Van Helsing 2. The Key to Heaven and Hell.

Location: Some where outside Belgium.

The night was as vile as they come. The wind blew like it wanted to wipe out the small, lonely house that stood steadfastly against it. The cottage belonged to Daphne, the only midwife within 100 miles of Brussels. Tonight, with no patients, and the weather not allowing any visitors, she had nothing better to do then retire to bed early, and pray that the roof was still over her head when she awoke the next morning.

However, fate had other ideas about Daphne's evening. So did the large stranger who was staggering up the garden path, fighting the storm to Daphne's door. It took Daphne's a while to respond to the frantic pounding on her door.

Cursing softly, she staggered out of bed, pulled a warn robe across her shoulders and reached for the door.

The two people she saw upon her doorstep would have confirmed that if she wasn't dreaming, she was having a nightmare!

From the outline of the light, she could make out that one visitor was a man, but he was taller then any man she had ever seen. She couldn't see his face; it was hidden too deeply within his cowl. In his arms, he carried a young, very pregnant woman, whose deep, frantic breaths told Daphne that she was in the early stages of labor.

"Please, help her, let us in!" The large man half barked, half pleaded. Daphne had no time to think, because the woman gasped, squeezed her companions sleeve and tried to choke back a groan. Suddenly she remembered who she was, and why this odd couple had come to her for her aid.

"Come in, Come in quickly!" She ordered, ushering them over her threshold, and beginning to prepare her work space. She ran to her table, ripped off the table cloth, threw it into a nearby linen chest, exchanging it for a clean sheet, and throwing it haphazardly across the bench. Gesturing for the man to lay the woman down upon its wooden surface, she poured water from a bucket and placed it onto a wooden fire to warm. She glanced out the corner of her eye, taking in the large visitor. She almost gasped when she saw him in the light. His face was still hidden by his dirty and old cloche, but his hands where a stark contrast to those of his companions, whose he was holding reassuringly. His hands were the size of snow shovels. They were rough, scared and ghastly white, almost green.

"They were the hands of a corpse!" Thought Daphne. She gave herself a mental slap. "Ignore him. Your duty is to that poor girl and her child. The man is none of your concern." She returned to the table with more sheets and some herbs.

"Stay strong, Nadia." Said the man, soothingly.

He shoots a quick look at Daphne. "Will she be safe if I leave here?"

"You want to leave! In that?"

As if on queue, a bolt of lightning crashed to earth, shaking the ground.

"I have no choice, there is something I must do."

"Very well. The delivery room is no place for men anyway."

"I will return, Nadia." He paused, and then he lent close to her ear and whispered in a voice choked with emotion:

"I am going to make you and your baby safe, I give you my word I will make you safe."

He gently kissed her fore head, turned, and with surprising speed, crossed to the door and left, running with powerful strides into the night, swallowed by the rage of the storm. Leaving Daphne and Nadia to the task at hand.

Chap 2.

The telegraph station master raised the bottle to his lips and drank deeply of the remaining, warming contents. He smacked his lips, threw the empty bottle over his shoulder (missing the bin by miles) and laid his head against the back of his chair, resting his feet upon his desk. He savored the warmth of his office, compared to the din of the storm outside. Suddenly, the door opened with a violent BANG!

The station master received such a shock; he rolled of his chair, and lay confused, disorientated and drunk upon the floor. He had just enough time to stammer a slurred "Who-what-who?" before a large fist swung at his jaw, knocking him cold. The intruder caught him as he fell.

"I am sorry my friend, but I haven't the time for questions right now."

And with that, he crossed to the instrument table, re-arranged some wires, and began to tap out an urgent massage:

URGANT, TO GABRIEL VEN HELSING, CARE OF THE VATICAN, ITALY, EUROPE.

Van Helsing-stop

Need yourself and Karl to come to Belgium, Urgent-Stop.

Need assistance- stop.

Anna was not the last Valerious-stop.

Regards, Frankenstein-stop.

Ps. Bring weapons.-stop. Big ones- Stop.

When the station master awoke, a good half hour later, he was back in his chair, his hat lying over his face, a fresh bottle of brandy resting on the table. Was he dreaming? Had someone knocked him unconscious?

Deciding he was too tired to care, he cracked open the new bottle, swallowed deeply, and considered again if it was to early to allow his son to take over so he could retire to the south of France…

The end of Chapter 2.

Chapter 3.

Karl could tell something was wrong by the way Van Helsing nearly trampled him into the stonework of the Vatican's floor. He had just received a telegram, and had barley glanced over it once before his brows knitted together and his face went white, and he had stormed away without apologizing to the group of nuns he almost steamrolled. This could only mean one thing; trouble was brewing. It also meant he was going to get dragged into it, no matter how much he insisted that he wasn't a field man… Nothing else to do but prepare for the worst.

