A/N: Wow, Chapter 4! I thought I'd never update! Sorry it took so long. Just so everyone knows, I'm back at school now, so it may take just that little bit longer for me to update. Also, I now have two other stories to maintain, so that takes up some time So far, I haven't been flamed about Lyridana and the elves, so that must be a good sign... Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed! Okay, review replies!

Review replies:

Nini Mouse, Electrocuted Sheep: Yep, the part in italics was the POV of an elf. If you can guess who it was, I'll give you a cookie! Haha, it's not that hard to figure out... Hm, you certainly think the chapter through thoroughly. This'll be hard to explain, so if it doesn't make sense then forgive me. 1. This'll be explained in this chapter, but I'll say it here too: Lyridana thought Carl was O'Shanesey, so that's why she swung down and kicked him, but once she came into contact with him, she realised it wasn't. 2. Seeing as how Gabriel saw her swing down and hit Carl, he thought she was going to move to kill him. However, when she was standing over him like that, it was because she had just realised it wasn't O'Shanesey, and from there Gabriel grabs her. 3. Van Helsing only tried to kill her because 1: He thought she was a spy and 2: She knew he was a werewolf. Once Lyridana realised that it wasn't O'Shanesey, that it was in fact the people sent to help her, she gave them directions. (wipes brow) I hope that made sense. Also, thank you for helping me with the Default Chapter problem. I'm sorry about the cliffhanger ending, I'll try to stop doing that...(grins mischievously) But I don't know if I'll be able to. Thanks for the review!

silver-shadow: Even though you and silver-wolf were the same, it didn't matter. You gave me two different reviews, so I gave you two different review replies! I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter... Here's another for you! Thanks for your review!

Danitha: Heeheehee, sorry Danitha, but lovely Hugh belongs to ME!!! Haha, in my dreams. Anyway, I'm glad you like the story, and I'm happy you like the elves; they were one of my main concerns. Thank you for the review!

Hot Aussie Rocker: (laughs) Thank you for loving the story so much. Here's another chapter, and thanks for your review!

Disclaimer: I do not own Van Helsing, most unfortunately... But I do own Seamus O'Shanesey, Amara and Lyridana, so if you try any funny business, I'll send them after you!! (evil laugh)

Chapter Four

Gabriel and Carl left Lyridana to searching the bodies of her fallen comrades. While she searched, they sat down in the centre of the village and began a small campfire. Carl immersed himself in one of his books, and Gabriel simply stared into the fire, trying to figure out the thoughts in his head. Everything was getting confused and complicated.

Lyridana kept the two mortals in her sights, making sure they didn't try anything funny. She continued searching the bodies of the fallen, looking for the former leader of their clan. It was custom that if their leader was killed, any remaining elves would have to give him a proper ceremony. As she knelt beside a body and rolled it over, she found that it was their leader. She bowed her head in silent respect, then stood and began dragging the body towards the clearing.

Carl looked up from his book and saw her, putting the book down instantly and getting to his feet. He headed to her and bent down, picking up the other end of the body. Lyridana looked up at him, confusion on her face.

"What are you doing?" she asked him, almost dropping the body. She didn't seem to appreciate his help.

"You looked like you needed some help." Carl said, standing up, his words kind. "You don't need to hurt yourself by doing this by yourself."

Lyridana tightened her grip and the two took the body into the clearing. Then she walked briskly back to the centre of the village and began collecting pieces of dead wood to make a pyre out of. Carl watched her, amazed. He wanted to help her, but she wouldn't allow him to.

When she finally finished assembling the pyre of a piece of grassless land, she placed the body on top and took a burning branch from Van Helsing and Carl's campfire, and lit it. Soon the wood was burning, also consuming the body of her former leader. The two men entered the clearing to watch the ceremony. Lyridana was down on her knees, her head bowed, her hands together as if she were praying.

She stayed there in that position, unmoving, until the wood had finished burning, and by that time the sun had sunk below the trees. As she stood she looked at them, a somewhat amused expression on her face.

"Well, I admire the fact that you're still here. Not many have the patience to stay through the whole ceremony." Lyridana said, starting back towards the village. Her amused looked had gone, replaced with a serious appearance.

"We wouldn't leave, even if we had a choice. It's our mission to protect you, since you're the only elf that survived." Van Helsing said, matching his strides with the elf's. She looked young, but she could sure move fast.

