The cursed darkness surrounding Castlevania immediately swallowed him as Aesen Belmont approached the devil's threshold in a quick pace. It had been long years since the castle had manifested, and as ever, it wouldn't be without a reason. Something big was at hand, or at least, something powerful had awakened the cursed fortress from its slumber and reincarnated it.

Hurrying past the gates (which slammed shut after he had entered), Aesen readied Vampire Killer, prepared to kill any abomination darkness would throw at him. It wasn't long until the zombies and skeletons staggered towards him, the air rustling with the fluttering of countless bat wings. But the young Belmont stood firm against the assault, the whip snapping and cracking against the horde, while he inwardly prayed to God and his parents for strength.

The wave ebbed away bit by bit, until Aesen stood panting in the middle of the Entrance Hall, taking deep breaths to calm his hammering heartbeat down. He wiped across his forehead, pulling out a silver cross from his collar and praying silently once more. This cross, Vampire Killer and his knowledge about the creatures of the darkness were the only things to keep him safe in this eternal night, in which the creatures of darkness would bask in the moon's light and dance beneath its shine.

'I have to be careful. I can feel that I approach something. And there's no telling who is the ruler of this castle this time.'

Something told him that it wasn't Dracula, that someone else had taken over reign of the night and was awaiting him deeper inside the castle. Had Aesen known who he picked up a fight against, he might have reconsidered the choice he soon would have to make...

Further inside the castle, a well-known dhampire was awakening from a troubled sleep. With his memory lost and an inexplicable craving for something thick and red, he staggered down the staircase to go deeper into the castle and find the source of the wild burning in the back of his mind.

He staggered and held himself up against the wall, panting deeply and trying to fight off the nauseating feeling coiling in the pit of his stomach. He had been dreaming for a long time... Of a world outside of his coffin, of a night more beautiful than anything before. But the burning in his mind left him no rest. Something was in the castle that absolutely didn't belong here. And it made the dhampire growl.

He couldn't remember anything, safe for a name he kept repeating over and over again in his head. Alucard, also known as Adrian Tepes. The son of someone powerful, according to the monstrous castle he had woken up in. And how beautiful the moonlight was indeed...

But he couldn't fully enjoy it. Not with the burning in his throat and the uncomfortable pressure in the back of his head. There was something off in his castle. Someone had intruded, of that he was sure. Someone with a certain power at his disposal. And that was something he couldn't tolerate, not in his home.

Breathing against the burning pain in his throat, Alucard slowly followed the staircase, feeling more and more presences on his way down. Ghosts, Valkyries, Succubi, Knights, Witches... Nothing seemed to be strange to him, his memories easily returning about what was lurking inside of the castle. His servants, all of them fearing him and obeying his very whim.

Despite the still painful feeling in his throat, Alucard straightened his spine, walking proudly along the corridors. Lost souls and the damned were following him, their looks all on him. He felt their respect, their fear, and at the same time their want to serve him in any respect possible. Amused, the dhampire chuckled, closing his eyes for a moment. That was more like it. That was how he wanted it to be.

He came to a stop as he had entered the Ball Room, where the Ghost Dancers eternally swirled in their graceful movements. They let him to the middle of the room, without a question, without resistance. They were all serving him, after all, and didn't want to draw his anger at them. No, they wanted to make him feel good, feel powerful and wanted, therefore the most beautiful of the female Ghost Dancers shyly bowed to him, asking for this one dance.

And Alucard gladly accepted her idle plea.

While the dhampire was swirling with the souls of the damned, Aesen had rested up and finished his prayer, still not having a good feeling about what was happening in the castle. Something told him that he was about to make a big mistake. But he couldn't turn back now. He had to find and defeat the castle's lord, else it never would let him go again.

Aesen was not happy about his current predicament. The zombies and skeletons had been an easy obstacle, not to mention the bats, which were obnoxious but still harmless. But now, he had gotten to the part where even plants would attack him. Not to mention that the furniture seemed to be possessed, too.

He brushed through his raven hair, trying to focus and calm himself down. There was nothing wrong with going and defeating darkness once more, so why did he have second thoughts at all?

'Stay focused. If I let the monsters ambush me, then it's over faster than I would like.'

Still, his hand nervously clutched the cross around his neck. Vampire Killer was reacting to something, and Aesen didn't want to know what exactly it was. He hated to admit it, but there definitely was fear burning in the pit of his stomach, with an ice cold flame.

He knew all the stories of his ancestors, of how they had fought against the hordes of undead and how they had suffered, failed, just to rise again and overthrow the deep darkness surrounding this place. Be it Dracula or someone else pulling the strings in the background, it always had been the Belmont clan winning in the end. But not always without losing someone dear.

Turning the cross in his hands, Aesen reconsidered. Had he something, anything to lose but his salvation and his pride? Not that he could have claimed so. There was nothing for him to risk but his own life. Nothing was waiting for him back at home, but he wasn't going to abandon mankind either. He had to pick up the fight, no matter the cost of his battle.

Nodding to himself firmly, Aesen got up on his feet, taking a deep breath and silently thanking God for giving him the strength to go through this. He needed this firm belief, more than anything else, in the middle of this forsaken place crawling with the abominations of Hell. And if it meant to defeat Legion in its worst form, he would do it.

