Chapter 9: The Spell That Binds
Miruna looked at the corner of the map and smiled. She quoted the phrase proudly. "In the name of God, open this door.", she said firmly. The map morphed once more into a mirror. The small lines of silver that appeared and soon covered the browned map looked like the ice of the fortress covering the earth itself in silent cold. She wondered if that was what had happened to poor Prince Draculea. She sighed and gathered all of her strength and wisdom for the task she would complete. She stopped for a moment. Perhaps she should be a little more prepared to scale the door and then get down again this time. She looked around the armoury for a moment, trying to locate some rope and a large hook. Miruna smiled when she noted something in a case far to the left. It was better than simply a large hook or rope, it was a sterling grappling hook with several feet. It appeared to have enough to scale the castle's entrance and then flip the rope to the other side of the door to climb down. She picked up the heavy hook and rope and struggled to place it over her shoulder to carry it through the mirror. She thought once more of anything else she might need. She remembered that the spell would call for her blood. She looked around quickly for a dagger. The armoury was full to bursting with nasty bits of metal twisted into blades and blunt flails, among them was a marvelous selection of daggers. She chose the closest and headed through the mirror. Even if Van and Carl came after her, they would be at a set back with the doors closed and having no werewolf to claw at the walls to climb it this time.
Miruna passed through the icy portal, feeling as if her skin had ignited with the cold that surrounded her. The mirror itself seemed to be made of ice this time, and she was not feverish either. The full brunt of the cold now hit her. After a moment of this freezing torment, she arrived on the other side. She looked up at the angry sky. It was is if the death of the count had caused this portion of Transylvania mourned and shouted hatefully for the loss of their precious son. Miruna ignored the swirling snow and walked sternly up to the doors. An enormous gust of wind hit her and threw her back a little. Miruna shouted in natural defense and then looked up. One of the doors had opened slightly with the blast of air. She furrowed her brow and studied it. She smiled. When she had climbed down earlier, she had pulled the system to allow the doors to open a little and the wind had simply pushed it the rest of the way for the most part. She walked up to it and pushed it open enough to allow her inside. She hurried down the hallway and up the stairs towards the tower that held the remains of Draculea. Snow had settled over much of the floor where the cieling had geen either opened or torn apart. Luckily, the area where the last attack took place was clear of any of it. She walked over to it slowly, feeling sick sorrow and anger whooshing through her mind. A few feet away from the pillar she now stood beside, was the charred pile that was once the proud noble. Miruna was overcome at this and began to weep loudly as she approached. She knelt by the pile, unable to keep her tears from splashing onto the pile and forming a puddle of her own sadness.
She tried to compose herself as she pulled out the dagger and brought the words back to mind. She went over the words; 'Blood for blood, breath for breath. Cursed in life, rise in death.' She put the dagger to her hand to make a deep slit and stopped. The words stated 'cursed in life' and 'rise in death'. She didn't want his life to be cursed at all, and she certainly didn't want him to rise still dead. A light flashed on in her mind. That was the spell that had cursed him! It wasn't the cure at all! The spell dictated that the life he would rise to would still be in death and would be cursed. She couldn't repeat those words, that would simply start the whole process over again. She couldn't leave him. She loved him. She realized now that in these few short days she had come to know the most powerful kind of love on the planet. Draculea had faced Van Helsing's lycanic form in keeping him away from her, he had faced death. More tears coursed endlessly down the girl's pale cheeks. The pile was quickly becoming an unholy mud pile. She wiped her eyes again and breathed deeply.
The use of blood was common in Romani spells, that was doubtless. The use of breath in the processes of life was also undeniable. The words were what needed to change. Miruna thought about this for a moment and took a deep breath in pushing back her desperate tears. She made the large, painful cut over one of the wounds she had recieved earlier in scaling the castle doors. She shouted madly in pain and clenched her fist as the dagger left it. She opened her eyes and gasped three times, trying to relieve the horrendous pain so that she could complete the spell. She felt her strength boiling within her and she reached for the pile of mud and ash. She scooped a small amount of it into bot hands, rubbing it on the wound and carressing it gently in her palms.
"Blood for blood.", she began in a soft whisper. She leaned forward and exhaled slowly onto the mixture. "Breath for breath.", she continued. The mixture in her hands became very warm and began to pulse. She smiled brightly. "Renew his life, rise from death.", she stated in as happy a tone as she could manage. The mixture pulsed madly and began to feel hot. Miruna frowned. The black substance began to creep over both her hands and drip all around them, even reaching up to a few of the cuts on her forearms. She screamed and threw both hands into the air. The substance crept down her arms and onto her chest, mimicking the beat of her own racing heart as it dripped to the floor. Miruna stood and backed away a little as the creeping mixture slithered over to a clean set of stones and then began to drip through the cracks in the stones. The stones cracked and hissed a little. Miruna gasped and ran over to them. She dropped to her knees and began to look through the cracks desperately. A chill suddenly floated through the room.
