Chapter 3: Murderous Intentions and The Warning
Disclaimer: Hellboy characters do not belong to me. However, Erica Schwarz, Volker Maynard the vampire, the undertaker, and the plot that isn't from the movie is mine.
Author's Notes: Thanks for all the wonderfully encouraging reviews! Here's the much awaited chapter three. This chapter begins where the cliffhanger left off, and has the first of many fight scenes in it. As always here are the German to English translations: 'Ja' is yes, 'Nein' is no, 'Guten abend' is good evening, and 'Fräulein' is Miss. Enjoy the chapter!
The Common Wind Deity: Yeah, I'm really proud of those descriptions too. Thanks for noticing them! There's a bit of humor in here as well, as well as more suspense. And lots of action!
Psycho Llama: Thanks for telling me what imho meant! No, vampy isn't the guy she liked, though I did consider it when I started writing. Sadly, Leonard was poisoned because Kroenen was jealous, so that kind of ruled that out. Plus vampy has black hair, and Leonard had blond. Kroenen and Ilsa will make a murderous appearance in the next chapter.
iluvrocknroll: I wrote a huge part for vampy since you like him so much. Cheers!
musicamode: Teehee! Cliffies are evil, but wonderful plot devices!
Gestalt: Nope, Moss isn't dead. But only because he has to live long enough for the Sammaels to kill him! (cue evil laughter)
"Strong reasons make strong actions."—William Shakespeare
October, Present Day
A Castle in Transylvania
Night
Hellboy stomped through the castle, wandering through the maze of rooms. He brushed some cobwebs out of his way and then continued on, tracking Erica's position using the blinking blue light on his locator belt.
"Hey, E., did ya find vampy yet?" he asked, using the radio transmitter he was carrying.
He waited for an answer. But the only thing he got was the crackle of static.
"Erica? You there?"
More static.
"Hmm. Maybe she did find vampy." Hellboy said, talking to himself. He briefly entertained the mental image of Erica kicking some serious vampire butt. He grinned.
"Hey, Erica, I'm on my w—"
Hellboy was interrupted by a loud click on the radio transmitter. That's not good. Sounds like her transmitter was just turned off, he thought. He glanced down at his belt and saw that her blue light was still blinking. At least I can still find her, he thought.
As that thought crossed his mind, the blue light flickered and died. Hellboy stared at it for a moment, feeling a sinking feeling in his stomach. He tapped the light with one of his stone fingers, hoping to jar the electronics back into working. Nothing happened. The blue bulb stayed dark.
"Crap!" Hellboy cursed. He quickly radioed Abe. "Hey, Blue? We've got a problem. Erica's transmitter and locator belt are off."
"I know," Abe replied, his voice slightly distorted by the radio and his concern, "Red, do you want me to come in and meet you?"
Hellboy thought for a moment. Abe would be able to find Erica, but he didn't know where Hellboy was, and by the time Abe found him, it might be too late to help Erica.
"Nah. Stay there. Just tell me when I'm getting closer to her."
"Why do I see this turning into a grotesque parody of a children's game?" asked Abe.
"What?"
"You know, the one where you say 'hot' when someone's getting closer to finding something you hid, or 'cold' when they're moving too far away."
"Hey, whatever works. So tell me where I am." H.B. said as he started walking.
"Ice cold. You're at the opposite end of the castle compared to where she is. And you're walking farther away from her."
"Great, just great." Hellboy muttered as he turned around and quickly started off in the right direction.
XXXXX
Erica started to wake up, shocked to be alive. The first two things she realized even before she opened her eyes or woke up properly were that she was very uncomfortable and cold. The third thing she realized was that she had a pounding headache and a painful lump on the back of her skull that felt like someone had bashed a hammer against her head. She groaned and slowly opened her eyes—and immediately discovered why she was so uncomfortable. She was standing up, her back pressed against a black marble column. Her arms had been pulled behind her and around the column and her wrists tied tightly together.
"Scheiße!" she cursed, pulling at the ropes.
Her long black trench coat was hanging loosely and lopsidedly off her shoulders, which explained why she was cold, considering she was only wearing a black v-necked T-shirt underneath it. The pockets of her trench coat hung limply, her equipment and weapons were gone. Clearly the vampire had taken the opportunity to relieve her of all her weapons.
She looked up and surveyed the room, expecting to see the smirking face of the monster that had captured her. Strangely enough he didn't appear to be there. The room itself was enormous and resembled the inside of a cathedral built of black stone. It was also as silent and oppressive as a crypt. The ceiling was far overhead and the walls were decorated by huge, soaring black columns of carved stone. Directly across from her and some forty feet away was a pair of large iron doors with odd, evil looking designs swirling across their surfaces. On the long walls on her left and right were ranks of stained glass windows, some of which were broken. The stained glass designs were made up of black, purple, blue, and blood red glass and depicted horrible grotesque monsters. The walls were decorated with a variety of medieval weaponry that included swords, spears, crossbows, and maces. The black marble column she was tied to was in the center of the farthest end of the room and was ten feet tall, ending at the top in jagged bits of stone. The column, as well as the end of the room it was on, was on a dais raised a few feet off the floor. A few shallow steps of black stone led the way up to the dais. The room was lit by the pale moonlight and a few flickering candles in six foot tall, wrought iron candelabras, which left most of the room lurking in dark shadows.
