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Chapter Text

Originally posted on 08/24/06 - 08/27/06 at: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3120907/1/Van-Helsing-Returns

Chapter Text

Chapter 1: The Hunchback and the Horseman

Many years had passed and Gabriel Van Helsing became the infamous monster hunter he was destined to be. He was a man with no past. He was called a murderer and a holy man. He was known as the Left Hand of God. And right now he was doing God’s work.

Van Helsing was on a mission to stop an evil being. The cardinal had warned him that this task would be very dangerous, for this evil creature was said to be harder to kill than a vampire.

Vampires. How Van Helsing hated them. It had been 2 months since he had killed a vampire. And not just any vampire, but the king of vampires, Count Dracula.

Van Helsing remembered his time facing Dracula all too well. The cardinal had sent him and the friar Carl to protect Anna Valerious until Dracula was killed, for Anna’s ancestor had made a deal with God that his family shall not enter Heaven until Dracula was defeated. Van Helsing’s mission was to kill Dracula and keep Anna alive.

The mission had sounded simple enough to Van Helsing; unfortunately, things are not always what they seemed. Dracula and his 3 brides had been planning on bringing their undead children to life using the power of electricity along with the Frankenstein monster’s life force. And they had succeeded.

But Van Helsing had stopped them. Carl had discovered the key to defeating Dracula. Only a werewolf had the power to kill him, for the curse of the vampire and the curse of the werewolf combined resulted in death.

Van Helsing had become a werewolf. He had thought that his life was over, for the only way to break the curse was death. Or so he thought. Dracula had a cure to remove the curse of the werewolf. All he had to do was kill Dracula and take the cure before the final stroke of midnight on the night of his first full moon. It was a long shot, but it was still a shot. And it was a success. Van Helsing had killed Dracula, and all things bitten and created by the vampire king died with him. Shortly after, Van Helsing was cured. Anna had given her life to deliver the cure to Van Helsing. While under the werewolf curse, Van Helsing had attacked and killed Anna.

Van Helsing flinched at the memory. He still had nightmares about killing the princess.  Carl had assured him that it was not his fault, he had been unable to control his rage while in werewolf form. He had told him that Anna was now reunited with her family in Heaven and that he should be happy for her.

Van Helsing was happy for her. He was glad that Anna was finally reunited with her family. But at the same time it caused him great pain. Anna had spent her whole life fighting Dracula, only to be killed when he was finally vanquished. And it had been him that killed her.

The thought tore at the monster hunter's heart. He had deeply cared for Anna. He even dared to say that he loved her, even if he had only known her for a few short days. She had made him feel complete and at peace with himself. She took all his pain away and made him feel like a real person, not like a murderer or a monster hunter, but as a human being. He had loved her and he had killed her.

It was still very hard for him to accept this. It even affected his missions. Van Helsing was heart broken and it was making him sloppy in his work. And that was something he could not afford to let happen.

Like right now. Right now Van Helsing was on the hunt. He tried to put his feelings and memories for Anna aside and stay focused. He was hunting a very danger creature. A ghostly horseman. He was said to be headless and made a habit of collecting the heads of others. According to the information Van Helsing had received in Rome, the only way to kill the Headless Horseman was to lore him across the river onto holy ground.

“Easier said than done.” Van Helsing thought. How was he going to get the horseman on holy ground? “Guess I’ll improvise.”

Suddenly Van Helsing heard something he had been hoping to hear, but also not to hear. The sound of horse hooves. The horseman was close; Van Helsing could sense it, and what he felt was evil.

Something leapt out from the shadows and Van Helsing saw the creature that he had come for. The Headless Horseman sat of his black steed, clad in black armor. As his name suggested, there was no head resting on the horseman’s shoulders, the sight made Van Helsing sick. In the horseman’s right hand he held an axe, the very axe that had claimed countless mortal’s lives. In his other had he held a jack-o-lantern; the most hideous carved face in the pumpkin allowed the horseman to find his victims.

The horseman swung his mighty axe, ready to claim the monster hunter’s head and add it to his collection. Van Helsing ducked the blow and moved away. In an instant he had his guns out and began firing at the horseman.

The bullets found their target, but they did nothing more that anger the horseman. His horse kicked out at the sound of the gun fire, causing the horse man to fall off since both his hands were occupied.

Van Helsing tossed his guns aside, knowing they would do nothing in this battle. Instead he pulled out his sword. The horseman threw his axe at Van Helsing. He ducked, nearly getting a new hair style as the axe flew by his head. The horseman pulled out his own sword and approached Van Helsing, ready for battle.

The horseman swung at Van Helsing. The monster hunter ducked and swung his own sword. The horseman blocked the blow and kicked out. Van Helsing backed away from the kick and then stabbed forward. His sword went right into the horseman’s gut, catching him in the space between his upper armor and lower armor.

Van Helsing pushed the horseman back. The church was only several feet away. If he could get the horseman near enough to it, he could kill him. But the horseman was tougher than he looked, and he looked tough to begin with. He pushed back against Van Helsing, impaling himself deeper into Van Helsing’s sword, and began pushing Van Helsing back.

“No!” Van Helsing growled, using all his strength to stop the horseman.

The horseman swung his sword downward. Van Helsing pulled his own sword from the horseman’s rotten flesh and blocked the mighty blow. He was startled by the horseman’s strength. He had to use both hands and put all his strength into keeping his enemy at bay, while the horseman was using only one hand and still over powering Van Helsing with ease.

Flames shot out of the jack-o-lantern’s mouth, coming to close for comfort to Van Helsing’s face. He jumped away from the flames and fell backwards. The horseman took advantage of Van Helsing’s vulnerable position. He stopped down on Van Helsing’s sword with his metal shoe and stabbed towards Van Helsing’s heart.

Van Helsing was forced to abandon his sword and roll away. The horseman’s sword slammed into the cold hard ground. Van Helsing sat up and kicked the horseman in the side. Big mistake. The horseman responded by slamming his elbow into Van Helsing’s face.

Seeing stars, Van Helsing fell back to the ground. A moment later, the horseman’s foot stomped on Van Helsing’s chest, trapping him. He stood over the legendary monster hunter, sword in hand.

“Is this how I’m going down?” thought Van Helsing. “I’m going to be killed by a guy with no head.”

Van Helsing tried to struggle, but the horseman was too strong. His foot didn’t even budge. He raised his sword high in the air, ready to strike. Van Helsing closed his eyes, ready for the inevitable. At least he would see Anna again. There’s always a brighter side to death, it’s just harder to see.

Van Helsing heard the unmistakable sound of metal hitting metal. Hs eyes snapped open. The horseman was still standing over him, but there was someone else there too. A man was standing behind the horseman, holding the axe the horseman had thrown, which was now buried in the horseman’s back.

The horseman stumbled forward, his foot coming off Van Helsing’s chest. The horseman turned to face the one that had struck him with his own axe. Van Helsing’s rescuer was severally deformed and had a very bad hunch. The horseman struck quickly, stabbing the hunchback with his sword.

Van Helsing quickly got to hiss feet and reached into his coat. He pulled out his grapple gun, the very one used on Mr. Hyde, and fired. It struck the horseman in the back. Van Helsing ran over to the horseman’s horse and secured the grapple gun to its saddle.

“Go on boy!” Van Helsing shouted, smacking the horse’s rear.

The horse began running. The grapple pulled the horseman with it. He dropped the jack-o-lantern head; it broke to pieces as it hit the ground. The horse ran, dragging the horseman with it, right by the church. As the horseman was dragged across the holy ground, his body burst into flames. Beams of light erupted from his body and suddenly, he was gone. All that was left was the grapple gun laying on the ground.

Van Helsing did the sign of the cross and ran over to the one who had saved him. The hunchback was laying on the ground in a pool of blood. It was too late for Van Helsing to save him.

The hunchback looked up at Van Helsing with sad eyes. “Are you alright?” he asked. By the way he spoke, it indicated that he was deaf.

Van Helsing nodded. He had heard of this man. His name was Quasimodo. People believed he was possessed by the Devil. Van Helsing could tell this was not true in anyway.

“Thank you, my friend.” said Van Helsing very clearly and slowly, making sure the hunchback could read his lips. “You are a good man.”

The hunchback’s eyes lit up in happiness at Van Helsing’s words; then slowly they closed as death took him. Van Helsing bowed his head. Another innocent victim, dead, all because he had failed again.

Van Helsing did the sign of the cross over the hunchback’s body. “God rest your soul.” he said in Latin.

Chapter Text

Chapter 2: The New Mission

Van Helsing returned to Rome. He wondered whether the cardinal would be happy with the way his mission went. Van Helsing certainly wasn’t. It had cost another’s life because he had once again failed in his duty.

“Just like with Anna.” Van Helsing thought sadly. No, with Anna it was worse. With Anna he had been the one to kill her. He had been called a murderer for so long, and now it was finally true.

Van Helsing entered the confession booth. “Bless me Father, for I have sinned.” he said quietly.

“Not this time.” came the voice of Cardinal Jinette. He opened the window and looked in at Van Helsing. “For once you did your job correctly.”

Van Helsing hung his head. “Not completely.”

“You do not give yourself enough created.” said the cardinal. “Not only did you defeat the Headless Horseman, but you allowed peace to come to the one possessed by the Devil.”

Van Helsing felt his anger rising. “Quasimodo was a good man!” he said loudly. “He was not possessed by the Devil! He saved my life and paid for it with his!”

The cardinal sighed. “Gabriel, you are not seeing the bigger picture. You managed to vanquish a great evil that could have taken more lives than what it did. Yes, there were innocents lost, but there are even more saved.”

Van Helsing looked away, unable to meet the cardinal’s eyes. “I was right there when he died. He died because I failed to complete the mission properly.”

The cardinal didn’t respond. He knew Van Helsing was still suffering from Anna’s death, and it made it even worse since he was the one who killed her.

Laying a comforting hand on Van Helsing’s shoulder, the cardinal said, “You have to get past her death. It was not your fault.”

But Van Helsing wouldn’t hear it. “I killed her.”

“People die. It is a natural part of life.”

“BUT I KILLED HER!!!” Van Helsing shouted. He glared at the cardinal, tears forming in his eyes. “She didn’t just die. She was murdered. By me. Her blood is on my hands.”

The cardinal didn’t argue further. It would be awhile before Van Helsing could come to terms with what happened, but it would pass. The problem was that Van Helsing’s next mission wouldn’t be easy for the monster hunter; both physically and emotionally.

“Come, I will show you your next assignment.” said the cardinal.

Van Helsing wiped the tears from his eyes and followed the cardinal through the secret door. The cardinal explained Van Helsing’s mission as they walked. “Your next assignment will not be an easy one.”

Van Helsing rolled his eyes. “Are they ever?”

“If you do them correctly, they can be.” said the cardinal hotly. “But this one may be your most difficult mission. We have another vampire for you to slay.”

Van Helsing stopped walking. “Another vampire? How can there be another vampire? I thought that once Dracula was killed all things bitten and created by him would also die.”

The cardinal nodded impatiently. “Yes, yes, that’s true. But this vampire was not bit or created by Dracula. In fact, this vampire was around long before him. While Dracula may have been the strongest of all vampires, this one was the first.”

The cardinal turned on the slide projector to reveal a picture of the vampire Van Helsing was to kill. Unlike the other vampires that Van Helsing had faced, this one was hideous and demonic.

“Count Graf Orlok.” the cardinal explained. “The first one to be exposed to the curse of Nosferatu.”

“How could he have been the first one exposed to the curse if he was the first?” Van Helsing asked.

“We do not know.” said the cardinal. “It is the same with the way the werewolf first came to be. How did the first man become exposed to the Lupine Curse? We do not know. Perhaps it is one of Satan’s many evil plans. All we know is that Count Orlok was never human, always a vampire. And we need you to return to Transylvania to destroy him.”

“WHAT?!?” Van Helsing shouted. “He’s in Transylvania! Why did you not have me go after him when I did Dracula?”

“It is... complicated.”

Complicated? What does that mean? You send me to defeat Dracula and then decide to send me back to Transylvania after I return. Why didn’t you just-”

Van Helsing stopped talking as the cardinal raised his hand to silence him. “Count Orlok was not in Transylvania at the time you were.” he explained. “He was forced to leave over 400 years ago when Dracula first arrived. The castle Dracula lived in was once owned by Count Orlok. When the Devil gave Dracula a new life, Dracula banished Orlok from Transylvania to avoid competition. Dracula was stronger than Orlok and the older vampire was forced to leave. But now that Dracula is dead, Orlok has returned, and you must stop him.”

Van Helsing turned away from the cardinal. “Find someone else for this mission; I can’t do it.”

The cardinal had expected this and already had an argument ready. “You are the best we have. While Orlok may not be as strong as Dracula, he is older, and the older a vampire gets, the harder it is to kill them.”

