The movie began in 1422 when the Turkish Sultan enslaved thousands of Transylvanian boys to
fill the ranks of his army.
The enslaved children were trained to kill anyone who defied the Turks.
Vlad the Impaler, Son of the Dragon, grew up to become their most feared warrior.
Tormented by his monstrous acts, he returned to Transylvania to rule peacefully as a Prince
of Wallachia and Transylvania.
A mysterious Romani named Shkelgim finds a discarded Turkish helmet on a stream near
Transylvania.
Vlad notes that it's a scout's helmet and deduces that a scouting party of Turks has
entered Transylvania territory, leading him to believe that the Turks intend to invade
them.
Vlad figures the helmet came from Broken Tooth Mountain, where the Turkish scouts must be.
Vlad asks one of his men, Dumitru, to return to the castle in double security.
Later, Vlad and his two men climb the mountain and search for any signs of the Turks.
Suddenly, a hoard of bats flies out of a cave, and Vlad deduces that they must be disturbed,
so they head inside the cave to investigate.
Inside, the three men wander into the pitch-black darkness of the cave; old armor, skeletons,
and crushed bones litter the cave ground.
Suddenly, an unseen creature pulls one of his men into the darkness.
Vlad and the other soldier run, but the beast in the shadows takes the other soldier.
At the same time, Vlad tries to defend himself by stabbing it with his sword as he crawls
back to the cave entrance, pointing his silver sword toward the creature.
Vlad reaches the sunlight as the pale-faced fanged monster stops, retreating to the cave's
darkness.
At Castle Dracula, Vlad consults with a monk, Brother Lucian, about the creature.
Lucian recounts the history of the vampire, a man who bargains with a demon for power.
The demon grants him power, but he is cursed to dwell in that cave for eternity and will
only be released if another takes his place.
After that, Vlad visits his wife, Mirena, and son, Ingeras.
His family greets him warmly, but Mirena notices something bothering him.
Still, Vlad doesn't tell her about the creature.
He mourns for his men, then recounts how he was sent to war at Ingeras's age.
Vlad wishes never to fight anymore and wants peace.
The following day, as Vlad and his family celebrate Easter, the court comes together
for a grand feast, and they toast for peace and prosperity that Vlad has brought them.
Unexpectedly, Hamza Bey, a high-ranking commander of the Turkish army, enters.
Vlad offers him the tribute for the Sultan, but Hamza Bay demands what happened to a battalion
of his missing scouts.
He speaks Turkish, so only Vlad understands and tells of the darkness he knows is in his
heart, calling Vlad "Lord Impaler."
Vlad denies this, then asks him to take the tribute and leave.
However, Hamza Bay announces that Sultan Mehmed demands a thousand boys to service his army,
and the townspeople protest.
Vlad, who was a child soldier himself, is shocked as the Sultan ended that cruel practice
years ago.
Hamza states that child soldiers are more obedient than adults.
Vlad turns down the demand, but he is reminded of his lack of an army to compel the Turks
to leave Transylvania in peace, and therefore has no choice but to obey.
That evening, Vlad admits to Ingeras that his father gave him a royal hostage to prove
his loyalty to the Sultan, but he won't do that.
Later that evening, Vlad worries that hundreds will be killed if he tries to spare the boys.
Mirena believes Vlad can convince Sultan Mehmed to show mercy.
The following day, Vlad visits Mehmed, and the two drink as they reminisce about their
younger days.
Vlad offers himself in place of the boys, but Mehmed refuses and demands Vlad's son
as well.
Vlad begs him to reconsider, but he is relentless with his decision.
The day arrives to give Ingeras to the Turks.
Mirena begs Vlad to do something as a group of Turkish soldiers marches toward them to
collect their son.
Mirena reminds him of his promise to protect their children before she marries him.
However, Cazan, Vlad's advisor, stresses that if they defy, they'll have war.
Seeing the soldier's advance, Vlad approaches them; Ingeras volunteers to go promising that
he will survive just as he did.
