Hello everyone,
While working on the next chapters for my other stories, I thought I'd start uploading other stories I've already written in the mean time. Don't worry, I'm still working on the others. But I hope some of you can enjoy these in the mean time.
1893, Transylvania:
Sitting atop a mountain surrounded by a huge dark chasm with only a single bridge connecting it to the other side stood a large ominous castle overlooking the rising sun. It was an evil nightmarish place no mortal dared to venture. That is, with the exception of a small group of people, four men and one woman, who all looked to be of British descent. The small group of Englishmen approached the castle's huge doors. The leader of the group was an older man with gray hair and spectacles.
"Come on, hurry!" the older Englishman told the group. "This is our best chance. We've got to destroy the creature while it rests."
Two of the men used as much of their strength to push the big heavy doors open allowing the rest of the group to enter. The interior of the castle was even more ominous-looking than the outside. Decaying walls, glassless windows, cobwebs everywhere, dirty floors, and no sign of life save for rats, lizards, bats and insects. The state of the place almost made it look like no one could possibly live there, but these people knew for a fact that something indeed lived in this horrible place.
"Split up," the older Englishman told the others. "We must find the creature's resting place immediately."
Three of the men searched different parts of the castle while the young woman accompanied their leader in his search. Hours passed with little success and the sun was beginning to set. Time was running out.
"We are running out of time," the leader said nervously. "We have to find him while we still have the light."
Suddenly, the young woman collapsed to her knees and held her head groaning as if she were in some sort of pain.
"Are you alright, my dear?" the leader concernedly asked coming to her aid.
"He's here," she said weakly. "I can feel him." She put her hand on her neck which had two small puncture wounds on it. "He's… in… there!" she said pointing to a nearby chamber door.
"Harker! Seward! Godalming! Come quick! We've found him!" the leader called.
Soon enough, the three other men returned and together they all began banging against the chamber door trying to break it down. The door was strong but they weren't giving up, they were too close now. Eventually, they managed to break the door off its hinges and storm down a stairway which led into a dark crypt.
The underground chamber was supported by stone pillars and had very little light save for a few rays coming through some cracks in the walls. A few coffins lay at multiple parts of the room. There were also strange old murals painted on multiple parts of the wall in some kind of order. One mural depicted what looked like a conflict between winged angelic beings battling horrific-looking monsters being led by another angelic being with multiple wings. The next one depicted what looked like two humans, one male and one female, with the horrific monsters lurking beneath the ground they were standing on. The one after that depicted the monsters rising from the ground and humans seeming turning into monsters themselves. The last one depicted the multi-winged angelic being facing off with some sort of humanoid devil.
"Gentlemen, over here!" the group leader called to everyone and they all gathered around a coffin that looked different from the others. The coffin was black with a strange bat-like crest on its lid.
They opened the coffin and looked inside. The look on their leader's face made it clear that they had found what they were looking for.
"Stand back, everyone," the leader ordered the group as he reached into his coat and pulled out a wooden stake and a big hammer.
One of the men gently held the young woman in his arms as they watched their leader place the pointy end of the stake over the heart of the thing that was inside the coffin. The leader then raised the hammer high above his head.
"Be gone, vile fiend!" he shouted and brought the hammer down.
The sound of the hammer hitting the stake echoed through the castle followed by the deathly sound of a man groaning in agony. The hammering was heard a second time followed by the groaning. For one final time, the hammering and a dying groan echoed through the dark castle as the sun gave its last rays of light before setting in the distance.
Late 1970s:
Many many years later, a small car drove up a long road toward an old abandoned castle in the Transylvanian countryside. It went over the bridge and stopped in front of the entrance. Three people exited the vehicle. One was a slender scholarly gentleman in his late thirties with neatly combed dark brown hair and wearing glasses. Another was a dark raven-haired woman also in her thirties with a hair bun and wearing business attire and glasses. The last one was a young blonde-haired woman in her twenties also wearing business attire.
"Do you think this is the place, Ms. Zaleska?" the blonde-haired woman asked the raven-haired woman.
"Yes Anita," she replied confidently. "I'm sure it is. Ready doctor?"
"Yes ma'am," the scholarly man replied grabbing a duffle bag out of the car.
"Alright, let's do this."
The trio pushed open the two huge doors and entered the castle. The interior certainly looked like it hadn't been looked after for a very long time.
"So remind me, what are we doing here?" the doctor asked.
"I've heard rumors that this castle houses something that no one has seen for so many years," Zaleska answered.
"Like some kind of treasure?" the doctor asked intrigued.
"We don't know. But it's something of great value I'm sure."
"I hope it's treasure," Anita said excitedly.
"But what do you need me for?" the confused doctor asked. "I'm a man of medicine, I don't know anything about archeology."
