Chapter 15

I walk to my destiny to find the truth among the lies...

"Oh, Gabriel?" Ana heard Dracula call out. She had went to the balcony and signed with relief as she saw that he was all right. 'Thank goodness,' she thought as she heard his boots echo with each step he took.

"Oh, Gabriel?" he said before he looked up at them with a smile on his face. "Welcome to my summer palace," he said to them with that devil's smile that made Ana's heart skip a beat. "A clever trick you used Gabriel, switching out an exact twin of the princess," he said as he looked up at both Anna and Ana. "They both look so alike that even I was fooled for a while, but when Anastasia reacted to my compliment on her manifested beauty, I knew she wasn't the princess," he said as he looked at Ana who balled up her hands as she knew she was made a fool. "So everything you said to me after that moment was a lie?" she shouted at him, hurt that she had allowed this vampire to toy with her emotions.

Dracula looked up at her with what Ana couldn't tell if it was blood lust desire or love desire. Before Dracula said anything, the entrance doors opened with Igor talking to some of the vampires. "Master! Master!" shouted a little girl vampire that was in a opera box sort of balcony with another child vampire. "Look, Master! Look!" she said again pointing at what Igor brought with him. Igor smiled at Dracula as they brought in Frank on a board chained up to it. "We have him, master!" Igor said with Joy.

"We have him!" he said as they walked in. Ana covered her mouth as she saw Frank. 'No!' she thought as she looked at him with sadness.

Frank yelled at them all. "You wretched undead!" he shouted aloud. "I shall have my revenge!" he added. "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil!" he said as if he was speaking a word from the bible. "You are nothing but damned fools, and damned souls, and will burn in the flames of hell!" he cursed at them.

Dracula then looked back up at them again. "Now that everything is as it should be," he said as he took a few steps to them before he glanced at the other guests that were here. "Ladies and gentlemen, I give to you..." he said before looking at Van Helsing and presented a hand to him. "VAN HELSING!" he shouted which echoed in the ballroom. Suddenly all of the vampires took their masks off and screeched at him, showing their vampiric fangs as they looked at him. "Come on!" Van Helsing said as he and Anna started to run off. Ana had grabbed a mace from a knight's armor and started to swing it around glaring back at Dracula as she did. "Come on!" Anna shouted as she grabbed at Ana's arm and dragged her away.

Ana decided that her rage on Dracula can wait later as she ran with Anna and Van Helsing, trying to get out of this place away from the stampede of vampires that were on their tail. As they got up to a room they shut the door moving a bar down on it, Carl entered the room meeting up with her. "Ah!" he said as he spotted them, holding up adevice that looked like a grenade to Ana.

"Now I know what it's for," he said to them as they locked the doors. "Now I know what it's for!" he shouted at them thinking they didn't hear him. Anna, Ana and Van Helsing then started to run directly at him. "Where are we going?" he asked as they started to run to him. "Through that window!" all three of them shouted at the same time before Anna grasped Ana's hand and Van Helsing grasped onto Carl's arm jumping through the stained glass window.

As they jumped Carl had dropped his sunlight invention on the floor, just as the pack of vampires barged into the room. Suddenly the invention reacted to the vampires and in a flash the entire castle was filled with bright sunlight, killing all of the vampires at once. Van Helsing, Carl, Ana and Anna landed in the water pool that surrounded the castle. They all looked to see all the vampires weren't following them. "Carl, you're a genius!" Van Helsing said as he then looked at Carl with a very happy smile on his face. "A genius with access to unstable chemicals," Carl said as he gasped up for air. Ana laughed at that before she kissed Carl on the cheek. "Still Carl you just save our hides!" she said to him before letting him go.

Suddenly they all heard a boat rolling down hill and Igor's indistinct shouts. Van Helsing spotted them and saw Frank with Igor and a few of the Dwerger rowing a boat. "No," he said softly whispering as he started to swim after them. "Say good-by to your friend," Igor said to Frank with a wicked smile on his face. As Van Helsing tried to catch up with them, an iron gate came down stopping him.

Van Helsing climbed onto the gate grunting angrily as he looked at Frank, who was looking at him sadly. "I'll find you!" he said to him in a shout against the pouring rain that had started to pour hours ago. "I'll get you back and set you free!" he vowed to Frank.

"I swear to God!" Van Helsing shouted to him before Aleera's cackling echoed in the storm. Ana spotted the vampire woman and another dark vampire form that flew in the stormy sky. 'Dracula,' she thought as she spotted him flying away. Anna and Carl had caught up with them at the gate. "I must save him," Van Helsing said still watching Frank be carried away to a giant ship that was barley visible in the night if it weren't for the lights on it. "No, you can't," Carl said in a sad tone of voice looking at Van Helsing. "Why?" Van Helsing asked looking at Carl with a raised brow. "I cabled Rome early to apprise them of our situation," Carl replied explaining to him.

