Monster Problems 2: Down for the Count

by R. L. Ullman

  WAAAAAK!

  I guess birdbrain is annoyed, but tough noogies, because I’m alive! All I need to do now is collect myself near Kat. It takes some doing in the open air, but I manage to gather my atoms over the ledge and transform back to a kid. As I hit the ground by her feet, I’m absolutely exhausted.

  “Bram, move it!” Kat yells, running into a cave.

  SQUUUAAAWWWKKK!

  As the griffin’s shadow covers the ledge, I follow her, squeezing through the narrow cave entrance. We go back as far as we can until we hit a dead end. Both of us lean against the rock wall, breathing heavily.

  “Thanks for spotting me,” I manage to say.

  “I picked up your scent behind me,” she says, her eyes wide. “But it took me a second to realize you were a bat. How did you do that?”

  “Vampire, remember?” I say. “It’s what we do. But enough about that. Do you think this cave opening is small enough?”

  “For what?” she asks.

  SQUAWK!

  “That!” I say, pulling Kat back against the rock wall.

  Just then, giant talons burst through the cave and claw around recklessly. But fortunately, the entrance is narrow enough to keep the griffin out. The beast pushes it’s shoulder against the opening to extend its reach, but it simply can’t fit it’s body through.

  “We’re trapped,” I say. “There’s no way out.”

  “No,” Kat says, sniffing into the air. “The smell.”

  “Sorry,” I say. “I didn’t exactly have time to put on deodorant.”

  “Not you,” she says. “I’ve picked up Peter’s scent again. He came this way. Follow me.”

  Then, she turns and climbs straight up the rock wall!

  Where’s she going now? I mean, I thought this was literally a dead end. But to my surprise, Kat disappears through a hole in the rock ceiling.

  “Come on!” she says, popping her head down through the hole. “There’s a tunnel up here.”

  A tunnel?

  I hate tunnels.

  SQUAWK!

  But as I look back at the cave opening, the griffin stretches its arm as far as it can and nearly shish kabobs me. Well, I haven’t had the best of luck with tunnels, but it’s got to be better than this.

  “Coming!” I say, carefully scaling the rock wall.

  When I reach the top, I pull myself through the opening and find Kat crouched low inside a narrow tunnel. That’s strange. It seems to cut diagonally upwards through the mountain itself.

  “Peter went this way,” Kat says, heading through the tunnel.

  I get to my feet and lean against the wall to catch my breath. I can’t believe what’s happened. I mean, just a little while ago we were all safe and sound at the Van Helsing Academy. Now I’m running through the mountain headquarters of a mad scientist.

  I sure hope Rage and Aura got away before that griffin got them. And speaking of getting away, I’ve got to get moving to keep up with Kat, except I’m completely drained. I’d love to rest, but I can’t let Kat face Moreau on her own. He’s simply too dangerous.

  “Come,” a man’s voice echoes through the cave.

  Huh? Where’d that come from?

  But when I look around, there’s no one here but me.

  “Come, Bram,” he says.

  That’s when I realize the voice isn’t echoing through the cave, it’s echoing through my head! And what’s worse is that I know who the voice belongs to.

  Count Dracula!

  I wait for him to speak again, but the only sound I hear is the beating of my own heart. Suddenly, I get the chills. What exactly did he mean when he said ‘come?’ Is he here? Is he waiting to attack me?

  I don’t want to die.

  “Bram?” Kat says, coming back down the tunnel looking concerned. “Are you coming? I was calling you.”

  Suddenly, I’m confused.

  Was that Kat calling me? But it didn’t sound like her?

  I want to tell her ‘no,’ I’m not coming. In fact, I’d rather take my chances with that hideous eagle-lion thing, but deep down I know I can’t do that. She’s not going to back down. I mean, her twin brother is in trouble. Plus, I’m responsible for what happened to the Van Helsing Academy. I’m the one who needs to find the Bell of Virtue or the school will be toast.

  My mind must be playing tricks on me.

  “Yeah,” I say, pushing myself forward. “I’m coming. Sorry, I just needed a breather.”

