SPN Reverse Bang: The Greatest Treasure - Part Four
Masterpost
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
The map leads them through the jungle and it takes them several days to cross it. Castiel walks in front of the rest of the group, together with Dean. They don't speak about anything other than which way they're going. Bobby and Gabriel walk surrounded by pirates, with their hands bound and their heads down. The pirates tried to make Crowley walk on his own, but when it became clear that he was slowing them down, they threatened to leave him behind in the middle of the jungle. Fortunately, Balthazar had been brought along with them and he took upon himself to carry Crowley again.
When they finally emerge from the trees near the spot that the map indicates as their destination, it is to find themselves standing at the top of a high cliff. A green ocean stretches out before them, with no land in sight. According to the map, the treasure can be found a few feet off the edge of the cliff.
“Are you kidding me?” Dean asks when Castiel tells him this. “The treasure is at the bottom of the ocean?”
Sam is standing beside them. “I guess it's possible that the cliff has eroded over time,” he says, “and that the treasure fell into the ocean with it.”
Dean lets loose a string of curses and starts kicking at loose rocks. Behind them, the other pirates are mumbling furiously. Castiel is torn between disappointment and relief. He's happy that the pirates won't get their hands on the treasure, but he'd been so excited about seeing it for himself. There's also a feeling that something isn't quite right. Sam's theory could be correct, but Morningstar hasn't been dead that long. Would a cliff really crumble that quickly? And why would Morningstar store his treasure here, out in the open and so close to the ocean?
Looking down at the tablet again, Castiel's eye catches on the tiny sign in the upper left corner. “Balthazar,” he calls.
The android walks up to him, leaving Crowley standing on his own two feet with Bobby's support. “Yes, love?”
“Do you know what this symbol means?” Castiel asks, indicating the sign.
Balthazar frowns deeply. “I recognise it,” he says slowly. He makes a sound of frustration. “Why is it so bloody hard to remember? I want to say that there's two of them and that when they're united, something happens, but I haven't the faintest what it could be.”
Castiel sighs. That didn't do them much good. “Thanks, Balthazar,” he says. Maybe he'll be able to find further clues if he examines the map more closely. He goes to sit on the edge of the cliff, intending to do just that. However, as he lowers himself to the ground, his eyes catch on something beside him. It's an indentation in the rocky ground, a sort of small fissure. It could be something that's been formed through natural means, but it looks a bit too smooth and symmetrical for that. Coincidentally, it's almost exactly the same size as the tablet. Castiel crawls closer and as he does so, he notices the carving beside the fissure. It looks like an inverted copy of the sign on the tablet. His heart starts racing with excitement and his hands shake, as he slowly lowers tablet into the opening.
The effect is instantaneous. There is a sharp, grinding sound as of two rocks sliding against each other. Sam lets out a yelp of surprise and takes a leap back, as the part of the rock that he stood upon begins to rise. As they all watch in amazement, what looks like a stone control panel rises out of the ground. It's covered in symbols, some of which are easily recognizable, such as the crescent near the middle, and some are too strange to make any sense. The biggest symbol is at the very center and it's in the shape of a star.
“What...?” Dean says, but cuts himself off. He's staring, not at the control panel, but at Castiel, as if he has all the answers.
Castiel points at the tablet lowered into the ground. “It unlocked some kind of mechanism,” he says.
“Okay,” Dean says, “ so what does that thing do?” He points at the control panel.
Castiel shrugs. “Only one way to find out,” he says. He thinks he may know already, but of course, he can't be sure. Not until he's tested his theory. Walking over to the control panel, he firmly presses the symbol of the crescent. As he'd suspected, the air before them tears open and a portal appears. It's big enough for several large ships to sail through. Through it, they can see a part of space, containing a crescent-shaped spaceport.
“Crescentia,” Sam breathes. “Dean, that's Crescentia.”
Dean says nothing. He just watches as Castiel presses the crescent again, closing the portal, and then presses another symbol. Another portal opens, showing a different part of space. Every symbol that Castiel presses opens a different portal, covering every part of the Etherium.
“That's the Lagoon Nebula,” Sam says. “That's halfway across the Etherium. I can't believe it. So that's how Morningstar did it. That's how he could appear and disappear so suddenly and travel so quickly from planet to planet. Amazing!”
Dean rolls his eyes at him. “Yeah, yeah,” he says. “You can geek out later. Cas, is there a portal that can take us to the treasure?”
Castiel hesitates. He's been so caught up in his excitement that hasn't even considered the consequences of what he's doing. It occurs to him now, too late, that he probably shouldn't have shown Dean all this. He's leading Dean straight to the treasure.
Dean seems to read his thoughts, because his eyes narrow suspiciously. “Cas,” he says warningly.
Castiel glances over to where the pirates are aiming their guns at his friends. Then he sighs and presses the symbol of the star. Yet another portal opens, this one bigger than all the others. While it widens, the cliff that they're standing on begins to change. A walkway slides out in front of them, creating a bridge over the water and into the portal. Dean exchanges an inscrutable look with Sam, then the two of them begin to make their way across the bridge, side by side. Castiel follows them, together with Balthazar. The rest of the crew and the prisoners walk behind them.
Inside the portal, they're greeted by the most incredible sight. They're standing in a huge sort of metal cave. It looks like the center of some great machine. There are great tubes of metal, hissing pipes, levers and valves everywhere. The floor is presumably also made of metal, but there is no way to be sure, since not an inch of it is exposed. It's all covered with mountains of gold and jewels, treasure chests and canvas sacks filled to bursting.
“The plunder of a thousand worlds,” Dean says reverently. He's looking around with huge eyes, as if unable to believe what he's seeing.
There is a moment of silence, while they're all too stunned to speak. Then one of the pirates lets out of cry of triumph, which is quickly taken up by the others. The crew run forward, past Castiel and Balthazar, and Dean and Sam, to throw themselves into the sea of riches. Only two of them remain behind to guard the prisoners: Mr Walker and Azazel.
Dean completely ignores his crew. He's begun laughing, clutching at Sam's arm. “We're here, Sammy,” he says, sounding incredulous. “We did it. We finally made it!”
Sam nods. He seems unable to speak. The brothers look at each other with huge smiles on their face. Then, at some secret signal, they both start running further into the cave, where the greatest amount of riches can be found.
Castiel watches them go, then glances behind him. Neither Walker, nor Azazel is paying him and Balthazar any attention. Their envious gazes are fixed on their crew members, while their guns remain pointed at Gabriel, Bobby and Crowley. Castiel wishes that there was some way to free his friends, but for now, it seems impossible. The important thing is to make sure that he and Balthazar remain forgotten. He grabs Balthazar's hand.
“Come with me,” he says.
“Always and anywhere, pet,” Balthazar assures him.
Castiel ignores him. He's discovered something worth investigating. A great ship is anchored not far from where they're standing. Castiel assumes that it's the infamous ship of Captain Lucifer Morningstar. No one has ever been sure what happened to it. According to some legends, the reason that Morningstar's reign of terror ended was because the Captain went insane. His greed knew no bounds and he became obsessed with the idea of owning all the riches in the universe. He wanted to plunder every planet, but he knew that no mortal man could accomplish that in a lifetime. Therefore, he became obsessed with the idea of immortality, of finding a way to live forever. He began to perform painful and deadly experiments on his crew. Legend claimed that he was close to solving the riddle, when the crew had finally had enough and mutinied against him. Many of them were killed, but some escaped. One of them took with them the key to Morningstar's hideout, trapping him therein forever.
If the legend is true, then the key must be map and this cave must be the hideout. For a moment, Castiel entertains the idea that the man who gave him the map was the same man who trapped Morningstar in here, but he quickly disregards it. It's impossible. Morningstar disappeared more than a hundred years ago. No man lives for that long. But even if Castiel will never get to meet anyone from Morningstar's crew, he can at least explore his ship. That's more than he's ever fantasized about, even when he was a little boy.
He and Balthazar climb up onto the main deck of the ship. It, too, is covered in riches. Castiel makes his way slowly backwards on the ship, towards the quarterdeck. Balthazar is unusually quiet behind him. Castiel wonders if being back on Morningstar's ship is stirring his memories.
