Disclaimer: I don't own Van Helsing it is the property of Steven Summers and universal studios.
Chapter 50
Within a few minutes Van Helsing had loaded his crossbow and pulled on his weapon ridden trench coat.
Anna fixed her sword belt around her waist, quickly checking the blade before placing it within easy reach. Neither one spoke, this was not a hunt to kill it was a mercy mission.
Tony, Marston, Chris, Jory and Amie strode into the room. "Carl just told us what happened." said Jory sadly.
"Your going to kill her aren't you?" Amie asked her voice cold.
Van Helsing looked at her from under the wide brim of his hat "We're hoping it won't come to that." He said.
Anna nodded "She's fighting, but the hunger is driving her mad. We're going to stop her from doing something we'd all regret."
The hunter and the princess turned towards the doors.
"We're coming with you." Tony said stepping forward.
"Not this time" Van Helsing said turning to look at him and adjusting the heavy crossbow on his shoulder. The silver bolts caught the light and Marston winced slightly, imaging them slamming into Sarah's body. The teens began to speak at once arguing with the hunter but he shook his head.
"She may not be your friend anymore, could you stand back and watch while we did what we'd have to do then?" he asked reasonably.
"She's means more to us than she does to you. She's our friend." said Amie angrily.
Anna was already out of the door and Van Helsing began to follow, turning back to look at them. "Pray that she still is." He said pulling the doors closed behind him.
The village was dark and silent, most of the inhabitants already safely in their beds. Anna kept close to Van Helsing scanning the darkness for movement.
They we close to the town square when they heard footsteps.
Automatically they froze and raised their weapons in preparation. But it was only the undertaker who greeted them with a nod and skeletal grin as he walked past.
"What's he up too?" muttered Van Helsing.
"Probably grave digging" said Anna bitterly "Lord knows we need enough of them here."
They continued on into one of the back alleyways Van Helsing stopped and sniffed at the air.
"What is it?" asked the princess.
"Blood, fresh blood" he replied walking forward.
The alleyway widened out towards the back and then abruptly ended as it merged with the back wall of one of the houses. A small shape knelt on the floor leaning on the wall for support, her head on her knees and a curtain of familiar blond hair moving gently with the chilling breeze.
Anna and Van Helsing stopped "Do you sense evil?" ask the princess quickly drawing her sword. The Hunter sent out his senses over the crouching figure and felt only a deep sorrow.
"No she's still Sarah," he said finally, breathing a sigh of relief.
He walked towards the huddled figure and gently placed a hand onto her arm "Hey kid." He whispered.
The girl raised her head up and looked at him, he smiled warmly at her. With a sob she threw herself into his arms and began to cry.
Van Helsing held her to him, enfolding her warmly in his arms. "Shhh… its ok." He whispered stroking her hair.
Anna knelt beside them and rubbed the girls back soothingly, looking passed them she noticed a pile of four cat carcasses and pointed them out to Van Helsing.
"Looks like you were hungry" he said dryly.
Sarah pulled away from him and looked over at the corpses.
"I killed them." She said wiping the tears from her face "I know they were only animals… but I hate that I killed them, I'm a monster" she whispered.
Anna looked at her with compassion "You did what you had to do to keep other people alive." She said soothingly.
The girl still looked miserable but the tears stopped and she nodded. "Can we go home?" she asked standing up.
Anna put a comforting arm around her shoulders and led her out of the alleyway Van Helsing following them.
"I felt it again tonight." She said suddenly looking up at the Hunter. "It's getting stronger, I couldn't control myself… I could have killed Carl." She whispered fearfully.
Van Helsing regarded her seriously "There is no evil in you yet." He said.
"But there will be, and next time I might not be able to stop it." She said desperately.
Anna's grip tightened slightly "We're never going to let that happen." She said as the crossed the square.
Suddenly Sarah froze "Something's coming." She said scanning the darkness.
Anna looked back at Van Helsing to see him getting his crossbow ready, letting go of Sarah she made to draw her sword.
A howl sounded on the wind and a huge beast appeared, heading straight for Sarah and the Princess.
"Velkan!" Anna screamed as it headed straight for her. Drawing her sword she pushed Sarah to the side and rolled out of the way of the werewolf's massive claws.
Van Helsing was already shooting silver bolts at the creature but only succeeding in making it angry.
Sarah watched in horror as it turned on him beginning another deadly charge, it resembled a large bear as it bore down on the hunter. Van Helsing scrambled to fit a new set of bolts into the crossbow but time was running out. As a last resort he pulled out a small silver dagger, "No!" Sarah yelled, and using all her Vampire strength and speed she threw herself at the creature, knocking them both away from Van Helsing and into one of the side streets. She changed into her bat form and began biting and clawing at the beast for all she was worth, trying to injure it.
The werewolf roared once and then savagely began to maul her, ripping easily through her skin and snapping bone. The pain was blinding and she screamed even as she began to heal. Suddenly the wolf roared in agony and was gone leaving Sarah in a bloody heap on the concrete.
The lamplight glinted off the silver dagger that was now buried in the werewolf's shoulder. As it retreated Van Helsing and Anna rushed to Sarah's aid.
