THE ROAD SO FAR... - Chapt 1

This one I started writing BEFORE Season 5 started, keep that in mind!



THE ROAD SO FAR...
Chapter 1 - THEN


"Are you sure this is the right place?" Dean asked as they pulled up to the abandoned mill. They were miles away from the small town they had started off in, at the very end of a winding dirt road deep in the woods. He put the Impala in park and leaned forward in his seat to get a better look at the old building in front of them. The only source of light was the full moon high above, casting the mill's eerie shadow on the cold ground in front of them.

Sam turned his flashlight on to study the map that was open in his lap. "Yes Dean, this is it." He replied simply.

"Those folks at the bar didn't have a clue what I was talking about." Dean started, glancing over as Sam folded the map and tossed it up onto the dashboard.

"Most people don't , Dean." Sam replied, offering a smile.

"No I'm serious." The older man replied. "None of them said anything about this place being haunted... I heard that it was doomed from the start, but not haunted. The only history I could find, was that it closed in '59 after the lumber industry took a blow... It was about the same time that this town; if you want to call it that, died."

"Dean, this is it." Sam replied, grabbing his EMF meter from the glove box. "The Branson Mill closed down in 1959 after a dozen workers died in separate freak accidents. After that, they couldn't keep the place running because no one wanted to work the night shift, everyone complained about the spirits that were wandering around and..."

"Where did you get this info?" Dean cut in, pulling the keys from the ignition as he once again studied the old building in front of them.

"One of Dad's old contacts." Sam replied, his frustration starting to surface as he explained, and re-explained the hunt to his brother. "The guy didn't have time to check the place out and said that it's most active on the anniversary of the deaths, which happens to be tonight." He said as he got out of the Impala, a cold October wind greeting him.

"I don't know about this one Sammy." Dean started, stepping out of the car and shutting the door. A chilling wind rustled the dead leaves on the ground at his feet as he stood by the Impala, looking up at the abandoned mill in front of him. "There's no gates, no locks, no history about it around town..."

Sam let out a sigh. "Dean, we've gone on hunts with a lot less info. You're the one that wanted to keep hunting until we found a way to catch up to Lucifer, so I found us a job."

"I just got a bad feeling about it." Dean continued, making his way to the trunk to grab his shotgun and flashlight. He glanced out towards the woods as he slipped his key into the lock, thinking he had heard something among the brush. When he popped the trunk open, he turned his attention back to his brother. "No one in town said anything about the place being haunted..."

"I heard you the first time, Dean." Sam started, pausing for a moment to catch his brother's eyes. "But considering we have Lucifer roaming free, judgment day on our doorstep and angels trying to recruit you for their own purpose... Checking out a few ghosts should be a walk in the park, right?" Sam continued, turning his EMF reader on as the pair started to make their way towards the old mill.

"Yeah, I guess." Dean replied simply, his eyes focussing on the massive structure looming in the darkness, gaping holes where windows used to be and piles of fallen brick scattered around. "Don't you find it a little odd that we haven't seen a demon or angel since Lucifer got out?"

"Maybe they have bigger things to deal with right now than worrying about you." Sam replied, eying the meter in his hand. "When they want you, they're going to come find you..."

"Yeah thanks, Sammy." Dean replied, taking one last look towards the road and his car as he pulled a loose board away from the front entrance to let his brother slip in. "I'm just so use to watching my back these days, that not having them around freaks me out a little." He continued as he followed the other man inside.

The past few weeks had been hard for both of them. The guilt that trailed Sam; for the role he unknowably played in the beginning of the end was as strong as the one that trailed Dean, for the sacrifice Castiel had made, in an attempt to help him. While Sam was only now starting to get over his addiction, Dean was just starting to forgive him for what he had done. Though the road ahead, was sure to be long and rough, both were determined to rebuild what had been lost between them. Doing their best to avoid the angels that had led them astray, the hunt for Lucifer was on. Unlike the angels though, the brothers intended to find a way to stop Lucifer before he brought on the Apocalypse, not after. Without a lead to follow or even a trail, trying to find Lucifer was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Without Castiel to move them along, the brothers didn't know where to start or why the angels and demons had vanished altogether.

Carefully stepping over debris and machinery that littered the floor, the pair made their way into the main room, pausing for a moment to study it the best they could in their limited light. Piles of lumber lined one wall as chains and saw blades hung on another nearby. Off to one side, a small furnace room and a boiler room, to the other, a set of table saws and band saws. With the flashlight, Dean followed a staircase up to a balcony on the second floor, a switch room perhaps to control the main power on the work floor. He took a glance at the man by his side. "Picking anything up?" He asked, eying the EMF reader in his brother's hand.

Sam shook his head. "No... You'd think that with twelve ghosts wandering around, this place would be jumping." He replied, using his own flashlight to light his way. "I'm just going to walk around, see if I pick up anything somewhere else." He informed.

"Don't go too far..." Dean called out, watching as Sam made his way towards a door at the end of the large work area. When his brother disappeared from sight, Dean turned his attention to the large room he was standing in. Following the chains up the wall with his flashlight, he illuminated a set of pulleys and tracks, most likely used to move the logs around the mill. He paused in his steps as the howling wind rushed by him through the broken windows, picking up sawdust from the floor and spreading it around the room. Turning on the spot, his eyes focused on a small room nearby, the sound of a creaking door catching his attention. When his cell phone suddenly rang, he couldn't help but jump, swearing under his breath as he tucked his gun under one arm and fished his phone out of his coat pocket with the other. Seeing Bobby's name on the display, he quickly flipped it open. "You scared the shit out of me Bobby, what's up?" He asked, taking a glance around with his flashlight as he heard Sam's footsteps in the room nearby.

"Where are you Dean?" Bobby asked, getting right to the point.

"At the old haunted mill Sam was telling you about." Dean started, turning on the spot as the sound of rattling chains in the wind caught his attention. "Just outside of Scythe."

"Dean, you and Sam need to get out of there NOW." Bobby replied, his voice just shy of a panic.

"Why?" Dean asked, oblivious to the urgency in Bobby's voice as he eyed the dark doorway his brother had disappeared into.

"Because the hunt is fake, it's a trap." Bobby quickly replied. "A group of hunters have been trailing you for over a week..."

"WHAT?" Dean asked, unable to believe what he had just heard as Bobby's voice echoed in his head.

"Dean, they made up that ghost story to lure you and your brother out to the mill. You need to get out of there right now."