"And what did they say?" Van Helsing asked. Carl sighed looking nervous. "Even if you somehow kill Dracula, Rome orders you to destroy Frankenstein as well," he said glancing at Ana nervously. "He isn't evil," Ana said looking at Carl shocked and appalled.

"Yes, but they say he isn't human either," Carl said looking at her sadly. "Do they know him? Have they talked with him? Who are they to judge?" Van Helsing asked not believing this was happening, getting more and more angry at this. "They want to destroy him so he can never be used to harm humanity," Carl answered his voice shaky.

"And what of me?" Van Helsing asked getting more angry. "Did you tell them what I'm to become?" Van Helsing said before he grabbed Carl by the neck in a choke hold. "Did they tell you how to kill me?" he shouted as he slowly lifted Carl up out of the water, his grip on Carl's neck tightening. "The correct angle of the stake as it enters my heart?" he yelled as his eyes started to glow a golden color. Anna went up behind Van Helsing trying to pull him off of Carl. "No!" she said into his ear as she tried to pull him away. "The exact measure of silver in each bullet?" Van Helsing asked over Anna's shout. "Huh?" he shouted at Carl.

"No, I left you out," Carl replied in a high squeaky voice as he was choked. Ana fearing that Van Helsing was going to accidentally kill Carl she grabbed at Van Helsing. "Van Helsing!" she shouted at him.

"Gabriel, stop it, you're hurting him!" she added with fear in her voice. Van Helsing suddenly let Carl go and pressed his back against the gate growling. Ana and Anna backed away slightly away from him, as he howled in a struggle of restraining the beast in him that was starting to try and come out. Van Helsing softly panted before looking at Carl. "I'm sorry," he said softly as he still panted softly.

He then looked at Ana with a worried look. "It's starting," he said softly before he looked at Anna. "We should go to a hotel to clean up and order a carriage to take us back to Transylvania," Anna said. "Then we can save Frank," Ana said finishing what Anna was going to say. 'Anastasia,' suddenly a voice whispered in her mind. Ana froze stiff as Carl, Anna and Van Helsing started to swim as soon as the gate lifted up of it's own accord. 'Anastasia...come to me,' the voice whispered again. 'Who the hell is saying that?' she asked herself as she swam after the others.

Ana knew one thing for certain was that as soon she sees Dracula she wasn't going to fall for his seduction again.

Later that night they stayed at an Inn that was a day away from Castle Frankenstein and the village, since they traveled here as the sun was about to rise they thought that would stop Dracula from bringing his offspring to lie. Ana had felt tense and jittery since they arrived. Ever since she got saved from the Dracula, she had been replaying the memory of them dancing and him reciting that poem.

She couldn't decide if he was lying or telling the truth. 'Anastasia...' she heard the voice again, knowing that it must be Dracula calling to her telepathically. "How can he do that when he doesn't know where I am?" she asked herself as she went outside and took a breath. "Anastasia?" Ana heard someone call from behind her. She turned around and signed of relief as she saw Anna walk up to her.

"Anna, you startled me," she said with a half smile. "Sorry, didn't mean to," Anna apologized as she got up to her. Anna then rested a hand on Ana's shoulder.

"I came to see how you are doing," Anna said to her looking concerned. "I don't know what you mean Anna," Ana said looking at her confused. "I'm perfectly fine," she added. "Ana, I know you aren't," Anna said looking at her not believing her words. "Ana, I know you must be upset or angry for what Dracula did to you," she added moving her hand away. Ana stiffed up at Anna's words before she looked away. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she lied not wanting to talk about the matter. "Anastasia, you can fool Van Helsing and Carl, but you can't fool me," Anna said in a serious tone.

"I know that whatever Dracula said to you made you believe that-" Anna started to say but Ana interrupted her. "Believe what?" Ana asked sounding sounding a bit mad. "Believe that maybe he wasn't such a vile creature of hell everyone says he is? That maybe I might have found someone who is possibly in love with me?" Ana said in a pained tone. "Yes, Anna, I know that I shouldn't let that get to me," she added in a mocking tone before she started to walk past her.

But Anna grasped Ana's arm, making her turn to her. "Ana, do not believe in whatever he says nor don't think that I can't tell how you really feel about him," she said knowing that Ana possibly had secret feelings for Dracula. "Like I know how I can't tell you have feelings for Van Helsing?" Ana said looking at her with a raised brow which resulted a shocked expression from Anna.