"Master...", a voice whispered. Miruna perked up. It was his voice! She smiled and began to call loudly through the cracks.
"Prince Draculea! I am here! Come back to me!", she cried. Perhaps the spell worked like so many resurrection spells from mythology, he would rise to live at her command. It was something for him, even if he didn't have freedom, besides it was she alone that wanted him alive at the moment. She looked through the cracks frantically. She frowned. She tried to remember his first name, perhaps that was what he needed to hear. Vladimir, Nicklaus, Vladi...Vladislaus! The memory of one of the passages in her father's journal came clear to her. She leaned closer to the cracks and called even louder. "Vladislaus! Valdislaus, I am here! Come back to me!"
"Master. I am here, master.", his voice whispered.
"Where? Where are you, Prince Vladislaus?", she asked desperately.
"I am here master. Forgive me.", he whispered sadly. Miruna felt her heart wrench in sorrow and anger. Why wasn't he appearing to her? Where was he and what did she need to do to summon him. She continued to cry for him for several minutes, but his voice didn't speak again. Miruna felt the tears coming back at a greater intensity. Miruna laid down on the floor, sobbing wildly. She curled up into a small fetal ball and wept unconsolably. She felt such horrible pain in her heart. She hadn't known Vladislaus for very long at all, but she felt so strongly for him. She had loved him. It was unclear to her at the moment whether it was the small amount of love in pity, the love of a friend, the love of a sister, the love of a daughter, or the love of a bride. Her mind cruelly played these options over and over in her mind. By the end of a few moments she felt as miserable as a young woman who had lost her brother, father, and husband all at once. Her spirit burned with terrible emotion, and how she wished to be void of it. Miruna continued to cry for hours. She was too engulfed in her mourning to notice when someone walked up behind her. In fact, three persons had walked up behind her. One of them knelt and picked her up, holding onto her tightly.
"Such a silly thing. Crying for someone who isn't dead.", a familiar woman said. Miruna looked up. Her heart leapt with a mild amount of joy.
"Anna.", she cried hoarsely. Anna smiled and pulled her cousin to her happily. Miruna clutched her cousin's shoulders and sobbed loudly. "I let him die, Anna. I couldn't redeem him."
"It was never your place to redeem him, Miruna. He is at peace now.", Anna said trying to reassure her young cousin. She stood, still holding onto her as if she would fade without the touch of another human being. Anna turned to the other two that had followed her. Van Helsing and Carl stood behind them. Van stepped forward and looked at Miruna sadly. In her eyes, he could see the pain that every one of his sins had ever wrought. He walked over to the stones that were cracked and stained with the remnants of the count's ashes. He knelt and removed his hat. He took out a small wooden cross with a sprig of wolf''s bane from the kitchen garden. He sighed and laid them in the centre and crossed himself slowly.
"Requeis gatem pache.", he whispered and stroked the plant thoughtfully. He stood and put his hat back on and looked directly at Miruna. "God has forgiven him. He will be at peace, now. I ask that you do the same for me." Miruna stared at him hatefully. She felt more tears stinging as they slid down her cheeks. She turned away from him. He frowned and sighed. "Let's go back. We can take you back to Bucharest."
"I'm not going back to Bucharest.", Miruna stated. "I belong here. Hidden from the lies of my family, hidden from the unhappy future they had planned for me.", she said sadly. She looked up at Anna. A look of something that resembled relief crossed her face. "I have all the family I need here."
Anna smiled. "There is an empty castle that belonged to the family. Cleaned up it will make you a fine home and bring work to a few villagers. I will help with that.", she said. "I don't know that you ever saw Castle Frankenstein, but it will be your new home."
"Then it is no longer Castle Frankenstein.", Miruna sighed. "It is Castle Draculea. At least his name will be with me."
Anna sighed and shook her head. She led her cousin away from the stones gently. Miruna resisted at first, but she was exhausted both physically and emotionally. She followed the trio meekly. She turned back and looked at the sad remains of her prince once more. She had done all she could, but at least he was not suffering as nosferatu anymore.
