Author's note: Hugs and kisses to all, and a bouquet of flowers to Elwyndra who keeps reviewing my story! Well, my semester exams are nearing threateningly and this means I have to study very much… But I'll do my best to keep my updating rate! Okay, about the chapter now, I think it's a rather weird one…or is it not? You'll tell me! I just let my imagination free! When you read it to the end, can you guess what it is implied? It's easy lol. The answer will come tomorrow! ;p
Summary: This story takes place right after the movie, only Anna was not hurt by Van Helsing and furthermore is not dead lol. The basic idea is that we'll follow their journey to Rome with all of its events, and finally we'll get to learn something about who he really is. All the way, there will be an exploration of his relationship with her.
Warning: The story contains explicit sex scenes, so please don't read through if you are under legal age or otherwise feel uncomfortable with such stuff. To everyone else, enjoy yourselves! ;-p
Disclaimer: Yes, bla bla bla I don't own Van Helsing or anything related to the movie, I only own my own characters and plot bla bla bla etc…
A Journey Home, And A Journey Of Sentiments
Chapter 11
The following day was nothing like the previous night. A glorious sun was shining and a gentle wind was blowing. The day was perfect for a ship to sail off.
The three travelers left the inn early in the morning and then visited the town's local market to buy some provisions for the rest of their journey. Soon they found themselves at the dock, and all sorts of people were already boarding the Morning Star. The ship was huge and her three tall masts seemed to penetrate the sky with pride, while her large hold stood stable and motionless on the water surface. The sea was calm and seagulls screeched dissonantly through the air. The ugliness of the previous night had disappeared and it was now replaced by liveliness and motion.
Gabriel, Anna and Carl followed the crowd aboard the ship. After some time and when everything was ready, the Morning Star left the harbor of the Dalmatian coast and set sail for Italy. She was to reach her destination the following day. The three friends chose to stand by the gunwale so that they would have perfect view of the sea. Gabriel looked at Anna and smiled to her lovingly.
"Well? What do you think now?", he asked her.
"It's beautiful…", she whispered and let her gaze wander over the vast sea that was spreading all around them, and back to the port that was gradually shrinking behind them.
The wind, which was now much stronger, filled the sails and pushed the ship patiently on her journey across the sea, causing her to follow a constant up-and-down movement, while she opened her way decisively through the dark waters, with waves splashing on both sides of the stem.
The passengers could feel the cold air on their faces, as well as the salty sprays of the sea, and many thought it would be better to move to the lower deck, while others simply enjoyed this revitalizing breath of the sea. Carl suggested that they should go inside because it was cold, but Anna wanted to get the most of it. A little later Carl met two Spanish monks that were returning to their homeland, and the three of them went to the lower deck where they could enjoy their spiritual conversation in peace. Anna and Gabriel were left alone to enjoy the sea as much as they liked. Suddenly a man approached them. He was in his middle fifties and looked very aristocratic and elegant.
"Is she your wife?", he asked Gabriel. The hunter, who hadn't noticed the man approaching them, turned to the man at once with a cautious look on his face.
"Excuse me?", he said.
"Forgive me for approaching you so without manner… But you have attracted my attention, and curiosity if you like, from the very first moment I saw you on the ship. Oh, but where are my manners again... Let me introduce myself. My name is Robert Williams and I am a doctor from London. It's a pleasure to meet your beautiful lady", he said and placed a kiss on Anna's hand, slightly bowing before her, "as well as you, Mr. Van Helsing…", he continued and extended his hand to Gabriel.
"Nice to meet you too, Dr. Williams, but do we know each other?", Gabriel asked while shaking hands with the man, his voice revealing some confusion. Anna gave him a worried look.
"Actually, we don't. But, if I may say, it is not to difficult for a man who knows how to observe to recognize you. There are… wanted posters of you in almost every street of London, especially after the first Dr. Jekyll incident… By the way, I should congratulate you on your success", the doctor said with a smile. Gabriel was taken aback.
"What are you saying, Dr. Williams? It cannot be that you knew about Dr. Jekyll", said Gabriel and raised an eyebrow to the older man.
"Oh but it can, it can… You see, Mr. Van Helsing, I happened to be a colleague of Dr. Jekyll during the first stages of his experimentations, before he was consumed by them. A sad fact, isn't it? To let yourself become a victim of your own deeds…", he said formally and stared intensively at Gabriel. "So, perhaps I'm one of the few people who do not consider you a murderer… If I may ask you, how is it that you knew about Dr. Jekyll? I believed I was the only one suspecting the truth behind him. Oh, I hope my question is not bringing you in a difficult position…", he continued in the same manner.
"Some things are not known to only one or two persons. Keep the outcome, Dr. Williams, and don't seek to dig in deeper", Van Helsing replied in a voice that revealed his unwillingness to continue the conversation.
"Forgive me for being curious, but it's my scientific nature to search for the deepest cause of things. I will accept your answer as it is, however, as I wish not to press you on the subject. A beautiful day for a journey across the sea, isn't it?", he decided to change the subject to something lighter.
"Yes indeed. Let's pray that the night will be good as well", Gabriel responded.
