Hahahaha, y'all probably wnat to kill me for not updating for... erm, well a long time! ;;; I... really have no valid excuse unless you count my recent college applications. Anyways, here is chapter 5 of The Left Hand of God. I believe it was Phoenix Takaramono who reminded me not to put too many of the movie scenes in the story. I shall try, I just want to start from the beginning and weave my way into the slash somehow. I think next chapter will be the end of the movie and the beginning of Van Helsing's true search for his past and his relationship with Dracula. Consider this my Christmas gift to you all. Merry Christmas! Anyways, LET ZE FIC BEGIN!
Chapter 5: More Questions, No Answers
Gabriel Van Helsing had never thought things could get more ludicrous. After falling into an underground cave, he and Anna had encountered the Creature, the monster sewn from corpses that the doctor Frankenstein had created. He was the one thing that could bring life to Dracula's offspring. He had been hiding in the cave for over a year, feeding off tiny animals that happened to scurry in, and they just happened to fall right into his lair. How convenient.
Anna had wanted to kill him, but he had stopped her. He had sensed no evil in the creature, whether or not it had been created by evil. "Your family has spent four hundred years trying to kill Dracula," he had told her, "Maybe this poor creature can help us find a way."
And now they were riding to Budapest, the Creature chained in a carriage. Van Helsing prepared himself as he was to drive the decoy carriage to distract the enemy.
"Van Helsing," Carl whimpered. He was dreading having to sit in a carriage with a... whatever the Creature was. "Did you learn anything while you were at the castle? You saw Dracula?"
Van Helsing paused from heaving onto the carriage. He thought back to his first meeting with the Vampire, in that dark lair. He had spoken nothing but frustratingly cryptic words and then - if he wasn't mistaken - had tried to grope him. He looked down at the dragon ring on his finger. Dracula had said it was his. When had he taken it? Why? It was a curse that the one who knew all the answers was the one he was supposed to kill.
"He told me nothing of help," he said shortly, then mounted onto the carriage. Carl took that as a sign that the hunter would speak no more and turned to the other carriage. That man could be so damn silent on so many matters!
The drive was quiet. Van Helsing rode through the misty Transylvanian woods, knowing that he was being pursued. He could sense wicked souls approaching him. He had never known how he had acquired a sense of knowing when evil was near. Antoher question to ask Dracula if he could throttle it out of him.
It didn't take long for his followers to appear. Dracula's two remaining brides appeared in their shrieking harpy forms and circled the carriage. Van Helsing took out his crossbow and shot at them. They flew away from the carriage, but still circled above the trees. Then, the werewolf -Velkan- jumped out of nowhere and wrestled Van Helsing off the carriage. The hunter yelled as he felt a sharp pain in his breast, kicking the beast with his boot. The werewolf fell off of him, and Van Helsing managed to jump off the carriage as well, landing on the other side of a ravine while it fell.
The brides screamed in horror, zooming towards the carriage. The dark-haired bride screamed, "We must not let the Creature be destroyed! Save him! Save the monster!"
Van Helsing crawled to look at the ravine, where the Vampiress flung the carriage door opened, only to find it filled with stakes. She shrieked and hurried away, but was too late as the carriage crashed and stkaes went flying, piercing her. She fell into the flames.
Van Helsing gasped, clutching his wounded chest. Another bride down, he thought ruefully. He staggered to his feet and wandered into the woods, hoping the others had made it safely. He was feeling groggy and wanted nothing more to lie down on the cool grass. Unfortunately, duty called. And that damn pain wasn't making anything easier for him.
He turned past a clump of bushes and his heart plummeted slightly at what he saw. Anna was hunched over her brother's now human body. Tears were sliding down her pale cheeks as she whispered something to him and kissed his forehead. When she lifted her head and noticed the dirty and ragged Van Helsing, her face contorted with fury. She strode towards him and grabbed him by his coat, flinging him against a tree. He was too weak to resist, but groaned at the added pain to his back from the trunk.
"You killed him!" she cried, "You killed him!"
He was panting, his head spinning, and only managed to gasp, "Now you know why they call me murderer."
Anna's eyes slid down to his coat, seeing the sticky blood. She seemed to pale at the sight. Carl appeared behind her, staring at Van Helsing fearfully.
"Oh my God," she whispered, "You've been bitten."
Van Helsing couldn't respond as the last remaining Vampire bride swooped from nowhere and grabbed Anna, lifting her struggling form away.