“Recognize anything?” he asks him.
“Everything,” Balthazar replies. “This part of my memory seems to be intact. Although there is something...”
He trails off, sounding troubled. Castiel glances back over his shoulder as he's walking, trying to read Balthazar's face. “Something important?” he asks.
Balthazar nods. “I think so,” he says. “If only I could...” He stops talking and his eyes grow huge. “Oh! Well. I suppose he may have something to do with it.”
Castiel turns around and lets out a shout of surprise. There's a throne-like chair in front of him and a man is sitting in it. He's tall and intimidating and apparently dead, if the empty gaze in his blue eyes is anything to go by. Strangely, he doesn't appear to have been dead for very long. There isn't any sign of decomposing. He looks as if he could have been alive just a moment ago. His skin doesn't even have the deathly pallor of a corpse.
“Is that...?”
Balthazar beams at him, as if nothing could make him happier than finding his dead maker. “Castiel,” he says, “allow me to introduce Captain Lucifer Morningstar.” He sighs. “Isn't he dreamy?”
Dreamy isn't the word that Castiel would use. Scary would be more accurate. Castiel's first instinct is to get as far away from the corpse as he possibly can, but he can't miss this opportunity. He's standing in front of Captain Lucifer Morningstar, staring into the face of the man who inspired all those legends and who is the source of so many nightmares. With his heart in his throat, Castiel approaches the chair slowly. He doesn't know why he's so careful. It isn't like Morningstar is suddenly going to stand up and attack him. But knowing who this man was and what he's done would probably be enough to inspire a certain amount of fear in anyone.
“Oh, the things I could tell you,” Balthazar says behind him. “That man... You wouldn't believe the things he did. The things we did.” He chuckles. Then he makes a strange, happy sound. “Oh! I could tell you stories. Castiel, I remember. Just seeing him again, his face - it's all coming back to me. Oh!”
Castiel spins around to look at him. Balthazar looks absolutely overjoyed. His eyes are fixed on Morningstar's face and he's obviously lost in memories. Every now and then, he lets out an amused chuckle. “Oh my,” he says, “we were a naughty lot.” His eyes remain distant, as he continues his reminiscences. Castiel wonders what he's remembering. He's sure Balthazar has a lot of interesting stories to tell.
Then suddenly, the expression on Balthazar's face changes. The joy is gone and is replaced by worry, which quickly changes into fear. His eyes move away from Morningstar and fix on Castiel instead. They look terrified. “Oh, dear!” he says. “Oh, no! Oh, I think we've made a huge mistake, love! Oh, blimey!” He reaches out and takes Castiel's hand. “Love,” he says, slowly and seriously, “RUN!”
He pulls Castiel forward and not a moment too soon. A loud, inhuman roar rises behind Castiel, who turns to look over his shoulder. He doesn't want to, but he has to know. His worst fears are confirmed. Morningstar has risen from his throne, with a look of pure fury on his face. His suddenly blazing eyes are fixed on Castiel and reaches out his arms to catch him. Fortunately, Balthazar still has hold of Castiel's hand and he pulls him out of Morningstar's reach.
“RUN!” he shouts again and this time, Castiel does as he's told. He and Balthazar run headlong towards the bow of the ship. Castiel doesn't dare look back to see if they're being pursued, but it sounds as if the roars are becoming more distant. They may just be able to escape.
No sooner has Castiel finished that thought, before he's proven so very wrong. There is a series of clanking and creaking sounds coming from the tubes and pipes that line that walls and cross the ceiling. Then suddenly, they all begin to spring leaks. Hot steam and molten metal pour out in streams of liquid fire falling from the ceiling. The ground quakes and is torn open into rifts, into which the mountains of gold begin to slide. Castiel hears the shouts of terror coming from the pirates, as they flee for their lives.
“We need to get to the portal,” he calls to Balthazar over the noise. “If we stay in here, we're dead.”
“But how?” Balthazar calls back. “There is no chance we'll make it all the way there alive.”
Castiel looks over towards the portal and realizes that he is right. A rift has opened between them and the exit, trapping them inside. He turns around, desperately looking for another means of escape. Morningstar is still standing before his throne, roaring and calling down a rain of destruction. Behind him is the quarterdeck of the ship. The ship! The one they're standing on.
“Balthazar! We're on a ship. We can sail out of here.”
Balthazar stares at him, as if he's insane. “Oh, sure,” he says sarcastically. “That's a brilliant idea! Just one problem. We seem to have a stowaway, who might cause us a bit of trouble.”
He's right, of course, but Castiel refuses to listen. There is no other way. “I'm going to sneak past him,” he says. “Try to keep him distracted!”
He doesn't wait for a reply, but immediately starts making his way towards the aft again. Behind him, Balthazar shouts, “Distract him? Darling, are you bloody mad? Are you trying to get me killed? Oh, bloody, buggering, bleeding hell!” He lets loose another string of curses, then he calls out in a different voice, “Oi! Oi, Lucifer! I'm here, you sexy madman, you! Come and get it, baby!”
Castiel winces. He really hopes he hasn't sent the android to his death. Somehow and for some reason that he can't explain, he's come to really like Balthazar. For now, however, he has enough to worry about, trying to keep himself alive. He moves along the railing, keeping an eye out for the suddenly silent Captain Morningstar. A movement ahead him makes him duck for cover and not a moment too soon. Morningstar passes on the other side of the crates behind which Castiel is cowering. Castiel assumes he's heading for Balthazar and hopes the android has sense enough to hide.
He remains where he's hiding for a moment longer, staring out over railing. He can see the pirates desperately trying to make their way to the portal, while avoiding the suddenly gaping chasms opening below them and waterfalls of fire from above. One of them is caught up in a sliding mountain of gold and ends up falling into one of the rifts. His scream of terror echoes through the cave. Another manages the leap across another rift and a look of triumph appears on his face, a moment before he's engulfed in a sudden stream of molten metal.
Castiel catches sight of Sam, who has made it almost to the portal. There is a look of fury and determination on his face. Castiel is surprised to see him escaping without his brother. It occurs to him that Dean might be dead and the thought almost makes him double over in agony. After everything that has happened, he still loves Dean and he can't stand the thought of losing him. Not now, not like this. But if Dean is alive, why is Sam leaving him behind?
The answer becomes clear almost immediately. Sam isn't leaving. He is heading towards the prisoners, who are guarded only by Azazel. Walker seems to have fled. Azazel's gun is pressed against Gabriel's head, while Gabriel stands on the edge of the chasm that separates Castiel and Balthazar from the portal. One more earthquake and Gabriel will fall into the chasm, which seems to be exactly what Azazel is waiting for, if the look of sadistic glee on his face is anything to judge by.. Gabriel has closed his eyes, unable to do anything but await his fate, while Bobby and Crowley look on in helpless horror.
Then Sam is there, throwing himself at Azazel and knocking him to the ground. Gabriel stumbles back from edge, just as the ground begins shaking again. Sam and Azazel are rolling around, fighting and tearing at each other. The gun has fallen into the abyss. They roll closer and closer to the gaping chasm. Castiel sees Gabriel call out a warning, but it is too late. The two men are already rolling over the edge. At the very last minute, Sam manages to grab onto the edge and stop himself from falling. Azazel isn't so lucky. The cry he unleashes rivals Morningstar's in its inhumanity.
Sam pulls himself up and rolls away from the edge. He lies for a moment, just breathing heavily, clearly trying to steady himself. Then he gets to his feet and walks over to the prisoners. Surprisingly, he releases Gabriel last. The two of them stand for a long moment, just staring at each other. Then Gabriel throws himself at Sam and for a moment, Castiel thinks he's going to punch him. Gabriel's intention is completely different, however. He pulls Sam down into a kiss that is as scorching as the metal flowing from the pipes. Sam seems to be as surprised as Castiel, because he remains frozen for a long moment, before finally seeming to understand what is happening. He gathers Gabriel closer and returns his kiss with equal passion. Behind them, Bobby and Crowley are staring at them with identical expressions of appalled shock.