Vlad takes his son by the hand, and they calmly walk to meet the group of soldiers headed
by Hamza Bey.
Hamza Bey remarks that he expected Vlad to resist more, making Vlad realize what he's
giving up.
Vlad whispers to Ingeras to run back to his mother.
As soon as he's out of the way, Vlad seizes Hamza Bey's sword, cuts off his arms, and
easily rips into the soldiers.
Cazan is furious, knowing now that the Sultan will declare war on the whole of Transylvania
as retaliation.
Vlad insists that a child shouldn't be sacrificed for his country.
Vlad goes to the vampire's cave and seeks help from the vampire.
He explains that he needs the vampire's power to save his people and family.
The vampire observes him, sensing hope in him instead of fear.
The vampire offers him some of his blood, temporarily giving Vlad the vampire's powers.
The vampire explains that this power will last for three days, during which Vlad will
be tempted to drink human blood, but if he can withstand the urge, he will be restored
to his human form.
Otherwise, he will remain a vampire forever, and the ancient vampire will be freed from
the cave.
Vlad drinks the blood and falls unconscious immediately.
Life flashes before his eyes, and when he wakes up in the stream, he finds his skin
burning from his silver ring.
Vlad discovers he has been granted heightened senses, inhuman strength and speed, and the
ability to transform into a flock of bats, but his skin slowly burns in direct sunlight.
However, the silver ring on his hand burns him, so he takes that off and wears it around
his neck.
Suddenly he hears explosions in the distance, so he runs.
He explodes into multiple bats at the height of his speed before reverting to his form.
He uses this to reach the castle faster.
When he gets to the castle, he finds his kingdom under siege from the Turks.
He reunites with his family and addresses the frightened townspeople.
Vlad tells them that a good prince would've given up their sons to maintain peace, but
he vows not to be defeated.
Cannons break through the castle, but Vlad faces the army alone.
The soldiers race forward, and he runs to them, bearing his fangs.
Vlad single-handedly fights through the army, throwing the soldiers like a force of nature.
He takes through weapons and slices through his enemies, facing hundreds of them alone.
Soon the battlefield is empty, aside from Vlad and the corpses.
His soldiers arrive but find no more battle to fight; Vlad tells this man not to question
what he did but to trust that he intends to keep them safe.
However, he knows more armies will come.
He orders his people to move into Cozia Monastery.
It is too high for the cannon fire to penetrate its walls, so it's their only hope for continued
survival.
At the Turkish camp, Mehmed receives word that Vlad has taken down his men.
Unperturbed, Mehmed begins assembling an army of a hundred thousand, with him leading personally
to battle Vlad.
On their way, they set up camp, and Vlad gets tempted when he sees his men eating ravenously.
He retreats to his tent, where Mirena waits; the couple kisses and begins to get intimate.
But Vlad gets tempted by her blood, so he pulls away and leaves.
He finds Shkelgim following him in the woods, but Shkelgim defends that he's following the
bats instead.
Shkelgim, who knows Vlad is a vampire, proclaims himself as his servant and offers his blood;
but Vlad resists and orders Shkelgim to stay away from him.
The next day, Mehmed reaches the battlefield and sees his soldiers impaled and spears.
Meanwhile, Mirena wakes up to find Vlad huddled over.
Mirena learns of Vlad's curse as she sees him holding silver to keep himself weak when
near his people to avoid revealing his condition to them or attacking them for blood.
Vlad explains that he must resist blood for two more days to return to normal.
If Vlad were to give in, he would stay a vampire for eternity, but he promises Mirena that
he won't give in.
Vlad tells Mirena to take the townspeople to the monastery while he holds off Mehmed.
By nightfall, the group is close to the monastery but is ambushed by the Turks.
Dumitru leads Ingeras and Mirena away, but he is killed, and Vlad comes to his wife's
rescue.
Once inside the monastery walls, Vlad prepares his men for war.
