"What kind of creature?" Van Helsing asked as he stood up.
"Something from the sea, Mr. Van Helsing. Please, save us!"
Van Helsing grabbed his pistols and ran out of the room. Carl, feeling rather angry and relieved that he did not learn Madeline's secret, followed after Van Helsing. He carried with him Van Helsing's crossbow and arrow cartridges for reloading the crossbow. He ran as fast as he could to find a large serpent had wrapped around the boat and was striking crew workers and passengers that came from below deck. Carl felt sick as he saw the creature's mouth was stained with blood, but he continued on to make sure that Van Helsing didn't find himself lost with no weapon.
Van Helsing shot one bullet into the tremendously large sea serpent to get its attention. Once he succeeded in doing just that, Van Helsing ran to a safe place, behind the boats large anchor. The serpent attacked the anchor and quickly backed away after injuring its mouth a little from the solid metal anchor. Van Helsing saw the creature spin around and lunge for Carl, so Van Helsing shot all the bullets he had in his two pistols into the creature to save his friend. The sea serpent recoiled from the attacks, and it slithered over to Van Helsing, who found himself defenseless against the creature. "Well, this isn't going well," he said to himself as he ran out of the serpent's path.
Carl got up after his heart quit pounding and shouted, "Van Helsing, catch!" He threw the crossbow as far as he could just to get it to Van Helsing. The crossbow landed three feet from Van Helsing's reach, but he couldn't grab it. The serpent had grabbed Van Helsing's leg with its tongue, and he was holding on for his life to the boards that the deck was made out of. He was very glad that some were sticking up.
Carl felt frozen in place. 'Van Helsing's in trouble,' his mind screamed. Carl knew what he had to do, and he ran towards Van Helsing. The serpent whipped its tail in Carl's direction, intending to break Carl's neck. But, Carl ducked just in time and missed the deadly blow. But, he slid to reach the crossbow. He picked it up, ignored its weight, and aimed for one of the creatures yellow eyes. He fired the crossbow and took out the right eye of the creature. The creature let go of Van Helsing and thrashed about at the loss of its eye.
Carl quickly handed the crossbow over to Van Helsing, who immediately fired arrows into the serpent. Carl sat on the ground and hyperventilated. He had been terrified that Van Helsing would have died right before his eyes. But, he soon heard the clicking of the empty crossbow and saw that the serpent was still far from death.
Van Helsing looked over to the friar. "Carl, I need to reload the crossbow."
Carl pulled out a new cartridge and handed it to Van Helsing, who rapidly reloaded the crossbow. He began firing just in time to prevent his and Carl's deaths. Among his wildfire shots, Van Helsing took out the serpent's left eye, leaving it to rely on its heat sensory organ and smell. The creature flipped around and finally caught the heat of the two men before it.
"Carl, run!" Van Helsing shouted at the creature prepared another attack.
Maddy woke to find her father absent from her room, even though she did not care. He did leave Mae in there and a glass of blood for Madeline. Madeline sat up, and Mae said, "Good to see you awake." Madeline drank the contents of the glass beside her and replied, "Yes, my father's the one to blame."
"I'd rather be thanking him." Mae admitted.
Madeline glared at Mae. "Why?"
"He sent Victoria away saying that she wasn't welcome here anymore. Lily and I are left to take care of Anna, but we're it."
Madeline remembered what she had heard. "I have to talk to Anna. Then, I have to find Van Helsing."
Mae said, "You can't tonight, you're too weak and morning is only a few hours away."
Madeline felt her head ache terribly. "No, I won't leave today. But, I have to leave soon. It's important that I do find Van Helsing."
"He's in Rome." Mae said flatly.
"Then, I'll go to Rome." Madeline replied. "Monty will take me there in my father's special carriage that blocks out the sunlight."
Mae bit her lip then said, "What if you run into Victoria on her way back to America?"
Madeline ran her hand through her hair. "I think I could rely on my rampage,' she admitted. "It'd be my only hope."
Mae looked down at the floor. "It sounds very dangerous. I'd be worried about you, and so would your father."
Madeline rolled her eyes. "Look what he did today. He doesn't care anymore. He's just playing a game right now."
