He was gone.

The storm pushed through the land quickly then moved on, just as Dean had.

"I'm really sorry," Tessa muttered to Cas.

Everyone was miserable, achy, terrified and exhausted. Gadreel kept the wagon going south in the hopes of finding a pennant from Dean's pack that they could follow.

"I underestimated him. We all did. I'm so sorry. If only we had…"

"Enough!"

Cas' sudden scream made everyone jump.

"No, aah, sorry. I didn't mean to yell. I'm just…no, I don't…I can't…"

Gabe offered Cas a piece of fruit from their supplies. "That's just the eggs talking," he said. "You'll feel better if you eat."

"I don't want to."

"Nu uh, you have to. You're upset but you gotta keep eating. Don't let your sadness blind what you need to do."

"Oh, you're right."

Cas gave a tiny sigh and began to eat. Gabe did, too, as did Tessa. It was a sad, forced meal since they knew the fruits and vegetables would only last so long. Nobody dare ask what they would do for food after a few days.

It didn't take very long until they found one of the pennants from Dean's pack. It was at the foot of the mountains, untouched by the storm. To Cas' surprise, the hike up the summit didn't appear quite as terrifying as it had from back in the settlement. Either way, it had to be well thought.

"Do we truly wish to leave the Valley?" asked Gadreel. "What of our herd? Perhaps there are more survivors."

"You saw the destruction," Tessa shivered. "I lived it. Nobody made it out of there. The bodies…"

She covered her face with the uninjured hand. Immeasurable pain could be seen in her expression.

"My mate…"

"Then we continue," Gadreel said in a low voice, "Through the mountains, and then what?"

"We follow the pennants until we find Cain's pack," Cas explained. "They'll take care of us, I know."

Everyone agreed on that, then the journal began in a great silence. Even though Gabe had his mate and his eggs, he hardly had anything else. His people were dead. What sort of future did they have? The only consolation was that the four of them were in it together.

It was foolish to carry on into the night, so before they started up the mountains, they paused and set up camp for the night. The storm had cooled down the land so drastically that it was almost cold. The ground was still soaked, but Dean had packed firewood and it had remained dry enough to burn.

Gadreel lit a fire while the betas prepared a meal. Cas was too sad to eat once more. He sat on one of the stools that Cain had carved and thus given to them, staring up at the sky.

"I wanted a mate," he muttered. "I wanted a family. That was all I asked for. Why would you give me the perfect partner then take him away?"

Cas' pained voice was hardly audible to the group, let alone the sky. He sighed weakly and touched his stomach.

"We won't forget Dean," he whispered. "We will remember."

Footsteps halted Cas' utterings. He looked up and saw Gadreel offering a bowl of stew to him.

"You must eat," he told him. "The children need you to be healthy. You're in pain now, but you mustn't waste away. The eggs need you."

Cas nodded. He was right. The eggs had no knowledge of Dean. The only thing that mattered to them was if Cas was healthy or not.

He took the stew and ate gratefully. To his surprise, there was dried fish cooked into it. He glanced over towards the fire and saw that Tessa was eating, too.

Once the meal was finished, Gabe and his mate rested up into blankets around the fire, but Cas joined Tessa in the wagon. It was large enough to sleep four comfortably, but he surmised it would be nice to give the only surviving couple some private time together.

"Do you think we'll find the hunters?"

Tessa was sitting with her two eggs and a small lantern to keep the wagon alit. He nest was actually part of Cas'—he wouldn't need as many blankets without Dean to share it with.

"I'm sure," Cas told her with hushed confidence. "Cain wanted us to join them. He left those pennants for us to follow if we changed our mind."

"That's nice," Tessa cooed. "They're more generous than I realized. I guess, after seeing what happened to our herd when they ignored your Dean's warning…well, we weren't that smart, were we? Again, I'm—sorry."

"I understand and won't hold it against you."

"But, Cas…even if we do meet up with the pack, then what? Do we just join them? Become hunters? Live that way?"

"I suppose."

Cas tucked into what was left of his nest. His head was spinning.

"I would rather stay a herd," Tessa sighed.

"But it's gone."

"I know. Still."

They woke up early and started to hike up the mountain. Cain's pennants laid a decent path all the way, giving plenty of safe space for the horses and wagon to travel. Gadreel stayed at the reins. They rode the entire day, not even stopping to cook. The betas would munch from time to time and Gabe would offer some to his mate when he asked.

The higher they got, the colder the air became. Tessa and Gabe had to keep their eggs very close to ensure their warmth. Cas, though, was comfortable. His pregnancy still made him overheat and the cool air was most welcome.

