Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Castlevania

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Castlevania.  Konami does.  I do not own any of the characters from Zelda.  Nintendo does.  Any characters I did make up belong to me.  So, in other words, Nintendo, Konami, please don't sue me.

I'm not worth it.

D.V.~ This is my first story.  The first few chapters will take place in the Castlevania universe, but it will primarily be a Zelda fic.  About 99% of it, in fact.  That includes the two or more sequels I have planned.  Anyhow, Enjoy! Chapter 1

          The tall figure waited patiently inside the small clearing, trying not to look bored.  He shifted from one foot the next, coughed, and stretched his tired muscles.  The man's appearance was powerful to say the least.  Over seven feet tall, he was large by anyone's standards, thanks to his powerfully built muscle structure.  His face gave away his European descent.  With his slim, delicate nose, lazy eyes, and emaciated lips, few would doubt his noble breeding.

           

 I hate doing this, hiding like a common vagrant, he thought.  Pulling his cloak tighter around his body, he had just about given up when his eyes picked out a movement across the clearing.  A small outline, cloaked and hooded like him, made its way toward the large elm he stood under.  Finally, he thought, she is here.  The figure made small, delicate steps toward the larger one.  She stopped in front of him and immediately removed her hood.  The face that came into view was the type that poets had for centuries written about.  Her small face held two large, deeply intelligent eyes.  A small button-like nose, complete with a wide, giving mouth, concluded a face that made the gods envious.  The large man sucked in his breath.  No matter how many times he saw her, she caused the same reactions.

"Good morning, Lisa."

"Good morning, my love."

The man pulled back his hood, revealing a head covered in shockingly white hair that tumbled down below his shoulders.  He smiled and offered his hand, to which Lisa gladly accepted.  "You know,  I really hate to meet you like this.  Perhaps I should go meet with your father?" He asked as they walked toward the carriage waiting for them.

"That would be useless, my lord.  My father would never let me go. Especially with a…"  She stopped suddenly, her face gone red.

"Especially with a vampire, you mean?"  The man finished for her.  Her face still red, she only nodded.  "Don't worry about that,  I won't bite!"  He found that deliciously funny and started laughing, trying desperately to hold it in.

"My lord…"

"Call me Dracula, Lisa.  Please use my name," he said, still fighting down his sudden case of jollity.  His eyes were starting to water.

"My lord, Dracula, please!"  Lisa was in no mood to laugh.  "It is too late for that.  I am with child."

And like that, Dracula's laughter was gone.  It was like somebody threw a switch.  He stood there in front of her and said nothing.  The carriage was 20 yards away, looking lonely there on the road.  He watched as the driver drained a flask of water and waited patiently for him.  Dracula felt a cold hand in his mind and thought suddenly of wine.  Red wine.  Now why would that come to mind?  For Christ's sake, I'm going to be a father, why would I think about red wine?  He motioned for her to follow and they entered the horse-drawn carriage, immediately taking seats opposite one another.  Maybe because it's the color of blood.

*  *  *

     They had met on one of Dracula's hunts, just outside of the forest surrounding Castlevania.  He hardly ever hunted this close to his home, but something seemed to pull him away from his usual haunts.  His first reaction from seeing her there, gathering herbs to make medicine, was to attack her.  He decided to watch her instead.  Something held him back.  He couldn't explain it, but he knew there was something special about her.

 She was beautiful.  He had no other way to describe her.  The way she gracefully moved, gathering ingredients for potions.  The way her delicate hands picked at particular flora.  The way her small feet never stumbled in the uneven soil.  She clearly knew her way around this area.   The woodland had a small creek running through the middle, bringing minerals down from the peak that Castle Dracula stood upon.  The result was much rare plant life that couldn't be found anywhere else for miles.  She's been here before, he thought.  Dracula stepped out of where he was hiding and approached her. 

Lisa instantly stopped what she was doing and stood up straight.  She felt it.  A clear drop in temperature, and yet her body heat increased.  Something was behind her; something evil and unholy.  She stood stiff for a moment, then turned slowly.   Lisa's breathing became harder, more deep.  Silence filled the forest around her.  She felt a sexual charge build up as her eyesight sought out the source of this reaction.  When she finally laid eyes one him, her breath seemed lost.  Lisa never felt so aroused.  Her knees give out.  The fall was stopped when she felt his arms around her.  The man had cleared the last twenty-five feet between them in no time at all.  She looked up at him and uttered three single words before passing out:  "You are Beautiful."

