*Disclaimers: I do not own any of the original characters from Van Helsing, nor do I own the plot. I just make tweeks to make an interesting story that I write purely for the enjoyment of writing.

Chapter 1: That Fateful Night

"You are to late Van Helsing," the witch cackled, coughing up blood in the process, "… Had you not intervened, the child would have been born within the next Fortnight. All you have done is bring the devil's child into this world sooner." She coughed up more blood, causing it to foam at her lips.

"You are wrong. The child is still innocent of your evil," Van Helsing replied, reloading his gun.

"That is where you are wrong. I know that you will not forfeit this child's life as long as you sense innocence in her, but she will be born in blood, and when she receives the inheritance of her father and myself, the world will be born again in blood. There is nothing you can do, it has already been foretold." The witch struggled to breathe as she coughed up more blood. She drew one last shaky breath, "You better hurry… If you wish to save the child.. I already feel her life starting to… slip… away…" she said, as her eyes fixed upon the hunter and stilled.

Van Helsing closed her eyes, "Requiescat in Pace…" he prayed before pulling his knife out and sinking it into the dead woman's belly.

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Spring 1872

The wind gently swirled around the girl, dancing with loose tendrils of her chocolate-brown hair. Her horse pranced in place, chomping at its bit impatiently.

"Silvia! Wait for me!" she heard her little brother cry as he cantered up on his small pony. "You know what Papa said about you having to look after me." The boy said, pulling his pony to a stop.

Silvia rolled her eyes before turning to her brother. "I am looking after you Lorenzo. I stopped at the top of the hill didn't I?" She asked, flashing a mischievous smile at her little brother.

"… Si. But you didn't have to run so far ahead of me Silvia." He said, sniffling as he wiped his nose on his sleeve.

"Lorenzo, what does Mama tell you about wiping your nose on your sleeve?" She scolded.

".. 'If I don't want my nose to get up and leave, the use the handkerchief and not my sleeve…'" he said sulkily pulling his handkerchief out of his sleeve.

"That's right. Now come on mio topolino. Mama will get angry at us if we are late for dinner again," Sylvia said, before clicking to her mount. Silvia's gaze wandered over the tall grasses of the Tuscan fields while Lorenzo pointed at the different butterflies fluttering through the tops of the tall grasses.

"It's like they're dancing with the grass!" he said, his face flushed with excitement to see all the different butterflies.

"Well, in a way they are. They dance with the grass before the wind sweeps them up to go somewhere else. Think of it like a never-ending ball, where they dance all day and night, and their painted wings are their ball gowns and suits." She smiled at his enthusiasm. Even though they were 8 years apart, Sylvia adored Lorenzo. She felt that he was very much like herself when she was that age, always questioning and finding wonder in the simplest things. She lost herself in thought about her childhood when Lorenzo pulled her out of her thoughts.

"Mario!" he yelled as he kicked his pony up to a canter to meet their older brother. Mario stopped short from running into Sylvia, causing his horse to rear up.

"Hello big brother, out enjoying the air I see?" Sylvia teased him, knowing that her older brother loathed being away from Rome, and his betrothed.

"Mother sent me to find you and tell you that you're needed at the villa, Sylvia," He said, very formal sounding.

"Oh Mario, give it a rest and relax. We're here in the beautiful country side of Tuscany, and all you can do is ride around like you're Julius Caesar or the Pope. There is a reason why we're here on vacation." Sylvia said. Lorenzo giggled.

"I apologize that I no longer have the luxury to act like a child, Sylvia. I have responsibilities, and one day you will learn that you will have to grow up." Mario said, turning his horse around. "Now hurry home before Mama starts to worry about you." And then he galloped off, leaving them alone in his wake.

"Why is Mario being so mean?" Lorenzo asked as he and Sylvia continued on at a leisurely walk.

"Because, Mio topolino, Mario is the eldest son. He has to watch over us to make sure we're safe and nothing happens to us. Also, he misses his betrothed very much. Remember, this is the last vacation we have together before Mario and Claudia move the United States of America to expand Papa's silk stores." She looked up at the sky, watching the towers of clouds float by. "After Mario's wedding, it will be a long time before we get to see him again." Sylvia said solemnly. It reminded her of her own impending fate soon to come. "But let us not dwell on the things to come. For now, let us enjoy the time we have together!" she said, smiling to make Lorenzo feel better. "Come on mio topolino, I'll race you back to the villa!" she yelled as she kicked her horse forward into a fast canter.

