A/N: I tried to finish the chapter last night, but my mom kept glaring at me evilly shudders. Anyways, completed the rest and here goes my favorite scene of the whole movie, well, second. The first is when Van Helsing turns into a werewolf and fights Dracula. He was a pretty good looking werewolf sighs dreamily. Ahem. Anyways, hope you enjoy the chapter.
Chapter 2: "We Don't Trust Strangers"
Transylvania- Vaseria Village
Another mission was given to him and this time he had company; a friar by the name Carl. Carl and Van Helsing had actually known each other before, just that Carl had never been in one of his little trips around Europe. They were both sent to the far side of Romania, a cursed land. Transylvania. They stopped at the village called Vaseria. Upon arriving on horseback, the villagers were already glaring at them suspicously. Getting off the horses and tying the horses to a near post, they walked towards the village's town square.
Carl, sensing the tension, decided to divert his attention to some small talk. "So, what do you remember?" he asked the hunter.
"Not now,Carl."
"There must be something."
Van Helsing at least owed him that much. "I remember fighting the Romans at Massada." he said.
"That was in 73 A.D.!"
"You asked." Van Helsing snapped back.
Carl llooked around, examining the villager's faces. "What are we doing here?" he asked. "Why is it so important to kill this Dracula anyway?"
"Because he's the son of the Devil." Van Helsing replied, pulling his hat down a little more to hide his face.
"I mean besides that."
"Because if we kill him, anything bitten by him or created by him will also die."
"I mean besides that."
Van Helsing gave Carl a look of annoyance just as someone said behind the, "Welcome to Transylvania." The hunter sighed, dropping his bag ful of weapons and turned around to face the crowd of villagers with what seem as possible weapons; scythes, sticks, pitchforks. The man who called them out was smiling. A scrawny man wearing black attire and a top hat, grey hair spooling from underneath. He looked to be the undertaker.
"Is it always like this?" Carl asked. The hunter put his hand to his hips, examining the crowd and answering, "Pretty much."
Behind them was the sound of footsteps on a wooden platform. "You, turn around." a commanding female voice said. Both Carl and Van Helsing did as the voice had commanded them to, but kept their faces hidden beneath a hood and hat. More footsteps as the voice commanded, "Let me see your faces."
"Why?"
"Because we don't trust strangers."
"Strangers don't last long here. Five foot seven..." said the undertaker, measuring Carl with a tool he had taken out.
"Gentlemen, you may now be disarmed." the woman said. The villagers moved in closer. Van Helsing looked at them, his hand placed on his revolver. "You can try."
The villagers backed away, murmuring. "You refuse to obey out laws?" the woman questioned. The hunter looked up at the woman to come face-to-face with Anna Valerious. A hooded person stood beside her, face unable to be seen.
"The laws of men mean little to me." he said, looking at Anna, eye-to-eye. "Fine. Kill them." she commanded the villagers. The undertaker gasped in excitement. At least someone was having a grand time, the hunter thought.
"I'm here to help you." he said, hoping she would change her mind. His battle was not with the villagers. "I don't need any help." she replied.
His attention seemed to be drawn behind Anna. "Really?"
ooo
Nathalia saw Gabriel taking out a crossbow and pointing it at Anna. She ducked and he pulled the trigger after a loud screech. Behind her, Dracula's brides were int heir demonic-bat form, screeching madly. What?, she thought, not being able to believe what was going on.
"Everybody inside!" Anna yelled out. The villagers were all running in a frenzy, women looking for their children and men trying to fend the brides away. They never try to kill them, but it seemed Gabriel was clearly trying to kill them.
ooo
Anna was never expecting an attack in plaindaylight. It just wasn't a vampires nature. One of the brides intented to knock off Van Helsing. She pushed him out of the way, landing on top of him as they toppled. They looked at each other for a moment, but then she felt something grab her back and lift her. One of the vampires had caught her.
