Chapter 22: A Path That Surely Follows

Dawn was nearly upon the great mountains. In minutes, the sun would poke its way past the tall landscape where it would illuminate Poenari Castle. Yet, the place had become vacant. Its original inhabitants had completely vacated the fortress. Only the hints of blood stains marked any signs of its previous occupants.

From the cliffside of the Făgăraș Mountains, near its peak, lined a row of trees in a small region of flatland. A white and black spotted minotaur was talking to another male figure. The unknown man was seemingly bald and held a red umbrella that he kept over his head. He was quite short, being no bigger than a dwarf. He wore a red tunic wrapped around one side of his shoulders and waist. On his forehead was a red dot marking the Hindu third eye.

“The news is good,” Theo said. “The ogres around the world are surrendering to human forces. Others are retreating on all fronts. You have to give a lot of credit to Helsing, Vamana. He managed to perform a miracle last night.”

Vamana spun his umbrella as he kept both hands on it. “I’m more than proud of him,” the dwarf replied with a smile. “His accomplishments outweigh everything. Earth and its people owe him for their continued survival.”

Theo looked over to her side. Both Cirrynth and Zitiraas sat down by a tree. The blue dragon kept a firm hold on his sister’s arm, giving her the energy to rebuild her dismembered arm and tail. They both seemed utterly exhausted after their siege.

“The question is, where is Lilith?” Theo asked.

Vamana looked at the castle. He lifted one hand outward to the fortress in the vast distance and began to concentrate. “She isn’t there ... I can’t sense her presence, but...”

“You still can’t penetrate the barrier that’s there.”

The dwarf lowered his hand. “Such as it is. It still falls upon Helsing’s wishes if he wants to do it or not.”

The minotaur looked at the castle. “Doesn’t matter to me.”

Vamana turned his attention towards Theo. “How are you feeling?”

“I feel so much,” Theo commented with a mild hint of apprehension. “Another great jump to the past again. I just ... hate being used as a crutch whenever some calamity falls on Earth.”

“This will be the last time that you’ll do this. But,...” Vanama paused.

“What?”

The dwarf nodded and smiled again. “It’s nothing to worry about. What troubles you?”

Theo shook her head. “I’m worried about ... all of this. What if I jump into the past and make things worse? I know we made things better back in the 1980s, but ... sometimes I keep getting the impression that Earth is supposed to fall under some calamity. It’s like pulling on a string, and it finally snaps back. But, if I do it again, it might break the string by accident. Who knows what will happen.”

“You feel that it would be worse than now?”

“I know it’s easy to argue to do it. We’ve been fighting for so long, but what if Helsing and I correct all of this, and a year later, humanity gets smashed by some giant asteroid?”

“You already know that answer ... Besides, you only waste energy worrying about what may or may not happen.”

“Yeah, you’re right. But ... what about us, two? I’m leaving this timeline. I’ll never return...”

“The same would be for Helsing as well. And you’ve done it before. We may never know the answers of what will happen in this current time frame. You two may leave, and things would still continue, or it may cease to exist. Either is a preferable outcome.”

“You don’t have a problem of a world with ogres running around?”

“It’s a destructive path, but one that may lead to new ventures. Humanity knows that we exist and that we can live together in harmony.”

“At the price of so much bloodshed.”

“Yes. That is the choice that you carry within you. But I know you will follow your heart and make the decision that you feel is best.”

Theo looked away. “I want to see ‘her’ again...”

Vamana smiled. He closed his umbrella and slapped it down to the grassy rocks below him. “Then you know your answer,” The dwarven God turned his attention to the farthest tree closest to the cliff edge. “Both of your fates are sealed. They are intertwined. Perhaps it may be set that way in the future events to come.”

The minotaur looked over to the farthest tree. The trunk blocked most of the view of the person who stood behind it. However, the hint of a red coat could be seen past it as Theo approached it. Her hooves would occasionally slip against the rocks. She was careful not to get too close to the edge. She braced her furry hand against the nearby tree.

