The whole area - the Chaos Realm - had been surreal and just plain crazy. Soma dragged himself up to the platform and looked across the gap. The door on the other side made him think that this was it, the end. He stumbled in from the closer doorway, quite relieved to find the room to be another one of the safe rooms around the castle, with the Virgin Mary statue and all.

"Almost there..." He mumbled to himself, sighing as he sat by the statue and relaxed a little. He figured he would have to calm down and gather all strength he had if he wanted to win this. He stretched his arms and checked his equipment, then just sat still and tried to mentally prepare himself. He had to admit feeling quite nervous. The room was rather cozy and peaceful though, so he allowed himself to let his guard down for a moment, and closed his eyes.

The statue didn't make for the most comfortable pillow, but Soma was used to hard surfaces by now. He felt himself drifting off and jerked himself back to reality for a moment, reminding himself that he needed to go take care of the Chaos Arikado had warned him about before it took over him, then closed his eyes and drifted off again. He knew he should get up, but he was so tired... It wasn't too long before he had fallen asleep completely.

He opened his eyes then suddenly, but what he saw wasn't the room where he had been just a moment before. He blinked, not really sure what was going on. It was dark and he couldn't see anything around him. It felt quite real though, and he wondered if the Chaos had taken control of him somehow. He then shook his head; that couldn't be it. He felt quite comfortable, and whatever this place was, he didn't feel threatened. Rather, it felt like home.

Soma picked himself up and idly brushed off his coat. His eyes were getting used to the darkness and he could see a few glimmers of light off to the side. Lacking any better ideas, he walked to them and into a door.

After stumbling back and a bit of cursing, Soma felt ahead of him with one hand, scrabbling for a doorknob. After what seemed to be a very long time he did find one and opened the door with a sigh of relief.

He blinked at the sudden light. The room was lit by several candles and some kind of a magical lamp on the table. A man with black hair sat behind the desk, and he raised his head to look at Soma as the boy entered the room.

"What...? You. What are you doing here?" The man asked with a slight frown on his face. Soma stared at him for a moment, trying to figure out who exactly the man was. The man's face, the handsome features and the noble appearance; it all seemed very familiar, way too familiar, but Soma just couldn't remember who it was.

"Me? I, I don't know. Am I not supposed to be here? Wait, where is here?" Soma stuttered for a bit and tried to regain his composure when he realized how he had been staring. The man sighed and placed a bookmark in the book he had open on the desk in front of him and stood up. Soma had to admit to feeling a little intimidated when the man walked over and stood in front of him, he was tall. Probably even taller than Hammer, though this man was a lot thinner, more like Arikado... Soma blinked and nearly laughed when it came to him. That's who the man resembled, an older and more bitter Arikado. But he lost the urge to laugh when he looked up again and found the older man still staring at him, and he began to feel a little nervous.

The man looked down at Soma, his face reflecting some kind of an internal struggle. He then suddenly smiled and raised his hand to touch the boy's face. "Well, Soma. No, not really. This is the corner of your mind which you don't know to exist... Or should I really say that, now that you've regained the powers? You know who you are... Who I am. Who we are."

Soma gulped, then managed an innocent grin as he looked back at the tall man. "Ah... um... hi?" He couldn't get himself to say the name. Dracula.

The ...vampire? Soma wasn't sure, looked amused at the boy's nervousness. "No need to be scared. I have no reason to hurt you." The man's voice was gentle and reassuring, and Soma relaxed a little. He still wasn't sure if he should trust the man, but... "How did you come here?" Dracula asked, still sounding calm and pleasant.

"Well, I was going to sleep, and then boom, I was here." The explanation sounded depressingly close to how he had described how he had gotten into the castle in the first place, and Soma sighed a little.

"Hmm. Could it be..." Dracula pondered, then patted the boy on the shoulder. "Wait, where did you fall asleep again? The castle, it might..." He paused, a hint of a smile touching his lip. "Oh I see," he said, raising his hand and pointing absently at Soma. "The Chaos Realm."

Soma studied the tall man carefully. If this was Dracula, then... Had Chaos managed to take over him that easily? He panicked for a moment, then looked at the man again, remembering that if Dracula was still here, somewhere in his mind, things should be fine. "Well, yeah," he admitted. "There was this safe room thing, and I was tired. Shouldn't really have fallen asleep but..."

