Chapter 12: The Seal and the Storm.
The Earl's estate war chamber had not been in use many years.
The long stone table, which was at the middle of the room, had dust accumulated on it. Sturdy banners hung on the high walls. The floor of the structure was carved with ancient maps of the neighboring regions.
The chamber was now alive with life.
Walls were burning with candles. Books and scrolls were spilled on the table. There were messengers trotting in and out of the room with deafening speed.
The Earl of the Dacien clan was at the table head.
Earl Marian Dacien was not sitting.
Both hands were on the stone table and his eyes were glancing at the big map that lay before him.
An reddish circle was drawn way north.
It was where the seal was located.
The other side of the table was occupied with three vampire knights. They were all heavily-armored in dark armor and chased with the crest of the clan. Each one of them never made a word out of their own accord.
The Earl eventually raised his eyes.
"Report."
The knight led by the first one.
"The external guard-houses are already doubled, my lord. Any strange creature within three miles of the closed territory will be killed including the stranger Archie Ambrosius ."
The Earl nodded once.
"Double it again."
The knight jangled his eyes in suspense, but bowed.
"As you command."
The second knight spoke next.
"The junior warriors are now doing a faster combat training. A good portion of them are not prepared at this stage of training."
"They will then learn fast, the have to do that" the Earl answered.
His voice was calm.
It carried no anger, just certainty.
"The seal has been ten centuries long" the knight resumed keenly. "Are you sure it is nothing but an exaggeration of the danger.
Silence filled the room.
The Earl gradually straightened himself.
As he gazed at the knight even the atmosphere appeared to become oppressed.
The Earl said to himself "Hope is not a strategy. It's nothing but what weak people rely on"
The knight lowered his head.
The Earl again concentrated on the map.
Metallic objects had been placed small crosswise over the land as a war game.
All of them symbolized a troop of men.
He brought various pieces nearer to the red circle.
"Place the Blood Guards here" he said. "And here."
Slightly frowning, the third knight frowned.
"But my lord in that case the western borders will be open to intruders".
The Earl did not hesitate.
"When the thing in that seal rises", he said, "Boundaries will be nothing, everyone of might die and not survive the being sealed."
The room fell silent again.
No one in the room did not comprehend what they were saying.
The Earl took one of the ancient scrolls which were lying on the table open.
The paper was old and feeble. Its surface was covered with strange symbols. The vocabulary was of a time when the world was a much more dangerous place.
"This creature" the Earl went on, "was trapped by the vampire god king himself. He then gave the Silverhood clan the job of protecting it and keeping the creature sealed and then gave four other clans the power of controlling the creature, but the ability to control the creature has a time limit"
He laid aside the scroll again.
"Three of these houses have disappeared."
One of the knights made a slight movement.
"Is it possible for the animal to break the seal all by itself?"
The Earl stared down the north windows of the room.
In front of them was a distance of miles of dark forest.
Beyond that wood was the closed-up country.
"Yes, I think, and also do know this. Abraham Van Helsing was never a monster nor an animal. He's an immortal mortal ready to do everything to eradicate the vampire race"
Just then the doors of the chamber banged open.
One of the messengers was rushing in and knelt down on one knee.
"My lord!"
The whole room swiveled to face him.
The conveyor was puffing, as though he had run over the whole estate.
"Speak," the Earl said.
The guardians sent in the closed place have reported.
The messenger swallowed.
"There has been… movement."
The knights stiffened.
The Earl did not change his face.
"What kind of movement?"
The messenger spoke in a lower tone.
The seal has already started giving out energy pulses. Small waves. They arrive and leave after every several minutes.
One of the knights had a tongue like a machine.
"Is the seal breaking?"
"No, sir, my lord; there are no cracks yet. Clan Mobius has just been exterminated my lord. The fourth viscount clan has been wiped out completely"
The chamber went quiet again.
The Earl pacing to the tall window on the side of the room walked on slowly.
There was the smell of cold earth and far rain as the wind blew outside.
Something old was roused in its dungeons far to the north, hidden behind the woods.
The Earl crossed his hands behind him.
During a few moments he made no reply.
Then he spoke quietly.
"So it begins."
The knights gave each other nervous glances.
The messenger was also kneeling behind them.
The Earl wheeled about to the table and the red circle as drawn on the map.
His voice was calm.
But there was an immerse killing intent and confidence inside it.
"The time to countdown has already commenced, the seal xcan bve broken at any time. Viscount Duncan Silverhood has all he needs to break the seal" he said.
Far from the Earls estate, deep in Silverhood territory, another chamber had come alive.
Smaller than the Earls war room, but far more deadly, was the Viscounts war room.
No banners graced the stone walls. Instead, the stone was etched with old sigils, binding symbols, control runes, an ancient mark which had not been openly used in centuries.
In the center was a long table. Around it were gathered the core members of the Silverhood clan who Duncan had kept alive. Seven vampires stood in the room, silently. None wore ceremonial dress, each wore the dark light armour of a warrior and each carried the weapons needed to slay beings far stronger than a human.
Standing at the head of the table was Viscount Duncan Silverhood. His face was calm, his eyes shone with anticipation. With a gentle movement, he placed a metal case on the table and opened it slowly. Lying inside four ancient relics. A ring. A broken medallion. A strange silver chain link. And a narrow black dagger. All vampires in the room recognized them immediately. One of the warriors in the room finally broke the silence.
"The control relics." The vampire said, and the Viscount nodded. "The keys given to the clan by the God King when the creature was sealed away." Another vampire stepped forward. "But the four clans who kept these relics have perished. They have all been killed or corrupted and all four relics now belong to us." The Viscount smiled slowly. "Yes they do."
He closed the case gently. The weight of the statement, "And now they belong to us, what we will do with them seemed to press on everyone present. For centuries, these relics had been kept separately so no single clan had the power to control the sealed creature dwelling underneath the manor. Now they were all under the control of one house. The Silverhood clan." A female vampire in the group spoke up next. "And if the seal is broken?" Duncan answered immediately. "It will be, that's why we got it in the first place. To break the seal the control the being who is sealed there." The room immediately seemed colder and several of the warriors exchanged wary glances.
The female vampire frowned. "That thing is not a beast it is a hunter." The Viscount nodded again. "Yes and once the seal breaks we intend to control it. But if that fails, then we shall kill it." Silence descended on the room once more. It was not fear but calculation. To kill a mortal immortal was a difficult prospect and not something to be trifled with even among vampires who had never met the creature. Duncan spoke again calmly. "We will prepare for both possibilities." He tapped a point on the map carved into the stone table, representing the sealed area in the north. "Outer patrols will triple. The forest paths will be sealed and no vampire will enter the sealed area without my permission. The relics will be guarded and we will re-learn the old binding rites again." The female vampire looked at the sigils carved into the wall. "Those have not been used for centuries." Duncan smiled slightly. "Then we will have to relearn them." A distant rumble of thunder could be heard faintly. A storm was brewing.
Duncan closed the metal case and looked at the northern side of the manor. "Prepare yourselves," he said quietly, "for when the seal finally breaks we shall greet the hunter of vampires with open arms." Far away in the northern part of the manor a pulse thrummed through the earth, the seal shook before cracking more. Van Helsing who was in the seal finally freed one of his arms that was bound in chains. The entire manor shook from the effect as Abraham raised his head up with a creepy smile plastered all over his face "Death is coming for all" Abraham said