"Oh my god. Gabriel, its beautiful!"
Sams eyes were wide with amazement, taking in the animal that was in front of him.
What stood before him was the most enormous horse Sam had ever laid eyes on.
The head towered high above Sam as it gently surveyed its new surroundings. The hide was a pure white, fading into deep blacks as it traveled down the strong muscled legs. The hair around the hooves was longer and a blood red color. It floated and licked up its legs past the knees like fire, constantly moving. Its eyes are a deep black opal, and the mane is a matching shade. It shimmers and glints in the sunshine as it flows like its immersed in water, floating in all directions.
"Wow." Sam whispered. He cast a glance to Gabriel, and what he saw made his heart stop.
Gabriels features were locked in an angry scowl, his body in a guarded stance, and his angel blade had dropped into Gabriels hand from where he kept it hidden.
"Gabriel," seeing the archangel battle ready terrified Sam. He pulled his gun out and pointed it at the animal in the field. "What is it?"
"Extremely deadly." He took a step closer to Sam, putting himself in front of the hunter. "Put that away, Sam. Its useless."
Sam rolled his eyes while still keeping a look at the creature that had them on edge. There was no way he was going to leave himself unarmed if Gabriel had pulled his blade out.
When he focused fully at the animal again, Sam found it to be staring straight at them. It was unnerving, like it was peering into his soul. Suddenly, a booming sound resonated through the air, like an orchestra that all plays at once but are not playing the same notes.
I Am thE mArE
"No, you're not." Gabriels voice was hostile and powerful. Sam could feel his body vibrate a bit at the sound of it. "You are something more. But nothing about you is good."
I Am mAny thIngs. bUt mOstly I Am hUngrY
It's eyes focused fully on Sams. The color within them swirled into a deep foreboding red. Sam could feel himself losing control of his body and going slack. He still was on his feet but his hands fell to his sides and the gun thudded on the soft ground.
He could feel the pressure in his chest. The searching. The groping. It felt wrong but all Sam could do was whisper a broken "help" to Gabriel, who was already clutching Sams chest doing his best to block the mental invasion.
AwAkE
Suddenly, Sam felt the intrusion leave his body. He let out a pained breath and tried to steady himself on Gabriels shoulders.
The hives in he flower field were flashing colors at an insane rate. Reds and dark oranges and blacks. They were restless and knew there was danger, but neither Sam nor Gabriel would let the creature out of there sights. When Sam was released and fell into Gabriel, a battle cry went out through the hives to defend their people.
The hives emptied at an amazing speed, and every able bodied bee was hurtling itself across the field to help. They were screaming at Gabriel to run, to get as far away as they could, that they would distract it. But all they could hear in Gabriels head was SAM SAM SAM SAM!
They whizzed past Gabriel, and when he saw them hurling themselves at the beast, he tried to call out to them. No! Stop! You're going to get hurt! But they didn't listen to him. They wouldn't let harm come to Gabriel and his friend.
When they reached the Mare, they encased it in the same way that they had when meeting Sam and Gabriel, but there was nothing inquisitive or affectionate in their flight patterns. The buzzing was angry, furious that a strange being had come into their territory.
Unfortunately, they were no more than an annoyance to the invader. A blast of sound erupted from with in the swirl of angry bees, so loud it caused Sam to cover his ears and fall to his knees. A ripple of power came immediately after, and the brave bees were scattered in every direction. Both Sam and Gabriel were pelted with the tiny bodies of their would be rescuers and the ground around them were littered with the dead. Others were struggling to stay up in the air, trying to fly to any shelter they could find.
And underneath the swirling distraction, the Mare had changed. Its hide was no longer pure white, but had gone black as the night. The flowing mane and tail had changed into fire. Actual fire bursting off the back of the giant beast, reaching high up into the air. And the beast was bucking wildly. Turning in tight circles kicking its legs and throwing his head from side to side, trying to inflict more damage to whatever happened to be around him.
"NO!" Gabriel tightened his grip on his angel blade, ready to protect Sam. His glare never left the Mare, but out of the corner of his eye, he spied little Sugar sputtering through the air, coming towards him. She was weak, he could tell she wouldn't last much longer. The tiny bee finally made it all the way to Gabriel, landing on the front of his jacket. Exhausted and defeated, she fell into Gabriels chest pocket.
I'm so sorry, Sugar.
Angel…
At the word, a lump formed in Gabriels throat and he could feel tears starting to form in his eyes. The first words he could hear from her and they would be Sugars last. Well, if Gabriel could do nothing else he wouldn't let this little bee, the first one who accepted him, die. He reached his free hand up over his pocket and released a bit of his Grace, healing Sugar.
The Mare froze on the spot, and it twisted his head to train his blood red eyes on Gabriel.
pOwEr!
Its mouth opened wide, revealing a set of teeth like razors. Each one sharp enough to tear through anything it wanted. The wind around Sam and Gabriel picked up, getting stronger and stronger, pushing them towards that gaping maw. Even with Sam already on his knees, he still was having a hard time keeping himself upright. He could see Gabriel have to plant his feet, his knees bent and his arms up trying to keep his balance.
