Chapter 22

Cornell opened his eyes. It was still pitch black. He couldn't have been blind...he just saw lightning flash in the sky. He looked up. In fact, the sky was vivid with lightning... Thunder rumbled around him. This place gave him an uneasy feeling. With every light flash, he could see pairs of demonish eyes staring at him through the darkness. Or was he imagining things? Where was Ada and Dracula?

He got his answer. Lightning struck and luminated the monstrosity in front of him. He leapt with fright and started to shy backwards. Of all the awful things he had faced in Dracula's castle, Cornell had a feeling this was the worst. Of course it was the worst. Dracula was the king of darkness after all...

This demon was large; One hundred times Cornell's size. Under its pale grey skin, muscles made its form. Five large horns sprouted from its head and a large set of wings came from the demon's shoulders. A flap in its chest opened to reveal a bloody head instead of a heart. The head gave a gurgling-like laugh. Cornell took another step back. He could feel himself quiver with disgust and fear. Cornell remembered his mission and mustered back up his strength and courage. His brain went to work on how to defeat his new foe. It was given that he couldn't beat the demon in his human form, so he changed into the wolf.

The demon stretched one of its arms to the sky, summoning the lightning. Thunder sounded deeply and lightning danced in the sky surrounding Cornell. He braced himself and used the wolf's quick reflexes to move out of the lightning bolt's way. Cornell succeeded a few times, but he was forced to endure the others. If he was not quick enough, the man-wolf was flattened to the ground by the electricity force. His body involuntarily vibrated madly from the shock. It was certain that his human form couldn't have taken such pressure.

Cornell moved in time before the demon's massive fist crushed him. Ice shards shot up from the ground, surrounding where the fist had been. Cornell was lucky once again, and only his side was scraped. He roared with pain; It was his already wounded side that was hit. The warrior's wolf form was very handy more than once in this fight. The form had made it much easier to see the demon through the darkness. It also gave Cornell the speed and endurance he needed, otherwise he would have perished quickly. Now he would test his strength! Like lightning, he charged forward and up, his aim on the demon's internal head. Cornell's slash was quick and unmerciful. The head yelled and shed a good amount of blood. The demon snatched at Cornell, but he was quick. The man-wolf leaped from its hand and circled back towards the demon's vulnerable chest. This would be the finishing blow!

Cornell was trapped in a vortex. Its energy was pulling him backwards into the Underworld. The man-wolf resisted and continued pulling forward. He didn't know where the vortex ended, but he wouldn't give in. He couldn't abandon Ada and his promises. Demon heads sped by him, laughing wickedly at his attempts. Cornell couldn't give in to fear now. He would destroy Dracula at all costs! Fangs bared, he rushed the demons and slashed anything in his way. The vortex had ended and Cornell returned to the dark realm where he fought the demon. The man-wolf charged him head on and finished it off with a final blow in the chest.

The demon groaned from pain and its defeat. Cornell transformed back into a human. He began to shake and inevitably lost his balance. This time the vortex erupted from the ground and encircled the demon. Neon blue lightning danced around the vortex in its wake. While the vortex pulled the demon in, Ada's crystal appeared in the sky. The jewel sparkled and glowed bright through the dark.

"Ada!" Cornell rushed forward, but was thrown backwards by the force field of electricity. He got back up promptly and tried again. The force field wouldn't let him through.

The demon reached up for the crystal. It had much more success at pulling itself out of the vortex than Cornell had getting through the barrier. Ada pounded on the glass, her voice was muted. Cornell couldn't have heard her even without the crystal. The rumbling sound from the vortex was thunderous. The demon's finger tips began to reach the bottom of the crystal. Dracula may not have defeated Cornell, but he would take Ada to the Underworld with him! It was more than Cornell could bare!

"No!! Ada!!"

It was in that dire moment that Cornell and his wolf spirit parted. Driven by Cornell's determination and compassion for Ada, the wolf spirit leaped high into the air, passed the barrier, and smashed the crystal containing his sister.

Cornell moved to find the angle Ada would fall at. He caught her in his arms safely. His wolf form however was caught into the demon's clutches. The form struggled about with no avail; He had officially taken Ada's place as a sacrifice.

The demon's internal head laughed again. "I must thank you, man-wolf. For I have achieved my true purpose!"

Cornell and Ada watched in silence as the demon disappeared back into the Underworld along with the struggling wolf spirit.