Chapter Thirty-one
"What do you mean, he's missing?" asked Buffy. "Sam, what happened?"
Everyone in the dining room grew worried and anxious at the news that Dean was missing.
"I don't know," said Sam on the other line. "We'd finished the hunt and were going to hit the road this morning and head over to Bobby's. When I woke up, he was gone. Impala's still here, all his stuff is here—I tried his phone, but it keeps saying his number is out of service. I know my brother better than anyone. This isn't like him."
"Okay, Sam, calm down," said Buffy. She glanced up at Castiel, who stood in the foyer entryway. "I'm gonna send Cas to you."
"Canton, Ohio, Creek Falls Motel, room 15," Sam rattled off.
Buffy opened her mouth to repeat the information, but Castiel must have heard it, because he had already vanished. "He's on his way."
"Yeah, I got him here," said Sam. "Thanks." He abruptly hung up.
Buffy stared at the phone in stunned disbelief before placing it back in its cradle.
"He's missing?"
Buffy looked back into the dining room to find Cordelia staring at her in worry.
"Dean's missing?" she asked again.
Buffy nodded. "Looks like."
Cordelia and a lot of the others exchanged distressed glances.
"But, I mean, Cas is gonna find him, right?" Buffy pointed out. "He's good like that."
"I hate to bring the room back down, but how's our angel gonna find him when he's got an angelic invisibility cloak carved into his ribs?" Xander asked.
"There may be a way," mused Castiel.
"Yeah, great, anything," said Sam enthusiastically.
"There is an amulet that I would be able to track," Castiel explained. "One that Dean has with him. It's very rare…very powerful."
Sam frowned. "Dean has an amulet with him?"
"He has had it since you gave it to him Christmas 1991," said Castiel.
Sam's eyes widened slightly. "His necklace?"
Castiel nodded. "It burns hot in God's presence. All angels can sense its location."
"Then, why haven't they found him yet?" asked Sam.
"Most likely, the angels are unaware that Dean has it," Castiel theorized.
"He has been wearing it under his shirt a lot lately," said Sam.
"Also, no angel wants to find our Father, which explains why they haven't searched for it," Castiel went on.
"And you can find him that way?" asked Sam.
"I believe so," said Castiel.
"Okay, meet us back at Buffy's place—" Sam began.
Castiel reached forward and placed two fingers on Sam's forehead. There was a flash of white, and then Sam found himself standing in the dining room of Buffy's house. Everyone startled and jumped away from him a little before realizing who it was.
"That works, too," Sam breathed, still not accustomed to angelic travel like Dean was.
"Well?" asked Buffy.
"Cas is looking," Sam answered as he pulled out his cell phone and dialed. "Bobby? Listen, get in your car and head to Sunnydale. We got a problem."
************************************************SPN/BTVS*******************************************************
Sam paced the living room of the Summers house later that night, getting more and more worried. "Why isn't Cas back yet?"
"I'm not sure, Sam," said Buffy.
"I mean, it shouldn't be taking this long to find someone," said Sam. "He can teleport, for God's sake!"
"Sam, calm down," Buffy told him. "He'll be back soon."
Willow watched as Sam continued to pace, and she turned, walking into the kitchen.
"How's he doing in there?" asked Tara, finishing off her small dinner.
"Getting more anxious by the second," said Willow, plopping down on one of the stools at the kitchen island.
Tara sighed, resting her elbows on the island. "I wish there was something we could do."
Willow stared at her for a second before realizing something. "Maybe there is. Or, at least, something you could do."
Tara nodded. "I've been thinking a locator spell, too. I just didn't want to tempt you."
"I'll be fine," Willow told her. "We need to find Dean."
Tara nodded again. "Okay, let's get everything ready."
**************************************************SPN/BTVS**************************
Cordelia stepped into the living room, watching as Sam sat on the couch, staring off into space as he clasped his hands in front of him. Buffy had gone upstairs to try to rest for a while.
"You know, you don't seem very freaked," Cordelia told him.
Sam glanced up at her. "Oh, I'm freaked, alright. I've just gotten good at hiding it."
Cordelia smiled at what she thought was an attempt at humor. "Dean get kidnapped often?"
"Actually, we kinda take turns," Sam told her with a straight face.
Cordelia's face softened as she walked over and sat next to Sam.