Van Helsing angrily punched the wall. “Don’t you get it? I can’t go back there. It’s too painful. To return to the place I killed her will be like going into Hell itself.”

It was time for the cardinal to play his trump card. “So you’re going to leave these people to their fate? Anna and her family gave their lives fighting off the king of vampires, and you’re just going to let another one take Dracula’s place and let him kill all the people the entire Valerious family died to protect.”

Those words hurt Van Helsing more than the cardinal knew. He knew it was true though. He had to go back to Transylvania. For all the poor people. For Anna.

“No.” said Van Helsing. “I won’t let that happen. I’ll go back to Transylvania if I must.”

The cardinal smiled, glad that Van Helsing was finally seeing the light. “Good, you can leave immediately. And be happy with the knowledge that with Orlok’s death, all vampires will die with him.”

“That’s the only good thing that will come out of this.” he said, turning his back on the cardinal to go prepare for his journey.

“And take Carl with you again.” the cardinal called after Van Helsing. “From what I’ve heard, he was very useful last time.”

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“Carl! Carl! Where are you?” Van Helsing called, looking for the friar.

There was a bang and a cry of pain as Carl popped his head up from under a desk. “Ah, Van Helsing! I see you were successful in defeating the Headless Horseman.”

Van Helsing smiled at his friend. “You sound surprised.”

Carl shook his head. “No not surprised, relived. I can’t say that I don’t worry about you sometimes.”

“Well with your inventions is there any doubt that I’ll fail?” Van Helsing asked.

Carl smiled nervously. “Only if they work properly.”

Van Helsing hoped that didn’t mean that some of those inventions were untested. He pushed the thought aside. He trusted Carl with his life... most of the time.

“So have you heard of my next assignment?” he asked. “I’ve got another vampire to hunt.”

Carl made a face. “Oh bloody hell.”

Van Helsing pointed an accusing finger at Carl. “You see, that kind of language is exactly why you’re still a friar.”

Carl folded his arms. “If you’re going to be like that, I won’t share my new inventions with you.”

Van Helsing began scanning the table covered with Carl’s inventions. “Do you another one of those lava things that creates sunlight?”

Carl looked at Van Helsing like he was crazy. “Goodness no! I told you that was one of a kind, and it took me 12 years to make just one. But I do have this.”

He handed Van Helsing the gas propelled crossbow Van Helsing had used on his last trip to Transylvania.

“Already seen it.” said Van Helsing, sounding disappointed.

Carl shook his finger. “Ah, but I have made an improvement. I’ve added a special chamber that contains holy water. After seeing how well that worked on Marishka, I thought this would be more affective. Just pull the trigger. When you do, an open will open allowing the holy water to cover the arrows.”

Van Helsing nodded in approval. “Not bad. What else do you have for me.”

“Oh right.” Carl began looking through his inventions. “Ah ha, here’s something.”

He handed Van Helsing a shiny new sword. “I thought you said any idiot can make a sword.” the monster hunter remarked.

Carl looked insulted. “Any idiot can make a sword. But this is not any sword. It’s effective against both werewolves and vampires. It’s made of pure silver, and just take a look at the handle.”

Van Helsing observed the sword. The handle was actually a crucifix. “Very impressive.”

“Speaking of impressive, I believe I’m close to making a break through in finding out what the cure is for a werewolf.” Carl reported. He realized his mistake a moment too soon. A look of pain came across Van Helsing’s face. “Oh, Van Helsing I... I’m sorry. I know that it’s still hard for you.”

Van Helsing waved it off, trying to hide his pain. “It’s alright Carl. I’m going to have to get over it. Especially for our next mission.”

Carl’s face scrunched up in confusion. “What do you mean, our next mission?”

Van Helsing decided to just break the news to the friar. “We’re going back to Transylvania.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 3: Return to Transylvania

It was even harder to go back to Transylvania than Van Helsing thought it would be. The closer he got, the more painful the memory of Anna’s death became.

“Why did she have to die?” Van Helsing thought to himself. “Why must everything I love be taken from me?”

It was true too. Everything Van Helsing did love was taken from him. His whole past was wiped from his memory, he never knew what became of his family, and then the woman he loved was killed. By him.

Van Helsing tried to put the thought out of his mind. He couldn’t afford any distractions in this mission. He learned how dangerous vampires were when he faced Dracula and his brides. But once he killed Count Orlok, all vampires that he sired would die with him, then all the vampires that were sired by the vampires Orlok sired would die, and so on and so until all vampires were gone. Yes this mission was very important. Too important to mess up.

Van Helsing and Carl arrived at Transylvania. The villagers greeted them warmly; for once Van Helsing wasn’t considered a murderer.

A middle-aged man approached the two travelers. “Welcome Mr. Van Helsing, Friar Carl.” he said. “It is good to have you back. You may call me Mr. Reinfield. If there is anything I can do for you, just let me know.”

Van Helsing got off his horse. “Thank you Mr. Reinfield, but I’m hoping to make this a short visit. It’s not easy coming back.”

Reinfield nodded sadly. “Yes, I know what you mean. Princess Anna’s death has been hard for us all. Damn Dracula for taking her life; may he burn in Hell.”

Van Helsing flinched at Reinfield’s words. The Transylvanians believed that Anna had been killed by Dracula, but Van Helsing knew the truth. And as tragic as her death was, the villagers couldn’t help but to be overjoyed by Dracula’s death. Enough to celebrate rather than mourn Anna’s death. At the time, Van Helsing had been so affected by her death that he barely spoke a word to anyone, even Carl. He had gotten better over time, but it still affected him greatly. Losing a loved one was one thing, but killing a loved one was even worse. How did someone deal with that?

Van Helsing was brought out of his thoughts by Carl attempting to get off his horse and getting his foot stuck on the saddle. Van Helsing got off his own horse and helped free Carl.

“Please tend to our horses,” he said, “and tell me everything you know about Count Graf Orlok.”

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Count Orlok walked through his castle. He still cursed Dracula for kicking him out of his own home for 400 years, and taking over his castle. But now it was his once again. And with Dracula gone, he could freely look for the Necronomicon with out worrying about the so called vampire king finding him.

“Why did the Devil make him stronger than me?” Orlok thought in irritation. “I was the first. I should have been the strongest. Now thanks to Dracula, I’ve had to wait four centuries to fulfill my destiny.”

A Dwergi came running up to Orlok and tugged on his robes. Orlok gave the creature an angry look. The Dwergi muttered something in its own language and Orlok raised his eyebrows.

“A monster hunter you say.” Orlok said curiously. “Well now that’s interesting.

Who would be brave enough to challenge me? Or should I say, foolish enough.”

The Dwergi spoke in its weird language again. Orlok nodded then dismissed the little monster. Orlok walked across the room to where another man was standing, wrapped up in bandages.

“I want to who this hunter is.” Orlok told the man. “I want to know everything about them.”

The man nodded. “As you wish, master.”

He turned to leave ad Orlok called after him. “I don’t want them to be aware you’re following them. Make sure you’re not seen.”

The man turned back to Orlok. He took off his hat and pulled off his bandages. There was nothing underneath.

“That won’t be a problem.” the Invisible Man assured him.

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“Count Orlok hasn’t been seen in 400 years.” Reinfield explained. “But a few days after you defeated Dracula he came back. We know almost nothing about him. He attacks the village for food, but other than that he leaves us alone for the most part.”

Van Helsing and Carl followed Reinfield through the Valerious Manor. It was even harder being in here. Everywhere he looked he saw Anna’s beautiful face. If only there was a way to have saved her.

“Gabriel Van Helsing, you stop thinking like that right now!” Van Helsing scolded himself. “You have to stay focused.”

“However, his minions have been sighted in the Black Swamp a lot.” Reinfield continued. “We have no idea what they’re looking for in there, but no one wants to find out. And apparently Orlok does not want us to find out either. Anyone who approaches the swamp when Orlok’s minions are in it never come back.”

Van Helsing found this news very interesting. “What would be in a swamp that Orlok would want so badly?”

Reinfield shrugged. “To tell the truth, we do not care. As long as we are left in peace.”

Well Van Helsing sure cared. If Orlok was looking for something, it couldn’t be anything good. But what could it be? Then another thought came to him.

“You say Orlok’s minions have been the ones searching the swamps.” he said. “What sort of minions?”

“Dwergi mostly.” Reinfield replied. “But occasionally there is a strange masked man. No one knows who they are; they arrived when Orlok did. And some people have claimed that an unseen presence has been around at times.”

“An unseen presence?” thought Van Helsing. “What does that mean?”

“There is also another creature that has been found in the company of Orlok’s minions.” said Reinfield. “It is said to be a monster even more vicious than a werewolf.”

Van Helsing turned to Carl. “Any ideas on that?”

Carl blinked in confusion. “What? Oh, uh, no. There aren’t many creatures more vicious than werewolves. Has anyone seen it.”

Reinfield shook his head. “No. At least not anyone alive. All those that have come across it have ended up dead.”

Van Helsing nodded in understanding. It sounded like this mission wasn’t going to be as simple as just killing a vampire. Something was hidden in the swamp, there was a mysterious presence around, a masked man that sided with Orlok, and a beast more vicious than a werewolf. Yes, this mission was going to be very difficult.

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“Carl you’ve been reading for hours,” said Van Helsing impatiently, “and we’re no closer to finding out what Orlok is planning than we were when we first arrived.”

Carl looked up from the book he had been reading. “Who says we’re no closer? There is much research involved with all of this. How do you think I found out everything I did about Dracula? Just be patient.”

Van Helsing dropped down into a chair. Carl had insisted that they do some research on Orlok’s background before they went after him. ‘We need to find a way to kill him without one of us becoming a werewolf,’ he had said. Van Helsing was in no hurry to become a werewolf again so he agreed to try and find out something about Orlok. But it had been several hours now and Van Helsing didn’t want to wait around much longer.

Reluctantly he turned the page to the book he was reading, ‘Noseferatu: the Phantoms of the Night’. Everything in these books were about average vampires. But Orlok was not a normal vampire, and nothing in these books seemed to be helping.

The door to the room opened and Reinfield came in with some food and wine. “Is everything alright in here?” he asked.

Carl nodded. “Oh yes, everything is just fine.” Van Helsing merely grunted. This research thing was not his field.

Reinfield set the tray down by them. “Well if you need anything...”

“We’ll call you.” Van Helsing finished for him, not hiding how irritated he was all together.

Reinfield exited the room to leave the two to their research. Carl immediately went back to his reading while Van Helsing started on his dinner.

The two were silent for quite some time. Carl was completely absorbed in his book. Van Helsing had stopped eating and appeared to be concentrating on something. He was sensing something. There was something in the room. It had come in with Reinfield, but had not left with him. Carl didn’t seem to notice anything.

Slowly Van Helsing got to his feet. He took his glass of wine and took a sip. “Hey Carl.” The friar kept reading. “Carl!”

“Hmm, what?

Van Helsing rolled his eyes at how much Carl could get into his reading. “Do you feel anything?”

Carl raised an eyebrow. “Feel anything?”

Van Helsing nodded. “Yes, like we’re being watched.”

Carl looked around the room in confusion. “Ummmm, no.”

Walking into the middle of the room, Van Helsing continued looking around. “Do you remember Reinfield saying something about an unseen presence?”

“Yes.”

Van Helsing suddenly splashed his wine. It covered something, or someone unseen. The Invisible Man cried out in shock. He was no longer invisible. Carl jumped back, causing his chair to fall over.

The not so Invisible Man seized a stool and swung it at Van Helsing. The monster hunter ducked and viciously slammed his elbow into the Invisible Man’s head. Dropping the stool, the Invisible Man stumbled backwards. Van Helsing grabbed him by his throat and slammed him against the wall.

“Who are you?” he demanded.

“What are you?” Carl asked, cautiously approaching.

The Invisible scratched at Van Helsing’s iron grip with his unseen hands. “What does it look like I am?” he managed to choke out.

In truth he looked like a floating puddle of wine shaped in the form of a man. But Carl and Van Helsing were able to figure out what they were dealing with; Carl had just automatically asked the question.

“Well, you appear, or don’t appear, to be an invisible man.” said Carl, stating the obvious.

The Invisible Man continued to struggle. “My, you are the smart one, aren’t you.”

Van Helsing tightened his hold. “Well it looks like we’ve discovered the mysterious presence. Now what are you doing here?”

Slowly the Invisible Man reached for a weapon. His arm was not covered in wine, easily hiding it from view. “I was sent to spy on you.” he said. “My master wanted to know who you were.”

His hand closed over a candlestick. Neither Carl or Van Helsing could see this.

“So Orlok knows we’re here.” said Van Helsing, guessing who the Invisible Man’s master was. “Where is he?”

