The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Dreams of the Damned
Chapter Seven
ArrivingAN: I'm soooo sorry I didn't get this updated sooner! My mind went completely blank, and no matter what I tried, I couldn't get it to come up with anything for the life of me. In the end, I decided to slightly speed up the time a little bit, so that the League is now arriving in Transylvania. I know, I know, but I'd boxed myself in a bit with the previous chapters. Don't worry, though, Dracula's reasons for the trap become apparent in this chapter. The King of the Undead is also featured much more prominently from this point on. Well, that's it for now, and to anyone who is still reading this despite the long update time: THANK YOU! Your patience is appreciated a great deal. This chapter is going to be a long one, though the story might not last more than one or two more chapters. Now, for some responses.
Etcetera Kit: Mind if I just call you EK? ^_^() Being that I'm kinda lazy, lol. I appreciate your praise a great deal, and I'm glad you liked the part about the three of them getting high. That was just a spur of the moment thing, lol.
TARilus: Much thanks, and I noticed that as well. So yes, the action will be spaced out from now on. For instance, the action later on in this chapter. I appreciate the comment about my line-up, too. You have no idea how worried I was that people wouldn't like the combination of characters.
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Dracula stood at one of the many windows in his castle, gazing out over his city. Once he wouldn't have considered the city his, but recent events must have given him a superiority complex. Either way, the vampire that had dubbed himself the King of the Undead smiled now, even as he saw The Sword rocket up out of the water and onto the land. Obviously, the League was expecting trouble or resistance, or at the very least, the civilians to erupt into a panic, confusing their enemy and providing a veritable smokescreen for their actions.
"It's too bad," he mused, smirking at The Sword even as it pulled to an uncertain stop, "that there aren't any civilians."
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The Sword had pulled to a stop a minute earlier, and the League had waited, expecting something to happen. There should've been people there, but it wasn't unreasonable to think that Dracula had closed off this area of town so that he could see their arrival. However, that still left it possible for someone to see from a home, or some idiotic kid playing at being rebellious slipping into the area and seeing The Sword.
When that didn't happen, Alex moved to the doorway, instructing his crow to stay where it was. He would lose the advantage of his Crowsight, but no one would be able to kill it, either, which meant that no one could kill him. That thought in mind, Alex pulled out his knife and opened the door, exiting quickly and slamming it behind him. He proceeded to cautiously inspect the area, glancing around corners and checking within homes. Finally, he turned to face the Sword with a somewhat shocked look on his face, and he shrugged, shaking his head. "There's no one here," Selene breathed, amazed.
"There have to be people," Robin returned, perplexed.
"Unless Dracula killed them all," Zorro chimed in.
"Let's try not to be so morbid," Bruce argued, glancing at Alex, who was patiently waiting for them to join him. "Or pessimistic," he added, climbing out and leaving the door open.
"It isn't pessimism when he might actually do that," Indiana argued, sliding out next.
"It's realism," Selene agreed, hopping out next, guns flicking out into her hands on instinct. Bob hopped out next, merely shrugging his shoulders before gesturing to Bruce.
"Yeah, I guess he's right," Robin sighed, checking his utility belt before joining the rest of the League. All eyes turned to him expectantly, and he added, "Zorro."
"So…what now," Alex questioned, interrupting before any kind of argument could ensue. Meanwhile, Bob whispered something to Darien, who slipped into invisibility.
"I guess we just head to that big castle over there," Robin replied, pointing at the large castle that was situated just on the outskirts of town, a little ways off. The rest of the League agreed, and as one they headed towards it, heads darting to the left and right, Bob and Zorro watching the rear, everyone on high alert. Just before they turned the corner, Robin sniffed the air and stumbled. "Does anyone else smell corpses?"
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Dracula laughed as the boy stumbled, obviously noticing the smell that permeated the entire town…finally. "Sire," a respectful voice greeted from behind him.
"Hello, Jay," Dracula returned, not turning from the window. "Did things go as planned," the King of the Undead questioned.
"The League was tricked into visiting Mrs. Harker's mansion, as you requested. Unfortunately, three of the League members were left behind." A slight grin played across Jay's face for a moment, a bit of the old light returning, as he stated, "They were high."
"Yes, Jay, I know this."
"You do," Jay asked, furrowing his brow in confusion. "How?"
"With your friend a member, I knew it was only a matter of time," Dracula explained. "At any rate, get on which what you were saying."
