Monster Problems 2: Down for the Count

by R. L. Ullman

  “Dr. Renfield,” I say. “I know you’re an expert in what makes monsters tick, so I was wondering if you could, well, help me out. You see, some strange things have been happening to me lately. But I don’t want to do the hypnosis thing, like, ever again.”

  “Of course, Mr. Murray,” Dr. Renfield says, his eyebrows rising. “We don’t have to use hypnosis. Why don’t we just talk?” Then, he reaches into his shirt pocket and pulls out a tiny pad and a pen. “Please, tell me.”

  I consider telling him about my weird ‘dream’ but change my mind. Instead, I decide to tell him about the other thing that’s been bothering me.

  “Well,” I say, “there was a situation where one of my friends was injured, and he was bleeding, and…”

  I stop. This is just so embarrassing.

  “Yes,” Dr. Renfield says, encouraging me. “Please, go on. Don’t worry. I have heard it all. I will not judge you.”

  “Well, okay” I say, feeling a little better about sharing. “I-I had this incredible urge to drink his blood. I-I didn’t, but it was kind of hard not to. But it worries me. A lot.”

  “Worries you in what way?” Dr. Renfield asks, his voice sounding calm and even, like what I’m telling him isn’t something to be worried about at all.

  “Well,” I say, “I-I’ve never wanted to drink anyone’s blood before. I mean, I only eat red food, but never blood. I-I just hope I’m not turning into a… a…”

  “Vampire?” Dr. Renfield says, finishing my sentence for me. “But you are a vampire, Mr. Murray.”

  “No,” I say. “I’m a half-vampire. My father was a vampire but my mother was human.”

  “Yes, of course,” he says. “But as you get older, your father’s vampire genes will likely try to dominate over your mother’s human genes. This is not unusual when it comes to monster biology. In fact, it has been scientifically proven that Supernatural cells divide far more quickly than Natural cells. And as your Natural cells die through damage or aging, they are replaced by more and more Supernatural cells. Thus, over time, the molecular structure of your body will become less Natural and more Supernatural. And this transition will gradually impact your thoughts and behaviors.”

  Um, what?

  My jaw is hanging open, because based on what he just said, my desire to drink Rage’s blood wasn’t a fluke at all, but rather a result of me becoming more and more of a vampire every single day!

  I’m totally speechless.

  “I know that this is shocking information to absorb,” Dr. Renfield says. “But based on what you have described, it appears to fit your situation. Do not despair. Not all half-breeds end up fully embracing their Supernatural side. A handful that I have studied were able to control their monster instincts and live relatively normal lives.”

  “That’s great for them,” I say. “But didn’t you tell me you’ve never studied a vampire before?”

  “Well,” he says. “That is a fair point.”

  My mind is totally spinning right now.

  Because now I not only have to stop Count Dracula, but I may need to stop myself!

  I mean, I can’t become a full-fledged vampire!

  BOOM!

  Suddenly, the gym doors fly open and Rage is standing in the doorway with a bizarre look on his face. It’s great to see him, but what’s he doing here? I thought he was being watched by the other professors.

  “Bram! Dr. Renfield!” he yells. “Come quick!”

  “Why?” I ask. “What’s going on?”

  “You’ve got to hurry!” he yells back. “Cat-girl finally woke up!”

  THE TRUTH HURTS

  By the time we reach the infirmary, I’m ready to check myself into the psychiatric ward.

  I mean, Dr. Renfield basically told me the reason I wanted to suck Rage’s blood is because my body is attacking itself! He said the vampire cells inside of me are slowly taking over the human cells inside of me. And if it continues at this pace, it’ll only be a matter of time before I’m a full-fledged vampire!

  The very thought makes me shudder.

  I mean, what if I can’t control myself?

  “Through here,” Rage says, entering the infirmary.

  I follow him inside when it hits me. What if I become the vampire version of Rage? I mean, Rage loses all control when he turns into a purple monster. He has absolutely no clue where he’s been or what he’s done. If I become a full vampire and that happens to me, then no one around me is safe.