"Anna!" he yelled helplessly, cursing the fact that he had no weapons on him. He and Carl could only stare at her being carried off against her will. The hunter gritted his teeth. He was most definitely going to murder Dracula now.
Budapest looked much like Rome in architecture. Van Helsing almost expected members of the Order to pop up suddenly and drag him away to tell him off for failing his mission. But the mission wasn't over yet. The Creature had been sedated and locked safely in a crypt. Aleera, Dracula's last bride, had given them instructions to go to the Masquerade Ball to trade the Creature for Anna. According to Carl, the full moon wasn't for another two nights. Two nights to get rid of Dracula and save Anna. He'd had life-or-death deadlines before.
It was evening, and Van Helsing and Carl had dressed up for the occasion, sneaking into the grand ballroom where masked guests danced and chatted, and acrobats and fire-breathers roamed around the hall.
"So, if we're not actually trading the Creature for Anna," Carl said, trudging in his jester outfit as they strode around the balconies of the luxurious ballroom, "How are we getting her back?"
"I'm thinking on it, Carl," Van Helsing replied, scanning the crowd below.
"What? Are you telling me you don't actually have a plan yet? After all this effort it took to get me into these ridiculous tights and you haven't got a plan!?"
Van Helsing shushed him, still searching the glittering people below. He hadn't told Carl, but he merely wanted to rescue Anna, not kill Dracula just then. The Vampire still held the answers to his past and he was determined to find out what he knew. Then, his eyes spotted a woman dressed in a bright eye-catching red gown and a man in dark robes, waltzing about the room.
Dracula had the Gypsy princess in a tight grip, twirling her easily around the dance floor as if she were a doll. She gasped as he pulled her to him, staring at his face with hate.
"How does it feel to be a puppet on my string?" he asked, dancing at a quick pace.
"I won't let you trade me, Count!" Anna hissed.
"I have no intention of trading you," the Vampire replied casually, "And if I know Van Helsing, which I do..." He pulled her into a dip, "He is not planning on making a trade, either." He smiled, baring his pointed fangs. "Neither of us has ever settled for half."
Anna glared at him, then asked him a question that had been at the back of her mind since her capture, "How do you know Van Helsing?"
Dracula pulled her into a spin, then brought them close together. He chuckled as she flinched at being so close to his face. "You want to know who my Gabriel truly is?"
Anna narrowed her eyes at him. She must think he was playing tricks with her, that he was pretending to have a past with Van Helsing.
Dracula glanced up at the balcony. He saw the hunter staring at him, his little friar by his side. He had sensed his presence a while ago. He could always tell when his Gabriel was close.
"There they are," he said, turning Anna so her back was pressed to his chest and she could look clearly up at the balcony. Her arms were still locked in his tight grip. "They have come to rescue you like the shining, glorious heroes they are."
Anna gasped and began to shout, "VAN H-" but Dracula clamped a hand to her mouth, whispering, "Ah, ah, ah! Do not ruin the fun so quickly, Anna." He lowered his lips to her ear, brushing it ever so slightly and making her shiver. "Look at him. Don't you find him handsome, my dear Princess?"
Anna stared at Van Helsing in his costume, glancing at her concernedly and whispering to a frantic Carl. Dracula let his lips slide to her cheek, then back to her ear. "Tell me... Have you any feelings towards our hunter? He does have something... that pulls you to him, does he not?"
Anna turned her head towards him sharply. "Why are you saying such things?" she demanded.
Dracula let his hand slide down her neck to her shoulder, enjoying making her squirm. "Because I am pulled to him more than anybody."
At that moment, a distraction came in the form of a firebreather setting a curtain aflame. Dracula's grip on Anna was released as she was caught by a swinging Van Helsing and was deposited on the balcony.
Dracula looked up at the hunter, who stared back. The Vampire smiled, loving it when he had Van Helsing's attention. "Gabriel," he said loudly, "You haven't even stayed long enough for a little dance."
"We're leaving the party early, I'm afraid," Van Helsing quipped.
"Oh, that is fine with me," the Vampire replied, "As long as you leave me a little gift."
A wail was heard around the room. Van Helsing's stomach plummeted as he saw Frankenstein's creature strapped to a metal bed, being carried by Igor and minions. He was cursing the whole room, and Van Helsing himself was cursing under his breath. How the hell had they gotten him?
"Get them!" Dracula shouted suddenly, "Bring me the hunter alive!"