"Right. Well, they found Mrs. Harker exactly as you instructed me to leave her, and then I dusted her with the crossbow you gave me. The doors closed and the League was trapped within. I turned on the gas then, and I figured that would be the end of it. Even the dead one would die eventually, 'cause the gas would kill his bird."
"Nigma was right," Dracula added, nodding. "I suppose I owe him some form of reward." Dracula gave a shrug and a cocky laugh. "Oh well. He's fouled up far too many times for one success to warrant my praise. Go on."
"The three Leaguers that had been left behind eventually managed to save their teammates and trap the Anti-League within Harker's mansion."
"I see. There is no real loss there," Dracula returned. "I made a grievous error in recruiting those brainless idiots in the first place. This rids me of that. Is that all?"
"Banner managed to come to and get them out," Jay explained, "but they haven't returned. I think they've taken the limo you gave them and quit."
"It's no matter," Dracula shrugged. "The League is already here. Now, I have only one further question before you and Raze take your men and deal with them. How goes the, ah…project?" Dracula's tone was slightly amused when saying the final word, which Jay still thought was slightly creepy.
"The project is ready for releasing whenever you choose," Jay replied, his tone uneasy despite his best attempts to cover it up.
"Good. You are dismissed." Jay began to leave the chamber that served as Dracula's throne room, but was halted by Dracula's voice. "Oh, and be sure you slaughter them in an open area. I want to watch."
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The League crept along, several of them very pale due to the stink of the place. Selene and Alex couldn't get any paler, but Indy, Robin, Bruce, Bob, and Zorro were all white as sheets. Finally, after several moments of silence, Bruce couldn't take it anymore. "God, that smell is horrible."
"I was hoping somebody else would say it," Indiana groaned. "Though I've smelled it before."
"So have I," Robin added. "Should we…should we look in the houses?"
"No," Zorro replied quickly. "I would rather not see what is producing that smell."
"I'll look," Alex sighed, shaking his head. When the eyes the League turned to face him, he explained, "Curiosity killed the cat, not the crow."
"Fair enough," Selene replied. "But be careful."
"Yeah," Robin agreed. "You might not be able to die, but anything or anyone in that house can still kill some of us." Alex mumbled something under his breath before cautiously approaching one of the houses, peering in through a window on the front of the house. What he saw disgusted him and made him sick to his core.
A family lay inside, all dead of gunshot wounds to the head. Despite the three year old with half his head blown off, that wasn't the most disturbing thing about it. No, the most disturbing thing about it was that it looked like something had taken large bites out of them after they were dead.
Alex stumbled backward and clapped his free hand over his mouth to keep from throwing up. "What is it," Robin called, beginning to move to look.
"NO," Alex shouted, flinging his free hand out. "No, you don't want to look. Let's just keep walking, and the next time someone is curious, don't mention anything." He paused, and added, "But I don't think we need to be too careful. There are no civilians."
"Doesn't mean you don't need to be careful," a familiar voice teased, and the League all looked skyward.
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Dracula laughed at Alex's reaction to what was inside the house. Apparently, even a dead man could get sick. With a heavy sigh, he turned away from his window, letting things play out as Fate willed them. He needed to check on his project, and he had to go to the dungeon to do that. Before he exited the throne room, he flicked out a cellular phone and dialed a number. "Doctor? No, not yet. I'm just coming down to check on the project. Yes, that's right. They're here, but don't worry about that, they'll be taken care of. Alright, I'll only be a moment." He hung the phone up and let it drop back into his pocket. Soon, he mused mentally, soon he would have his revenge.
And in this case, revenge really was a dish best served cold. Cold, and with a voracious appetite.
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"Jay," Robin growled, his eyes falling on the man standing on the roof directly in front of them, a small troop of what appeared to be half vampires behind him. "I thought you couldn't come out in sunlight."
"Half-vampire, Boy Wonder," Jay quipped.
"Hello, Selene," Raze growled from the roof he was standing on, alone.
"I was wondering why you weren't with the Anti-League," Selene snarled.
"They were merely a distraction," Raze returned.
"A costly one," Jay continued, "but a distraction nonetheless."
"For what," Indiana questioned, his revolver out, though he knew it wouldn't really hurt either of the two.
"Not what," Jay explained.
"Who," Raze corrected. "Dracula needed time to develop his project. So the Anti-League was formed merely to keep you distracted and feed you disinformation."