Mae shook her head. "I found your father in here crying over what he did to you. So, don't shun me for not believing that."
Madeline laid back down and stared at her ceiling. "Do you know what he and Victoria have planned?"
Mae nodded. "Yes, the baby, whom Victoria still plans on using to protect our clan from Van Helsing." Madeline nodded to her, and Mae watched the blonde girl, who resembled a porcelain doll. Her curls were so perfect, and her eyes looked like they'd been painted on. Mae wished she could be as beautiful as Madeline was.
"And, maybe in Rome, I can find Carl and see his lab. The lab where he has all his inventions." Madeline said completely lost in thought as she daydreamed of being in Carl's lab.
Van Helsing fired the arrows into the serpent then ran from the spot he stood. The serpent had taken several shots into his mouth, and it had rolled around a little. But, it had not stopped chasing Van Helsing. It had picked up on his smell and was following him ready to give him revenge for its lost eyes. Carl ran to the sailors and yelled, "Grab any swords you have!" He planned on having the crew attack the snake while Van Helsing kept its attention.
Luckily, the crew all had a sword. They ran over to the giant snake- like creature and began to slice at its skin. The creature let out a hiss and lashed out at the seamen with its tail. The crew all dodged the swipe, and they resumed their attack on the creature. The serpent was angry and began striking at the air around it just to stop being stabbed. It slithered away quickly and cornered Van Helsing at the front of the ship.
Van Helsing saw the harassed snake hover its head in front of Van Helsing. It flicked its tongue out to be sure that was who was in front of it. It drew back and opened its mouth, ready to strike. Van Helsing aimed the crossbow and fired arrows into the serpent's nose, causing the creature to fall over and slither about in pain. That gave Van Helsing the time to run from the serpent, and he ran like hell. He knew that the serpent could kill him quickly, and he didn't want to mess around anywhere that was close to it.
Van Helsing did not see the serpent lash out with its tail until it was too late. The creature hit Van Helsing in the stomach with its tail, which had the power to knock Van Helsing across the ship. Feeling out of breath, Van Helsing laid on the deck for a moment trying to gain breath. He checked to make sure nothing was broken, and nothing was. 'I don't know how my ribs are intact with a blow like that,' he thought.
Carl saw Van Helsing lying on the deck, and he saw the serpent slowly slithering towards him. "Van Helsing! Look out!" Carl screamed.
Van Helsing looked over and saw the creature coming at him, and he rolled over and got up on his feet. That was when he noticed that he no longer had the crossbow. It was lying on the deck yards away. "Just perfect." Van Helsing muttered sarcastically. He pulled out his shotgun and shot a few bullets into the serpent's hide. The serpent didn't fall and became very angry. It reared up and hissed at Van Helsing, who jumped to avoid a strike.
The serpent's jaws clamped down on the ship's railing, and it hissed when it realized it missed Van Helsing. Van Helsing jumped to his feet and aimed for the creature's head, which was the size of a large watermelon. But, the creature was too fast and it slithered out of the way before Van Helsing could pull the trigger. It coiled around Van Helsing, causing him to drop his shotgun.
Carl gasped and began to shake in fear of the creature again. "Van Helsing," he yelled in fear.
"Carl!" Van Helsing yelled out as he felt the serpent tighten its body around Van Helsing's waist. "Help!" Carl saw the fear in Van Helsing's eyes, and he knew that Van Helsing needed immediate help because Van Helsing's eyes only held that fear once; the time he was bitten by a werewolf.
Carl grabbed a firearm that a crewmember had set down, and he aimed at the creature's head. His hands shook terribly, and he knew his aim would not be as promising as Van Helsing's. But, he aimed near the creature's head and pulled the trigger. Carl heard the bang from the gun, and it seemed like an eternity for the bullet to reach the serpent.
The serpent hissed and tossed its upper body about, but held firm on Van Helsing. Van Helsing could feel the pressure of his body being smashed. His breath was becoming short because his lungs could barely take in air. His arms and ribs felt as though they were going to snap. He scrunched up his face in pain and hoped that the snake would let go.
Carl panicked and shot into the creature's head again, and was glad to see the creature let Van Helsing go. Van Helsing dropped to the ground gasping for air, but he reached over and picked up his shotgun. He fired the rest of his bullets into the serpent's skull, and was satisfied when the creature dropped to the ground and stopped moving.
