Dracula Ascending (Gothic Horror Mash-up)

by Cindy Winget

  “How is it that two men of such differing ages and interests manage to be friends?” Victor asked curiously.

  “Well, you see, we both had the good fortune of meeting our sweethearts around the same time. They are close friends themselves, so it was only natural that we spent a lot of time together. In so doing, we found that our temperaments and natures suited each other,” Jack said.

  “That may be true of Jack here, while I, on the other hand, just learned to tolerate his presence since he was going to be a part of my life for as long as I was wooing Mina. Which I guess now makes his presence mandatory and permanent, unless Miss Westenra finally realizes that she can do better and drops this scoundrel.”

  “Dare to dream. We are engaged.”

  “Congratulations, old boy! Your wealth and good breeding finally won out.”

  Jack grinned and shrugged. “Whatever it was, I bless the day that sweet angel decided to become mine.”

  “Before this turns into a sappy love fest, you gents want to go rabble-rousing? What say you to taking a stroll out of this place and seeing what there is to see?” Victor surprised himself by being so bold.

  “Rabble-rousing eh? I’m always up for that!” Jack laughed, clapping Victor on the shoulder.

  “I’m willing. Just let me grab my greatcoat,” Jonathan said.

  “I assume that since you are not interested in the sciences, that your room is in a different wing of the institute?” Victor asked him.

  “You assume correctly.”

  “Well, you go and grab your coat and me and Victor will meet you in the front of the building,” said Jack.

  The three men became nearly inseparable thereafter. Although they did not have any of the same classes, they spent all of their free time in each other’s company.

  Chapter Three

  On his first day of class, Victor walked into the natural philosophy lecture taught by a Professor Kempe. He sat down with great expectation and an insatiable eagerness to learn. However, his zealousness quickly deteriorated as the lecture continued and Victor realized how far behind he was, for he understood very little of what the man had to say.

  In the following weeks, Victor struggled with the assignments given to him, feeling as though he were floating away on a great river of ignorance. Jack and Jonathan were of little help, having no more understanding for the subject matter than Victor himself. It was with great trepidation and shame that Victor came to the conclusion that he needed to go and talk to Professor Kempe in person in order to rectify his growing cluelessness.

  Professor Kempe was a squat little man with a gruff voice and unattractive features—his eyes situated too far apart, his bushy eyebrows almost meeting in the middle, and a nose that nearly took up the entirety of his face.

  “If you please, professor, I don’t quite understand all the things you make reference to in your natural philosophy lectures.”

  “What concepts in particular are you struggling with?”

  Victor was at a loss for words, for there were hardly any concepts that he did grasp. Professor Kempe must have seen this in his expression because he said, “What schooling have you had or out of which books have you studied?”

  “I have no formal education to speak of, and as for books, I mainly studied Cornelius Agrippa, Paracelsus, and Albert Magnus.”

  Professor Kempe was dumbfounded. “What’s this?” he scoffed. “Those are the books you have been reading? Or I should say, wasting your time on. Those men are antiquated and obsolete! I never thought I would find a disciple of those men in this day and age of modern discovery.”

  Victor was humiliated. “I have also read Pliny and Buffon.”

  Professor Kempe conceded that these men’s work were fine to study, but seemed quite fixated on the fact that Victor was gullible enough to be sucked into the archaic ideals of those other natural philosophers. Believing the man to be close-minded, Victor left in disgust, having no interest in continuing the conversation.

  Gone was the excitement and enthralling awe that science once held for him. Victor became disenchanted with modern science. He thought big thoughts and wanted to make big discoveries. He strove for glory and recognition. Given what he had learned during lectures and homework assignments, it seemed unlikely to him that modern science had that capability.

  What was he to do now? Return home to Geneva in disgrace and despair? He couldn’t stand the thought. His father’s disappointment, after Victor had begged him so ardently and after having paid the hefty tuition fee for Victor to be here, was not something he felt equipped to handle. The very thought was enough to make him ill.

  Elizabeth, with her well-intentioned comments that he was better off at home anyway, would stab him like a knife as they would remind him of his failure.

  Henry, with his gloating that Victor didn’t know anything more than he did, wouldn’t make him feel any better.

  No, he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t face them. He sat upon a stone bench and placed his head in his hands, willing the world to disappear around him.

  “What’s got your goat?” a voice spoke.

  Victor glanced up into the smiling face of Jonathan Harker. “Go away,” Victor told him.

  Jonathan frowned. “This is serious. Why don’t you tell your friend, Jon, all about it.”

  Victor thought about refusing. After all, this was one of those times when Victor preferred to be alone. Elizabeth had often accused him of liking to wallow in self-pity. Was it true? Perhaps, he thought, he would give this whole friendship thing a real chance. He explained to Jonathan about the conversation he had had with Professor Kempe and of his disenchantment with modern science.

  “Well it seems to me that the answer is simple.”

  “Simple? How so?”

  “Get a different professor.”

  “Be serious.”

  “I am.”

