“It is Belle’s fault! It is because of her that they came for Blackwood!”, the adopted orphaned daughters cried out before the adopted orphaned sons shouted next. “We’ll fight to avenge those that have fallen due to that which our father has created; we will right his wrong by putting an end to that monster!”, and the many caretakers agreed as they sat at their chairs around long and wide rectangle-like tables back at the Frankenstein Orphanage along with the grown orphans.

“Then we must journey to the castle and destroy the beast!”, declared Abraham Van Seward and everyone cheered as they raised their hands in agreement while Arthur Harker remained isolated in a room with a lantern that contained the soul of his beloved and lost Lucy Murray.

The human felt the glass in which she was contained and he could feel her warmth. How he missed her and how he longed to be with her but it was over for she was taken from him. The man knew what she was before she died and for what she is now; a spirit that lingers that is but merely a wisp, a whisper upon the wind, and a soul of one that has been lost that remains bound to this world. Arthur shed tears almost every day whenever he was with her and he leaned his head against the glass, tearing up for her loss even though he knew there was nothing he could do and yet he wished that he could of. He then raised his head firm and strong before stating.

“I will find her, Lucy, and I will set her free. She will not share your fate, this I promise you.”, he swore to her despite being unsure if she could even hear him or understand him. “I shall avenge you and all who perished underneath that monster’s plight.”, he declared and nodded his head.

“Good morning, sister.”, said Rendfield upon sighting Belle in his throne room with her paws lifted upon his table as she lay in her chair while petting her newfound pet. “I see that you made a friend?”, Rendfield was confused and she kept petting the big bad wolf as if he were a dog.

“Yes, he’s quite the little adorable specimen, isn’t he?”, she said while gazing into the big bad wolf’s eyes and snuggling his nose. “More Bloodwine, milady?”, a servant asked and Belle then smirked before she looked at the servant. “Really, is that even supposed to be a question?”, she asked and then Victor was brought into the room as Belle turned to see her father.

“Oh, hey, pa, do you like my new pet?”, the big bad wolf then growled at Victor only for her to smack his nose. “No, no, bad boy!”, she raised her voice at the lycanthrope that then lowered his head. “We do not treat our family like that, don’t we, Rendfield?”, the monster could not believe what he saw and simply stepped over to his throne while Victor shared the same thought in mind.

“Belle, are you…?”, he approached the table. “Are you drinking blood?”, he asked and then she turned her head, nodding. “Ugh, yeah?”, she replied as if it was nothing. “What have you done to my daughter?”, Victor asked and Rendfield chuckled. “I did nothing to harm my sister, father. I helped her.”, said Rendfield and then Belle laughed at this statement that startled both males.

“Helped me?”, she looked at Rendfield with a smile. “You idiot, you nearly killed me. It was the big bad wolf that saved this little beauty, wasn’t it? Yes, he did. Yes, he did!”, she snuggled the nose of the lycanthrope once more and Rendfield observed the interaction closely between them.

Jour Spriggins, Briar Rose, Talia Carabosse and Rose Red were also present that observed this ‘new Belle’ that had came to be after the vampire couple bit into her flesh and infected her.

“I beg your pardon, dear sister, but it was I that ordered that the curse be bestowed upon you…”, Rendfield spoke but then she interrupted him. “Blessing!”, by raising her voice. “It’s a blessing, you god damn idiot, and yes, while you did order it bestowed upon me you forgot one very important detail. If I am fully drained of my blood, then I cease to be by fading into nothingness, am I right guys?”, she turned to the other vampires that agreed with simple nods.

“And I am pretty sure I was well drained that night, no thanks to you two, but no hard feelings, alright? Because I now understand how the blood can be so exhilarating especially when they run and the blood pumps faster.”, this comment shocked Victor but also surprised the vampire couple that it was pointed towards. “So…”, Belle added and then looked back to Rendfield. “When you threw me back into my room, brother, I became ‘blessed’ as you see before you and yet I was dying. It was only by his blood, by his will alone, that I survived my full transformation into a Nosferatu that night. It is by his will that I am now here and therefore it is now by my will that he is here.”, the vampires remained silent for none of them spoke to Rendfield as Belle did and none ever dared to do so in his presence but Belle seemingly did not care.

