Chapter ten
When the sun rose again over the forbidden land of Transylvania, Van Helsing saw his chance to find the vampire women and slaughter them in their sleep. As he walked into the dark cellar of the castle, he then saw three tombs, he had seen where they had disappeared to last night after they killed the horse and now he thought he had found them.
He also saw the sun shining on the tombs, he saw his perfect chance, he walked over and mastering all his strength, he pushed the lid off the top of the tomb, in the first one he saw the beautiful vampire ground squirrel sleeping peacefully. He then pulled out his machete and got ready to strike. "When the sun rises once more" he told himself "they again grow weak! Dracula is weak now, and has no power"
He then brought the machete down on the squirrel's neck and severed her head from her body, as he did; a loud scream filled the tomb. As he beheaded the bride, blood splattered on the tomb walls. Van Helsing then beheaded the rabbit and the fox until he finally had the three heads of the brides in his hand.
As the eerie scream had echoed around the tomb, it had awakened Amy who was sleeping within the burnt circle. She looked up and she saw emerging from the dark part of the castle cellar was the silver fox with blood over his clothes. In one bloody hand he held his machete, and in the other banging against his leg like three sacks of potatoes were the heads of the ground squirrel, the rabbit and the fox.
Van Helsing then looked towards the heavens and screamed "DRACUL!" he then threw the heads of the vampire women into the valley below, "DRACUL!" he screamed again "DRACUL!" Amy looked up at Van Helsing who continued to scream into the air "DRACUL!" his scream echoed all around the castle and through the air.
As the sun began to set later that night, Van Helsing and Amy stood on the edge of the cliff looking out for Sonic, Shadow, Knuckles and Espio who were trying to race after the gypsies carrying the Count's box. Van Helsing stared at the horizon waiting for movement; his mind was filled with thoughts again.
"Killing those women was easy" he thought "when the sun was up, but when the sun lowers again…that will be the ultimate test!" suddenly the wolves began to howl as the sun began to set, Amy opened up her eyes and her ears pricked up, "the wolves!" she cried "do you hear them? They…" she then gasped "professor! He comes...and they are close behind!"
Van Helsing went pale, "our friends!" he looked up at the sun that glowed red over their heads and was slowly lowering over the snowy land of Transylvania, "I fear they may be too late! God Help us!" he pleaded as he saw the two hedgehogs, the echidna and the chameleon running after the carriage that the vampire was in. "They race against the sunset!"
As he was speaking, Sonic and Shadow were trying to pick up their speed to catch up to the carriage, Sonic looked up at the sun setting "we have to hurry Shadow!" he shouted across to his ebony friend, "we must kill him before the sun sets!"
Shadow looked up and he saw the castle getting closer and closer "I will not let that bastard get away!" he shouted, his red eyes glowing. Knuckles then shouted "we're getting close!" he pulled his long rifle off his back whilst holding onto Sonic's shoulders with the other hand. He aimed it at the carriage and fired. As he did, one of the gypsies fell off with a yell as a bullet pierced his back. "Nice aim guardian!" yelled Espio.
Inside the box Dracula could sense the four men trying to get him, he then began to direct his thoughts to Amy "Amy!" he whispered "Amy! You are near, Amy!" as he did, Amy heard his thoughts and she stood on a high area of the cliff. "AMY!" cried Van Helsing as she ran up. "I must go to him!" screamed Amy "he needs me!" "Amy wait!" shouted Van Helsing.
Amy then began to scream and cry out strange curses, waving her arms around as if conjuring the elements, Van Helsing then realised that she had the Count's powers to control the wind, the snow and the rain. As she cursed and screamed huge blizzards of snow rose up around where Sonic and the others were.
Sonic and Shadow tried to dodge them as best they could, but it was difficult, Shadow leapt over the blizzards trying to keep his eyes on the carriage that galloped ahead. As they chased after the box they used their guns and other weapons they had to bring the carriage down.
Knuckles used his large gun, Shadow kept firing chaos spears at the carriage trying to knock the gypsies off and break the box, Espio took out a small knife and threw it at one of the gypsies, as he did the knife struck one of the gypsies who fell off and was dragged along the ground by the carriage.
As the four men tried to bring down the carriage, Dracula writhed and screamed, he wanted to get out of the box and attack Sonic and the others but he couldn't because he was weak when the sun was still in the sky. He kept directing his thoughts to Amy who continued to shout and curse making the sky thunder and the wind blow.
As the snow surrounded the men, Sonic tripped, he slid in the snow, but Knuckles pulled him up and encouraged him to keep running, they couldn't give up now! Not when they were so close! Sonic increased his speed; soon he was almost touching the carriage. He took a deep breath and jumped onto the carriage.
As he made a grab for the vampire's box, one of the gypsies, a black and white bearded badger came towards him brandishing a long whip, Sonic's eyes went wide, he didn't know what to do until suddenly some yellow spears appeared from behind him and struck the gypsy in the chest making him fall off the carriage dead.