  Victor looked up into Jonathan’s face and saw his earnestness. How could it be that simple? A new professor wouldn’t make Victor any more capable of doing the work or make the subject matter any different. But as he thought about it, it became more and more appealing. Maybe it would make a difference. Perhaps another professor would be more proficient at teaching the subject in a way that Victor could understand. After all, there was more than one branch of science, and he had been taking mathematics classes as well and enjoyed and understood those classes just fine. Perhaps not all was lost.

  “Ask Jack. I am willing to bet that he knows of a professor or two who could help you. Unlike us, he has been here for a year already.”

  Victor did just that.

  “Well, I am thinking a professor by the name of Professor Waldman would fit the bill. He is a professor of chemistry.”

  Perfect! Victor thought. Agrippa was a man of chemistry and that is what had raised Victor’s interest in science in the first place!

  Victor discovered that Professor Waldman lectured on alternate days to Professor Kempe. He was a man in his early fifties, with gray hair and a round face. He spoke in a softer tone than his contemporary, and yet his words had just as much impact and volume. One lecture was enough to reignite Victor’s waning interest in science, for the man was a master orator, and he explained things in such a way that Victor could comprehend.

  “Ancient teachers of this science promised impossibilities and performed nothing,” said Professor Waldman. “The modern masters promise little and yet perform great feats or seeming miracles. They know that base metals cannot be transmuted into gold and that the elixir of life is a chimera. And yet, the scientists who labor over the crucible or under the microscope, have penetrated into the hidden recesses of Nature and shown us how she works. They have discovered how the blood circulates, the nature of the air we breathe, command the lightning of heaven, or mimic the earthquake. Chemistry is that branch of science in which the greatest achievements in recent years have been made, and I feel certain that it may yet be the key to unlocking more of earth’s mysteries. It is due t
o this that I have made chemistry my particular field of study.”

  Victor screwed up his courage to go up and talk to Professor Waldman when the lecture was finished. Upon explaining to him that he had largely studied the works of Agrippa, Paracelsus, and Magnus and was woefully behind in his knowledge of modern science, Victor was relieved by the different reaction he received from Professor Waldman than from Professor Kempe.

  “I will acknowledge that it is because of these earlier men that we have our modern science,” said Professor Waldman. “We, as the benefactors, are indebted to those who went before for the foundation of our knowledge. It is upon their shoulders that we stand, learning from their mistakes, and moving forward and progressing. It may be that one day what we call ‘modern’ science may be called antiquated. The labors of ancient scientists—geniuses in their time—however erroneous we now know them to be, scarcely fail in ultimately advancing mankind,” he said.

  “Will you give me a list of books to read, so that I can catch up with my fellow students?” Victor asked. Professor Waldman was more than obliging, and Victor soon went on his way to the school library in order to procure the works of these authors. He stayed up late into the night reading.

  Victor attended every lecture given by Professor Waldman and enjoyed many more conversations with him, wherein Professor Waldman was want to say, “if your application equals your abilities, I have no doubt that you will be successful.”

  Soon Victor had caught up with, and then surpassed his classmates. Victor’s improvement rate was so rapid, having attended every lecture and read all the books in the library pertaining to chemistry and physics, that the other students and professors began to take notice. Including a young man by the name of Henry Jekyll, whom Victor discovered was another pet student of Professor Waldman’s. Having the same earnest interest in chemistry, Henry was especially impressed with Victor’s skill and insights, and they had had many long discussions on the subject that lasted late into the night.

  Victor was particularly amused by one experiment that Henry intended to perform wherein he claimed to be able to separate man from—what Henry perceived as—his natural evil and pernicious tendencies. Thus freeing him from the grip of the devil, and allowing the good in him to flourish.

  At first, Victor found that mingling and conversing with his fellow science students, including Jack Seward, was pleasant enough, but in time he began to crave a more sophisticated and in-depth discussion of natural philosophy, and turned instead to the lecturing professors of the institute. To his utter surprise, he found that even Professor Kempe, although still odious in manner, had sound knowledge with which to impart and often discussed topics of interest with him at length.

  After class one day, Professor Waldman approached him. “Victor, might I have a word?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  “Although I take an obvious interest in chemistry—I have always liked it best—I am of the opinion that a man ought to be well-rounded, and not limit himself to only one subject. I would be a poor chemist if I didn’t also have a thorough knowledge of the other sciences. I know you have been taking Mathematics, and that has served you well and helped improve your understanding of chemistry, but I think you ought to branch out further. To become a true man of science you need a working understanding of all branches of science—

  chemistry, physics, anatomy, biology, etc. Don’t limit your experience or your knowledge.”

  He took Victor to his laboratory and showed him the different instruments that he used and how to work the machines. “You can use any and all of my equipment that you want, so long as you don’t let your studies slip.”

  “Thank you! That is very kind of you, sir!”

  “I will also give you a list of equipment I think you should procure for yourself. Every man of science should have these things. They will serve you well after you leave school.”