A cold wind blew in through the gaps in the broken stained glass windows and the pale light of the ghostly moon glittered on the shards of colored glass lying scattered across the stone floor. Erica shivered and tugged at the ropes that bound her wrists. They didn't move. She glanced out the windows at the moon and mentally cursed. How long have I been unconscious? And where the hell is Hellboy? She thought. She glanced down at her locator belt and noticed the blue light was off. Her radio was also off. Obviously the vampire had decided to take precautions. Great, she thought, That won't help things. Now Abe is going to have to help Hellboy find me.
She pulled at the ropes again and twisted her wrists, trying to get some slack in the unyielding ropes that bound her. Her fingers searched blindly behind her back for the end of the rope. She finally seized it and awkwardly followed it up to a complex knot that she knew would be impossible to untie. She yanked at the ropes again, this time throwing all of her weight and strength into it. The ropes cut into her wrists and she gasped. But when she stopped pulling she discovered that she could move her wrists a little more. She smiled grimly, it wasn't enough to escape, but it was a start.
If only I had a dagger or something, she thought. Then a secretive smile crossed her face as she felt the small lump in one of her boots: a knife. The vampire hadn't found all of her weapons. It's a good thing I always take extra precautions, she thought, Not that the mission is going badly, but it could be going a whole hell of a lot better. She tugged at the ropes again. Maybe if I get the ropes loose enough I can twist around and reach the knife in my boot, she thought, And I had better do something fast, before that vampire comes back, since Hellboy isn't showing any sign of showing up.
She was just starting to yank on the ropes again when the silence was broken.
"Vell, vell, vell. Vhat have ve here?" a voice said from the darkness, drifting softly through the cold night air.
Erica's head jerked up just in time to see the tall, thin figure of a man slink skillfully out of the shadows beside a stone column and slowly approach her. His long black hair was loosely pulled back behind his head and was tied at the base of his neck with a black ribbon. A few wisps of his hair fell into his ashen face and with a practiced gesture he tucked them behind his ear with the long, sharp fingernails on his hand. The vampire was dressed in black but his clothes were very different than the stereotypical vampire's clothes depicted by popular culture. He had his own unique debonair, military-like style and wore a knee-length black frock coat with a low collar that came up to just below his jaw. The coat had silver buttons down the front and silver embroidery along the cuffs. He wore black pants and knee length black boots. His long sweeping cape fastened at his throat with an intricate silver brooch.
She watched the elegant man warily as he approached her with a very pleased expression on his face. He leisurely came up the steps and stopped a few feet away from her near the edge of the dais. He smiled pleasantly, displaying his long sharp canine teeth.
"Guten abend. It is so good to see you again, Erica Schwarz," he said mockingly, making an overly formal bow.
"Oh, Volker Maynard, it's you." Erica said unenthusiastically. Once again she was acting, inside she was both alarmed and curious as she recognized the vampire that stood before her.
"You could be a little more enthusiastic and courteous after I've given you such a vonderful velcome instead of killing you instantly for trespassing in my castle." Volker's thick German accent contorted his words and made the w's sound like v's.
"Yeah, your welcome is great," she replied sarcastically, "I feel really welcome seeing as I've been tied to a column. I'd hate to find out what you do to your unwelcome visitors."
The vampire laughed appreciatively. "Karl Kroenen always said you had a vicked sense of humor."
She shuddered at the vampire's words. Kroenen used to say that to me all the time, she thought. But that was in the past. She and Kroenen hadn't seen each other since he had tried to kill her on October 9, 1944.
"It's been a long time, hasn't it, since you and Ilsa visited me. And I did so enjoy killing that arrogant official from the Allied Forces for the two of you. Though I must say, his blood didn't taste all that good. But that is in the past. It truly has been too long since our last meeting, don't you agree?"
"I saw you a few hours ago at our camp," she retorted.
He gestured at her dismissively. "That doesn't count. I knew you vould figure out vho and vhat I vas. Ve both kept up the pretense. It was a case of things that go unsaid, vhere ve both knew exactly vhat vas going on, and yet never acknowledged it verbally. And you see, my predictions about our meeting again did come true, Fräulein Erica," Volker announced dramatically, his voice echoing in the enormous room. An expression of curiosity suddenly crossed his face. "I can still call you Fräulein, can't I? I assume that you still have yet to marry since I noticed you're not vearing a vedding ring."
"You and everyone else." she replied dryly.
"So I take it that you're not married then," he said with a sharp-toothed smiled, "Not that it makes a difference, of course. Available, unavailable, it makes no difference to me," he shrugged, "Though in the case of vomen vho are available, it means I don't have to deal vith a self righteous husband bent on revenge or a fiancé vho has grandiose dreams of rescuing the damsel in distress and riding off into the dawn to live happily ever after." Volker's voice was full of scorn as he spoke. "I just find it interesting that over the past sixty years you never got around to marrying."
"It's a little hard to have a romantic relationship when the world believes I never existed. And most of the people who know the truth think I'm dead."
"But you're not, as I'm happy to see," he said. An expression crossed Volker's face that Erica didn't like. The vampire's eyes glittered. "But as happy as I am to see you again, it pains me to think of the circumstances of our meeting, vhat vith you sneaking around my castle like a thief in the night," he paused and his electric blue eyes stared at her piercingly, "Yes, sneaking around like a thief. Or a murderer."
"You're accusing me of being a murderer?" she asked in disbelief, "That's like the pot calling the kettle black."
"Oh, I don't know if I vould call what I do murder," he said calmly, "Do you call it murder vhen you kill and eat something? No. Though perhaps you could consider my recent activities to be murder or vanton killing—I certainly vould." He smiled, his face devoid of remorse. "So, vhy don't you tell me vhat you're doing here all alone."