Castiel decides that he has seen enough. His friends are as safe as they can be. It's time for him to find a way to get them all out of there. He continues back onto the quarterdeck, without seeing any glimpse of Morningstar. He finds the controls, but they are all broken. Fortunately, everything is there that he needs in order to fix them, but it's going to take some time. He needs to reattach some of the wires and put back the parts that have fallen loose.
He becomes so lost in what he's doing that he doesn't realize his danger, until it's too late. Heavy steps approach him from behind and when he spins around, Morningstar is looming over him. The evil captain begins raising his arms, reaching for Castiel's throat. Castiel backs away, out of his reach, until he feels the railing against his back, trapping him. It's all over. This is how he'll die. He thinks of his mother and his sister, waiting for him back home. His death is going to crush his mother. He thinks of Bobby and Gabriel, so close and yet completely unaware. It'll be up to them to break the news to his mother. He hopes she doesn't blame them. Finally, he thinks of Dean. Beautiful Dean, who taught him the meaning of both love and betrayal. If he could wish for anything, in this moment, he would wish for a final glimpse of Dean's face.
And then he has his wish. Dean appears behind Morningstar, looking like an avenging angel with a blazing sword. Granted, his sword is just a metal pipe, but it still blazes with the reflected light of the fires around them. Dean brings the pipe down over Morningstar's head, just as Morningstar is about to put his hands on Castiel. With another roar of fury, Morningstar swings around. His arm knocks against Castiel, pushing him over the railing and into the rift that has opened below them. Luck is with Castiel, however, and he lands on a platform, some distance below the edge. It's too far down for him to climb up, so all he can do is sit there and stare helplessly upwards, trying to catch sight of Dean's battle with Morningstar. The ship blocks his view, however, so he is left to wait in excruciating uncertainty.
Suddenly, the two of them appear into view. Morningstar is pushing Dean against the railing, his hands locked around Dean's throat. Dean is scrabbling uselessly at Morningstar's hands, trying to loosen them, but it is clear that he is growing weaker. Even his cybernetic hand doesn't appear to have the strength. Castiel wants to close his eyes, so he doesn't have to see Dean lose this struggle, but he can't bring himself to even blink. Just as Dean's head begins to droop from the lack of oxygen, a shadow falls over the fighting pair. Two hands grip Morningstar tightly and with superhuman strength, they lift him and throw him over the railing. Morningstar falls, but he pulls Dean with him. Castiel screams, but it is drowned out by Morningstar's final roar.
That roar is cut off, however, when he lands on a platform opposite Castiel. Dean lands on top him. The century he has spent dormant seems to have dulled Morningstar's senses. He reacts too late and before he seems to have grasped that he is no longer falling, Dean has taken advantage of his moment of surprise and pushed him off the ledge. There is another roar and then silence.
Dean and Castiel stare at each other across the rift. Dean is still lying down, seeming unwilling to move. He's bleeding from a cut on his forehead and his lips are bruised, but he's alive. “Are you okay?” he shouts.
Castiel nods. “I'll live,” he shouts back. “You?”
Dean gives him the thumbs up, but he grimaces in pain. “Can you climb up?” he asks.
“No. You?”
Dean shakes his head. They're still trapped. All that they can hope for is that their friends will find some way of saving them.
“Dean,” Castiel calls. Dean raises his eyebrows at him. “Why did you come back?”
Dean's broken and swollen lips twist in what looks like a very painful smile. “Why do you think?” he asks. “I told you, I do care. Do you believe me now? Or is there anything else you need me to do to prove it to you, besides attacking some undead, supernatural pirate captain who can rain fire and make the earth quake?”
Castiel just stares at him. It can't be. Dean came for Castiel, even though it's clear that he could just as easily have escaped with Sam. There would even have been enough time for him to bring some of the treasure with him. Instead, he risked his life by going up against Morningstar, just to save Castiel.
“Dean,” he shouts again. “Dean, I thought I was going to die.”
“I know,” Dean calls back. “So did I. It's kind of why I did what I did.”
“No, that's not I meant. What I'm trying to say is, I thought I was going to die and the last thing to cross my mind was you. I just wanted to see you again. Just one more time. When you appeared behind Morningstar, I thought I was hallucinating. I couldn't believe it was really you.”
Dean sits up with obvious difficulty. He opens his mouth to speak, but just then something falls into the space between them. It's a rope ladder. Looking up, Castiel sees Balthazar's face staring back down at him.
“Well?” he shouts. “Whenever you two are done declaring your undying love for one another, you may want to climb up. In my experience, such confessions are usually followed by utterly disgusting displays of affection, but that may be difficult if there's a chasm of fire between you. So up you come and then... Well, then I suppose you can just come.” He gives them an utterly filthy grin, before disappearing from view.
Dean rolls his eyes. “I don't like that guy,” he calls to Castiel. “Where did you pick him up?”
“In the jungle, darling,” Balthazar replies, popping his head back in view. “Best pick up place ever. Especially if you're looking to have some hot monkey sex.” He winks and disappears again, leaving them to stare after him in horror.
“He's joking, right?” Dean says. “He hasn't actually...?”
Castiel shakes his head. A pleasure provider stuck alone in the jungle for a century. “I don't think we want to know,” he says. “Now come on. Let's get out of here.”
They both manage to make it up the ladder with some help from Balthazar. With Dean's help, Castiel fixes the ship and manages to get it working again. They pick up the others and then they sail out through the portal. Castiel climbs down onto the rock beneath. He closes the portal to the treasure room and opens the one to Crescentia instead. Once it is fully open, he gets the map out of its slot. The portal immediately begins to close, but Sam is ready. As soon as Castiel has grabbed hold of the rope ladder, he steers the ship through the portal, which closes behind them. Then he sets a course for the spaceport ahead.
*****
Castiel is standing in the bow of the ship, watching the spaceport come ever closer. He's feeling a mixture of contradictory feelings that he can't quite process. His first adventure in space is coming to a close and while he's happy that he'll soon be seeing his family again, he's afraid that nothing will have changed back home. He doesn't want to go back to that miserable existence again. Hopefully, however, all that he has experienced during these last few months will have been enough to keep him content, until he can leave again. He knows without a doubt that this will not be his last journey. Even with all the pain and the horror, it's still been the best months of his life and he's never felt more alive.
Of course, there's also Dean to think of. They haven't really spoken since their escape from Treasure Planet, at least not about anything that matters. Castiel doesn't know if it's because they haven't found the time or if they're both avoiding the conversation. He thinks it's probably the latter. It just feels as if there's too much to say, too much to explain and too much to try to understand. He doesn't know where to begin, so he's been putting it off.
Now time is running out. Once they reach Crescentia, Dean and his brother are going to prison and there is nothing that Castiel can do to prevent it. They may have been the ones who saved them, but Sam and Dean are also the ones who instigated the mutiny and that is something that Crowley refuses to forget. He's determined that when they reach Crescentia, the Winchesters will be handed over to the space authorities. Mutiny is a serious crime, so they'll probably be put away for quite some time.
As for their men, none of them really know what happened to them. They assume that most of them made it back to the Crossroad King and sailed away in it. Castiel knows that Crowley is furious about that. He would be, too. It is to be hoped, however, that the pirate crew, like their captain and their first mate, will be captured and made to stand trial. For now, Captain Morningstar's ship isn't a bad replacement vessel.
So Dean is going to prison and Castiel is going back home, and who knows if they'll ever see each other again? It's isn't exactly a happy thought. Castiel knows that his feelings for Dean aren't going to go away any time soon. If he could suffer through Dean's betrayal and still love him, then a tiny thing like being separated, possibly forever, isn't going to make him stop. Besides, maybe it doesn't have to be forever. Dean will be released eventually and Castiel is willing to wait for him. He may even be able to visit him in prison. However, before he can make any such plans, he really needs to talk to Dean, to find out if he still means what he said - or rather what he didn't say.
He looks around, but neither Dean, nor Sam is anywhere on the deck. Crowley is steering the ship and Bobby is standing beside him, a bit closer than usual. Gabriel is sitting by the hatch that leads below deck, playing with some golden coins. Most of the treasure was lost into the chasms, but there was still plenty stored aboard the ship. Enough that Castiel's mother will never have to worry about money ever again, which was part of the purpose of this journey.