"When you got too close," Jay picked up, "I was sent to lead you into a trap. It really didn't matter whether you got out or not. The purpose of the trap was to keep you distracted for just a little…bit…longer."
Bruce's eyes were squeezed shut, but his fists weren't clenched. Selene almost had time to wonder about that before Bruce just…changed. There was no scream, no yell, no pounding or pain…he just changed. The reason for that was obvious. Bruce had wanted to change, had given into it, and for once, the beast within him had been in agreement. "This just another distraction," Hulk asked, once he'd fully changed, glaring up at Jay.
"Oh, no," Jay explained, chuckling. "This is the end of the line for you." Quite abruptly, the former stoner leapt forwards, tackling Bob harshly and sending the two of them careening into a house.
"You and I have unfinished business," Raze snarled, throwing off his clothing and changing into his lycan form. Selene snarled right back and leapt upward, landing on the roof, guns blazing.
Jay's troop of half-vampires leapt off the roof, separating the League quickly and efficiently; Alex was forced down one street, Robin another, Hulk a third, Indiana a fifth, and Zorro was thrown through the window of a shop.
When the place had cleared, a soft chuckle seemed to come from nowhere, and Darien Fawkes continued on towards Dracula's castle, remaining invisible.
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Hulk batted at the half-vampires as they tried futilely to attack him. The creatures were persistent, he had to give them that, but there was little else the behemoth could give them credit for. While he'd initially been taken by surprise when the six of them swarmed him, now he was handling the situation. Two of the creatures came in to try and attack him at once, but he reached out his large green hands, grabbed them, and viciously smashed their heads together. The remaining four began to surround him, moving cautiously, eyeing him warily. Finally, when Hulk could take the wait no longer, he lashed out at one of the creatures in front of him.
It wasn't until he felt the fangs pierce his throat that he realized he should've aimed for behind him.
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Robin was having a hard time holding his own against the four half-vampires that had swarmed him. They were like killer bees, one attacking, being blocked, ducking back, and another darting in immediately. It was all Robin could do to keep blocking the attacks, hoping for a chance to attack. He reached a dead end in the alley, and knew that he had his chance now. It was risky, but if he didn't do this he knew that Jay would be right, and he would die here. He yanked a Batarang into his hand and threw it at the lead creature's throat, even as he hopped up into the air and pushed off the wall. He front flipped as he sailed through the air and landed behind the creatures, and by the time they managed to turn around, he was twirling a Bat Bola. "Don't feel bad," he stated, an amused smirk on his face. "You almost had me." He launched the bola, succeeding in tying up two of the creatures. One still remained, and he noticed that the other was spurting blood from a wound to his jugular. He wasn't sure what that would do to a half-vampire, but right now, he was concerned only with fighting off the remaining capable one.
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Alex wasn't having too much of a problem with the five creatures that swarmed him. After all, there wasn't much they could do to him, what with his crow still on the Sword. At least, that's what he thought; until he heard a sharp caw that drew the attention of the creatures he was fighting. "Oh, hell," he growled, stabbing his knife through the head of one of the half-vampires, piercing his brain and downing him instantly. The two females closest to their now dead comrade hissed and launched themselves at Alex, while the remaining two, another female and a male, made a mad dash for the large black bird. The two females met with an unfortunate end when Alex punched them both in the face, knocking them back, before shoving his hand forward, shattering the nose of one and sending the bone into her brain. The other was downed thanks to a vicious hacking at her neck that resulted in almost total decapitation.
Alex looked up to see his crow holding the eyeball of the one of the half-vampires in its talons, cawing in what Alex could recognize as laughter. Alex shook his head, grinning slightly, before throwing his knife into the back of the head of the creature that still held both his eyes. The knife buried itself in the man's head, burrowing deep into his brain, and the creature dropped limply to the ground. Alex calmly went to retrieve his knife, even as the female grew sharp talons and shoved them into his gut. He sighed in exasperation and glared at her. "Are you done?" She wasn't given a chance to respond, as Alex grabbed her arm, ripped the talons out of his gut, and buried them in her head. "Thought so," he grumbled, finally retrieving his knife from the back of the male creature's head. "And you were supposed to stay inside," he snapped, jabbing a finger in the bird's direction.
