Well hello there! The busy four weeks of my life are over and I have brought to you a new update! And just in time before Christmas takes you away from your computers to more important events. I'll try to make the next update for the week after Christmas because I'll be starting in a new job at fourth of January and updating will probably then become as slow as once a month. Can't help it, life is bitch.

Thank you for all of you wonderful people who reviewed last time: Darkeyes, Andromeda, hellsingfan101, Irena, Fleatcher, Myriad of Willows, BlackTiger6593 and Make a guess (love your name). You guys rock beyond belief.

Someone asked me last time if there will be any Dracula/Mina romance here, as in Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 movie to which Kouta Hirano apparantley based his Dracula background story. I'm going to be honest with you: I'll be following Stoker's book more here, the whole Dracula/Mina romance just never really felt right to me and it reduced Mina's character from awesome headstrong woman to a lovesick Mary Sue. Sorry, but no, at least not in the way as it was in the movie.

Okay on to the actual update!

Disclaimers: see previous chapters. I own none from Bram Stoker's book!

CHAPTER 23: DRACULA'S QUEST

Whitby, England 1891

Watching sunrise was one of the few free pleasures that Roland Milo Renfield enjoyed. He had bought the modest little house for the simple reason that from his garden he could enjoy the best view, watching the sun slowly appearing to Whitby Bay.

Renfield, despite living very modestly, was not a man without wealth. He was one of the most respected people in Whitby, and a long time member of gentlemen's club in London. He had worked his wealth by arranging many successful and prosperous business deals for Hawkins & Thompkins real-estate Company.

Although he was a respected and known member of society, Renfield had always been also a bit of a recluse. He enjoyed being alone, his circle of friends was very small and limited, and he made social appearances only for the appearance. He had been known to see in the company of ladies, making them laugh with his stories, but nobody knew if he had ever had a serious intention of getting married.

Despite of it all Renfield was quite happy and contend with his life. He was settled in his part and had very little needs. He was satisfied.

Or so he thought.

A couple weeks ago then, on a morning exactly like this, while he had been enjoying the sunrise and not bothered anyone, he had suddenly heard a voice. At first he thought it was one of his neighbours or someone walking down the hill, but after looking around him Renfield had come to a conclusion that he was indeed quite alone. At the time he had blamed the lack of sleep of creating a voice. However, when the voice repeatedly appeared to talk to him every few days, Renfield had come to a terrifying conclusion.

The voice was only in his own head.

At first he had been scared and horrified of someone finding out. Respect and status was very easy to lose in both small communities like Whitby and big circles like London. Last thing he wanted was to be marked as a madman and locked away in some asylum, like the one respectable Dr. John Seward was running right here in Whitby.

First Renfield had tried his best to ignore the voice, but it had always come back and always been more persistent than the last time. Finally one day, having been worn out, Renfield had asked what it wanted. Voice's answer had surprised him greatly.

To do business with you.

"What sort of business?"

I want you to do certain tasks for me and I shall grant you gifts in exchange.

Renfield had been quiet for a while. "What gifts?"

All the things you don't even realise you are missing. You think you are content with this life but truth is you desire more. You desire to be stronger and greater than others. I can make this true. If only you obey me.

"Who are you?"

Lord of Rats, Master of Flies. And I shall prove my power to you.

The next day a huge amount of rats had appeared to the Whitby. The roads and streets were filled with them, there wasn't a place where to escape from rats. Authorities were worried of possible diseases they might have been spreading, but the following day every single rat had disappeared without a trace. If it wasn't for all the mess they had left behind, the whole Whitby might have believed it was all a bad dream.

It was then that Renfield started to believe the voice was not just in his head.

Renfield...

Ah, the voice was back. "What can you offer to me?"

Life. You're alive, yet you've never lived. You feel yourself weak. But I can show you how to become strong.

"How?"

Eat a living creature and consume its life force.

This was crazy of course. He should ignore the voice, banish it out of his head. Get a help from a doctor or a priest. But there was something about the voice he couldn't resist. It was forceful, yet sweet. Tender and commanding. Renfield realised he both hated and loved it.

"What exactly do you want... Master?"

--

Despite all of his powers Count Dracula couldn't help but feel utterly drained out of energy everytime he returned to his senses. Talking to Renfield across continents was not the easiest thing in the world, even for No-Life King.