Sonic turned to see Shadow who was running close behind; he nodded at the ebony hedgehog who nodded back. Espio then threw another dagger at a yellow coyote gypsy who was trying to stab Sonic and managed to knock him off the carriage and into the valley far below.
They were reaching the castle gates, Sonic held onto the carriage tightly as Knuckles held onto the back, skiing behind and Castle and Espio ran behind them. Amy watched them as they entered the castle still wrestling with the merciless gypsies who were trying to guard the box with their lives.
She picked up the rifle that Knuckles had given her and ran after them "I must go to him!" she screamed "he needs me!" Van Helsing ran after the pink hedgehog that ran towards the castle, her black and green dress and robes flowed behind her as she ran. "Amy Rose!" he called "Amy Rose, wait!"
As Sonic and the others made it into the castle gates, several angry and fearless gypsies jumped out and leapt on them brandishing weapons, but Sonic and the other's didn't hold back. Sonic stood on the carriage trying to get into the box as the sun was setting, fast. Shadow, Espio and Knuckles fought the gypsies; Shadow used his chaos powers, firing spears at every gypsy who came towards him.
Espio used two daggers in his coat slicing and stabbing the gypsies, Knuckles used his long sword and his spiked knuckled fists. Sonic looked up at the sun, it was almost gone, he had to be quick! He lifted a knife and began to cut the ropes and smash it to get to the black vampire bat that lay inside it. But he was stopped by a raven gypsy that came towards him with a sword.
Meanwhile Amy and Van Helsing had made it to the gate and Amy franticly tried to make her way inside, "I must help him!" she screamed holding up the gun "but which one Amy?" yelled Van Helsing "which one?" Amy ran in, and almost stopped dead in her tracks at the four men fighting the fierce merciless gypsies.
Sonic fought the gypsy and snarled at him "You won't stop me from killing that Devil!" he screamed as he fought the gypsy "NOTHING WILL!" Knuckles turned to Sonic fighting the gypsy and ran over. "I'll get him for you…!" he yelled starting to climb on top of the carriage.
But as he did, a gypsy that was nearby ran up behind him and brandished a knife; he ran up behind the echidna and stabbed the blade into his back. Knuckles yelled in agony as the blade was stabbed deep into his back. "KNUCKLES!" screamed Espio. Knuckles was stabbed in the back, but he didn't go down immediately, he turned and punched the gypsy with his spiked fist killing him.
Sonic managed to get the gypsy off the carriage and he immediately began to crack it open with his knife, as he did the sun disappeared, filling the area in darkness, as soon as the sun disappeared, Dracula burst out of the box, sending wooden splinters everywhere.
As Dracula appeared, growling and snarling, with his wings opened up on his back and his clawed hand was aimed towards Sonic, but Sonic moved quickly and slashed the black vampire bat's throat. "NNNNOOOOOOO!" screamed Amy as the blood pumped from the black bat's throat. Shadow then saw the bat appear growling and his fangs brandished, even though Sonic had slashed his throat, it didn't seem to bring him down.
"You bastard!" he screamed, his hands glowing yellow "you murdered Rouge!", he threw some yellow spears at Dracula and they caught his large left black wing. The Black Bat screamed in agony as the spears slashed his wing. Knuckles staggering from his fatal wound took out his long sword again and drove it through the black vampire bat's chest. "YOU'LL…!" he screamed gasping "WILL…NEVER HAVE HER!"
The Black Bat's eyes glowed and he threw the echidna to the side, there the echidna lay choking, some of his blood ran from the corner of his mouth. The bat's eyes glowed again "you…" he growled "will not be the ones…to destroy me…!" Amy then ran over and tried to defend him as Sonic, Shadow, and Van Helsing came towards the bleeding vampire bat who collapsed onto the ground spluttering and writhing as he grew weak from the loss of his blood.
"NO!" she screamed brandishing the gun "AMY!" cried Sonic "what…?" Amy held the gun up aiming it at the men, Espio ran to Knuckles's side, who lay there choking and spluttering from his mortal wound. Amy pointed the gun at the men "When my time comes…" she said "will you do the same to me?"
The three men said nothing; they all refused to move afraid that Amy would fire the gun at them. "WILL YOU?" Amy screamed. Sonic's ears flopped down and he tried to plead with Amy "Amy…" he said gently, Shadow didn't want to listen to reason. His mind was still filled from when Dracula killed Rouge. With his eyes blazing and his hands glowing yellow he ran towards the bloody black bat ready to fire his spears at him.
"NO!" Sonic shouted grabbing Shadow, causing his hand to aim at the ground where the spears struck, "let them go!" said Sonic "what?" said Shadow with a growl "Our work is finished! Her's is just beginning!" Amy kept the gun on the men and backed away, the bat then crawled through a wooden door and Amy followed him.