          Lisa could not remember waking up.  She couldn't remember how long it had been since that moment in the forest.  The next thing she could recall, they were both in a bed inside his castle.  Never in her life had she felt such ecstasy.  It was like her very soul was set on fire, only in an infinitely more pleasurable way.  Lisa had never been with a man before, so she had no basis for comparison.  Dracula, however, seem like a god to her.

Dracula had never seen a more perfect body.  He had sampled various women in his four hundred years on earth, yet none could even hope to measure up to her.   She writhed underneath him, trying to find a way to compensate for the bliss she was feeling.

My god, if this continues, I will go mad, She thought. To feel his hands all over her body, on her lips, breasts, stomach, her… OH GOD!!  She felt another climax tear through her body.  Chimes sounded off one by one in her head.  The world was spinning around her.  He gave an animal grunt and came in her.  As the pleasure slowly descended, as she returned to reality, Lisa wondered what would become of her now.

          She turned on her side and looked upon the man that had driven her so far toward the edge.  She should be terrified of him.  But she wasn't.  She watched as Dracula stretched his powerful frame.  She loved him.  There was no doubt.  She would follow him anywhere. 

"Dracula?" she asked.

"Yes?"

"I…what has happened?  How did I…?"  She couldn't form the words in her head.  "I am not a whore.  I do not lie down with every man I meet."

"I know that," He replied.

"So what happened?  Does this happen with every woman you meet?"

"Gods, no!!"  Dracula laughed.

          Lisa thought for a moment, then "Why have you not bitten me yet?"

          "I beg your pardon?"

          "You are a vampire, correct?  Why have not you bitten me yet?"

          "Do you wish to be bitten?"  Dracula retorted.

          "No I…"

         

          He stood up suddenly, walking over to the window.  Looking out he saw the forests that surrounded his abode.  Further, a large lake formed a crescent shape that wrapped around his mountain.  If he could see further, His eyes would have passed over another large forest, this one held a small city, hiding with its confines.  Probably where she came from.  Without turning around, he continued the conversation. 

"I don't know why this happened.  You are correct.  It's not normal.  I have no explanation.  But I do know one thing.  I love you.  I knew that the moment I held you in the forest."

"I also love you."

Turning around, with a pleased smile on his face, he asked, "Do want to know the answer to your question?  Why have I not bitten you?"

Lisa looked into his eyes.  "Yes."

Dracula's smile widened and said three single words, "You are beautiful."

So began an affair of two unlikely people.  A maiden as pure as snow, and a demon king.  Every week, at the very spot where this all began, they would meet, flee to his castle and spend one night in each other's arms.  This went on for several weeks, before the inevitable.

*  *  *

Dracula watched as the land passed by outside the window of the carriage.  He should have foreseen this.  How could he have slept with the same woman several times and not impregnated her.  The more he thought about this, the more it seemed like a scripted play.  He thought again of how oddly they were pulled together, there in that grove.  Consulting his chief sorcerer, Shaft, he was unable to find out what had happened.  Still, it was a moot point.  They were together and nothing would change that.  He swore it. 

"How long have you known?" he asked.

Lisa lifted her head and looked at him.  "About four days now."

"And you are sure of this?"

"Yes."

He didn't wish to question her knowledge of this.  But he had to be sure.  "How do you know?"

"My lord, are you familiar the signs of pregnancy?"  He shook his head.  Lisa sighed and started explaining.  By the time the carriage pulled into the courtyard of his castle, Dracula had learned quite a few facts about life.

         

Castlevania was a living castle.  Born from the darkest magicks, it was a creature of anarchy, creating corridors and rooms filled with the most malevolent beings, both living and unliving.  Dracula had created it after achieving more power then any other life form on earth.  Under his command, he had armies of demons and ghouls that would obey his every whim.  His right hand was an ancient phantasm that took the form of one of mankind's most hated and feared symbols, Death.  He also had the Assassins, a group of men that were all mortal, yet deadly.  The advantage was that they could actually enter a village or town and not cause an uproar.