"That's not fair! You have a head start!" Lorenzo kicked his small pony into a gallop. They laughed as they raced towards the villa, not knowing that the care free happiness that Sylvia had known for fifteen years was about to come to a screeching halt.

Sylvia

"This storm blew out of nowhere," Mario said. I watched him as paced across the room, his eyes darting to each window as the lightning forked across the sky and the thunder boomed in response. The oak shutters strained and rattled against their hinges.

"You worry too much, Mario." Mama said. Her eyes were bent to her task of needle point.

"Your mother is right Mario," Papa said as he opened his pen desk.

"Here you go, Papa," I handed Papa his ledger and ink pot. Mario walked over to the shutters and rechecked their fastenings for the fourth time since the storm had started.

"Stop fussing, Mario. Your hands will become permanently attached to those shutters." I teased. He shot me a dirty look before resuming his pacing in front of the fire-place. I sighed as I bent down to adjust the cushions on the floor and settle down upon them. "You know, if you had been more observant earlier instead of concentrating on scolding Lorenzo and I, you would have noticed the clouds building in the east." I said, pulling my skirt closer to me so that he wouldn't step on it in his pacing.

"And you are suddenly all-knowing about the weather, are you?" he sneered.

"I can at least stop and see the scener-"

"Children! Stop that bickering at once." Our father snapped, spilling some ink out of his new fountain pen. "Really, I thought you two were more mature than this."

"Yes father…" we said. I stared meekly at the floor as the red of shame crept into my cheeks. It had been a long time since I had childishly bickered with my older brother.

"Now apologize to each other." We mumbled our apologies to each other before Mario went and sat by mother, although he continued to nervously tap his foot on the brick floor. His boots made an irritating staccato through my head as I tried to concentrate on the words in my book. My mother sighed and put aside her needle point.

"What is the matter, my son?" she asked. She placed her hand on his shoulder and pulled him closer. Another roll of thunder boomed through the night.

"I don't know mama. Something just doesn't feel… right." He gave into her embrace, laying his head across her lap, like we all used to in childhood. "I just can't get over the feeling that something is wrong." He said, mama stroking his hair in attempt to calm him.

"It's alright son." She murmured.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Mario quickly sat up, straightening his shirt and vest. "Who the devil would be calling on us in this weather?" he walked over to where his pistol was hanging in its holster and roughly pulled it out.

"Put that away boy. It could just be some poor souls who got caught in the storm before they reached town." Father said, rising quickly from his chair. Mario didn't move to put the gun back, but he tucking into his belt at the small of his back as Papa moved to the door.

"Please, we are weary travelers from Florence. We seek shelter from the storm." We heard the intruder yell through the door. "Please! My wife, she is injured!" He sobbed.

"Papa, what should we do?" I asked, trying to be as quiet as possible.

"Hush Sylvia." Papa leaned against the door. "The village is only five miles, there is a tavern there that rents rooms for the night." He yelled through the door.

"Please, she can't make it that far!" the man banged on the door. "She bleeding heavily and she needs help now!"

"Fabrizio, what if she really is dying? We can't just let them go without helping them." Mama whispered, "After we help them, then we can send them to the village with a clear conscious." Papa hesitated, before nodding his agreement.

"You're right." He turned back to the door, "Alright. We will help your wife as best we can, but as soon as we stop the bleeding, you will move on towards the village. Do you understand?" Papa motioned for Mario to give him his gun. We all heard the man start sobbing.

"Oh, thank you signore! God bless you!" the man sobbed. Papa undid the draw bolt with a snap.

"Step back, I'm opening the door." Papa clicked back the hammer on the pistol. "You will keep your hands where we can see them." He said, opening the door slowly. Instantly, the wind slammed the door open, causing the oil lamps to flicker and the papers on the table to fly into the air. I almost wept for the cowered man at the doorstep, his hands covered with his wife's blood, or so I assumed. Papa cursed and lowered the gun, "Please forgive me signore, one cannot be too careful at this time of night." Papa handed the gun back to Mario. "Sylvia, go to the kitchen and help your mother boil water, and then go get some of the sheets from the linen closet. Help your mother tear of strips for bandages. Mario come with me." Papa then turned to the man, "Where is your wife, signore?"

"She is in the wagon out on the road. Please we must hurry!" the man said.