After having avenged Mircalla's death, Dracula had returned to the safety of the Carpathian mountains and hidden to his castle in Borgo's Pass. He didn't know if Van Helsing would try to hunt him down, or talk to someone from whom the news of his recent visit to France would carry to the ears of Iscariot. He knew he needed to lay low and wait for a while. It wasn't a problem, time was on his side.

After two decades slowly passed, Dracula felt the time had finally come to execute his most daring mission yet: travel to England to conquer it from the inside. However, to a vampire travelling to strange countries across running waters was very much like entering to a new house: not possible unless invited.

It was for that reason that Dracula had sank to deep slumber, during which his mind, or spirit, removed itself from his body and flew across Europe to find a suitable person in England. He had visited the sleeping minds and dreams of so many English men and women before he found Renfield. The man was, in all simplicity, perfect for his plans.

Renfield was a little man yearning to be greater. Such men were always easy to control. They were like marionette puppets dancing in his strings. Renfield also possessed some authority that made him useful. He could arrange his travel to England. By all cost Dracula specified that his name had to be kept secret. Although Iscariot didn't have official power in England, that wouldn't stop them from trying if they figured he had left the safety of his homeland.

Renfield was the man to arrange this. He slowly but surely fixed the paperwork in Hawking & Thompkins to arrange his travel and to buy him several different houses in all over England. Most of them were around the metropolitan area of London, but some also in countryside, like in Whitby were Dracula assumed he would spent his first weeks in England.

However, the arrangements could not be done in a hurry. Dracula knew that longer Renfield spent under his influence and guidance, the stronger effect it had to his mind. Sooner or later Renfield might do something that would then have him locked away. So Dracula had to kept breaks between his connections to Renfield, to allow him to regain his senses and stay sharp. However, at the same time he could never let Renfield totally out of his control or else the man might gather willpower to resist him.

And so it took two tiring years for both them before all the arrangements were in order. In the early months of 1893 Renfield finally suffered a breakdown and attacked a cow in a farm. He was sent to an asylum. However, even in insanity Renfield was clever enough to make alternate plan for his Master. Originally Dracula had planned to travel to England where he could then sign the deeds for his new houses. However, not wanting to do business with total strangers and fearing he might have to dispose them, Dracula and Renfield had planned that someone would come to Transylvania with the contracts. Someone who would be young, naive and not important and whose disappearance in the continent would not wake too much of an attention.

In May 1893 a young man named Jonathan Harker arrived to his castle.

--

Dracula had been slightly worried about Harker's arrival. He had pretended and convinced people into believing he was a human like them before, but that had always been in some public place. Now a human had come to his castle, to his hiding place, and he needed to pretend to be a good host for some time.

With a few simple spell he had managed to clean some of the rooms to a liveable condition. However arranging food for his quest turned out to be a bigger problem. He could barely remember how to select good wine and cheese to the table, not to speak about how a simple meal was cooked. His gypsy warriors bought him the needed things, but they could not make a sophisticated dinner.

In times like these however, Dracula had learned, he had one surprise card in his sleeve. From every people he had ever taken blood from he had also taken something else. Their own unique talents, sometimes even memories. He couldn't fully explain but he could sometimes draw those memories out from his mind, if he concentrated enough. It was a useful trick and while it didn't make him the master chef, he was pretty pleased with his efforts.

Jonathan Harker, in Dracula's eyes, quickly turned out to be young and adventurous, but also very naive and trusting. He had grown up in a protected environment and had only an inkling of the real world. He seemed like a smart and capable fellow and Dracula didn't doubt that under different circumstances Harker could have made it far in his life. However, be it as it may, he would not be getting a chance for that.

Dracula needed at least a week or two with Harker before he could get rid of him. Signing the contracts to his houses was fairly quick job, but he wanted to learn everything he could about Whitby, London and England in general from Harker before actually making the journey. Through all this time he also had to keep his true nature hidden, which after couple of nights started to become more and more difficult.