Erica stayed silent, torn between lying and telling the truth. He's playing games with me, she thought, He already knows why I'm here. It's not like running him through with a sword was exactly subtle. I wonder, does he just want me to admit to trying to kill him so he has an excuse to kill me?
Volker watched her, looking faintly amused. "Nothing to say?" he said, slowly circling around her, "I'm surprised. I imagined you had a reason for trying to find me. I don't get many visitors. Though I must admit, I rather enjoy having a captive audience. I hope you find the ropes to be comfortable." As he spoke he was standing behind her and he just barely brushed her wrists with his ice cold hands.
"Yes, quite," she replied in a clipped tone, flinching away from his touch as much as the ropes allowed. She wasn't at all happy about having him behind her where she couldn't see him. She glanced down at her turned off locator belt. I might as well lie to him, she decided, It'll give Hellboy more time to find me. She turned her head to the side, trying in vain to catch a glimpse of Volker around the column. "Volker, as comfortable as I am, I am still your guest. Why am I tied up? It is most improper." she said.
"But as an uninvited guest you should explain your reason for visiting me so unexpectedly." he whispered in her ear.
Erica flinched at his cold breath but kept up the pretense. "Oh, you know, I was in the area and just decided to stop by and reminisce about old times." she said offhandedly.
Volker walked around the column so he was standing in front of her. He ran one of his long, sharp fingernails down her cheek and grinned when she flinched ever so slightly. His grin faded a little and he looked at her a bit crossly, but also with a hint of amusement.
"You are extremely bold for someone in your position, Erica. I'll admit your lies are amusing, but I do vish you vould simply tell me vhy you came to visit. But no matter, I know vhy you're here."
Volker gestured to a small pile of objects lying on the floor close by. The pile was mostly hidden in shadow which explained why she had missed it earlier. The vampire idly pushed one of the tall, wrought iron candelabras closer to the pile, making a horrible screeching sound as the iron grated against the stone. The candles shed a yellowish light over the pile, allowing Erica to see it more clearly.
"Let's see," Volker murmured, sorting through the pile and turning objects over with the toe of his black boot, "A small mirror, garlic, a crucifix, a vooden stake, a handgun, and various daggers. Oh, and two baton swords. I took the liberty of relieving you of their burden when I carried you up here. Being stabbed through the chest twice in one veek or so vith those things is more than enough to teach me to confiscate them immediately."
Twice in one week? Erica wondered, What is he talking about? I only stabbed him once. It doesn't make sense—unless someone else stabbed him—
"And I have also noticed that you are vearing a silver crucifix necklace. I take it that you're hunting vampires." He said, his frigid voice accusingly sharp. He raised his eyebrows and his blue eyes shone eerily. "I'm hurt," he said mockingly, "The last time ve met ve vere allies."
"Things change." Erica's voice was hard. Her memories of the horrible crimes she had committed in the past as Kroenen's accomplice were far too vivid for her to forget them. All of the incidents were filled with deceit and blood, and at least one had included the vampire that stood before her.
"Yes, I know. Vho vould know better than a vampire vho has seen the centuries pass by? But vhy vould you vant to kill me?" he asked innocently, clearly pretending that he didn't know the answer.
"I don't. It wasn't my idea. Believe me, it's nothing personal, it's just my job. And you've been killing the local villagers." she added accusingly.
"Oh, that." Volker said offhandedly as if it was nothing, "The villagers' deaths vere just part of my plan to lure you to Transylvania. You probably realized before you got here that the villagers veren't attacked because I vas hungry. I bit them and drained off enough blood so it vas obvious they had been attacked by a vampire. I merely broke their necks to finish them off." He looked at her in a very self satisfied way. "And since you're here, tied to that column, it vould appear that my plan was highly effective."
"You?" she asked cautiously, knowing she wasn't going to like the answer, "'You' meaning me or the BPRD?"
"Vhy you, of course."
Erica's mouth went dry. This isn't good, she thought. "Why?" she asked.
"Things change," he replied, throwing her words back at her, "Things change, unlike you over these past years. You barely look any older than the day ve first met, more than sixty years ago."
"If you haven't heard about it, I'm immortal."
"Oh, but I have heard," he said, his blue eyes lighting up as he moved closer to her, "And not just about that. Even I vho spend most of my time shut avay from the vorld, even I know about October 9th, 1944. I know all about how you betrayed the Thule Occult Society and the forces of darkness!" he snarled at her. Volker quickly regained control of himself and continued in a calmer tone, though his eyes glimmered dangerously. "It's quite a drastic career change you've made, Erica, from helping the forces of evil to fighting us. But as ve have both said, things change."
He smiled again, showing off his long fangs and leaning forward so their faces were almost touching. Erica looked at his electric blue eyes, for the first time feeling apprehensive.
"Things change," he murmured, "And you and I are no longer allies because of your betrayal of the Thule Society. And I happen to know that there is a considerable reward being offered for your capture. Not all the members of the Thule Society are dead and gone, no! They asked me to retrieve you for them—alive. And they promised me that I could vatch vhat they did to you." Volker grinned cruelly. Clearly he knew what horrors lay in store for her at the hands of the Thule Occult Society.
"It's nice to know I'm wanted." Erica said, trying desperately to make light of the situation even as fear bubbled up inside her. If the Thule Occult Society is involved this is a whole hell of a lot more dangerous for me than I expected, she thought. Her heart raced inside her chest and she cringed inwardly as she remembered what the Thule Society did to traitors like her: They were sacrificed to the Seven Gods of Chaos by the Head of the Thule Society, destroying the person's soul in the process. An image flashed before her eyes of her chained to a block of black stone in an underground hall, with one of Kroenen's daggers stabbed through her heart. Her eyes were open but empty, and her blood was slowly, thickly oozing down the sides of the stone block and dripping to the floor—Erica forced the image away, her blood pounding in her ears.