Mama had already hurried into the kitchen, although I wasn't far behind.

"Sylvia, go fetch water from the rain barrels outside," Mama handed me the wooden pail before pulling out the old cast iron kettle. By the time I came back inside with the full pail, Mama had already put the kettle on the fire stand. "Quickly Sylvia," Mama gestured. I was careful not to spill the water, less it spilled into the fire. I was thankful that the rain had soaked through my clothes while I was getting the water, for the kitchen fire was very hot. Mama swung the rod around, putting the kettle directly into the fire.

"I'll be right back Mama. I need to go get those sheets for bandages." I said, bunching my skirts up in my hand.

"Get the white ones on the third shelf. Those should be easier to rip." Mama said as she pulled some of the larger bowls down from the pantry shelves. I quickly ran upstairs and down the hallways to Mama and Papa's bedroom. I tore into the wardrobe that held the linens for the bedroom and pulled out the sheets mama had told me too. They were older than the other sheets, the edges frayed and a little moth-eaten. I ran down the hallway again and down the stairs.

"I have the sheets Mama," I said, holding them up.

"Good, start tearing them into strips and then-…"

"Mama? What's going on?" Lorenzo called from of the top of the stairs. I groaned and cursed myself for recklessly running through the hallway. All of a sudden, Papa and Mario burst into the kitchen, holding the injured on a makeshift stretcher. I had never seen so much blood, it almost made me gag and lose my dinner.

"Mama, what's going on?" Lorenzo called again, I could see his small feet as he slowly made his way down the stairs.

"Sylvia, take Lorenzo back to bed. Don't let him see." Papa hissed as he covered the woman's still bleeding leg with the bloody stretcher. I nodded and quickly ran up the stairs, making sure that I was blocking his view into the kitchen.

"Come on mio topolino, back to bed." I took him by the shoulders and tried to turn him back up the stairs.

"But what's going on sorella? I heard banging and yelling outside. Did one of the horses get out?" Lorenzo asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Yes, topolino. There's nothing to worry about. Papa and Mario went out to catch the horses, that's all." I lied, pushing him up the stairs before he could peer over my shoulder. "How about I tell you a story to go back to sleep, ok?" I asked him. I almost got him back into his room when the screaming started. Lorenzo froze before looking up at me, fear leaking into his eyes.

"It's ok Lorenzo, nothing is wr-.." I started to say when my blood froze in my veins when I heard the sounds from downstairs. It wasn't screaming from a woman in pain. It was my father.

"Sylvia! Sylvia run!" Mama screamed from downstairs. I heard a bestial roar and the sound of splintering wood. My mother screamed again, but it was cut short and I heard another roar. The sound of gunshots echoed with the thunder. I pulled Lorenzo close to me; he was frozen solid with fear and shock. I would have stood there in shock as well if he hadn't been there. I picked him up, holding my hand against his mouth to keep him from screaming for our mother, and I slammed open the door to his room and threw him on the bed. I could hear footsteps running down the hallway. I scrambled for the door, and almost got it closed when an arm snaked its way in. I screamed, before I realized that it was Mario.

"Mario! Get inside, quickly!" I said, opening the door. My eyes raked over his face, noticing a gash across his forehead and bruising around his neck.

"No, there is no time!" He pushed me back into the room. "Go out the window and jump down from the roof. Take Lorenzo and go!" he yelled at me, turning back towards the stairs and firing two more shots from his pistol. "Go now!" He screamed, before another bestial roar came from the stairwell. I stared in fear as he fired the last three shots in his pistol. He turned back towards me to yell at me again when a huge shadow swept him off his feet and out of view, but I could still hear his screams of agony. I scrambled on to my feet and grabbed Lorenzo and shoved him out the window onto the roof. I tried to climb out of the window after him, but an arm snaked around my waist and pulled me back into the house.

"Tsk tsk. You can't leave yet, the fun has just begun!" I was thrown across the room into the wardrobe. My back radiated with pain, but I didn't feel like anything had penetrated. I shook my head to clear my vision when I saw that the man, who had pretended to be helpless, reached out the window and dragged my baby brother back in by his hair.

"Don't you touch him!" I snarled as I lunged to try and free my brother from the man. However, I was yanked backwards onto my knees which caused me to yelp in pain. I grabbed at my attacker's hand, trying desperately to free myself but that just caused my attacker to yank my hair back sharply. Tears streamed down my face as I yelped in pain.