The Invisible Man didn’t reply. He smashed the candlestick against Van Helsing’s head. Van Helsing stumbled back, releasing the Invisible Man, who kicked the monster hunter in the gut and headed for the window. Without hesitating, he jumped through the window and vanished into the night.

Van Helsing ran over to the window. He looked around for the Invisible Man. Predictably there was no sign of him, not that there ever was. Carl came up beside Van Helsing.

“Now what?” he asked.

Van Helsing thought about it a minute. There was no point in laying low anymore. Orlok knew they were here. There wasn’t time to go through anymore books. It was time for action.

Van Hellsing turned to Carl. “Tomorrow, we’re going into the Black Swamp.

Chapter Text

Chapter 4: The Swamp Thing

The next morning, Van Helsing had Reinfield lead him and Carl to the Black Swamp. Reinfield brought them to the entrance, but would go no further.

“There are other things in here besides Orlok’s minions.” he said.

Van Helsing figured as much. “Thank you, we can take it from here.”

Reinfield nodded and turned to leave. Carl looked ready to leave too. “Well, this more of your area of expertise.” he said nervously. “So I’ll just be going and-” Van Helsing grabbed Carl’s robes and dragged him into the swamp. “But I don’t want to go!”

Van Helsing couldn’t blame him. He didn’t want to be in this place either. It was very warm and damp. It smelled very bad and a layer of mist covered the ground, making it difficult to watch where you’re stepping. Several times Van Helsing stepped in a muddy sink hole, getting stuck in the smelly muck.

After about half an hour of mindless wandering, Carl finally spoke up. “Why are we in here? We don’t even know what we’re looking for.”

Van Helsing sighed. He wasn’t enjoying this anymore than the friar. “We’re looking for any signs of evil.”

“Well we could be looking for a very long time.” said Carl. He cried out as he walked into a spider web. “Besides, we might run into one of Orlok’s minions.”

Van Helsing nodded. “That’s what I’m hoping for.”

“Why?”

“They may be able to lead us to Orlok. And something tells me we’re getting close. I sense something. A presence of some sort.”

Carl went pale. “It’s not that creature that’s supposedly worse than a werewolf, is it?”

Van Helsing drew his guns. “No, it seems to be human. Or part human. It’s close. Watching us.”

Immediately, Carl grabbed hold of Van Helsing’s jacket. “Watching us? Where?”

Van Helsing waited a couple of seconds before answering. “In the trees.”

Someone, or something cried loudly and jumped down from the tree it had been hiding in. It tackled Van Helsing, knocking the guns from his hands. It was strong, that was for sure, but it was in a vulnerable position. Van Helsing kicked upwards with both legs, catching the creature in the stomach. It flew off him and slammed into a tree. Van Helsing got to his feet and got a good look at the creature. It looked like a human, but its skin appeared to be made of moss. He didn’t know what this thing was, and it surprised him when it spoke.

“You fiend!” it cried. “You shall never retrieve the Necronomicon!”

It dove at Van Helsing. The monster hunter pulled out his spinning blades. He jumped to the side to avoid the creatures attack, swinging the blade. It cut the creature across the chest. It howled in pain and leapt at Van Helsing again.

Van Helsing stepped backwards, right into a sink hole. He sank up to his knees in the swamp. Unable to move, the creature was able to pounce on Van Helsing, pinning him to the ground. The creature kneeled on Van Helsing’s arms as its hands closed around his throat.

“I’ll see to it that the book is kept safe.” the creature said, tightening its grip.

Gunfire was heard and the creature released Van Helsing. It cried out in pain and fell to the ground. Van Helsing pulled himself out of the muck and saw Carl standing several feet away with Van Helsing’s gun.

Walking over to the terrified friar, Van Helsing took his gun back, practically prying it from Carl’s grip. “Carl. Carl! Give me the gun.”

“What?  Oh, yes, right. Of course.” said Carl nervously. He turned back to the green creature that was lowly crawling away. “What is that thing?”

The creature continued to crawl away until it came to a place where the sun penetrated through all the trees. It stayed in the light for a few second before rising to its feet. Its wounds began healing. Apparently, sunlight gave it strength.

Van Helsing aimed at the creature, but did not fire. “Who are you? Are you working for Count Orlok?”

The creature gave Van Helsing a confused look. “I assumed you were?” it said.

Van Helsing shook his head. “No, I have come here to kill that monster. I am Van Helsing.”

The creature’s eyes widened. “Thee Van Helsing!” it gasped in awe. “My most sincere apologies. I thought you were one of Orlok’s servants. Forgive me. My name is Alec. Although the villagers refer to me as the Swamp Thing.”

Van Helsing lowered his gun. He was sure that this creature would be no trouble for them. “Most people fear what they don’t understand.”

Alec nodded. “Indeed. But if you are here to slay Orlok, why are you here?”

Carl managed to find his voice. “We were told his forces were seen searching for something in here.” he squeaked.

Alec clenched his hands into fists. “Yes, they search for the Necronomicon. I have been protecting it for several years. It was the last wish of a friend. But if you are who you say you are, then the book will be much safer in your hands. Follow me.”

Alec began heading deeper into the swamp. Van Helsing followed, and after a moment’s hesitation, Carl did too. As they walked further and further into the swamp, Carl became more and more uneasy. He quickly ran up to walk by Van Helsing.

“How do we know we can trust him?” he asked.

“Don’t worry, we can.” said Van Helsing confidently.

Carl didn’t seem convinced. “But how do we know he’s not lying and isn’t really working for Orlok?”

“It goes both ways.”

That seemed to shut Carl up. He didn’t know what else to say. So they walked in silence as Alec led them into the heart of the swamp. After awhile, Alec stopped by a large tree.

“Wait here.” he said.

One of the tree’s roots was sticking up. Alec grabbed this root and lifted it up. With superhuman strength, he pulled the tree half way out of the ground. He used his foot to kick something out from under the tree, since his hands were full. He dropped the tree and it fell perfectly back into place.

Alec moved over to the thing he had gotten out from under the tree. He picked it up and wiped some muck off. It looked like a piece of flesh to Van Helsing, but when Alec brought it over to them, he saw that it was actually a book.

“This,” said Alec, handing him the book, “is the Necronomicon; the Book of the Dead.”

“Good lord!” gasped Carl, doing the sign of the cross. “It’s real. I thought it was merely a legend.”

Van Helsing had never seen, or heard of the Necronomicon before, but something about it seemed familiar to him. Carefully he took the book from Alec and opened it. It was written in some language Van Helsing didn’t recognize. And the writing was in red; Van Helsing had a feeling it wasn’t red ink.

“This book is a very powerful item.” said Alec. “In the right hands, it can be a powerful tool against the forces of evil. But in the wrong hands... I shudder to think of what can happen.”

Van Helsing continued scanning the book. Nothing in here made sense to him. “Why would Orlok want this?”

“It can be used to bring people back to life, or kill them.” said Carl. “Most of the spells are meant for evil. But they can also undo the evil.”

“But why would Orlok want this?” Van Helsing repeated impatiently.

It was Alec who answered. “He could use it to kill an enemy. Create an army of zombies. Resurrect someone close to him. Use your imagination.”

Van Helsing’s head suddenly filled with possibilities. But the one that caught his attention the most was the one Alec had just said. ‘Resurrect someone close to him.’ Could this possibly mean what Van Helsing that it meant?

He handed the book to Carl. “Can you read any of this?”

Carl seemed taken aback, but then he began looking through the book. “It’s very hard to decipher. But I can make out some of it. I’m sure with some time I could.”

Van Helsing’s heart began beating very fast. “Do you know what this means?” he said excitedly.

Carl nodded. “We can use this book to kill Orlok.”

“No!” cried Van Helsing. But then he thought about it. “Well ok, yes we can, but I meant that we can bring Anna back!”

Carl’s eyes widened as he realized what Van Helsing meant. “Um, Van Helsing, don’t get your hopes up. It’s not that I don’t want Anna back, it’s just that, most spells in this book are meant for evil. There most likely will be a spell that can bring her back, but what if we use the wrong spell, or what if it goes wrong. We might bring her back as a vampire or something.”

Van Helsing’s heart sank. Carl was right, it could be dangerous. But if there was even the slightest chance that he could restore the life he took, he would do whatever it took; even if it meant sacrificing his own life.

“If you’re going to go through with this, you must be careful.” Alec warned them. “Even if you do manage to successfully bring the princess back, you will have to make sure Orlok does not find out. If he does, he will know you have the book.”

Van Helsing nodded in understanding. “I will be careful. Thank you my friend.”

Alec smiled. “I do not know why Orlok wants this book, but I know nothing good will come of it if he gets it. The burden is on you now.”

He turned to leave. “Wait!” Van Helsing called after him. “Come with us.”

Alec just laughed. “My place is here. This is where I belong. I wish you the best of luck in your quest. Good bye my friends.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 5: Resurrection

After wandering around for over an hour or so, Van Helsing was sure that it was safe to say that they were lost. Carl didn’t take the news that well.

“Why couldn’t greenie at least show us how to get out of here?” Carl complained.

Van Helsing didn’t care. They would only be lost for so long He just focused on one thing. Anna. They were going to bring her back. They could be together again.

“Just let me work on getting us out of here.” said Van Helsing. “You just find the passage to bring Anna back.”

Carl glared at Van Helsing. “I’m trying. This isn’t very day reading material you know. And they’re so many different spells. There’s one to turn a person’s body into a zombie, one to reincarnate a person, one to bring the dead back as a vampire, one to allow another soul to enter another body. I have to find one that will bring Anna back as a human mortal, exactly the way se was when she died. So excuse me if this takes awhile.”

Van Helsing was surprised by Carl’s outburst. Perhaps he was putting too much pressure on his friend. He was just so happy that he would see Anna again. They walked in silence for several more minutes before Carl cried out.

“HEY!!! I think found... oh, no wait. That’s not going to work. Sorry. Sorry.”

Van Helsing gave Carl a weird look. “Why, what’s wrong?”

Carl sighed. “Well, I found a spell that restore the soul with the body, but we burned Anna’s body, so that won’t work.”

Van Helsing growled in irritation. Carl had gone and gotten his hopes up. But it would only be a matter of time before they found the right passage. But that didn’t make the wait any better.

“Wait a minute!” Carl exclaimed. “Wait a minute. I think I found something else.”

Van Helsing eyed Carl hopefully, waiting for the friar to confirm that he had found the passage that they were searching for.

“Yes! Yes, I found it!” Carl cried happily. “A way to restore a body completely and reunite the body with the soul.”

Van Helsing ran to Carl’s side. He looked at the book. There was a blood red picture of what looked like a person with missing limbs being created by a mist and a spirit hovering over the body. Underneath the picture was the same ancient text found throughout the rest of the book.

Carl pointed to the picture. “It explains here, that if a body has become too damaged to put the soul back into it, that this spell will recreate the body, then summon the spirit from the afterlife, whether it’s Heaven or Hell.”

Van Helsing wasn’t interested in learning the spell; not as long as Carl understood it and it would resurrect Anna. “Alright, let’s give it a try.”

Carl smiled and nodded, but continued to just stare at the book. Van Helsing gave him a weird look an Carl’s smile faded a bit. “Now?”

Van Helsing cut his eyes. “Yes now!”

“Oh... um, right.”

They moved to a more open and less wet area. Carl continued going through the passage. Then he came across a bit of a problem. “Um, Van Helsing. There’s something that poses a bit of a problem.”

Of course there would be. It could be as simple as reading a passage. “What is it?”

“Well, for this spell, the book demands the blood of a virgin.” Carl explained.

Van Helsing gave Carl a curious look. It didn’t sound that bad. Unless... “Does it mean we have to kill them?” he asked worriedly.

Carl shook his head. “No, we just need a small sample of blood. The donor must willingly give their blood. Now we need to find a willing virgin.” Van Helsing raised an eyebrow. Carl caught the look in his eyes and immediately knew what the monster hunter was thinking. “Well don’t look at me!”

This seemed to surprise Van Helsing. “You mean, you...”

Carl looked irritated. “I’m still just a friar.”

Van Helsing rolled his eyes. He reached into his coat and took out a knife. “How much blood does it need?”

This time Carl looked surprised. “You mean, you’re a...”

“Carl!” Van Helsing growled.

“Oh, right. Um, just rub some on the cover... You’re seriously-”

“Carl!”

“Right, right. Sorry. Sorry.”

Van Helsing made a small cut on his left index finger. He rubbed the blood on the cover. He would graciously give every drop of his blood for Anna.

Something happened that neither Van Helsing or Carl could have predicated. The skin like cover of the book seemed to grab at Van Helsing’s finger. The book began absorbing his blood like a leech, and it didn’t seem like it was going to let go anytime soon.

“Carl, what is this?!”” Van Helsing cried, trying to tear his hand away.