 

"That was an educational trip," Dracula quipped as he helped Lisa out of the coach.  She noticed his humor was a little dry.  They entered that castle and were met by Shaft and Mason. 

The dark priest Shaft was Dracula's second in command.  His knowledge of the black magic, voodoo, enchantment, and any other of the "dark arts" was unparalleled, save Dracula himself.  He stood over six feet tall with large robes covering his body, hiding any shape his body might form.  Only his hands and his face were seen.   Lisa didn't mind his hands, but wished he would cover up his face.  She had never seen such an evil face.  It had two tiny red eyes, always looking like they were up to something, set over a large nose and mouth.  He watched her with an interest that made her uneasy.  Nobody, not even Dracula, is sure exactly where he came from.  He was extremely well traveled, though, and came to Dracula in order to sharpen his deadly magic skills.

Mason, a thin, wiry black man, was head of Dracula's Assassins.   Dracula bought him several years ago.  Originally from southern Africa, he was kidnapped by slave-traders and was sold from owner to owner, slowly making his way toward Europe.  Dracula bought him for stable work, but an incident involving one of Dracula's many would-be assassins proved that Mason would make a formidable warrior.  Moving quickly through the ranks, he soon earned Dracula's trust.  Both he and Shaft had a burning hatred for each other, though they kept it in check around their master.  His lean body was knotted in tight muscles, and his cat-like way of walking betrayed how lethal he could be.

Shaft bowed low.  "Good evening, my lord."  His eyes never left Lisa.  "I trust that you'll find everything to your liking."  Dracula had ordered him to clear the upper levels of the castle of any sort of demon, ghoul, or other monstrosity.  He liked to keep Lisa at ease inside his home.

Dracula nodded stiffly and turned to Mason.  "How is your new conscript holding up?"  Dracula bought a new slave, a gladiator-like man who he thought would make a good Assassin. 

Mason brought up his hands and started signing.  "He is a little slow, but will do fine.  Very eager to please, this one.  I think he will be perfect for the second squad."  Long before Dracula, one of his earlier masters cut out his tongue.  Mason had been little more than a child, then.  And he talked too much, according to that master.  Dracula, however, had taught him a special sign language.  Even he was surprised how quickly Mason had learned it.  "How is Lisa?"

"Lisa is fine," Dracula replied.  "In fact, I have an announcement.  Lisa is going to have a child.  My child, of course."

Mason nodded, a small smile of approval fixed on his face.  Lisa blushed.  She liked Mason, as he seemed to be the most normal person in this castle.  Her father had always told her about those "savage" countries far to the south.  How headhunters or worse ran wild and naked throughout the continent.  Mason didn't seem at all like this.  He treated her with respect and was always looking out for her.  Shaft, on the other hand, seemed like the complete opposite.  He was always chuckling and looking like he had a sick interest in her.

"Good, good.  Most excellent, master."  Shaft chuckled again and walked off with a look that resembled triumph.  It left both Mason and Lisa uneasy.  Dracula, however, didn't seem to notice it.  He took Lisa's hand and led her upstairs, leaving Mason alone in the aperture.  Hesitating only for a moment, Mason hurried to follow Shaft.  He would get to the bottom of this.

                                                    *  *  *

Dracula opened up the door to his room, letting Lisa in before him.  He watched as she immediately sat down at the table.  The bed looked awfully good at the moment but he put that thought out of his head.  Looks like I might not be having intercourse tonight.  He groaned and leaned his tall frame against the door.  A child!  I am going to be a father!  Once again, red wine flashed through his mind.  He shook his head and sat down next to Lisa.  She put her hand over his, a simple gesture, one that assured him of her love.

"My love?  What will our child be like?"

         

Dracula groaned again, but answered her question.  "It will be a dhampire."

"A what?"

"A dhampire.  A cross-breed."  He stood up and looked out the window.  "When a vampire procreates with a human, he or she produces a rare form of creature.  A being that can live under direct sunlight, immune to the effects of garlic, crosses, silver or any other blight on a vampire's existence.  It would retain all of the powers a vampire is instilled with and…" he meant to continue but was shocked to hear weeping from behind him.  Turning, Dracula found Lisa with her head in her hands.  "What is the matter?" he asked, truly concerned.

         

          "Is that what you would consider our child?" she sobbed.  "A creature?"  She continued to cry, leaving Dracula with a feeling of helplessness.