Van Helsing was quick on his feet and ran to catch her ankles. The bride hissed angrily at the sudden change of weight. She had no choice, but to let go. Both Anna and Van Helsing landed in a rather awkward position. He pushed her off him, changing their position. "Stay here." he ordered. Now Anna shifted their position, pinning him. "You stay here. They're trying to kill me." she said as she got off of him and ran off.
ooo
Nathalia was pushed, making her fall facefirst. She got on her feet in an instant only to be hauled into a house through the window. Dazed, she got up clumsily, stumbling as she did. "You simply never give up, do you Nathalia?" as familiar voice said to her. Nathalia looked up to see Verona in her human form, staring at her fiercely. Nathalia removed her cloak. "Are you all so desperate to finish off Anna's family?" she asked.
Verona smiled, but no just any smile, one that hinted there was something more to what Nathalia had just said. "My dear, not only her. You're included as well and for one reason alone."
"Enough!" Nathalia yelled, pointing her wrist bow at Verona, pulling the trigger. It fired dozens of small arrows. She missed as Verona swiftly shifted into her monstrous demon adn flew away. She then noticed the clouds had begun to shift away from the sun. It would soon appear. "Damn." she cursed as she hid away from the sun's rays. She suspected the brides did as well.
ooo
Almost immediately, the brides were gone as the sun appeared. Van Helsing knew that they weren;t gone for long. He looked around for Anna who appeared from her hiding place. "It's the sun." she said, though he obviously had known that. Then, he heard a noise in the well. He swiftly turned behind him, crossbow ready. Anna approached the well cautiously, a discarded scythe in hand. She looked at Van Helsing, he looked at her. They both nodded.. and quickly looked inside the well. Nothing but a pit of darkness.
"Uh... V-Van Helsing." Carl muttere, noticing that the clouds were beginning to cover the sun once more.
Suddenly, a swift movement of air and took Anna as it pushed Van Helsing. The vampire caught Anna by her wrist and cackled gleefully.Anna recognized the bride as none other than Aleera. "Do you like to fly, Anna?" the vampire sneere, cackling rather loudly. Anna reached for her switchblade and cut the vampire's foot. She was free only to be caught by another bride by her ankle.
Van Helsing had regained posture and aimed his crossbow on the bride. He pulled the trigger and the arrow pierced the bride's wing. Howling in pain, she lost her grip on Anna. Landing and sliding on one the house's roof, Anna managed to catch the roof's ledge, push herself backwards onto the tree behind her and land on her feet, a bruise visible on her forehead from hitting it on the tree.
She sought refuge in and abandoned house and closed the door shut. She backed away from the door and turned around-
only to come face-to-face with Aleera.
"Hello, Anna." Aleera hissed, crawling off the ceiling as she took her human form and landed on her feet.
"Nice to see you too, Aleera." Anna said. "Did I do something to you in a past life?" she asked, keeping her eyes on the vampire.
"Don't play coy with me, Princess." Aleera growled softly, her eyes glowing at the comment.
Anna ran to the door, opening it quickly only to reveal Aleera. "I know what lurks in your lusting heart." she said, smiling.
"I hope you have a heart, Aleera," Anna began boldly,"because someday I'm going t odrive a stake through it."
Aleera was furious adn slapped Anna hard enough to send her flying out the window. Anna managed to land safely and run away. Now, to find somewhere else to hide.
ooo
Nathalia ran out of the house, searching for Anna. Then, an artow whizzed by her, almost missing her ear, and she heard and angry hiss behind her. She turned around to see Marishka flying away, hissing angrily not at her, but at Gabriel. She looked over at him. He was just as she had remebered him. Marishka continued to hiss as she took out the arrows that had pierced her as she landed on one of the houses porches.
"Holy water!" someone yelled behind him. A bottle of holy water was thrown into the air towards Gabriel, only to be caught by Verona. She threw it into the well. "Stop your teasing, Marishka, and finish him!." Verona ordered, obviously enraged. She flew off.
Nathalia noticed she was in between Gabriel and Marishka who crouched and put her hands on her knees. "Too bad, so sad." she said, tauntingly.