“I don’t know!” Carl cried in panic. “It didn’t say it was going to do this.”

Van Helsing was losing blood fast. Very fast. He already felt light headed. He took his knife and cut around his finger. He ripped it away, taking a piece of the cover with it. It seemed to do the trick. The piece stuck to Van Helsing’s finger fell off and rotted away. The rip in the cover healed, making it look good as new.

“Little devil!” Van Helsing seethed. He felt weak, having lost a lot of blood. “Is that all, or should I just slit my wrist?”

Carl looked apologetically at his friend. “That should be good. I’m sorry, I didn’t know that was going to happen.”

“There’s always a catch.” thought Van Helsing.

“Yes, that seemed to do the trick.” Carl announced. “The spell has appeared.”

“So read it.” Van Helsing ordered. He felt dizzy.

Carl began reading the passage. It sounded like mindless gibberish. As long as it worked, Van Helsing didn’t care what it sounded like.

Carl finished the reading and looked to Van Helsing. At first nothing happened, but the a powerful wind took up. The Necronomicon was vibrating and glowing an angry red. Whatever the spell did, it seemed to be working.

With the wind came a golden mist that seemed to come from out of nowhere. It surrounded Van Helsing and Carl like a golden tornado. The sky over them seemed to open and a blinding bright light shined down. Van Helsing had to squint to see. Something was coming down. It looked like a ghost, only it wasn’t colorless. Van Helsing immediately recognized who it was.

“Anna.” he whispered.

Anna floated down from the heavens and settled in front of Carl and Van Helsing, who watched in amazement. The golden mist surrounded Anna, hiding her from Van Helsing’s vision. The mist began taking form, shifting from a shapeless cloud to the shape of a person. Then it became solid, glowing faintly.

The wind died down and the glowing light faded. Anna lay on the ground in a deep sleep. Her chest rose and fell as she breathed for the first time in 2 months.

Van Helsing couldn’t believe it. Anna was here! Alive! It had worked! He didn’t even care that the Necronomicon had nearly drained him completely of blood. There was no doubt that he defiantly got the better part of the deal.

“Anna!” Van Helsing cried, lifting her up. “Anna, can you hear me? Wake up. Please wake up.” He looked at Carl. “Why won’t she wake?”

Carl blinked and shook his head, coming out of his trance. “Well... she was just brought back to life. Give her some time to recover from death.”

Time? How much time would it take? Van Helsing would wait forever if that was what it took, but he wanted Anna to wake up now. He had missed her so much. She was just the way he remembered her. He stroked her cheek lovingly.

Both Van Helsing and Carl were so focused on Anna that they did not see the creature behind them rise from the murky water and slowly approach them. The creature grabbed Carl and pulled him back, under the water.

“Carl!” Van Helsing cried. He didn’t want to leave Anna’s side, especially when she was in this vulnerable state, but Carl was in trouble. The poor friar was thrashing around in the water as his captor pulled him into deeper waters. “Hold on Carl!”

He whipped out his guns. Taking careful aim, he fired at the creature. It cried out as the bullet hit it in the arm. It released Carl, who quickly scurried back onto dry land.

“Who are you trying to kill?” he exclaimed, running over to the monster hunter.

“Whatever that thing is.” Van Helsing replied.

The creature literally jumped out of the water and landed a few feet away from Van Helsing. It looked like some sort of humanoid amphibian. It had green scaly skin, fins, and claws on its webbed hands. Carl jumped at the sight of the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

Van Helsing open fired on the creature. It cried out in pain as the bullets penetrated its slimy wet skin. With surprising speed, the creature jumped over Van Helsing. It landed right between Carl and Van Helsing. With strength, just as surprising as its speed, it pushed Carl. The friar flew backwards, crashing into a tree, and hitting his head rather hard.

He stumbled forward, a trail of blood coming from his head. He reached up and touched his head, feeling the blood. “Oh dear,” he said sounding very dazed. “I think I have a concussion.”

Then he collapsed, falling into unconsciousness. While this was happening, the creature had attacked Van Helsing immediately after it knocked Carl back. It slashed out at him with its razor sharp claws. Van Helsing was still weak from the loss of blood. Not having the strength to dodge the attack, he held up his arms to shield himself. The creature’s five razor claws dug into Van Helsing’s arms.

Crying out in pain, Van Helsing dropped the gun. The creature picked him up and through him. He fell face first into the murky water. The creature pounced on Van Helsing, slashing at his back. Van Helsing cried out in pain and elbowed the creature in the face. The creature let out an inhuman cry as Van Helsing crawled out from under the creature.

It recovered quickly though, and was once again standing over Van Helsing. The monster hunter was weak. From the loss of blood, the wandering around in the swamp all day, and the fight with Alec, Van Helsing had reached his limit. He may be a legendary monster hunter, but he was still human. He could only take so much.

He looked up into the hungry eyes of the creature. It looked ready to go in for the kill, and Van Helsing was too weak to defend himself.

“Am I gonna die just when I got Anna back?” Van Helsing thought.

Suddenly the creature cried out in pain as a sword burst through its chest. At first Van Helsing thought that Carl had regained consciousness and saved him, but what he saw made his heart leap for joy. Anna was standing behind the creature, having been the one that stabbed the creature from behind.

She pulled the sword from the creature and in one quick motion, cut off its head. It stood still for a moment before falling in the water dead.

Van Helsing pulled himself to his feet, staring at Anna in disbelief. She was looking back at him with equal shock.

“Anna?”

“Gabriel?”

Then she collapsed.

Chapter Text

Chapter 6: Betrayal

Carl was the first to awaken. He slowly sat up, wondering what had happened. His head hurt terribly. The last thing he remembered was him and Van Helsing in the swamp, and then... The creature! Everything came back to him.

“Van Helsing!” he cried.

The door burst open and Van Helsing came in. Wait, the door? Carl suddenly realized he was back in Valerious Manor.

“Carl, are you alright?” Van Helsing asked in concern.

Carl put his hand to his head, desperately wishing the room would stop spinning around. “How long have I been out?”

Van Helsing shrugged. “A couple of hours. I had to carry you and Anna all the way back here.”

Carl immediately perked up. “Oh yes, how is she?”

“Still sleeping.” said Van Helsing. “She woke up for a couple of seconds back in the swamp, but she blacked out again.”

“Oh. Well, thank you for saving me from that... thing.”

“Thank Anna when she wakes.” said Van Helsing, heading back into the other room.

Carl got off the couch and followed him into Anna’s room. The princess was lying down on her bed, still fast asleep. Van Helsing sat in a chair next to her, watching over her protectively. The Necronomicon lay on the floor by him.

Walking over to Van Helsing Carl asked, “How is she?”

“Fine physically.” Van Helsing replied, not taking his eyes off her. “She just continues to sleep. If she doesn’t wake soon, I’m going to go get a doctor. Explaining how she’s alive after being dead for 2 months will be difficult though.”

Carl nodded in understanding. He briefly wondered how Van Helsing had managed to get Anna into Valerious Manor without anyone seeing.

Suddenly Anna moaned and began moving around.

“Anna!” cried Van Helsing.

At hearing his voice, Anna’s eyes opened. She took in her surroundings and quickly sat up. She home. Back on Earth. She had thought that moment back in the swamp had been a dream; yes, even in Heaven people dreamed. And when she dreamed, it had always been of the man standing over her.

“Gabriel.” she muttered, not believing her eyes. He was here. He was really here.

“Anna.” Van Helsing whispered her name, still not believing this himself.

Anna nearly threw herself at him, kissing him passionately. Van Helsing kissed her back with just as much love and desire. Both were completely oblivious to Carl, who was standing there with his mouth open.

Anna reluctantly broke away. “Is this real?” she asked. “How is this possible?” None of this made sense to her. One moment she had been with her family in Heaven, the next she was back on Earth, very much alive.

“I brought you back.” said Van Helsing. “Anna I am so sorry. I couldn’t control myself. Please forgive me-”

Anna silenced him with another kiss. “You have nothing to be sorry for. I don’t blame you in the least. In fact, I thank you. You killed Dracula. You allowed me to see my family once again. And now you have given me life once more. You are a hero.”

Van Helsing’s heart leapt for joy. All the pain he had been going through these past 2 months was gone. He kissed her again. Nothing else mattered. Not the Order, not the monsters he was hunting, nothing. All that mattered was him and Anna.

Carl was growing a little uncomfortable watching his two friends make out. He cleared his voice, making them aware of his presence. Anna and Van Helsing broke apart, blushing furiously. “Glad to see you’re awake.” said Carl. “How are you feeling?”

Anna smiled. “I feel fine. What happened to you?” she said, indicating his bandaged head.

Carl looked a little embarrassed. “Just a little accident from in the Black Swamp.”

Anna’s eyes widened. She turned to Van Helsing. “You went into the Black Swamp! Why?”

Van Helsing bent down and picked up the Necronomicon. “We went to get this.” Anna carefully took the book. “It’s the Book of the Dead. We used it to bring you back.”

Anna stared at the book in wonder. “How?”

“There’s spells in there on ways to bring the dead back to life. We found one to bring you back. You don’t know what Van Helsing went through to bring you back.”

Anna turned to Van Helsing. “What did you do?” she asked in concern.

“Just gave some blood.” he said with a shrug. “Nothing big.”

“Nothing big!” Carl exclaimed. “You were nearly bled dry!”

Van Helsing threw Carl a dirty look as Anna rounded on him. “What?”

“It was just a little prick.” said Van Helsing. “I didn’t know I was going to have to give up that much. But I would have given every drop for you.”

Anna slapped his arm. “Gabriel Van Helsing, don’t you ever talk like that again! I don’t want you talking about you giving up your life for me!”

Van Helsing looked embarrassed. “If it meant bringing you back, I would have gladly sacrificed myself.”

“I won’t have you giving up your life for me.” said Anna. “I’m not worth that.”

“You’re worth anything.”

“Not your own life.”

Van Helsing backed down from the fight. He knew he would never win this argument. Anna’s anger left her at the look on Van Helsing’s face. She looked down at the book in her hands.

“How did you find out about this?” she asked.

Van Helsing sighed in relief, glad that Anna wasn’t mad at him any more. “I was given an assignment here to kill Orlok.” he said.

Anna looked up at him with open shock. “Count Graf Orlok? He’s here?”

“Yes.” said Carl. “He came after Dracula was killed. And he wants the book for some reason. Any ideas why?”

Before Anna could reply, the door opened and Reinfield walked in. “Mr. Van Helsing I...” He noticed an and his mouth dropped open. “P-p-princess? You... how... but... you’re dead.”

Anna smiled. “Was. I’m back thanks to these two.” she said, referring to Van Helsing and Carl.

Reinfield was utterly bewildered. “But how?”

“We used this.” said Carl, without thinking, pointing to the Necronomicon.

“Carl!” said Van Helsing, warningly.

Reinfield curiously went over to the book to examine it. “What is this?” he asked taking the book and turning through it. “It’s terrible.”

“Only if it’s used that way.” said Carl. “It can be used for good. Anna here is a fine example.”

Reinfield continued looking through the book. “How did this bring her back.”

Carl turned to the page that had the passage on it that was used to resurrect Anna. “We used this spell.”

Reinfield gave Carl a curious look. “You can read this?”

“A little.” said Carl.

Reinfield closed the book. “How you can is beyond me.” He handed the book to Van Helsing. Make sure you don’t lose this. I shudder to think what would happen if this fell in the wrong hands. Princess, if you need anything, I will be more than happy to help.”

Anna nodded. “Thank you Reinfield.”

Reinfield left, closing the door behind him to give them some privacy. The three sat in silence for a bit before an idea suddenly occurred to Anna.

“Gabriel, do you think we can use this to bring my parents and brother back?” she asked hopefully.

Van Helsing turned to Carl, who just shrugged. “I don’t see why not. Let me see the passage again.”

Van Helsing handed the book to Carl. Anna got up and stood by Van Helsing’s side. “Gabriel, you don’t think that Velkan will be a werewolf when he comes back, do you?”

Van Helsing wasn’t sure how to answer that. “Let’s see what the passage says.”

They looked at Carl who was just staring at the open book. “Uh, that could be a problem.” He turned the book to them. “The page with the spell on it is gone.”

“What?!?” cried Van Helsing and Anna together. They jumped up to see that the page had indeed been removed.

“How?” gasped Anna.

After a few seconds Van Helsing understood. “Reinfield.” he growled. He and Anna ran out of the room, leaving a very confused Carl behind. “He’ll be heading for Castle Dracula.”

“Why?” asked Anna, running alone sighed him.

“Because it used to belong to Orlok. And that’s where he’ll be.”

They ran to the map of Transylvania, which was really a hidden door to Castle Dracula. They stopped in front of the painting, their hopes crashing down. The map was torn to ribbons.