The three elves that also present at the Royal Ball at the mayor’s mansion seemed to smile and take a liking to Belle that didn’t sit well with Rendfield at all. The white lycanthrope, the leader of all the lycanthropes in his castle, was under Belle’s will and this concerned him greatly.

“Belle…”, Victor called for his daughter than then turned her head. “Huh?”, she replied like a child once more and then he sighed before he leaned forth. “It is not a blessing, it a curse, and it is draining you from everything that made you a righteous force of reckoning. Think back, Belle, think back and try to remember the proud woodlands that surrounded Blackwood.”, he tried to reach into the depths of his soul and she raised one eyebrow before replying.

“I do and they were rather ‘Grim’. I was a killer then as I am a killer now. I am no different back compared to what I am now. Well, that’s not entirely true. I do enjoy feasting upon the flesh of my victims and the taste of their blood in my mouth for it entices me but that’s not the point. Back then I was a withdrawn, secluded, and coddled little kitten but now I am true to my nature and to who I always wanted to be without fully realizing it until now…”, the way that she spoke caused all the vampires to observe her closely while this both satisfied and yet disturbed Rendfield for he was glad his father was tormented for what she had become but…

“What exactly did she become?”, was the question on everyone’s mind at the table. “And make no mistake, father, I am a still a righteous force of reckoning but only by my own merit for I shall no longer serve those that take what is rightfully ours or place the lives of others after some form of currency or object. I no longer serve fools nor will I suffer because of one as I did in the past life. From this moment on, my will is my own, father, and you do well to remember that fact.”, the way that she spoke at the table this time was different for her childish demeanor dissipated for a moment that was replaced by a rather cold and heartless display of cunning.

All the vampires that sat at the table observed this behavior. Briar Rose then looked to her aunt for the first time without any hatred but rather a look that searched into the depths of Talia’s very soul, and Briar saw the same thing that Talia saw and that was ‘worry’ and ‘doubt’.

“So!”, she then broke the mood before looking to her brother. “I was wondering if I could have a tour of the castle for I’ve heard many great things about it. I was curious if we could see the, um, Scholomance, is it?”, when she said this they wondered how she knew about this and Rendfield then smirked before nodding his head. “Of course, my dear sister, after all I wished to show our dearest father his old laboratory today.”, Rendfield looked to Victor before Belle then suddenly clapped her claws which caused the monster to look back at her as she seemed so excited.

“Ugh, goodie, beastie, we get to see my brother’s birthplace!”, she said out loud and Rendfield looked on as she stood up. “Shall we?”, she smiled and Victor looked down hopelessly as they were then both taken down the flight of stairs to the underground lower sections.

These places were truly forsaken and where no light ever reached. It was decrepit and inhabited by dark undead beings, primarily skeletons that searched the piles of bones that they harvested from failing test subjects to imbue into their own bones or construct new skeletal monstrosities from. The ghouls in the area, the elves, eat the bodies of the deceased and others harvested blood or drained it from the corpses. Belle observed everything ever so closely and now knew well how everything functioned around here, how they all got their free goblets of blood and then she turned to see the bodies of the family that she and the wolf had slaughtered the day prior.

“Impressive…”, she commented. “Impressive, are you mad?!”, Victor replied. “This is inhumane and inhuman!”, he declared and then Belle turned to face him. “Yes, father, but not mundane.”, this response only served for Victor to see what Belle truly was as the three elves chuckled.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Skeletal constructs, abominations, and aberrations galore! The beauty in their design is far too great to behold and I can’t wait to create my own! Ugh, I am so excited!”, Belle stated and the monster smirked while Victor looked on with horror. “Home sweet home, ey, father?”, Rendfield said as he showed Victor his old laboratory that was exactly the same as he left it.

“I made sure that none of it remained undisturbed.”, he then pushed Victor inside of the lab and Belle looked around. “And I brought the last member of our family for us to reunite with.”, it was then that Rendfield patted the coffin only for the spirit of William to appear in the mirror.

