Tragedy of War, Promise of Reunion

Long ago, in the year 1062, Mathias Cronqvist was born. He was no ordinary human. Even as a child, he displayed extraordinary intelligence and tactical skills. Chess was his favorite game. Mathias often beat adults much older than him. He felt different than the children his age, even from his family. His parents were well-educated alchemists, having devoted their entire lives to study the art that dated back to the Ancient Greeks. Using their alchemy skills, they devised a clever method to transmutate "copper to gold" and became renowned for their discovery, a classic rags to riches story. Mathias' family grew wealthy, and they endowed their son with all their knowledge. However, Mathias couldn't see the merit to the techniques. He didn't need any more money or to know how to make plastic or any other of the skills imparted to him. He also didn't want to be known as "The Son of the Wealthy Alchemists." Mathias wanted to make a name of his own. In war.

At the age of 16, he ran away from home and joined a band of knights headed by the young Baron Leon Belmont. With their combined intellect and swordplay, they were unconquerable. Mathias and Leon, the Hannibals and Great Alexanders of their time. Together, they slayed beasts and anything that stood in the way of conquest. With warfare came its spoils. Gold, and women. Eventually, Mathias fell into the inevitable: love. He was smitten by a pretty woman, Elisabetha. He cared for her deeply and cherished her with all his heart. Soon, they were wed and even expected a child. However, like love is eternal, so is war. It was time for Mathias to take up his blade and defend his land and his people from heathens to the East. He whispered a goodbye to his wife and went off to war.

For 5 long years, Mathias and Leon fought. Even with all their skill and cunning, the enemy was simply too powerful. The enemy outnumbered Mathias and Leon's company 3 to 1. However, numbers weren't enough to take down the duo, and over time their numbers dwindled. Through ambush in the night and swift retreat, Mathias and Leon picked them off one by one. When Leon dealt the finishing blow to the leader, they captured the rest of them. The war was over and they had expanded their territory. Mathias came home tired and overwhelmed. But he was also excited and joyful. He was to see his wife and quite possibly his young child. He opened the door to his home and called out to Elisabeth.

There was no answer. He listened to the silence. Where was the laughter, he wondered. The happiness, the love, the kiss upon his lips he dreamt of for a thousand nights. There was only sorrow in the silence. Mathias ran into town and searched frantically. Only when he came upon a young priest did he learn what happened to his beloved.

She was dead. A crippling illness had struck her days after her husband had left for war. She always felt cold and could not feel her legs and they shook every time she tried to stand up. She was to be confined to bed for the rest of her life. The town's best doctor could do nothing for her. Stricken with grief, she lay in bed for days, wondering when her love would return. She and her unborn died within days, dead of heartbreak, of loneliness, of despair.

Mathias was speechless. He silently walked home and lay in his bed where Elisabetha last was before her death. He cried, wept, mourned for her. With all his glory, his fidelity, his unwavering love, he had lost everything. Leon worried for him. His greatest military mind was in pieces, but he allowed him to mourn for his loved one. Mathias slowly turned his hatred from himself to God. It was Him! It was He who condemned my wife to her doom! Who else could have done this?! The Devil?! God was supposed to be greater than all things, yet he could not spare my young, my innocent wife from death?! For all my life, I have fought in your name... And this is how you repay me? How could you?! She was pure of heart, sweeter than margarine and innocent as a newborn! I have pledged my faith to you for many years, never betraying you!

But now, it was over. Mathias renounced his faith, his love for God. He became a man hell-bent on vengeance. His ultimate goal was to defy God's law, to defy death. He would search all of Europe, and further if he needed to, for immortality. Mathias returned to join Leon's knights and secretly sought his eternal life with every campaign they embarked on. Throughout his travels, he heard of a powerful artifact said to have been forged in Hell itself. It was the Crimson Stone. A ruby red diamond, treasured among the accursed, the vampires. Many have searched for it, all have failed. Mathias was one of them. For 7 long years, he looked fruitlessly for it. During a campaign in the seventh year, he and his men fell to an onslaught of vampires. It was a moonlit night, dark clouds formed ominous signs. The knights fought hard, but were ultimately slaughtered by the blood-sucking demons. Mathias looked around at the battlefield. His valiant knights were slayed, their blood being siphoned from their bodies by the unholy abominations.