  And what’s even scarier is that I have no clue when this might happen. Who knows? It could take years or it could happen in a few hours. It’s not like some alarm clock is going to go off telling me time’s up. I could slip at any moment, but I know one thing, I will never put innocent lives in danger. No matter what.

  “Over here,” Rage says, snapping me back to reality.

  As he passes through the reception area into the medical wing, I hold the door open for Dr. Renfield, who arrives huffing and puffing behind us from the long run over. Once he gets to the door, I catch up to Rage.

  I’ve never seen the infirmary this empty before. But other than Rage I guess all of the other kids are still in the auditorium. Well, all except for one, because floating inside one of the patient rooms is a very angry-looking ghost girl.

  “It’s about time you got here,” Aura says. “Because I was just about to ask her the tough questions.”

  I look down at the infirmary bed to find the subject of Aura’s interrogation staring back at me. It’s the Cat-girl, and she’s awake! For the first time I can see her green, cat-like eyes, and it’s clear she’d rather be anywhere else than here.

  “Not so fast,” Dr. Hagella says, coming into the room from behind me. “Our new friend here has just woken up. Let’s give her some space to recover.”

  “Recover?” Aura says. “The only thing we should be trying to ‘recover’ right now is the Bell of Virtue her tiger-buddy stole.”

  “Tiger-buddy?” Cat-girl says, sitting up. “Peter? Is he here also? Where is he?”

  “Peter?” Aura says. “Who’s Peter?”

  “Then, he’s not here,” Cat-girl says, slumping back down into the bed.

  “Um, sorry,” Aura says. “But what are you even talking about?”

  “Aura, hold on,” Dr. Renfield says, holding up his right hand. “Please, give her a moment. I know we all would like answers, but she’s clearly been through quite a difficult experience.” Then, he looks at the cat-girl and asks, “Why don’t we start with something simple? Can you tell us your name?”

  “My… name?” she says. “Yes, I-I’m Katherine, but you can call me Kat. Or at least I was before all of this happened.” Then, she runs her hand through her whiskers.

  “Do you remember what happened?” I ask. “I mean, if it isn’t too hard to talk about.”

  “I… I remember some of it,” Kat says, her brow furrowed. “But there are… gaps.”

  “That’s quite alright,” Dr. Renfield says, soothingly. “Just tell us what you can remember. Take as much time as you need.”

  Take as much time as you need? At first, I want to argue that we’re running out of time. But then I remember Dr. Renfield is an expert in this area. If this is the pace he wants her to go at, it’s probably for a good reason. But when I look over at Aura, she’s tapping her foot impatiently.

  “Okay,” Kat says. “I’ll… tell you what I remember. You see, we’ve always struggled. The ‘we’ being my twin brother and me. His name is Peter. Well, our dad died when we were young, and our mom held down three jobs just to make ends meet. Peter and I tried to help out where we could, but it was never enough. And then our mom met a new man. He wasn’t a nice guy and treated us badly. Peter tried to stand up to him, but they had a big fight. And then…”

  As her voice falls off, tears well up in her eyes.

  “Don’t worry,” Dr. Renfield says, putting his hand on her arm. “You are doing just fine. Please continue.”

  “Well, after that
, Peter said he was going to run away. He said he’d rather live on the streets than live in our house. I tried changing his mind, but I couldn’t. He was set on leaving, but I couldn’t let him go alone. I mean, he’s like my other half. We’ve done everything together our whole lives. So, I knew I had to go with him, and later that night we left.”

  I swallow hard. Hearing her story reminds me so much of my own. There were so many foster homes I left in the middle of the night because I wasn’t being treated right. Except, I was alone. At least they had each other.

  “We went as far away as we could go,” she says. “But we’re just kids. We didn’t have any money. We spent all of our time looking for food and finding safe places to sleep. I remember one time we even saw our faces on a ‘Missing Persons’ flier. I told him that maybe we should go back, but Peter just laughed and said, ‘Are you kidding? Look, we’re famous!’”

  “Maybe we were, but we were also scared. But I couldn’t just leave him out there. He’s my brother, and I was going to protect him no matter what. And then, one night when we were in some back-alley looking for loose change, he… found us.”