          "I…I apologize Lisa.  I never meant to hurt you or our child with that statement.  You must realize that I have never been a father before and I am only trying to prepare us for what is to come."  Her crying lessened and she seemed to understand what he was trying to say.

          "Yes, I know, but listen to me."  She had a fierce look overtake her.  "I will NOT let people look upon our child as if he or she were an abomination!  I will NOT allow that!"  Lisa calmed down considerably and motioned for him to continue.  Dracula did, wary of upsetting her again.

          "Like I said, this will be a cre… person who will have all a vampire's strengths, and none of it's weaknesses.  This is all in theory of course," Dracula went on, "Truthfully, a dhampire can also have all the weaknesses, none the that strengths.  Or anything between."

          "So what is to prevent this?"  Lisa asked.

          Dracula smiled, "When a vampire reproduces, it passes on more than just physical traits.  Because it is a being of magic, it will also pass its strengths or weaknesses as well.  The more powerful the vampire, the more powerful the offspring."

          Lisa seemed less uneasy as she started to understand.  "Are you as powerful as they say?"

          "More."

          "So our child will not be cursed?"  Lisa asked, relieved.

          Dracula smiled and nodded, "He or she, whichever, will be quite powerful, I suspect.  Lisa smiled and stood up.  She seemed to be in a much happier frame of mind.  Must be one of those "mood swings" she told me about, Dracula thought.  He stood up with her and took her in his arms.  She kissed him deeply and motioned for him to follow her.  She led him to the bed.

                                                               * * *

         

          Mason hid outside of Shaft's door, waiting patiently for Shaft to leave.  Patience was one of the first things he learned.  One of his earliest masters (back when he could still talk) had been an avid hunter.  Often taking Mason out with him, he taught him most of what he knew today.  How to track your prey, how protect yourself if the prey tracked you, and of course, how to kill.  And patience tied it all together.  Without patience, you might as well go home. That was what he was taught.  So he waited.  He never moved a muscle.  A fly alighted upon his arm and, despite the horrible itch, he continued his vigilance.

         

          Finally, after as the clock struck two in the morning, with the moon showing through the window, Shaft emerged from his room.  His large frame drooped, like he was exhausted.  Gazing around, Shaft continued down the hall and disappeared around a corner.  Waiting a few minutes more, Mason then left his dark corner and approached the door.  It looked like any other door that inhabited the castle.  He grabbed the handle, turned it and found it locked.  Not unexpected.  Reaching down into a hidden pocket, Mason produced two oddly shaped pieces of brass.  Lock picks.  Another skill he picked up in his 40 odd years.  Small sounds of metal rubbing against metal filled the hall.  After a while, he rocked back on his heels, frustrated.  No progress was made.  He had picked many locks in his life, and this one didn't seem any different.  Continuing, Mason got no further and with an exasperated sigh, removed the picks from the lock, then dropped them in surprise. 

          Their ends were completely melted off.

          "Did my door ruin your little toys?" a hated voice called out from his left.  Mason stood up stiffly and turned.  Shaft looked at him with a smirk that told all.  He knew Mason was outside his door the whole time.  "I apologize for that, but I can't have you snooping around my room.  You might see something you shouldn't."  Shafts smile expanded, if it was possible.  His ugly, large face seemed to give off and unhealthy glow that made Mason tense.

          "You are up to something," he signed, "and I will find out."

          "You think you're so smart.  Try and find out what's in that room."

          "Maybe I will"

          Shaft's tight smile lightened.  "Maybe I'll kill you."

          It was Mason's turn to smile.  "Try that and maybe I will take you with me.  I will drag you along with me to the pits of hell."  Mason took a menacing step forward and continued signing.  "I know what you are.  I have met your kind before.  Whatever you are planning, I will stop you.  Go near the girl or her child and I will not hesitate in slitting your throat."  He stopped in front of Shaft, who stood his ground.  Both men glared at each other, their smiles long since disappeared. 

          Shaft backed off.  He was physically worn out and they both new it.  "You wait.  I'll kill you if you interfere with my plans."  He glowered at him once more, then turned and disappeared around the corner.  Mason let out the breath he didn't know he was holding.  If that confrontation had gotten physical, they both might have ended up dead.  While he couldn't speak for Shaft, he was definitely mortal.  Looking down, he saw the charred picks lying on the floor.  Somehow he had to find a way into that magic door.

