Fallen Heroes

Chapter One: Finishing the Job

I stood up from Cas' still body, my rage boiling over. I picked up the knife from the floor, the one that was still covered in his blood. I stalked outside, looking for Aziel.

He was leaning up against the door, a smirk on his face. "So, how does it feel to lose someone you love?"

"I'm gonna kill you!" I screamed.

Aziel laughed, then flashed farther down the road from me. I tore up the ground to catch up to him, starting to breathe hard. "You son of a bitch," I hissed.

"Ouch. That really hurt. I'm gonna need some ice for that burn," he rolled his eyes and moved away from me again.

Once again, I ran to catch up to him. The barn was nothing but a dot in the distance. "Bring him back so I can kill you," I growled.

Aziel pursed his lips and tapped a finger on his chin. "You know, last I checked, he wasn't dead."

I froze as he laughed. "You're lying. He died in my arms."

"Did he?" Aziel walked around me. "Because as far as I'm concerned, he simply passed out from blood loss. He was still alive when you left him."

I clenched my jaw. "I-I don't believe you."

The demon clicked his tongue as my phone rang. "That's probably him."

My hands desperately searched for my phone, and I looked up when Aziel shook something in front of me. Cas' name was displayed across the screen, his smiling face staring back at me.

"No!" I screeched as the monster kept the device from my hands.

"Shh," he whispered. "Listen." His long fingers pressed the voicemail button on my phone.

"Dean, it's Cas. I love you," his voice was laced with pain.

"No, no, no, no, no!" I threw my knife into his chest, surprising him as much as it surprised me. Bright orange flashes lit up his skeleton as he sank to the ground.

Ignoring him, I turned around and began sprinting as hard as I could back to Cas. My mind was reeling. Did I really leave him to die? How could I do that to him?

I was gasping for breath by the time I reached the barn again. Nearly tearing the barn door off its hinges, I ran to him.

His eyes were closed, his stomach not moving. He wasn't breathing. "Cas?" my voice broke.

I looked at the phone in his hand, then back to him. A tear was drying on his cheek, its line following the same path as the blood that trickled from his mouth.

I picked him up in my arms as I sat on the ground. Brushing a piece of his dark brown hair from his forehead, I choked on a cry.

"Cas? Baby, please," I begged. "Please come back..." But I knew, this time, he was gone for good.

I clenched my jaw and stood up once again. I wasn't stopping for anything. I don't care what will happen to me, I'm not letting Cas die because of me. My eyes closed as I took a deep breath.

"Sammy? Please, I need your help," I prayed.

I heard a thud on the roof, so I ran outside. Sam slid down from the metal sheeting onto a pile of hay, his hair sticking up with the yellowy strands. He popped back up, looking around. "Dean?" he asked.

"Sam! Are you okay?" I asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, I'm good. Cas warned me about landing locations. What do you need? And where is Cas?"

"Dead," I whispered.

Sam blinked in surprise. He looked at me as if he hadn't heard me correctly. "What?"

"Because of me, Cas is dead."

"Dean, I'm sorry. I-"

I cut him off. "He's not staying that way. I'm making damn sure of that. But before I do anything stupid, can you heal him? Bring him back?" I asked.

My brother shook his head. "No, I can't. Cas hasn't--hadn't--taught me that yet."

I took a deep breath and looked towards my car. She was now my number two Baby. Cas was coming first from now on. "Stupid it is."