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All he wanted was to rest in peace.

The past life of Duncan Corley is unknown, except for after his death his body was laid to rest in Highland Cemetery in London. There he would rest peacefully until his body was disturbed by the superstitions of one Paul Beare. Beare was a sorcerer and Satanist who was deeply superstitious and desired to have his own remains buried in the most astrologically perfect location. Unfortunately for poor Duncan, this choice spot was occupied with his own grave.

Beare hired lawyer James Jackson to manipulate the law to allow the body of Duncan to be removed so that Paul's corpse could be buried in this location. If this was not insult enough to the late Duncan Corley, part of his tombstone was used in making a necklace for Paul's wife. Disturbed from his eternal sleep, the decayed corpse of Duncan rose from his grave and attempted to reclaim what is his:

First, the creature removed the body of Paul Beare and returned it to his home with a note warning against returning Paul's body to the grave that rightfully belonged to Duncan. Then he went to the home of James Jackson, and killed Jackson and (accidentally) his secretary, reclaiming the papers of ownership of his cemetery plot. Their murders caught the attention of Scotland Yard and its Inspector Chelm.

Returning to his proper grave site, Duncan was unearthed by two would-be grave robbers. This was witnessed by Dracula who intended to the two robbers to be his next meal. However, Duncan killed the two men before crumbling into dust, denying Dracula any sort of revenge.

Dracula and Chelm came across the creature again as it managed to reclaim the necklace from Mrs. Baere. Through their own independent investigation both Dracula and Chelm figured out what was happening, leading them both back to Highland Cemetery -- Dracula with the corpse of Baere, intending to return it to it's proper grave. There, Dracula fought and defeated the undead Corley, and learned the full story before leaving the scene to return the body of Corley to it's proper resting place.

Attributes

Powers

A reanimated corpse, Corley could move and had an almost instinctual intelligence. He could carry on his intended tasks even if parts of his skeleton (such as his skull and one of his hands) were removed from his body. He appeared to have the ability to crumble into dust and reincorporate in other locations, but seemed to only do this once a task was completed or battle was unnecessary.

Weaknesses

This undead body did not appear to have any weaknesses whatsoever, however it would become inert once it had accomplished a task or found battle unnecessary. Returning Corley to his proper grave would insure that he would return to his eternal rest.

Trivia

Highgate Cemetery is famous in our reality as the last resting place of Karl Marx, among many other famous names.

See Also

Links and References

References

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