"We've learned over the years that panicking doesn't really help," Sam went on. "We tend to find each other a lot faster when we stay calm and focused." He took a deep breath. "So, that's what I'm doing." He cracked a smile. "Besides, Dean could take care of himself long before he got super powers."
Cordelia smiled at the obvious love Sam felt for his brother. "You really look up to him, don't you?"
"Well, yeah, he's my big brother. He's the guy that always took care of me, watched out for me…He's the…" Sam chuckled, "big hero that chased away the nightmares." He looked over at Cordelia. "Sometimes, literally." He looked back down at the floor. "I just hope he's okay."
Cordelia placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. "He will be. We got two angels on our side, don't we?"
"Guys," came Willow's voice from the entryway.
They both looked up at her.
"We're gonna do a locator spell to find Dean," Willow told them.
Cordelia looked over at Sam. "What do you know? Calm and focused worked."
Sam stood from the couch and followed Willow into the dining room with Cordelia in tow. Tara stood at the dining room table, a map, some candles, a bowl of crystals and a bowl of what looked like sand spread across its surface.
"Buffy, you might wanna see this!" Cordelia called up the stairs on her way to the table.
"And we're sure this is safe?" Sam asked, eyeing the magical items warily.
Willow rolled her eyes. "For crying out loud, you act like we're living in 1690s Salem. How many times do we have to tell you that not all magic is bad?"
"Sorry," said Sam apologetically. "It only takes so many witch attacks before you start thinking they're all evil."
Buffy came down the stairs and into the room. "Any progress?"
"We're about to find out," said Tara, taking some sand in her hand and sprinkling it on the map. She stared at the map and began chanting a few words in Latin.
The crystals in the bowl in front of her began glowing before abruptly dimming and then fading out. Willow and Tara frowned in confusion at the map.
"That's impossible…" breathed Tara.
"What?" asked Sam frantically. "What is it?"
"Well, according to this…he can't be found," said Tara.
"Well, maybe it just didn't work," said Sam.
"No, this is the most powerful locator spell there is," said Willow. "There's no way it wouldn't work, but it's almost as though he's dropped off the face of the earth."
Sam looked back and forth between Willow and Tara. "Well, that can't be good."
Castiel suddenly appeared next to Tara, immediately using the table for support when his legs just about collapsed from under him.
"Cas!" exclaimed Sam, rushing around the witches to him. "Are you okay?"
Castiel nodded, breathing shakily. "My power weakens. All this flight has tired me."
"Did you find Dean?" asked Sam.
Castiel shook his head as he managed to straighten up. "I am unable to find Dean anywhere. It appears he has vanished from this time."
"This time?" asked Sam. "What does that mean?"
"I believe the angels have taken him to a different point in the timeline," Castiel explained.
"You mean like when you took him back to 1973?" asked Buffy.
"Yes," said Castiel.
"Well, then, how are we gonna find him?" asked Sam. "Who knows where—or when—he could be."
Castiel gathered a several items, a few of which were a piece of chalk, a bowl and some holy oil. He moved Tara's map out of the way and immediately began drawing on the tabletop with the chalk.
"Hey!" Buffy protested.
Castiel continued drawing the symbol and placed a bowl in the center of it, adding a couple ingredients and then pouring holy oil in it.
"Zod aama raana ees la gheero saa—" Castiel chanted.
Flames immediately burst from the bowl, and Castiel staggered back, gripping onto the back of a chair as he closed his eyes and frowned for a moment.
Castiel opened his eyes. "I found him. 2014."
Sam frowned. "2014? Why there?"
"I don't know," said Castiel, straightening up. "But I will collect him immediately."
Castiel stood staring straight ahead for a few seconds before he frowned slightly and looked around.
"Cas, you okay?" asked Sam.
"Yes, I must still be tired," said Castiel. He stood staring at the floor for several moments as his face strained. He finally broke his stare, looking around the room in worry. "Well, this is very poorly timed."
"What is?" asked Willow.
"I appear to have lost my ability to fly," Castiel stated.
Sam's eyes widened. "You what?"
"Are you sure it's not another spell?" asked Buffy.
"I am sure," said Castiel. "To explain it in a way you would understand, I could feel my wings straining against the spell, but this time…it's as though my wings aren't even there."
"So, how are we gonna find Dean?" asked Sam.
"Too late."
Everyone spun, startled, toward the front of the room to see Gabriel and Dean standing there.
Gabriel jutted his thumb over at Dean. "Beat you to it."