The dark-haired man nodded, staring off into the distance. "Yes, that would explain things. Still, there is no harm in you being here, really... not directly, at least." Soma repressed another jolt of panic at the man's last words, but reminded himself that if he was careful, then nothing bad would happen. He just had to figure out a way out of here and wake up. Then everything would work out.

Dracula patted his shoulder again and began to walk back to the desk, idly dragging a chair out of the shadows as he did so. "Come then, sit down. We might as well have a chat." Soma blinked, but did as he was asked and sat nervously on the edge of the chair.

"Sure," Soma mumbled, then glanced at the door. "Maybe I shouldn't be here though. The Chaos thing might..."

"Do what?" Dracula asked as he sat down. "I know what you're thinking," he continued, smiling. "That I'm going to harm you somehow. You forget that the Chaos and I are separate. I'm just... here." Soma looked at him curiously, wondering if the man was telling the truth. He sounded pretty convincing, at least. "You are just my reincarnation, that's all. I'm not the dark lord they told you about."

"So... you're just a normal guy now?" Soma asked, a little skeptical. It did seem a little hard to believe, but Arikado had talked about the chaotic influence making him into the dark lord, it wasn't too big of a stretch to believe that the same thing had happened to Dracula. The man looked honest enough as he quietly nodded in response to Soma's question. "Even still," the boy continued, feeling awkward, "I should probably get going. I mean... There are people waiting for me."

"Won't you stay awhile?" Soma glanced back to the former dark lord, surprised at the odd wistful note in the man's voice. "There's nothing here but my memories. I would... appreciate some company."

The boy felt a little guilty at that. This did seem to be a lonely place to live, locked up in the back of his mind with nothing to do all day. "Well... all right," he mumbled, turning back to the older man.

Dracula smiled to him, appearing relieved. His gaze studied the younger man, and Soma shivered a little, getting an odd feeling from the way the man was looking at him. He then looked back, grinning slightly. This man, Dracula, did indeed remind him of Arikado somewhat... Must have been the inhuman beauty, he concluded. He then frowned a little, wondering what exactly Arikado was.

"So," the older man said, interrupting his thoughts. "Ah, forgive me, I'm not too good at coming up with subjects for conversation. It's been... a long time since I've talked to anyone. You're..." He leaned closer, his golden eyes still fixed on the boy. "Quite a handsome young man, I must say."

"Uh..." Soma froze while he cast desperately for something to say to that. "Ah, thank you? Um... you too, I guess. I... uh..." He realized was floundering and making an ass of himself and shut up, grinning nervously.

Dracula smiled back gently. "I apologize if I was improper." He chuckled a little, and Soma started to relax. "It really has been a long time, hasn't it? But it is true, you know." He leaned forward again, moving his hand very close to where Soma's rested on the edge of the desk. "A lot of girls must like you."

Soma blushed a little, embarrassed. Here he was, talking to Dracula of all people, and getting complimented for his looks! "I guess... I don't really... well..." He trailed off, not really sure what to say. That he kind of had someone? Or that he wasn't actually liked by just girls?

"Although," Dracula added with a smirk, like he had guessed what Soma was thinking. "With your looks, I would say it's safe to say that it's not just the girls admiring you."

The older man moved his hand even closer, touching Soma's fingers gently, and the boy suddenly found the carpet very interesting. He mumbled something as a response, but he couldn't even make out what he was trying to say himself.

"It's not such a bad thing, you know." Soma could barely make out the man's words through the haze of embarrassment he was feeling. He was almost too aware of the man's fingers touching his own, but he couldn't quite bring himself to draw away. "There are some advantages... though I wouldn't expect you to really know them yet." Soma blushed harder as the man continued and nodded, trying not to pay attention. Of course he did have some idea, but there was no way he'd ever admit it now.

Dracula then covered Soma's hand with his own, smiling knowingly. "I apologize again. I must be embarrassing you... Or, hmm. Why does that idea make you so embarrassed anyway? Does it perhaps bother you that you're so good-looking that even males look at you? Ah, of course it would, you don't-"

"I-it's okay," Soma mumbled, then looked at the older man carefully. "I, uh, I'm used to it. And it doesn't bother me, I mean, I'm..." He bit his lip, not sure what exactly he was saying. It wasn't like his sexual interests were any of the vampire's business... Or, he then reminded himself, then again, Dracula might have known already. This place was his mind, after all.

