Before you read the story, please read these guidelines:
1) This is a fanfiction about the book "Dracula" by Bram Stoker, and on the Castlevania sage. This means I do not hold the rights for any of the characters or names in it.
2) Since the book "Dracula" was
not finished right on my opinion, this is an epilogue, a direct continuation
from the point the book has stopped.
THIS ALSO MEANS THIS STORY CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK.
So if you haven't read the book, there is a chance this will probably ruin it
for you, or you will not understand what is going on in the story.
3) The story, in its second part, is related
to the Castlevania sage (and game
series). You do not have to know the sage to understand the
story, as I will explain everything
clearly. However, if you do know this series well, the story might be more
interesting to you.
CHAPTER XXVII
MINA HARKER'S JOURNAL
6 November.-
….
….
Mr Morris, who had sunk to the ground, leaned on his elbow, holding his hand pressed to his side; the blood still gushed through his fingers. I flew to him, for the Holy circle did not keep me back; so did the two doctors. Jonathan knelt behind him and the wounded man laid back his head on his shoulder. With a sigh he took, with a feeble effort, my hand in that of his own which was unstained. He must have seen the anguish of my heart in my face, for he smiled at me and said:-
'I am only too happy to have been of any service! Here.' he leant forward and took some paper scroll out of his pocket. 'Please, deliver this letter.'
Dr Van Helsing took the letter, now red with blood, from Quincey's hand and nodded.
'Oh, God!' he cried suddenly, struggling up to a sitting posture and pointing to me, 'it was worth this to die! Look! look!'
The sun was now right down upon the mountain top, and the red gleams fell upon my face, so that it was bathed in rosy light. With one impulse the men sank on their knees, and a deep and earnest 'Amen' broke from all as their eyes followed the pointing of his finger as the dying man spoke:-
'Now God be thanked that all has not been in vain! See! The snow is not more stainless than her forehead! The curse has passed away!'
And, to our bitter grief, with a smile and silence, he died, a gallant gentleman.
DR SEWARD'S DIARY
7 November.-
It is hard to believe all our horrors are over! We are all in grief because of the death of our so dear friend. Now we are on the way back to Bistritz, and from there back to Bucharest and Varna. Quincey's body is covered in our carriage. Lord Godalming vowed to organize the most respected funeral to Quincey once we return to London, but the Professor objected.
'I am once again grateful for your generosity, friend Arthur. And I also know what a good friend he was to you.' he said. 'But the body of poor, brave Morris must be laid to rest as soon as possible. The dead do not like to be carried great distances. If it be his fate to die here, he should be buried here as well. '
Arthur did not argue with him, although I could see he did not like the idea of his best friend being buried in this wild land. I did not understand what was on Van Helsing's mind either, but I knew from the past experience his decisions are very well thought, and even if they seem at first unusual, in the end it always turns out that they were the right ones.
Mina and Harker are in good moods. Mina fully recovered- the scar on her forehead is gone, and so is the bite mark on her neck. Her teeth returned to their normal shape, too. Never the less, she is still quite pale, thin and weak. She needs to eat more to regain her strength. I am sure she will be alright.
The weather is very cold, and it is snowing. Good thing that the Professor purchased many warm coats, so we do not have to suffer the cold.
8 November, afternoon.-
Arrived at Bistritz in the morning to-day. There was here a big surprise for us, that when we came, and the people of the town noticed our presence, and accepted us with great joy and cheers.
When Harker asked them for the reason of their happiness, one of them who knew German very slightly, explained that the people of the city heard that 'some strangers' were chasing the Count, and two days ago a snowstorm started, very early for the season, and a great swarm, maybe hundreds of wolves surrounded the town, as if controlled by some evil force. But as the wolves were just a minute close to reaching the town, the storm suddenly ceased and the wolves drew back.
As if frightened by something, the wolves retreated back to the mountains. Only one reason could be for such a sudden change- the wolves were no longer in the Count's possession. So the town people were sure we destroyed the monster, the vampire.
When Jonathan told the man his conjuncture was correct, he cheered and the townspeople were shining with gratitude. A few women started kissing our hands, and the men were greeting us in different tongues, in response to what we could do nothing than shake our heads and smile. After a few minutes, a big, short man arrived; he claimed he is the town duke, and invited us into his own house to have a lunch with him.
We could not refuse, not only out of respect, but also because were genuinely hungry and tired from the long journey down the mountains.
The lunch was brought to us by many a man, each peasant has given what he could for us, together with many kinds of small presents. We did not refuse to receive any, because those so nice people would accept that the wrong way. The land-duke knew German quite well, and listened attentively as Jonathan was telling him how we banished Dracula. His face filled with grief when he heard about the death of Morris, and when Harker finished the tale, he stood up and declared:-
'You dear gentlemen from the faraway land have ridden us from the curse we ourselves could not fight. We were doomed to be as slaves to him, but we are finally free. Please, allow us to keep the body of your friend. The least we can do to pay you back is to make him a great funeral. Here he shall always be remembered as a hero.'
'The decision is yours to take, Lord Godalming.' Whispered the Professor in response to Arthur's questionable look. Arthur rose up, and with a look of honor I will never forget, said:-
'Now I know the meaning of your words, oh wise professor. What a fool I was! In England Quincey could be buried as a good man, an honorable man, who lived his short, yet satisfactory adventurous life. But here, in this beautiful land of legends and superstition, he would be buried as a hero, a fearless knight who traveled long miles to save the lives and souls of men from a wicked evil… Yes, he shall be buried here. This is what he would have wanted.'