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Zorro was fending off only one of the half-vampires, and enjoying it a great deal. The creature he was facing was incredibly stupid, it seemed, and had no skill with the sword he held. A child could do better than this, Zorro knew – he had memories of his own son being better. In point of fact, was this man not half-vampire, he would be dead from one of the many thrusts Zorro had successfully gotten through in his game. He heard a bellow from Hulk that sent a shiver up his spine, and Zorro decided his game was over. "This is where you surrender your king," he stated. "Though you youngsters would probably say 'Hit the reset button.'" Zorro lunged forward, his rapier piercing the creature's heart, making it convulse once and then go limp on his sword. He yanked his sword out, a spurt of blood following. "Damnable squirters," he mumbled, before focusing his attention on where he'd heard the bellow. It had been close, he knew that much, even though with Hulk's size the volume of the bellow did not necessarily mean proximity. Still, he turned to the right and ran down the back alley that was there, feeling as if he was getting closer with every step.
Zorro skidded to a halt when he saw one of the creatures smash into the wall almost directly in front of him, more or less exploding from the sheer force of the throw. "So much for keeping my clothes clean," Zorro muttered, before turning and seeing Hulk trying to shake off all of the creatures. The surviving creatures had somehow managed to latch onto him, and it appeared that he was having a hard time getting them off. Zorro sighed and walked forward, tapping the lowest one on the shoulder. The idiotic creature actually turned his head, to which Zorro could merely say, "Hello," before running the creature through on his sword. The half-vampire fell limply to the ground, even as Hulk ripped one off his back and used him as a club to smash his remaining companion. That done, Hulk slammed his makeshift club into the ground, spraying gore across the floor as this one, too, exploded. "You know," Zorro, sighed, "you could try to be a little less messy."
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Indiana had been tackled by two of the creatures, and now one was holding him while the other took swings at his stomach. It was all very Rocky-esque, only instead of a boxer there was a half-vampire, and instead of a side of beef, there was an aged explorer. Still, as much as this hurt, Indiana knew he had to endure it, even as his hand inched towards his whip. If he could just get to his whip, he could put a stop to this. He could hear the sounds of battle going on all around him, Selene and Raze smashing through walls, Hulk bellowing loudly – though with Hulk, it was always loudly – and he thought he could even hear Robin from somewhere nearby. His hand was almost there, almost there…got it! Now, with a soft flick of the wrist, the whip coiled loosely around the ankle of the creature hitting him. "Go…Rocky," Indy gasped out, to which the amused half-vampire raised his eyebrow.
"What?"
"Go…Rocky…to hell." Indy kicked out at the knee of the one holding him, causing the creature to stumble backwards, and Indy yanked himself free. At the same time, he yanked hard on his whip, pulling the half-vampire's leg out from under him and sending him to the ground. Indiana didn't want to be brutal, but since his revolved had been taken, it was his only option. He brought his foot up and then down, stomping the half-vampire's head twice, cracking the creature's skull open and smashing a portion of the brain, killing it instantly. He heard the click of a gun to his left, and turned to face the remaining half-vampire. His face was, at first, grim, but then it turned into an amused grin. "You might wanna look behind you."
"That's the oldest trick in the-" The saying died on his lips as the Batarang thunked into the back of his head, dropping him after a brief twitch, revealing Robin standing about four feet behind him.
"Book," he provided, smirking.
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Selene and Raze had fought briefly on the rooftop, but had fallen and smashed through a wall soon after the fight had started. Selene was trying to keep Raze back, firing the AG rounds at him, refusing to consider the silver nitrate rounds in her pockets. She'd made a promise once, and it was a promise she planned on keeping. Instead, she relied on strafing and skillful dodges to keep her safe, even as Raze lunged wildly for her, seeming to ignore the pain that the silver bullets were causing him. "You know, this is your fault," Selene growled above her still-firing guns. "If you hadn't killed Michael, I wouldn't even be in this bloody League." Raze's only reply was a feigned lunge, that ended in a successful backhand that sent her through a bookcase. The lycan didn't waste the opportunity to pounce, pinning Selene to the ground and bringing his snarling maw inches from her face. "Raze, I swore something to Michael just before he died." The response was a head-butt that was an attempt at silencing her. Raze didn't want to hear her scream when he killed her. "Do you know what it was that I swore," she groaned, blinking back unconsciousness. "I swore I would never use silver nitrate rounds again." With startling ferocity, she shoved the lycan off of her and rolled into a crouch, one gun pointed at Raze's head. "But I guess some promises can't be kept." She pulled the trigger, her gun going off with the brilliant flash from the muzzle, and then the lycan snarled and started to move towards her again.