“Leave me be, Rendfield, in peace so that I may rest!”, Belle turned and looked with curiosity.

“Oh, uncle, nice of you to join us!”, she raised her arms excitedly and the three elves had a grin on their face from ear to ear. “Father, look, it’s your long lost brother and one of my saviors! I think he’s also a pervert. He’s sort of everywhere in the castle and spying on people.”, Rendfield then looked towards William who placed both of his hands on the mirror.

“We shall leave the both of you alone to then to catch up while I show my dear sister around, yes?”, Rendfield asked and Victor looked down hopelessly as Belle then just walked out of the room on her own to observe her surroundings to which she saw what appeared to be wights.

The creatures were sowing the mouths of other deceased individuals and they also sown flesh together from many different body parts to create abominations. There was a body on the table that was still at the works with its chest opened and on one of the nearby tables there was a head whose one eye moved back and forth. There were humans in the laboratories below that seemed to augment these abominations with all kinds of metal plating that served as their armor as well as imbued cybernetics. Belle leaned over and studied closely for she had learned that is how they controlled the undead; through the means of technology of mankind.

“Lord Rendfield!”, a human then called and stepped forth. “What brings you to the school of necromancy?”, the man had his arms crossed in a robe and bowed his head. “It is bring your family to work day.”, replied Belle and the human leaned his head on the side, smirking.

“I beg your pardon?”, he asked and she then raised her right claw. “I am Lady Bellindia of House Frankenstein and Rendfield’s dear sister, and you are…?”, the human looked down towards her claw and then looked towards Rendfield whom he hoped would explain.

“I am Hester Nikola Zank, I am in charge of the apothecaries of this fine establishment and I am one of its instructors. It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Frankenstein.”, the man replied and then as she lowered her claw he reached for it that surprised her, and then he leaned down and kissed the back of her claw which is something that no one ever received from the scientist before.

“A tour, you say?”, he then said with a smile and spread his open. “The Scholomance is a school of the dark arts, necromancy and demonology. It is through nature that these undead rise and we have experience in sowing their bodies together and combining their souls as one but what we lack is the understanding on how your brother was created. For you see, he is the first creature with free will.”, the apothecary explained only for Belle to put her right main finger over her mouth in thought. “Abomination, you mean?”, she asked and he once again looked at Rendfield as he avoided that word purposely and yet Belle just flat out said it like it was nothing.

“You do not need to worry about my dear brother or how I word myself, Mr. Zank.”, Belle said to him as she took one step forth and got into the human’s face. “For you see, if he cannot accept what he is then we will never advance in science, won’t we? We will be held back, restricted, put on hold and we cannot afford that, now can we?”, the three elves found Belle to be excited by how she worded herself and how she talked, and the human simply then smiled at the situation.

“I fully agree, Lady Frankenstein, and I must apologize. I was just being considerate and polite.”, said the apothecary. “Considerate and polite is for the living, human, are you telling me you still have a heart beat after all that?”, the human looked towards her and for the first time appeared to be uncomfortable but this time he did not dare to look towards Rendfield.

“My heart still beats, milady, and it still gives me reason but it does not hinder me in my tasks.”, he stated and then she leaned her head back seemingly surprised. “Oh, it doesn’t?”, she asked and then placed her right claw over her chin. “In that case, I am going to give you a new experiment, one that I will specifically put you in charge of.”, she poked his nose as she said that. “Forgive me, m-milady…”, he stuttered as he looked nervous. “But I only obey the command of Lord Rendfield and none other.”, he stated and then Belle sighed disappointingly.

“Reny.”, she said as she turned to face her brother. “Please, oh, please, Reny!”, she jumped up and down like a child, grabbing onto Rendfield’s arm. “Please, oh, please tell the apothecary to start a new and far fascinating experiment for your little sister, please!”, Rendfield looked down at her and saw this other side of her, but he considered it psychopathic and disturbing.

“Why, of course, dear sister, but only if father also joins in on it.”, he said as a joke, thinking she would decline. “Okay!”, she then surprised him and then walked over to the human again. “So, here’s what you’re going to do. You and your apothecaries are going to make a giant, a very tall and wide abomination sewn together by flesh parts and heavy machinery! It is going to be the grandest and tallest monster I have ever seen and I will be so delighted when you’re done.”, she then patted his cheek and he looked at her before he would give his reply.

