountains. Dick turned his head and gasped, also quite familiar with the deadly nature of snow, watching in horror as it began to devour his entire army. Furious, he spun back toward the warrior who had fired the cannon, the blonde young man kneeling in the snow before his horse, and he roared as he swung his sword.

Dean jumped back but he wasn't fast enough, grunting as the Hun's weapon made contact and dropped him to the ground. Grabbing his side, the omega pushed himself to his feet and started to run away as fast as he could, grabbing Cas's arm on the way. The captain had almost reached him in time, but now they were both in danger from the fast-moving snow. Dean glanced at the rise to the east, knowing that if the small patrol could get there in time they would be safe. The snow would move forward for the most part, and fall over the cliff to the south, burying the entire Hun army as it went.

Dean's four friends, running to save him with swords held high, froze as soon as they saw Dean and Cas running back, staring at the oncoming avalanche for a second before turning and running the other direction. At the ridgeline, Isaac lost control of the horses as he tried to jump on his, staring as they galloped frantically toward the eastern trail without their riders. He turned and ran for the safety of a huge rocky outcropping just above the southern cliff with Inias, Muriel, and Ishim at his side, hoping that it would be large enough to deflect the coming avalanche. All of the horses vanished into the eastern mountains except for Khan, who broke free of the pack and galloped toward Dean, knowing that his master needed his help.

The avalanche caught up with the leading edge of the Hun army in what seemed like moments, overtaking Dick and swallowing him and his horse only a few yards behind Dean and Cas. He breathed a quick prayer to his ancestors as they ran, the thunder of the snow an omen of their death. Then, as if in answer to his prayer, Khan galloped up beside him, Dean grabbing onto the edge of his strap and pulling himself up, reaching out for Cas's arm. The captain grabbed his wrist, he started to pull the older man up, but the snow caught up with them at last. The heaving wave separated them and Dean gasped as Khan went under, holding tightly to his horse as he lost sight of his captain.

Anna, Charlie, Benny, and Balthazar dove for the outcropping that Isaac had found, their fellow soldiers pulling them against the rock as the snow overtook them. Thankfully, Isaac had been right, and the snow split around the outcropping, falling over the cliff on either side of them. Benny looked around the edge of the outcropping, hoping to spot his friend, but all he could see to the ridgeline was a writhing mass of snow.

Kevin, who had managed to survive flying on a cannon to the top of a cliff and the resulting avalanche, slid across the surface of the snow on a shield from the Huns, barely able to control it as he called for Dean. At this point, secrecy was not his top priority, finding his friend was. "Dean! Dean!" He reached for something dark sticking out of the roiling snow, pulling Cri-Kee up by his antennae, the cricket none too impressed with the action. "Man, you are one lucky bug." Cri-Kee chirped something that approximated an eye roll, but he was grateful to be rescued from the avalanche.

Dean gasped for breath as Khan broke free of the sliding snow, swimming through it as he tried to keep from being buried. A wave of snow knocked the stallion over, but he burst free again and shook his head, fighting to keep from being washed over the side of the cliff. Dean raised his head, one hand on the reins in an attempt to offer some guidance to his mount, spotting an unconscious Cas being carried south by the snow. "Cas!" He pulled on Khan's reins, turning the horse into the current and reaching Cas moments later, using his free arm to guide the armored man onto Khan's back. Using the ragged remains of the straps that had been used to hold Khan to his cart, Dean tied Cas firmly in place, grabbing the reins and pointing his horse toward the outcropping where the rest of the soldiers had found shelter.

Benny, having proven himself the finest archer in the group, stood on the top of Balthazar's shoulders and stared out into the snowing ocean, bow half-raised in the hopes that he would see his friend. Balthazar, hands steadying Benny's legs, stood with one foot on Anna's shoulder and one on Charlie's, the two women having volunteered to take the bottom of the soldier pyramid on top of the rocky outcropping sheltering their band. Ishim was alternately watching the snow flow past and helping to steady the tower, reasonably certain that the avalanche was petering out. Charlie craned her neck, unable to see over the heaving waves of snow, arm locked around Anna's waist to hold them both steady. "Do you see them?" She felt Balthazar start to lose his balance and she shifted her own weight, free hand on the lean man's leg to keep him steady.

"Yes!" Benny called out triumphantly, spotting Steve's black warhorse struggling against the snow. He raised his bow and fired an arrow just short of their friend, having already attached a rope from the supplies they managed to save to the projectile. "Perfect! Now we'll pull them to safe—" he grabbed for the rope but it was too short, having flown faster than he anticipated and now completely out of his reach, "—ty."

