Son of the Devil, Meet the Daughter of Your Enemies
And the Winner Is….
I hope all of you are jumping in your seats with excitement and suspense because today you will find out who the winner is.
Dracula: It's Responding to Reviews time!
Me: So much for him being creative….
Angel of Beauty: Yeah, I know my update took awhile. I was planning on this chapter to come out sooner but time wasn't on my side. I'm glad you think that about my story, your constant reviews are always wonderful.
Fortune Zyne: I totally agree with you on that one. Dracula is quite famous for playing word games.
Phantom's Bride: You shall see soon enough who will win the game. As I like to say it, suspense is one of an author's very best friends.
jillybean4813: I'm glad you like the relationship, it sort of plays a major role in this story (Yes, I finally figured out how my story will end). Like I promised last chapter, Van Helsing and Carl will be in this chapter but of course, they lure trouble. You'll have to read on to find out more!
Dracula: And now it's time for Dracula's Disclaimer!
Me: Ah, no. Only I recite the disclaimer, didn't you forget? Allow me to refresh your memory. In chapter 4, paragraph 14, in 15 words, it stats this: NO WAY! I recite the disclaimer! ME! No one else! Just me, me, me!
Dracula: This is so unfair….
Me: It's cruel, cruel, cruel world at there, Dracula. Get used to it!
Disclaimer: How can I own Van Helsing? ""ponders furiously while tapping a pen"" Hmmm…hmmmm…hmmmm…. Maybe blackmail….
A hundred years later….
Hmmmm…hmmm…. I still don't have enough money! I don't own a single thing of Van Helsing! Woe is me.
Six. The number six glistened in the light of the oil lamp, staring up into the faces of Count Dracula and Gabriele Van Helsing. It was if this number had the power to make time stand still.
"Nice roll, Gabriele, but you are still one point short. I have ten and you have nine. Tough luck." Yet to his confusion, Gabriele was grinning from ear to ear.
"On the contrary, count, I disagree. True, you have one more point than me, but it seems you don't know about the special effect of my Valkyrie." she said slyly and Dracula's face went straight from a smirk to a scowl.
"Special effect! What on earth are you talking about! How could your Valkyrie save you from this?" demanded the count, his eyes sparkling electric blue for a moment. Gabriele wagged her pointer finger at him, a sign language telling him off at his sudden outburst.
"I'll explain. When a situation like this occurs, my Valkyrie's special effect kicks in. If I am rolling defensive and my roll three or less points lower than yours, she allows me to roll again to add to points so far." she explained matter-of-factly. Seeing this would cost him the round, Dracula furiously refrained himself for crying out the injustice of it. But since when I'm fair?
Gabrielepicked up one the defensive dice and rolled it. Four little dots appeared on top, signifying that Gabriele had won the round. Letting a gloating, satisfied smirk escape from her lips, Gabriele turned herself toward Count Dracula, who masked his features superbly.
"Well, that's end of this round. Are you done with your turn, Dracula?" He didn't tell, but her smirk almost reminded him of his own.
"Of course, my dear. Start your turn." You haven't won yet, Gabriele! I'm still in control of this game no matter tricks or moves you pull. I will win!
"With pleasure." Perhaps it's time for me to use one of my creatures special abilities against you next time, my dear warrior.
"Um, Van Helsing…."
"What is it, Carl?"
"Is it just me or do you feel that we're being watched?"
"Probably."
The two companions were in the middle of a murky and dense forest shrouded in fog and mist. During their departure of Rome, Van Helsing managed to get them both travel-fit horses that could carry the weight of their gear. Carl, being prepared as always, made sure that everything they packed was either their meal or ways to kill Dracula. Van Helsing himself was surprised that the horses survived their journey this long, each bag that Carl packed must have weighted a ton!
The horses' hooves clip-clopped down the dirt trail as Carl looked around anxiously, believing a monster of some sort would pop out and attack. Inside, Van Helsing smiled at Carl's actions, only he could turn a threatening situation into a humorous one. Still maintaining a stoic expression, he shifted his nearest gun closer toward him and placed it partially in front of him. Carl wasn't the only one who sensed someone or something watching them.