He cast aside his sword and sank to his knees. This is the end, he thought. My quest for everlasting life, slipping away before my eyes. He was surrounded by 1,000 vampires, all seeking to claim his body, the great Mathias Cronqvist. He lifted his sullen head, exposing his neck. The vampires went into a frenzy, their black eyes widened and their fangs elongated. The leader of the vampire army roared and lunged forward to take his prey. Mathias stared into the gaping jaws of his enemy. Then time seemed to slow. What was happening, he thought as he got up. Then he grew angry. It was God! He was interfering, trying to win me back to his side. I refuse to let him save me. Mathias stood still. He was indignant, he would die at the fangs of a vampire.

Then he saw it. Glistening in the back of the airborne demon's throat, it shone a bright red. The Crimson Stone. Mathias smiled. It wasn't God who was assisting him. It was Satan, Lucifer, the fallen angel who had rose in defiance to God. It was he who found ultimate power and wielded the great power of evil. It was the Devil. Mathias ran to meet the vampire and pierced the back of its throat with his arm. He clutched the gemstone and pulled out. It was his. The Crimson Stone was his to use. Mathias looked to the sky. All the clouds in the sky swirled together to form a massive congregation. Then he saw his face. The Devil's face, in its great glory. It smiled a wicked smile, an omen of congratulations to the defector.

The sky glowed red. Time went back to its regular speed. The commander of the vampires fell to the ground, his clawed hands reaching desperately for where his throat should have been. The rest of his company was confused as to what just transpired. Their leader was on the floor, dying while a knight had a ruby stone in his raised fist. The Crimson Stone was cool in his hands. Suddenly, it grew burning hot. There was a sound of steel clashing in the air. A scythe ripped apart the air before Mathias' eyes and a cloaked figure emerged. It was Death.

The unholy spirit pledged his allegiance to Mathias. Whoever wielded the Crimson Stone wielded Death himself. At Mathias' command, Death simultaneously reaped the souls of a thousand vampires, their mouths agape in silent agony as his scythe tore through their bodies. The reaped souls accumulated into his gemstone and Mathias felt his power grow. He absorbed the essence of every single soul and he felt the Crimson Stone grow. His nails grew longer and harder. He slashed the earth mercilessly and felt the ground crumble. Mathias felt his canines grow. They touched his bottom lip now, sharp as a blade. There was suddenly a strange sensation in his back. Mathias began to scream. 2 wings sprouted from his back, and spread majestically. They covered the moonlight and shrouded the land in darkness. He embraced his new power. Mathias was now a vampire.

He left the battlefield and rejoined a worried Leon. Leon was shocked to see his friend who had seemingly returned from battle unscathed while the rest of his squadron was dead. Mathias reassured him that he was fine and that it was the best night he ever spent. With every campaign they went on, they slayed more and more vampires, adding on to Mathias' power, unbeknowest to Leon. One day, Mathias came upon a grand castle in the woods. Though he entered the forest during the day, the area was black as night. He entered the castle and met its owner, a powerful vampire by the name of Walter Bernhard. A proud creature of the dark, he displayed the source of his power to Mathias: the Ebony Stone.

It shone a deep black in the palm of his white hand. He explained to the younger vampire that he had gained so much power, the stone kept his castle in everlasting darkness. He hinted that the castle itself was bonded with his soul. However, Walter was not content with his life. He was bored of living forever, and relieved his boredom with games. One of these games was "Rescue the Hostage." Walter explained the rules with glee. He would send his forces out to a small village and burn it to the ground while taking a few women or children hostage. The village's most courageous men would venture into Walter's castle, challenging his strength for their loved ones. And they would always lose.