“Forgive me, milady, but such process in order for that kind of an abomination to fully function would require at least over a hundred or even two hundred souls depending on the size of the very abomination we are to make.”, he explained and then she sighed before grabbing him from both sides of his head. “And, what is the problem?”, she asked and he paused, unable to speak.

“Use the souls of men, women and children for all I care. Just make it happen, okay?”, she said and then he mumbled before saying. “Children?”, he asked while she turned around and she looked annoyed by his questioning that caused the big bad wolf to growl.

“You want us to imbue children into an abomination’s corpse? Are you mad? We would require far more technology for that and not to mention resources, and why on earth would we do that to children? Adults souls are way better to use for that process.”, she then turned around and looked at him with a serious but yet cold look he had never seen before. “All these questions, all these little and petty concerns…”, she stepped ever so closer to him and he felt her cold.

“The souls of children are far easier to control than adults and you know this, but it is your heart that is getting in the way of your experiments and its incessant drumming disgusts me…”, she raised her voice and now it sounded like she was disgusted with him. “Allow me to silence it as they did my own.”, she then placed her right claw over his chest where his heart was and then he felt a an intense cold as his entire heart froze into solid ice, and in that moment all emotion left his body and he could not feel it any longer before she let go off him.

“I’ll be back for results, Mr. Zank, and you best not disappoint me, okay?”, she said to him and he did not yet respond for his heart was frozen and he still adjusted. “Igor.”, she called and then the white lycanthrope approached, staring at her. “I need you to bring me fresh corpses. Go out for a hunt and bring me as many bodies as you are able, okay?”, the big bad wolf nodded its head and then turned as it left the Scholomance on its own before she looked to a mirror where she saw the soul of William staring at her while she showed no emotion whatsoever.

“And someone get a great mind out of those mirrors. He could make for a fine lab assistant.”, she said only for Rendfield to turn but not before William ran out of sight and bounds. “Don’t worry, brother, he can run and hide, but he’ll be back.”, she said to Rendfield that had difficulties of his own for he tried to understand why she adjusted to this new life so quick.

The three elves did not hide their likeness, the human walked away with his heart frozen to an icy husk and stepped forth inside of his laboratory as the other apothecaries looked on. Belle walked and then snapped her fingers before pointing to Rendfield.

“What other beautiful sights do we have left to see?”, asked Belle and then the ebony harlefi stepped forth. “Lady Frankenstein, I would like to show you what I have been working on.”, she said and Belle looked as the harlefi pointed to a glass that looked inside of a room.

It was then that dark green gas poured into the room that created clouds of the plague that started to suffocate the humans inside. It caused the humans to become very nauseous before they would vomit and start to violently cough upon inhaling it. Their muscles convulsed, they bled from their eyes and their skin blackened that revealed a form of necrosis but their skin also burnt as well scaled. All the while Belle observed she noticed how the humans would claw at their own flesh and their eyes melted away before they spat blood out of their mouth. They then collapsed and fell down with their death occurring before some could even hit the ground. The harlefi observed Lady Frankenstein’s face and she felt as if she was horrified by what she had seen but the harlefi couldn’t have been far from wrong. Belle was entranced, she was amazed, and she was very perplexed. She was overjoyed at what she had seen and for the first time her cold heart warmed to actually feel a beat and she stepped forth to the glass after the process only took but a mere ten to twenty seconds. She then smiled and placed her claws over the glass…

“Magnificent…”, she said those words with all the dark and twisted love that she could muster before turning to the harlefi. “But not yet perfect.”, this confused the three elves. “Death is but mercy, true death is a gift. I want you three to call me when the plague does not destroy the vital organs or damage any of the flesh, but savor it and raise the dead as one of our own. I want you to inform me when you perfect the Plague of Undeath.”, the three elves then smiled before they took their bow and in that moment they became the chosen of Lady Frankenstein that walked away as she whistled for her brother to follow for she wanted to see more of the castle…