Where is Hellboy? What's taking him so long? He better get here fast! Erica thought. She glanced nervously at the huge iron doors at the opposite end of the hall and then back at the vampire.
Volker stared into her face as if considering something. "But vhile a reward is all vell and good, at this point money isn't much use to me, is it now, Erica? And I can think of a few other things I vould rather do vith you than hand you over to the remaining members of the Thule Society. You see, it just so happens that both the Thule Society and I have claims on your blood. I have a score to settle vith you for killing several other vampires vho happened to be dear friends of mine." He licked his thin lips meaningfully.
"Well," Erica said nervously, pressing her back against the black marble column to put some distance between them, "It's good to know I won't be seeing the Thule Occult Society any time soon. I doubt I'd receive a warm welcome." I really don't like where this is going, Erica thought, And he can actually kill me if that's what he's after—I'm only immortal until I'm wounded to the point that any mortal human would die. It didn't help matters that she was weaponless except for the crucifix necklace she wore and the silver ring on her right hand that had a cross on it. The ring was a little too big and she could feel that it had turned around so the part with the crucifix on it was now on the palm side of her hand. Suddenly she got an idea. If I can get my right hand loose I might be able to keep him away since crosses will burn vampires if they touch them, she thought. She immediately went to work, carefully twisting and pulling at the ropes so that Volker wouldn't notice she was trying to get free.
"You misunderstand me," the vampire replied, reaching forward and gripping her shoulders tightly in his cold hands, "I don't intend for you to be seeing anyone else. In fact, I'd like to invite you to dinner."
He grinned broadly and licked his lips again, giving Erica the unnerving impression that he was about to go for her neck, which, considering he was a vampire, wasn't all that unlikely. Unsurprisingly these thoughts didn't do anything to relive her fears.
"As nice as that is, I'd rather decline the invitation, thank you." she said uneasily. She knew what he was suggesting, and it wasn't a nice turkey dinner. Erica pulled harder at the ropes and succeeded at sliding her right hand free a little bit before it got caught in the ropes again.
"No, no, no. You are my guest, I insist that you stay for dinner!" Volker's blue eyes gleamed and his freezing cold hands snaked up to touch her neck ever so gently, though he carefully avoided touching her silver cross necklace. "You see, anything else vould be so impolite."
Erica frantically tugged at the ropes—her hand was almost out! Volker's face was still only inches away and the almost crazed look in his electric blue eyes was a very frightening reminder of what he was about to do to her.
"The blood of an immortal. I vonder how that vill taste?" he hissed, his eyes glittering with eager anticipation, "Especially since it's been cursed by your treachery. Oh Erica! I can only hope that you enjoy dinner as much as I vill!"
Erica struggled against the ropes as he started to learn forward towards her and drew back his lips in a wicked smile, revealing two long and very sharp teeth.
"And now farewell Erica, Kroenen's Angel of Death!" the vampire said as he grasped her shoulders and leaned forward to bite her.
Screw this! she thought. Erica wrenched her right hand free of the ropes, ripping the skin off her knuckles in the process. She slammed her bleeding hand against the vampire's cheek and pressed her palm and the cross on her ring against his pallid skin.
"Aaaaaaaaarrrrrggghhh!" Volker shrieked and literally flung Erica away from himself. He stumbled backwards with his hand clawing at his smoking cheek and nearly fell down the stairs. The vampire snarled and howled as he stumbled away from the edge of the dais, one hand still clasped to his left cheek as the lingering fire of the burn deepened his agony. Shaking, Volker took his hand away and revealed a black burn mark in the exact shape of the cross on her ring, only it was many times bigger. The black burn mark was surrounded by horribly blistered fiery red skin that contrasted sharply with his ashen face. Shocked by the intense pain, Volker stared blankly into space, gently touching his burned face. Erica smiled in grim satisfaction and turned around so she could free her left hand—
A pair of ice cold hands violently seized her throat and her free wrist and forcibly spun her around. Volker's pale face was mere centimeters from her own and the noxious stench of his burned flesh was sickening. The vampire was furious. His electric blue eyes were blazing crazily with rage and pain.
"Damn you!" he snarled, baring his teeth menacingly. He relentlessly tightened his grip on her throat and shook her like she was a rag doll. "You little vitch! I'll not play games vith you any longer!"
Still choking her, Volker roughly pushed her against the column and forced her free wrist down so she couldn't defend herself. She kicked at him as hard as she could but it was useless—blinded by his rage, Volker didn't seem to feel anything. He released his grip on her throat and forced her head back, exposing her neck as he leaned forward with his mouth open. Her heart raced and she could only watch in horror as his fangs descended towards her skin—
BANG!
The huge iron doors to the room were flung open. Or more specifically, they were torn off their hinges and flung onto the stone floor. Without releasing his hold on Erica, Volker jerked his head up and looked toward the doors—just in time for a huge red demon to deliver a massive punch to the vampire's face. The force of the blow knocked Volker off of Erica and sent him flying into the wall.
"Hey kiddo!" said Hellboy, stopping beside Erica.
"It's about time!" she yelled, swiftly darting out of the way as Volker lunged towards her, snarling like a wild beast.
Hellboy punched the vampire again, sending him flying across the room to land in a disgraceful heap. Hellboy ran over to him—and ducked as Volker seized one of the tall, heavy iron candelabras and threw it across the room.