  “Who?” Rage blurts out, totally enraptured by her story. “Who found you?”

  “A man,” she says. “He was dressed in all white, from his hat to his suit to his shoes. And parked behind him was an expensive-looking car with its own driver. Clearly, the man was rich, and at first I wasn’t sure he was even talking to us, but we were the only ones in the alley. He had gray eyes and a kind smile. He said we clearly needed help, and he would be willing to help us if we would help him with a special project he was working on. He offered to feed us and let us stay in his home for as long as we wanted. It sounded great, but there was something about him I didn’t trust. But Peter was so hungry he accepted the man’s offer on the spot.”

  “You mean, you went with him?” Aura asks.

  “Yeah,” Kat says, lowering her head, “and it was the worst mistake of our lives. The man took us to his home way up on top of a mountain. At first, he was very kind. He said we should call him ‘Doctor,’ and his staff served us a feast. I thought it was strange that their faces were covered except for their eyes, but I didn’t dwell on it. Peter ate until he felt like his stomach would burst, but I only ate a little. And then the Doctor showed us to our room and we slept for what seemed like days. But when we woke up everything… changed.”

  “Please continue,” Dr. Renfield says. “I know this is difficult for you, but you are doing great.”

  “O-Okay,” she says. “Well, when I woke up, I was in a cage. Of course, I thought I was dreaming. I mean, what would I be doing inside a cage? But then I noticed another cage across the way, and inside was a large cat. At first, I could only see its head and I thought it was a tiger. That is, until the animal moved and I realized it wasn’t a tiger at all because it had the body of a boy. I was horrified and convinced myself I was having a nightmare. But when the boy rolled over and I saw what he was wearing, I knew instantly it wasn’t a nightmare at all. It was Peter.”

  As I listen to the emotion in her voice, the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

  “Suddenly, I felt sick,” she says. “And when I looked down at my own body, my arms and legs were covered in white fur, and I had a tail. Then, I caught my reflection and saw my whiskers. Somehow, I was also part-cat, but not as extreme as Peter. I called out to him, and he heard me, gripping the bars of his own cage with his paws. But when he called back, his voice was nothing but a howl. And that’s when I knew what had happened.”

  By now, tears are running down her cheeks so I grab a tissue and hand it to her.

  “Thanks,” she says, wiping her eyes. “The ‘Doctor’ had used us for his ‘special project.’ He tainted the food he fed us with something that transformed us into… this. Because Peter ate more than me, his transformation was more complete. I still looked partly human. I could still speak with words. But Peter was gone—except for his heart. I could tell he was still in there somewhere, fighting to get out.”

  “I’m so sorry,” I say. “But this ‘Doctor,’ did you ever find out his real name?”

  “Yes,” she says. “His name was Moreau.”

  My heart skips a beat.

  “Moreau?” Rage says. “That animal!”

  “Relax children,” Dr. Renfield says. “Let’s hear the rest of her story. So, Kat, tell us what happened next.”

  “I-I don’t remember it all,” she says. “But I do remember Dr. Moreau telling us that he was proud of us. He said we had been the only ones who had gone through this type of transformation and had survived. But he said it was unlikely we would live for long. He said our bodies would give out under the stress of our new forms. But then he said he could help us. He said he had an antidote.”

  “An antidote?” Rage says. “What’s that?”

  “It’s a way to reverse a process,” Dr. Renfield says. “A way to change them back to their human forms. Did Dr. Moreau show you this antidote?”

  “Yes,” she says. “He held it up. It was a red liquid in some kind of vial. There wasn’t much of it, and I begged him to give it to Peter, but he just laughed at me. He said he couldn’t just give it to us, he said we had to earn it.”

  “What?” I say. “Earn it, how?”

  “By retrieving one of three objects,” she says. “hidden in the basement of a school.”

  “The Artifacts of Virtue!” I blurt out.