"Hmm? Or do you have your interests as well?" Dracula purred softly, rubbing his thumb across the back of Soma's hand. The boy gulped and looked away again. That small movement felt a little too good. "That's not such a bad thing either, you know. Indeed, it can be quite the advantage."

"I wouldn't - I mean, yes, but..." Soma trailed off awkwardly and bit his lip. He felt he should bring up Mina at some point, but he wasn't sure of how. And they weren't really together anyway...

The older man laughed softly and moved a little closer. He continued caressing the boy's hand, and Soma concentrated on staring at a pen on the desktop to distract himself. "Come on, tell me," Dracula whispered. "I'm quite curious about how well my reincarnation is doing. Have you ever... done anything?"

Soma jerked away from the vampire and suddenly found himself sprawled on the floor. He tried to regain his breath while speaking sharply to the older man, an idea made only slightly less effective by how he was craning his neck to look the other in the face. "That's... that's none of your business! Even if you are... we are... still!"

Dracula knelt by him suddenly and took Soma's face to his hands. "I could teach you, you know," he said with a low, gentle, seducing voice. "I have experience... And you are so beautiful." There was something in the way the vampire spoke, something in his voice that made Soma want to listen, but some part of him also was telling him that something was wrong.

"I, um..." He mumbled, finding it hard to talk. He sighed and pressed his face against Dracula's touch; it felt so good, too good... Soma blinked and tried to pull away. He wasn't perhaps that experienced, but he sure as hell knew when somebody was trying to seduce him.

"Is something wrong?" One of the vampire's hands slid to cup the back of Soma's head and prevent him from pulling away. "There is nothing to be ashamed about. No one to know, no one to care... And you could learn so much." Dracula's voice continued to be soft and gentle and Soma found it harder and harder to think straight. Long fingers rubbed at the back of his head, carefully pulling him back, and somehow he didn't quite want to resist...

The boy shook his head and suddenly tried to jerk away from the older man's touch. This was wrong, and he knew it. "No, no thank you," he said, attempting to sound firm and determined, but he sounded unsure even to himself.

"Are you absolutely sure about that?" Dracula asked, the tone of his voice almost disappointed and hurt, and it made Soma feel somehow guilty. After all, there was nowhere for the vampire to go, and he had been alone so long. The boy looked into the ex-dark lord's eyes, finding them to be quite beautiful and the look in them so melancholy.

No, he told himself. Vampires were good at seducing their prey, right? He certainly could not agree to what Dracula was suggesting, but then again wasn't the vampire right? Nobody would know, and... He bit his lip, desperate to get his thoughts back together. Still, wouldn't it be kind of like touching himself, considering they were the same...? Soma closed his eyes, fighting to stay in control of himself.

Dracula let his hands drop from touching Soma to rest in his lap. "Well, I suppose if you are so insistent, there is nothing to be done. It is a pity, but..." Soma winced to hear the man sounding so resigned. The vampire was looking away from him, head bowed, and the picture he made was almost too much to resist. And, it wasn't like it was real sex or anything... The man technically didn't even exist anymore, and they were both locked too deep into his mind for it to count anyway... Soma made his decision and spoke before he could change his mind.

"I, I... I'm sorry, of course I will, I mean... yes."

The vampire smiled then and pulled him up from the floor. "I'm very glad to hear that. Your warmth makes me overjoyed..." He drew his fingers over the boy's face, then sat back on his chair, holding out his hand for Soma. "Come here."

Some part of his mind tried to warn him and convince him that his decision had not been a good one, but Soma couldn't stop himself from taking a step forward and taking the vampire's hand to his own. Dracula nodded slightly and pulled him onto his lap, then raised his other hand, took a gentle hold of Soma's hair and pulled the boy closer for a kiss.

Soma tried to relax into the kiss, though he still felt a little unsure about the whole thing. He had to admit Dracula knew what he was doing, though... That man knew how to kiss. He gasped a little when the vampire drew his tongue over his lower lip before beginning to press inside, but he slowly relaxed enough to let the older man in.