When Castiel opens the hatch to climb down into the innards of the ship, Gabriel looks up.
“Where are you going?” he asks.
“I need to find Dean,” Castiel tells him honestly. “There are some things that I need to talk to him about.”
Gabriel grins. “Talk, eh?” he says. “Is that what you crazy kids are calling it these days?”
Castiel glares. He still hasn't told Gabriel anything about what has been happening between him and Dean, but Gabriel is perceptive. He's obviously figured a lot of things on his own. Unfortunately for him, he doesn't seem to realize that Castiel knows some of his secrets, as well.
“You tell me,” he says. “Have you and Sam done much talking?”
Of course, Gabriel has always been without shame and impossible to ruffle, so he doesn't even look embarrassed. “Some,” he says, waggling his eyebrows, “but mostly, our mouths were otherwise occupied.”
Castiel rolls his eyes. “Good for you,” he says. “So do you know where he and Dean are?”
Gabriel shakes his head and jumps down off the crate he's been sitting on.
“Nope,” he says, “but we can look for them together. I guess there are a few things I need to talk to Sam about, too.”
*****
It isn't as easy to find the Winchesters as Castiel had thought. He and Gabriel scour the ship, but the two brothers seem to have disappeared into thin air. Castiel begins to feel worried. There are plenty of places where one can hide aboard a ship, but why would the Winchesters want to?
“What are you doing?” a voice asks behind them, making them both jump and spin around. Balthazar is watching them curiously.
“Balthazar,” Castiel says, “have you seen Dean and Sam anywhere?”
“Your pretty friend and the cute giant?” Balthazar asks. “Yes, I saw them just moments ago. They were headed in the direction of the hangar bay, I believe. They looked as if they were in quite the hurry.”
Castiel exchanges a panicked look with Gabriel. Of course that's where they'd gone. Had they really expected that the Winchesters would just sit there and wait to be handed over to the authorities? Why wouldn't they try to escape? And now they might be gone already and Castiel would have wasted his final chance to talk to Dean.
He sets off at a run towards the hangar bay, with Gabriel hot on his heels. While he's running, a constant litany of Please don't let it be too late keeps repeating inside Castiel's head. If Dean is really gone and Castiel didn't even get to say goodbye... But no, he can't even bear to think of it.
To Castiel's immense relief, it isn't too late. When he and Gabriel finally reach the hangar bay, they find Sam already in the longboat, while Dean is standing on the landing, handing over their bags. They both freeze when they see the cousins and the identical looks of guilt on their faces would be comical, if Castiel wasn't so furious. He stalks forward towards Dean, who actually takes a step back, looking worried.
“Whoa, Cas,” he says, “just let me explain.”
“Save it,” Castiel growls. “I don't want to hear it. I can't believe that you were just going to leave like that, without even telling me.”
“I was afraid you'd try to stop me,” Dean says. “Besides, I wasn't sure you even wanted to talk to me.”
“What do you mean?”
Dean sighs. He looks over at Sam, clearly communicating something with his eyes. Sam nods. Dean takes hold of Castiel's arm and drags him out into the corridor. “You've been avoiding me,” he says, once they're alone.
Castiel shakes his head. It's partly true, but it wasn't like he was hiding. “You could have come found me,” he says.
Dean bites his lip, looking almost nervous. “I wasn't sure you'd want to talk to me. I thought you were still mad at me.”
“Dean,” Castiel sighs, “you saved my life. And almost died yourself. Okay, so I'm still upset that you lied to me and used me, but we can work past that. I know who you are now and it's the same person that you've always been. It's the same man that I fell in love with.”
There, he said it. It wasn't easy, though. He can barely bring himself to look at Dean to see how he reacts. He's fairly sure that his feelings are reciprocated, but he can't be entirely certain. It is still possible that Dean was just amusing himself with him, that he likes Castiel, but isn't looking for anything serious. His worries are unnecessary, however. A slow, happy smile spreads across Dean's face.
“Yeah?” he says, sounding hopeful.
“Yes,” Castiel says firmly.
“Well,” Dean says, taking a step closer, “I guess I should tell you that I'm in love with you, too. I know you won't believe me, but I've never met anyone like you, Cas. This is going to sound stupid and clichéd, but you make me want to try to be a better man. More than that, you make me feel like I might actually succeed.”
Castiel shakes his head, knowing that there's a ridiculously happy smile on his face. “You are a good man, Dean. You just make bad decisions sometimes.”
Dean laughs. He's standing so close to Castiel that their feet are touching and he puts his hands on Castiel's hips. “Yeah,” he agrees. “I guess I do. Maybe you can help me with that.”
Castiel slides one arm around Dean's shoulders and the other around his waist, pulling them together. He leans his forehead against Dean's. “If you'll let me,” he says.
Dean nods slowly. “I will,” he says. They both know he's lying. Dean is too stubborn to let someone else make his decisions for him. But maybe, he'll at least be willing to listen Castiel's advice.
Dean is tilting his head, so their noses are no longer in the way, and presses their lips together. Castiel returns the kiss eagerly, opening his mouth to let their tongues tangle together. Dean's hands have moved backwards and downwards, and Castiel can't help but smile when he feels them squeeze almost playfully. Dean breaks their kiss with a frustrated groan. “I wish we had more time,” he says. “There are still so many things I want to do to you. But I guess that's something to look forward to.”
Castiel doesn't reply. Instead he chases Dean's mouth to steal another kiss. He means to keep it brief, but it soon becomes as deep as the first one. The feeling of Dean pressing up against him, solid and warm, is pure ecstasy. He just wishes that there weren't so many layers of clothes in the way, that he could feel Dean's skin against his own.
Once again, Dean is the one to break the kiss and this time, he forces Castiel to take a step back, so that there is some air between them. Castiel glares at him, making Dean laugh. “Trust me,” he says. “It pains me just as much as it pains you, but I have no choice. I've got to go. The longer we delay, the greater the chance that we'll be caught.”
“Can I come with you?” Castiel asks. He feels a brief pang of regret, thinking of his mother and his sister, but the idea of letting Dean go off without him is even more painful.
Dean shakes his head. “Cas,” he says. “Sam and I will be fugitives. We'll constantly be on the run, never able to stay in one place for long. We'll have to find a new ship and crew, and then...”
“And then what?” Castiel asks.
Dean shrugs. “We're pirates,” he says. “You know what that means. I can't ask you to give up your home and your family for something like that.”
“But I want to,” Castiel tells him. It isn't until he says it that he realizes how true it is. “Please, Dean! It's what I've always dreamed of.”
Dean shakes his head again, looking sad. “I can't, Cas,” he says. “At least not yet. You need to think about this, about everything that you'll be giving up. And you need to see your family again.”
“But what if I never see you again?” Castiel knows he's sounding desperate, but he doesn't care. After all that, Dean is still going to leave him.
“You will,” Dean promises. He leans over and places a soft, brief kiss on Castiel's lips. “In a year's time, on this date. I'll come to the harbor near your mother's old inn. Meet me there and if you still want to, I'll take you with me, then.”
“You promise?”
“I promise. One year from now. Will you wait for me there, Cas?”
Castiel nods. There's no doubt in his mind. It'll be a long year, but it'll give him a chance to say goodbye to his family. “What about Gabriel?” he asks suddenly.
Dean leans back and glances into the hangar bay. He grimaces. “Looks like he and Sam are a bit more impatient than we are,” he says. “I think you'd better go in and say goodbye. You won't be seeing him for a year, either.”
Sure enough, when Castiel enters the hangar bay, Gabriel is already in the longboat. He looks as if he's afraid that Castiel will try to stop him, but Castiel reassures him with a look. Dean moves up behind Castiel. He turns him around and gives him a final brief kiss, before climbing into the longboat. Sam and Gabriel start lowering the boat through the open hatch.
“One year, Cas,” Dean calls to him. “Don't forget!”
Castiel shakes his head. As if he could. “Don't get caught!” he calls back.
Dean just grins. The longboat has fully cleared the hatch now and Sam moves over to take the helm. Castiel watches as they slowly disappear from view. Then he sighs heavily and starts walking back up to the main deck. It's going to be a long year.