From her new viewpoint, Helsing stood by the absolute edge overlooking Poenari Castle in the vast distance. The dawning light finally poked past the mountains, revealing the entire landscape. Theo looked back at Helsing. He was leaning his winged back against the tree with one leg propped up to the base. The mountain winds occasionally hit his body, causing his coat and hat to flutter around slightly. The man seemed content but neutral toward the sight before him.

“I’m sorry about Lina,” Theo told him.

There was a pause before he answered. “Her sacrifice wasn’t in vain,” he replied, focusing on the castle. “The information was the key we needed to complete this mission.”

The minotaur nodded. “Are you sure Lilith isn’t in there?”

“She is sure of her decision. If this timeline is to continue, then she knows that I will be gone for good.”

“At least she knows what you managed to do.”

“The price was high for her, much more than she ever knew, but I won’t forget her contribution to all of this.”

Theo could see that Helsing was waiting for something. Perhaps he was reminiscing about the recent events. Maybe he was thinking about her mother and where she went. She would never truly know. His glasses continued to block what she could truly see. However, she could only surmise that Helsing was grateful for defeating Dracula.

She waited for several seconds before her bovine eyes caught something. She turned her head to see the castle erupt in a series of explosions. The carved-out caves were first, followed by the gun positions. More blasts erupted before the four towers followed suit. The sound of the explosions finally reached the cliffside in a series of satisfying booms. Debris and rubble were being thrown about in a magnificent spectacle. Finally, the last recently constructed building, Vlad’s former throne room, blew up. The final explosion was the biggest one of them all, sending a shockwave in all directions. More debris was flung high into the air as the tower crashed down the plateau. In seconds, the entire fortress began to fall upon its own weight.

“Wow,” Theo said with some surprise. “I wasn’t expecting that...”

“Dracula offered me the chance to take his throne after I killed him,” Helsing said. “I refused.”

“That’s ... one way of responding to that.”

“Simply a response to how he engaged in his past battles. ‘Leave nothing standing.’”

Helsing gave another hint of a smile as he looked at the castle’s demise, which even made Theo chuckle briefly. It would take a few more minutes for the dust to settle. Finally, he looked over to Theo. He could see that she was trying to get away from the edge. He replied in earnest, satisfied with the building’s conclusion.

“I’m ready to make our time jump,” Helsing remarked as he stepped away from the edge.

Theo nodded her head as Helsing approached her. She reached into her pocket and pulled a tiny crystal from her shorts. From her hands, she held it for him to see it.

“The memories...,” Theo commented.

“Is it painful?” Helsing asked.

“It’s not that. I can describe it all, but it’s different for everyone. I remember being such a novice at first, like learning to swim for the first time. I made a lot of dumb decisions. Now ... I know what’s going to happen.”

“I remember when you first joined our forces. You were quite rebellious and inexperienced at the time. However, I wouldn’t be too hard on yourself. You have matured into a far capable warrior.”

“Thank you for saying that,” Theo smiled.

“However...” Helsing looked at the castle ruins as Theo glanced over as well. “There will be a time you will have to face against the opposition alone. You will feel as if the entire world presses down upon you. You must count on your inner strength and wisdom to win against your opponent.”

“Just like you?”

“Quite ... Is there any true risk to us in doing this?”

Theo shook her head. “I’m more concerned that this is the last Einstein crystal out there. No more resets ... no more second chances.”

“Humanity always tests their nuclear weapons. I’m sure that...”

“No,” Theo said, cradling the crystal in her hands. “They’re just too rare to show up. I just ... want to hear you say that you truly want to do this.”

“If we don’t, then we have to live with the world the way it is. Our loved ones, the friends we meet along the way, will have died in vain. I don’t speak for them. But, yes, we should do this and not look back.”

The minotaur nodded. “All right. Give me your hand.”

Helsing offered his right hand to Theo. She easily gripped the fine leather glove-wrapped hand, noting how small they were compared to hers.

“The process can be unusual,” Theo explained. “Everything will turn negative around you ... almost like you’re watching a photograph being taken.”

“How long will the process take?”

“Minutes ... maybe? With Renenutet, it felt like minutes. You’ll feel like you’re in some sort of portal. But, she claimed to see things that she saw that I didn’t see.”

“Like what?”