It felt so good, and Soma idly thought that it was easy to just lose himself into the kiss and forget about everything that had happened today and the things that he still needed to take care of. He shifted on the older man's lap a little, his body reacting to the kiss a little more eagerly than he wished for.

"Hmm, still so young," Dracula commented between their kisses, appearing amused. He slowly worked on Soma's coat with one hand and pulled it down from the boy's shoulders, then tossed it on the desk. Soma shivered a little as the vampire's hand returned to his body and moved down to his waist.

Dracula's fingers played idly with the hem of Soma's shirt and the boy wiggled some more, trying to encourage the man to move lower. The vampire chuckled again and began to work on getting Soma's shirt all the way off. The young man still wasn't too sure, but it was nice, so he did his best to help the older man, and after a few awkward moments the turtleneck joined his coat on the desk.

"Quite beautiful indeed," the vampire complimented, taking a moment to admire the boy's upper body. Soma felt somewhat embarrassed from the way the older man was looking at him, but the vampire appeared to be quite honest with his words.

"Thanks," the boy muttered, hesitating a little before raising his hands to the other man's collar. He undid the scarf the vampire had and worked on opening his coat and shirt for a bit while Dracula watched him with a gentle smile on his face. Soma settled to just opening the older man's shirt a little; it wasn't like he was supposed to take the lead here.

Soma awkwardly fumbled with a few of the fastenings on Dracula's shirt; they weren't like anything he had seen before. The vampire watched him for a moment, then gently reached over and undid them himself. Soma let his hands drop after that, not quite knowing what he was supposed to do next. Dracula smiled at him and petted his hair. "You don't have to be shy, you know."

"Ah, yeah, I was just..." Soma gave the older man a silly grin, then reached to caress the man's long black hair. It felt quite nice under his fingers, and he smiled, a lot more relaxed now. What did he have to be afraid of, anyway? This was in his mind; how could anything bad happen? He closed his eyes and caressed the older man's hair, enjoying the feeling of being close to someone. Dracula drew him close for another kiss, running his fingers over the boy's skin while kissing him.

Soma pressed closer to the older man, breaking the kiss to press his face into the vampire's shoulder. Dracula made an amused noise and lightly began to trace the boy's spine with his fingers, making Soma shiver. That really did feel nice. The vampire's hand reached Soma's waist and slipped between them to work on the boy's pants. Soma purred and shifted to give the vampire better access, nuzzling into Dracula's neck while he did.

The vampire succeeded in getting the young man's pants open a moment later. He then took a hold of Soma's waist and lifted him a little, working to get the boy's pants off. Soma squirmed a little, trying to be helpful before getting impatient a few seconds later and moving to get rid of his shoes and pants himself. Dracula laughed softly, then pulled the boy into his embrace again.

Soma wiggled happily, enjoying the feel of the vampire's clothes on his skin. He reached up to kiss the man again, wrapping his arms around Dracula's neck. The vampire moved a hand up to grasp the back of the boy's head again, pulling Soma back so he could nibble at his neck. Soma started a little, then relaxed happily into the touch. "You... aren't going to bite me, right?"

"Bite?" Dracula paused his caresses for a second and laughed. "Perhaps I am," he said with a mischievous voice. "Perhaps not. But tell me - what difference would it make anyway? It's not like anything that happens to you here could... directly happen to you in the real world. Well," he then added. "Outside, maybe, your body actually reacting to what your mind is occupied with..."

Soma grinned, relaxing more in the vampire's embrace. "Eh heh... Yeah, I suppose you're right. I can't exactly turn into a vampire if I'm... well..." He then gasped as the older man's hand found his erection, and he pressed himself against the touch, a soft moan escaping from his lips.

"It doesn't quite work like that anyway," Dracula purred as he began to gently stroke Soma. "There's a bit more work to it. But that's... mm, not really important." Soma wasn't paying attention, the vampire's hand felt good. He twisted and clung to the older man harder, softly gasping. Dracula picked up one of Soma's hands and placed it on his own chest. Soma took the hint and began to caress him gently, making the vampire sigh.