Espio was still on the ground cradling Knuckle's who was all bloody and coughing up his own blood, "Professor!" he cried to Van Helsing "Knuckles…he's…" he shook the echidna's body "Knuckles!" he shouted "Knuckles!" Knuckles looked up at the men and choked, then he went limp in Espio's arms.
"Let him rest Espio" said the grey fox sadly "let him sleep in peace" Van Helsing then turned to Shadow and Sonic who looked at Knuckles with sadness, then back at where Dracula and Amy had disappeared to, Espio started to weep over the dead echidna's body as he held him in his arms. "We have all become God's mad men" Van Helsing whispered bowing his head.
Meanwhile Amy had pulled Dracula's body inside the building, which turned out to be the chapel and alter, she had pulled him onto the alter and began to weep uncontrollably. "My Love" Amy sobbed.
Dracula looked up at the weeping pink hedgehog, "where is my God…" he choked "he has forsaken me" Amy looked down at the bloodstained black bat and continued to weep. "You cannot leave me!" she sobbed "I want to be with you always" "it is finished" the Black Bat whispered, his red eyes filling with tears as he looked up at Amy.
Amy continued to sob "no" she whispered, she leaned forward and kissed Dracula's lips that were slowly quivering as his strength was weakening. "no please…" Amy sobbed "I love you…" more tears rolled down her beautiful face. As she said those words, the alter candles lit up and a heavenly light appeared from behind the large cross on the alter and shone on Dracula's face.
Amy looked up at the cross, and she then realised, "Here as I stand in the presence of God" she thought as tears rolled down her cheeks, "I understand now how my love can release us all from the powers of darkness" she looked down at the bleeding bat "our love is stronger than death"
Dracula looked up at Amy his long black hair which was covered in his blood from where Sonic had slashed his throat shone, and his red eyes shone with sparkling tears. "Mortal love has no hold on us" he whispered "ours will last all eternity" the tears then began to fall, "release me…" he whispered "please Amy" he whispered "give me peace…"
Amy shut her eyes letting more tears fall, she then grabbed the sword and thrust it hard and deeper into the Black Vampire Bat's chest, as she did the blade made a crashing noise as it hit the stone floor. The Black Bat chocked as the blade went through his heart, he then looked up and went silent and his wings flopped on the ground lifelessly.
Amy then felt a burning pain on her forehead from where Van Helsing had placed the coin with the crucifix on, she lifted her hand to touch it, and realised it was gone. She looked down again at the lifeless Black Vampire Bat and leaned forward to kiss him, tears rolling down her cheeks. She then pulled away and continued to stare at his body. She then grabbed the sword and pulled it out of his chest.
She then lifted the sword and brought it down onto his neck, she then hacked off his head; it made a horrific whack as the blade cut through his flesh and bone. Amy broke down again as Dracula's head rolled to one side as it was separated from his body. As soon as Amy chopped off his head, she looked up where Dracula had been looking, and she saw a ceiling painting which glowed in a heavenly light.
As she continued to weep, she suddenly felt some strong arms encircle her, she turned to see who it was, and she saw her husband Sonic, "Sonic!" she cried throwing her arms around her. "Amy!" cried Sonic also beginning to cry, he looked at his wife's eyes, the vampire signs had gone from her face, she was safe.
"He's dead" Amy whispered tearfully, "oh Amy" whispered Sonic "I almost thought I lost you, I love you so much! I'll never leave you again" Amy held her husband close to her and sobbed "I love you too" she whispered.
Outside the Chapel, Van Helsing, Shadow and Espio watched as Amy wept over Dracula's body and Sonic trying to comfort her. "He's dead" said Espio; "she killed him" Shadow looked at Espio, his red eyes filled with tears.
"We have finally defeated him" he whispered "Amy was able to kill him, and release him" Van Helsing looked solemnly at the purple chameleon and the black hedgehog, "what happens now?" said Espio. Van Helsing bowed his head. "We want no proofs" he said "we ask none to believe us"
Shadow looked at Sonic and Amy then at Van Helsing "Van Helsing?" he asked "God be thanked that all has not been in vain…" said the old silver fox silently "the curse has passed away" Shadow and Espio looked at Van Helsing and then again at Sonic and Amy and the dead Black Bat then they bowed their heads sadly. Then they slowly turned to walk away from the chapel.
In the chapel Amy buried her head into Sonic's shoulder and continued to cry over what she had done. She looked at the Black Vampire Bat's bloody headless body and then looked up again at the painting above her head.
She saw the Black Vampire Bat, smiling with his wings open on his back flying up towards the light holding a beautiful pink Hedgehog in his arms, Amy smiled through her tears, knowing that the Dracula had found peace and was now with his beloved Elizabeta, together for all eternity, bound by a love that would never die and that she was free one more.
The End