"Whatever." She murmured, emotionless.

"Is there something wrong, Lyridana?" Carl asked, suddenly very concerned. Gabriel threw him a look, but the friar ignored it.

"Only the fact that I just had to cremate my former leader because he was late." The elf said, indicating to Van Helsing with her eyes. "What would your superiors think if they knew that you're responsible for their deaths?"

Gabriel's eyes glowed gold and he shook with rage as he tried to control the werewolf within him. "It's not my fault that it took so long to get here. I assure you that I didn't plan your clan's demise, Lyridana. I know you hate me for it, but I'm not the one to blame."

She glared at him for a moment, before returning to the campfire and sitting on a log, staring into the flames. On the way over Carl almost tripped over the body of an elf, and as he regained his composure he realised this elf didn't have face tattoos like Lyridana did.

"How come you have markings on your face and many of the other elves don't?" Carl asked, moving to sit near the fire. He placed his book beside him and watched as Van Helsing suddenly looked a lot more interested.

"It's to distinguish me from the others in my clan. I'm not like them." Lyridana muttered, not moving.

"What, are you better than them?" Gabriel asked sarcastically, and she shot him a glare.

"No, Werewolf. I am the Dark Elf of the clan." She murmured, touching the tattoo under her eye. Gabriel pulled out a handgun and aimed at her, but she just laughed. "I'm no threat to you, Werewolf. The term "Dark Elf" means that I have more power than the other elves in my clan. People generally tend to think that more power means you're more likely to be turned, but that's not true in our case. It's almost ironic, Dark Elf.(1)"

"Why are you telling us this?" Carl asked, and she pulled out her ivory knife.

"Because you're going to find out eventually. He wants me dead so He can gain my immortal power. As long as I'm alive, He'll trail me, hunt me down and kill me. So you may as well know, because both of your lives will be in jeopardy until I'm dead."

Carl watched her sympathetically, but Gabriel didn't find the current information sufficient. "So he killed your entire clan and took their powers. Is he immortal now?"

"He won't be completely immortal until He kills me. For now, He can heal almost all wounds attained, but He can still die. If He gets my power, He'll become completely immortal. If you're any good at doing your job, Werewolf, you'll be able to prevent that."

"Stop calling me Werewolf!" Gabriel said angrily, and Lyridana threw him an inquiring look.

"Why? That's what you are, after all. You may be a werewolf, but it's nothing to be ashamed about, especially if you can control your transformations."

"How do you know that he's a werewolf and can control his transformations?" Carl asked, and Lyridana smiled and looked back at the fire, an almost sad look in her eyes.

"One of the perks of being a Dark Elf." She murmured.

It was around midnight, and all three were asleep. Lyridana was resting on a tree limb, as still as a statue. Carl was lying close to the now-dead fire, his friar's robes wrapped tight around his body to drive out the cold. Gabriel was sprawled over the ground, twigs and leaves in his hair from his restlessness.

He could barely sleep. He felt nervous and on edge, like his body was preparing him for something. As he turned over onto his back he opened his eyes and was met with the darkness. However, everything seemed so clear; he could see detail in everything now, and it felt good to see in that way. Everything had gone back to the way it was when he was first bitten, and it made him feel free, for some odd reason.

He sat up, still feeling uneasy. Shooting Carl a sideward glance, he found that the friar was sleeping peacefully. He was lucky. Carl didn't have the weight of someone's death on his conscious, and so he got a good night's rest. That's where Gabriel was different. Most nights he'd see Anna's death over and over again, and other times he'd see her standing there, taunting him with her mere presence. It was the work of the devil, Gabriel was sure of it.

As Gabriel turned to look at Lyridana, he spotted the moon in the sky. It wasn't full, and that made him wonder – what would happen when it was full? Would he become an uncontrollable werewolf, or would he still be normal? Carl had said that he'd be able to control his transformations, but he just didn't know. He'd have to ask the friar when he woke.

His eyes landed on Lyridana, and for a moment his mind went silent. The Dark Elf was so odd and mysterious... she seemed so sad when she had told them what she was, and how it would surely affect them. Why did she think that her fate was sealed with her death? He was sent to protect her clan, and since she was the only one left alive, he'd keep her alive.

