Contraptions composed of wheels with other strange, mechanized parts that appeared to move by magic. Frightening fortresses of glass that stood taller than any castle he had ever seen before in his immortal life. Luminous lights along streets that required no flame to glow a dull orange at the stroke of a late hour. Prepackaged produce in markets, women wearing pants on a daily basis... It was akin to waking into a new world, the Dhampir realized very quickly.
Everything felt excessive in the year of 1999; as if mankind were making up for devastation the generations before faced. For hundreds of years life had remained fairly static for Alucard. The church had total control, the crops went through phases of life and death, villages experienced devastating plagues, and beasts of his father's creation roamed the land in hunger for mortal blood. Recalling life as it was then with the word 'peaceful' was a bit of a lie, yet every night he could look upon the stars in the sky with a prayer for his departed mother. He would lay his back upon any tree he desired, allowing his sword to rest at his side with a contented mind.
In 1999 he could no longer see the stars above with ease, nor were trees available for him to relax against without the eyes of curious onlookers disturbing his tranquility. Buildings, life, people, noise, bright light. There was no escape from anything in the turn of the 20th century. Alucard often found himself furrowing his brow in thought- he was up and awake, but without an obvious purpose. The typical signs of Dracula's return were nonexistent, and the castle was nowhere to be found.
The vernacular of each land he journeyed through on foot had evolved into something new with the passage of time. Conversation was difficult but he managed to speak to elder humans with useful information. Through the words of the superstitious Alucard found help in discovering where he needed to be. They talked of a war between the forces of good and evil. Somehow, according to the prophetic speeches of a lone fortune teller he met in Bavaria, a solar eclipse would dictate the fate of mankind.
She would remain in his memory for her family name- Fortner, a name worth delving into on his own because he was certain the church lacked information about this recent bloodline. The young woman's scent reeked of magical prowess, gaze filled with mystery as she discussed the fateful solar eclipse to occur that year. Fortune tellers were a strange breed yet Alucard could tell that there was something more sinister to this one. He spoke of the Belmont clan and a dark smile had crossed upon her face. By the end of their meeting Alucard was able to locate the hunter destined to fight his father; a nineteen year old by the name of Julius Belmont.
Alucard eventually adjusted to his surroundings. With the assistance of the church upon his arrival in Italy, he was given a place to call home and the means to connect with this Belmont. The boy was strong but impulsive, hardly a man at that point in time. This was to be Alucard's reason for awakening- training the clumsy, ill prepared teenager in the art of combat. Within his still soft hands was the famed Vampire Killer, but in the Julius's heart was the desire for a flashy modern weapon.
Julius Belmont was alone on Earth as the last of his noble family. There had been none other to raise him to use and cherish the whip when he began his journey into manhood. Alucard cursed the church officials who kept their watchful eye on Julius since early childhood, for they created the doubt in the power of the Vampire Killer. The dhampir took it upon himself to ready the boy to face Dracula on his own. Month after month passed with intense training, the seasons changed as they always would, and chaos finally encroached upon the land.
The return of his father in 1999 was subtle in comparison to past arrivals. Every misfortune that hinted to the arrival of Castlevania was more humanized, as vampires were in charge of the Dark Lord's grunt work this time around. Vampires were intelligent enough to follow commands in a clean fashion, having enough knowledge about the times to properly prepare for the imminent destruction of humanity. Their work was purposely devoid of paranormal influence for they knew that humans were already approaching self destruction by nuclear means.
Daily the news on the television rattled on about the threat of a third World War (Alucard was forced to ponder when did the first two occur), and the work of radicalized terrorists corrupting civil life. Demonic violence was not the way to instill fear into the hearts of many in this new world. Nations were suspicious of one another, and technology gave the leaders of these lands too strong of a sense of power. There was no fear of God; the power to damn was within the hands of politics. The threats of war served as an almost perfect distraction from the truth of who would really destroy all life at the beginning of the new Millennium.
Alucard stewed in his disapproval frequently during the months that lead to the return of Castlevania because no matter how much strength a Belmont possessed, it would never be enough to quell a man of his mortal fears. Television was the root of all evil that even Dracula could not replicate. Julius was easily shaken by the paranoia inflicted from news programs where stoic faced newscasters blandly listed off what conflict arose between what countries on that day. On the streets there were people holding signs and screaming something about a "Y2K bug" to end the world. Why couldn't they just step on this destructive insect, Alucard never understood.
Pressure was high as his father's castle rose up in the Carpathian Mountains at last during the final week of the year. Alucard knew he was not meant to fight this battle, but he was not willing to trust the abilities of the young Belmont. Although one not to typically feel fear, his heart rate increased just a bit as he watched Julius march into a fate potentially worse than hell by descending into Castlevania on his own. The son of Dracula gnawed at his bottom lip as he awaited Julius's return. Something inside of him screamed with intensity that the world would be forever changed; his head throbbed painfully as he failed over and over to discern the source of his anxiety.
Minutes felt like hours, hours felt like days... The battle did not last long enough to feel like months, however. The sky was dark as the moon approached full position in front of the sun, yet the mountains of Romania erupted into an unnatural glow of white light. Energy of a godlike power seared through the trees as all evil within the forests were obliterated on site. Alucard almost faced destruction that day if it were not for the humanity pulsing through his veins to keep him tethered to the earth.
I awaited the fall of Castlevania after the eruption of holy might, knowing that Julius had done well in his fight against my father. I looked at the castle expectantly but there was no crumble to give away that Dracula was truly gone. The mountain fell into an eerie silence as the moon finally shielded the sun's light. A deafening crack boomed through the air, much like thunder during a summer's rain. I watched perplexed as the castle was sucked into a giant vortex that formed in the center of the eclipse.
Julius escaped the castle with minor injuries. He smiled smugly, raising a thumb for good measure; for the briefest moment I saw the confidence of Trevor flash through his eyes. 'Everything is done', he said. Amazingly, he was able to seal Dracula's castle away within the solar eclipse forever. The church lacked explanation for this, and the young Belmont remained tight lipped about where he gathered the strength to do something so unprecedented.
This was thought to be the beginning of a world without my father's influence. To think that i truly believed that I would be able to return to my eternal slumber.
Hello readers! This was my attempt to clear up the mystery of the battle of 1999 that I know absolutely nothing about but... Yeah, here goes it (I tried). You don't see many stories told from Alucard's perspective and that's why I wanted to make this. Think of how hard it must be for someone who tries to go to sleep forever only to be woken up every so often and adjust to life according to what humanity has become.