With firm steps, Aesen followed the corridor towards what seemed to be the more luxurious part of the castle, just to soon find himself in a maze of corridors, trick doors and secret passages. Castlevania often had proven to be a labyrinth of a most extraordinary nature, but the tales he had heard about it were nothing compared to reality.

Aesen huffed in annoyance, trying to stay as focused as somehow possible. At least, he chuckled to himself, there always was enough loot around to work with. As if the castle wanted to make sure that the odds would be fair for everyone participating in this fight. His energies wouldn't falter any time soon, which was quite reassuring to know. Even if the nature of this hide and seek game didn't appeal to him at all.

'Why is it that they always have to hide somewhere in this maze? Can't they just outright challenge everyone?'

Of course, Aesen didn't see this predicament as purely negative. The need to prepare oneself for the battles ahead always would be there, no matter at what time. And if it meant to release some of the damned and suffering souls, it was even better. The only thing he needed to watch out for was that he didn't become one of them. Like that, he would have become unable to finish his mission. He would have faltered before it even had begun.

Shaking his head about himself lightly, Aesen told himself to focus. He was keeping himself up with all those thoughts ghosting around in his mind. Taking a deep breath, he glanced around, before he decided to head back as much as possible and rethink how he would get deeper into the castle.

But, of course, the moment Aesen Belmont decided so, the maze seemed to wondrously become nothing more than a harmless corridor full of rooms, and he was led directly to the big double winged door of the Ball Room. Chuckling to himself in mild annoyance, the young Belmont sat beside the door, needing to catch his breath again. Witches were such bothersome foes...

Inside the Ball Room, audible for the young Belmong, the Ghost Dancers were chuckling softly, having one of their only bright moments in eternal damnation as they watched how Alucard was leading the young female with perfected skill, making the pale form tremble slightly. If in shame or desire was impossible to tell, but that didn't matter to the dhampire.

Alucard playfully kissed the back of the ghost female's hand, winking mischievously at her and causing the Ghost Dancer to avert her look shyly. It was amazing to see how alive they still were, despite having been bound to the castle for several hundred years already. Their humanity had never fully faded, and that had something incredibly appealing for the dhampire.

Then, he felt something just outside the Ball Room.

The Ghost Dancers whispered in confusion as their master suddenly seemed to become more than a little angered. But then, they merely returned to their dance, the faint sound of a hidden orchestra accompanying their graceful swirling. Alucard smirked inwardly, then closed his eyes and gracefully danced amongst the many pale dancers filling the Ball Room with their cold, lifeless presence.

They were nothing more but faint memories. An echo of what once had been living, warm flesh and a beating heart. Something they called a human . Alucard shook his head faintly at that, never breaking the soft movements, not even for a moment. What was a human anyway? A weak creature, cowering in fear before a God said to be allmighty and yet merciful. And they feared darkness as well. So where to go, if both darkness and light promised nothing but fear?

But they also could develop extraordinary powers in their fight for survival. They were beyond his understanding, and yet, Alucard had little doubt that one day, humanity would finally be overcome by darkness in a last, horrible fight, to be swallowed and consumed for eternity, condemned until the end of time.

Aesen took several deep breaths again, but not feeling any relief or calm coming back to him. His heart fluttered nervously, making him wonder if he was going to be a coward. But that was not acceptable. He couldn't allow himself to grow weak now. He had to make sure that darkness would be put back into place. The sooner it happened, the better it would be for all of mankind.

The young Belmont slowly lifted, fiddling with the heavy silver cross around his neck. Why did he feel this insecure? Why did he feel like he was suffocating, slowly being choked to death by the merciless grip of an invisible hand?

"God, please lend me your strength one more time. I shall bring down the lord of this castle, for the world to be released from his grip once more."

Finally, a sense of peace and security came over him, and a soft smile came to Aesen's face. God was with him, he knew that much now. It was incredibly reassuring to feel the Lord close to him, His guiding hand on his shoulder. Aesen thanked God silently, tucking the cross back into his collar and grabbing the whip tightly. With God's help and in His will, he would purify this castle from the abominations of Hell, and send them back to the Devil himself.

He stepped forward, placing one hand on the door to the Ball Room. He was ready to conquer whatever inhuman beast was lurking in the castle, he was ready to send it on its knees and finish it off, to release the world's light once more. Darkness couldn't win, not this time, not in the future. Like in the past, it would, it had to be defeated and sealed away from mankind.

Aesen pushed the door open, stepping into the great hall spreading in front of him. Thousands of Ghost Dancers were swirling in the pale beams of moonlight, a faint chuckling wavering through the air in between the sighs, sobs and wheeping sounds of tormented souls. The music coming to his ears created a cold, unearthly feeling in Aesen's heart, making the Belmont shudder in mild disgust. But this was it. The decision he had made.

And in the middle of the Ball Room, he saw Alucard dancing.

He had heard countless stories about this man. Adrian Tepes, born from a human woman, the legitimate son of Dracula. He had helped the Belmonts over and over again in the past, defeating his own father even in order to restore peace in the world. A human's friend, and a dark fiend's foe. Yet, Aesen was sure that his appearing here had no good meaning.

The way Alucard was dancing in between the ghosts, swirling in moonlight and basking in it had something oddly twisted and unnatural about it. Aesen swallowed, then cracked Vampire Killer in the air to catch the dhampire's attention.

The Ball Room fell silent, and Alucard came to a sudden stop, with his back towards Aesen.