  “Yes,” she says. “That’s what he called them. He said if we brought one of them back, he would give us the antidote. Then, he showed us a map. He circled an abandoned building where he said we could sleep for the night, and the location of the school. After that, he released us into the wild. Things started out fine. But after a while I was having difficulty keeping up. I felt so tired I just needed to sleep. And then I remember feeling dizzy, and that’s all I remember up until right now.”

  “Well, that explains a lot,” Aura says.

  I nod in agreement, but deep inside I know it doesn’t actually explain everything. Like, what happened in my dream for instance.

  “Where am I?” Kat asks, looking around.

  “You’re at the Van Helsing Academy,” Dr. Renfield says.

  “Yeah,” Aura says. “And your brother stole the Bell of Virtue.”

  “He did?” Kat says, her eyes lighting up. “That means he’ll get the antidote!”

  “That’s great for him,” Aura says. “But he’s also put everyone on campus in danger.”

  “What?” Kat says. “What are you talking about? Peter would never put anyone in danger. He’s not like that.”

  “I hear what you’re saying,” Aura says. “But we don’t know your brother. Or you for that matter.”

  “Aura, chill,” I interject. “I believe what she’s saying. If her brother had bad intentions, he would have attacked me down in the basement. But he didn’t.”

  “Wait,” Kat says, looking at me. “You saw him? You saw Peter?”

  “Yes,” I say. “Twice actually. In the basement, and before that at Moreau Labs where we found you. Actually, your brother wanted us to find you. That’s when you blacked out. I guess Peter knew we could help you.”

  “Or,” Aura says, her eyes narrowing, “her brother knew we went to the Van Helsing Academy. And this was one big set-up to get little Miss Cat-girl here inside the gates so she could open the vault door for him.”

  “I didn’t think of that!” Rage says.

  “What?” Kat says. “We wouldn’t do that.”

  “I bet you did!” Aura says.

  “No!” I say, surprising even myself. I mean, I didn’t want to tell them about the vault door yet, but I can’t just stand her and let Kat take the blame for something I did. “She didn’t do it. I was the one who opened the door.”

  “What?” Aura and Rage say in unison.

  “I did it,” I say. “It was me. At first, I thought it was just a strange dream. But as I was walking through that t
unnel I realized it wasn’t a dream at all. Somehow, I had come down that tunnel before and opened the vault door.”

  “Mr. Murray?” Dr. Renfield says, his eyebrows raised in surprise. “Are you certain?”

  “Yes,” I say. “Very certain.”

  I look up ashamed. Everyone is staring at me and the room is so quiet you could hear a pin drop. I blink and my eyelashes feel damp. Great, now I’m gonna cry.

  “Bram,” Dr. Hagella says, reaching for my arm, but I pull away. I just want to get out of here.

  “AAAAAHHHHH!”

  “Um, what was that?” Rage asks.

  “A scream,” Aura says. “From outside. Hold on.”

  Then, she phases through the infirmary wall, and when she returns, her face is whiter than her normal ghostly self.

  “Aura?” I ask. “What’s wrong?”

  “Z-Zombies,” she says with a shaky voice. “There are Zombies all over campus.”

  ZOMBIEPOCALYPSE

  Zombies?

  There are Zombies on campus?

  Then what Van Helsing said must be true. The Artifacts of Virtue do have Supernatural powers to ward off evil. And with the Bell of Virtue gone, we’re sitting ducks!

  My shoulders slump under my sense of guilt. After all, I was the one who opened the door that let Peter—Tiger-boy—inside the academy. If anybody gets hurt, it’s all my fault.

  I feel sick to my stomach.

  “We’ve got to get out of here!” Aura says. “And we should take Cat-girl with us. I still don’t believe she’s as innocent as she claims.”

  “I believe her,” I say. “If she and her brother were evil, they wouldn’t have been able to step foot on school grounds in the first place because the Artifacts of Virtue would have kept them out. And based on her story, Dr. Moreau didn’t give them a choice. If they didn’t steal one of the Artifacts of Virtue, they wouldn’t get the antidote that could save their lives.”

  Aura and I stare each other down. I can tell she’s thinking about what I said, but she’s still not convinced.