Carl let out a sigh of relief and fell to his knees. He thanked God many, many times as he sat on the deck. He didn't think he could stand up so soon after experiencing such a creature. He looked up and saw Van Helsing walk over to the crossbow. 'Van Helsing is brave, maybe even mad, but he's brave.' Carl thought.
As Van Helsing reached down to pick up his crossbow, he heard a hiss sound. He didn't even have time to turn around before he felt the serpent's teeth sink into his calf. He let out a cry of pain then turned and saw the creature was finally dead, biting Van Helsing had been its last act of life. Van Helsing remained calm long enough to pull out a knife and slash the jaws of the serpent open so he could pry the teeth out of his flesh.
Carl saw the serpent lunge out and bite Van Helsing and he ran for Van Helsing as fast as he could. Van Helsing staggered away from the dead serpent and saw the sailors staring at him with wide eyes. Quickly, Van Helsing felt pain in his right calf. "Van Helsing!" Carl cried out, and Van Helsing looked up at the friar. His vision was blurry, and Van Helsing knew that the serpent had carried poisonous venom in its fangs.
"Carl," he said, "the serpent was poison..." and Van Helsing dropped to the ground unconscious without finishing his sentence.
Carl stooped down beside his friend and knew that the serpent venom had to be terribly strong, and he began to fret since he had no way of helping Van Helsing. All the herbs he needed were back in Rome. 'Come on, Carl, think. Think!' Carl's conscience screamed to him. "What am I suppose to do," he whispered.
The captain walked over to Carl and asked, "What can I do?"
"Get me some herbs." Carl replied stuttering
"What kind of herbs, kid?"
Carl's mind wasn't working well in such a pressed situation. "Uhh. Bring out what you have and I'll go through it."
Before the captain left he asked, "What's the diagnosis for your friend?"
Carl turned to the captain with fear in his eyes. "If you don't have the herbs I need, he won't make it through the night."
Author's Note: (Sorry about the cliffhanger ending. I'll get more up as soon as I can.)
"Something from the sea, Mr. Van Helsing. Please, save us!"
Van Helsing grabbed his pistols and ran out of the room. Carl, feeling rather angry and relieved that he did not learn Madeline's secret, followed after Van Helsing. He carried with him Van Helsing's crossbow and arrow cartridges for reloading the crossbow. He ran as fast as he could to find a large serpent had wrapped around the boat and was striking crew workers and passengers that came from below deck. Carl felt sick as he saw the creature's mouth was stained with blood, but he continued on to make sure that Van Helsing didn't find himself lost with no weapon.
Van Helsing shot one bullet into the tremendously large sea serpent to get its attention. Once he succeeded in doing just that, Van Helsing ran to a safe place, behind the boats large anchor. The serpent attacked the anchor and quickly backed away after injuring its mouth a little from the solid metal anchor. Van Helsing saw the creature spin around and lunge for Carl, so Van Helsing shot all the bullets he had in his two pistols into the creature to save his friend. The sea serpent recoiled from the attacks, and it slithered over to Van Helsing, who found himself defenseless against the creature. "Well, this isn't going well," he said to himself as he ran out of the serpent's path.
Carl got up after his heart quit pounding and shouted, "Van Helsing, catch!" He threw the crossbow as far as he could just to get it to Van Helsing. The crossbow landed three feet from Van Helsing's reach, but he couldn't grab it. The serpent had grabbed Van Helsing's leg with its tongue, and he was holding on for his life to the boards that the deck was made out of. He was very glad that some were sticking up.
Carl felt frozen in place. 'Van Helsing's in trouble,' his mind screamed. Carl knew what he had to do, and he ran towards Van Helsing. The serpent whipped its tail in Carl's direction, intending to break Carl's neck. But, Carl ducked just in time and missed the deadly blow. But, he slid to reach the crossbow. He picked it up, ignored its weight, and aimed for one of the creatures yellow eyes. He fired the crossbow and took out the right eye of the creature. The creature let go of Van Helsing and thrashed about at the loss of its eye.