Erica turned away from the battle and concentrated on freeing her left hand from the ropes. She quickly drew a small knife from a sheath inside one of her boots. She slashed through the ropes and rubbed her sore wrists as the ropes fell to the floor.
"Duck!" Hellboy bellowed.
Erica unquestioningly threw herself flat on the floor and heard something whiz by, narrowly missing her head.
CRASH!
She looked up as the twisted remains of a candelabra and pieces of broken candles slid down the wall and fell to the floor. Erica leapt to her feet and ran towards the pile of weaponry lying on the floor. A few meters away Hellboy and Volker were fighting to the death, knocking over candelabras and smashing windows as they hurled each other around with inhuman strength. Hellboy got up from where he had fallen and ran at the vampire—and tripped on the stairs of the dais. He crashed backwards into the black marble column Erica had been tied to. Under the impact of his weight, the stone pillar cracked and then came crashing down on top of Hellboy, breaking into huge pieces as it fell. In less than a second Hellboy was on the floor buried beneath the rubble.
Erica reached the pile of weapons and reached for the wooden stake—Volker slammed into her, knocking her backwards—they crashed to the floor with a bone jarring thud and then tumbled down the stairs, with the vampire clawing at her face and her slashing at his chest with the knife from her boot. Erica managed to get one hand free and she pushed at the floor, trying to turn over so that she wouldn't be trapped under him. The vampire copied her action, with the result that they both tumbled head over heels and came to a stop with Volker on top of her. The vampire grinned manically and grabbed her by the throat, tightening his grip into a stranglehold. Erica choked and clawed at his icy hands—and then plunged her knife into his chest at an angle so it got stuck between his ribs and collar bone. The vampire shrieked and tightened his grip on her throat—her head pounding and lungs screaming for air, Erica yanked down on the knife with her left hand, pulling Volker towards her—and pressed the palm of her right hand against his face. The cross on her ring made contact with Volker's skin just as Hellboy started to pull himself out from under the rubble of the stone column.
Volker screamed piercingly and let go of Erica's throat. Still pressing her hand to his face and pulling down on the knife, Erica sucked in a lungful of air—
"Aaaaaaaaarrrrrggghhh!"
She shrieked as the vampire dragged his long, sharp nails down her right hand and arm, trying to get her hand off his face. But she didn't let go. She pressed the cross ring against his face even harder, grabbing onto his face and pulling down on the knife to keep him from moving. Volker screamed even louder and tore at her arm with both hands. Stubborn determination was the only thing that made her hold on as his sharp nails ripped into her skin. She gritted her teeth to keep from screaming in pain—Volker switch tactics and suddenly lashed out at her eyes—Erica let go of his face and the knife and grabbed his wrists, stopping him within centimeters of clawing her eyes out.
Volker screamed again as the cross on her ring burned a cross shaped burn onto his left wrist. The vampire wrenched free of her grasp and rolled off of her, howling in pain and clawing desperately at his burned face as he stumbled to get up. He took his hand away from his face and Erica saw that there was now a second huge cross shaped burn beside his left eye. Volker glared at her, his entire face contorting into a mask of rage and his electric blue eyes glowing with a desire for revenge that bordered on insanity. Erica scrambled to get up from her vulnerable position on the floor—he kicked her in the ribs, knocking her to the floor, and then stepped on her chest, leaning his weight on her to keep her from getting up. Erica gasped for air as she was crushed between his foot and the unforgiving stone floor. She looked up in horror as Volker yanked her knife from his chest and stood over her, the knife clutched in his hand as he prepared to strike the killing blow—
—Hellboy grabbed Volker from behind with his stone hand and threw him into a wall. The knife went flying and skittered across the stone floor.
"Alright, vampy! You want hell? I'll give it to you!" Hellboy growled, pulling out his huge gun.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The gunshots echoed through the huge space. Volker dodged to the side and the bullets hit the stone wall, sending chips of black stone, masonry, and the holy water from the bullets flying through the air.
"Red, you're doing target practice when we get home!" Erica yelled as she scrambled up. She grabbed her knife and slipped it back in her boot.
"These are big bullets! I'll hit him eventually!" H.B. yelled over the thunder of gunshots as he fired at the vampire.
He's never going to hit him at that rate, she thought as she watched Volker easily evading the bullets. Erica ran over to the pile of weapons and grabbed the wooden stake she had brought. How on earth am I going to get close enough to stab Volker through the heart? She wondered, glancing over her shoulder as Volker wrenched a spear down from the wall and threw it at Hellboy. H.B. dodged it just in time. Furious, Volker grabbed the other spear—and Erica's eyes fell on the crossbow hanging nearby on the wall. Perfect! she thought.
"Hey, Erica! A little help here! I'm out of bullets!" Hellboy shouted.
Without thinking she pulled her handgun from her belt and tossed it to Hellboy. He caught it and soon the thunder of gunfire filled the room again—except he missed horribly every time, probably due to the fact he had to shoot with his left hand since his huge stone hand wouldn't fit her small gun. Erica ran over to the wall and took down the crossbow. She pushed the wooden stake into the slot arrows normally went into. The stake fit perfectly. YES! she thought as she drew back the string that would fire the weapon. It was almost to the catch when her hands, slick with her own blood, slipped and the string snapped back into place. Erica hastily wiped her hands off on her pants and drew the string back again. It slipped into the catch with a satisfying click. She turned towards Hellboy and Volker.
"Red, move!" she shouted, already aiming at the vampire.