  “It’s okay,” she says. “You’ve been through a lot. Listen, I scouted ahead a bit and this tunnel just keeps going up and up. I think we’re in some kind of a secret entrance to the tower.”

  “Dandy,” I say. “Well, then, let’s go for it.”

  She’s about to turn, but then stops and freezes me with her bright, green eyes.

  “I… I just want to say thanks again,” she says. “I know we don’t know each other that well, but I’m really glad you’re here.”

  “Hey, no problem,” I say, feeling my cheeks go flush. “I guess charging into highly terrifying situations is just what new friends do for each other.”

  She giggles and turns, brushing me with her tail, and then she takes off.

  Well, here goes nothing.

  I try keeping up with her, but it’s difficult to match her agility navigating the twists and turns inside the tunnel. Considering that she could barely walk on her own when we left the infirmary, her cat-like adrenaline must be off the charts.

  I just hope she also has nine lives.

  As we continue to weave our way along, my mind turns to other thoughts. Like, what happened to Van Helsing, Crawler, and Professor Morris? I mean, they went looking for Peter long before we started. And why was Dr. Renfield so reluctant to leave me when Hexum ordered him to go? And speaking of Hexum, why did he have such a big reaction when I mentioned the Spear of Darkness?

  Suddenly, I slam into Kat.

  “Sorry,” I say. “Why’d you stop?”

  “Shhh,” she whispers, her finger over her lips. “Look up.”

  And that’s when I see it. I was so in my head I didn’t even notice it. We’re crouched beneath a hatch door and there’s light coming through the edges.

  Dr. Moreau could be standing right over our heads!

  “Okay,” I whisper. “We need a plan. Let’s—”

  SMASH!

  I flinch and shield my face as Kat bursts upwards through the hatch door!

  And then I make a mental note:

  Kat isn’t much of a planner.

  PURE EVIL

  And Kat claims her brother is the impulsive one?

  As I shield my body from the falling debris of the shattered hatch door, I realize I have no choice but to follow Kat into the mysterious room. This was not how I would have approached the situation, but it’s too late now. So, I stand up and pull myself through the opening.

  And then I wish I hadn’t done that.

  We’re standing in the center of a large, circular room with stone walls, large glass windows, and a really high ceiling. Based on the sweeping three-hundred-and-sixty- degree view of the surrounding landscape, it’s actually pretty cool up here. You know, if it weren’t for the guy dressed in all white pointing the gun at us.

  “Welcome,” the man says. “Truthfully, I wasn’t expecting you to survive my pet griffin, yet here you are.”

  Kat and I look at each other and freeze. Based on the terror in her eyes and her description from earlier, the guy doesn’t need an introduction.

  It’s Dr. Moreau!

  He’s a bit older than I imagined, with white, slicked-back hair and deep wrinkles around his cold, gray eyes. His white, three-piece suit is pressed and pristine, and he’s wearing a black tie and shiny, black shoes. But it’s not his appearance that has my attention—not by a long shot. It’s what he’s holding in his left hand.

  The Bell of Virtue!

  “Looking for this?” he asks.

  Well, yes. I want to tell him to hand it over, but t
he odds of him listening to me are zero to none. So, I hold my tongue. At least, for now.

  “Where is Peter?” Kat demands. “You have your artifact, now where’s my brother?”

  “Ah, yes,” Dr. Moreau says. “They say twins have a special connection, don’t they? Although you really don’t look anything like twins anymore. A shame. I was so hoping you would evolve to be more like your brother.”

  “Where is he?” Kat repeats. “Tell me, you monster!”

  “Insistent, aren’t you?” Dr. Moreau says, placing the Bell of Virtue on a nearby table. “Have no fear, your savage brother is right here.”

  Then, he steps back and pulls a black cloth off a large box sitting behind him, revealing an iron cage with Peter inside! Peter is lying on his back, his stomach barely moving up and down.

  “Peter!” Kat yells.

  But just as she takes a step towards them, Dr. Moreau points his gun at the cage—right at Peter.

  Kat stops cold.

  “I suggest you stay there,” he says. “After all, I would hate to waste a silver bullet on your poor brother. Especially since he is dying anyway.”