Carl quickly handed the crossbow over to Van Helsing, who immediately fired arrows into the serpent. Carl sat on the ground and hyperventilated. He had been terrified that Van Helsing would have died right before his eyes. But, he soon heard the clicking of the empty crossbow and saw that the serpent was still far from death.
Van Helsing looked over to the friar. "Carl, I need to reload the crossbow."
Carl pulled out a new cartridge and handed it to Van Helsing, who rapidly reloaded the crossbow. He began firing just in time to prevent his and Carl's deaths. Among his wildfire shots, Van Helsing took out the serpent's left eye, leaving it to rely on its heat sensory organ and smell. The creature flipped around and finally caught the heat of the two men before it.
"Carl, run!" Van Helsing shouted at the creature prepared another attack.
Maddy woke to find her father absent from her room, even though she did not care. He did leave Mae in there and a glass of blood for Madeline. Madeline sat up, and Mae said, "Good to see you awake." Madeline drank the contents of the glass beside her and replied, "Yes, my father's the one to blame."
"I'd rather be thanking him." Mae admitted.
Madeline glared at Mae. "Why?"
"He sent Victoria away saying that she wasn't welcome here anymore. Lily and I are left to take care of Anna, but we're it."
Madeline remembered what she had heard. "I have to talk to Anna. Then, I have to find Van Helsing."
Mae said, "You can't tonight, you're too weak and morning is only a few hours away."
Madeline felt her head ache terribly. "No, I won't leave today. But, I have to leave soon. It's important that I do find Van Helsing."
"He's in Rome." Mae said flatly.
"Then, I'll go to Rome." Madeline replied. "Monty will take me there in my father's special carriage that blocks out the sunlight."
Mae bit her lip then said, "What if you run into Victoria on her way back to America?"
Madeline ran her hand through her hair. "I think I could rely on my rampage,' she admitted. "It'd be my only hope."
Mae looked down at the floor. "It sounds very dangerous. I'd be worried about you, and so would your father."
Madeline rolled her eyes. "Look what he did today. He doesn't care anymore. He's just playing a game right now."
Mae shook her head. "I found your father in here crying over what he did to you. So, don't shun me for not believing that."
Madeline laid back down and stared at her ceiling. "Do you know what he and Victoria have planned?"
Mae nodded. "Yes, the baby, whom Victoria still plans on using to protect our clan from Van Helsing." Madeline nodded to her, and Mae watched the blonde girl, who resembled a porcelain doll. Her curls were so perfect, and her eyes looked like they'd been painted on. Mae wished she could be as beautiful as Madeline was.
"And, maybe in Rome, I can find Carl and see his lab. The lab where he has all his inventions." Madeline said completely lost in thought as she daydreamed of being in Carl's lab.
Van Helsing fired the arrows into the serpent then ran from the spot he stood. The serpent had taken several shots into his mouth, and it had rolled around a little. But, it had not stopped chasing Van Helsing. It had picked up on his smell and was following him ready to give him revenge for its lost eyes. Carl ran to the sailors and yelled, "Grab any swords you have!" He planned on having the crew attack the snake while Van Helsing kept its attention.
Luckily, the crew all had a sword. They ran over to the giant snake- like creature and began to slice at its skin. The creature let out a hiss and lashed out at the seamen with its tail. The crew all dodged the swipe, and they resumed their attack on the creature. The serpent was angry and began striking at the air around it just to stop being stabbed. It slithered away quickly and cornered Van Helsing at the front of the ship.
Van Helsing saw the harassed snake hover its head in front of Van Helsing. It flicked its tongue out to be sure that was who was in front of it. It drew back and opened its mouth, ready to strike. Van Helsing aimed the crossbow and fired arrows into the serpent's nose, causing the creature to fall over and slither about in pain. That gave Van Helsing the time to run from the serpent, and he ran like hell. He knew that the serpent could kill him quickly, and he didn't want to mess around anywhere that was close to it.
Van Helsing did not see the serpent lash out with its tail until it was too late. The creature hit Van Helsing in the stomach with its tail, which had the power to knock Van Helsing across the ship. Feeling out of breath, Van Helsing laid on the deck for a moment trying to gain breath. He checked to make sure nothing was broken, and nothing was. 'I don't know how my ribs are intact with a blow like that,' he thought.
