VAMPIRE'S EMPIRE Van Helsing's Plea to The Light From the Inside Cover of His Journal, Circa 1753 The Light is my help and salvation Whom shall I fear? The Light is the strength of my life Of whom shall I be afraid? When mine enemies and my foes, Came upon me to eat my olf flesh, Came upone me to devour my sould (but not my garlic) The stumbled and fell. Unto thee, O Force of Light, do I lift up my soul I trust in thee, let me not be discouraged, Let not mine horrible enemiew triumph over me And teach me the way, show me the path. For in time of trouble it will be my shield And when I walk through his evil Lair, I will fear no one, for the Force of the Light And the stench of my garlic protect me. I put all my trust In the Force of Light and its Power To defend all that is good in the world To destroy the Prince of Darkness. Yea, hear my praise, my crying Hear my glorious honor and singing and Protect me from the mad ONE that hath horns and hoofs And free me of my arthritis. VAN HELSING'S JOURNAL, 12 FEBRUARY, 1693 My association with the undead began shortly after my thirteenth birthday. It must have been two o'clock in the morning, for I had heard the church bells as I slept. In my dreams I heard a long, low whisper. As it became more of a moan, I opened my eyes and slowly realized that this horrible sound was of the real world. Ever since my father left for the war, (charging me with my mother's protection), I had been keenly aware of any unusual sounds in our house. I leapt from my bed with a great sense of urgency and burst into my mother's room. Truly I can say to you, that what I saw at that moment changed my entire life. A tall figure with its back to me was bent over my mother's bed as she slept. In shock I screamed out a warning. As the figure turned towards me, I saw the features of its face, and the blood on its chin. A hundred childhood tales and old fables rushed through my head, and a single word came to my lips, "Vampire!" I attacked the creature with all I possessed. It was as if I had run head long into a stone wall. Its laughter deliberately mocked me as I clawed the demon's skin. It raised its arms and easily cast me from the room. The demon's laughter grew louder and louder with a hint of pleasure that was even more maddening than the mockery. In my desperation to escape, I tripped and fell into the bins in which my mother stored our food staples. As I lay cornered, I frantically hurled all objects within my reach at the beast in a futile attempt to injure it. The Vampire's laughter gnawed at my being and I became even more incensed. Having thrown all available utensiles I was reduced to pelting it with lettuce, potatoes and onions. It smiled amidst my fruitless attack. Suddenly it paused. Its nostrils twitched as its quick and calculating black eyes searched the room for something it appeared to smell. Garlic! The pungent odor overwhelmed me. A great noise echoed all around me, enveloping me, washing through my body. There was a sound of horrible agony then the creature was gone. And I felt the most extraordinary pleasure....... VAN HELSING'S JOURNAL, 15 JUNE, 1744 Today I returned from a most horrifying journey. After what has seemed like a lifetime of searching, I have discovered the underground lair of the Vampire King, Dracula himself. It is located deep within the Transylvanian forests, where most mortals dare not go. It had been many years since the death of my mother, and I had plenty of time to plan my attack as I searched for His lair. I had long known that the way to defeat this (Dracula) was the power of light. This was difficult because He was always deep within his lair by the first light of day. So my strategy was to place mirrors throughout his underground fortress and reflect the sunlight down into the vault itself, thus ridding the world of its most evil foe. However, I did not anticipate the horror of the half-human creatures I discovered there, ready to fight to the death to defend the Count. There are horrible looking mosters with enormous heads and gaping maws. Even worse are the young blonde creatures with curly hair who crave your very soul. I encountered a great number of "ordinary" vampires (Vampirus Trivius), but I was quite able to handle them with the garlic. But perhaps the most terrible of all are the female demons wearing lots of practically nothing, who prance about in the halls and caverns, showing everyone their great big...ahem, attractions, and even I had great (and very embarrassing) difficulties not to submit to their spells. I had not counted on this army of the undead, and I was unable to control the force of the light. Truly, I say to you, I was fortunate to escape with my very life. However, I cannot give up! For I am the famous vampirologist, Dr. Van Helsing! Or am I just an old fool? I must find a way to control the light...... VAN HELSING'S JOURNAL, 3 APRIL, 1753 Rapture! Oh, how my soul sings! For I have found a way to control the light. For years I have searched for a method of guiding sunlight into the bowels of the earth. What irony that in these modern times, someone such as myself should resort to sorcery and witchcraft. I must say that even I was somewhat hesitant upon hearing the old gypsy woman speak of a "magic ball" that could be used to direct sunlight. To think that such a device exists! Although when I stumbled upon it, it was used for nothing more than carnival illusions, I cannot help but think that its original purpose was the eradication of vampires. I now have the courage and method to again venture into the Count's lair. Now the adventure begins...... THE MAGIC OF VAMPIRE'S EMPIRE A) Mirrors and Garlic Garlic wards off approaching vampires and other assorted nasties. The mirrors reflect the light rays at the selected angle which, if you are successful, will destroy the evil Count. Garlic, assorted mirrors and the Magic Ball are selected by pressing the fire button and moving the joystick down. At the bottom of the screen you can seel which item is active (mirrors, garlic or magic ball). By selecting garlic, you can place a clove of garlic which may deter some of the vampires. You can place garlic or one of the magic mirrors by pressing the fire button and moving the joystick up. When you let go of the fire button then the object is activated. Van Helsing can also kick some of his enemies by moving the joystick down. This all sounds very confusing, but once you try it you'll get the idea. You can also throw garlic at your enemies by pressing the fire button and moving the joystick in the direction you are facing. NOTE: You can throw garlic in this manner, even if you do not have garlic selectd at the bottom of the screen. B) The Magic Ball It is possible to change the firection fo the light ray by catching it with the Magic Ball and redirecting where you want it to go. To do this, select the Magic Ball then press the fire button and move the joystick up. As long as you continue to hold the button down, you can move the Magic Ball up and down. Now, once you have captured the light, you can redirect it by pointing the joystick in the direction you want it to go, and THEN release the fire button. By using the Magic Ball and the mirrors, you can guide the light down into the lair in search of Count Dracula. =============================================================================== Vampire's Empire docs brought to you by The Southern Star.