Mathias had the perfect solution to remedy Walter's dilemma. He suggested that Walter abduct Leon's bride, Sara Trantoul. He explained that Leon Belmont was a powerful warrior whose strength was second to none. Mathias personally vouched for Leon's skill. Walter was delighted to hear this. With a snap of his fingers, he called forth his minions of the dark, bats, wolves, vampires alike, to wreak havoc on Leon's village. Little did Walter know that he was being deceived by Mathias.

Walter's forces did what they were ordered and abducted Sara. Leon traveled to Walter's castle and defeated every single enemy along the way. He scaled the keep and met Walter face to face. It was a fierce battle, but Leon emerged victorious with the holy Vampire Killer whip. Defeated, Walter used the last of his strength to warp to where Sara was being held captive with the Belmont in close pursuit. He viciously tore apart Sara's chest and ripped out her still beating heart. When Leon arrived, he saw that he was too late. Walter had escaped and his bride had been slaughtered. He held her corpse in his hands and silently wept, cursing out the vampire lord.

Walter had escaped, retreating to a secret room in his castle. He was severely weakened in his fight with Leon. The Ebony Stone was crumbled into dust, destroyed in the previous battle. He could feel the structural integrity of the castle being compromised already. Suddenly, there was a loud ripping sound and Walter felt a heavy pain. Levitating behind him was Death, the spirit reaper in ragged robes, with his scythe halfway through Walter's still breathing chest. Turning away from the horrible sight, his eyes met with Mathias'. Then he understood. Mathias wanted his Ebony Stone, his power. But no, it was gone, destroyed in battle. Mathias Cronqvist took the next best thing: Walter Bernhard's soul.

At his beckon, Death slashed through Walter's black heart and stole his soul. As he collapsed, Mathias displayed the power that he wielded, the power to control Death. The Crimson Stone. It would be the last thing Walter saw before he faded away into history. With the absorption of Walter Bernhard's soul, Mathias Cronqvist became the most powerful vampire in all the world. Leon Belmont broke through the wall, expecting to finish off Walter, only to find his friend and ally Mathias. Confused, he asked him where the vampire lord was and Mathias feigned ignorance. The newly accomplished vampire usurper king simply stated that it was the best night he ever spent.

Leon grew suspicious. This was the same thing that Mathias said the night he returned from the vampire attack unharmed. The Vampire Killer whip reacted strongly in his presence. Leon demanded answers. With pleasure, Mathias told him everything. His vampiric state, the Crimson Stone, his plot against Walter. Every word he uttered, Leon fell deeper into despair. What was happening? His best friend, his confidant. A traitor, committer of the highest treason, the greatest betrayal! At the end of his speech, Mathias offered his hand to Leon. In full confidence, he offered to Leon immortality and great power. The power of the vampire.

However, Leon did not accept. He could not side with evil. For all his life, he had fought for righteousness, for God. Mathias was outraged. But he had lost a dearly loved one, and God deserted him! God couldn't bring back Sara from death! Leon answered that eternal life without the one he loved was meaningless. He would just end up losing himself in time, watching everything change, people being born, dying. It wouldn't be a life at all. Leon understood his pain, his suffering. To lose the person you loved so dearly too soon. But to blame God for taking her, to defy him, to renounce your faith was not the right thing to do! He brandished the vibrant Vampire Killer. Leon accepted his fate, as a warrior of God, to destroy the demon.

Mathias was saddened. He had hoped to rule the world with his best man at his side, but Leon couldn't see it from his perspective. He fought humanity. He would fight for God. Screeching horribly, Mathias shapeshifted into his bat form and fled into the night. That was the last time they would ever see each other, but Leon swore in Sara's name, in the Belmont name, that he and his descendants would hunt Mathias down.

"And that," said a booming voice, "is the tale of Count Dracula Vlad Tepes."