“When we time jumped, she claimed to see ... fragments. It can be the future, or it can be the past. Maybe it’s neither. The problem is that most of the images she saw didn’t entirely make sense. It’s almost as if your mind is trying to comprehend and regurgitate it for you to see. With me, I saw the Spirit of Se:he, but it wasn’t like that with her. It may have to do with the fact that I’m the one channeling it with her, just hopping along the way.”

“What sort of images did Renenutet see?” Helsing asked.

“She swore she saw wars that she had been a part of. Another image was a white spaceship, like something shaped like a cigar. I don’t know. You should ask her when you get the chance. The most important thing is that when I start to channel my energy, you’ll see things that might try to draw you away from us. If we separate from each other, Don’t try to wander away from where you’re at. Otherwise, you may become lost in the sea of time.”

“All right,” the doctor calmly said. “Let’s do this.”

Theo took a deep breath as she gripped Helsing’s hand and the crystal in the other. The doctor could see that the minotaur was preparing to cast her spell. Her eyes closed while she whispered a few words to herself. Finally, she said one word:

“Revert...”

Much as Helsing had heard, the entire environment suddenly went negative. Colors and light were reverted back onto each other. All movement became still as time froze.

Suddenly, the entire landscape began to move in reverse. Helsing turned his head and watched as the castle started to resemble itself. Dawn became night. The doctor saw everything speed up faster and faster. The pillar of light glowed in the sky as a brief reminder of his fight with Dracula. It sped up even more. Eventually, night and day would shift back and forth from ten seconds to five, then three, till finally. A rift formed all around Helsing and Theo.

Helsing watched Theo vanish before him. The doctor was no longer standing on a mountain. He felt as if his body was in a giant swirling well of light. He had to remember that, at this point, he couldn’t move too much. This was a part of the natural process of spellcasting.

“Interesting...,” Helsing calmly reminisced. He looked around himself.

It was pretty at first. It reminded him of a wormhole that science fiction would often depict. Then, he began to hear whispers that would fade in and out. Most of it was incomprehensible at first. Blue and white particles circulated around his sides. They would come in and out from all sides.

“We travel to here so we can find ourselves back where we started,” said one male voice.

“This is my favorite book,” a familiar voice echoed in another direction.

“Laura?” Helsing asked. He turned his head and looked at a square box that formed out of nowhere. Inside this box was a projected image, an event of some sort. He turned his body to face it.

The image that he saw, as the spell continued to warp space and time, was that of Laura. The man knew this was a memory. She was in her late 80s, an obvious indication that age had finally caught up to her. She rested on her deathbed while the doctor could see himself lying next to her. Their hands were entwined, knowing it would be their last night together.

“You’ve been so good to me,” Laura’s elderly voice echoed.

“I’m sorry that we won’t pass away together,” the past image of Helsing told her.

“Don’t be...,” Laura gripped his hand as tightly as possible. “I know what I choose to be with. Besides ... you’re a husband that never aged, and you’ve never been unfaithful to me.”

“You are always beautiful, no matter what.”

Helsing watched as his past self kissed Laura. He had a brief smile on his face as the image slowly faded into the swirling particles. More and more whispers echoed in the vortex that he was trapped in.

“You’ve thought you won...,” Dracula’s voice echoed behind him. Helsing turned to look at nothing. “But, in the end, the world is doomed. You turned down the choice to rule the world. Now you will be a ruler of none...”

“Hmmm...,” the doctor remarked.

The voice disappeared in the countless array of other voices. Helsing would start to see fragmented pictures around him. It was becoming more and more clear. Some would be irrelevant images. Depictions of him placing a cup on a table, talking with familiar characters, walking down some road, or something else. However, the voices would sometimes get louder than the other ones.

“Do you remember the time when our home was better than this?” an unknown male voice echoed.

“It was their choice, not ours,” the doctor’s voice echoed in the whispers.

“It doesn’t make it right!”

“Today, the death toll rises,” a news reporter echoed around him. “Africa reports over 3 million dead. Estimations show that ten million more are becoming sick. South America reports that a quarter of their population is...”

The voice cut off as Helsing continued to listen. The doctor’s brow lifted in surprise.

“We can’t handle this,” another unknown voice echoed. “We failed them.”