(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)-(-)

Orlok was not happy with the way the Invisible Man’s mission had gone. How could someone invisible get themselves caught? It was inexcusable. Orlok would have killed him on the spot if he wasn’t so useful.

Still, his servant had done his job. He had discovered the identity of the monster hunter. Van Helsing. Of course. He should have seen it coming. The Knights of the Holy Order sent him to kill Dracula, why not him too.

No matter. Orlok wasn’t an overconfident fool like Dracula. Cure or no cure, he would never work with werewolves. Besides, he had something much better.

“Master!”

Orlok was brought out of his thoughts by someone calling to him. He saw his faithful human spy, Reinfield, coming up to him.

“Reinfield, what are you doing here?” Orlok demanded angrily. “You were to stay in the village and give me daily reports.”

Reinfield bowed to his master. “Master, I have it. I have the passage.”

Orlok’s eyes widened, his irritation at the man vanishing instantly. “You have it? Give to me!”

Reinfield handed Orlok the page he had stolen from the Necronomicon. The fools hadn’t even noticed him tear out the page. He looked at his master with a triumphant look on his face. He would be greatly rewarded for this.

Orlok took the page and began examining it. But the more he read, the more his smile faded, until he had an angry scowl on his face.

“Reinfield, what is this?” he asked.

Reinfield continued to smile. “It’s the passage you’ve been looking for. The one to bring back the dead. Van Helsing used it to bring back the princess.”

Orlok narrowed his eyes. “The Valerious wench has returned. And Van Helsing has the Necronomicon.” His voice became deep and evil. “And you bring me this! This is not what I wanted!”

Reinfield took a step backwards. “But, it’s the passage to bring back the dead. Is that not what you wanted?”

Orlok’s eyes flashed with anger. “There are many ways to bring back the dead. This merely bring a person back as a mortal. Nothing else. They are exactly the same as they were before they died. I do not want this!” He crumbled up the page in his hand. “This is useless!” He tossed the crumbled up page into the nearby fire place. The page burned to ashes as the fire claimed it. “Why did you not bring me the entire book?”

Clearly terrified, Reinfield threw himself at Orlok’s feet. “Forgive me master! I thought I could steal the passage without anyone knowing. This way you would be able to fulfill your plans without anyone knowing. Please, give me another chance. I shall retrieve the book. I will not fail you again.”

Orlok grabbed Reinfield by his shirt and lifted him up. “And how are you going to do that? You have blown your cover. You are of no use to me anymore.”

Orlok got an evil look in his eye. Reinfield knew what was coming. “No master please. Spare me!”

            Orlok ignored him. His mouth opened wide and his already long teeth grew even longer and sharper as he bit into Reinfield’s neck.

Chapter Text

Chapter 7: Temptation

As much as Van Helsing didn’t want anyone to know about the Necronomicon, the villagers needed to know. They had to know how Anna was somehow alive again and why they were looking for Reinfield, who, unknown to them, was laying dead in Castle Dracula. There wasn’t much of a point in hiding the book any longer; not if Reinfield had made it to Orlok.

A search party was set out to find the treacherous man. Why he sided with Orlok, no one knew, probably by being promised power. Whatever the reason was, Reinfield had made an alliance with the hideous vampire, and was on his way right now to deliver the stolen page to Orlok.

Carl had assured Van Helsing that the stolen page couldn’t possibly be what Orlok was searching for. Not unless he was planning on bringing back a mortal. With this in mind, the biggest reason they continued searching for Reinfield was to retrieve the passage so they could bring Anna’a family back to life. But soon night fell and there was no sign of Reinfield. The villagers were forced to retire; no one wanted to be out after dark as long as there were vampires around. Carl had tried to find another spell that would bring mortals back as just plan mortals, but the two closest things he found was reincarnation and putting the said soul into a different body. It was useless.

Van Helsing stood in Anna’s room watching the princess as she stared out the window. “I’m sorry we couldn’t find Reinfield.” he said sympathetically.

Anna turned to look at him with tears in her eyes. “Don’t be, it’s not your fault. It’s his. His and Orlok’s.” She turned to look out the window again. “It’s like losing them all over again.”

Van Helsing walked over to her and rested his hand on her shoulder. “Anna, you know I’ll do anything for you. If that means going to Castle Dracula, or Orlok, or whatever castle it is, I’ll go there right now and get back that passage.”

Anna quickly turned to him. “No!” she cried urgently. “You’re all I have left. I can’t bare to lose you too.”

They looked into each others eyes, both radiating with love. They embraced each other, kissing passionately. Slowly they began moving to the bed, both glad the door was closed and locked.

Van Helsing made a vow to never let anything happen to her again. He got her killed once, but he would never allow her to be harmed again.

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Carl was up bright and early the next morning. He opened the Necronomicon and began looking through it again. What could Orlok be planning. What spell could he be looking for. Quite a few, most actually, of the spells were dark evil things that made Carl shiver. He wondered if the Devil himself had wrote his book; sort of like a bible from Hell. He could see why Orlok wanted this book, any evil being would, but what was he planning on using it for.

It was late in the afternoon before Van Helsing and Anna came downstairs. Carl gave them a knowing look and couldn’t help but say “Sleep well you two? I believe you spent the night in Anna’s room, Van Helsing.”

Van Helsing and Anna blushed furiously. Van Helsing gave Carl a look that promised that he would pay for this later. Carl decided to change the subject, thinking he had gone too far. “I’ve been reading through this... this... thing. I found several things that Orlok might want to use, but I can’t say for sure.” He turned a few pages back. “I also found a few passages that may help us. One can take away an undead’s immortality.”

That sounded helpful. “Good, then I won’t need to become a werewolf to kill Orlok.” Van Helsing observed.

Carl smiled nervously. “Then why don’t you work two work on putting the door back together, and I’ll try and find more helpful spells.”

Van Helsing nodded. “That’s a good idea.” he said. “Carl, don’t let anyone else go near that book. We don’t know who else is working for Orlok.”

Carl put on a confidant look. “Don’t you worry, I’ll guard this with my life.”

Van Helsing and Anna left to go and try to repair the damaged painting as Carl turned back to the Necronomicon. The spell he was reading made him feel sick.

Outside, unknown to the three friends an evil lurked. A man wearing a coat and bandages over his face stood in the shadows. A young woman stood by him as they waited for the streets to clear.

The Invisible Man began unwrapping his bandages and removing his coat. “The only downside to being invisible is having to freeze to death.” he said, removing the last of his clothes. He turned to his attention to the woman beside him. “You remember the plan, right?”

The woman smiled. “Of course. Looking forward to it.”

She walked erotically to the Valerious Manor, the Invisible Man followed behind her, leaving no sign that he was even there, save for the footprints in the snow and his discarded clothing.

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Carl was busy looking through another very disturbing spell when a knock came at the door.

“Could Van Helsing and Anna be done already?” he thought. “Come in.” he said.

Carl’s breath got caught in his throat as a beautiful woman walked in. He had shoulder length black hair and pale skin, almost making her look like a vampire. But she was walking around in the sunlight, she couldn’t be a vampire. What caught Carl’s attention the most was here eyes. They were an eerie yellowish bright green color. They were almost hypnotic. Carl couldn’t help but gap at the woman.

Coming to his senses, Carl closed his mouth and asked, “May I help you?”

The woman walked over to Carl. Even the way she moved made Carl’s pulse speed up. “I just want to talk to you.” She sat down on the desk Carl was sitting at. She pushed the Necronomicon away from him, but Carl didn’t even notice. “So you’re the one who helped kill Dracula and is now risking his life to defeat Orlok.” she purred.

Carl was having trouble forming words. “We-we-we-well I he-helped, a l-little. Van Helsing did mo-mo-most of the work.”

The woman moved closer to Carl. “But Van Helsing is taken.” she whispered in his ear. “You’re still available though. And you’re still just a friar.”

Her eyes turned bright yellow and her pupils began slits like a cat’s. Yes, Carl was still just a friar. And right now, he was glad.

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Van Helsing and Anna were in the room that contained the torn remains of the painting of Transylvania. They were doing their best to try and piece the painting back together. Van Helsing was telling Anna about some of his past adventure.

“And that’s how I escaped Kraken.” he said. “Not many can get away from an octopus that’s a mile and a half.”

“Sounds frightening.” said Anna. She had heard of Van Helsing’s reputation as a monster hunter, but some of the things he’s told her he’s fast sent shivers down her back. Like that Mr. Hyde and the Headless Horseman.

“I’ve faced worse.” said Van Helsing. “So, what would you like to hear next? How I defeated the Abominable Snow Monster, or the Sasquatch? Or how about the time I faced Morgan Le Fay?”

Before Anna could answer, someone interrupted them. It was one of the villagers. “Excuse me, Mr. Van Helsing, but I found these outside and thought I should report it to you.”

He held up the coat and bandages the Invisible Man had been wearing. Anna didn’t know what they were, but Van Helsing had an idea.

“The Invisible Man!” he exclaimed.

“The Invisible Man?” Anna repeated. Van Helsing had informed her of Orlok’s unseen minion earlier. “What would he be doing here?”

“The book!” said Van Helsing. “Carl!”

The two took off to Carl’s room, leaving the very confused villager behind.

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Carl couldn’t figure out how he had got so lucky. This beautiful woman had practically thrown herself at him. There was something not quite about her, but Carl couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

As the mysterious woman continued to take all of Carl’s attention, the Necronomicon slowly began moving as invisible hands took the book without notice.

Carl was completely oblivious to this. All his attention was on the woman sitting on his lap. “You’re amazing.” he muttered.

The woman smiled, revealing pointy teeth. “So are you. Good enough to eat.”

The woman began changing. Her ears became pointy, her face became cat like, her fingernails turned into claws, as they dug into Carl’s shoulder.

“Good lord!” Carl cried, as the woman hissed.

At that moment, Van Helsing and Anna burst into the room. They saw the once beautiful woman holding Carl down. Van Helsing ran forward and pulled her off Carl. The friar scrambled away, as Van Helsing threw the woman across the room.

“Carl, what’s going on?” asked Van Helsing.

“I don’t know!” cried Carl, his voice squeaking a little bit.

The woman jumped to her feet. She hissed at the other three and continued her transformation. She clothes fell away as her body shifted and thick black fur grew from all over her body. The woman was no longer a woman, but a large black panther.

The overgrown cat roared and pounced at Van Helsing. The monster hunter whipped out his guns and fired at the attacking creature. It fell dead to the ground less than a foot away. Slowly it changed back to human form.

“What is that thing?” Anna asked, looking at the dead woman.

“A cat woman.” said Van Helsing.

“A what?”

“One of the cat people. They’re similar to werewolves. If they attempt to mate with anyone besides another cat person, they turn into a black panther until they make a kill.”

Anna looked confused. “But if it changed, that means it was attempting to mate with someone who wasn’t... Carl, were you...”

Carl turned red with embarrassment. Two could play at this game. “Don’t give me that look. I seem to remember you two spending the night together.”

“Alright Carl.” Van Helsing growled as he and Anna both blushed. He looked around the room. “Carl where is the Necronomicon?”

Carl’s eyes quickly scanned the room. The look on his face told Van Helsing everything he need to know. The book was gone.

Chapter Text

Chapter 8: Searching for the Unseen

“Come on!” cried Van Helsing, running out of the room. “He can’t have gone far!”

“But how can we find him if he’s invisible?” Carl asked.

“He’ll have the book.” Anna said. “We can see that.”

The three of them ran outside. “Has anyone seen a floating book?” Carl shouted. The villagers looked at him like he was crazy. Carl must have realized how strange he must have sounded because he gave a nervous smile. “Never mind. Just ignore me.”

“Come on, this way.” cried Van Helsing.

He took off giving no indication of where he was going. Anna and Carl followed close behind him.

“Where are we going?” Carl asked, struggling to keep up with the other two.

“To Castle Frankenstein.” Van Helsing replied. “There must be another door. Dracula and his servants were going back and forth between the two castles. He must be heading for it.”

Carl began falling behind. “Well can we stop for a rest?”

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They were gaining on him. The Invisible Man could hear the friar calling to the other two. How had they caught up with him so quickly. Then again, they were expert monster hunters, at least two of them were.

Then it hit him. Why was he running? He was the one with the advantage. They should be running from him. Be afraid that he was standing right beside them and not knowing.

“Time to take advantage of my special ability.” he thought smugly.

He set the Necronomicon down and stood several feet back, waiting.

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Van Helsing, Anna, and Carl continued their way through the woods. They were close, Van Helsing could sense it. The Invisible Man was nearby. So was the Necronomicon. It was a strange feeling he got from the book. It wasn’t a feeling of evil, not quite, but not one of good either. It was a blank nothingness. They book was like a black hole. Perhaps it was because it could be used for good or evil. But Van Helsing didn’t sense either of these forces within the book. It was just... nothing. What it was capable of in the wrong hands... No! They would get the book back. There was no other option.