Hellboy saw what she was doing and leapt to the side, leaving Volker out in the open. The vampire's electric blue eyes went wide as they stared at Erica aiming the wooden stake in the crossbow right at him—and suddenly, Volker vanished.
"What the hell!" yelled Hellboy.
"Volker did the same thing at the camp when he heard you coming," Erica said as she peered into the shadows of the room.
Volker suddenly slid out of the shadows and jumped up and grabbed onto one of the carved columns standing along the towering walls. The vampire scaled the vertical surface with the ease and speed of a spider and then stopped and jumped onto the windowsill of a stained glass window. Hellboy and Erica ran over and stopped at the base of the wall. Hellboy aimed Erica's gun at the vampire and pulled the trigger. Nothing happened.
"Damn," Hellboy cursed, "No bullets left." The red demon glared up at the vampire who was more than ten feet out of his reach.
Volker looked down at them and brushed the long strands of his black hair out of his face. He winced as his long nails dragged across the two cross shaped burns on his face. He straightened his clothes a little and tried to compose himself. It didn't help, he still looked extremely disheveled and furiously insane. He smiled mockingly at them.
"I'll wipe that grin off your face!" Erica threatened. She aimed the crossbow at his heart and pulled the trigger.
The smile vanished from Volker's face as he threw himself flat on the windowsill. The wooden stake ripped through the edge of his cape and then shattered the stained glass window as it smashed through it. Shards of colored glass went flying in all directions and Erica and Hellboy had to duck as the sharp pieces rained down on them.
"Scheiße!" Erica muttered, furious at herself for missing.
The vampire stood up and stared uneasily at the broken window, clearly shaken by how close it had been. He turned around and looked down at them.
"So good of you to provide an exit for me, Fräulein." Volker said, bowing.
Hellboy growled in irritation and reached for a lance hanging on the wall. The vampire quickly stepped through the window and climbed sideways along the wall so he could no longer be seen through the window.
"Aw crap," Hellboy cursed.
Erica knew what he meant. She was the only one who could climb up to the window like Volker had, but she couldn't climb along the outside of the castle too: it was a sheer drop with nothing for her to hold onto. That meant she and Hellboy had to find another way outside. But by the time we do that it'll be too late. Volker will be gone, she thought.
Suddenly Volker called through the shattered window to them, his voice full of danger and foreboding. "Fräulein, I vould be careful if I vere you. The dead and the undead travel fast, and sometimes you'll find that things you thought long dead are very much alive. Consider this a varning."
Volker fell silent and there was the barely audible sound of sharp nails dragging across stone as the vampire climbed along the outside of the castle. The silence seemed to stretch out into eternity as Hellboy and Erica stood, waiting. Nothing happened. Then there was a sharp, distant scream. Erica winced realizing it was probably one of the agents.
"Did he get away?" Hellboy asked gruffly.
Erica closed her eyes for a moment and concentrated. A vision of the vampire fleeing north into the night came into her mind's eye. "Ja, he got away."
"Crap. I was hopin' to get here in time to kill him."
"Speaking of which, where the Hell were you? You cut that a little close!" Erica exclaimed, "If you'd been a few seconds later I would have been dead!"
"Hello and nice to see you too," Hellboy replied with a smile, "Did you have a nice chat with vampy?"
"A chat!" Erica exclaimed indignantly, "A chat? He wanted to drink my blood! He wanted to kill me! And for future reference, I refuse to be bait for the next monster we run into!"
Hellboy chuckled and brushed the broken glass and stone dust off his trench coat as Erica picked up her blades and put them back in their sheaths. She was very pleased to see that both of her baton swords were there. Even though the ones she had brought with her were only copies of her originals that were back at the BPRD, she didn't want to lose them. Erica gathered up the rest of her equipment and carefully put it back in her pockets.
"Oh, here," said Hellboy, handing her handgun to her, "And if you want my opinion, I think you were pretty good at bein' bait. You have to admit it wasn't borin'."
"Yeah, it's hard to be bored when a vampire is breathing down your neck and you're waiting for backup."
"Hey, it's a big place, it's a lot to go through to find one person." Hellboy said defensively, "And it didn't help that your locator belt and radio were off. And as if you have any right to scold me." Red muttered.
"Ja, I do," she said, slipping a little into German, "I'm twenty two years older than you. Anyways, thanks for showing up."
"You're welcome." He replied, smiling.
"Hey, Red? Everything okay?" Agent Clay's voice crackled over Hellboy's radio transmitter.
"Erica's safe. Vampy got away. We'll regroup in front of the castle." Hellboy said.
With that they quickly left the room and headed through the castle toward the front doors.
XXXXX
By the time Erica and Hellboy found their way out, the other agents had gathered around the trucks. A few portable work lights had been set up to provide some light, and it was so cold that a white fog drifted from everyone's mouth and nose as they breathed.
"Ow!" exclaimed Agent Moss as Abe, still wrapped up in blankets and resembling the contents of a linen closet and dresser on legs, put ice on the bump on the back of the Agent's skull.
"What happened to you?" asked Erica, seeing Agent Moss.
The other agents spun around to face her and Hellboy. Abe looked over at them and blinked.
"What happened to you two, might I ask?" Abe said, taking in the cuts on Erica's face and the blood running down her arm, as well as the glass imbedded in Hellboy's trench coat.
"The usual." grunted Hellboy.
"Ah." Abe replied, nodding sagely. He turned to Erica and took in her battered appearance. "I take it did not go well between you and your old friend."