By nightfall they were at the top. It was funny, Cas thought, that during his whole life in the Valley he believed the mountains to be so towering and mighty, but now that he was up there they weren't all that huge.

Gabe and Gadreel agreed it would be safer to sleep within the wagon with everyone else, so nests were made and they huddled together for warmth. Cas was restless. His stomach ached. He wanted the eggs out of him. Wasn't it time by now?

He bundled up in a cloak and left the wagon while the others were asleep. He stepped out onto the cold ground. There was a steady wind in the mountains. Cas knew that it was safe, but with the memory of the storm fresh in his mind, it scared him. His heart raced. He wanted Dean to be there.

"Why did it have to go this way?"

Again, he looked to the sky for answers. It was pitch black yet the stars were absent. How could that have happened? Even the universe had left them alone.

"What am I going to do? Do I force these people to become members of a pack?"

Cas touched his stomach.

"Who will help me raise these children? I can't be a single parent. It isn't fair."

The sky was blank. He had no answers. Then again, what would an answer look like?

"Please, Chuck. I need direction. I need to know what to do."

Suddenly, Cas focused greater on the sky and noticed that there were stars. Many, many tiny ones were twinkling far away and off to one side of the great black ceiling. They were so far away. Impossibly far. He wondered if that meant anything.

Then, as he kept watching, there was a great, bright meteor that came from the direction of the tiny stars and shot all the way across the sky. It flashed as it raced overhead, descending into the east. Cas was speechless. Surely, it was a sign from Chuck, but what did it mean?

The next day was spent going down the mountains. This proved to be much easier. They continued to follow Cain's pennants and the trip was easily done. Cas kept the meteor to himself. Gabe, Gadreel and Tessa were finally and better spirits.

The other side of the land was mostly flat. They could see for miles. There were grasslands, marshlands, small forests and other terrains that couldn't be made out from that far away. Many settlements, too, were discernable.

"Look!" Tessa cried out. She pointed towards a group of wagons that sat at the foot of the mountains. "Travelers?"

The must have seen Cas and his people coming down, since a few folks stepped out of their wagons to greet them.

"Hail!" one called out. Gadreel replied in the same manner. "Where have you come from?"

"The Valley within the ring of mountains," said Gadreel.

They were finally down from the summit and on flat land again. Fields of tall grass and shrubs surrounded them.

"What's brought you to leave?" the wagoner asked.

"A foul storm destroyed our settlement. We seek shelter."

"Ah, I see. Well, we have little to offer but what we have you are welcome to."

Tessa poked her head out of their wagon. "Are you a traveling herd?"

"Aye," said the man. "Our homes are the caravans."

Cas and Gabe came towards the front of the wagon now.

"Is this how many you have?" the man asked.

"Indeed," said Gadreel. He looked back at them.

"What are we gonna do?" asked Gabe.

"Shall we join them?" Gadreel suggested. He smiled weakly. "Perhaps they'll let us travel with them."

Gabe nodded to his mate, then to Tessa who nodded at Cas. Cas, however, wasn't so sure.

"I thought we would find Cain's pack?" he asked in a small, low voice.

"We still can," said Gadreel, "However, these people are a herd. They know us better. And we have already found them. There's no guarantee that Cain's pack is the end of our journeys."

"It's a safer bet, Castiel," Tessa said. She smiled warmly at him. "We're safe here and we know it."

"Then it's agreed?" asked Gadreel. Everyone but Cas nodded. He went back to the head of the travelers and announced, "If it pleases you, we would like to join your traveling herd."

"Splendid!" the man exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "We always love to have new gatherers. Especially ones with eggs! Ah, and so we grow!"

Reluctantly, Cas joined his herd as they merged with the travelers. They were a nice, kind people, but not what Cas wanted. He should be with Cain's pack. They knew him. They liked him.

Once again, night fell, only this time they were surrounded by their new herd. They cooked and laughed well into the night but Cas didn't feel like smiling. It was nice to see Tessa in better spirits, though.

Cas broke away from the group and wandered to look at the sky. It was even emptier now. There were no stars, no matter how hard or long he focused. He thought about the meteor. It had raced across an empty sky, wandering from the group of tiny stars. Maybe it was for Cas. Maybe he had to leave on his own. It went towards the east, though, and Cain's pack had gone south.

"Perhaps I'm not looking for Cain's pack," Cas hummed to himself, staring at the sky still. "Perhaps I'm looking for Dean."