Van Helsing came to a sudden stop. “Well speak of the devil.” The Necronomicon was laying in the snow a few feet away.

Carl and Anna came up beside him. “Well, that wasn’t so hard.”

Van Helsing rolled his eyes. This was clearly a trap. He took out his guns. He may not be able to see the Invisible Man, but he could sense him. He was here. Somewhere.

Carl made an attempt to pick up the book, but Van Helsing held out a hand to stop him. “Don’t!” he said sharply. “He’s still here.”

Oh he was still there alright. And less than 10 feet away. Out in the open, yet remaining unseen. He slowly approached the Van Helsing. The monster hunter was looking right at him and didn’t even know it. It would be so easy. Just sneak up on them and snap their neck in one quick motion. The Invisible Man had done this countless times. He loved seeing that look of shock on their face before they died.

Invisible beads of sweat ran down his unseen face. He was less than three feet away. Holding his breath so he wouldn’t make a sound, he slowly reached for Van Helsing, ready to wring his hands around his neck.

Van Helsing was completely oblivious to the danger at hand. Well, not entirely oblivious. He knew the Invisible man was here. But he did not know that he was standing right in front of him.

His eyes scanned the area, looking for something, anything. Any sign that indicated where the Invisible Man was. Then he saw it. The sign he was looking for. There, in the snow. Footprints! They could only belong to one person. Who else ran around barefoot in the snow? They led from where the Necronomicon lay, then went 10 feet to the right, then... right in front of him!

BANG!!! Van Helsing fired his gun. Anna and Carl jumped at the sudden noise. Then they spotted the bullet floating in midair, right in front of Van Helsing. Then slowly it fell backwards. The imprint of a man landed in the snow. The bullet hovered a few inches off the ground.

The Invisible Man was breathing heavily. He looked up at Van Helsing. “How... did you... know... that I... that I...”

Van Helsing glared at the spot the Invisible Man was laying. “You could hide yourself, but you left your mark in the snow.”

It took a minute for the Invisible Man to realize what he was talking about. Then he let out a noise that sounded like a cross between a laugh and a cough. “I see. Very... clever... You’ve bested me... I congratulate you...”

Then his breathing stopped. A few seconds passed, and then the Van Helsing, Anna, and Carl watched in amazement as the Invisible Man became visible. He was very, clearly dead.

Van Helsing did the sign of the cross. “God rest your soul.” he said in Latin. Carl followed suit.

A loud roar filled came from up above. Something soared down from the sky. It looked like a large gray demonic bat. Orlok was furious. His Invisible Man had been one of his best minions. Now he was gone. Killed by Van Helsing! No matter. Once he had the Necronomicon he would be in command on the dead.

But he had groan desperate. He feared that Van Helsing might think it would be too risky to keep the Necronomicon and destroy it. No, he couldn’t let that happen. Everything would be ruined. Orlok had grown desperate enough to come out in broad daylight, the clouds providing enough shade for him to survive, in order to make sure the plan went well. But it hadn’t. And it was all thanks to Van Helsing.

But now the Necronomicon was just a few feet away. His arms reaching for it as his large bat wings brought him to his prize.

Van Helsing saw Orlok heading for the book. So the old vampire was desperate enough to come out during the day, was he. He took aimed and fired at the demonic creature. Orlok cried out in pain as the bullets slammed him. He reached for the book, but due to Van Helsing shooting at him, his fingers merely grazed it.

Growling in frustration, Orlok doubled back. Van Helsing reached into his coat and pulled out a bottle of holy water. He through it at the deranged vampire. He fired at the bottle, causing it to shatter, spraying holy water all over Orlok.

The water burned like acid, and Orlok went spinning into a tree. Van Helsing made an attempt to get to the book.

“Gabriel!” Anna shouted, as Orlok flew towards the monster hunter.

Van Helsing was one step ahead of her. He tossed his guns to the side as he grabbed the book. He reached into his coat and pulled out a crucifix. He turned around, holding the cross out to Orlok.

The ancient vampire changed direction in when he was a few feet away. He couldn’t stand to be anywhere near the cross. He couldn’t even bare to look at it. He hovered in midair for a moment, glaring at Van Helsing.

Suddenly he began to feel hot. Very hot. Looking up, Orlok saw that the sky was beginning to clear. He had to leave now or risk being burned to death by the sun. But the book. It was right there! Not 20 feet away. But Van Helsing was keeping him at bay with the crucifix. Why did he have to have such a stupid weakness?

But then an interesting thought occurred to him. Van Helsing may be the greatest monster hunter to ever live, but he still had weaknesses too. And Orlok knew what it was.

He swooped down. Van Helsing held the cross high, thinking the vampire was going to attack. But Orlok flew right by him. Van Helsing was confused at first, but then he saw what Orlok was going for. Anna!

Anna pretty much came to the same conclusion. She turned around to run, but Orlok was too fast. He grabbed hold of her and took flight. Anna tried to struggle, but was no match for Orlok’s supernatural undead strength.

“If you want to see her alive again, be in the cemetery by midnight! Alone and unarmed!” Orlok called back to Van Helsing, who was running after them but falling behind. “Not one second later, or else I won’t just kill her, I’ll turn her!”

Van Helsing ran after them until they were out of sight. He feel to his knees and began pounding the ground. Anna was gone. He had lost her, again.

Chapter Text

Chapter 9: A Lost Past

Van Helsing didn’t wait until midnight. As soon as the sun had set he and Carl headed for the cemetery, while during the day he had searched all through Castle Frankenstein in hopes of finding the other door, but no luck. He decided to go along with Orlok’s game. He was going unarmed, but not alone. Carl was following him, making sure to stay out of sight.

The cemetery was a very big place. After being overshadowed by Dracula and his brides, not to mention all those he turned, for 400 years, this graveyard was filled with more bodies than Van Helsing had ever seen. It was no wonder the grave digger had gone mad with work. So much death, so much destruction. And for what? Just a way to bring more death.

Van Helsing made his way through the graveyard, searching for 2 specific graves. Finally he found them. Boris Valerious and Velkan Valerious. They were originally intended to be buried next to the other Valerious family members, but due to the number of deaths in Transylvania, they were unable to be buried as close as they wanted.

Van Helsing stood by the 2 graves for some time. He felt sorry for the Valeriouss. They had spent their whole lives fighting Dracula, only to die by him and his minions.

“I’m sorry for all of this.” said Van Helsing. “But I promise I’ll get Anna back.”

A laugh came from behind him. Van Helsing turned around to find someone watching him. They were holding a lantern to see in the darkness of night. A white mask covered their face. So this was the mysterious masked man that worked for Orlok.

The man continued laughing. “You’ll only get the Valerious back if you do what the master says.”

Van Helsing glared at him. “I’m here, aren’t I?”

The masked man nodded. “Yes you are. You’re early in fact. No matter. Come, I shall take you to the master.”

Van Helsing followed the masked man, keeping a tight hold on the Necronomicon.

“By the way, my name is Erik.” the man said. “And I must say, it is an honor to meet you.”

“Really?” Van Helsing snorted. “So, how did you get mixed up with Orlok. What false promises did he make you?”

“Orlok is a great man.” Erik growled. “I was once known as the Phantom of the Opera. Everyone feared me. Even the woman of my dreams feared me. But Orlok didn’t. He promised to get me whatever I wanted. All I have to do is help him get what he wants.”

“And what dies he want?”

Erik grinned behind his mask. “You can ask him that when you see him.”

They continued walking in silence. Van Helsing could sense Carl nearby. He hoped the friar wouldn’t do something stupid. Too much was at stake.

The sound of flapping wings was heard. Orlok had arrived. Still as hideous as ever. He looked like as starved demonic bat with a wing span of over 10 feet. Orlok landed on the ground and turned back into his human form. Van Helsing made a face. Even in his human form, Orlok was monstrous.

“Hello Gabriel.” Orlok hissed. Van Helsing couldn’t help but notice how much he sounded like Dracula. “I believe you have something that belongs to me.” He pointed to the Necronomicon.

Van Helsing didn’t move. “Not until I get Anna. Where is she?” he demanded.

Orlok grinned. “You’ll get her, once you give me the book. She means nothing to me. By all means, take her. But not until you give me the book.”

“No.” Van Helsing replied. “How do I know if I can trust you?”

Orlok laughed. “I told you, the girl means nothing to me. And you’ve already proven that I can’t trust you. I told you to come alone. Yet, I can hear your friar friend’s heart beat. He’s very afraid right now. You might as well come out. I know where you are.”

Carl groaned and came out from his hiding place. Not a very good one, Van Helsing observed.

“Sorry.” Carl mumbled, giving Van Helsing an apologetic smile.

Orlok laughed. “Your fear amuses me. But I didn’t come here for amusement. Still, it seems that you’re still having a little trouble accepting our deal. So I’ll give you something else.” He grinned evilly. “I know about your past. All of it.”

Van Helsing’s eyes widened. Could Orlok be telling the truth. Did he really know his past. True, the thing he was concerned about the most right now was Anna... but here Orlok was offering him the truth to his past. Dracula had made the same offer. Van Helsing had passed up the offer the first time, but he couldn’t do it again.

“Who am I?” he asked.

Orlok licked his lips, running his tongue along his rotten pointy teeth. “You and I have as much history as you and Dracula. And the Necronomicon is what binds us all together.

“Back in 73 A.D. you were a warlord. Perhaps one of the greatest ones to ever live. You remember fighting the Romans, do you not?” Van Helsing nodded. Orlok laughed. “Of course you do. It’s a memory no one can forget. It was the first time you died.”

Van Helsing felt his blood run cold. “The first time I...”

“Died.” Orlok repeated. “Yes, you didn’t survive the battle at Masada. You were killed.” He laughed evilly. Van Helsing felt his hatred for this creature increase.

“So how did I come back?” he asked.

Orlok pointed to the Necronomicon. “I told you. The Necronomicon connects us all. Over 400 years ago, there was another warlord. One just as great, perhaps even greater, than you. Only this man was just as evil as he was powerful. No one seemed to be able to defeat him. His name was Count Vladislaus Dragulia.” He saw the look one Van Helsing’s face and smiled. “Yes, he was the man who became the so called king of vampires, Count Dracula.

“This is where you come in. In an attempt to rid the world of Dracula, a warrior fighting in the war against Dracula used the Necronomicon to bring to life the only one strong enough to kill Dracula. That someone was you! Gabriel Van Helsing. The very spell you used to resurrect the Valerious was used to give you life once again. You confronted Dracula, and the battle began.”

“And I killed him.” said Van Helsing, remembering that Dracula had told him that he was murdered by him.

“You killed each other.” Orlok corrected him. “You may have delivered the death blow to Dracula, but did not survive the battle. I watched in amusement as you both died. Your deaths meant nothing to me, but your life made me curious. At least what gave your life did. I wanted to learn more about the powers of the Necronomicon. Unfortunately, after the one that resurrected learned that you killed Dracula, they hid the book. I tried to find it, but then Dracula came back, as the world’s most powerful vampire. That title should belong to me!” He shouted the last sentence angrily. He forced himself to calm down before he continued. “After he banished me and stole my home, it put a dent in my plans in finding the Necronomicon. But that didn’t stop me from finding out about it. And what I came across was greeting than I could have ever imagined. Now the only problem was getting the book.

“The only one who could stand a chance against me was Dracula.” He spat the name in disgust. “However, after 400 years of searching, I finally found where the Necronomicon was. Now all I had to do was get rid of Dracula. And who better to do that than the one who killed him in his past life. You!

“I came before the owner of the Necronomicon. A foolish woman. We made a deal. In exchange for the Necronomicon, I would provide a way for Dracula to be destroyed. That way was you. But not simply by giving you life again, but by having you be reincarnated. I knew you would be no match for Dracula. You need to be stronger. And so it was done. You were reborn, with only small memories from past life.

“Unfortunately, the foolish mortal discovered my true plans for the Necronomicon and hid it away in the Black Swamp. And with Dracula ruling over Transylvania, it made it hard for me to search for the book. But I still had you. It had been several years since you had been reincarnated. It was time. I went to your home. I took you. Your family tried to fight me off, and they paid with their lives. Then I wiped your memory and dropped you off in Rome. I knew the Knights of the Holy Order were there. They made you the great monster hunter you are today. And then you fulfilled your destiny and killed Dracula, just as I planned. Everything went according to plan. Now here we stand. It’s time to finish this.”

Van Helsing was speechless. Was this the past he had spent his whole life trying to find? His hatred for Orlok grew to its peak. “So I was just a pawn?” he asked. “Nothing but someone to do your dirty work? You brought me back to life just to do what you could not? How dare you mess with my life like that!”