“Curious...,” Helsing said. “That report might be the mutagen outbreak, but ... not to this extent.”

“The world is dying, and we can’t survive it...,” an unknown female voice echoed.

Helsing turned to look to his left. He saw an image of Earth. However, it began to melt in front of him. It was almost as if it was made of table wax. Fires were engulfing it. Finally, the oceans turned from blue to orange as they ran down, melting the entire globe into a puddle of molten liquid.”

“I won’t let it fall,” an unknown whisper said. It was a mixture of a male and female voice. It came from almost above Helsing, causing him to look up.

The image that formed above the doctor showed him in a gray landscape. It was dark beyond it. He wore his signature red coat and hat, but something was terribly wrong. He had his sword and gun, but the glowing blue sword had been blasted. Black scorch marks appeared on the blade, which showed signs that it had been snapped in half.

“Impossible,” the real Helsing commented in surprise. “Zulfiqar is nearly indestructible. What can be powerful enough to do that?”

He also noted other things. The moving image of him had him gasping for air. As he tried to stand up, he could see that a part of his wing had been nearly torn off. His coat showed similar blast marks. His energy was almost depleted. Finally, he fell to the dirt as an unknown vague shadow stood near him.

“You can’t win, Helsing,” the same unknown voice echoed. “My power is beyond all of you. Surrender, and I promise to spare your mother’s life.”

“Nngh...,” Helsing grunted on the dirt. He tried to stab the broken sword into the ground to help brace himself, but the soil was so loose that it only made him fall into it again.

It was a losing battle. Helsing was watching himself struggle in a fight he could not win.

“I ... knew this day would come...,” the image of Helsing grunted to the unknown victor.

“That wasn’t what I asked...,” the unidentified voice said. “You’ve lost ... they’ve lost ... what will it be?”

“Ehgh...” He reacted in pain. He clawed the dirt. His hat almost fell off his head before looking back at his foe.

“I ... I ... surrender...,” the doctor said.

The real Helsing watched as the image faded. His mouth was agape for a moment. Even the brows of his eyes lifted past his glasses in surprise. Something was going to happen, something so significant that he had no chance against it. He did everything he could to remark upon it, but the image faded away.

More whispers echoed in and out. The voices would come and go, giving Helsing little time to reminisce about what he saw or heard.

“We stand at a new beginning,” a male voice echoed in triumph. “The time for exploration is upon us!” The sounds of cheering could be heard. Helsing tried to look at where it originated, but the image had faded away.

“The Itreans will destroy us all...,” an unknown voice echoed.

“Like a rotating pair of binary stars,” another elderly male voice said in the wake of whispers. “They will dance around in harmony, but the harbinger hides their shadow, feeding upon them. The gates of heaven will shake. The golden colors will soon follow. A price met with blood, for the hands are broken...”

“I know that voice,” Helsing commented as he looked around. “Him and his many riddles sometimes said with such clarity, but always prophetic...”

Helsing turned to look at an image ahead of him. It showed himself dressed in his familiar white hat, white coat, black pants, and boots, with his wings neatly tucked in to hide them. His glasses were somewhat different, but everything else was still the same. He was inside what might have been described as a ship of some sort. The room might have been an office, but he wasn’t entirely sure.

“We could always use another physician,” a male voice remarked.

“Especially one that comes from such a ... unique world,” a deep, curious female voice added.

The doctor was remarkably relaxed. He raised one arm to the side, pressed the other one to his chest, and briefly bowed his head. “Then I’m proud to serve onboard the Lifen,” the man told them. “But please ... call me Doctor English.”

From the direction of the image, the real Helsing watched as a shadowy silhouette blew a puff of smoke in the air. The hint of a burning cigarette could be seen from a hand that showed four fingers instead of five, tapping her ashes into an ashtray.

“Curious...,” the real Helsing remarked as the image faded into obscurity. Before he had a chance to put his hands to his jaw to contemplate what he saw, there was a surge of crackling bolts. Within a few seconds, the entire vortex flashed in bright light.

Then there was silence...

It was a new year, but it required going into the past to do so. While it had been a year of battles and conflict for Helsing, it was only tomorrow for the others, another day in the tedium of many...