"You'll find out your purpose here soon," Zaleska assured him.
The group searched the castle for hours until they came across a boarded up door.
"Could that be the door we're looking for?" the doctor wondered.
"Someone certainly went through a lot of trouble to board it up," Zaleska said. "So there must something very important behind it that they didn't want anyone to find."
The trio then started pulling off the boards nailed to the door. It wasn't too hard since the wood became brittle over the years. Once it was all cleared away, they were able to open the door which revealed a stairway leading down into a dark chamber. Anita and the doctor each pulled out a flashlight and used them to see through the shadows as the group descended down the staircase. They followed it until they arrived into a dark underground chamber. It had to a crypt judging by the coffins scattered around the room.
"What exactly are we looking for?" the doctor asked.
"The rumors say it's in one of these coffins," Zaleska answered. "Find one that looks special, different from the rest."
"On it," Anita confirmed and walked away to begin searching leaving Zaleska and the doctor together.
"Your assistant sure seems excited about to this hidden treasure," the doctor remarked.
"I employed her services to help me find this place a year ago," Zaleska explained. "I've been searching a very very long time for this castle and its secret. When I heard of the rumors in the nearby town, I just had to check it out on the chance it could be the clue I was looking for."
"You're really determined to find this treasure that bad? Well, if this is the right place, then you will able to feel relief that your long journey has finally come to an end. What exactly is this treasure you and Miss Anita have been looking for all this time?"
"Something that will change the world."
"Really, what kind of thing?" The doctor's curiosity was suddenly interrupted by a strange feeling in his body. He started grunting in pain. "Hang on a second," he said putting his bag down and opening it. He reached in and pulled out a syringe containing a strange yellowish liquid which he injected into his arm. After which, he started feeling much better. "Sorry about that, I have a 'condition' that has been passed down through my family for generations. A lot of my predecessors have spent most of their lives studying biological sciences in hopes of one day finding a cure. Now it's my turn. Hopefully I'll be able to find the answers they couldn't."
"Interesting," Zaleska responded intrigued. "Tell me more about this condition."
"Doc! Ms. Zaleska! Come quick!" they heard Anita call them.
The two found their young companion with a black coffin that was sealed shut by multiple chains wrapped around it.
"Could this be it?" Anita asked excitedly.
"One way to find out. Let's start getting rid of these chains," Zaleska said.
They each grabbed a pair of small chain cutters and started cutting away the rusty chains. Eventually, the chains were cleared away revealing a bat-like crest on the lid of the coffin.
"This is it!" Zaleska confirmed. "Hurry, open it!"
While the doctor and Anita started lifting the lid of the coffin, Zaleska picked up one of the flashlights and pulled out a knife she had hidden in her coat. She began slowly approaching them from behind as they opened the coffin. The two peered inside only to find a dust old skeleton. Disappointment spread over their faces. It would seem that after all their traveling and searching, they had reached a dead end.
"Sorry Ms. Zaleska," Anita said sadly. "I guess we still have a long way to go until our search is over."
"On the contrary, the search is finally over," Zaleska ominously replied.
SMASH!
Suddenly, she smacked the doctor in the head with the flashlight shattering the lens into pieces and knocking him out. Before Anita could react, her employer grabbed her from behind wrapping her arm around her face preventing her from screaming. Frightened, Anita desperately tried to get free, but her boss was too strong.
"You've been very helpful in my search, dear Anita," Zaleska said in a sinister tone. "But now I require one more thing from you."
Then she slit the poor girl's throat with the knife. Anita's struggles ceased as blood dripped from the open wound in her throat. Zaleska then held the girl's lifeless body over the open coffin letting her blood pour all over the dusty skeleton inside. The doctor regained consciousness to witness this horrific scene before him. Once enough blood was in the coffin, Zaleska tossed her former assistant's body aside like garbage. Then she crossed her arms on her chest and started chanting something in Romanian. Suddenly, smoke started rising from inside the coffin. More and more smoke began rising every second making it hard to see what was happening, but for a brief moment it looked like the skeleton was starting to grow muscles and flesh on its bones. Eventually, there was enough smoke to completely obstruct what was happening to the skeleton. After a moment, something truly bizarre and terrifying happened. A dark figure began to rise from the smoke. Eventually, the smoke cleared and the dusty old skeleton that once lay in the coffin was gone. In its place, stood a tall ominous-looking man, possibly in his late forties, wearing a long black cape with a large collar. He had pale skin like a corpse, neatly combed black hair, a widow's peak and red eyes like that of a devil. He looked human, but there was something about him that didn't feel human. He stared down at Zaleska with an expression completely devoid of emotion on his face.
"My lord," Zaleska addressed the mysterious man getting down on her knees. "I am Zaleska, a skilled and powerful witch, and I've spent most of my extended life searching for you and a way to return you to the mortal realm."