The Sultan marches to the monastery with his army, unconcerned about the rumor of Vlad's
use of dark magic.
Eventually, the townspeople reached the monastery.
Upon arriving, Cazan scolds Vlad for leaving.
However, Vlad quiets him and immediately tells his people to stop praying as it won't protect
them.
Lucian notices Vlad avoiding sunlight and understands what he has become.
He follows Vlad to the forge and brandishes a silver sword.
Lucian offers to kill Vlad so he can repent, but Vlad refuses.
Lucian slices through the tent, showing the people how the sunlight burns his skin.
The people see that Vlad is a monster and form a mob to kill him, setting fire to the
building.
Merina struggles to help but is hauled away.
When Vlad emerges from the burning building, he chastises his people for their ingratitude.
After all, he only became a vampire to save their lives.
At the church, Vlad prays for strength to resist his thirst.
For one more day, Ingeras appears to be sharing a loaf of bread with his dad.
They hug, and Vlad realizes that he'd become a vampire again and again if it means saving
his son.
Later that night, Merina and Vlad watch from a window as the massive army approaches.
Vlad worries about his powers, which will soon disappear at daybreak.
Merina mourns how little time they have left and asks them to remember their wedding vows,
which state that they will find each other in every lifetime.
That night, a massive Turkish force marches on the monastery.
Vlad employs bats to defend the territory.
However, the incoming Turkish army is a decoy force deployed to allow a handful of Turks
to infiltrate the monastery and kill the citizens.
Mirena's attempt to defend her son from the Turks fails, and she ultimately falls to her
death.
Angered over losing his wife, Vlad embraces the darkness within himself, honors Mirena's
last request to drink her blood, and returns to the monastery.
Finding a handful of survivors, Vlad offers each the chance for vengeance and gives them
his blood to drink.
At the Turkish Army camp, the Sultan and his men are preparing for a massive invasion of
Europe when Vlad and his small band of vampires arrive.
A battle erupts between the two forces.
However, Vlad's vampires are vastly superior to the Turkish soldiers, and the battle becomes
a massacre.
While the vampires take their vengeance on the Turkish forces, Vlad seeks out the Sultan,
who has taken his son captive.
Aware of the vampire's weakness to silver, the Sultan has lined the floors of his tent
with silver coins and engages in a battle with Vlad using a silver sword.
Ultimately, Mehmed's attempt to kill Vlad fails, at which point Vlad and his son emerge
from the tent, after which the other vampires surround them Vlad brought.
Suddenly, the vampires gather around them, as Cazan says that Vlad's son is merely a
distraction and demands to drink the child's blood.
Unexpectedly, Lucian arrives, brandishing a holy cross that the vampires fear.
He begs Vlad to give him the child.
Knowing the monk can protect him, Vlad tells Ingeras to go.
He tearfully expresses his love for his son before pushing him into the monk's arms.
Lucian backs away as Ingeras continues to scream for his father.
After consoling his son, Vlad uses his power to clear the clouds.
Accepting his fate, Vlad looks to the heavens as the clouds part pouring sunlight onto the
vampires.
The sunlight burns the vampires, and Vlad screams as they perish.
In the aftermath of the battle, Vlad is presumed dead, and the Turkish army is defeated, leaving
Europe safe from invasion and occupation.
Vlad's son is crowned the new prince of Transylvania.
Ingress has been crowned the new prince of Wallachia but laments that his father won't
be seen as the hero he was.
Finding him in his near-death state, Shkelgim finds and revives Vlad, who remains out of
the public eye for centuries.
In the present day, a woman who strikingly resembles Mirena is approached by a man who
complements her flowers and recites the poem in their wedding vow.
The woman notes that it's her favorite poem.
The man introduces himself as "Vlad," and the woman introduces himself as "Mina," The
two depart together to a cafe nearby.
The movie ends as they walk away together while the vampire who cursed Vlad watches
them from afar.