In the dark hallways of the ruins of Poenari castle, the sounds of a single person interacting with her environment loomed. Carmilla was working in the tomb. She had accumulated several vases, all filled with blood.

Three gravesites had their stone lids neatly placed on the back wall. The destroyed bricks behind her marked the secret entrance of where she had come from. Her daggers were neatly placed in the far corner of the opening. She kneeled to the ground, where her knees were dirtied up by the floor from which she worked.

From each of the graves marked three familiar individuals. Maria was on the left. Minhea was on the right. And in the center was Vlad Tepes. All of them had their hands neatly pressed to their chests. They resided in slumber, their bodies partly decayed as several hundred years had passed. It was as if they were waiting for the great ritual to begin, waiting to be released upon the world.

Carmilla smiled. She knew that she wasn’t much further from completing her mission. She popped open the lids of one of the vases. Her nose pressed to the lid, sniffing the blood thoroughly. She swished its contents, then held one hand above her head. She started to sprinkle some powder into it. In seconds, a red rose began to grow from the vase. The entire plant was covered in blood.

“Not much further...,” Carmilla said to herself. “I’ve waited so long, and I will finally be done with this. I will...”

The female vampire slowly placed the vase down, being careful in doing so. She got up from the dirty stone floor to face a set of intruders who were coming to see her.

It was a dwarven God that wandered in first.

“Hello,” Vamana happily greeted the vampire as he stepped inside, his umbrella serving as a cane. “So dark in here ... How can you vampires not damage your eyes from walking in the darkness so often? Perhaps a little bit of light can help?” He snapped his fingers as light erupted from it. It glowed brightly, illuminating the entire room. It was so bright that Carmilla had to avert her eyes for a second.

“Ack!” Carmilla growled in surprise as her eyes slowly adjusted. “ ... Who are you?”

“Nice to see you again alive and well, Carmilla,” Helsing calmly said, walking in with his red coat, hat, and glasses. His gun was pointed at the woman. “So close to completing your ritual. But that’s as far as you get.”

“Helsing...,” the female vampire shook her head. “You knew that I was here?”

“And about to unleash three vampires onto the world.”

“Three that will bear witness to the future events to come.”

“I know quite well that you were the one responsible for helping start that whole mess in Liberia. The Impundulu brothers have been long slain.”

“But after what they managed to prove. A world to fill his new legion of soldiers.”

“I’m sorry to tell you that you failed on that as well, Carmilla,” the doctor interrupted her. “Your dispensaries have all been found and disarmed. The ‘poison’ you planned to unleash with his blood is halted.”

“Ah ... How!?” Carmilla reacted. She threw her hands around in frustration. “Just like that? I’ve been planning this for years! There was no way that you should have known. What, were you just watching me the whole time!?”

“Let’s just say that time was on our side. How have you been?”

The female vampire sneered as she pumped her fists to the ground. “No ... I’ve done this for too long. You did this on purpose! You waited for me to get this far just so you could stop me and boast about it.”

“You can believe whatever you want, Carmilla, but it’s over. You only have one option: surrender to the Coalition of Deities. We promise that you will be given a fair trial and a punishment suitable for one such as yourself.”

Carmilla screeched so loud in frustration that it echoed through the dead halls. Even Helsing momentarily averted his hearing. At the same time, Vamana took his pinky finger and dug it into his left ear for a moment. It wouldn’t take long for them to shake it off. Meanwhile, Carmilla showed sheer anger on her face.

“That isn’t fair! THAT ISN”T FAIR!” Carmilla screamed.

“It very much is,” Helsing replied.

Helsing could see Carmilla was a cornered animal. She was about to wrap her wings around her body when Vamana held his glowing hand in a vice-like grip. It froze her wings open. Carmilla struggled, but it didn’t work.

“You’re not teleporting away either,” Helsing added. “You have nowhere to run. You can come in peacefully, or we can use force. Take your pick.”

“Ah...,” Vamana replied, reaching over to lower Helsing’s gun. “Force is not necessary. Carmilla, you don’t have to fight us. We are a good people, after all.”