To the trio's horror, all the guests and performers, even the opera singer and the musicians roared inhumanely, their jaws opening to reveal fangs. They had entered a Vampire's ball.
"Come on!" Van Helsing yelled. He turned on his heel and ran, the other two following him. They could heard the Vampires chasing them, but didn't stop to look. They reached a dead end, halting in front of a large glass window. Van Helsing looked at Anna, who nodded. They both turned to Carl, only to see him squealing over his vial full of glycerine.
"Now I know what it's for!" he said delightedly, dropping it on the ground before the other two grabbed him by the arms. "Where are we going?"
"Through that window!" replied the other two before the crashed through the stained glass and splashed into the water. Seconds later, Carl's contraption burst with light and flame, incinerating the Vampires within.
The trio emerged from the water, gasping for air and swimming towards the descending gate. Van Helsing scrabbled at the metal bars, yelling in rage as the boat containing the creature, Igor and minions floated away. Igor cackled at them, sending Van Helsing into a fit of rage.
"I'll find you!" he screamed, "I'll get you back and set you free! I swear to God!"
He banged his fists against the gate, closing his eyes. He felt a whisper pass through his ears, and a light caress on his face. He gasped and opened his eyes, looking around for the source. It felt like a presence was touching him everywhere, making him shudder. The voice of a man whispered into his ear... Gabriel... Come to me... If you want the Creature back... Come to me...
Carl chose that moment to give him even worse news. Having sent word to Rome on his progress, he relayed the orders to kill the Creature.
"They want you to destroy him so he can never be used to harm humanity," he said weakly, trying to stay afloat.
Van Helsing felt a sudden rage take over him and he grabbed Carl by the front, pinning him to the gate. His eyes were glowing yellow and his voice became rough and wild. "What of me? Did you tell them what I'm to become? Did they tell you how to kill me? The correct angle of the stake as it enters my heart? The exact measure of silver in each bullet?"
Carl choked and scrabbled at the hunter's hands. "Stop! No, I- I left you out!"
Van Helsing released him as white hot pain laced his body. He howled like a wolf, panting as it ebbed as quickly as it came. Anna and Carl stared at him in mute horror.
"I'm sorry," he panted at Carl, who nodded in understanding, "It's starting."
Once more, he felt a strange sensation of being caressed by warm hands, and felt revolted as it somehow aroused him. Damn Dracula and his teasing.
Once they were back at the Valerious manor, Carl proceeded to inform them on everything he had dug out from the family's archives.
"According to this rubbing," the friar quickly explained, "It all started when Dracula was murdered."
"Do you know who murdered him?" asked Van Helsing.
"No, there's just some vague reference to the Left Hand of God," Carl said dismissively, "And in 1462, when Dracula died-"
"He made a covenant with the Devil," interjected Anna.
"And was given new life," said Van Helsing.
"But the only way he could sustain that life was by drinking blood," Anna added.
"Excuse me. Are you going to let me tell the story?" Carl said irritably.
"Sorry," the two warriors said.
"Now, your ancestor, Dracula's father, that is to say, Valerious the Elder," continued Carl, "Went to Rome to seek forgiveness for siring this evil creature. The bargain was then made to kill Dracula in return for his family's eternal salvation. Right down to you," he pointed to Anna, "There is also some small subtext of Valerious already against his son due to his attachment to some foreigner or something like that, but that part isn't important."
Van Helsing was actually interested in this piece of information, but did not press further as Carl continued with the essential bits. He might ask for that later. For now, he needed to know that Valerious had banished his son to an icy fortress, not being able to kill his own flesh and blood, and they were to look for a door of some kind.
They moved to the map of Transylvania, and Van Helsing noticed a corner of it was missing. "I think this is the door, quite literally," he said in realization, "Your father just didn't know how to open it."
He pulled the roll the Order had given him with the inscription on it and placed in into the missing part of the map. The pieces fitted perfectly.
"In the name of God, open this door," he murmured.
The map began to freeze an icy blue. Carl jumped back in fright.
"See you on the other side," Van Helsing grinned, then turned and pressed his hands against the mirror. "It's cold!" he said as the frozen shards touched his skin. He pushed his way through and stared in awe at the giant castle before him, a blizzard of snow partially obscuring his view.
Anna and Carl pushed in after him, and both stared agape at the sight as well.
"Castle Dracula," Anna murmured.
Well, hope that was good! Yes, it's still quite movie-based, but next chapter, we shall be moving onwards! I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 3
MademoiselleSilver