Orlok smirked. “Don’t be so quick to judge. After all, you brought the Valerious girl back.”

“That is different! She never had a chance to live. Her life was spent trying to save her family. And then she was killed. Murdered! I was giving her back her life so she could actually live.”

“It matters not.” Orlok laughed, enjoying Van Helsing’s misery. “What matter now is the here and now. So are you going to give me the Necronomicon, or are you going to let the Valerious die?”

Slowly and reluctantly, Van Helsing approached Orlok. He handed out the Necronomicon. Orlok carefully took it.

“Yes.” he hissed. “At last. The Necronomicon is mine!”

Van Helsing glared at him. “You have what you want. Now where’s Anna?”

Orlok smirked. “All in good time. Come Erik. We must prepare for the ceremony.”

Erik went over to his master as Orlok changed into his bat for. He grabbed hold of Erik and took flight.

“Where’s Anna?” Van Helsing shouted.

“She’s here.” Erik yelled down to the monster hunter. “Buried in the Earth with all the other dead.”

Van Helsing felt like a stake had been driven through his heart. “She’s dead?”

“Not yet.” said Erik. “She has about an hour of air left. There’s a lot of graves here, so I suggest you start looking.”

And with that, master and servant flew off, leaving an enraged Van Helsing and terrified Carl behind.

Chapter Text

Chapter 10: Approaching the End

Anna awoke. It was very dark. Too dark for night. And it was difficult to breath. Immediately her hands went to her throat. No bit marks. Orlok hadn’t bitten her. But where was she?

She tried to sit up, only to hit her head. She tried to stretch out, but was trapped on all sides. It was like she was trapped in a box... or a coffin.

Anna began to panic. She kicked and punched at her wooden prison. Some dirt fell from above her. She was already under ground.

“GABRIEL!!!” she shouted.

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Van Helsing and Carl immediately sprang into action, searching for any graves that looked fresh. But there were so many, and the ground was frozen and covered with snow. It would be impossible to find any fresh graves.

“GABRIEL!!!”

Van Helsing didn’t really hear the scream; sensed it would be a better word.

“Carl, this way!” Van Helsing cried.

“Which way? Oh, right. Coming.”

Van Helsing’s instincts were telling him to head in this direction. He couldn’t explain why, perhaps it was his sixth sense, but somehow he knew this was the right way.

Soon he came across an unmarked grave. It was just a blank tombstone. Van Helsing immediately knew this was the grave he was searching for. Dropping to his knees, he began digging with his bare hands.

“Carl help me!” he demanded.

Carl looked at Van Helsing strangely. “How do you know that’s the right one?” he asked.

“Trust me, I know!” said Van Helsing.

“Oh... alright then. I’ll go find a shovel.”

“Hurry!”

It was hard to dig in the frozen snow. Van Helsing’s hands were already numb. His fingers would snap off from frost bite before he reached Anna. But he didn’t care. Nothing would stop him from saving Anna.

Fortunately, he didn’t need to dig with his hands for longer than a few minutes. Carl arrived with 2 shovels. V an Helsing grabbed one of the shovels from Carl and resumed digging.

The grave was deep. At least 10 feet deep. But finally Van Helsing struck the wooden lid of the coffin.

“Anna!” he cried.

“Gabriel, get me out of here!” came a muffled reply.

Van Helsing tore the lid off the coffin. Anna sat up, sucking down the cool air. She coughed repeatedly as she climbed out of the coffin and fell into Van Helsing’s embrace.

“Anna, are you alright?” he asked. He felt her nod against him. “I’m so sorry. I let him get you. I swear I’ll stop him.”

But Anna wasn’t worried about her own safety. She knew what the deal had been. And if Van Helsing had saved her, that could only mean one thing.

“Did he get the book?” she asked, already knowing the answer.

Van Helsing sighed. “Yes. Who knows what evil he’s planning.”

“Well we’re not going to give him a chance to plan anything.” Anna said determinedly. “We’re going to stop him. Come on.”

She pulled out of Van Helsing’s embrace and crawled out of the grave. Van Helsing and Carl with Anna’s sudden determination, but still they climbed from the grave and went after her.

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“No that piece goes here!” said Carl impatiently. “Honestly Van Helsing, you just don’t appreciate fine art.”

Van Helsing rolled his eyes. The map of Transylvania was almost complete. Apparently Carl thought of the painting as an amazing work of art. Van Helsing appreciated the art work just fine, but to him it was just the path to another battle.

“My final battle.” thought Van Helsing. He was tired of hunting. Tired of fighting. Tired of killing. He didn’t want to be a Knight of the Holy Order anymore. He didn’t want to be a wanted man. And he especially didn’t want to be called a murderer anymore. No, he had found the secrets to his past, and now he wished he never did. He had been a pawn to vanquish one evil to help another. That was his forgotten past. He didn’t care about his past anymore. Now he was focusing on his future. A future he planned to spend with Anna when, and if, they defeated Orlok.

“That should do it.” Carl announced, putting the last piece of the painting back together.

“Then this is it.” said Van Helsing.

“In the name of God, open this door.” Anna demanded.

The map froze over in ice. The color faded to a silvery color. Finally the ice melted away, revealing a large mirror.

The three friends stared at their reflections. Each of them had been hoping never to step foot through this door again. But there was no turning back.

“Here we go again.” Van Helsing sighed before walking through the cold hard door.

He came out on the other side. Castle Dracula, which was really Castle Orlok, stood before, just as it was the last time he had been here. Anna and Carl came up behind him.

Carl gulped. “Now I remember why I wanted to leave last time.”

A thought suddenly occurred to Anna. “How did you get back last time?”

“The same way we got came through the first time.” Van Helsing explained. “In the name of God, we opened the door.”

“Wish I knew that last time.” said Carl. “But here’s another question. How do we get in there this time?”

Van Helsing pulled out his grapple gun. He fired up towards the open window above the giant door. The grapple hooked onto something. Anna and Carl grabbed onto Van Helsing as the grapple gun wound up, bringing the three of them up.

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Orlok stroked the Necronomicon. He held it as if it were his first born child. He couldn’t believe that after all these years he finally had the Book of the Dead. And it was given to him by the greatest monster hunter of all time. The very one that he had made sure would kill Dracula. He loved it when a plan went through.

No, he didn’t love it. Love was something a vampire couldn’t feel. They were hollow emotionless creatures. Dracula had put it very nicely. No fear, no joy, no sorrow. Nothing. The love that Dracula and his brides felt for each other was fake. Artificial love created by Dracula’s hypnotic power. How had his brides felt about their so called husband after they were freed from the vampire’s curse? The thought made Orlok smile.

Then he thought of Van Helsing and the Valerious girl. Their love was real. It was something Orlok could never experience. He was damned from birth. He envied the living and their emotions. And it was for this reason he hated them.

But now he had the Necronomicon. He would use it to create a creature possibly worse than a vampire. A true immortal being. Unlike a vampire’s so called immortality, that could still be killed. But what Orlok was about to create was something entirely different.

Slowly he opened the book and began searching for the right passage.

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Carl thought going up was bad, but going down was even worse. Perhaps it was that feeling of falling. But by the time his feet were on the ground again, he couldn’t stop them from shaking.

“Do you think Orlok’s done whatever he’s planning to do yet?” Anna asked.

Van Helsing shrugged. “Don’t know. I don’t sense anything.”

Several Dwergi walked by and the three of them took cover.

“What are those?” asked Carl.

“Dwergi.” Anna whispered. “If you get a chance to kill one do it, cause they’ll do worse to you.”

Van Helsing remembered her saying that in Frankenstein’s castle when they were hunting Dracula. “What do they do to you?” he asked curiously.

Anna made a disgusted face. “They suck the life from you, causing you to age until you die.”

Van Helsing felt sick. No wonder Dracula and Orlok used these creatures to do their dirty work, they were like little vampires themselves.

Not wanting to know what it feels like to have the life drained out of him, Van Helsing pulled out his guns and jumped out from his hiding place. The Dwergi cried out in surprise as Van Helsing fired at the little monsters. All six Dwergi lay dead on the cold stone floor in three seconds flat.

“Nice shot.” said Carl.

“We have to move.” said Van Helsing. “Someone would have heard that.”

As the three of them ran off, Erik watched them from the shadows. So they thought they could stop the master’s plans, did they? Well they were mistaken. And he would see to it personally.

Chapter Text

Chapter 11: What’s Worse Than A Werewolf

“Bring it out!” Orlok demanded.

The Dwergi dragged a large black object from out of the shadows. The moved it in front of Orlok. He ran his long fingers over it.

“The time has come.” he whispered. “Together, we shall rule this world.”

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Van Helsing knew he they were being followed. No, and he meant no one, could sneak up on him. But for now, he would just play along.

He looked at Anna and darted his eyes behind him. Anna nodded. Apparently, she knew they were being followed too. Carl didn’t seem to notice the danger. Motioning for the two to follow him, Van Helsing turned a corner.

Erik followed close behind. He was very good at stalking. He had stalked people countless times when he was in the opera house. However, he never tried to sneak up on a monster hunter before. The moment he reached the corner the three had turned, Van Helsing jumped out and grabbed him.

“Not bad, but you’ll have to do better to sneak up on me.” said Van Helsing.

Anna pulled out her sword and held it to Erik’s throat. “Where is Orlok?” she demanded. “What is he planning?”

Erik smirked. “It doesn’t matter. You can’t stop him.”

Van Helsing rolled his eyes. “You have no idea how many times I’ve heard that. Not take us to him, or you’ll find out why I’m the most wanted man in Europe.”

“You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.” the phantom said.

“I’ll be the judge of that!” Van Helsing snapped. “Now get moving!”

He led them through the castle. He had no intention of bringing them to Orlok. No, he was going to bring lead them to their deaths. But first he had to get a head start.

“Keep walking.” Van Helsing ordered, when Erik stopped walking.

“Are you not curious, as to why I wear this mask?” Erik asked. He turned to face them. “Let me show you what I’m hiding.”

He pulled his mask off. Van Helsing, Anna. and Carl all jumped back. Erik’s face was hideous. It looked more like a skull than a face. His nose was pushed up like a big snout. His mouth was much to big as it broke out into an evil grin revealing his crooked rotten teeth. His skin was all wrinkly and was a sick yellow color. He almost looked like a corpse. No wonder he wore a mask.

Taking advantage of the others’ shock, Erik took the opportunity to make a run for it. Van Helsing recovered from his shock and pulled out his guns. He fired at the retreating phantom. But Erik ran to the wall and pulled on a torch. The wall spun around, revealing a hidden room. Erik laughed as the door rotated all the way around. The bullets bounced harmlessly off the wall. Erik was gone.

Van Helsing punched the wall in frustration, which only resulted in him hurting his hand. He turned to the others. “I’ve seen some freaky things in my days, but that...”

“I know what you mean.” Anna replied.

Carl could only nod. Van Helsing looked back at the secret door. So much for Erik leading them to Orlok. But no matter. He thought he knew where the vampire was.

Come on, let’s-”

But he didn’t finish his sentence. The rotating door turned back around, this time it remained open. Erik stepped through, grinning evilly. He had a whip in his hands.

“Now you will pay for messing with us.” he said.

He whipped the ground. Something was coming out of the hidden door. It was a large black dog with three heads and a long tail that, on closer examination, was a snake. The beast’s blood red eyes stared hungrily at Van Helsing and the others, foam dripping from its three mouths. Was this beast the creature they had heard about. It was certainly twice as big as a werewolf, but was it really twice as vicious?

“Meet Cerberus.” Erik sneered. “The master’s personal pet.” He whipped the whip again. “Kill them!”

Cerberus charged at them, growling and barking like a rabid animal. Van Helsing didn’t need to tell Carl and Anna to run. In fact, they were already on the move. Cerberus looked fast, but he was even faster than he looked. There was no way they could out run him.

Van Helsing pulled out his grapple gun. He fired up at the ceiling. Once it was secure, he grabbed Carl and Anna, as the grapple began to reel them in. Cerberus jumped to grab them. His jaws snapped shut as feet inches from their feet.

Once they reached the ceiling, they climbed onto one of the stone pillars. Cerberus was several feet below them, constantly jumping and barking.

“What now?” asked Carl in a terrified voice.

“Give me a minute.” said Van Helsing.

There was no way his bullets could kill the monstrous beast. He looked around for a weapon. He spotted two very large axes hanging in a cross shape on the wall. They would certainly get the job done. But would he be able to lift one? Or more importantly, would he be able to lift one and then make a killing blow before Cerberus tore him to pieces? Only one way to find out.

“Stay here.” he said, while taking out his circular blades.

“What?” cried Anna and Carl.

Van Helsing didn’t bother explaining. He threw the blades like a frisbee. They flew past Cerberus’s heads. He snapped at the blades. While the beast was distracted, Van Helsing jumped off the pillar, much to the terror of Anna and Carl.

