Lost Hope Isn't What I'm Worried About

Drive

Sam landed on his back with a pained gasp leaving his lips, his vision swimming as his head slammed into the rock floor beneath his head. His heart was racing, his fingers growing numb as he struggled to regain his bearings from being thrown so suddenly from the present, every muscle in his body screaming as his palms found the ground and he forced himself to sit up.

Lucifer stared down at him with a harsh grin that split his face, his eyes lit up at the pain that was evident on Sam's face. Sam let out a small whimper of pain as he pushed himself to his feet, dragging his lead-filled limbs towards the ritual circle where the creature circled restlessly, watching with daring eyes in case Sam were to try and save Gabriel.

The Maneluctus growled as Sam stepped into the inner ring, its claws lengthening as the man grew too close to the angel, but the hunter merely ignored it, falling to his knees in front of Gabriel, reaching down and petting the back of the man's head. Gabriel lifted his head just the smallest bit, looking at him with broken and scared eyes, confusion in his gaze.

"Sam, don't," Gabriel choked out, pushing at his hands with weak, shaky hands. Sam didn't let go, but rather let his hands still, swallowing thickly as his angel's frozen hands touched his. He felt the damp and slimy breath of the Maneluctus on his throat, a shiver rushing through his spine.

"I..." Sam stopped, not sure he could ever find the words to explain the absolute desperation and emptiness that trapped his mind in a whirlwind of doubt and fear. He reached one hand to the chains that bound Gabriel's wrists, touching it gently in an almost caress as a frosty scaled hand pressed against the back of his neck threateningly, stilling him.

"I won't let you kill him," Sam said softly, though it might as well been a shout from the way it echoed and filled the cave with the small determination he had left. How could he hold on, when everyone, even Gabriel, had given up? Yet, here he was, his back turned to a monster, gazing at his angel lying on the floor, ready to die.

The creature let out a hiss at his words, the hand tightening. Blood welled and slid from his skin where the claws pressed, but he couldn't feel anything but a numbness across his skin, flaring from the wounds and spreading to his chest, and then he couldn't breathe. He didn't care though. If Gabriel was going to die no matter what, what was the point of fighting to keep living?

"Is it killing me?" Sam whispered softly, his words growing slurred as he realized that his lips and tongue were beginning to lose feeling. Gabriel's eyes widened, and he jerked up, tugging against the bonds that grounded him as he tried to get closer.

"No! Don't kill him!" Gabriel shouted, his eyes darting from Sam to behind him where he knew the monster stood. The angel fell back, his eyes searching past the both of them to where Lucifer had been standing, his eyes alight with sudden strength and panic.

"Lucifer! Help him!" Gabriel shouted, but Sam pushed his mind towards Lucifer, telling him to stay there. It seemed so much easier to just give up. Why had he always kept fighting? He couldn't remember anymore, his mind clouding over with a numbness that pushed away any coherent thoughts he might have had. He could hear Lucifer pressing at his mind, waiting for a prompt to stop the creature, but he was only met with a cloud of fog that was too thick to see anything beyond his own nose.

A screech left the creature's throat as its hand was forcibly ripped away, the sound of rock crumbling underneath its claws as it was dragged back, and Sam could feel again, the pain reaching his body and bringing out a hiss from him as his hands closed over the rips in his shoulders, gritting his teeth as he turned his head back with a sudden rush of energy.

Lucifer had the creature in his grasp as if it were a ragdoll, staring at the thing with such a hatred that his eyes glowed and his wings arched threateningly towards the sky. The creature struggled to get out of his iron clad grip, but it could not do anything other than squirm, and it wasn't until Sam heard Gabriel whimper that a rush of emotion filled back in him and he felt that same urgency rise and brought him from his own clouded mind.

"Gabe!" Sam cried out in relief, grabbing at the chains and jerking them, trying to vainly remove them from the angel's wrists. They were strong, and they glowed the same golden color as Gabriel's wings when he struggled to break them. Only Gabriel's hand on his stopped him, and he turned his eyes to the sad angel.

"Sam...just get out of here. It's okay," Gabriel whispered, but Sam shook his head, baring his teeth as he tugged again, not giving up now. Not when he had a chance.

"No! I'm not leaving you so don't you even try! Now how do I get these things off?" Sam hissed, slamming the chain on the ground, only to snarl when it did nothing. The creature was beginning to scream, and he swore he could hear the scraping claws of the other Maneluctus moving close to the cavern.

"They're holy chains, Sam! They can't be taken off!" Gabriel shouted, yanking his hands away from Sam. Sam stared at him a moment before growling, pulling out his gun and grabbing the angel's wrist, slamming it down on the floor and pinning it there.

He pulled the trigger and bullet flashed forwards, hitting the chain and severing it down the middle, the cuff disintegrating from around Gabriel's wrist in a flash of light. Gabriel was left in shock as Sam scrambled for the next hand, pushing it to the ground too before aiming and firing again.

"H-how the hell..." Gabriel whispered, his eyes wide in shock as Sam only shot him an encouraging smirk, hoping it managed to stir some sense of self-preservation in the angel.

"Angel blades and their bullets can kill anything. Figured it would do the same to holy spells," Sam growled in response, hurriedly firing off the shot against the chain that bound Gabriel's ankles, and then the angel was free.

Gabriel's hand found his shoulder and threw him to the side, knocking him several feet away just as a flashed of creamed claws swiped just where he had been just a moment before. Two other creatures scaled along the walls, screeching in anger as the launched, tackling Lucifer and knocking him across the cavern, dropping the main Maneluctus from his grip.

Sam launched off a round at the one closest to Gabriel, lodging a bullet firm into the creature's skull. Its head merely jerked to the side, only a moment's pause before it was screeching at Sam, launching towards him. He jerked to the side, ducking and barely dodging the claws of the beast before being swiped by its long tail, knocking him onto his back and leaving him breathless.

Gabriel was there before there was even a chance to let the creature take a shot at Sam, his glowing hand driving into the creature's chest like it were made of butter, shoving straight through as blue blood dripped from around Gabriel's arm, pooling out onto the ground like a waterfall when he jerked his arm back and out. The creature stumbled back, shock in its eyes before it fell to the ground, its eyes losing its light as it died.

Screams filled the cavern and Sam barely had time to look over to see the three Maneluctus rushing at them before Gabriel's wings covered him and they were teleported from the cave.