Gabriel was pulled from his thoughts when his ears picked up a sound that he normally wouldn't be able to hear. He had heard a rustle of leaves and a twig snapping underfoot, and instantly became alert. Someone was coming. After another quick listen, Gabriel guessed that there was a group of maybe six or seven.

There was a twanging sound, and something rushing through air, and suddenly an arrow slammed into the tree, just above Lyridana's head. Her eyes snapped open and she looked to her left, seeing the men Gabriel had heard. They shot another arrow at her, which she ducked, before jumping down from the tree branch and moving quickly to Carl's side.

Gabriel got to his feet, and when the men saw who it was, five of them charged towards him, while the other two headed to Lyridana. The Dark Elf nudged Carl with her foot, waking him up. Carl sat up, his eyes widening in surprise and fear when he saw the two men coming towards him. One disappeared off to the side and the other led Lyridana away from the friar.

Meanwhile, Gabriel was having a hard time by himself. These five men were surprisingly strong for mere men, and their punches really hurt. As a fist connected with the side of his face he felt like his head was spinning. He fell to his knees, wondering what was wrong with him. Even when he wasn't a werewolf he could fight better than this! A sharp kick connected with the left side of his torso, and he was sure he felt a few ribs break.

As he closed his eyes in pain, he suddenly felt something awake within him. Indescribable power ran through every limb, making him feel indestructible. He opened his eyes, and the men backed away in fear when they saw his eyes were an inhuman golden color. A growl erupted from inside him, and it was suddenly like his mind had been swallowed by the werewolf inside him. Black hair sprouted all over his body and as he grew and changed shape, his clothes ripped off his body.

The men looked at the werewolf before them, and one turned his head to look at the sky. There was no full moon in the sky, so how could he have transformed? However, the man didn't have time to contemplate, because at that moment Werewolf Van Helsing leapt towards him, hitting his face with a powerful paw. The force easily snapped the man's neck.

Lyridana, meanwhile, was easily holding her own against the man that had attacked her. After easily dodging an attack, she slashed the man's throat. Her attention was drawn away from her kill when she heard Carl cry out for help. The man that had disappeared earlier was holding the friar in a headlock, threatening to break his neck. As quick as lightening she spun and threw the knife, and it flew right past Carl's face, spearing the man's neck. Carl whimpered like a puppy and Lyridana held his shoulder, supporting him.

"Are you alright?" she whispered, and he nodded his head, even though he was shaking.

Carl collapsed against her, and she held him in a hug, even though she felt extremely uncomfortable. Something made her let go, however. There was a loud howl from behind, and both turned to see a werewolf standing over the bodies of the five men that had taken on Van Helsing.

Lyridana took an automatic step back, taking Carl back with her. They both stared at the werewolf, who was now looking at them and snarling. She slowly leaned back and pulled her ivory knife from the dead man's neck, gripping it tight even though she was shaking with fear.

Carl held her arm, preventing her from using the knife. Suddenly a look of realisation entered the werewolf's eyes, and it backed away from the bodies. The hair fell off his body, he began to shrink and he became human. However, his eyes didn't return to normal, they remained gold.

Gabriel fell to his knees, his body covered in sweat. He was on all fours, his body shaking. Carl crossed to him, ignoring the fact that he was almost completely naked. He looked up as Lyridana threw him her cloak, and he silently thanked her as he wrapped his friend up. The elf reignited the fire, and then helped Carl get the famed monster hunter to the flames.

Carl sat beside his friend while Lyridana took a position across from them. Both she and the friar watched Van Helsing intensely; the monster hunter was shaking madly. He had a fever, but on the inside he felt so cold...

The two stayed with the former werewolf until he fell into a restless sleep. Carl then took the time to talk to Lyridana. She was checking one of Van Helsing's wounds when she realised that the friar was bleeding, even though it was a small cut. She moved to his wound, which was on his arm, and cleaned it with a wet piece of cloth.

"Thank you for saving me." He said abruptly, and the elf looked up.

"Think of it as my penance." She murmured, starting to wrap the wound.

"Penance for what?"

"For kicking you down when we first met. If I had known..." she stopped talking as Gabriel took in a labored breath. "If I had known who you were, I wouldn't have."

