Chloe and Robin walked through the airport together heading to their gate. "I can't believe we are doing this," Robin sounded excited
"Neither can I," Chloe was not as ecstatic. "Remember, we stick together while we are there. And we stay indoors at night."
"Yeah, yeah… you said hundreds of times," Robin shrugged.
"And make sure you always have your UV gun," Chloe continued.
"Ok, how about some lunch?" Robin tried to change the subject. He could see how anxious Chloe was. "Our flight doesn't leave for an hour."
"Lunch would be good," Chloe tried to control her breathing. She didn't use to have such bad anxiety, but after nearly dying a few times as a kid at the hands of vampires and the training she had to endure, she struggles to keep it together sometimes. Not the best look for a psychologist, but Mina seemed to understand.
As they ate, Chloe pulled out a map she had marked. "This is the town we will be staying at. Interestingly, a few of the attacks credited to Vlad were around here but also in two other towns in Romania. That's actually the pattern throughout Europe."
"What do you mean?" Robin asked.
"In almost every country on the continent, Vlad has attacked slayers," Chloe pulled out another map showing all of Europe and pointed at each and every spot on the name. "In each country there are anywhere from three to five different attacks that we know of."
"That's why it's been difficult to track him?" Robin said.
"Yes," Chloe said. "But what's interesting is the time line. He would bounce between countries. Go to France one night, then Germany, Spain, back to France, Greece. There is no pattern here as to where he will end up next. That part is completely random, but clearly intentional. Keep in mind though this is just the attacks we are aware of and can confirm he's the one behind them."
"So what about the other Dracula's?" Robin asked. "Are they not with him?"
"We aren't sure," Chloe said. "We think sometimes they are, but other times it would be impossible for them to keep up. See we believe Vlad is one of the fastest vampires there is. He can hop between countries in minutes at times."
"How are you able to figure that?" Robin asked.
Chloe pointed at a spot in Romania and a spot in England. "These two attacks happened on the same night and both were Vlad."
"Are you serious?!" Robin couldn't help but smile.
"Don't be impressed," Chloe frowned.
"It's just surprising is all," Robin tried to stop grinning.
"Anyway, Vlad killed a slayer in Romania and what we estimate is 4 hours later, he was in England which was actually the only time since Vlad's change in behavior a Slayer saw him and lived."
"So Vlad left him alive? Why?"
"Well, it might be because it was Jonathan VanHelsing," Chloe sat back in her seat.
"Figures he's still involved in all of this," Robin rolled his eyes. "Still though? Why keep him alive."
"We aren't sure exactly," Chloe admitted.
Robin nodded.
A feminine voice announced over the speakers their plane to Romania was now boarding.
"Let's get to our plane before I change my mind," Chloe said.
XXX
It was much more difficult to say goodbye to her brother than George originally thought. She realized they never went long without seeing one another since their mother died.
She was still concerned about their conversation the night before, but for once she thought she would keep her thoughts to herself.
George hugged him for a good minute before finally letting go. He pulled a cell phone from his pocket and handed it to her. It was her old one that Vlad had her turn off before so slayers couldn't find them.
"I had Piers set it up so that it can't be traced anymore," he explained. "You can call me anytime."
"Thanks," George said. "When will you be back?"
"Not sure exactly, but hopefully in only a few weeks, and if anything happens I can be back in minutes," he assured her.
"Love you," she smiled.
"Don't hurry back," Ingrid said. "I've seen way too much of you lately."
"You'll miss me," Vlad said. "Make sure George doesn't climb on anything."
"Whatever," Ingrid continued to be annoyed.
Vlad turned to Dracu, "let's get this over with."
Dracu simply nodded and the two disappeared.
George's smile faded and she looked down at the phone. She then realized she was also holding something else. It was her mother's Yin necklace.
She quickly put it around her neck and clutched it. "Thank you," she whispered.
"Let's go, breather," Ingrid said.
"Go?" George asked. "Go where?"
"If I have to be around you more often I'm not going to look at that rat's nest of a hairstyle. I'm going to fix it."
"Great!" George didn't let the insult bother her. She was just happy Ingrid wanted to be around her.
XXX
The moment Robin and Chloe landed in Transylvania, Chloe insisted they find a hotel. She didn't sleep well the last few days since agreeing to go to the vampire infested country and she still didn't seem all too thrilled to be there.
Once settled Robin's mind turned to food. "I figured I could go down the street and grab us something real quick. I saw a restaurant as we rode in."
Chloe looked out the window. "Ok, but be quick. The sun is setting."