"Do you believe in God, Mr. Van Helsing?"
"I'm trying", he replied humorously and his answer made the doctor let out a laugh. "Do you not?", he continued.
"I would agree with you, but let me tell you that my experience has showed me that we can achieve nothing if we only depend on prayers… We must get our lives in our hands and take full responsibility of our actions. Don't expect heavenly sent gifts, my friends, for you shall receive none", the doctor said, expressing cold realism. Then he suddenly changed the subject again. "The sun is about to set, and an old man like me can feel the chill in his bones more intensively… I think I should go to the lower deck. Would you like to join me?", he offered.
Gabriel and Anna looked at each other for a moment. It was really getting colder, and both of them would like to have something to eat as well, so they nodded affirmatively and followed the doctor.
The lower deck was spacious enough for a ship, but it was well-crowded by now. Gabriel spotted Carl who was sitting at a table with the two monks, and moved towards him. The two others followed him.
"Good afternoon", the hunter greeted them. "May we join you?", he asked and put his hand on Carl's shoulder.
"Sure, Van Helsing, take your seats…", the young friar responded. "These are Fathers Manuel and Antonio", he introduced the monks and they smiled warmly. Van Helsing gave Carl a questioning look, and the friar nodded to him not to worry; the monks knew.
"And we are Dr. Williams, Anna and Gabriel", the hunter responded as they seated themselves around the table.
"It's a pleasure to meet you", the doctor started, obviously comfortable among people.
"The pleasure is ours", Antonio replied. "We are Spanish Franciscan monks, and we have been visiting some monasteries in Eastern Europe", he informed them. "Now we are returning to Spain, after of course we pay some visits to some Italian monasteries too."
"What brings you to Italy, Dr. Williams? You must be from England, if I am not mistaken", Manuel asked the doctor.
"Scientific research reasons… And also some family ones. My daughter is married to an Italian, and I will visit them too. She is about your age, Miss Anna", Robert commented and Anna gave him a small smile.
The six of them went on chatting for several hours, with the subjects varying from religious to scientific ones and from everyday life incidents to grand adventures. Carl and Dr. Williams found each other's thoughts about science very stimulating and they were happy to share a common interest. The two monks had once visited Romania and when Carl told them about Gabriel having killed Dracula they thanked God for it. Therefore, Gabriel could keep it a secret no more that he was an evil vanquisher, and the doctor's curiosity was at last satisfied. All in all, it seemed that it was a very pleasant journey, blessed with good weather conditions and some good company for the three travelers.
Suddenly the boards of the deck's floor started creaking rather too much and the ship's movement in the water became more intense and seemed to be gradually losing its rhythm.
"It looks like the weather is getting worse…", Gabriel remarked.
"It's still winter, what could we expect? We have been rather lucky till now. How about going up to see how bad the weather actually is? So that we will be prepared for what will follow", the doctor suggested and the others agreed with him. Apparently, more people made similar thoughts and as a result quite a few of the passengers moved to the upper deck.
The weather had got bad indeed. A wild, freezing cold wind was blowing now, threatening to rip the sails. Big waves formed in the sea and they beat the Morning Star mercilessly from all sides. The moon, which was full tonight, quickly disappeared behind heavy clouds. It wouldn't be long before the storm broke out. The crew of the ship was running around in frenzy, trying to drop the sails and remove the water that was splashing on the deck continuously. The sailors were shouting to the passengers to either help or stand out of their way. Most people were terrified, and the little children cried helplessly as their mothers held them tightly in their hugs. Before anybody had enough time for a further reaction, something outrageous happened. The sea was torn apart somewhere in the distance, and, with the sound of a swirling wind, a demonic figure rose from the hole in the water. It was an enormous male figure and reddish in color, with large wings, horrible deadly claws and an awful long tail instead of legs. The demon's eyes were blacker than the night itself.
"Holy shit…!", Gabriel muttered in astonishment, as the creature flew towards the ship.
"Oh my God…! Are those evil creatures endless? Because this one doesn't seem to me like an angel!", Carl exclaimed in fear.
"Dear Lord…", the doctor uttered, eyes wide in terror and surprise at the same time.
"Mortals! Hearken to me!", the demon shouted and his voice came directly from the dungeons of hell. Everybody stood frozen and speechless, as the demon with a movement of his arms lifted the ship from the water.
"Hold on to somewhere!", Gabriel shouted to the people.
"We are going to die!", cried Antonio, his cry mixed with the cries of the others.
"God, help us!", pleaded Anna and Manuel in one voice.
"You shall pay for disturbing My Night! You shall pay for the Avenger being among you! You shall pay for Dracula's Blood being among you! You shall Die tonight of my hand!", the demon yelled at the terrified people and then he carried the ship with an inhuman speed far away from the Adriatic Sea, far away from her destination, and into the wild Mediterranean Sea. "All of you shall Die! Evil, now you have your Vengeance!", the demon shrieked and threw the ship with tremendous force into the water. With that he ascended into the black sky where he stopped to revel in the poor people's agony for a while, and then dived backwards and into the water.