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
The map leads them through the jungle and it takes them several days to cross it. Castiel walks in front of the rest of the group, together with Dean. They don't speak about anything other than which way they're going. Bobby and Gabriel walk surrounded by pirates, with their hands bound and their heads down. The pirates tried to make Crowley walk on his own, but when it became clear that he was slowing them down, they threatened to leave him behind in the middle of the jungle. Fortunately, Balthazar had been brought along with them and he took upon himself to carry Crowley again.
When they finally emerge from the trees near the spot that the map indicates as their destination, it is to find themselves standing at the top of a high cliff. A green ocean stretches out before them, with no land in sight. According to the map, the treasure can be found a few feet off the edge of the cliff.
“Are you kidding me?” Dean asks when Castiel tells him this. “The treasure is at the bottom of the ocean?”
Sam is standing beside them. “I guess it's possible that the cliff has eroded over time,” he says, “and that the treasure fell into the ocean with it.”
Dean lets loose a string of curses and starts kicking at loose rocks. Behind them, the other pirates are mumbling furiously. Castiel is torn between disappointment and relief. He's happy that the pirates won't get their hands on the treasure, but he'd been so excited about seeing it for himself. There's also a feeling that something isn't quite right. Sam's theory could be correct, but Morningstar hasn't been dead that long. Would a cliff really crumble that quickly? And why would Morningstar store his treasure here, out in the open and so close to the ocean?
Looking down at the tablet again, Castiel's eye catches on the tiny sign in the upper left corner. “Balthazar,” he calls.
The android walks up to him, leaving Crowley standing on his own two feet with Bobby's support. “Yes, love?”
“Do you know what this symbol means?” Castiel asks, indicating the sign.
Balthazar frowns deeply. “I recognise it,” he says slowly. He makes a sound of frustration. “Why is it so bloody hard to remember? I want to say that there's two of them and that when they're united, something happens, but I haven't the faintest what it could be.”
Castiel sighs. That didn't do them much good. “Thanks, Balthazar,” he says. Maybe he'll be able to find further clues if he examines the map more closely. He goes to sit on the edge of the cliff, intending to do just that. However, as he lowers himself to the ground, his eyes catch on something beside him. It's an indentation in the rocky ground, a sort of small fissure. It could be something that's been formed through natural means, but it looks a bit too smooth and symmetrical for that. Coincidentally, it's almost exactly the same size as the tablet. Castiel crawls closer and as he does so, he notices the carving beside the fissure. It looks like an inverted copy of the sign on the tablet. His heart starts racing with excitement and his hands shake, as he slowly lowers tablet into the opening.
The effect is instantaneous. There is a sharp, grinding sound as of two rocks sliding against each other. Sam lets out a yelp of surprise and takes a leap back, as the part of the rock that he stood upon begins to rise. As they all watch in amazement, what looks like a stone control panel rises out of the ground. It's covered in symbols, some of which are easily recognizable, such as the crescent near the middle, and some are too strange to make any sense. The biggest symbol is at the very center and it's in the shape of a star.
“What...?” Dean says, but cuts himself off. He's staring, not at the control panel, but at Castiel, as if he has all the answers.
Castiel points at the tablet lowered into the ground. “It unlocked some kind of mechanism,” he says.
“Okay,” Dean says, “ so what does that thing do?” He points at the control panel.
Castiel shrugs. “Only one way to find out,” he says. He thinks he may know already, but of course, he can't be sure. Not until he's tested his theory. Walking over to the control panel, he firmly presses the symbol of the crescent. As he'd suspected, the air before them tears open and a portal appears. It's big enough for several large ships to sail through. Through it, they can see a part of space, containing a crescent-shaped spaceport.
“Crescentia,” Sam breathes. “Dean, that's Crescentia.”
Dean says nothing. He just watches as Castiel presses the crescent again, closing the portal, and then presses another symbol. Another portal opens, showing a different part of space. Every symbol that Castiel presses opens a different portal, covering every part of the Etherium.
“That's the Lagoon Nebula,” Sam says. “That's halfway across the Etherium. I can't believe it. So that's how Morningstar did it. That's how he could appear and disappear so suddenly and travel so quickly from planet to planet. Amazing!”
Dean rolls his eyes at him. “Yeah, yeah,” he says. “You can geek out later. Cas, is there a portal that can take us to the treasure?”
Castiel hesitates. He's been so caught up in his excitement that hasn't even considered the consequences of what he's doing. It occurs to him now, too late, that he probably shouldn't have shown Dean all this. He's leading Dean straight to the treasure.
Dean seems to read his thoughts, because his eyes narrow suspiciously. “Cas,” he says warningly.
Castiel glances over to where the pirates are aiming their guns at his friends. Then he sighs and presses the symbol of the star. Yet another portal opens, this one bigger than all the others. While it widens, the cliff that they're standing on begins to change. A walkway slides out in front of them, creating a bridge over the water and into the portal. Dean exchanges an inscrutable look with Sam, then the two of them begin to make their way across the bridge, side by side. Castiel follows them, together with Balthazar. The rest of the crew and the prisoners walk behind them.
Inside the portal, they're greeted by the most incredible sight. They're standing in a huge sort of metal cave. It looks like the center of some great machine. There are great tubes of metal, hissing pipes, levers and valves everywhere. The floor is presumably also made of metal, but there is no way to be sure, since not an inch of it is exposed. It's all covered with mountains of gold and jewels, treasure chests and canvas sacks filled to bursting.
“The plunder of a thousand worlds,” Dean says reverently. He's looking around with huge eyes, as if unable to believe what he's seeing.
There is a moment of silence, while they're all too stunned to speak. Then one of the pirates lets out of cry of triumph, which is quickly taken up by the others. The crew run forward, past Castiel and Balthazar, and Dean and Sam, to throw themselves into the sea of riches. Only two of them remain behind to guard the prisoners: Mr Walker and Azazel.
Dean completely ignores his crew. He's begun laughing, clutching at Sam's arm. “We're here, Sammy,” he says, sounding incredulous. “We did it. We finally made it!”
Sam nods. He seems unable to speak. The brothers look at each other with huge smiles on their face. Then, at some secret signal, they both start running further into the cave, where the greatest amount of riches can be found.
Castiel watches them go, then glances behind him. Neither Walker, nor Azazel is paying him and Balthazar any attention. Their envious gazes are fixed on their crew members, while their guns remain pointed at Gabriel, Bobby and Crowley. Castiel wishes that there was some way to free his friends, but for now, it seems impossible. The important thing is to make sure that he and Balthazar remain forgotten. He grabs Balthazar's hand.
“Come with me,” he says.
“Always and anywhere, pet,” Balthazar assures him.
Castiel ignores him. He's discovered something worth investigating. A great ship is anchored not far from where they're standing. Castiel assumes that it's the infamous ship of Captain Lucifer Morningstar. No one has ever been sure what happened to it. According to some legends, the reason that Morningstar's reign of terror ended was because the Captain went insane. His greed knew no bounds and he became obsessed with the idea of owning all the riches in the universe. He wanted to plunder every planet, but he knew that no mortal man could accomplish that in a lifetime. Therefore, he became obsessed with the idea of immortality, of finding a way to live forever. He began to perform painful and deadly experiments on his crew. Legend claimed that he was close to solving the riddle, when the crew had finally had enough and mutinied against him. Many of them were killed, but some escaped. One of them took with them the key to Morningstar's hideout, trapping him therein forever.
If the legend is true, then the key must be map and this cave must be the hideout. For a moment, Castiel entertains the idea that the man who gave him the map was the same man who trapped Morningstar in here, but he quickly disregards it. It's impossible. Morningstar disappeared more than a hundred years ago. No man lives for that long. But even if Castiel will never get to meet anyone from Morningstar's crew, he can at least explore his ship. That's more than he's ever fantasized about, even when he was a little boy.
He and Balthazar climb up onto the main deck of the ship. It, too, is covered in riches. Castiel makes his way slowly backwards on the ship, towards the quarterdeck. Balthazar is unusually quiet behind him. Castiel wonders if being back on Morningstar's ship is stirring his memories.