Picking up his spilt books, Karl speed walked down the Vatican's spacious hallways and tunnels and made his way to the laboratory. Ducking and weaving among the various scientists and their assistance who worked busily on their own projects, Karl walked to his own work station and began to browse his selection of weapons.

"Hmmmmm… Defiantly the pump action crossbow…stakes, check. Holy water, yep, probably need that. Milk of Magnesia… well, might as well, luck favors the prepared. Holy water pistol, might keep that for myself this time… Now a few phosphorous magic charms, I think that should do it. Now to wait for Van Helsing and I can show him the newer toys…"

"Oooooh, his eminence is miffed." Muttered Brother James. Karl followed his gaze, and saw that the cardinal was in fact very very angry. He was standing at the top of the workshop staircase, nose to nose with Van Helsing. Even though he couldn't hear, he could guess what they were fighting about. A new mission.

Karl remembered a time when these arguments were always about how Van Helsing's desire not to go on missions. He used to say that he regretted killing monsters, because he always had to watch as they turned back into the men they once were. But since Anna… he sighed. Van Helsing had returned to the Vatican a colder man. Now the fights between the Cardinal and Van Helsing were usually over whether or not Van Helsing could accomplish a mission while at least trying to keep their quarry in one piece. Ah, now the fight was over. Karl watched the cardinal throw his gloved hands in the air in exasperation before walking away. Now Van Helsing proceeded down the staircase and began to head in Karl's direction, but instead of dodging between the scientists, he noted that his fellow lab technicians simply moved out of his way as quickly as possible.

He was like a dark Moses, parting a sea of human bodies.

Trying to appear conversational, Karl pretended to examine the aiming mechanism of the cross bow.

"Another mission Van Helsing?"

"Always. What do you have for me this time Karl?"

Karl ignored the abruptness in his friends tone. Van Helsing rarely joked these days.

"I have your usual cross bow; which now has a newer aiming site." He picked up the weapon of question and, struggling, held it to his shoulder.

"Using the new cross hairs, you will be able to aim the bow with a 60% increase in accuracy. It even has a new feature we call "Night vision" so you will be able to shoot in the dark."

Van Helsing took the bow from Karl and readied it with the ease of a consort violinist and his favorite instrument. He loaded an arrow, turned sharply, and fired an arrow. It flew across the room, skimmed through the crowd and straight through a cup of water that a young monk was drinking out of, pinning it to the wall next to him.

"Nice" was all Van Helsing said.

"I also want to show you some new inventions. This…" Karl picked up a large plait of metal breast plate "is the newest in defense technology. It is a suit of armor, insulated with willow, wolves' bane and lavender. A sure protection against spells and curses. Also slightly effective against bullets."

"And this is something very very new. My latest invention, the blow gun."

Karl picked the blow gun from the bench and held it in front of him with pride. Van Helsing was un-impressed.

"Karl, it's a stick." Well, it was. It was a long piece of bamboo cane, with a rubber cork at each end.

"Well, yes it is. But, you don't use it to hit your enemies. It's based on the poisonous head hunters of the Amazon basin. You remember, we met them when we were rescuing the missionaries from the pig thing. Anyway, rather then firing poison tipped darts, its ammunition of choice is, these…"
"Sewing needles?"

"Yes, what? No! These are razor sharp needles mad from the purest silver, forged under the full moon light. Simply load the needles into the blow gun, remove the cork, take aim and blow. If you aim it right at your enemy's heart, it will kill them stone dead. And the best part is, they will never know what hit them. Ideal for sneak attacks, should you choose the element of surprise.

"Hmmmmm. Anything else?"

Nothing very interesting, except I have re-invented the Holy water pistol, with a bigger chamber to store more water. But I am keeping that for myself."
"Karl, does that mean you are volunteering to come on a mission?"

"What do you mean volunteer? I never volunteer, I get shanghaied!"

"Well, I was going to ask if you wanted to stay behind this time. It sounds very dangerous. But since you are already ready to go…"
"Wait! Van Helsing!"
But it was to late, Van Helsing had already picked up his bag of weapons and began striding for the door. All Karl could do was follow after him.

"Wait, Van Helsing, I change my mind! I un-Volunteer! Wait!..."

Meanwhile, across the sea, three clocked figures met by a ragged cliff face.

"Has the time come, sister? What news has though?"
"Our time is now sisters! They have come! As prophesied, the Key has been born!"

"Our destiny awaits us sisters! The stars are almost in alignment! Away! We must prepare. We cannot fail!"

"We will not fail! Never fear, sisters… I Graymalkin and I shall see to that…

To be continued…