"Hold on the ratlines!", Gabriel shouted and his friends, as well as some other people who were able to keep some traces of reason in that very hour, did as he said.
The ship made a terrible sound as it crashed on the huge waves. Her masts broke and fell on the deck, causing her to break in three large pieces. Many ill-fated passengers fell directly into the sea as the ship was falling, and they were instantly killed by the crush on the water. Their hold on the ratlines made the fall less severe for those who had taken Gabriel's advice, and they survived the fall, but as the masts broke afterwards, they were forced to let go of the ratlines. Broken pieces of wood were everywhere, and the water was quickly flooding the ship, impatient to swallow it to its black, oblivious depths.
"Anna! Anna, are you alright?", Gabriel asked his lover in a dead-worried voice.
"Yes…Ahh, my leg!", she cried. The two of them were now holding on the gunwale, as this piece of the ship had inclined terribly and was sinking into the water.
"Van Helsing! Van Helsing! Can you hear me?", Carl shouted, holding onto a board and struggling with the waves.
"Carl!", Gabriel yelled back, relieved that his friend had made it too.
Soon the three of them were in the water as the ship sank completely and they held onto wooden boards. Very few people survived, and they were all at the same state now, exhausted and terrified to the bone, but their primitive instinct of survival was guiding them and keeping them alert to struggle for their lives.
Was it just a night that passed or was it days and days? No one could tell for sure. When the three friends regained their senses they found themselves stranded on a beach. Wooden pieces and human bodies were lying all over it.
"Van Helsing? Anna? Are you… are you alright?", Carl asked as he crawled towards his companions. Anna coughed and spat out some water; then she sat up and looked at Carl in relief.
"Ahh… Yes, yes…", she said and coughed again. Then she looked at Gabriel who was lying face down on the sand. "Gabriel?", she worried and shook him a bit. The hunter slowly regained consciousness and opened his eyes.
"Anna, Carl… Where the hell are we?", he wondered.
"God only knows…", the friar answered him.
Their clothes were ripped. What's more, Gabriel had lost his weapons and Anna's sword was gone with her belt.
"Mr. Van Helsing! Miss Anna!", a familiar voice called to them. "I could use some help here please!"
"It's the doctor… Where are the monks?", Gabriel asked.
"I have no idea. I think he said he needs help", Carl said.
"I can't walk! My leg hurts!", Anna complained.
"Let me see… Oh it's not broken, thank God! But you've twisted it badly…", Carl told her.
"Stay with her, Carl. I'm going over to the doctor to see what he wants."
Meanwhile, some of the people managed to come round. Others kept lying at their place, breathless and cold. Life had cruelly fled from them.
"At last! Mr. Van Helsing, please help me to save this young lady!"
"How?"
"Support her upper body off the sand so that I can wrap the bandages around!", he said and tore some cloth from the girl's dress to use as bandage.
Gabriel lifted her carefully, but before the doctor managed to react the woman coughed blood out of her mouth and then she lost her senses. Gabriel looked at the doctor in sorrow.
"She's… dead", the hunter said.
"No!", the doctor cried and checked at her pulse, but there was none. "I failed…", he whispered in misery.
"There are others here that need your help. Come on now doctor, let her be. We need to check who is alive…", the hunter urged him and he silently consented.
A few hours later, all the survivors of the demon's wrath had buried the dead and gathered together. From all the passengers of the Morning Star, only nine were alive now. Gabriel, Anna, Carl, Dr. Williams, an Italian girl of seventeen named Francesca, Luka, who was a Serbian merchant, a crew member called Matteo, Mrs. Schaffer, and Antonio, the Spanish monk. He told Carl that Manuel was hit on the head by something and he drowned; Antonio wasn't able to save him and his grief was unbearable. Now all the survivors were sitting around a fire they managed to light using the broken wooden pieces.
"Does anybody know where we are?", the merchant asked.
"Somewhere in the shores of north Africa, I imagine…", the doctor replied.
"Oh God! What are we going to do now?", Mrs. Schaffer panicked.
"Rest tonight, and tomorrow leave the beach and move to the inland", Gabriel told her in a steady voice. The woman let out a sigh and then lay down and tried to sleep. Francesca and Matteo followed her example; they were more than exhausted.
"Oh, Van Helsing, guess what! I found your hat, miraculously!", Carl said happily.
"Thanks, Carl."
"Can you believe what happened?", Anna asked her close friends. "What was that creature?"
"He is a demon… There are very few references of him in the books, and I can't recall his name. Actually he's a demon of the sea, and he's very powerful, but he's allowed to attack ships only once a year, when the January moon is full…", the friar informed them.
"Damn our bad luck! How much worse can things get?", Gabriel said in anger.
"He said something about the Avenger and Dracula's Blood, didn't he?", Anna asked, recalling the events of that horrific night. "What did he mean?"
"I don't know… But I remember from what I have read that this demon hated Dracula… He hated him because Dracula was given a new life, while he was denied it and he was condemned to exist the way we saw him…", Carl replied in a low voice.
"Oh no…", Gabriel suddenly said in distress.
"What is it, Gabriel?", Anna asked him.
"I think I know what he meant."