In the next few months, Miruna and Anna set up a wonderful household in the old Castle Frankenstein, the new Castle Draculea. Anna sent for all of the lavish comforts that Miruna would need in the oversized stone structure. Then, servants and so on were selected and the stables were filled. Miruna sent word to her father that she was needed in Transylvania and that she had assumed a place of power in the Carpathians. She also warned him to the fact that if he came to take her without her permission back to Bucharest, then the gypsies that remained alive here, Anna included, would be brought to remembrance of the fact that he had aided Draculea and prevented them from ending his evil. She still cried at writing his name, saying his name and title, or seeing visualizing his face and hearing his voice in her dreams. The pain was so strong. After a year, she wondered if the pain was ever going to stop. Tomorrow would be the anniversary of Velkan's death. Miruna was called to the greeting foyer by her head butler to greet a guest. Miruna left her reading and walked to the room. Anna often called on her, their visits were pleasant enough. She looked up at the guest. It wasn't Anna. She felt a twinge of surprise and hurt at seeing the man standing in front of her.
"Miruna.", Van Helsing said softly. Miruna took a small step backwards. He removed his hat and bowed to her. "I am glad to see you are well, my lady."
"Thank you, Van Helsing.", she replied emotionlessly. "To what do we owe your visit?"
He placed his hat back on his head and cleared his throat. "After everything that happened, there is still something you didn't get to see. Something you were never at peace with.", he explained. "I have come to take you to it and try to gain your forgiveness."
Miruna sighed and shook her head. "I hold no sin against any man, Van Helsing. Emnity, perhaps, but not sin or hatred.", she said softly. "But I will go with you. Is it far?"
"It is just outside Budapest.", he said. Miruna stiffened. That was where Velkan had been killed. Van Helsing noticed the horror and shock in her eyes and moved forward a little. "Yes, I want to show you where he was buried. It will be good for you and Anna to see where he is resting."
"I would hope for your sake that my cousin rests in the arms of God!", Miruna shouted angrily at him. He took several steps back and gulped. Miruna felt the sadness and rage she had allowed to linger in her life ebb slightly. She looked down. "Is Anna waiting outside for us?"
"Yes. Are you coming with us?", he asked.
"Yes to both.", Miruna said as she walked towards him calling to the servants for her cloak. Van looked at her inquisitively.
"Both what?", he said.
"Requests. I will go with you.", Miruna said as she pulled on the cloak and walked over to him. "And I forgive you."
He smiled and allowed a few tears of his own to stream down his face. Miruna walked past him and out the front doors. Van followed, feeling more relief than he had in years.
The group consisted of Van, Anna, Miruna, and Carl still tagging along. Apparently the incident here in Transylvania made him want to see Van's equipment in action full time. Miruna rode emotionlessly at the back. Carl rode a little slower to stay almost beside her. He truly pitied the poor girl. She had thought she was truly in love with Draculea and was pining for him as well as her normal life that had been ripped from her. Then again, from what the group understood she didn't lead too much of a normal life in Bucharest with all the nightmares and her secretive father. The four arrived after a day of travel, in the forest where Velkan had died. Van led them into a large circling of trees. Miruna gasped. In the centre of the ring was a pile of stones. On each of the trees was an epitaph in Greek, Latin, Castillian, Italian, French, Romanian, and Romany. The epitaph read;
"Here lies Velkan Vrishen Valerious. He lived as a devoted Christian, loving brother and son; he died as the same. When you stand in this circle, may you feel the strength and conviction that this prince put into all of his life. Those who mourn him will find peace as his spirit dwells here among the trees."
Anna began to cry and walked over to the stones. She knelt and laid her hands on the stones, weeping loudly for her brother. Miruna looked up at Van Helsing through her eternal torrent of tears.
"This was not all done the night that Velkan died. It couldn't have been.", she whispered as she began to cry a little louder.
"No. I came back every month and added to his memorial. I wish that I could have saved his life, not tended his grave.", Van sad trailing off on the last few words. Miruna looked up and noticed that the hunter had tears in his eyes as well. They streamed down despite his efforts to prevent it. Miruna threw her arms around him and sobbed, allowing him to forget his sorrowing by comforting her. Miruna knew well that men did best in dealing with sorrow or anger if they were given something to fix. He held onto her and watched Anna sadly. He sighed and clutched Miruna to him as if she were the only thing on earth that could offer him warmth. As Miruna felt all of the sorrow finally leaving her, and the tears that had plagued her for a year and a day end, she began to hear a strange noise. It was too faint to make out at first, but after a moment it became clear. Clear, familiar, and frightening; the noise was the voice of comfort and pain all at once.
"Miruna.", Vladislaus whispered loudly. Everyone jumped and looked around. Miruna lifted her head. "Miruna, come home. Come home to me." No one except Miruna heard the last phrase. Miruna pulled away from Van Helsing, ran to her horse, leapt on its back, and then rode madly back to her castle. The wind whipped past her. She didn't know whethere to smile at this point or to begin lamenting again. Instead she made her face void of all emotions save for determination. The last piece of this tradgedy was about to be laid to rest.