"Don't worry," Robin assured her. "I'll just be a minute and there is no way a vampire would attack me on a busy street like this."
Robin walked to the end of the road and into the sandwich shop. Thankfully the woman working understood a little bit of English so it didn't take too long to order.
He paid for the food and drinks and turned to leave when a man wearing a trench coat walked in. Robin noticed a gun handle clung to the man's belt, and after seeing Chloe's slayer weapons he knew it wasn't a normal revolver.
"Can I help you?" The man noticed Robin had been staring.
"Oh… yeah," Robin was a bit put off by the man's attitude. "Are you a slayer?"
"Yes," the slayer simply responded.
"Have you seen any vampires lately?"
"Where do you think you are?" The man chuckled. "I see them every night."
"Oh," Robin realized he must have seemed really dumb. He wanted to ask the man if he knew where the Dracula's were, but the man already walked past him like he decided their conversation had ended. They just got there anyway, and he needed to get back to his sister.
As he set out the food he couldn't help but smile, "Two minutes in this country and I already met a slayer."
"Did you get his name?" Chloe asked, unwrapping her sandwich.
"No, he didn't really seem in the mood to talk," Robin said.
"A lot of the slayers sent here are some of the toughest and smartest in the Guild, but not all of them are part of our organization."
"I guess that makes sense," Robin said. "Maybe we should just ask them if they know where we can find the Draculas."
Chloe shook her head. "I'm not even supposed to be here. I rather we just keep our heads down, do our own investigation and avoid talking to other slayers."
"Well how are we going to find the VHC without talking to them?"
"The locals should help. The existence of vampires isn't really a secret here. Whether they even believe in them or not, many will still know legends and rumors. We should find some people who know where to find the castle."
"I guess," Robin sipped his soda. "Sounds like it could take a while though."
"Then we best get started," Chloe said. "Once we finish eating we will look up some places we can visit tomorrow."
XXX
Ingrid closed the door of Piers' lab and settled onto a seat near his desk. "That girl is exhausting."
"You spent 2 hours with her," Piers laughed.
"Yes, and that's 2 too many hours of non stop questions," Ingrid said. "So glad I made that deal where she won't bother me for the next week."
Piers just shook his head smiling knowing Ingrid probably still liked having George around even if she was a bit annoying. He knew she spent most of her life with only her father and brother.
"So what are you working on?" Ingrid asked.
Piers leaned back in his chair, "I'm refining the security system for the new castle. I plan to install everything a week before we move in."
"Boring," Ingrid said. "Let's go out tonight."
"Where?" Piers said. "All the restaurants and theaters will be closing now."
"We could go to the hillside. You like stargazing and talking about all that nerdy space stuff."
"Fine with me," Piers said. "I could use a little quiet time." He had been working non stop helping design the new castle since they arrived in Transylvania. He wasn't ever concerned for Ingrid anymore since she would regularly hang out with her brother, but now he's gone so Ingrid would once again be demanding of Piers' attention. He didn't mind though. He missed her.
XXX
"You never really explained why we are even taking this trip," Vlad pointed out as he and Dracu walked the streets of Rome. "You got me away from my family. Now what?"
"I told you, you need to gain some perspective," Dracu said. "You seem to have a narrow opinion on the way our world works."
"You've only been back in this world for a couple months," Vlad pointed out. "What do you know about how it works?"
"That may be true, but I'm a bit more open minded and willing to learn," Dracu said. "Vampires have a long history and influence, and yet most humans don't believe we exist. That's a great advantage, but I wonder how that can be when there are so many like that feral you ran into the other night. They don't care about keeping the secret. They only care about their next meal."
"So? Breathers are blissfully ignorant," Vlad said.
"Perhaps," Dracu agreed. "But I wonder how long that will remain the case. Vampire existence remaining a secret is really the only reason they've survived this long. Eventually that won't be enough."
"You believe breathers will rise up against us?"
"Don't you?"
"Well sure, but why should I care? I can take care of myself and the others back home."
"We'll get through that thick head of yours soon enough," Dracu smiled at the challenge. "For now just keep your eyes and ears open. You might learn a few things."
"Whatever gets us back to Transylvania quicker," Vlad said. "So what are we even doing in Rome?"
"Training," Dracu said. "We are going to sharpen those senses of yours. The noise in this city should make it more difficult for you to concentrate. You need to get past the distractions and differentiate all the objects and people surrounding you."
"That's insane. It's a city. There are thousands of people talking at one time, " Vlad said.
"You will learn quicker this way, trust me. Now let's get started."