A Trail Of Fur Leads To The Bat

We walked along the snowy pass, barren trees to either side of us and so many footprints below our feet in the show that we wouldn't be able to find Velkan's even if we needed to.

Which we didn't because we had a secret weapon: My nose.

I could track the scent of the werewolf even despite the multitude of other senses among this path. Horses, people, especially stinky people, dogs, cats, wolves, deer--I could smell it all and yet I could focus in on any one of those scents like a bloodhound. The one I did focus in on was the wet dog smell that I first smelled in Anna's family home but this time it was covered in blood. It's own, that is.

We'd been walking for about fifteen minutes now and Anna was finally beginning to steel herself to reality. She wasn't okay with it, not even in the slightest, but she was beginning to accept that her brother was now a werewolf under Dracula's employ.

Before we'd left, she'd told us about the cure Dracula apparently held for lycanthropy. A mythical item thousands of afflicted lycanthropes would kill for.

Standing up from my crouched position where I'd found some blood in the snow. Significantly less than what we'd seen before - he was close to being fully healed, "He's pretty much healed up from our bout earlier," I announced and while she knew that wasn't a good thing, Anna still let out a sigh of relief. I guess she was worried about her brother's injuries inflicted by me. Familial affection, I guess.

"I thought he would have," Van Helsing announced, loading in silver bullets to his revolver. I'd done the same with my own beforehand, having picked up a pack of silver bullets for my revolvers from Carl before we left.

Things went silent again before Anna spoke up to me in particular while Van Helsing walked a little further ahead of us, "For me, this is all personal. It's all about family and honor. Why do you do it, this job of yours, Michael? What do you hope to get out of it?" she asked curiously, looking up at me with her brown doe eyes.

I smiled before answering, "Simply because it's the right thing to do. I told you, didn't I? About how I woke up inside the Vatican, naked and holding a sword?" I asked and she gave a grin despite her earlier sullen mood, "I believe that whoever put me there, wanted me to do this. Of course, I also do it of my own free will. If I stood aside while all this happened, all this death, it'd haunt me for the rest of my life. Of that I have no doubt."

"...And what have you got out of it so far?" she asked, her tone a bit darker yet still curious.

"What have I got out of it?" I wondered aloud before sighing, "Nightmares. I kill monsters, yes, but most monsters were once just people. And they always return to being just people when they die. Those images will stay with me forever," I said before wiping the melancholic expression from my face and giving a smile, "Yet I know these nightmares are much better than the one's I would be haunted by if I stood by a did nothing."

Anna stopped for a second before she gave a beautiful smile and touched my arm, "You're a very wonderful man, Michael. Not many would put themselves through that simply to help others. It almost makes my family's reason seem selfish."

"Nonsense," I grinned, "Wanting to rid your land of a great evil so you may enter heaven is by no means selfish. It's simply human, Anna."

She smiled but said no more, so I left it at that. Just then, Van Helsing stopped and pulled fur from a nearby branch which sprung Anna into action as she spoke, "Werewolves only shed their fur before their first full moon...Before the curse has completely consumed them," she spoke hopefully as we all looked to the caste far off in the distance. Even from here I could see the arcs of electricity and sparks running up the side of it along wires that led to the top of the highest tower.

. . .

The distance between where we were and the castle wasn't so far, which led to us getting there in about five minutes or so of jogging. Luckily, we hadn't brought Carl along with us otherwise he'd have been panting or just lying on the floor a kilometre back.

Van Helsing and Anna were extremely fit by human standards and I was, well, I'm the amalgamation of two super soldiers and I may or may not be the Archangel Michael.

I suspect that unlike Van Helsing, who I know is the Archangel Gabriel, the past owner of this body didn't cast aside ALL of his power. I suspect this because I can feel something growing inside of me, like a fire. Every time I ignite my sword, it gets easier and easier...I feel like someday I won't even need to speak the chant. Someday I feel like I won't even need the sword to summon the heat and the fire.

Theories aside, we'd arrived at the castle.

"Caste Frankenstein, I assume," my voice was even and calm despite my earlier thoughts back at Anna's castle and what I said to her just before we found the shed fur.

Anna affirmed what I already knew, "Yes...but it was abandoned after the man who owned it was killed a year ago," she said, seeming confused with why the castle windows showed the insides lit up and active. Catching Van Helsing's curious look, she continued, "He was a grave robber, among other things. The people didn't take very well to their dead being stolen."

I tilted my head with a wry smile, "I can't say I blame them," I said before pointing to the top of the tower covered in wires where there were half a dozen tesla coils, "But regardless of whether Dr. Frankenstein is dead or not, people are using his equipment. No doubt Dracula."

"But what for?" Van Helsing asked and I gave him a look that told him it couldn't be good.

"I can't know for sure," I told a white lie before going on, "But Frankenstein was obsessed with creating life. If Dracula is using his machines and knowledge, it could only mean he wants to bring something that is dead to life," I sombrely said before remembering something, "A year ago, Anna?" I asked and she gave a reaffirming nod, "Wasn't that when your father went missing?"