Through the roar of the wind, a new sound could be heard. A sharp, high pitched whine. It pulsed and chittered. Sam looked up to see what was happening, and Gabriel fell to his knees beside him. Sam scrambled over to him to help him, and his whole body shuddered in horror at the sight next to him. Gabriels eyes had rolled back into his head, his mouth hanging open wide, and his Grace being slowly pulled out of it. It trailed a twisted path across the field and went down the throat of the Mare.
Real, visceral panic rose in Sam. He was scared. What were they dealing with that could suck the Grace out of an Archangel?
He grabbed Gabriel by both of his shoulders and shook him violently.
"Gabriel! You've gotta wake up! Please! GABRIEL!" he shouted over the thunderous wind around them.
There was no change in Gabriel. In his panicked state, Sam slammed his hand over Gabriels mouth, trying and failing to ebb the flow of Grace out of him. His eyes jumped around and his mind raced to think of a solution, but all he could do was clutch to Gabriel and try and protect his body as best as he could.
And then Sam heard a tiny voice coming through in his head.
...to hear me! Sam! Can you hear me! Call Castiel, Sam!
Oh, how could he have been so stupid.
"Castiel!" Sam prayed as loud as he could. "Please! You have to help! Gabriel's in trouble!"
The same tiny voice called back in Sams mind.
Close your eyes, Sam. Gabriels too.
He didn't question it. Sam pulled Gabriel into his wide chest and wrapped his arms around Gabriels head, doing his best to keep his eyes covered. He buried his own face into Gabriels hair, squeezing his eyes shut tight. The ache in his chest from before was fading, and Sam realized it was because Gabriels grace was still being pulled out and traveling through him. Tears formed in his eyes and Sam didn't fight them.
Castiel appeared in an instant in front of the two huddled in fear, between them and the Mare. His wings were exposed, the feathers sharp and ready for a fight, his angry eyes glowing and swirling Grace around them. He extended his hands towards the Mare and sent out a massive pulse of Grace energy.
The surge of Castiels power collided with the beast, hard. Its massive head was thrown back and its legs stumbled. It wasn't knocked to the ground, but the wind and the strange sound stopped suddenly and Gabriels Grace was no longer leaving him.
Sam didn't dare let go of Gabriel. He could still feel the power of Castiels true form leaking out of his vessel. When Castiel spoke, Sam thought he and Gabriel would be torn apart right then.
WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ANYTHING TO BE HERE WITHOUT MY PERMISSION.
I Am hUntIng. And I fOllOw thE smEll Of fOOd.
Castiel could feel Sam behind him, lightly rocking the still unconscious Gabriel. He could hear the comforting words Sam was whispering in Gabriels ear, although he was not sure which of them it was meant for. Castiel pulled back his true form so as not to frighten Sam further.
"Food?" Cas asked. He backed up slowly, never taking his eyes off the now pacing creature in front of him. "Sam," he crouched next to the hunter grasping his brother like his life depended on it, "Sam, look at me." Sam tried to duck his head in further. "Its alright, Sam. Its safe to look at me."
Sam slowly lifted his eyes up to Castiel, who was still eyeing the Mare.
"What did it want, Sam?"
Sams voice wavered. "Umm, it looked, I don't know, inside me. It hurt. And then he said "awake" and let me go."
Castiels face steeled. He slowly rose to his full height, his eyes never leaving the Mare. "Shit."
Sam froze. He didn't even breath.
The Mare was pacing restlessly still. His fire mane was charring the leaves of the tall trees too close to the forests edge. Those red eyes were leaving the men in front of him, and he stuck his nose in the air, taking long loud inhales through his nostrils.
"Sam, this thing, it eats dream souls." Cas' whole body was shaking with fear, rage, protectiveness, ferocity.
The Mare took another sniff of the air, and froze like a deer hearing a twig snap.
"Oh my god," Sams face went white, "Dean is here, Cas. On the dock."
The Mares eyes snapped in the direction of the lake.
"I know."
With unbelievable strength, the Mare lept over the now unimportant men in front of him. He took off at an incredible speed, galloping towards the dock with Deans dream self. A primal scream ripped itself out of Sam. He dropped Gabriel, still out cold, on the ground harder than he intended and took off after the Mare.
He could here Castiel yelling something behind him, but he didn't stop. He couldn't stop. The only thought going through his head right now was to protect Dean, even if he no idea how to do that.
He ran as fast as his muscled legs would carry him. The world bent around him as it had before, but the Mare was faster, stronger. It reached the dock before him.
"NO! DEAN!" He screamed at his brother.
yEs! gIvE mE thE drEAm! I Am hUngrY!
The demonic laughter was echoing over the fields as it ran down the dock towards Dean, still sitting in his fishing chair. Sam was still running, but he knew he wouldn't get there in time. The tears were running down his cheeks in his fear and frustration.
Sam could see that fearsome mouth opening up again, and he screamed when it grabbed Dean roughly by the shoulder. He saw it take the last few steps, then leap off the end of the dock, into the lake.
Sam kept running, nothing could stop him.
His lungs burned and his legs were on fire.
The thought that this was a bad idea never crossed his mind as he ran the length of the dock and dove in after his brother.