"You can say that again," she said, attempting a smile. "I did know the vampire after all. His name is Volker Maynard, and he was after me specifically. That's why he was killing the villagers, to lure us—me—here."
"Why?" asked Clay.
"Two reasons. One, he wanted to avenge the deaths of a few of his vampire friends that I'm responsible for killing," she paused and took a deep breath before continuing. "Two, he said the Thule Occult Society had offered him a reward in return for delivering me to them alive."
There was silence for a moment, until Hellboy spoke.
"Uh, that's not good." he said, making what was probably the understatement of the year.
"No, it isn't. However, Volker decided that he was more interested in killing me than delivering me to the Thule Society. Fortunately Hellboy showed up at the last possible second and kicked some vampire butt. Volker ran off, though we think he attacked someone before heading north."
"Yeah, he attacked me." Agent Moss piped up, "Twice in one day! At least it's nothing more serious than a blow to the head."
"So, Red, are we going after it?" one of the Agents said.
Hellboy thought for a moment. "Erica, where's he headed?"
She closed her eyes for a moment and concentrated. A mental image of the future popped into her head of the vampire passing a sign that translated roughly as: Welcome to Norway.
"Norway." Erica said, a little puzzled about why Volker was going there. I suppose it's entirely possible that the remaining members of the Thule Society could be hiding out there, she thought.
"Red, while you were gone we received a message from Professor Broom," Abe said, "He wants us to return as soon as possible. There's a lot of werewolf sightings being reported."
"Great," muttered Erica.
"Then let's head home." Hellboy announced.
"What?" asked one of the agents.
"If vampy was only after Erica he'll be leaving this village alone."
"But he could come back and keep killing people to try to lure us here again." Agent Clay pointed out.
"I doubt it," Erica said, "I know Volker. He wouldn't reuse a plan that had failed to work in the past." She closed her eyes for a moment and concentrated on the vampire's future. Shadows danced across the walls of a room—Volker was talking to a man—she couldn't see the man's face—the man stabbed the vampire with a wooden stake— Erica opened her eyes and grimaced a little at what she had seen. "Besides, we won't have to worry about Volker," she said, "He's going to be killed. With a wooden stake through his heart."
"By who? When?" asked Clay.
"I can't see who. But it's going to be very soon. And in Norway."
"That settles it. Pack it up and let's hit the road. I'm hungry, anyway." Hellboy said decisively. He stomped away towards one of the trucks, flicking his lighter as he tried to light a cigar. The flame danced eerily in the darkness.
Abe turned to Erica and handed her some bandages from the first aid kit sitting next to him. "Are you alright?" he asked, eyeing the blood dripping down her arm and hand.
"Ja. No permanent damage." she answered, "Just some deep scratches. Volker didn't like it when I pressed my ring against his face." She held her hand up so the light fell on the cross on her ring.
"Wrap up your arm so the bleeding stops," Abe said, "I'll look at your injuries when we get back to the plane."
"What about the villagers?"
"We'll stop in the village and you and I can tell the people that Volker is gone. I'll put my disguise on while we get there." He paused and then added as an after thought: "Maybe it'll keep me warmer."
Erica laughed. "Abe, if you had anymore clothes or blankets on, you wouldn't be able to move. You'd be a fishy marshmallow-man."
The fish-man considered her statement and nodded. "True enough. I'm just waiting until we get a mission in the tropics and you'll be complaining about how hot and wet it is. You know what they say: what goes around comes around."
XXXXX
It was two in the morning by the time the three trucks had bumped all the way down the rock covered dirt road and arrived at the village. Abe, minus all of his blankets and now clad in his black hat, scarf, hat, sunglasses, and long coat was sitting in the passenger's seat of one of the trucks. He overheard Hellboy mentally wishing for a big hot cup of coffee and doughnuts. Abe smiled. Big red monkey, Abe thought affectionately as he climbed out of the truck and stood shivering in the darkness.
Erica joined him, yawning. "We're here already? I was just starting to doze off in the truck."
"You better wake up and stay alert. The villagers are a little…odd. My last visit here was quite exasperating. And the undertaker was highly annoying."
Erica laughed. Clearly she found the tone in his voice amusing.
"I'll have to meet him. It isn't very often that someone can get on your nerves." Erica said, a smile on her face.
"You don't want to meet him," Abe assured her, "The villagers are irritating enough. Oh, and a word of advice, keep an eye on your pockets."
"What?" she asked, confused.
SLAM!
The door of one of the houses slammed and Abe looked up to see that the villagers were standing on their porches, peering curiously through the darkness at the BPRD's trucks. Most of the villagers came pouring out of the brightly lit tavern where it appeared they had been having a party. A large banner was stretched across the tavern and the words 'Bets taken tonight on how long the foreigners live' had been hastily and crudely painted across it.
Two men stepped out of the crowd of people around the trucks and came up to Abe and Erica. "Did any of you die?" the tallest man asked in a tone that dared them to say no. Erica, however, didn't care what the man wanted.
"No." she answered, and scowled right back at him, daring him to make something of it.
The tall man backed down and turned sheepishly to his shorter companion.
"Hah! Told you! You lose! Now pay up!" the shorter man demanded. The taller man grumbled but handed over a few coins.
"Oh, I see you're back!" said a voice.
Abe mentally groaned as he realized who the voice belonged to.
The tall, skeletal undertaker materialized out of the crowd and came over to Abe. The wilted rose in his buttonhole was looking even deader than it had that afternoon.
"Any deaths?" the undertaker asked, obviously hopeful.
"No." Abe answered, hoping the man would go away.