The man continued to silently stare with the same cold expression.
"I have studied the occult and the dark arts my entire life," Zaleska boasted. "I have power over the natural and supernatural."
"What year is it?" the tall ominous man asked in a commanding tone with a Romanian accent.
"It is the 20th century, my lord," she answered.
"Why has it taken so long to resurrect me?" he asked in an irritable tone.
"The world has been changing rapidly, your grace," Zaleska nervously explained. "Much of your legend has been forgotten or believed to be fiction. Humanity's technology has greatly advanced, they have fought two destructive global wars, and have developed weapons of devastating destructive capabilities."
"But there's more," the dark man said. "You're a witch are you not? You've felt a shift in the balance of the world have you?"
"Yes, my lord," Zaleska confirmed. "Are you feeling it too?"
"I feel it as we speak," he said looking over at the old biblical murals still painted on the chamber walls. "The nightmarish creatures that once roamed the Earth are preparing for their inevitable return."
While the two were talking, the frightened doctor decided this was a good opportunity to escape and warn somebody of what he'd seen. No one would likely believe him, but he had to try. At least he should get away from this horrible place. He got up and tried to sneak toward the stairway leading out of this chamber. However, he wasn't looking where he was stepping and accidentally stepped on a skull, shattering it and attracting the attention of Zaleska and the mysterious man she had brought back from the dead. Panicking, he decided to make a run for it. He felt relief when he saw he was just a few more steps to the stairs, but the mysterious man suddenly appeared out of nowhere blocking his escape. The doctor staggered and fell to the ground just inches from the man's feet. He looked up and saw the terrifying man staring down at him with his glowing red eyes and an expression like that of a hungry predator. The doctor was paralyzed, staring into horrible eyes was causing him to lose control of his body, he couldn't move a muscle.
"Stand," the man commanded. The doctor did exactly as he was told. He didn't know why he was doing it, but he couldn't resist. His body was now under the control of this dark monster of a man that stood before him.
"Please, I'm only a doctor," the frightened doctor pleaded. The more he stared into the man's eyes, the more he felt himself falling under his control. If he could just look away for a moment, perhaps he could break free. But he couldn't stop staring into those evil terrifying red eyes. "I'm a man of medicine. I mean no harm."
"I've been searching the world for others that could serve you, my count," Zaleska appeared. "This man has a dark family secret that I think you will find most beneficial to our plans."
The dark count looked at her with intrigue in his eyes before turning back to the scared and helpless doctor. "Identification please," he demanded. Unable to resist, the doctor took out his wallet and handed it to the count. The count read the ID in the wallet, then looked back at the doctor with a terrifyingly sinister grin. He let out a bone-chilling devilish chuckle. The doctor saw that in his mouth, there was a set of long sharp fangs among his teeth. "Please excuse my behavior earlier," he said in a seemingly courteous tone. "I am… Dracula, and I welcome you to my home, Doctor… William… Jekyll." Hearing this thing introduce himself and speak his own name made the doctor feel even more anxious than before. "I have plans that you are going to help me with," Dracula told him. "But we'll save that conversation for another time." Then he turned to Zaleska. "Lock him up and deprive him of his equipment."
"No!" Jekyll desperately pleaded. "I need my medication! You have no idea what happens to me without it!"
Dracula lifted his right arm and held his hand inches from Jekyll's face. The count intensified his stare, making his eyes glow redder, causing the doctor to lose consciousness and collapse on the ground. Then he looked over at the walls and saw that the rays of light that were shining through them were disappearing.
"Sunset," he said with delight. "I need to go out for a bite," he told Zaleska. "When I get back, we'll discuss your personal motives in all this. Continue to prove your worth to me and I'll see that you are greatly rewarded."
"Thank you, my count," the witch bowed her head in gratitude.
"Word of my return must spread," Dracula instructed. "I have allies in dark places that will be beneficial in helping us with our plans."
"Understood."
"Put him away," Dracula commanded looking down at the unconscious doctor. "I look forward to speaking with his 'better' half."
With that, the dark count began walking up the stairs leaving his witch ally to take care of his prisoner. He eventually came to the entrance of his castle and took a moment to look up at the moon. A beautiful sight he had not seen in a long time.
"Transylvania," he said nostalgically. "Much has changed over the years. However, I will remind the people why they fear the night."
He spread his cape like wings. Underneath he was wearing a black tuxedo and a medallion around his neck. The inside of his cape was bright red. Then in almost the blink of an eye, his body shrank and morphed into a bat which flew off into the night sky.
Author's Note: Here is part one of the prologue for the manga version of this crossover. The other version is based on Crybaby anime. In this version, most of the monsters are inspired by their Universal Studios adaptions.