"Speaking of that, why didn't you kill me?" The Dark Elf sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"When I come into contact with someone, even for a second, I learn their identities, motives, thoughts – those kinds of things. I knew he," she indicated to Van Helsing. "Wasn't O'Shanesey, because I could tell he was a werewolf. However, I couldn't get a reading on you, so I attacked. When I kicked you, I learnt your identity, so I didn't try to kill you."

Carl's face paled. "You know my thoughts?"

Lyridana laughed. "Don't be so scared. I knew your thoughts when I came into contact with you. I have no idea what you're thinking now, though."

Carl let out a sigh of relief, making Lyridana sigh softly.

"You sound like my brother. He doesn't like my gifts." Lyridana murmured sadly, looking at the fire.

"Was he the one that got you out? Was he killed by Seamus?"

"No. My brother left the village to continue his work, so he wasn't here when He attacked. Our leader was the one who got me out."

Lyridana then lay down on the ground, wishing the friar a good night's sleep. When he was sure she was asleep, he removed his own cloak and laid it gently over her body. Then, with one last look at Van Helsing, he too lay down and went to sleep.

When Carl awoke, he found that it was a grey and overcast day. He sat up slowly, still tired. When he was upright, he realized that Lyridana and Van Helsing were missing from the camp site. As he got to his feet Lyridana came out from the trees, an unusually worried expression on her face.

"We've got to move quickly," she said, crossing to him and grabbing his hand. "Werewolf's gone missing."

Van Helsing had awoken at dawn. When he awoke, he had no idea where he was, or why he was sleeping amongst a mortal and an elf. So he had left. In his right mind he would've respected the fact that he needed to help, but he wasn't in his right mind. He was still under the control of the werewolf.

He ran. He had ran until he left the elf village behind, he ran until he had left the forest, and he finally stopped when he reached a cliff before the ocean. He knew the mortal and the elf would try to follow him; they had ties to the human, after all. But he didn't care.

Lyridana and Carl, meanwhile, were indeed following Van Helsing's trail. It was easy for the elf to find and follow the trail; Van Helsing wasn't what you'd call graceful when he was still fairly wolfish. The only hard part was to keep Carl going – he was only human and ran out of energy quickly, so Lyridana found herself dragging him along many times.

It took them maybe an hour, but they eventually found him. He was standing on a cliff before the ocean, staring towards the horizon. Amazingly enough, Lyridana's cloak hadn't fallen off. Even though they tried to be quiet while approaching him, he turned and looked at them, his face emotionless. He looked at them for a moment more before a look of rage crossed his face, and he moved towards them. Suddenly he stopped and fell to one knee, a pained look on his face.

Carl instantly moved to help him, not caring how much damage Van Helsing could do whilst fighting for control. The monster hunter pushed Carl away and Lyridana held him, preventing him from getting too close.

"Carl..." Gabriel breathed, his air intake coming in ragged gasps. His eyes returned to their original color. "I can barely stay in control, Carl... Please... Help me..." With that, he fell forwards onto his stomach, unconscious.

Carl and Lyridana made it back to the camp site a few hours later. It took much longer than it had originally, because they had Gabriel's extra weight. They carried him all the way back. Lyridana used Carl's cloak to cover the ground where they placed Van Helsing, and Carl used Lyridana's cloak to cover Van Helsing's unconscious body.

"Is he going to make it through this?" the Dark Elf asked, looking at the friar with nervous eyes.

"It's unusual, I must admit... It seems like his body wasn't ready for the transformation, so this is him trying to recover from it. I just don't understand why it's happening..." Carl replied, laying a cold strip of cloth on Van Helsing's forehead.

"Perhaps it's a one off?" She tried being hopeful.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see, for both when he wakes up and the next transformation..."

They both watched Gabriel, trying to keep their hopes alive.

A/N: Okay, I hope that wasn't another cliffhanger, I don't wanna get it trouble... Haha, just joking. If you don't completely understand what's wrong with Van Helsing, think of it like this: If you try and do a back flip without any practice or anything, what happens? You hurt yourself, that's what. And that's why Van Helsing's unconscious – he wasn't prepared.

(1)It's a stupid but funny thing I've found in so many movies. The bad guys are always soooo obsessed with power, so the watchers/readers always tend to think that the more power you have, you'll have a larger chance of being turned evil – but that isn't the case with elves. Thus, the name Dark Elf. After all, power corrupts, and evil is sometimes named darkness, dark etc.

Anyway, please review, and no flames!