"Yes..." she trailed off, connecting some dots in her head, "He was looking for Dracula. He said he was heading for the sea. I remember thinking, 'Lucky him', because I've never been to the sea. I've always wanted to."

Despite her getting a bit off-track, I could tell she was a bit out of it still due to her brother's affliction but I didn't call her out on it and instead put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "How about we visit there after all this is over? All four of us? Both the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea are wonderful sights to see."

"We can think about vacations after all this is over," Van Helsing admonished, "We need to get in there. Now."

Always work, work, work with this guy. He's my friend but sometimes he needs to learn when to relax a little. Honestly, he's the type of guy who'd refuse to use his sick days from work for a vacation even if his boss told him to rest.

Shaking my head, I took a step forward and began looking for a way in.

. . .

Finding a way in wasn't hard but it was tedious. A lot of the usual ways in had been blocked off or they'd collapsed in on themselves after a year of no maintenance.

Inside, I saw more lack of maintenance with chipped pillars, cracked walls and even a few chunks of stone from the ceiling had fallen down to the ground. Not to mention how the entire place was covered in cobwebs...and looking at the size of the strands of spider silk, I'd hate to have to fight the thing that made them. Must be bloody massive.

As we walked into the room covered in webs and in disrepair, Anna suddenly grabbed Van Helsing and I and pulled us behind one of the still standing pillars, "Dwergi," she started before explaining what they were as small dwarf-like creatures came into view carrying bundles of wire, "Dracula's servants and work force. Industrious, yes, but also extremely vicious. If you get the chance, kill them, because they'll do much worse to you if given the chance."

"Noted," I said, knowing I'd have to put the blighters down at some point. Not that it weighed very heavy on my heart - I knew of Dwergi and what they've done to people who've wandered into their lairs. They're pure, depraved evil given hideous forms as far as I'm concerned. Nothing more.

They began speaking in some sort of Romanian dialect, except it was very...smashed together. Like toddlers speaking to one another without knowing proper sentence structure or grammar.

But I could understand them well enough and knew how Anna would react.

Before she could say anything, I spoke, "Anna, I know what they said but we cannot risk this chance. We will help your brother if we get the chance but we need to stick to taking down Dracula first," my words caused her to cast a glare at me before even that crumbled down under the flux of emotions she was feeling.

"My brother is still battling the sickness within him--He's not fully under it's cause, Michael! There's still hope!" she begged and tried to convince me but I cast aside my doubts and personal wishes for now, intending to channel Van Helsing for the time being.

The job needed to be done. I knew what was at stake here.

"Anna," I said, holding her by her shoulders and forcing her to face me instead of running to wherever her brother was, "Your brother is days away at most from becoming a fully-fledged werewolf. We know not of where the cure is, nor if it even exists - and if it does exist, it would no doubt be close to Dracula or his castle. If you want to save your brother, stick to the mission and find Dracula's castle. I will do everything I can to save him," I said, lowering my head to meet her eyes, "Okay?"

I wanted to help her. Her brother didn't need to die and I knew the cure existed. I knew how to get to Dracula's castle as well. But right now, I had a chance to put Dracula down - he was in this very castle alongside us. I could destroy his chances of raising his children at the very least.

The machines are here. The research is here. If I destroy it, I could set Dracula back enough for us to regroup at Anna's castle and then launch a full-scale assault on Dracula's personal castle. We need not look for Frankenstein's creation nor waste time doing anything like that.

Anna's teary eyes met mine for a few seconds, something brewing within them, before she finally gave a nod of agreement.

I rubbed her back in a comforting manner before turning to Van Helsing and nodding, signalling him to continue onward. It didn't take long for us to arrive at a massive hall, most likely used to host feasts when the castle wasn't run down, but now it's been repurposed to something far more sinister. A vampire's breeding ground, basically.

Grotesque green sacks, covered in slime hung from every available point, each one looking like tumorous growths. Despite obviously be sacs similar to a mother's womb, these things were all dead. No heat nor movement came from them.

"I knew it," I said but felt no glory for my foreknowledge, "Egg sacks filled with Dracula's offspring. It's quite a horrid thought - thousands of these undead creatures with the blood of Dracula flowing through their veins...they'd eat their way through entire towns every few months."

Van Helsing agreed with my words and he stepped to one of the sacks with a knife. I stopped him with a hand on his shoulder just as the wires surrounding the eggs became alight with electricity which funnelled it's way into each sack. Soon, they were moving. I could hear hundreds, maybe even thousands, or tiny little heartbeats.

"He's started the experiment," I said before quickly adding, "We need to get there to stop whatever is planned. Now!" I gave an urgent shout, knowing that Velkan is no doubt getting ever closer to dying as we stood gawking at the sacks.

Without waiting for Van Helsing and Anna, I burst into action, dashing through the halls and rooms at a superhuman pace.

I followed the screams and the sounds of generators and soon arrived at the place sending out those blasts of electricity to keep Dracula's spawn alive. I heard shotgun blasts in the distance, so I knew Van Helsing was shooting the newly born vampires and that he'd soon run into Dracula himself, who'd reveal things about his past. I felt uneasy about leaving Helsing alone and up against Dracula but I had trust in his abilities and his tenacity to stay alive, so I instead focused myself.