"The church!" Nathalia suggested, pointing towards the church behind him. Marichka hissed at her angrily and Nathalia only looked at her teasingly. Payback time, she thought.
ooo
Anna was cornered, damning the moment Van Helsing set foot in Vaseria. He claims to want to help me and where is he?, she thought.
Verona and Aleera looked at her, teasing her. "The last of the Valerious." Verona said. Anna tried to punch Verona, but she was too quick when she caught her hand. Anna was weakened as she spell under their spell. Aleera pushed her hair aside from her neck.
"I can feel fresh blood rushing through her veins." Verona said, almost lustfully. "I want first bite." Aleera said. Verona objected and growled at her, her mouth and Aleera's mouth stretching at amd almost impossible length. Anna was ready for her untimely demise. At least she would soon be with her brother.
ooo
Nathalia looked away from Marichka's soon rotting corpse as she shook violently and screeched loudly. After being barraged by dozens of arrows that were soaked with holy water, she felt a sharp pain. Stupid link!, she htought. Marishka'd screech had died down and she was nothhing more than a pile of ash. from far away, Aleera and Verona cried out Marishka's name as they flew off.
MARISHKA!! MARISHKA!! MARISHKA!!
Not being able ot stand the echoes and screams and pain, her knees were weak and she collapsed as the villagers sorrounded Gabriel, yeling at them dissaprovingly.
"He killed a bride!'
"He killed Marishka!"
Someone grabbed her arm gently. She looked up to see Anna. "Let us go and greet our guests." she whispered, smiling.
ooo
Carl was actually surprised to hear the villagers dissaproving tones. They all seemed mad about the vampire's death. He wondered if the villlagers were all mad. "Isn't that a good thing?" he asked them.
"Vampires only kill what they need to survive- one or two people a month." the undertaker said, a shovel in hand as he stared at both Carl and Van Helsing. Before he oculd continue, another voice spoke out, "Now they will kill for revenge." A woman appeared among the crowd. The same woman he had saved a while back. The crowd agreed, but the undertaker looked pleased.
"Are you always this popular?" Carl asked. Van Helsing sighed as he placed his hat back on. "Pretty much." he muttered.
"So, what name, my good sir, do I carve in your gravestone?" the undertaker asked, his smile never fading. The young woman glared ath im annoyingly, almost angrily.
"His name is Van Helsing." another female voice. There were some murmurs of agreement and acceptance, but the undertaker's face had fallen from a smile to a frown. The woman who was close to him smiled, delighted his happiness had gone from sunny to cloudy. Anna appeared as the crowd parted like the Red Sea to let her by. She stood besides the young woman. "Your reputation precedes you."
He got up from the church's steps and made eye contact with the princess. "Next time, stay close. You're no good to me dead." he said.
She smiled at him as though not believing how bold he was. More than she had expected. "Well, I'll say this for you. You've got courage." she said. "He's the first one to kill a vampire in over a hundred years." she addressed the villagers. "I'd say that's earned him a drink."
The young woman, Van Helsing had not yet know, clenched her teeth and collapsed in pain. Anna was the first to react, calling out the woman's name. "Nathalia. What's wrong?" she asked as she gently lifted the young woman known as Nathalia up. She breathed heavily and gnarled... fangs visible to everyone's view.
Van Helsing pointed his crossbow at the woman, unsure if she meant harm or none. "No!" Anna lunged at him, pushing his crossbow aside. "She means no harm." she told him. He looked at her as if she were mental.
"Dracula... knows... Marishka... is dead..." the woman breathed, almost hyperventilating as though she had awaken from a plagued nightmare.
"She's one of them." Van Helsing whispered, not wanting the rest of the villagers to hear. But they seemed as though nothing was going on, as though they had not just seen Nathalia's fangs. "But she is not like them." Anna protested.
"If... If you wish to find the answers you seek... you.. will let me help you defeat Dracula." the woman snarled, and gry that he had just compared her to them. "I'am not as cold-hearted as they are. I... want Dracula dead!" she hissed. She wasn't going to let anyone stop her. No one...
A/N: Well, that's the end of the second chapter. Please review. Tell me how it was.
With much love,
Luna