  Just then, Peter erupts in a deep coughing fit.

  That’s when I remember what Kat said. Dr. Moreau told them that neither of them had long to live. That they were the only ones who had even survived this type of transformation. But based on how Peter looks, I’m concerned his time could be running out.

  “Give him the antidote!” Kat demands. “You promised us that if we got you one of those Artifacts of Virtue, you’d give us the antidote. You have your stupid bell, now give him the antidote!”

  “Ah, yes. The antidote.” Dr. Moreau says, picking up a glass vial filled with a red liquid. “The only means of changing him back to natural form. Was this the antidote you were referring to?”

  “Yes!” Kat says, her eyes growing wide. “That’s it! Now give it to him! Please!”

  But Dr. Moreau smiles.

  And then he drinks it down in one gulp.

  “No!” Kat yells.

  “Foolish girl,” Dr. Moreau says, wiping his mouth with his sleeve and putting the empty vial back on the table. “There is no antidote for your condition. There never was.”

  “Nooo!” Kat cries, dropping to her knees. “W-Why? Why did you do this to us?”

  “For this, of course,” Dr. Moreau says, picking up the Bell of Virtue again. “With the Artifacts of Virtue in place, there was no way I could infiltrate the Van Helsing Academy to remove one myself. Instead, I needed to send in an agent. Someone with an innocent heart and a desperate mind who could pass through the school’s magical protection, as long as they were properly motivated, of course. And when I discovered you and your brother digging for scraps in that back alley, I knew I had found my recruits.”

  “No,” Kat says, as tears stream down her cheeks.

  “But I still don’t get it,” I say. “You used them, but why? Why do you want to remove the school’s magical protection in the first place?”

  “For science,” he says smugly.

  “Um, what?” I say. “Sorry, but that makes no sense.”

  “It does to me,” Dr. Moreau says. “You see, my brand of science has been deemed ‘unacceptable’ by mankind. And as a result, they have stripped me of my resources—my grants, my research, my laboratory. They took everything from me. And why? Because they are afraid of my genius.”

  Well, yeah, I can see why.

  This guy is no genius. He’s insane!

  “I suppose it is human nature to fear what you do not understand,” he continues. “And my former colleagues feared my intellect. They simply did not understand what I was striving to achieve. They said it was morally wrong to create an entirely new species merely to do my bidding. They said it couldn’t be done, it shouldn’t be done. Yet, I found a way to do it—to become the ultimate creator right here on earth.”

  Okay, this is going downhill fast.

  “Despite all of their objections,” Dr. Moreau continues, “all of their obstacles, I continued my work. Of course, compromises had to be made, but my peers did not agree with my approach. They never accepted my arguments that a few must be sacrificed for the good of all. They tried to silence me, to cut me off, but I have persevered.”

  “Kat,” I whisper, but she doesn’t respond. She’s just staring straight ahead, completely oblivious to everything happening around her.

  “You see,” he continues, “I am not like them. I am not limited by things like ‘morals’ or ‘ethics.’ Those beliefs only serve to restrain creativity. But I will be triumphant. And once I deliver my side of the bargain, I will be given all of the subjects I need to continue my genetic experiments, however and wherever I please.”

  Is that what this is all about? He’s creating all of these hybrid creatures, hurting all of these innocent people, to serve his own ego? But then I remember something he said.

  “Um, you mentioned something about a bargain,” I say. “What are you talking about?”

  “Observe,” Dr. Moreau says.

  Just then, a door on the far side of the room opens and two large men enter the room, except they’re not really men at all. They both have muscular, human bodies but animal heads! One has the head of an ox and the other the head of a bear, and I wonder if Dr. Moreau tricked them in the same way he tricked Kat and Peter?

  But then I realize they’re wheeling in two more covered boxes behind them, and the boxes are the same size as the one Peter is stuck in. Then, Dr. Moreau nods and the beast men whip off the cloth covers.

  My jaw hits the floor.

  It’s Rage and Hexum!

  Moreau’s beast men must have captured them after Kat and I took off. Poor Rage is gripping the iron bars and looking around with panic in his eyes. Hexum, however, is lying face down and not moving at all.