SNAP.
Both Van Helsing's and Carl's heads swerved to the direction of the noise. Nothing was to be seen. Just shady trees, mist, fog, more mist, and more fog. Van Helsing's senses screamed out to him, saying the enemy was nearby. He scanned the scenery and sniffed the air. No, not enemy, enemies.
"Carl?"
"Yes, Van Helsing?" came the frighten voice of the friar.
"In a few minutes we will be attacked."
"B-by what?"
"By banshees." When those words died from his lips, a ghastly white creature lunged out the trees, aiming straight for Van Helsing. Wasting no time, the retired monster hunter yanked out his pistol, cocked it, and fired. The banshee's dark gray eyes boggled as the bullet tore through its chest, piercing the heart. It instantly fell, thumping to the ground. Blood trickled out of bullet wound, staining the shabby gray cotton dress it wore. Its ghostly white hair was harshly plastered on the banshee's head and trailed down to its shoulders. The sudden appearance of the banshee nearly startled Carl out his wits.
"What in hell's blazes is going on?" Carl cried out. Van Helsing could have sworn he saw another pair of dark grey eyes peeking out from the fog and mist and vanish completely when he took a second look at it. The death of the first banshee was raising the tensions amongst her sisters and in any minute, they all would show themselves.
"On second thought, Carl, we're going to be attacked right now." Vicious, blood-curdling shrieks and a large quantity of white feminine creatures diving out from the woods proved his point.
She was almost there. She was almost done with game, so close into finishing. Victory was in her reach and this time Dracula wouldn't be able to snatch it away. Freedom was nearby. Her freedom. She could practically taste it.
"The time as come, Gabriele. The ending of the game is at hand and this final battle will determine the victor of this game." His cold black eyes flickered up at her, challenging her. He wanted to win just as much as she did and he wasn't going to stop at nothing until he was victorious. "The creature I sent forth to fight your remaining heroes is…." He waved his hand over the last square of the trail and metallic figurine appeared out of thin air.
"…the Demon King." Just from the title of this monster Gabriele knew this last fight would haven no ounce of leniency.
Everything comes down to this battle. The final showdown between Dracula and me. I have to do everything in my power to win or I'll be his prisoner till the end of my days!
So it began. Rolling the defensive dice, Gabriele murmured a silent prayer to God to aid her in this game and help her win. Please, she begged wordlessly, I cannot stay with him forever! I must get back to my father and Carl! I must fulfill the Van Helsing legacy! Her two dice landed on a two and four. Dracula's numbers were two, two, and five. The Demon King now had successfully dealt damage to her heroes. She winced inside at the amount, it nearly wiped out two of her players!
"I believe it's your turn, Gabriele." The count's voice broke through her thoughts, snapping her back to reality.
"I know, Dracula. Now it's my turn to give the damage." she replied coolly. Her right hand snatched up the offensive dices and leaving Dracula with the defensive ones. "Ready?" A nod from Dracula was all she needed to release the dice and let them roll. Tip-tap. Five. Tip-tap. Three. Tip-tap. One. Gabriele glared at the dice with the number one, cursing it to the ends of the earth. Why was she always rolling a one when she needed higher numbers the most?
"I don't know about you, but it appears fortune is smiling down on me." His voice guided her to the dices he rolled and her fingers curled into fists. The numbers read: Six and…a six.
"Curse you, count!" exclaimed Gabriele, "Why are you always rolling sixes in times like these!" Count Dracula offered her a devilish grin, the grin that simply irked her to no end.
"I just have all the luck in the world. I rule this game, dear Gabriele. By the looks of your dice I say you failed to damage the Demon King."
"I know that!" Clearly the count loved to rub in all her failures in her face, even in games. She was beginning to find it excessively tiring. "Your turn, Dracula. Let's see how long your luck lasts." The count returned her comment with a knowledgeable smirk.
"I assure you it will only disperse after when the game is over."
