Hell Bent - Part 1

Alternate ending to Season 4!

Hell Bent
Part 1

Dean swore under his breath as he passed the wet cloth over his face; each cut and bruise was a reminder of Sam's finale decision. He tossed the face cloth into the sink bowl, which was now filled with red water, and hunched over the dirty vanity to stare at himself in the mirror. "Damn it Sammy..." He muttered to himself, thinking of the brother he used to know so well, but now barely recognized. He had given the other man a choice, just like their father once had, and just like before, Sam had chosen to take the door and walk away from the life he had known.

He let out a sigh and closed his eyes, the sound of the water dripping in the sink sounding more and more like the monotone ticking of a clock. He had walked a path barely known or followed by those walking the streets alongside him; had selflessly saved countless lives, but what did he have to show for it? He had made the ultimate sacrifice for what he had always thought to be the better man, been dragged to hell in pieces as a result and spent decades among the damned.

Having accepted the choices he made and the bleak road he followed, he had been ready for eternity in the clutches of Hell. Just when he thought he had found his place and his purpose, he was pulled from perdition to be used as a pawn in the finale battle of good vs. evil. The angels who needed him so desperately, did nothing more than drag him around with vague details of his new lease on life and what they expected from him in return. The brother he had given his life for, was no longer the same person as the one who had walked out that door only hours ago; the one who had turned to the dark side while he was paying the price for saving him.

Dean couldn't help but feel cheated. To save mankind from the looming apocalypse, he'd promised the angels his servitude; but all of this was before he faced his brother for the last time. Sam had perfected his dark gift, he was now stronger, much stronger than he used to be and it had dawned on Dean that giving himself fully to these so called 'angels' would most definitely come back to haunt him. The thought of what this might mean in the end, was only adding fuel to the fire.  

"Where are you, you bastard."  He growled, closing his eyes as he listened to his voice jump off the walls around him.

"Mind your tone with me, Dean."

His eyes flew open as the familiar voice pulled him from his thoughts. Staring passed his reflection in the mirror, his gaze fell on the angel that was standing behind him in the tiny, dingy motel washroom. "So is this part of the big plan?" He spat, turning to face Castiel as his eyes narrowed.

"Is what part of the..."

"Don't play games with me you son of a bitch, I want answers and I want them now." Dean replied, his brash tone of voice cutting the other man short. "Did you know about Sam going dark side when you pulled me from hell?" There was a moment of silence and Dean took a threatening step forward, closing the distance between them. "TELL ME, did you know about Sam going dark side, when you pulled..."

"Yes, I did." Castiel replied simply.

Dean shook his head, his patience for the angel before him was wearing thin. "I agreed to be your bitch, for the good of mankind, and you didn't think to mention that the only brother I have, might be the evil I have to kill!?" As Dean's voice rose, Castiel's eyes fell to the floor by his feet. "It doesn't take a fuckin' genius to figure out where this is going, Cas! Sam is as strong as Lillith is, if he kills her, that makes him the new kid in town. Is he the one who's going to break the finale seal? Is he the one I'm going to have to stop?"

"I can't tell you that." Castiel replied, his eyes finally drifting back up to meet Dean's.

"Well you're going to have to tell me something, Cas!" Dean snarled. "How am I supposed to stop the apocalypse?"

"When the time comes, I will let you know what needs to be done." Castiel replied, his soothing tone of voice doing little to calm the man standing only inches away.

"What's going to happen to Sam if he's already halfway to being a living and breathing demon?" Dean continued. "Does that make him part of Lucifer's army or just some freak with one hell of a gift?"

"I'm not in liberty to say."

There was a moment of silence and Dean offered a smirk. "Oh, that's right I forgot; they tightened your leash. Well I am sick, and tiered of getting the run around." Dean paused for a moment as the angel's eyes once again drifted away. It was almost as if Castiel couldn't bare to face him, something had changed. "LOOK AT ME!" He shouted; reaching out to grab the other man by the shirt, forcing him to catch his eyes. "You're just as cold and heartless as the others are and it seems to me that the 'angels' are going to do what they want regardless of what I say or think; so TELL ME, why you dragged me out of hell."

"I've already told you." Castiel calmly replied, loosening the grip Dean had on his shirt. "We have work for you."

It took everything he had, not to throw a punch. Trying to get straight answers from Castiel was as useless as trying to convince Sam, that Ruby was up to no good. The fate of mankind didn't mean a thing to him if it meant sending his little brother to hell. He had already been there, and he couldn't bare the thought of him forcing Sam to go through the same. "Promise me that what I have to do will have NOTHING to do with Sam or what he's become. I might not like or agree with what he's done to himself, but I will not go up against him." When the angel's eyes once again wandered away from his stare, Dean felt his heart hit the bottom of his stomach. What Castiel wasn't telling him, was what he feared the most; that his brother would be the one to break the final seal, the one he would have to kill to put an end to the looming apocalypse. He swallowed the lump caught in his throat but quickly regained his composure. "Find somebody else to do your work." He growled.

"There is no one else..." Castiel started. "You were chosen..."

"If I'm the only one, I deserve to know what the fuck I'm going to have to do." Dean hissed. "Tell me that I won't have to..."

"I can't..."

Castiel silenced as Dean pushed him up against the wall. "If you're not going to tell me." He growled, his low tone of voice as sharp as his words. "Then you should have just left me where you found me, you useless, son of a bitch."

"You don't mean that." Castiel replied, his back up against the wall behind him as Dean held him in place.

"Oh, yeah?" Dean answered defiantly, releasing his firm grip as he took a step back. "I would rather spend eternity among the damned..." He started coldly, reaching into the back of his belt to pull out his gun. "Than send the only brother I have to hell, for you." He continued, loading the pistol and pressing the tip of the barrel up against the side of his throat. "When you do catch up to Sammy, tell him I was right about you guys being dicks..." Dean growled, closing his eyes as he pulled the trigger.