“Recognize anything?” he asks him.
“Everything,” Balthazar replies. “This part of my memory seems to be intact. Although there is something...”
He trails off, sounding troubled. Castiel glances back over his shoulder as he's walking, trying to read Balthazar's face. “Something important?” he asks.
Balthazar nods. “I think so,” he says. “If only I could...” He stops talking and his eyes grow huge. “Oh! Well. I suppose he may have something to do with it.”
Castiel turns around and lets out a shout of surprise. There's a throne-like chair in front of him and a man is sitting in it. He's tall and intimidating and apparently dead, if the empty gaze in his blue eyes is anything to go by. Strangely, he doesn't appear to have been dead for very long. There isn't any sign of decomposing. He looks as if he could have been alive just a moment ago. His skin doesn't even have the deathly pallor of a corpse.
“Is that...?”
Balthazar beams at him, as if nothing could make him happier than finding his dead maker. “Castiel,” he says, “allow me to introduce Captain Lucifer Morningstar.” He sighs. “Isn't he dreamy?”
Dreamy isn't the word that Castiel would use. Scary would be more accurate. Castiel's first instinct is to get as far away from the corpse as he possibly can, but he can't miss this opportunity. He's standing in front of Captain Lucifer Morningstar, staring into the face of the man who inspired all those legends and who is the source of so many nightmares. With his heart in his throat, Castiel approaches the chair slowly. He doesn't know why he's so careful. It isn't like Morningstar is suddenly going to stand up and attack him. But knowing who this man was and what he's done would probably be enough to inspire a certain amount of fear in anyone.
“Oh, the things I could tell you,” Balthazar says behind him. “That man... You wouldn't believe the things he did. The things we did.” He chuckles. Then he makes a strange, happy sound. “Oh! I could tell you stories. Castiel, I remember. Just seeing him again, his face - it's all coming back to me. Oh!”
Castiel spins around to look at him. Balthazar looks absolutely overjoyed. His eyes are fixed on Morningstar's face and he's obviously lost in memories. Every now and then, he lets out an amused chuckle. “Oh my,” he says, “we were a naughty lot.” His eyes remain distant, as he continues his reminiscences. Castiel wonders what he's remembering. He's sure Balthazar has a lot of interesting stories to tell.
Then suddenly, the expression on Balthazar's face changes. The joy is gone and is replaced by worry, which quickly changes into fear. His eyes move away from Morningstar and fix on Castiel instead. They look terrified. “Oh, dear!” he says. “Oh, no! Oh, I think we've made a huge mistake, love! Oh, blimey!” He reaches out and takes Castiel's hand. “Love,” he says, slowly and seriously, “RUN!”
He pulls Castiel forward and not a moment too soon. A loud, inhuman roar rises behind Castiel, who turns to look over his shoulder. He doesn't want to, but he has to know. His worst fears are confirmed. Morningstar has risen from his throne, with a look of pure fury on his face. His suddenly blazing eyes are fixed on Castiel and reaches out his arms to catch him. Fortunately, Balthazar still has hold of Castiel's hand and he pulls him out of Morningstar's reach.
“RUN!” he shouts again and this time, Castiel does as he's told. He and Balthazar run headlong towards the bow of the ship. Castiel doesn't dare look back to see if they're being pursued, but it sounds as if the roars are becoming more distant. They may just be able to escape.
No sooner has Castiel finished that thought, before he's proven so very wrong. There is a series of clanking and creaking sounds coming from the tubes and pipes that line that walls and cross the ceiling. Then suddenly, they all begin to spring leaks. Hot steam and molten metal pour out in streams of liquid fire falling from the ceiling. The ground quakes and is torn open into rifts, into which the mountains of gold begin to slide. Castiel hears the shouts of terror coming from the pirates, as they flee for their lives.
“We need to get to the portal,” he calls to Balthazar over the noise. “If we stay in here, we're dead.”
“But how?” Balthazar calls back. “There is no chance we'll make it all the way there alive.”
Castiel looks over towards the portal and realizes that he is right. A rift has opened between them and the exit, trapping them inside. He turns around, desperately looking for another means of escape. Morningstar is still standing before his throne, roaring and calling down a rain of destruction. Behind him is the quarterdeck of the ship. The ship! The one they're standing on.
“Balthazar! We're on a ship. We can sail out of here.”
Balthazar stares at him, as if he's insane. “Oh, sure,” he says sarcastically. “That's a brilliant idea! Just one problem. We seem to have a stowaway, who might cause us a bit of trouble.”
He's right, of course, but Castiel refuses to listen. There is no other way. “I'm going to sneak past him,” he says. “Try to keep him distracted!”
He doesn't wait for a reply, but immediately starts making his way towards the aft again. Behind him, Balthazar shouts, “Distract him? Darling, are you bloody mad? Are you trying to get me killed? Oh, bloody, buggering, bleeding hell!” He lets loose another string of curses, then he calls out in a different voice, “Oi! Oi, Lucifer! I'm here, you sexy madman, you! Come and get it, baby!”
Castiel winces. He really hopes he hasn't sent the android to his death. Somehow and for some reason that he can't explain, he's come to really like Balthazar. For now, however, he has enough to worry about, trying to keep himself alive. He moves along the railing, keeping an eye out for the suddenly silent Captain Morningstar. A movement ahead him makes him duck for cover and not a moment too soon. Morningstar passes on the other side of the crates behind which Castiel is cowering. Castiel assumes he's heading for Balthazar and hopes the android has sense enough to hide.
He remains where he's hiding for a moment longer, staring out over railing. He can see the pirates desperately trying to make their way to the portal, while avoiding the suddenly gaping chasms opening below them and waterfalls of fire from above. One of them is caught up in a sliding mountain of gold and ends up falling into one of the rifts. His scream of terror echoes through the cave. Another manages the leap across another rift and a look of triumph appears on his face, a moment before he's engulfed in a sudden stream of molten metal.
Castiel catches sight of Sam, who has made it almost to the portal. There is a look of fury and determination on his face. Castiel is surprised to see him escaping without his brother. It occurs to him that Dean might be dead and the thought almost makes him double over in agony. After everything that has happened, he still loves Dean and he can't stand the thought of losing him. Not now, not like this. But if Dean is alive, why is Sam leaving him behind?
The answer becomes clear almost immediately. Sam isn't leaving. He is heading towards the prisoners, who are guarded only by Azazel. Walker seems to have fled. Azazel's gun is pressed against Gabriel's head, while Gabriel stands on the edge of the chasm that separates Castiel and Balthazar from the portal. One more earthquake and Gabriel will fall into the chasm, which seems to be exactly what Azazel is waiting for, if the look of sadistic glee on his face is anything to judge by.. Gabriel has closed his eyes, unable to do anything but await his fate, while Bobby and Crowley look on in helpless horror.
Then Sam is there, throwing himself at Azazel and knocking him to the ground. Gabriel stumbles back from edge, just as the ground begins shaking again. Sam and Azazel are rolling around, fighting and tearing at each other. The gun has fallen into the abyss. They roll closer and closer to the gaping chasm. Castiel sees Gabriel call out a warning, but it is too late. The two men are already rolling over the edge. At the very last minute, Sam manages to grab onto the edge and stop himself from falling. Azazel isn't so lucky. The cry he unleashes rivals Morningstar's in its inhumanity.
Sam pulls himself up and rolls away from the edge. He lies for a moment, just breathing heavily, clearly trying to steady himself. Then he gets to his feet and walks over to the prisoners. Surprisingly, he releases Gabriel last. The two of them stand for a long moment, just staring at each other. Then Gabriel throws himself at Sam and for a moment, Castiel thinks he's going to punch him. Gabriel's intention is completely different, however. He pulls Sam down into a kiss that is as scorching as the metal flowing from the pipes. Sam seems to be as surprised as Castiel, because he remains frozen for a long moment, before finally seeming to understand what is happening. He gathers Gabriel closer and returns his kiss with equal passion. Behind them, Bobby and Crowley are staring at them with identical expressions of appalled shock.