Carl saw Van Helsing lying on the deck, and he saw the serpent slowly slithering towards him. "Van Helsing! Look out!" Carl screamed.
Van Helsing looked over and saw the creature coming at him, and he rolled over and got up on his feet. That was when he noticed that he no longer had the crossbow. It was lying on the deck yards away. "Just perfect." Van Helsing muttered sarcastically. He pulled out his shotgun and shot a few bullets into the serpent's hide. The serpent didn't fall and became very angry. It reared up and hissed at Van Helsing, who jumped to avoid a strike.
The serpent's jaws clamped down on the ship's railing, and it hissed when it realized it missed Van Helsing. Van Helsing jumped to his feet and aimed for the creature's head, which was the size of a large watermelon. But, the creature was too fast and it slithered out of the way before Van Helsing could pull the trigger. It coiled around Van Helsing, causing him to drop his shotgun.
Carl gasped and began to shake in fear of the creature again. "Van Helsing," he yelled in fear.
"Carl!" Van Helsing yelled out as he felt the serpent tighten its body around Van Helsing's waist. "Help!" Carl saw the fear in Van Helsing's eyes, and he knew that Van Helsing needed immediate help because Van Helsing's eyes only held that fear once; the time he was bitten by a werewolf.
Carl grabbed a firearm that a crewmember had set down, and he aimed at the creature's head. His hands shook terribly, and he knew his aim would not be as promising as Van Helsing's. But, he aimed near the creature's head and pulled the trigger. Carl heard the bang from the gun, and it seemed like an eternity for the bullet to reach the serpent.
The serpent hissed and tossed its upper body about, but held firm on Van Helsing. Van Helsing could feel the pressure of his body being smashed. His breath was becoming short because his lungs could barely take in air. His arms and ribs felt as though they were going to snap. He scrunched up his face in pain and hoped that the snake would let go.
Carl panicked and shot into the creature's head again, and was glad to see the creature let Van Helsing go. Van Helsing dropped to the ground gasping for air, but he reached over and picked up his shotgun. He fired the rest of his bullets into the serpent's skull, and was satisfied when the creature dropped to the ground and stopped moving.
Carl let out a sigh of relief and fell to his knees. He thanked God many, many times as he sat on the deck. He didn't think he could stand up so soon after experiencing such a creature. He looked up and saw Van Helsing walk over to the crossbow. 'Van Helsing is brave, maybe even mad, but he's brave.' Carl thought.
As Van Helsing reached down to pick up his crossbow, he heard a hiss sound. He didn't even have time to turn around before he felt the serpent's teeth sink into his calf. He let out a cry of pain then turned and saw the creature was finally dead, biting Van Helsing had been its last act of life. Van Helsing remained calm long enough to pull out a knife and slash the jaws of the serpent open so he could pry the teeth out of his flesh.
Carl saw the serpent lunge out and bite Van Helsing and he ran for Van Helsing as fast as he could. Van Helsing staggered away from the dead serpent and saw the sailors staring at him with wide eyes. Quickly, Van Helsing felt pain in his right calf. "Van Helsing!" Carl cried out, and Van Helsing looked up at the friar. His vision was blurry, and Van Helsing knew that the serpent had carried poisonous venom in its fangs.
"Carl," he said, "the serpent was poison..." and Van Helsing dropped to the ground unconscious without finishing his sentence.
Carl stooped down beside his friend and knew that the serpent venom had to be terribly strong, and he began to fret since he had no way of helping Van Helsing. All the herbs he needed were back in Rome. 'Come on, Carl, think. Think!' Carl's conscience screamed to him. "What am I suppose to do," he whispered.
The captain walked over to Carl and asked, "What can I do?"
"Get me some herbs." Carl replied stuttering
"What kind of herbs, kid?"
Carl's mind wasn't working well in such a pressed situation. "Uhh. Bring out what you have and I'll go through it."
Before the captain left he asked, "What's the diagnosis for your friend?"
Carl turned to the captain with fear in his eyes. "If you don't have the herbs I need, he won't make it through the night."
Author's Note: (Sorry about the cliffhanger ending. I'll get more up as soon as I can.)