She was writhing in agony as her wounds healed themselves. She gasped as the last bone set "Holy crap that hurt." She muttered.
"Vampire or not that was foolish!" Anna scolded her.
Van Helsing quickly reloaded his gun "I have to go after him." he said to Anna.
The Princess hesitated before nodding "I know" she whispered.
The Hunter held her gaze for another heart beat before disappearing into the gathering mist.
Sarah pulled herself into a sitting position and looked at the princess sadly "He's going to kill Velkan."
Anna shook her head "That's not Velkan anymore." She said helping the vampire get to her feet. Silently they began to follow Van Helsing's path.
Van Helsing could sense the creature ahead of him. He caught sight of a flash of fur moving incredibly fast, weaving in and out of the many corridors and alleyways between the houses.
"Whose hunting who?" he muttered to himself sure that the beast was setting him up for an ambush.
The narrow street was defiantly not the best place for him to be. He spared a thought for Anna and Sarah before heading towards the nearby Graveyard, for this he needed lots of space.
Turning around a corner he froze hearing a sound nearby. Van Helsing spun and pointed his gun at the figure against the wall. He blinked in surprise as he stared at the undertaker, standing in a large coffin propped against the wall.
The undertaker smiled giving his face a skull like appearance. "This ones a little big for me" he said regretfully but then his eyes lit up stepping out of the coffin he circled around the hunter.
Van Helsing kept his eyes on the man and so was forced to turn with his back facing the coffin. "Well look at that a perfect fit!" the skeletal man exclaimed sizing the hunter up with the coffin at his back.
"What a coincidence." Looking thrilled he picked up his spade and marched deeper into the graveyard.
"I see the wolfman hasn't killed you yet." He called over his shoulder.
Van Helsing was still scrutinising the coffin when a sound caught his attention, turning he followed the undertaker "Don't worry, he's getting to it." The undertaker smirked and dug the spade into the edge of a newly dug grave.
"A little late to be digging graves isn't it?" Van Helsing asked his back to the undertaker scanning the darkness around them.
"Never too late to dig graves. Never know when you'll need a fresh one." Van Helsing sensed danger and spun just in time to catch the undertaker's spade, which had been on a hard swing for his head.
Then it had been confirmed, the undertaker was in league with Dracula. Van Helsing scowled and then noted how terrified the undertaker looked, his glance shifted to one side to look over the hunter's shoulder.
That was all the warning Van Helsing needed.
Quickly he stepped to the side and a massive blur of fur and fangs just missed him, hitting the undertaker head on.
The momentum carried both man and wolf sixty feet away. The undertaker was dead even before his body hit the lamppost.
Anna and Sarah turned the corner at this moment, watching wide eyed as the dazed werewolf got to its feet.
Van Helsing raised his crossbow to fire but found Anna's hand over his own on the trigger.
"No" she whispered, "He's my brother. I should be the one to end it."
Van Helsing hesitated for a moment but finally lowered his crossbow. Anna gave him a fleeting smile before facing the werewolf.
She produced a long silver dagger from the clasps at her thigh and threw it straight and true into her brother's heart.
The wolf threw back its head, roaring in pain, its fur started to fall away and its mass diminished. Soon where the wolf had been only Velkan Valerius remained.
As he slumped to the floor Anna ran forward and caught him, tears streaming down her face as she lowered him to the ground.
"Velkan?" she asked her voice shaking.
He turned his head painfully to look at his sister, smiling he reached up to touch her face. "Thank you Anna." He said harshly before closing his eyes for the last time.
Anna wept silently over her brother's body while Van Helsing and Sarah watched sadly.
"He's free now." Sarah whispered a single tear gliding down her cheek.
Van Helsing placed an arm around her shoulders "One way or another… soon you will be too." He said.
Sarah nodded. "One way or another." She whispered.
It was difficult to say who felt the presence first; the hunter and the vampire both froze at the same time.
"Anna run!" Van Helsing called desperately, raising his crossbow.
Aleera's demon visage appeared to melt from the mist behind the princess and before either Van Helsing or Sarah could stop her, she delivered a savage blow that rendered the princess unconscious.
Van Helsing cursed as the vampire lifted the princess by her boot like a rag doll, rising into the air.
"Shoot!" yelled Sarah trying painfully to transform, hindered by her numerous injuries, that had yet to be healed.
"I could hit Anna!" he yelled back desperately.
Sarah forced herself to transform, screaming as she felt newly knitted bones snapping. She grunted as her wings formed and without hesitating threw herself into the air.
Through her tear blinded eyes she could make out Aleera's shape heading north, the logical part of Sarah's mind wondered why she was heading away from castle Frankenstein. The thought was lost fairly quickly, as raw pain once again sliced through her battered body.
Dracula's dry laugh echoed around her as the pain increased, he was doing this she realised. The pain was not from her injuries but from him!!
With an angry shriek Sarah lost her demon form and began to fall, landing hard on her back on the outskirts of the village.
Her body arched as another nauseating wave of agony swept through her and she watched bitterly as Aleera and Anna disappeared into the night.