Castiel decides that he has seen enough. His friends are as safe as they can be. It's time for him to find a way to get them all out of there. He continues back onto the quarterdeck, without seeing any glimpse of Morningstar. He finds the controls, but they are all broken. Fortunately, everything is there that he needs in order to fix them, but it's going to take some time. He needs to reattach some of the wires and put back the parts that have fallen loose.
He becomes so lost in what he's doing that he doesn't realize his danger, until it's too late. Heavy steps approach him from behind and when he spins around, Morningstar is looming over him. The evil captain begins raising his arms, reaching for Castiel's throat. Castiel backs away, out of his reach, until he feels the railing against his back, trapping him. It's all over. This is how he'll die. He thinks of his mother and his sister, waiting for him back home. His death is going to crush his mother. He thinks of Bobby and Gabriel, so close and yet completely unaware. It'll be up to them to break the news to his mother. He hopes she doesn't blame them. Finally, he thinks of Dean. Beautiful Dean, who taught him the meaning of both love and betrayal. If he could wish for anything, in this moment, he would wish for a final glimpse of Dean's face.
And then he has his wish. Dean appears behind Morningstar, looking like an avenging angel with a blazing sword. Granted, his sword is just a metal pipe, but it still blazes with the reflected light of the fires around them. Dean brings the pipe down over Morningstar's head, just as Morningstar is about to put his hands on Castiel. With another roar of fury, Morningstar swings around. His arm knocks against Castiel, pushing him over the railing and into the rift that has opened below them. Luck is with Castiel, however, and he lands on a platform, some distance below the edge. It's too far down for him to climb up, so all he can do is sit there and stare helplessly upwards, trying to catch sight of Dean's battle with Morningstar. The ship blocks his view, however, so he is left to wait in excruciating uncertainty.
Suddenly, the two of them appear into view. Morningstar is pushing Dean against the railing, his hands locked around Dean's throat. Dean is scrabbling uselessly at Morningstar's hands, trying to loosen them, but it is clear that he is growing weaker. Even his cybernetic hand doesn't appear to have the strength. Castiel wants to close his eyes, so he doesn't have to see Dean lose this struggle, but he can't bring himself to even blink. Just as Dean's head begins to droop from the lack of oxygen, a shadow falls over the fighting pair. Two hands grip Morningstar tightly and with superhuman strength, they lift him and throw him over the railing. Morningstar falls, but he pulls Dean with him. Castiel screams, but it is drowned out by Morningstar's final roar.
That roar is cut off, however, when he lands on a platform opposite Castiel. Dean lands on top him. The century he has spent dormant seems to have dulled Morningstar's senses. He reacts too late and before he seems to have grasped that he is no longer falling, Dean has taken advantage of his moment of surprise and pushed him off the ledge. There is another roar and then silence.
Dean and Castiel stare at each other across the rift. Dean is still lying down, seeming unwilling to move. He's bleeding from a cut on his forehead and his lips are bruised, but he's alive. “Are you okay?” he shouts.
Castiel nods. “I'll live,” he shouts back. “You?”
Dean gives him the thumbs up, but he grimaces in pain. “Can you climb up?” he asks.
“No. You?”
Dean shakes his head. They're still trapped. All that they can hope for is that their friends will find some way of saving them.
“Dean,” Castiel calls. Dean raises his eyebrows at him. “Why did you come back?”
Dean's broken and swollen lips twist in what looks like a very painful smile. “Why do you think?” he asks. “I told you, I do care. Do you believe me now? Or is there anything else you need me to do to prove it to you, besides attacking some undead, supernatural pirate captain who can rain fire and make the earth quake?”
Castiel just stares at him. It can't be. Dean came for Castiel, even though it's clear that he could just as easily have escaped with Sam. There would even have been enough time for him to bring some of the treasure with him. Instead, he risked his life by going up against Morningstar, just to save Castiel.
“Dean,” he shouts again. “Dean, I thought I was going to die.”
“I know,” Dean calls back. “So did I. It's kind of why I did what I did.”
“No, that's not I meant. What I'm trying to say is, I thought I was going to die and the last thing to cross my mind was you. I just wanted to see you again. Just one more time. When you appeared behind Morningstar, I thought I was hallucinating. I couldn't believe it was really you.”
Dean sits up with obvious difficulty. He opens his mouth to speak, but just then something falls into the space between them. It's a rope ladder. Looking up, Castiel sees Balthazar's face staring back down at him.
“Well?” he shouts. “Whenever you two are done declaring your undying love for one another, you may want to climb up. In my experience, such confessions are usually followed by utterly disgusting displays of affection, but that may be difficult if there's a chasm of fire between you. So up you come and then... Well, then I suppose you can just come.” He gives them an utterly filthy grin, before disappearing from view.
Dean rolls his eyes. “I don't like that guy,” he calls to Castiel. “Where did you pick him up?”
“In the jungle, darling,” Balthazar replies, popping his head back in view. “Best pick up place ever. Especially if you're looking to have some hot monkey sex.” He winks and disappears again, leaving them to stare after him in horror.
“He's joking, right?” Dean says. “He hasn't actually...?”
Castiel shakes his head. A pleasure provider stuck alone in the jungle for a century. “I don't think we want to know,” he says. “Now come on. Let's get out of here.”
They both manage to make it up the ladder with some help from Balthazar. With Dean's help, Castiel fixes the ship and manages to get it working again. They pick up the others and then they sail out through the portal. Castiel climbs down onto the rock beneath. He closes the portal to the treasure room and opens the one to Crescentia instead. Once it is fully open, he gets the map out of its slot. The portal immediately begins to close, but Sam is ready. As soon as Castiel has grabbed hold of the rope ladder, he steers the ship through the portal, which closes behind them. Then he sets a course for the spaceport ahead.
*****
Castiel is standing in the bow of the ship, watching the spaceport come ever closer. He's feeling a mixture of contradictory feelings that he can't quite process. His first adventure in space is coming to a close and while he's happy that he'll soon be seeing his family again, he's afraid that nothing will have changed back home. He doesn't want to go back to that miserable existence again. Hopefully, however, all that he has experienced during these last few months will have been enough to keep him content, until he can leave again. He knows without a doubt that this will not be his last journey. Even with all the pain and the horror, it's still been the best months of his life and he's never felt more alive.
Of course, there's also Dean to think of. They haven't really spoken since their escape from Treasure Planet, at least not about anything that matters. Castiel doesn't know if it's because they haven't found the time or if they're both avoiding the conversation. He thinks it's probably the latter. It just feels as if there's too much to say, too much to explain and too much to try to understand. He doesn't know where to begin, so he's been putting it off.
Now time is running out. Once they reach Crescentia, Dean and his brother are going to prison and there is nothing that Castiel can do to prevent it. They may have been the ones who saved them, but Sam and Dean are also the ones who instigated the mutiny and that is something that Crowley refuses to forget. He's determined that when they reach Crescentia, the Winchesters will be handed over to the space authorities. Mutiny is a serious crime, so they'll probably be put away for quite some time.
As for their men, none of them really know what happened to them. They assume that most of them made it back to the Crossroad King and sailed away in it. Castiel knows that Crowley is furious about that. He would be, too. It is to be hoped, however, that the pirate crew, like their captain and their first mate, will be captured and made to stand trial. For now, Captain Morningstar's ship isn't a bad replacement vessel.
So Dean is going to prison and Castiel is going back home, and who knows if they'll ever see each other again? It's isn't exactly a happy thought. Castiel knows that his feelings for Dean aren't going to go away any time soon. If he could suffer through Dean's betrayal and still love him, then a tiny thing like being separated, possibly forever, isn't going to make him stop. Besides, maybe it doesn't have to be forever. Dean will be released eventually and Castiel is willing to wait for him. He may even be able to visit him in prison. However, before he can make any such plans, he really needs to talk to Dean, to find out if he still means what he said - or rather what he didn't say.
He looks around, but neither Dean, nor Sam is anywhere on the deck. Crowley is steering the ship and Bobby is standing beside him, a bit closer than usual. Gabriel is sitting by the hatch that leads below deck, playing with some golden coins. Most of the treasure was lost into the chasms, but there was still plenty stored aboard the ship. Enough that Castiel's mother will never have to worry about money ever again, which was part of the purpose of this journey.