Soma closed his eyes again, simply enjoying the feeling of the older man's hands on his body. The vampire returned to carefully gnawing on his neck, and Soma decided he liked that quite a lot. He drew his fingers over the older man's chest, finding the vampire's skin to be cool, but it felt quite pleasant under his hand.

"Ah..." He froze then as the vampire's fingers brushed over the tip of his sex, teasing him. Dracula looked at him with a smirk on his face while he continued fondling his young companion.

Soma gasped, enjoying the feeling of the vampire's hands and teeth. Impulsively he moved his hands lower on the older man's body and began to work on undoing the long sash Dracula wore. The man chuckled and moved to help Soma until they finally managed to get it off, whereupon Dracula tossed it over Soma's shoulders with a smirk. "There. It looks lovely on you."

The young man grinned, returning to working with the vampire's clothes. He frowned a moment later, a little frustrated as he couldn't figure out the older man's pants.

"Let me," Dracula interrupted, taking care of the problem quickly. "There you go," he added with a smile on his lips, his hands returning to caressing the boy. Soma smiled back at the older man, then slipped his hand down the vampire's body again. He glanced down and blushed; the vampire wasn't just otherwise tall, it certainly applied on other matters as well.

Dracula smiled and cupped Soma's face gently, and the boy enjoyed the cool flesh against his hot skin. The older man pulled him down to kiss him again, then worked on adjusting the way Soma sat on his lap so that the boy was straddling him. The boy shifted a little, trying to get comfortable before settling down and looking at the vampire. "So, um... what now?" He had some ideas, but...

"Well," the older man said, smiling calmly. "Better do some preparations if we're planning on anything." He leaned closer to the desk, opened a drawer and searched for something for a moment, a slight frown appearing on his face as he didn't find the item right away. He then smiled again as he found a bottle of oil, the real purpose of which Soma didn't bother trying to figure out.

Soma did, however know what it was for enough to raise a leg and, after holding it awkwardly in the air for a second, decided to rest it on the desk. He wobbled for a second, then grabbed Dracula's shoulder to steady himself and gave the man a grin. "Ready, I guess."

Dracula finished opening the bottle and dipped his fingers into it, the other hand going around Soma's waist to help hold him steady. "Good. This shouldn't hurt that much."

Soma gasped and clung to the older man's shoulder when the vampire's fingers entered him. He tried to relax, having to admit that it hurt slightly, but the feeling was overall quite pleasant. He moved carefully, pressing himself against Dracula's hand a little. The older man gave him a half smile, watching him closely, making Soma think that the vampire probably got some strange pleasure out of it.

"Does it hurt badly?" the vampire asked gently, caressing Soma's side as he carefully pushed his finger deeper inside Soma. The boy gasped and winced a little but managed a smile.

"I'm all right. It's just... new," He pressed himself into the older man's touch, starting to enjoy it more. "Kind of nice too, though..."

Dracula kissed the boy's hand on his shoulder and smiled. "It will get better, I promise. It does take a bit of getting used to, but it will be very much worth any pain it might cause..." His smile turned into something knowing and a little mischievous, and for a moment Soma wondered what really went on it the vampire's mind. The older man still obviously knew what he was doing, and Soma pushed his doubts aside. He had more important things to think about - or rather, he was busy trying to keep his thoughts together in the first place.

"Aah... mm," Soma mumbled as the vampire's fingers pressed against something that made him feel really good. Dracula chuckled and continued the caresses. "Did you like that?" He asked, his voice somewhat teasing. "I can teach you so much more."

"Like... like what?" Soma whimpered and struggled to keep thinking in straight lines, or at all... Dracula was pressing against that spot again and it felt good and easy to slip away and just enjoy it.

The vampire chuckled to see the boy's reactions and nuzzled gently at his hand. "Hush. I will show you in due time. Patience." Soma was about to say something more, but he forgot it a few seconds later, instead just leaning forward and clinging to the vampire. It really did feel nice now.

"Although," Dracula whispered after a while, "Can't show you everything at once. You're young and can't handle this much longer." He grinned oddly as he removed his fingers; Soma sighed disappointedly, idly noticing the grin and paying attention to the fact that the older man had sharp teeth. It didn't really matter, but the grin just caught his attention.