Generators sparking, Dwergi running from station to station and pulling levers, twirling wheels and doing all sorts of menial labour to keep the generator running and performing at max power. I saw Igor, the deformed human who'd helped Dr. Frankenstein before betraying him and joining Dracula.

But I ignored him and burst forth, sending a front kick at the bundle of tesla coils that seemed to be releasing the most energy. My foot impacted the metal and the metal groaned before blasting away under the strength of my kick - the electricity lashed out and travelled up my leg, charring my trousers but only doing minor damage to my skin and flesh. Damage that wouldn't be around for little more than a few seconds.

Suddenly, everything seemed to be losing power and Igor began screaming and shouting at the Dwergi thinking it was their fault before he looked and saw me. He went to shout at me but I blew his head off with one of my revolvers before he could utter a single word. I felt bad for killing him, I won't lie, but I also knew it was necessary. For the safety of others.

Now Dracula cannot use Igor's knowledge to run the doctor's machines. His plans are basically done unless he himself learnt all the knowledge possible from Dr. Frankenstein's notes and research papers. Which I highly doubt he did.

Looking up, I put my revolver away and tensed my legs, bending them ever so slightly before, like a spring, I straightened them and jumped.

I went higher than a human had any right to go. High enough that I got halfway up to the top before my ascent slowed - but I stopped myself from falling by grabbing one of the many steel support beams that passed horizontally across the room, as if to keep the surrounding tower walls from collapsing in on themselves. With my grip firm, I pulled myself up and slammed my foot down on the steel, sending me up the rest of the way.

At the top, I saw Velkan, breathing heavily, his skin charred black in places while one of his eye's sclera had gone completely - the pressure must've burst quite a few of his blood vessels.

Though, due to the werewolf venom going through his veins, I could see the wounds slowly healing. Slowly than I healed but that's because he was in his human form right now. The fact he was healing at all is much better than a regular human would do.

Either way, I walked over to him and ripped off the restraints on him before helping him stand, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and supporting his weight.

Looking to the sky, I felt I was lucky the sky was completely covered with clouds. If not, I'd have had to put him down. But right now, it's possible that I can help him and get him out of here.

"Who...w-who are you?" he got out, his voice raspy and harsh due to his earlier screaming.

"I'm a friend of Anna's," I said which seemed to immediately put him at ease. Soon after, Anna came up the same way I had except she'd climbed a long piece of rope meant for the Dwergi and soon after, Van Helsing came out of some sort of shaft, looking pale. He'd definitely had that chat with Dracula, then.

"Velkan!" Anna shouted in worry and rushed over to the still charred man and she looked to me, her eyes filled with gratitude, "Thank you, Michael. Thank you so much...!" her eyes got teary but she didn't have the chance to say anything further as Van Helsing cut her off.

"We've overstayed our welcome, it'd seem. Dracula and his remaining bride will be here soon enough," he said, drawing out a grappling gun of sorts before shooting it toward a nearby forest.

It hit and he secured the line around one of the nearby structures. I walked over to him, basically carrying Velkan, "Get him across first," I said before reaching into my pocket and pulling out a bundle of herbs, "When you get across, feed him this. It should suppress and weaken the werewolf inside of him. It'll make transformation near-impossible."

I'd had Carl prepare this just in case, that in the rare possibility that Velkan survived the ordeal and showed no signs of transforming. It'd help keep his affliction in line.

Van Helsing took Velkan and the bundle before travelling across the zipline. Anna and I would have to wait a few seconds because too much weight would snap the line and it was quite the fall - one I'd survive but the others wouldn't be so lucky.

Dwergi began coming up through the same way as Anna but I took care of them with a few shots. Sometimes I killed two or three with a single shot - I will admit, I love my revolvers. They're quite powerful and make dealing with hordes of weak enemies quite easy. Anna dispatched whatever stragglers I left with her sword and we slowly made our way backwards toward the zipline. I pulled out my own device which would latch onto the wire and send us across it.

Attaching it, I fired another round at what seemed like the last Dwergi but soon the last remaining bride appeared, her face contorted in rage and filled with a desire for vengeance.

Pulling Anna close to me, I threw us off the tower and fired a round at the bride, clipping one of her wings clean off instead of blowing her chest open like I'd planned. It isn't their speed that allows them to dodge the attack but their unnatural flexibility and dexterity. If it were just speed, I could aim where they were gonna be instead but with their undead physique...hitting the brides is surprising hard. At range, anyway. If I wasn't trying to escape, I would've been able to cut her in half with my sword pretty easily. Lucky her, I guess.

As we travelled along the line, Dracula appeared and gave us a look. He showed no anger or hatred. He was just...apathetic. Hollow. There was nothing in his dead, dead eyes. I met those eyes with my own and he gave an empty smile.

...Like I thought, he obviously knew me.

Despite being able, he didn't mess with the zipline and Anna and I soon made it to solid ground once more. Now we had to get back to Anna's castle.