Rachel van Helsing

Rachel van Helsing is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.

Fictional character biography

Rachel van Helsing was the great-granddaughter of Abraham Van Helsing, the legendary vampire hunter whose exploits against the vampire lord Dracula were chronicled in Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula. As a child, Rachel was witness to the murders of her parents at the hands of Dracula, in revenge for his defeat by Abraham Van Helsing. Rachel was subsequently raised by vampire hunter Quincy Harker, who was Dracula's most persistent enemy in the 20th century.

While earning her PhD in anthropology and studying parapsychology, Rachel was trained as a vampire hunter by Harker. When Dracula led a large vampire attack on a village in India, Rachel slew the vampire that had bitten the boy Adri Nital using her wooden crossbow, and drove Dracula off when he tried to slay the boy’s father, Taj Nital. Taj joined the band of vampire hunters both in gratitude and for revenge against Dracula for his son’s transformation into a vampire.

Rachel and Taj were later joined by Frank Drake. Rachel and Frank fell in love, and Frank joined Harker’s organization of vampire hunters. They clashed repeatedly with Dracula over the years, and Harker finally slew him at the cost of his own life. Following Harker’s death, at his request Rachel tried to find happiness with Frank, but due to his feelings of inadequacy and her emotional inhibitions they ultimately parted.

After leaving her teaching job...
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