Chapter 16

After falling a considerable distance, Cornell landed on stone ground. Daylight came from the exit in front of him. He must have been outside. Cornell stepped out of the exit and gave a cry of surprise. He stood on a platform on the side of the castle, well over 300 feet in the air! He reached for something to hold on to, but there was nothing but the castle's stone wall. How did he get up here?! Now, that question was replaced with another: How was he supposed to get up there?!

Cornell looked up at the castle wall above him that stretched seemingly endless, until it disappeared into the foggy grey sky. He sighed uncomfortably. It had to be done... The man-wolf started to scale the castle walls, platform by platform, wall beam by wall beam until he came on top of one of the castle's numerous towers. By now it was late into the night. His face was painted with sweat, his hands were raw and his hair was messier than ever. There was a faint scratchy buzzing sound above that made him groan. More buzz saws...

"Hard work for you?"

Cornell looked back down and saw Renon hovering in midair in front of him, sitting with his legs crossed and demon tail swishing idly. He handed Cornell a large flask of cold water. Cornell emptied the whole flask over his head and shook the water off himself.

Renon frowned, thoroughly soaked with water. "That was for drinking, if you didn't mind."

"Sorry about that. I was sweaty and blistering...if you didn't mind." He collapsed back and stared at the dark sky. "I'm also hungry and tired."

"It is only to be expected. Of all things, I don't believe I got your name...?"

"Cornell."

"I see... And if I may be so bold to ask, what are you doing in this castle?"

"I'll keep that to myself, thanks."

"You still have me curious. May I take a guess?"

Cornell inspected one of his deadly claws, half paying attention. He continued to lie flat on the ground, staring at the sky.

"Sure."

Renon didn't take long to think. "You're coming after your sister?"

Cornell sat up straight. "How do you know?"

"We demons tend to know these type of things." Renon waited awhile before telling Cornell the truth. He took out a plate of crumpets and tea, which also floated.

"It's simple really. The girl has an uncanny resemblance to you by the white hair, and she's too young to be your fiancée. She's quite polite. Unlike you, might I add..."

Cornell wasn't even paying attention to the food Renon was eating, though he was still quite hungry.

"You saw Ada?? Where?? When??"

"This morning. She was being escorted by a man, working for lord Dracula no doubt. He had long wild-looking hair, markings, and looked very somber."

Cornell nodded. "Ortega. I can't understand why he would do this..."

"I see... Then you must be a man-beast."

"How did you figure that out?"

Renon shook his head. "It's still a simple matter. It doesn't take a mastermind to find that out."

He took a sip of his tea and nodded towards Cornell. "It's written all over you. Fierce appearance, unnatural claws, dreadful manners...need I say more?"

Cornell frowned. "I don't have dreadful manners..." At the same time, he involuntarily tried to slick back his natural but untidy hair.

Renon managed to smirk. "Indeed. No, your manners aren't all that bad. So, the puzzle is solved and here is the story: A young man-beast with exceptional resilience comes to rescue his beloved young sister from his former man-beast friend and ultimately defeat lord Dracula. Marvelous, indeed! Very much heartfelt. Man-beasts usually aren't known for their affections towards others."

Cornell gave him a wry smile, irritated that Renon found out his mission so simply. Though it reminded him of how sharp his father Matthew was.

"Well, you're still partly wrong. I'm not out to fight this Count Dracula. I'm not even going to say he exists. It's still a legend, a mere folklore. All I'm after is Ada, and that's it."

"Tell me, is there anything in that stubborn head of yours? Whose castle do you think this is? I've seen lord Dracula many times with my own eyes. If you want to save your sister, you will have to defeat him. That is a known fact."

Cornell merely nodded. There was a clopping sound nearby. A horse... Cornell turned to his side and as he mentioned, a horse stood a few feet away. This was no ordinary horse. Its fur was a dark color and its mane and hooves were silver. It had a demonish pair of wings and tail, a silver horn on its forehead and crimson eyes. On the horse's back was the boy Cornell had seen while he was on his journey. This time, he was clad in purple and gold nobleman clothing. The boy hadn't noticed Cornell or Renon, instead was gazing out at the sky and red moon in front of him. With each breath, Cornell could see the demon horse blow tuffs of steam from its nostrils, because of the cold air. The horse huffed loudly. As though the boy understood what the horse was saying, he signaled it to run. The horse galloped to the edge of the tower and took off into the sky.

Cornell watched as both the horse and the boy disappeared.

"What are you gazing at?" Renon asked.

Cornell turned towards him. "Didn't you see it? The boy and the flying demon horse... You must have..."

Renon raised an eyebrow. "You must be famished. Look at you, you're hallucinating."

Cornell's haversack fell into his lap. He sighed quietly and started looking inside for food. Why was he the only one who could see this child?