Chapter 14

Three days later, Cornell returned to the village, an hour after Ortega had left with Ada. He had smelled the smoke a great distance off. Cornell started to walk faster, and then nearly tripped. The man-wolf looked down, and to his alarm, the ground was littered with dead bodies! From the looks of them, the victims were escaping from something and weren't very lucky. Cornell looked down closely at the bodies. Whatever they were running from was more than just fire. Some of these people were missing limbs as well...

He glanced around the dark forest that surrounded him and continued running forward. There was definitely a fire. The town was still ablaze, and now he saw the culprits. Skeletons and demon hounds still roamed the village in search of just one more victim to murder. A few skeletons locked eyes with Cornell, and charged towards him. He dodged their attacks and knocked them out with ease. Cornell looked around the deserted and destroyed village and shouted one of the first things on his mind:

"Ada? Ada!!"

He hurried to their house, but of course it had caught fire as well. He attempted to run in and search for his sister, but it was futile. The house was already crumbling apart.

"Ada?" He called again, but he knew he was talking to himself. Looking down, he saw the pendant he had given to her. Cornell retrieved the pendant and held it firmly. What kind of evil would have done this to his village? And his sister and loved ones? The answer came almost instantly. Cornell ran out of the town and down one of its roads. He skipped off the road and ran through the forest. Then he ended up on a ledge, with a wide view of the enormous castle that stood out in the sea. As a gust of wind blew past him, he sniffed the air, concentrating his wolf senses.

"Yes, Ada has passed by here." He declared solemnly. "The scent of her blood is as familiar to me as my own."

Cornell looked back at the castle with his brows furrowed. His grip on the pendant tightened once more.

"I'm coming, Ada!"

Cornell hired a ferryman to take him across the sea. This ferryman was the only of three that agreed to take Cornell across the "cursed" waters that surrounded Dracula's castle. Though the ferryman wanted nothing to do with the castle, he volunteered to take Cornell to a deserted ship that floated near the fortress.

The old ferryman grinned across at his passenger.

"What brings you to the Dark Castle, young sir?"

"I'd prefer to keep that to myself, if you don't mind." Cornell answered curtly.

"Of course. Forgive me."

"Have you traveled these waters all your life?"

"Aye, for seventy years. I know just about everythin' that goes on 'round these here waters. Evil from the castle yonder spreads over these waters. Fishermen have reason to fear...And look!"

Cornell looked to where the ferryman's hand was pointing. He looked over into the dark water. Not far way from where the boat was, something big and enormously long slinked by them. With the help of the lantern he was holding up, Cornell could see that its scales were a rust color and that it had large white fins.

"What is that?"

"The Sea Serpent." The ferryman replied. "King of the sea. Doesn't like wanderers wanderin' in his domain. Out here in the middle of the sea, you're really at his favor. He's not after me, hee hee hee hee!"

The rest of the journey continued in silence until they reached the deserted ship. The ship was much larger than the ferryman's meager boat. Cornell got off and started to climb onto the ship by the anchor chain rooted down into the water.

"Fortune to you, young sir! Watch out for the sea monster, and demons about!"

Silently, Cornell hoped the same thing for himself. Apart from the skeletons and demon hounds at the village, Cornell had never seen a physical demon. Or even a demon spirit for that matter. He never believed such a thing could exist...perhaps he had even been hallucinating because of the smoke from the fire. Perhaps the skeletons were merely pillagers and the "demon" hounds were merely dogs. Large dogs. With flaming red eyes... Cornell would have to be on his guard.

The ship proved to be haunted. After fighting off ghost, fishmen demons, and more skeletons, escaping from the freshly sinking ship, and fighting an unscrupulous sea monster, Cornell arrived into the castle's forest. Even with his lantern now gone, his nocturnal vision would suffice. Even from the past events from the haunted ship, Cornell wandered courageously through the forest. This area also proved to be possessed, but Cornell expected this. The only thing he didn't expect was the tree that was struck by lighting and nearly crushed him once he came close. Rain, deathly silence, and demons inhabited the forest. Only the rain slacked after awhile.

Eventually, Cornell came to a closed drawbridge. Already having to travel the forest, he knew that the moat water was poisonous. It was too far and deep to swim across anyway. As Cornell began to ponder how he would get across and inside, the drawbridge shifted. Dust and debris shook loose, and the long bridge began to lower itself. It set neatly on the ground revealing a long wooden path and a large (and dark) castle entrance before him. Cornell stepped aboard and began walking across. Someone was expecting him...

Once Cornell was inside, the drawbridge began to close back and a heavy metal gate came down and fastened in front of it. He was locked inside. Cornell looked ahead and saw another metal gate right in front of him. Not only was he locked in, but he was also trapped! He tugged at the gate bars to no avail. They were secure.

"Ha ha! Shocking to find the great Cornell helpless in a place like this?"

Cornell looked past the gate he was behind, and saw another. Ortega appeared behind it. With ease, he lifted up the gate with one arm and thrust it upward back into its socket. The gate landed loudly, but stayed back none the less. Ortega walked casually over to him.

"Even a man-wolf is nothing but a trapped dog in a cage."

"Ortega! You're alright! I saw the village after it was attacked. Your home was burned to the ground..."

Ortega nodded. "I know that already, Cornell..."

Cornell's eyebrows started to furrow. "Are you really...Ortega?"

"It has been a long time since I lost to you. And Ada, why hasn't she grown... She has truly developed into a beautiful young woman."

Cornell could tell that Ortega was taunting him. Even so, Ada was still the first priority at the moment. "Have you seen Ada? Where is she?"

"She is nearby. Almost close enough to know that you are here. But you won't be seeing her any time soon."

"Why not?" Cornell asked.

"Count Dracula has requested that I bring her to him. After all, she will be the perfect sacrifice to offer him for these powers!"

"Count Dracula?? Don't be a fool, according to legend he won't be coming back for some time..."

In his mind, Cornell was adding up the recent events. Perhaps he himself was being the fool. He didn't want to believe that the prince of darkness had returned. Since when did Ortega give sacrifices...?

He looked back at Ortega with suspicion. "Wait...you were the one who attacked the village? Who kidnapped Ada? Have you sold your soul to the devil??"

"You will find out everything soon enough, Cornell." Ortega turned around and left back through the open gate.

"Ortega! Wait!"

Ortega had already disappeared. Cornell sighed and looked around for a way out. He would have to find out something soon enough...