Dean urged Khan to fight against the snow, but it was clear that they were losing and would soon go over the edge of the cliff. He looked over his shoulder at the coming doom as Kevin rode up to him on a shield, grabbing Cas's hanging arm and pulling himself up onto the horse's back. "Hey Dean, I found the lucky cricket."

Dean looked down at the dragon as they slid further toward the edge of the cliff. "We need help." An instant later, as if in answer, an arrow with a rope attached to it landed in the snow next to Khan, just close enough that Dean could grab it. He quickly tied the rope to the broad strap around Khan's chest that had held him to the cart, reaching for his own bow tucked in his supply bag. He was suddenly very grateful that he had transferred his supplies from the cart to Khan before they headed for the pass.

Kevin took a seat behind Dean, one claw on the strap as he tucked Cri-Kee safely by his side. "Ooh, nice, very nice, you can sit by me." He looked up and saw that Khan was just moments from going over the cliff, screaming as he grabbed for Dean's armor. "Ahhhh! We're gonna die! I know we're gonna die! No way we can survive this! Death is coming!" Cri-Kee grabbed onto his arm and squeaked something similar in cricket as Dean raised his bow and fired, unable to see his target but knowing the general direction of the rocky outcropping where the band of soldiers had found cover from the avalanche.

Standing at the top of the outcropping as the last of the avalanche rolled past, Benny was trying to explain his blunder to Charlie through his tears, though crying was not something he would normally let himself do. "I let them slip through my fingers." He opened his eyes in shock as his own arrow landed in his hands, automatically closing his hands around the shaft as the weight on the other end of the rope pulled him over and dragged him toward the edge of the cliff. Balthazar, Anna, and Ishim grabbed the rope with him, pulling back with all of their might as they slipped closer and closer to the edge. "Pull!" Benny yelled, putting everything he had into the action. His eyes widened in shock as Charlie stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist, giving the group just enough extra strength to pull the horse and two riders back up to the edge of the cliff.

Kevin danced behind Dean's back as they were pulled up the cliff. "I knew we could do it! You da alpha!" Dean grinned as Kevin ducked toward his armor to hide, sticking his head back out for one last comment. "Well, sorta." Dean grimaced and shook his head, one hand holding onto the rope and one holding Cas steady. If Khan had not been pulling the cart, if he had been only been wearing a saddle, this plan could not have worked. However, the harness for the cart held the horse firmly enough that he couldn't slip out while being pulled up the rope attached to the ring between his shoulder blades.

They got high enough that Khan could put his hooves on the edge of the cliff, Benny reaching down to take Cas as Balthazar offered his hand to Dean. Khan moved off to one side, catching his breath from the ordeal as Benny carefully placed Cas on the ground and Dean knelt beside him, checking for injuries as the captain finally woke up. Balthazar shooed the soldiers back, seeing that both just needed a moment to recover. "Stand back guys, give 'em some air."

Cas panted heavily as he pushed himself into a sitting position, some of the last few minutes blurry but he clearly remembered Steve pulling him onto the horse after dropping a mountain of snow onto the entire Hun army. He looked up at the boy soldier, who was kneeling behind him and also struggling to breath normally again, and shook his head in amazement. "Steve, you are the craziest man I've ever met," he scolded, softening his voice as he moved into a sturdier kneeling position. "And for that, I owe you my life. From now on, you have my trust."

Dean's face lit up as Cas smiled at him, truly open and friendly for the first time since they met. He could feel the heat of the alpha's hand on his arm, that contact pleasing his omega more than the kind words. For the first time, he truly felt like he belonged here, among these alphas and betas, and he had never fit in anywhere in his entire life.

Balthazar, standing above them, cheered. "Let's hear it for Steve, the bravest of us all!"

"You're king of the mountain," Benny added, raising his arms in the air.

"Yes, yes, yes," Charlie agreed among the cheers of her fellow soldiers, jumping up and down.

Cas chuckled and pushed himself to his feet, reaching down to pull Steve up with him. The boy made it to his feet, but pain flashed through his gray-green eyes and he fell back, arms grasping at his right side. "Ahhhh," he groaned, swaying slightly.

"Steve, what's wrong?" Steve pulled his hand away as he hit his knees, blood coating his palm from where it was leaking through his damaged armor. Cas suddenly remembered Dick swinging his sword at the boy just moments before they both ran away from the approaching avalanche; it looked like the Hun had managed to hit his target after all. Cas looked up at the other soldiers, blue eyes frantic as he reached for Steve. "He's wounded; get help!" he barked, cursing himself for leaving the medic with the rest of the army.

Dean felt light-headed as the blood loss finally caught up with him, eyes locked on Cas's face as the rest of the world faded away. He tried to focus on Cas's "Steve, hold on. Hold on," but moments later, everything went dark.