The undertaker looked severely disappointed. "Oh. Well, it's good to know that you all survived," the undertaker replied, though it was obvious he didn't mean it.
"Yes, very lucky considering the circumstances," Erica said, eyeing the undertaker as if he were insane.
The undertaker jerked as if she had startled him and looked at her as if seeing her for the first time. "Hello. I don't remember seeing you before." he said. He smiled crookedly and tipped his beat up top hat to her in a gesture of respect.
Erica nodded curtly and was about to turn away when—
"And the Missus will certainly be wanting these for her injuries!" the undertaker said, shoving a handful of moldy and stained bandages at Abe and Erica.
"No. And we're not married." Erica said, eyeing the bandages with disgust.
Abe picked up on the undertaker's thoughts and blushed beneath his disguise. Oh no, here it comes, Abe thought.
"Would you like to get married? I do weddings!"
Erica grinned sweetly at the skeletal man, the expression on her face like poisoned honey. That can't mean anything good, Abe thought, deciding to intervene at once.
"As fond as I am of my dear friend, no, we would not like to get married." Abe said firmly.
"Are you sure? I can make all the arrangements! We'll need a cake, and have to round up some guests—"
"Nein." Erica said.
"What?" the undertaker asked, looking confused.
"I said no! I thought that if you didn't understand English that German might get through your thick skull! Now, if you would be quiet for a minute, we could tell you why we're back!"
"Ah, say no more! You remembered you forgot to pre-order coffins and funeral services before you left so you turned around and—"
"Shut up! The vampire is gone!" Erica yelled.
A hush fell over the crowd and the undertaker was actually struck silent for a moment. Abe waited for a moment, expecting someone to look happy. But the villagers simply stood there, shocked and silent.
"Well, uh, no need for any display of gratitude for risking our lives for you. We're leaving." Erica finally announced.
As if her words had released some spell, cheering suddenly broke out as the all the villagers started celebrating in the streets. Well, almost all of the villagers. The undertaker looked grief-stricken and seemed to slump a little in a bizarre parody of the wilted rose in his button hole.
"Oh no!" the undertaker lamented, his voice barely audible over the ruckus of celebration, "There goes that business opportunity! Now what am I going to do with all the extra coffins I ordered? And the garlic? And crucifixes? And the…?"
Abe saw Erica looking at him questioningly. He could tell she had overheard the undertaker as well. Abe shrugged. He's just strange, he thought at her.
"Ja," she agreed, "Now let's go home. It's even stranger, but at least I'm used to it."
XXXXX
A Private Airplane Belonging to the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense
Just Before Dawn
Erica sat at a table, listening to the steady hum of the plane's engines. The small windows in the wall were pitch black, nothing could be seen outside except the impenetrable night stretching on forever. Erica's trench coat lay abandoned over the back of her chair and her right arm was stretched out on the table. Abe, thankful to be out of the cold and now wearing his normal wetsuit and respirator, was inspecting the deep scratches in her skin. Hellboy sat nearby, downing a huge mug of coffee in a vain attempt to stay alert and awake. He was also noisily munching on a box of two-dozen doughnuts.
"I'll be glad when October is over and we can all get some sleep," Hellboy said, breaking the silence.
"You should have slept on the way over like I—OW! Abe!" Erica yelped.
"Sorry," Abe said apologetically, "All I did was put rubbing alcohol on your scratches."
"Warn me next time, please." she replied, gritting her teeth as Abe continued cleaning her cuts.
"Skinned knuckles and wrists, a bump on your head, scratches on your face and arm, and bruises on your neck. Volker must have been very angry with you." Abe observed.
Erica shrugged and looked down, picking at the dried blood stuck to her pants leg where she had wiped off the blood on her hands. "It's nothing compared to what could have happened." she replied.
Abe gazed at her, the expression in his large black eyes unfathomable. "Erica, when we get back you know you're going to have to tell Professor Broom that the Thule Society was involved in this," he said gently. He could see through Erica's outward act and knew that she was a little more shaken by the event than she let on.
"Yes, I know. But honestly, I'm not surprised to hear that they're still after me. Or that I have a price on my head. "
The Thule Occult Society had been silent for years, but she knew that at least two members still survived: Ilsa Haupstein and Karl Kroenen. She also knew that they would pursue her to the ends of the earth and down to hell and back again to kill her.
She sighed. It seemed that no matter what side she was on, the opposing side always wanted to kill her. Well, at least it makes for an interesting—if very active—life, she thought.
"I know you're not surprised," said Abe, "But this was a warning. Something has happened to cause the Thule Society to pursue you for the first time in sixty years. They may be gathering strength."
Erica shuddered. Abe's words reminded her of the warning Volker had given her. It certainly did imply that the Thule Society, its members, or something or someone associated with them—long thought dead—was coming back. Could that mean Kroenen? She wondered. Volker had said something about being stabbed twice in one week with a baton sword. And since she had only stabbed him once, and she and Kroenen were the only ones she knew of that had baton swords, that seemed to imply that Kroenen had stabbed Volker the first time.
A chilling thought stuck her. Or does the warning mean Rasputin is coming back? She thought. Erica felt physically sick at the idea, and not only because his return meant she would have to fight for her life again. It would also mean that he would try to release the Seven Gods of Chaos and burn both the earth and the heavens.
All in all, she couldn't help but think this was just the beginning of trouble.
Author's Notes: Hehe, another cliffie! Well, sort of. And don't worry, I will explain all about what happens to Volker. Kroenen and Ilsa will make a star appearance in chapter four. In fact, they have the entire bloody thing to themselves! Please review!