“Ergh!” Carmilla charged. Vamana lowered his glowing hand to his closed umbrella as Helsing watched the female vampire quickly pull her arm back. She closed her hand into a fist and threw all her might into a powerful punch. Yet, the dwarven God was remarkably calm with what was about to hit him.

WHAM! A light, concussive blast echoed through the tomb. The punch landed perfectly square on the forehead of Vamana. Sharp pain riddled the female vampire’s hand. All the bones shattered in her right hand instantly. She inflicted no damage against Vamana. She never even pushed him an inch. It was like punching a solid brick wall that could never break.

“Ah ... ah...” Carmilla whimpered at the sudden shock of her hand meeting an unstoppable force. Her eyes showed horror as the pain echoed through her body.

“Such violence,” Vamana playfully replied. He took his umbrella and gently pushed her arm away. “There’s no need of that...”

She cradled her hand as she withdrew a little bit. In less than a second, Helsing jumped behind her and wrapped her arms behind her back. There was no possible way that she could win this fight, not against a god. The doctor pulled out a set of silver handcuffs and began to lock up her wrists. Carmilla could only bear witness to her future imprisonment. Helsing would take every action under great care. He would make sure that she wouldn’t escape. He also pulled out a silver collar and slapped it on Carmilla’s neck while clipping her wings together.

“Be nice to her,” Vamana said.

“You fucking ... fuck!” Carmilla cursed one last time as Helsing guided her out. She cried out in frustration one last time in defeat. It wouldn’t take long before Theo came by the tomb’s entrance.

“Take her to Annika and Drakaina,” Helsing ordered Theo. The doctor looked around a little bit. “Hmmm ... Where’s your friend?”

“Artiaaku got separated as we were exploring the ruins,” Theo remarked. “I think she’s upstairs. Don’t worry. We’re not leaving without her anyway. Besides, there’s not much down here for her to rummage through.”

“Very well...” Helsing handed Carmilla to her. “Take her.”

Theo walked off with a firm hold on Carmilla’s wrist.

“This isn’t over!” Carmilla yelled as Theo restrained the woman even more. She wasn’t going anywhere. “I ... was close ... you...”

They headed down the hall together while Carmilla whimpered in angered defeat. This left just Helsing and Vamana to remark upon the tomb.

“You will be happy to know that we found the ogress,” Vamana remarked. “She was exactly where you said she would be.”

“Good,” Helsing commented. “Is there any hope in removing the curse on Nia?”

“I’m afraid that the curse is permanent. We can only ease her thoughts, but the only way for her to be human again is with the Crystal of Ve.”

“Shame...”

“Why so?”

“It was not under her control that she ended up poisoned. Lilith and her team fought hard in Liberia to stop the mutagen from being released, but it still affected one individual. Will Nia be imprisoned?”

“No. We will monitor her, but I believe she will be given a new life under our care.”

“Hmm ... At least there’s that...”

The doctor noticed the dwarven God approaching the three exposed graves. He held his glowing hand outward so he could gaze into them. Then, he held the glowing hand over the body of Dracula.

“What are you doing?” Helsing calmly asked.

“Restoring their bodies,” Vamana replied.

“Why? They should not be touched.”

Helsing walked up to see that Dracula’s body was being rejuvenated. His gray skin was smoothing out. A small wake of emotion seemed to hit the doctor as he questioned the actions of Vamana. However, it would take half a minute before the man’s body was restored. The dwarf nodded.

“Because they are like you,” Vamana proudly said.

“He won’t hesitate to bring harm to us if you awaken him,” Helsing replied.

“I don’t plan on waking him up, nor his surviving family members. Dracula, Minhea, and Maria will be kept asleep for another 1,000 years. However, it doesn’t mean that they should be abandoned nor left for dead.”

“What do you want us to do with them?”

“They will be moved to the great vault. Their graves will be closed and locked as they sleep.”

“You realize you only delay the inevitable,” Helsing remarked. “Why do you truly wish to preserve them?”

Vamana lightly gripped Helsing’s arm and slowly walked him outside the tomb. “I know your mother’s troubled past,” Vamana said. “It plagues her when it doesn’t have to. Both of you have served the Coalition with distinction. If it weren’t for you, another disaster would have fallen upon Earth.”