"Dean!" exclaimed Cordelia, rushing to him and wrapping him in a hug. "You're back!"
Dean looked confused at first before reciprocating the hug.
Cordelia then eased away from Dean, clearing her throat. "So…you're okay?"
Dean nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." He seemed to also be recovering from the public emotional display.
Sam stepped towards him. "Did the angels really take you to 2014?"
Dean frowned at Sam, seemingly shocked. "How did you know that?"
Sam motioned to the angel. "Cas figured you had been taken through time, so he did a spell to find you."
Dean's gaze went from Sam to Castiel, frowning accusatorily. "You knew where I was? Why didn't you come get me?" His voice began to grow in volume. "I was praying for you, even after I got back! I had to turn to Gabriel for help." He looked quickly over at the archangel. "No offense."
"None taken," Gabriel shrugged.
Castiel frowned, staring at Dean. "You were praying for me?"
Dean frowned right back, calming slightly. "You didn't hear me?"
Castiel gave a shake of his head. "No. It appears to be another ability I have lost."
"Another?" asked Dean.
"Apparently, Cas can't fly anymore," Buffy explained.
Dean's face softened in sympathy. "Oh, Cas, I'm sorry. That must be hell."
Castiel frowned in confusion as he tried to puzzle through Dean's statement. He then seemed to come to a conclusion as the frown vanished and understanding flooded his features. "You mean figuratively."
Dean smirked, glancing at Sam and Gabriel. "Well, what do you know? He's catching on."
"Who took you?" asked Castiel.
Dean shrugged. "Some douchebag named Zachariah."
"Zachariah?" said Castiel, eyes widening in concern.
"Yep, little brother," Gabriel confirmed. "Zachariah."
"I take it we know him," said Dean.
"He's Michael's second in command," Castiel told him.
Dean rolled his eyes. "Well, that's just great."
"How did Zachariah find you?" asked Castiel.
"Bible freak we had a visit from a few days ago," said Dean. "Apparently, they are heaven's eyes and ears."
"While we're on the subject, I got news on the Armageddon front," said Gabriel.
"Unless it's good news, we don't wanna hear it," Dean told him.
"Well, then, bucker up, Deano," smiled Gabriel, pulling a ring out of his pocket.
"Gabe, we already know you have Pestilence's ring," Dean said, annoyed. "We gave it to you."
"No, this is Pestilence's ring." Gabriel pulled a silver ring with a pale green stone out of his other pocket. He held up the first ring. "This is Famine's."
Sure enough, the two rings looked nothing alike. Famine's looked like a high school class ring, complete with onyx black stone set into it.
"You got another?" asked Sam.
"Well, I had been on Famine's trail before you called me away last time," said Gabriel, pocketing the rings.
"That's good news, right?" said Buffy. "Two down, two to go."
"And good thing, too," said Dean. "I kinda got the feeling that Zachariah could tell from my behavior that we had something up our sleeves. The angels are probably gonna double-time their plans. Only makes sense that we should, too."
"Well, then, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to find War," said Gabriel. He squinted his eyes and cocked his head in thought. "Or Death, whichever one comes first." He raised a hand and winked at them.
With a snap of his fingers, Gabriel was gone.
Cordelia smiled up at Dean. "Well, I'm…glad you're okay…and alive."
Dean gave her a smile. "It's good to see you, too."
"So, what happened when you were in the future?" asked Sam.
Dean sighed exasperatedly. "Long story. But I do believe I have some information that could help us out now."
"What's that?" asked Buffy.
"Well, for one thing, Colt's useless," said Dean.
"It is?" asked Sam.
"Yeah, Lucifer just laughed and kept on coming," said Dean. "So, plan B is out. But I have an idea of something that might give you an edge when you're facing down all those demons."
"Oh, yeah?" asked Buffy. "And what's that?"
"Well, in the future, you had this wicked-looking axe thing, and I know just where to find it," Dean told her.
Buffy frowned. "'Cause we don't have enough axes already?"
"No, you said this one was special," said Dean. "Trust me, you wanna find it."
"Okay, where is it?" asked Buffy.
The front door burst open, and Bobby stumbled into the house.
"Alright, where are we on finding Dean?" asked Bobby, heading for the dining room. "Has Cas—" He stopped when he saw Dean standing in front of him.
"Oh, sorry, Bobby," winced Sam. "We forgot to call you."
Bobby stared disbelievingly—and a little angrily—at the two brothers.