"Dream on! Go roll the dice." The results were almost the same as his last turn. His rolls were exceedingly higher than hers by far and her dice just weren't cooperating with her. She already lost two of her heroes, her phoenix and elf archer. All she had left was her dragon, samurai, and Valkyrie. And it was her turn. If she didn't win soon, she would most certainly lose the game and be forced to endure Dracula for her entire life. There was no question about it, she had to win. For Carl, her father, the world and herself. For freedom.
Time to put Dracula in his place and win this bloody game of his! New determination arose from the ashes and into her soul. Displaying her poker face, she took the offensive dive and gave them one violent shake before letting them fly. Dracula had already rolled his dice and the numbers five and six stared upward. Tip-tap. Five. Tip-tap. Four. Tip-tap. …Six. Hardly believing her good fortune, Gabriele blinked multiple times at the three rolled numbers, making sure they were genuine.
"Lady Luck has chosen a new successor." Just by watching the count's actions Gabriele could tell the arrogance in her voice enraged him to the extreme. And she enjoyed every second of it. Another round or two like that and freedom is mine!
Snarling, Dracula tossed the defensive dice to her and scooped up the offensive dice, shaking them instantly. Rage blazed inside those deep black eyes of his that stood out against his pale, masked face. They rolled their dices and compared their numbers. Her total was greater. With a sudden smirk, Dracula announced the Demon's King's special ability.
"By subtracting two points from my total number, he automatically wipes out one of your heroes I chose. Now who shall it be…? Your Valkyrie, samurai or dragon? Decisions, decisions." Finally, after gazing at the board for an eternity, he made his decision. He decided that her Valkyrie would be the one to go and Gabriele plucked it off the board and toss it back in the box.
"You already knew what hero you wanted, you were just trying to tick me off," she accused him in a monotone voice after the Valkyrie figurine went into the box, "Isn't that right?" Dracula's devilish grin was only answer he gave her.
She picked up the offensive dice and rolled while Dracula did the same with the defensive dice. She looked at her numbers then at Dracula's. Horror was lodged in her gut when she the numbers. No! It's not feasible! Her numbers: Five, one, two. His: Six and three. Her monsters wouldn't stand another chance against another successful attack by the Demon King. Dracula knew this too for he already scooped up the offensive and rolled a two, six, and three. He wore his triumphant smile on and his face telling her rolling was futile for she couldn't possibly beat him. Heart heavy, she rolled her final roll. This was her last shot…she had to roll high in order to win back her freedom…. Watching emotionlessly as her dice tap-dance across the board, she pressed her knuckles firmly against her thighs in high hopes that she would win.
First dice stopped and landed on a six. Good. Now give me another six to insure me victory. She glued her eyes to the last dice with was doing a little spin before tumbling down and revealing the chosen number: One.
Noooooooo! Why does this always happen to me!
Suddenly, a thought popped into her head and the light in the situation didn't seem so dim anymore.
A one. Gabriele had rolled a one. He had won, there was no question about and now Gabriele was all his. At last, now the real fun can begin.
"It seems to me that I'm the winner of this game—" he began gloating but stopped short at Gabriele shaking her head, a smile dancing on her face.
"No, Dracula, you haven't won yet. During a situation like this my dragon's special ability activates. I get to roll again and whatever I roll will be added to my other number thus forming my new total." As she explained this to him, she was already joggling the dice. After a few seconds of suspense, she tipped her hand over and let it loose. It instantly stopped on a five, making her total number equal with his. Silence engulfed the room. Dracula was unsure what happens next.
"What happens now?" he asked, pointing to the equal number totals. Gabriele bit her lip, her face showing him she did know but was disappointed the roll wasn't any higher.
"It's tie. Once I roll and get my total, my dragon automatically ends the game. That's all." A tie. Curses, I was so close! Wretched dragon...
Looking up from the game, he could easily tell that Gabriele was just as frustrated as him. Curious to see what she was thinking, Dracula entered her mind stealthily without her aware of it.
Shoot! I was close to success! Now how will I escape the count? …At least I didn't lose...
More thoughts followed but Dracula withdrew himself from her mind, a little nasty idea came to live. Eager to send her up in fireworks-for he loved when she got angry, she had such a lovely yet fierce glow in her-, he said, "Yes, it was lucky that you didn't lose, Gabriele." Her eyes light up and she slammed her hand on board, causing several remaining pieces to jump and fall down.