"My my, it seems we have a protective sibling on our hands dear husband," I heard a woman say. She yanked my head to the side and I saw, not a woman, but a monster. Her eyes glowed red and wicked fangs peeked out from the top of her mouth as she smiled maliciously at me. "And such a pretty one too." She licked the side of my face, her tongue was cold and raspy against my skin. "Mmm, she tastes so much better than the rest of her family downstairs." She purred.

"Save her for last then. Imagine how much better she'll taste after she's watched us kill this little brat in front of her." The man said, his eyes were glowing a vivid green as he laughed. Lorenzo started to cry as he struggled in vain to get away. "Here my love," the man threw Lorenzo to the woman, "you have the first bite."

"Let go of him you demons!" I screamed, lunging again. This time, the man grabbed me around the waist again and covered my mouth with his other hand.

"Now now, that's not how you talk to your elders, missy." He purred in my ear. "Watch what happens my dear. It'll happen to you too." He laughed as he held my head still, forcing me to watch as his partner nuzzled my little brother's neck. I felt the rage build up inside me, my gums ached because of it. I struggled as hard as I could, but if felt as if steel cables were wrapped around me.

"Oh he smells so good…" the red-eyed woman purred before sinking her fangs into my brother's neck. I screamed in rage, finding the strength to bite into the marble hand clamped around my mouth. My teeth seemed to sink into his cold flesh like butter, and when the first drop of blood fell into my mouth, I felt a spark of power surge through my body. The man let loose an unearthly scream and tried to shake me off, but I clamped down harder on his hand, my body instinctually sucking at the wound I had made in his hand. I had never tasted anything like it before in my life. It was like I had been struck by lightning, the power coursed through my veins. It felt as if it was sparking from my hand. I opened my eyes, and saw that sparks were literally coming from my hands. Startled, I let go of the man although now he looked like a beast from hell. With giant black wings like a bat that sprawled across the floor, and his face was the face of a demon. The woman dropped Lorenzo and lunged at me, she herself turning into a giant white bat demon. Her eyes were almost like liquid fire as she tackled me. We went flying into the wall and then through it.

"I will kill you for hurting my husband, witch" the vampire howled as she threw me down into the courtyard. I landed hard and the air was forced out of my lungs so hard, it took me a minute to realize that I could breathe again. I gasped and sputtered as I tried to get back up, but the vampire picked me up by the neck and threw me against the far wall. I screamed in pain as I hit. I took in a ragged breath before the vampire lunged at me again. I threw my hands up, even though I knew it was futile to try to block her, and then the most amazing thing happened. Lightning surged through the air and struck the vampress directly in the chest. Her look of surprise mirrored my own for a split second before she was thrown over the wall and into the night. I stood in shock for a moment before I heard Lorenzo scream. I ran for the open kitchen door and bolted up the stairs faster than humanly possible. I slammed skidded to a stop at his open bedroom door and watched as the male vampire picked up my frightened brother off the ground.

The rage flooded my limbs, and I felt my body shift and expand, feeling it grow larger in the small hallway. "Get your damned hands off my brother," I screeched, my jaws aching from the rage that coursed through my veins. The male vampire faltered for a moment, his face changing from rage to fear.

"What are yo-.." He didn't even get to finish as I tackled him out the side of the wall. I flapped my wings, propelling him into the night, getting him as far away from my brother as possible. I screamed in rage as he tried to escape from me, but I just sank my fangs deeply into his shoulder. I drained him as fast as I could before finally tearing his head off with my bare hands. I grinned in satisfaction as his body decayed into ash in a matter of seconds. I landed on the ground and let loose a victorious shriek, and it was answered by one of anguish that faded far into the night. I licked my claws clean and then I stopped.

'wait… Claws, fangs, wings?' I thought and then I looked into the puddle below me and screamed. I stared into the demon sapphire blue eyes that stared back at me, unable to stop the screams of horror emanating from the creature that mirrored me in every way.

I had turned into the thing that I had just killed!

Author's Note: Dear readers. Wow, it's been a really long time since I decided to write something. Hopefully I won't do such a horrid job of updating. I actually really like this story. Funnily enough, it came to me in a dream. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed chapter 1. Please leave comments and reviews, but make them constructive please! Nobody likes a troll.

Mio Topolino - Italian term of endearment which means 'my little mouse'

Sorella - Itlalian word for sister.