  *****

  Victor had been at Ingolstadt for two years now and had begun performing his own experiments, leaving behind the theoretical, and boldly going forth into the experimental phase of his education. He even made one or two improvements to some of the chemical instruments that gave him some prominence, as well as a small discovery about the Law of Motion that gave him great esteem and admiration from his contemporaries. Many of the professors now considered him more of a colleague than a student.

  Although Victor stayed busy, he, nonetheless, always made time for Jack and Jonathan. While he had little personal inclination to study psychology, he did, however, have many interesting conversations with Jack about the subject. Jack was smart and philosophical, and his insights into the human psyche never ceased to amaze Victor. Jonathan on the other hand was witty and generous and prevented Victor and Jack from studying too hard.

  “You are too intense at times, Victor,” Jonathan would say. “You need to learn that no amount of reading and studying is going to make you happy if you burn yourself out or make yourself ill. Let us go and enjoy life.”

  And they did. They engaged in their fair share of troublemaking down at the local tavern or gambling hall. To which Jack would tease Jonathan that his bride, Mina, would surely frown upon these activities and to which Jonathan would point out that Lucy would feel quite the same way about his own debauchery.

  “What about you, Victor? You hardly ever tell us anything personal. Is there a special woman in your life?”

  Victor’s cheeks warmed as he immediately thought of Elizabeth. Her dark auburn hair, soft porcelain skin—free from any blemishes—and the soft dulcet tones with which she spoke. The tender way she soothed him after the passing of his mother. The mischievous glint in her hazel eyes when they would conspire together or pull a prank on Henry. But he hesitated to talk about her. He felt that her memory was so sacred and close to his heart that to talk about it would cheapen it somehow.

  With a guilty pang, Victor realized how long it had been since he had written to her, or anyone else in his family for that matter. He had been so wrapped up in his studies and experiments that it had completely slipped his mind. He promised himself to rectify the situation as soon as he arrived back at his dorm.

  “You do, old boy!” exclaimed Jonathan. “I see it in your face! There is a young lady who has won our Victor’s heart.”

  Reluctantly, Victor told them of Elizabeth. “I am for all intents and purposes engaged.”

  “What’s this? But you are so young!” exclaimed Jack.

  “Yes. Aren’t you supposed to ‘sow your wild oats’ first?” Jonathan waggled his eyebrows.

  Victor felt himself blushing once more. “We have been betrothed since our infancy, or rather, it was the wish of my dearly departed mother that we should one day wed. Besides, I am not the type to ‘sow wild oats’ as you say.”

  “And do you feel the same desire as your mother?” prodded Jonathan.

  “Yes, I do. She is a lovely girl,” Victor said, his cheeks still red. “She is my cousin and we have actually grown up together. She was born in Italy, her father being an Italian. But after her mother passed away during childbirth, her father—Andrea Lavenza—felt that rather than be raised by a stepmother when he got remarried, it was best for Elizabeth to remain with us. My mother gladly adopted her into the family. Particularly since she had a young cousin of similar age with which to be raised and educated alongside.”

  Victor was grateful when they let the matter drop after that and the conversation was steered in another direction.

  But it was not all tobacco laden taverns and lascivious activities. They were just as likely to play a game of badminton or water polo down at the local men’s club. They attended the theatre and music halls or else partook in a more culturally diverse activity by attending art tours or museums. Jack had taken his Grand Tour of Europe a decade before, but still remembered much of the things he had learned or seen during that time. He was quick and eager to point them out to Victor and Jonathan.

  Chapter Four

  Vict
or’s interest in chemistry was diminishing by degrees. He came to the realization that this was largely due to the fact that no one seemed to have anything new or different to offer him, and he had read all the books in the library that pertained to this subject. Repetition was breeding banality and none of the research projects his professors proposed to him held any interest.

  He was unimpressed with what modern science deemed possible. In spite of himself, he was still interested in the fantastical. He longed for the excitement of his youth, when he had been certain that he was going to be the one to discover the elixir of life or change lead into gold.

  He reflected on the conversation he had had with Professor Waldman about becoming a well-rounded man of science and not limiting himself to one subject. Although he had dabbled some in other subjects, he had always returned to chemistry and physics. That was where his interest had lain, and he had not been able to tear himself away from its intoxicating possibilities. But now he found himself considering a more in-depth study of other sciences, perhaps biology or human anatomy.

  Besides that, his heart was heavy because Jack and Jonathan were leaving to go back home to England. Both had completed their schooling—Jack now qualified to be called Doctor Seward and Jonathan received a practicing certificate to become a solicitor and notary. They no longer had a reason to stay. Life at Ingolstadt would not be the same without their presence. Victor feared that with them gone—and no work with which to immerse himself body and soul—life would become dull and tedious.

  “Why not come with us to England? Consider it your Grand Tour. Surely your father could not object to that?” Jack suggested.

  Victor thought about it. Could he? Could he abandon the school that had been his home these past three years? After all, he felt he had gone as far as he could here. He could enroll in a university in England—one that catered to medical science—and make a real go at Professor Waldman’s suggestion that he be well-versed in all branches of science. Why not? The thought of new scenery, new challenges, new discoveries and knowledge was enough to set Victor’s mind in a whirl of excitement.