  “Rage,” I call out, “are you okay?”

  “I-I think so,” he answers.

  “Professor?” I call out. “Are you okay?”

  But Hexum doesn’t answer.

  “Do not worry,” Dr. Moreau says. “He will be fine once he regains consciousness. At the moment he is enjoying a deep sleep.”

  I breathe a sigh of relief, but then I realize someone is missing. Where’s Aura? I look around the room but don’t see her anywhere.

  “Let them go,” I say firmly. “Now.”

  “I don’t think so,” Dr. Moreau says. “Professor Hexum’s reputation precedes him and I really don’t want to deal with his mental games. The boy, however, will make a fine specimen for one of my future experiments.”

  “W-What?” Rage says, his voice shaking. “B-But… you already experimented on me. Don’t you remember?”

  “I did?” Dr. Moreau says, studying Rage’s face. “Funny, I don’t remember you.”

  “B-But,” Rage says meekly, looking stunned, “y-you ruined my life. And you don’t even remember…”

  “Please, child,” Dr. Moreau says, shrugging his shoulders. “I experiment on dozens of specimens every day. It simply isn’t important for me to remember them all. But enough of this. It is time to deliver what I promised. And then there will be no limit to my science.”

  I look over at Rage who is curling into a ball.

  “Bring me the walking stick!” Dr. Moreau demands.

  Wait, did he just say, ‘walking stick?’

  Like, as in Hexum’s walking stick?

  I’m totally confused as I watch the ox-man reach into Hexum’s cage and yank out his walking stick. I mean, what does Dr. Moreau want with Hexum’s walking stick? But as the burly beast man hands it over to Dr. Moreau, the evil scientist breaks into a disturbing smile.

  “My ploy worked brilliantly,” he says, looking at the walking stick. “Truthfully, I never expected it to be this easy. But as luck would have it, my plan drove you from your sanctuary and brought the prize right to my front door. I should probably thank you for your ignorance.”

  “What are you talking about?” I as
k.

  But Dr. Moreau doesn’t answer me.

  Instead, he walks over to a set of large windows and throws open the panes. Then, he raises the walking stick over his head.

  “Come, my Dark Lord,” he yells out the window. “Come to my tower and claim your bounty. For it is I, your most loyal servant, who will finally deliver what you have long been seeking. I willingly invite you to come inside, my King of Darkness!”

  Um, did he just say, King… of Darkness?

  A chill runs through my body.

  “We’ve got to get everybody out of here!” I whisper to Kat, shaking her shoulders. “Now!”

  “What?” she says finally. “What’s happening?”

  But before I can answer, a black mist flows through the open window and I know it’s too late. It swirls around the room, passing over our heads, and then collects itself next to Dr. Moreau.

  Holy cow! There’s no mistaking it now!

  “Yes, my Dark Lord,” Dr. Moreau says, his face beaming.

  I’ve got to stop this, but I’m pretty much on my own. I mean, Hexum, and Rage are stuck in cages, Kat looks like a shell of herself, and Peter is dying. But I have to act. Lives are in danger!

  I go with my best bet.

  “Get up,” I whisper to Kat, helping her to her feet. “We’ve got to work together.”

  But as soon as she stands up, things go from bad to worse, because the dark mist transforms into the one person I’d least like to invite to my birthday party.

  Count Dracula!

  “Um, is that…?” Kat whispers.

  “Yep,” I say. “The end of the world.”

  As I take him in, I’m shocked. He’s incredibly tall, just like I remembered, but this time he looks… different. I mean, the last time I saw him he was struggling to even breathe. But now, as he towers over Dr. Moreau, he looks, well, way healthier. His pale skin isn’t paper thin anymore and his black hair is thick and full. And when he sees me his red eyes flicker and he smiles—his white, pointed teeth gleaming inside his bright, red lips.

  For some reason I can’t take my eyes off of him.

  “Bram?” Kat whispers, nudging me in the arm. “Snap out of it.”

  I shake my head. She’s right. That was weird. It almost felt like he had me in some kind of a spell.