Dracula was gathering strength for his daring mission and therefore rested in his coffin during the days. Harker couldn't help but notice the lack of his host during these hours, as well as there were no servants around. Then there was a rather awkward moment when Dracula had one night entered to Harker's room and found him shaving his chin. Too late he had noticed the small mirror Harker had and that his reflection was shinning with its absence. Dracula quickly disposed the mirror but startled Harker so badly he cut himself. If it hadn't been for the cross Harker was wearing around his neck Dracula, who hadn't had a decent meal during Harker's stay, might have lost his control completely.

However, during dinner times Dracula usually managed to guide Harker's attention from all the oddities away. They would have long conversations about English people, their habits, routines, everyday lives. Dracula also wanted to know about state affairs, government, politics and even of English church. Harker answered as well as he could.

"Are you a religious person, Count?" Harker once asked when they had been talking about English church and its differences to the Catholic churches.

The question caught Dracula somewhat of guard. He wasn't religious in the sense Harker had meant the question. He didn't spoke of prayers, visit churches or praised the Lord. He couldn't and he hadn't much even when he was human. Yet he did believe in God's existence. He had believed as human, when he had uselessly prayed him, and he knew God existed now, when he had chosen to defy him for all eternity.

"Yes, Mr Harker" Dracula had finally answered. "I am one of the few true believers".

At one point Harker had started asking of history of Transylvania and Dracula line for his own curiosity. Dracula was a bit embarrassed when he noticed how easily he forgot himself into telling of the great achievements his ancestors – mainly he himself – had achieved in wars against the Turkish conquerors.

When did I become this vain?

Dracula also felt a momentary sadness when thinking of all the triumphs he had achieved as human. He missed the war, preparing for it, leading your troops and coming back victorious. For a moment he almost wished he could go back to those days, but then shook himself out of it. He was vampire, No-Life King, Master of all Nosferatus. He no longer needed troops or men. He alone could achieve his victories.

And so time finally came when Jonathan Harker had both outlived his usefulness and become too untrusting towards the Count. Harker had realised he was held captive and wanted to escape. But he had one more thing to do.

Dracula entered to Harker's room and pushed him by the table that had papers and pen.

"Mr Harker, you shall now write letter for Mr Hawkins in your office, and to any loved ones who might be waiting for you back and you will tell them that you're needed here in Transylvania for at least a month still. You will also tell them that you're planning to spend sometime in the continent before returning home, so you can acquire more knowledge to start your own business soon".

Although Harker did try to resist, Dracula's powerful grip on his shoulder and his hypnotic voice made it impossible. With shaking hands Harker wrote three letters; one for his employer Mr Hawkins, one for the office and one for his fiancée Miss Wilhelmina Murray.

Dracula had seen a picture of Wilhelmina – or Mina as Harker called – that Harker carried with him. In the picture was also Mina's close friend Miss Lucy Westenra. Both women were young, very attractive and according to Harker living in Whitby. Dracula had a feeling he was going to enjoy the English women.

"What happens now?" Harker asked when he had written the letters.

"Now, Mr Harker? Now I go to England...and you..." he said, pulled Harker up from his throat and sank his teeth in.

A moment later Jonathan Harker's lifeless body lied on the floor and Dracula, with a fresh blood running through him once more, prepared his final travel plans.

To be continued...

Okay, here we go: firstly, in Stoker's book Renfield's first name was never said, he was only referred to as R.M. Renfield. I took names Roland and Milo for him from Roland Topor, actor who played Renfield in Werner Herzog's 1979 movie "Nosferatu: Phantom der NAcht" and from another Dracula movie of the same year, starring Frank Langella as the Count, in which Renfield did have a first name and that was Milo.

Okay, before you all go "WTF?! Dude, Harker did not die in the book!!!" I'd just want to say that I KNOW! But those of you who, like me, have read Hellsing manga, will probably remember that in one chapter (no, I don't remember which) Alucard recalls back of the men who defeated him. He mentions Van Helsing, Holmwood, Seward and Morris, but not Harker. Now why is that? Well, I don't know what Hirano-sensei was thinking, but it does leave me with openings. And therefore I think Dracula's death is not the only thing Stoker changed in his book. Just trust me here, despite what it may look like I know what I'm doing.

Well, that's all I have to say for now. I'll try to update again after Christmas for the reasons I already explained above. Till then... MERRY CHRISTMAS (or whatever holiday you are celebrating).