When Castiel opens the hatch to climb down into the innards of the ship, Gabriel looks up.
“Where are you going?” he asks.
“I need to find Dean,” Castiel tells him honestly. “There are some things that I need to talk to him about.”
Gabriel grins. “Talk, eh?” he says. “Is that what you crazy kids are calling it these days?”
Castiel glares. He still hasn't told Gabriel anything about what has been happening between him and Dean, but Gabriel is perceptive. He's obviously figured a lot of things on his own. Unfortunately for him, he doesn't seem to realize that Castiel knows some of his secrets, as well.
“You tell me,” he says. “Have you and Sam done much talking?”
Of course, Gabriel has always been without shame and impossible to ruffle, so he doesn't even look embarrassed. “Some,” he says, waggling his eyebrows, “but mostly, our mouths were otherwise occupied.”
Castiel rolls his eyes. “Good for you,” he says. “So do you know where he and Dean are?”
Gabriel shakes his head and jumps down off the crate he's been sitting on.
“Nope,” he says, “but we can look for them together. I guess there are a few things I need to talk to Sam about, too.”
*****
It isn't as easy to find the Winchesters as Castiel had thought. He and Gabriel scour the ship, but the two brothers seem to have disappeared into thin air. Castiel begins to feel worried. There are plenty of places where one can hide aboard a ship, but why would the Winchesters want to?
“What are you doing?” a voice asks behind them, making them both jump and spin around. Balthazar is watching them curiously.
“Balthazar,” Castiel says, “have you seen Dean and Sam anywhere?”
“Your pretty friend and the cute giant?” Balthazar asks. “Yes, I saw them just moments ago. They were headed in the direction of the hangar bay, I believe. They looked as if they were in quite the hurry.”
Castiel exchanges a panicked look with Gabriel. Of course that's where they'd gone. Had they really expected that the Winchesters would just sit there and wait to be handed over to the authorities? Why wouldn't they try to escape? And now they might be gone already and Castiel would have wasted his final chance to talk to Dean.
He sets off at a run towards the hangar bay, with Gabriel hot on his heels. While he's running, a constant litany of Please don't let it be too late keeps repeating inside Castiel's head. If Dean is really gone and Castiel didn't even get to say goodbye... But no, he can't even bear to think of it.
To Castiel's immense relief, it isn't too late. When he and Gabriel finally reach the hangar bay, they find Sam already in the longboat, while Dean is standing on the landing, handing over their bags. They both freeze when they see the cousins and the identical looks of guilt on their faces would be comical, if Castiel wasn't so furious. He stalks forward towards Dean, who actually takes a step back, looking worried.
“Whoa, Cas,” he says, “just let me explain.”
“Save it,” Castiel growls. “I don't want to hear it. I can't believe that you were just going to leave like that, without even telling me.”
“I was afraid you'd try to stop me,” Dean says. “Besides, I wasn't sure you even wanted to talk to me.”
“What do you mean?”
Dean sighs. He looks over at Sam, clearly communicating something with his eyes. Sam nods. Dean takes hold of Castiel's arm and drags him out into the corridor. “You've been avoiding me,” he says, once they're alone.
Castiel shakes his head. It's partly true, but it wasn't like he was hiding. “You could have come found me,” he says.
Dean bites his lip, looking almost nervous. “I wasn't sure you'd want to talk to me. I thought you were still mad at me.”
“Dean,” Castiel sighs, “you saved my life. And almost died yourself. Okay, so I'm still upset that you lied to me and used me, but we can work past that. I know who you are now and it's the same person that you've always been. It's the same man that I fell in love with.”
There, he said it. It wasn't easy, though. He can barely bring himself to look at Dean to see how he reacts. He's fairly sure that his feelings are reciprocated, but he can't be entirely certain. It is still possible that Dean was just amusing himself with him, that he likes Castiel, but isn't looking for anything serious. His worries are unnecessary, however. A slow, happy smile spreads across Dean's face.
“Yeah?” he says, sounding hopeful.
“Yes,” Castiel says firmly.
“Well,” Dean says, taking a step closer, “I guess I should tell you that I'm in love with you, too. I know you won't believe me, but I've never met anyone like you, Cas. This is going to sound stupid and clichéd, but you make me want to try to be a better man. More than that, you make me feel like I might actually succeed.”
Castiel shakes his head, knowing that there's a ridiculously happy smile on his face. “You are a good man, Dean. You just make bad decisions sometimes.”
Dean laughs. He's standing so close to Castiel that their feet are touching and he puts his hands on Castiel's hips. “Yeah,” he agrees. “I guess I do. Maybe you can help me with that.”
Castiel slides one arm around Dean's shoulders and the other around his waist, pulling them together. He leans his forehead against Dean's. “If you'll let me,” he says.
Dean nods slowly. “I will,” he says. They both know he's lying. Dean is too stubborn to let someone else make his decisions for him. But maybe, he'll at least be willing to listen Castiel's advice.
Dean is tilting his head, so their noses are no longer in the way, and presses their lips together. Castiel returns the kiss eagerly, opening his mouth to let their tongues tangle together. Dean's hands have moved backwards and downwards, and Castiel can't help but smile when he feels them squeeze almost playfully. Dean breaks their kiss with a frustrated groan. “I wish we had more time,” he says. “There are still so many things I want to do to you. But I guess that's something to look forward to.”
Castiel doesn't reply. Instead he chases Dean's mouth to steal another kiss. He means to keep it brief, but it soon becomes as deep as the first one. The feeling of Dean pressing up against him, solid and warm, is pure ecstasy. He just wishes that there weren't so many layers of clothes in the way, that he could feel Dean's skin against his own.
Once again, Dean is the one to break the kiss and this time, he forces Castiel to take a step back, so that there is some air between them. Castiel glares at him, making Dean laugh. “Trust me,” he says. “It pains me just as much as it pains you, but I have no choice. I've got to go. The longer we delay, the greater the chance that we'll be caught.”
“Can I come with you?” Castiel asks. He feels a brief pang of regret, thinking of his mother and his sister, but the idea of letting Dean go off without him is even more painful.
Dean shakes his head. “Cas,” he says. “Sam and I will be fugitives. We'll constantly be on the run, never able to stay in one place for long. We'll have to find a new ship and crew, and then...”
“And then what?” Castiel asks.
Dean shrugs. “We're pirates,” he says. “You know what that means. I can't ask you to give up your home and your family for something like that.”
“But I want to,” Castiel tells him. It isn't until he says it that he realizes how true it is. “Please, Dean! It's what I've always dreamed of.”
Dean shakes his head again, looking sad. “I can't, Cas,” he says. “At least not yet. You need to think about this, about everything that you'll be giving up. And you need to see your family again.”
“But what if I never see you again?” Castiel knows he's sounding desperate, but he doesn't care. After all that, Dean is still going to leave him.
“You will,” Dean promises. He leans over and places a soft, brief kiss on Castiel's lips. “In a year's time, on this date. I'll come to the harbor near your mother's old inn. Meet me there and if you still want to, I'll take you with me, then.”
“You promise?”
“I promise. One year from now. Will you wait for me there, Cas?”
Castiel nods. There's no doubt in his mind. It'll be a long year, but it'll give him a chance to say goodbye to his family. “What about Gabriel?” he asks suddenly.
Dean leans back and glances into the hangar bay. He grimaces. “Looks like he and Sam are a bit more impatient than we are,” he says. “I think you'd better go in and say goodbye. You won't be seeing him for a year, either.”
Sure enough, when Castiel enters the hangar bay, Gabriel is already in the longboat. He looks as if he's afraid that Castiel will try to stop him, but Castiel reassures him with a look. Dean moves up behind Castiel. He turns him around and gives him a final brief kiss, before climbing into the longboat. Sam and Gabriel start lowering the boat through the open hatch.
“One year, Cas,” Dean calls to him. “Don't forget!”
Castiel shakes his head. As if he could. “Don't get caught!” he calls back.
Dean just grins. The longboat has fully cleared the hatch now and Sam moves over to take the helm. Castiel watches as they slowly disappear from view. Then he sighs heavily and starts walking back up to the main deck. It's going to be a long year.