"Look Anna," Ana said as she yanked her arm gently away. "I am trying to forget about what Dracula said and what happened okay?" Ana said to her in a calm tone. "So when I said 'I'm fine', I am fine," Ana said before she walked inside the Inn and up to her room that she was sharing with Van Helsing. "I am fine," she said to herself as she sat onto her bed. "I'm fine," she said again but shaky this time as tears came down her cheeks. "I'm..." she tried to say but she broke down into tears. 'Anastasia...' she heard Dracula's voice calling to her again. Ana grasped as she looked around and then stopped her gaze to the window that was in the room.

As she looked out the window she saw the sun was starting to set. "God forgive me," she whispered before she went to her bag she had Anna carry with her on their traveling from Transylvania to Budapest. Ana opened her carrying bag and searched for a small bottle that she had gotten to help her sleep at night which was called 'Melatonin'. "Just need to slip this in their food or drinks and in an hour they will be asleep faster then they know it," she softly whispered before she went down stairs and slipped a pill each into their meals after crushing each pill to dust so to mix it in the stew that was their supper tonight. Ana only hoped the others weren't going to notice an odd taste in their food.

Anna, Van Helsing and Carl sat at the dinner table eating their stew dinner as they discussed about Ana as she didn't come down stairs from her room for the past hour. "I tried to talk to her earlier but she said she was fine," Anna said before she sipped her drink. "Dinner has been served an hour ago, she must be hungry by now," Carl said sounding worried.

Van Helsing was about to say something but he suddenly felt tired and his eyes were getting heavy. "What on Earth...?" Carl started to say as he was getting groggy as well but he then fell asleep with his head landing right next to his dinner plate. Anna was about to go to Carl but as soon as she started to walk to him she fell asleep as she fell down to the floor. "Anna!" Van Helsing said as he went to her but he started to get tired again. He shook his head as he tried to fight against the urge to sleep. Suddenly he heard footsteps going down the stairs and he saw Ana standing there looking at him with a guilty expression on her face. "Ana?" Van Helsing asked her before he shook his head again. She then took out his dart blower out of her traveling bag.

"I'm sorry," she said before she blew a dart into the back of Van Helsing's neck. Van Helsing tried to fight it but he soon blacked out laying right next to Anna. 'Why Ana?' he asked in his mind as he passed out.

Ana felt guilty for betraying her friends like this but she needed a head start in order to get a chance to talk to Dracula. She then went outside and saddled up her horse from the barn before riding out to Frankenstein's Castle not stopping except to let her horse rest for a few minutes. Not knowing the giant bat like creature that was flying right behind her a few feet away. She could only think of getting to the castle before it was too late. She then urged her horse to go faster, wanting to beat the sun as it was half way going down in the cloudy sky.

Ana let her horse rest as she ran into the castle, not hearing the flap of wings that came from the tower of the laboratory. Drawing out the shout gun she stole from Van Helsing, Ana slowly walked into the lab keeping her guard up as she looked around the very room she had walked in before in her dream. Only all the lab equipment was gone. 'It's still the same, even with all of the equipment gone it is still the same,' she thought to herself. Suddenly she felt a chill go up her spine and she knew what was causing it. "I know you're here," she said aloud. "Stop hiding and please come out," she added with a sigh. "You are starting to catch on," Dracula said as he jumped down before her.

"I take it, you were expecting me?" Ana guessed as he slowly walked to her. Dracula smiled at her. "I have been waiting four hundred years for you Anastasia," he said as he got closer.

"How do you know that is what my nickname stands for?" she asked as she pointed her gun at him. He stopped in his tracks as he saw that she had a gun in her hands. Ana shook her head as if that was a stupid question. "What am I saying? You don't know me, you could have picked that name out of thin air," she said as she had closed her eyes shaking her head and then opened her eyes and found Dracula gone.

"True, I could have," Dracula's voice echoed in the room. Ana looked around trying to find him. "But you have no idea of knowing that, do you?" he asked as he was behind her and had softly whispered into her ear. Ana jumped with a cry as she turned around with the shotgun. But before she could blink or pull the trigger Dracula had yanked the gun out of her hands and suddenly she found herself pinned up against the wall. "So everything you said to me, even the red string of fate, was really a lie!" she said as she looked up at him with her hurt feelings of that reflecting in her eyes. Dracula looked at her with a gentle expression, something that he never showed to anyone in four hundred years, not even his brides. "No, Ana," he said to her in the gentlest of tones Ana ever heard from him.

"The part of me looking for a new bride I was lying because I thought you were princess Anna," he said as he moved his face closer to hers, which her heart was beating in reaction to his words. "After you reacted to me saying you are beautiful, was all the truth," he said in a soft whisper that Ana couldn't help but shiver at his words. "Why should I believe your words?" Ana asked trying to resist him but she was failing miserably.