He stopped abruptly as the silver nitrate began to take effect, killing him almost instantly due to the bullets position in his brain. Selene looked sorrowfully at her guns before letting the silver nitrate rounds drop to the ground. "No more." She reloaded her guns with regular silver bullets and stood again, intent on finding the others.
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Meanwhile, Jay and Silent Bob were fighting harder than anyone had ever seen from either. Somehow, Jay had learned how to fight, and now wielded a sword with the kind of skill Bob would expect to find in someone who had studied for years. The pair of them went back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, neither gaining any ground. Bob swept his leg out to try and trip Jay up. Jay hopped over it and brought his sword around in a horizontal slash headed for Bob's neck. Bob brought his bat up and blocked the slash, forcing Jay backwards with a kick to the gut. Bob didn't let this small advantage go to waste, coming in close and swinging his bat upwards in a vertical arc, smacking Jay under the chin and sending him reeling backwards. A swing to the face followed, sending Jay stumbling to the left. The thrust that had been intended to break his nose was blocked, and Jay lashed out with his free hand, punching Bob in the face. Blood began to seep from his nose, but it wasn't broken. Neither spoke as Jay ducked forward, feigning a slash, instead rolling to Bob's left and coming up into a crouch, swinging his foot back and around to trip Bob up. Bob managed to hop over it and thrust his bat into Jay's back, sending Jay back down to the ground. Bob attempted to bring his back down on the back of Jay's head, but he rolled out of the way, stopping on his back to kick up at Bob, his foot connecting with Bob's stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Bob staggered back and attempted to regain his breath while Jay began to rise off the ground.
Bob surprised the half-vampire by swinging low, taking out Jay's left kneecap and sending him back to the floor on his knees. He was still coughing, though not as badly, and seemed more intent than ever to free Jay's soul. He let out a weak growl and brought his bat down on Jay's head, stunning him briefly. A kick to the face furthered the effect and sent him all the way to the ground, his back pressed against it, a pleading look on his face. "Please, Bob…please don't kill me." Bob blinked back tears as he brought his bat down on Jay's head once more, sending the half-vampire into unconsciousness.
Selene closed the door as a tearful Bob picked up Jay's sword and removed a handful of garlic from his pocket.
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The others had all meandered back to where they'd last seen each other. Selene was the last to arrive, and Bob was still missing. "Everybody okay," Robin questioned, looking over them all. Hulk was healing from several small puncture wounds that Robin guessed were from vampiric fangs, his green hands dripping blood and gore. Zorro's clothing was more or less splattered in the same, which Robin knew couldn't have been pleasant. Alex looked no worse for the wear, with the exception of his shirt, but that wasn't unusual. Indiana was breathing a bit more shallowly, but with the punishment his stomach had taken, that wasn't unusual either. Selene looked slightly sad, and there was a brilliant bruise on her forehead, but other than that she seemed okay.
"Where silent man," Hulk questioned. Selene gestured off to the house she had seen him in, but when Robin started to move towards it, Selene grabbed his arm and shook her head.
"He's freeing Jay's soul," Selene explained. Robin appeared confused, and Selene explained, "To free the soul of one of Dracula's vampires, you have to cut off their head and place garlic in their mouth."
"Oh, God," Indiana gasped.
"Bob not like it," Hulk replied.
"Yeah," Robin agreed, "but he doesn't like Jay as one of Dracula's creatures more." The door opened, and a broody looking Bob came out, bruised, his nose bloody, and broody, but otherwise okay. He walked solemnly over to the others, glancing around the group before looking to Indiana expectantly.
"Hey, wait a minute," Alex said. "Where's Darien?" Bob gestured to Dracula's castle. "What?"
"Invisible," Bob spoke.
"What," Robin asked, furrowing his brow. "Why?" Bob gestured to himself and then gestured to the roof where Jay had stood.
"I get it," Selene nodded. "You suspected that Dracula would have a surprise waiting for us, so you told Darien to go invisible so that one of us could continue on to Dracula's castle." Bob nodded, and Indiana grinned despite the situation.
"Good plan," the elderly explorer praised. Bob shrugged before gesturing to the castle. "Now, we should probably head that way ourselves. Come on." Again as one, the League turned towards the castle and headed off, no longer worried about any surprises.