He clung to the vampire weakly, barely able to think. His thoughts were turning into a thick mist, and he mumbled something when Dracula adjusted their position. The vampire grabbed him by the waist and pulled him closer, and Soma then cried out sharply, the pain of being entered by the tall man quite a lot worse than he had imagined.

Soma bit back more cries, burying his face in the vampire's shoulder as Dracula petted his hair, and Soma thought he heard soothing noises, though it was hard to tell. The older man was holding very still, apparently having not quite expected the boy's reaction either. "It will be easier if you try to relax. It hurts, yes, but...mmm...I will teach you how it can be worth it." Soma hissed a little, but the pain was fading, slightly. Dracula did seem to know what he was talking about.

The older man held him gently, then shifted his position a little and carefully pressed deeper into Soma. The pain was still there, but Soma had to admit it was starting to feel better. His thoughts were turning more incoherent every moment, and by the time Dracula let his hand fall from caressing the boy's hair down to fondling his sex, Soma cried out again, but this time not from pain.

Dracula pulled the boy a little closer and lightly nipped at his ear. He whispered something to Soma, and though the boy wasn't quite sure what he said, he nodded and pressed against the older man anyway, moaning. The pain had pretty much receded and Soma settled himself as comfortably as he could, starting to enjoy the feeling as he clung to Dracula.

"Better now?" Soma heard the older man ask, and he mumbled a quiet response that he couldn't actually make anything out of. He squirmed in the vampire's hold, trying to press himself against the hand on his erection at the same time as he tried to take more of the vampire's sex into him. He shivered as Dracula hit a sweet spot inside of him, more of those cries of pleasure escaping from his lips. The vampire had sure known what he was saying when telling him it would be worth it.

Soma jerked and cried out again, not really sure what he was doing. He could vaguely hear Dracula murmuring something as well, but he wasn't paying enough attention to listen properly. The touch felt good and he was sure he wasn't going to hold out much longer. He pressed himself into the vampire's hand and then back on his sex, shaking uncontrollably before gasping and releasing onto Dracula's hand.

It felt simply great, and he let himself slump into the vampire's hold. He heard Dracula laughing, something very malicious in that laugh that he couldn't understand right then. The vampire held him gently, whispering something to him, and the only word he could make out from it was "sleep". It didn't sound like such a bad idea, and Soma let himself drift away slowly.

He was jerked out of his reverie by the familiar electronic tones of his cell phone playing Mina's ring. He made a half-conscious grab for his side before remembering that his coat was on the desk on his other side and awkwardly scrambled over Dracula to get there, much to the vampire's surprise and annoyance. He finally managed to grab the small object, but by the time he had opened it and started listening for Mina all he cold hear was static. "Guess it doesn't work in the dream world..." Soma said, feeling a little disappointed and embarrassed.

"You... Are mine..." Dracula suddenly hissed, reaching for the boy. "Sleep, Soma. Sleep... for all eternity!"

Soma yelped, suddenly frightened when the vampire grabbed him. Dracula lifted him up by the throat and glared at him. "So close. You were so close to losing all control, which would have allowed me to take over. Well, let's try the not so pleasing way then!"

"No, you can't-" Soma answered hastily, then got cut off by the vampire's grip turning to strong that he couldn't breathe. He couldn't die here, not before... Arikado's face flashed in front of his eyes, the man telling him that he was the only one who could do this. He closed his eyes then, wishing he could have mumbled an apology...

"What? NO!" Dracula dropped him then, slumped into the chair and covered his face. "No, it can't be...!!"

That was the last thing Soma remembered before he felt a strong force trying to push him away, and he opened his eyes and realized he was awake. Awake, in the real world, if the surreal world of Chaos just could be called that.

He tried to stand up, feeling uncomfortable and started to work on cleaning himself up. It took awhile, and he wasn't too happy with the results, but there was nothing to be done about it. He still had to go beat the Chaos and save everyone. Shaking his head to try and forget the dream he left the room.

Author's notes:

In the rough draft, buried thirty fathoms deep beneath the deepest part of the ocean, guarded by the great world-snake in a cavern of fireflowers that do not touch its steel-lined pages, the ending had PIRATES.

-MarsDragon

The world needs more Dracula pr0n. And Soma pr0n too. Here, have both!

- Lady Harken (January 2006)