Dracula then released Ana from his hold and had his cheek press against hers as he was gently hugging her. "Because I love you Anastasia," he softly whispered to her which caused Ana's body to shiver and her heart react to his words. "Ever since I first saw you and heard of you from Igor, Verona, and Aleera," he said to her before his lips gently pecked hers. Ana felt the spark she felt before go through her and this time no strings attaching to her like last time. Ana found herself looking directly into his eyes, seeing his love reflected in them.

'God forgive me,' she thought as she started to believe his words. 'Forgive me guys,' she added as Dracula rested her forehead gently against hers. Something then came to her. "If you truly love me then answer me something," she said to him. "You have but to ask my Ana," he said as he started to step away from her. "What is the history between you and Van Helsing?" she asked him. Dracula turned away from taking a few steps away from her. "We were brothers once, he and I," Dracula answered as he looked up to a catwalk above them.

"In the Holy Order," he added before he then turned angrily. "Until he betrayed me," Dracula hissed. Ana looked surprised at Dracula's answer. "If what you say is true, why? Why would he betray you?" Ana asked finding it hard to believe the Van Helsing she knew would do such a thing...would he? Dracula chuckled at her question. "Why would any man betray his best friend?" he asked her. "Jealousy?" he said as he walked to a part in the lab near a piece of equipment that was left behind.

"Ambition?" Dracula said before he then stopped in his tracks. "Love?" he added softly. "Love?" Ana said as if when Dracula said the word it rang a bell in her head.

Dracula then turned to look at her. "Someday he too will be cursed by love as I was, and all his efforts to resurrect it will turn to disgusting mockeries of what he one had as have mine!" he said before he threw that piece against a wall that was by the door way. Ana took a few steps to him a dropping her carrying bag as she walked. "I still don't understand," she said as she stopped walking to him still confused. "Nor would one would if they don't know the whole tale," Dracula said as he slowly walked towards her. "But instead of telling you, I am going to show you," he said as he stopped right in front of her. "How are you going to do that?" Ana asked him. "Simple," he replied as he lifted one hand to wave right in front of her forehead, making her pass out, fainting into his arms.

"Don't worry my love," he whispered as he picked her up bridal style. "Soon we will be together and will be happy," he said to her before he kissed her forehead lovingly. "And I promise to not let Van Helsing not that pathetic order of his tear us apart again," he said before he waved his hand again, looking at her bag as a scroll magically poof right on top of the bag.

Suddenly there was the soft sound of a beast growling as Dracula transformed into his demonic form and flew off with Ana in his arms as he raced against the rising sun...

Author's note:

Here is my fifteenth chapter of my fan fiction inspired by the Van Helsing movie and also a little written piece by a friend on a friend on Seduction of time!

Here in this part of the chapter Ana goes off on her own ahead of the others wondering if Dracula really did care for her. And also Anna and Ana have a little heart-to-heart chat.

The sleeping pills Ana uses melatonin is what I use to help me get to sleep. And it does take an hour for it to kick in and it is powerful stuff, at least it is powerful enough for you to have a hard time to get up till you have fully rested.

And also did anyone notice the little hint I left to those that are wondering at where Van Helsing was starting to change there? ^^

And also the words Dracula says are from the xbox and PS2 video game version of the movie which you can see here (after the boss fight with Dracula which is at 1:27): [link]
(and the scene ends at 2:36)

Here is the sound track for this chapter to help you with some of the bits in here:

36.) Tough Crowd from the Van Helsing movie soundtrack (Starts when Igor brings in Frankenstein) [link]

37.) Who are they to judge? from the van helsing movie soundtrack (starts when the boat caring Frankenstein away and van Helsing gets the news from Rome to destroy him.) [link]

38.) Love Remembered from Bram Stoker's Dracula movie soundtrack (starts after Van Helsing says 'It's starting' and the scene between Anna and Ana, it ends after Ana takes the bottle out of her purse.) [link]

39.) The huntsman from the Once Upon a time tv soundtrack (starts when Van helsing and the others pass out from the sleeping pill and rides off to go and see Dracula at Castle Frankenstein, where he confesses to her that he loves her.) [link]

40.) Banishment from the Thor movie soundtrack starts when Ana as Ana asked Dracula of him and van Helsing's past)
[link]

41.) Short cut scene 3 from Vampire the Masquerade bloodlines soundtrack (starts when Dracula makes Ana faint and flies away with her.) [link]

Anastasia Ircus belongs to

Van Helsing belongs to Stephen Sommers and universal pictures/Studios

And all of the songs I place here for the sound track all belong to their movies, bands and composers that composed them.