MINA HARKER'S JOURNAL
8 November, evening.-
The villagers here are so nice to us. Fair women of all ages do not stop bringing us food and gifts, and I feel very uncomfortable with such generosity from those people, who have nothing and yet are ready to give it all. I think they sense my inconvenience, because the older of them told me:- 'Do not be shy, lovely lady, for all these little gifts and much more are yours, you deserve them for you defeated the Nosferatu who enslaved us and our souls.'
I assume we she was right, we did deserve much after such a long and terrifying adventure we shall never forget.
Arthur and Van Helsing encountered another problem they forgot about: There were none Catholic priests in Bistritz or anywhere in the region. The land-duke offered to send one of his men to Bucharest, where such a priest might be found. Art accepted the polite offer, but the Professor rejected it, claiming it could take days, even weeks, to bring a priest from Bucharest.
'Professor, I learned to never argue with your decisions, as they are always so wise.' Arthur replied after his rejection, 'But why, please tell me why you would take the honor of being buried by a Catholic priest away from Quincey?'
I could see it was a hard moment for the clever old man, and he had to take a deep breath before answering.
'Because… Because, my friend and Lord, I learned in these months I spent with you something so great, so important. I finally reached a conclusion. If the Un-Dead cannot see the difference between an Orthodox cross and a Catholic one… Why should we see it? Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox… All are equal in the eyes of God.'
We were all so shaken by Van Helsing's remark, we suddenly all became silent and could not say a word for a few moments. I was not able help a tear running off my eye. I cannot believe we needed to go through such a hard experience only to understand the truth that was there, just before our eyes…
Arthur spoke first. 'Do whatever you wish, sir. I am only a servant of a grand mind as yours. I, the lord, bow before your wisdom.'
'No, my son and brother, you should not. My wisdom is all yours, for you, young men, I spent my life gathering it. What do I need it for? I am but an elderly man, and my life is worth nothing anymore. Never the less, I am a teacher, and my duty is to pass my wisdom to my pupils; those are you, my friends. And you, in your turn, shall pass it to your pupils, your children, and so on and on. So, today is late. If we are decided, let us order to begin the preparations. The funeral would be held to-morrow.'
So now, that I sit in a comfortable bed, in the room which was prepared for me and Jonathan, I finish writing, and go to sleep. I have a feeling tonight sleep will be pleasant, for the first time in weeks.
9 November, afternoon:-
The funeral was held early in the morning. A maiden knocked at the door, and awakened me and Jonathan, saying we should hurry because the burial ceremony is about to begin. We dressed up and prepared very quickly, and met Arthur, the Professor, and Seward all dressed and ready, waiting for us outside the house where we spent the night.
'Hope you had a good sleep, Madam Mina.' -the professor managed to keep his manners even in such a meaningful day.
'No dreams, but I feel as if I have not slept at all.'
'That only means you are recovering. You need much rest and feeding, but at least you managed to sleep without disturbance. Let us go.'
And so, we walked silently to the town's graveyard, where a large group of people gathered round. High in the sky, the sun was slowly climbing up from far away, beyond the horizon.
The funeral was like nothing I experienced before. All was so wild, so unlike what we were used to. A big group of peasants, dressed up in their national outfits, played on primitive wooden musical instruments. At the same time, the priest was reading Greek and Slavian prayers from his book, accompanied with deep shouts and cries from the crowd. All were murmuring the prayers and moving in a rhythmic motion. This all was so strange, but I felt as if I was hypnotized, sucked into that almost barbaric burial ceremony. I think that my companions felt the same, because they were so concentrated on the ritual, that they could not move, nor say a word.
What I felt at the moment was a mixture of many different feelings- pain, loss, pride, harmony, fear and purify…
The heart of the ceremony came when four young men lifted Quincey's coffin, and dropped it inside the big pit in the ground. The priest was reading his prayer even faster and louder now. None could hold tears running from his eyes as the pit was quickly being filled with snowy ground.
Jonathan hugged me and held me tight when he saw I started shaking and losing my balance. His strong hold gave a feeling of warmth, so I could be calm again.
When the ground covered the pit completely, the ceremony finally was coming to an end. A large group of strong peasants moved a huge rock to the place where only a minute ago the pit was. When it was on its place, the priest ceased reading.
An engraver with some simple tools walked over to the huge headstone and started carving words on it. The sun was already high in the sky, reflected by the snow in a dance of light…
'What is he writing on it?' I wondered.
'Does it even matter now?' Arthur replied immediately. His voice was quiet. I could see his spirit was broken. John put his arm on Arthur's shoulder and looked deep in his eyes. The always clam professor whispered to him: 'I hope you do not regret your choice, milord.'
'I do not.'
The burial ceremony ended hours ago, and now all our things are packed and a new carriage is ready for us, together with a charioteer who will accompany us to Bucharest. Arthur tried to explain the duke that we do not require one, but he explained that we will not we able to find our way in the snow, and besides that, the ways are much more dangerous in the winter, especially for a man who does not know the region well.
I finish writing now, as we are soon departing.