"Were you just reading my mind not too long ago!" she demanded, her eyes flashing at him dangerously.
"What do you think, my dear?" he replied smugly. Gabriele removed her hand from the game. She was trembling with uncontrollable fury and sea-green pupils of hers contained so much hostility that Dracula began to feel wary around her. He didn't think reading her mind would make her this enraged. "Gabriele…."
"I'M SO SICK OF YOU, COUNT! YOU READ MY MIND WITHOUT MY PERMISSION OR BEING COOSIDERATE ABOUT MY FEELINGS WHEN MOST OF MY THOUGHTS ARE PERSONAL! YOU FORCE THINGS UPON ME AND DO EVERYTHING THAT PLEASES YOU WITHOUT THINKING ABOUT HOW OTHERS FEEL! I HATE YOU!" What she did next caught Dracula off guard. She flipped In the Devil's Grasp over, flinging it and the game pieces at him. When he was occupied in dodging the board game and the miniature figurines, she quickly went over to him and socked him straight across the face, colliding with his nose. His head hit the wall with a solid thud and he heard footsteps running away in cold fury. He whirled around but Gabriele was gone. His face still was stinging after that sudden punch she made, he was lucky his nose didn't get broken.
Maybe I should go after her... No, she would just ripe my head off again. Best thing to do is to let her go, let her blow off some steam. She'll come around sooner or later.
"I'M SO SICK OF YOU, COUNT!... I HATE YOU!" Did she truly mean that?
Damn him. Damn Dracula and everything she hated about him to Hell! Damn him to deepest depths of Hell!
How dare him read my mind? HOW DARE HE!
Gabriele stormed through the hallway, searching for a room that could serve as a useful sanctuary to shelter her from the count. Any minute now Dracula would appear to stop her and try to pull off something else. She didn't care what he did, she wasn't in the mood for any of his twisted games.
After ten minutes of searching, she finally barged into a musty old room filled with antiques and such. The lights were dim and Gabriele strained her eyes to see clearly. At her feet was an elongate oriented rug with old-fashioned furniture. It had the appearance of secret attic from the olden days. Closing the door, she cautiously checked out the room with her sharp eyes, analyzing it for safety. It passed with flying colors. The floorboard creaked beneath her boots as she walked around the peculiar room. Dust bobbled about in the air like little dancers and everything was strangely clam…and quiet. The perfect sanctuary.
As Gabriele explored the room curiously, a flicker of gold caught her eye. Sitting remotely in the back was box. It was made out of redwood , decorated with vast jewels and designs like no other all in pure gold. This mysterious box seemed to scream out, "Pandora's box!" Gabriele never seen anything quite like it. Curiosity gnawing, she reached out, unlocked it and opened it up gently.
Thick grayish-whitish smoke poured outward, clouding her vision. Wrapping itself around her body like snake, it began choking her. Grey blankets filled her nostrils with smoke and smothered her senses. Her eyes shut themselves tightly, tears leaking out of the corners from pain and irritation. Long grey serpents slithered all over her, suffocating ever muscle inside of her. Flailing like a fish out of water Gabriele thrashed about, trying her best to get the smoke to release its hold on her. It was useless because her actions tighten its grip. A scream tried escaping from her throat but the smoke covered her mouth, diminishing any word threatening to come out. The situation was hopeless.
Crumpling to the ground, Gabriele made her last attempts to break free and had no prevails. Consciousness started slipping away into the black abyss. Her thoughts scattered themselves to the wind and she became lost within herself.
This can't be the end... Someone please help…anyone…please help... Help...
Carl... Dad... Mom...
...Dracula...
Dracula: What was that all about? How can smoke attack a person?
Me: ""grins evilly"" You'll see. SUSPENSE SESATION! Cliffhanger Cue! MWUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! The next chapter is going to be great! What will happen to Van Helsing and Carl? Will Gabriele survive the mysterious smoke? Is it Dracula to the rescue? All shall be revealed in the next chappie! ""cackles""
Dracula: So review this chapter and give me a muffin!
Me: And me!