Van Helsing fired his grapple gun. He swung through the air over to the axes, but Erik stood in his path.

“Going somewhere?” he asked. He swung the whip. Van Helsing dodged. “Cerberus, get over here!”

The dog turned to Erik and Van Helsing. It began barking as it charged and pounced at them. Van Helsing jumped aside, nearly missing being tackled by the giant three headed dog. But Erik was not so lucky. Cerberus slammed into the wall, crushing him. But not even the wall could hold the beast’s attack, and Cerberus went through the wall. It howled like a scared puppy as it fell to its death in the dark abyss.

Van Helsing breathed a sigh a relief. That had been way too close. He turned back to Anna and Carl who were still up in the air. They looked back in open shock.

Anna recovered first. “Don’t just stand there!” she shouted. “Get us down!”

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Orlok was almost finished reading the passage. Soon he would fulfill his destiny. The world will fall before him. But before he could finish the spell, the door burst open and Van Helsing, Anna, and Carl burst in.

“Hope we’re not interrupting.” said Van Helsing.

Orlok glared at them. “This time, you’re too late.” He turned back to the book. “By the power of night, and the power of day, I summon you up from the underworld. From the world of the dead, to the world of the living, I give you eternal life. Rise up! Rise up! RISE UP!!!”

The black sarcophagus burst open and a loud roar came from inside. Something that had been dead for over 3000 years began to breath for the first time. It was a hideous sight. All brown and decayed. Bits of dried out flesh and bandages could still be seen stuck to its mummified body.

Orlok laughed triumphantly. “Behold the immortal mummy, Imotep!”

Chapter Text

Chapter 12: The Mummy

Imotep looked around, taking in his surroundings. It must have been hard since his eyes were shriveled raisins. Catching sight of Orlok, he cocked his head to the side. Times sure have changed.

Who has resurrected me?” he asked, speaking in his Egyptian language.

Orlok took a step forward. “It was I, Count Graf Orlok.” he said, speaking in the same language as Imotep. “You have no idea how long I have waited for this.”

Imotep looked him up and down. “You? Well it took you long enough. But I suppose I should thank you all the same. Now that I have returned, I can rule this world.” Then he noticed the others present. “And who are they?”

Orlok smirked. “They are nothing but thorns in my side. Especially the tall one. Perhaps you have heard of him, Gabriel Van Helsing.”

Imotep’s dried out face took on a curious look. “Thee Van Helsing? Yes, I have heard of you. Even in Hell your name is known.”

Van Helsing couldn’t understand a word either vampire or mummy were saying, but he could tell they were talking about him. This couldn’t be good.

“Then you know he is our enemy.” Orlok stated. “Destroy him so that we may rule this world.”

Imotep turned back to Orlok. He looked angry now. “What did you say?”

Orlok seemed confused. “I said, destroy them, so we may-”

“You dare to order me!” Imotep shouted angrily. “I take orders from no one!”

Now Orlok’s look of confusion was mixed with anger. “But I brought you back. You are to serve me. Now obey!”

“SILENCE!!!” Imotep roared. “You are powerless against me. I make the rules here. My word is law!”

Orlok bared his fangs. “You ungrateful-”

Imotep cut him off with a loud roar. His mouth open wide, at least a foot, and a swarm of flies, fleas, and locusts flew out, surrounding Orlok. The vampire hissed and clawed at the insects. Imotep made a swishing motion and Orlok was thrown backwards as if he were hit by a wrecking ball. He slammed into a wall and went all the way through.

This was only the beginning of the 12 Plagues of Egypt that Imotep would bring. Outside darkness covered the sky just as the sun began to rise. A powerful storm came up and millions of frogs began crawling out of the water.

Imotep laughed. His powers were growing by ever second. Soon he would be more powerful than the greatest of all sorcerers. No one could stand up to his power. But that didn’t mean that no one would.

Van Helsing was one of them. He open fired on Imotep. The bullets penetrated his rotten flesh, only to immediately heal. Imotep turned to them. He smiled, revealing his rotten teeth, even though they could always be seen.

“Van Helsing.” he said. “Never in all my years did I think I would have the pleasure of meeting you, let alone kill you.” Van Helsing didn’t know what the mummy was saying, nor did he care. He kept on firing, but if the bullets bothered Imotep in anyway, the mummy ignored it. “I have a message from your friend Dracula. He says HELLO!!!”

As he shouted his the last word, sand flew out of his mouth at great force, stronger than water shooting out of a fire hose. It hit Van Helsing in the chest, sending him flying backwards, slamming into the wall.

Imotep laughed and began approaching the monster hunter. Anna and Carl stepped in his path; Carl being a bit more hesitant. Imotep merely glared at them and kept walking. Anna held her sword out to him threateningly.

“Be gone knave!” Imotep roared.

With a swish of his hand, Anna and Carl were thrown away from him. Imotep laughed and went right up to Van Helsing. He picked the monster hunter up by his jacket.

“You have no idea how much Satan wants you dead.” said Imotep. “He’ll be glad to find out I killed you.”

Van Helsing surprised the mummy by pulling out his circular blade and cutting the Imotep’s arm off. Imotep roared, sounding more frustrated than in pain. Van Helsing used the opportunity to crawl away.

Imotep picked up his arm and reattached it, good as new, though it was 3000 years old. Carl, who was moaning in pain on the floor, reached into his cloak and pulled out a bottle of holy water.

“Van Helsing!” he cried, tossing the bottle.

Van Helsing caught it. Would holy water work? Imotep turned to face him. Van Helsing held up the holy water. Something was wrong. The bottle of water turned red. One of the 12 plagues. Water became blood.

Imotep laughed as Van Helsing tossed the blood aside. He reached into his jacket and pulled out the silver crucifix. Perhaps this would work. Imotep suddenly changed. He turned into sand and moved, as if being blown by a mighty wind, behind Van Helsing before becoming human again. Van Helsing turned around and held up the cross. Imotep impatiently smacked it out of his hand before throwing Van Helsing backwards with his mind.

Carl was getting hysterical. “Oh no, what to do? What to do? What to do?”

Suddenly Anna was by his side. She shoved something in his hands. The

Necronomicon. “Use it!” she instructed. “Do something!”

With shaking hands Carl opened the cursed book and began searching for something, anything, that would help.

Imotep threw Van Helsing again. This was the word famous monster hunter? The man feared by the living, famous in Heaven, hated in Hell? He was nothing compared to Imotep’s power. Then again, he never faced anything like a 3000 year old immortal mummy with the powers over the sands and the ability to bring forth the 12 Plagues of Egypt.

As Van Helsing struggled to his feet, he pulled out a silver stake. Too bad he hadn’t been able drive this into Orlok’s heart before he could resurrect Imotep. Then again, it hadn’t worked on Dracula, it most likely wouldn’t work on Orlok.

Van Helsing turned and shoved the stake right where Imotep’s heart should have been. Imotep didn’t even attempt to move. He lazy pulled the stake out of his chest and tossed it aside. Imotep opened his mouth and several scarabs crawled out. Then they began coming out of any other open areas on his decayed body.

Van Helsing backed away from the flesh eating insects. They crawled after him. Van Helsing tried stomping on them, but they were fast little pests. Imotep watched Van Helsing in amusement.

“Yes, feel my pain.” he said. “I was buried alive with them. I suffered for days with them slowly eating me away. But I shall make your death more merciful.”

The scarabs surrounded Van Helsing on all sides. If he attempted to walk through them, they would consume him. Suddenly Imotep was standing in front of him. He grabbed him and lifted him off the ground.

“Your life will restore me.” Imotep declared.

His mouth opened wide. He would suck Van Helsing dry and become whole again.

The sound of someone speaking in a strange language caught Imotep’s attention. He turned to Carl and Anna. The friar was reading from the book.

“NO!!!” Imotep roared.

He threw Van Helsing aside and flew at Carl and Anna. He grabbed the end of the book just as Carl finished the passage. The book flashed with an angry red light. Carl released the book as the light grew in intensity. Imotep howled in rage and as the light engulfed him. It changed from an angry red to an icy blue. Then it was gone.

Imotep felt tired and weak. He could feel it, his powers were gone. He was... mortal. Before he could react to this sudden twist of fate, a sword burst through his chest, penetrating the Necronomicon. Van Helsing stood behind him, having been the one to stab the undead mummy. And Imotep bled. His unholy blood falling on the cold stone floor. The scarab and swarms of insects turned to dust as his plagues began lifting.

Imotep stumbled. He could feel his life ending. He had experienced it one time before. Even after 3000 years he knew what it meant. Your life ending was something you could never forget.

Imotep grabbed onto one of the large black candle sticks, that surrounded the room which were meant for the ceremony, to support himself. The candlestick fell over with Imotep. When the candle touched his dried out flesh, he immediately burst into flames. Van Helsing, Anna, and Carl watched as Imotep and the Necronomicon burned, both evils being silenced forever.

Chapter Text

Chapter 13: Moving On

Someone grabbed Anna from behind and threw her across the room.. Van Helsing and Carl turned to see Orlok standing behind them looking livid. H grabbed Carl and through him in the opposite direction he threw Anna in. The he turned to Van Helsing, his eyes blazing with cold fury and hatred.

“You killed my immortal mummy!” he shouted. “I’ll kill you for this!”

Then he changed into his bat form. Van Helsing had a feeling of deja vu from the time he faced Dracula.

Orlok’s fist slammed into Van Helsing’s gut, sending him flying across the room. He took flight and soared towards the monster hunter. He grabbed him and flew as high up as possible in the room before tossing him down. Van Helsing landed hard on his side, getting the wind knocked out of him.

Orlok landed next to him and began kicking. “You should have stayed a werewolf.” he hissed. Anna suddenly jumped on his back, wrapping her arm around his neck and pulling him back. Orlok viciously elbowed her in the ribs. “I’ll get to you later!”

He reached down and picked Van Helsing up. His long sharp teeth got even longer and sharper as he got ready to bite into the monster hunter’s neck.

“Hey Orlok!” Carl cried.

He threw something at the count. It was the crucifix. It hit him on his forehead. Orlok howled in pain as the crucifix left a cross shaped burn mark on his head, which immediately healed.

Orlok dropped Van Helsing and took flight, clutching his head. Van Helsing quickly got to his feet. He would thank Carl later. Orlok flew over their heads, circling them like a bird hunting its prey.

He landed several feet away, staring at the three humans with utter loathing. Anna and Carl moved closer to Van Helsing, showing that they would stand by him no matter what.

“You fools!” Orlok yelled. “It’s useless to face me! You can’t kill me! I am eternal!”

A dim light behind Orlok caught Van Helsing’s attention. He took out his second circular blade. “No, you’re damned!” he declared.

Van Helsing threw the circular blade. It soared right by Orlok who gave Van Helsing a peculiar look. “What were you aiming for?” he sneered.

“The window.” Van Helsing replied.

The look of fear came across Orlok’s face for perhaps the first time in his immortal life. He turned around as the circular blade shattered the black glass of the window, allowing the cleansing sunlight to fill the room.

Orlok howled in pain as the sun touched his body for the first time. His face twisted in agony. He turned back to the other three and roared. His roar turned into a tortured cry as his head turned back to its human form. Then his body turned to ash. The burned statue of a demonic bat with a hideous vampire head stood still for a moment before collapsing to a pile of dust.

It was over. Finished. Orlok was dead, and all over the world, vampires died with him. The evil of all vampires had been wiped out. And this time it was a real victory.

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“So you’re staying here?” Carl asked, a little disappointed, but not really all that surprised.

Van Helsing nodded. “I’m tired of hunting. And I’m tired of doing the Order’s dirty work. They have plenty of other hunters.”

“That’s true.” Carl agreed. “But you were the best.”

“He still is.” said Anna.

Van Helsing put his arm around her and held her close. Carl smiled at the two of them. “Make sure you keep him out of trouble.” he said.

Anna laughed and Van Helsing glared at her. “Don’t worry, I will.” she said

“And make sure to invite me to the wedding.” Carl teased.

“Carl!” yelled Van Helsing and Anna.

Carl laughed. “It’s only a matter of time.” He kicked his horse and got ready to leaved. “Perhaps I’ll be promoted to a monk. The cardinal can’t deny me the position anymore. And speaking of the cardinal, how shall I explain this. You know he’s not going to be happy with your choice.”

Van Helsing had been waiting a long time to say this. “Tell him that as far as I’m concerned, he can go to Hell.”

Carl laughed. “I’ll give him your exact words. Good bye old friend.”

And with that he turned his back on them, heading back to Rome. Van Helsing and Anna watched as their friend rode away.

“I’ve spent my whole life trying to vanquish evil and discover my past.” thought Van Helsing. “But now I realize that none of that matters. I have everything I need right here. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

THE END