                                                          * * *

Dracula lay on his bed, holding his love close.  The night deepened, causing a silence that caressed the land.  The sky stretched across the large window next to the bed.  Cloudless outside, a large moon bathed the room with more than enough light for lovemaking.  It was magical.  It was nights like this that he felt most human.  It was so long since he had been mortal; he had almost forgotten the feeling.  After some time, seeing that she was still awake, Dracula reluctantly broke the silence.  "I want you to leave your home.  I want you to stay with me."

Lisa shifted slightly, then answered, "Here in you castle?"

"No.  I have a villa not too far the north.  It is hidden deep in the forest.  None of my creatures reside in or near it.  But will they form a large ring around it.  You will be protected."

"Will you be staying with me?"

Dracula smiled.  "Of course."

Lisa sat up, a grimace woven across her face.  Her naked body was inundated in the moonlight.  It gave her an ethereal look that he found enticing.  The frown deepened and she turned to Dracula.  "My father is very protective of me.  I told him that I was staying at a friend's house all those times.  You know that.  But he will never let me go."

"You can no longer keep up this facade," he said.

"I know, I know.  But you must understand.  My father is an extremely protective man.  He will never allow this.  I…" She looked at him.  He had a thoughtful look on his face.

"Just how would this mortal intend to stop me?"  He asked.

Lisa had a distressed look on her face.  "Please.  Do nothing to harm him.  I will come and live with you, as your wife.  But do not harm my father."  She advanced slowly, her face drawing close to his.  He could see the tears stream down her cheeks.  Oh, how he hated to see her like that.  "Father is only going to do what he feels is best.  He will never let me go.  He will follow me, and try to get me back.  I do not want you to harm him.  He will never let me go."   She was ranting, shaking her head, the tears coming down in torrents. 

Dracula wrapped his arms around her.  He held her close, her face pressed against her chest.  Looking over her, he stared into the large mirror that hung on the wall.  His larger body framed her glowing bare back, which trembled from the force of her sobs.  She is so small, he thought.  Taking what he wanted was easy for Dracula.  It would be so simple just to whisk her away now, and then dispose of her father.  That is the way he always lived his life.  But he couldn't, because she didn't want her father to die.  He would do anything for her. 

And it scared him.

                                                      * * *

Shaft made his way down the corridors after spying on his master and Lisa.  He brusquely shoved his way past any monsters that happened to be in his way.  He HATED that man.  Mason was always getting in his hair.  Meddling with his affairs.  Shaft wanted nothing more then to fry him into a crisp, but he knew better then to overstep his bounds.  No, Lord Dracula wouldn't want that.  'Oh, no, don't mess with my precious Mason.'  HA!  I'll deal them both soon enough.  Shaft smiled as he made his way through the lower catacombs of Castlevania.  Yes, Dracula was getting soft.  There was a time when he would kill just for the fun of it.  But that woman got to him.  And soon Dracula, Mason, and that slut Lisa would all be dead.  The child would be his.  Just like he planned.

Stopping at a wall, he moved his hand and chanted.  The wall disappeared, allowing Shaft to continue.  He entered a large room.  It was empty, save for several magic books stacked here and there.  A desk sat in the middle of the room, with a comfortable looking leather chair situated behind it.  In that chair, sat a young man.  Shaft stopped in front of the desk with a look of annoyance on his face.  "Get out of my seat, boy," he stated irritably.

The young man stood up and walked around, smirking like he had a good joke to tell.  He was small, for a man of twenty-one.  Yet he was surprisingly strong for his age, with quick reflexes and good hunting instincts.  He was a hunter all his life.  Not surprising, since he was born a lycanthrope.  Tilting his head to one side, then running a hand through his mass of red hair, he leaned against the wall and chuckled.  An evil grin was plastered on his face.

"When are you going to dispel that voodoo you cast on them?  They still hump like rabbits.  It is really interesting, I would love to learn how to direct it on someone I know," the young man said.

Shaft couldn't help but smile at that.  "That's all we need.  Little wolves running around and wreaking havoc.  Stick to your job, Villi, and leave the 'lovebirds' to me."  Shaft looked at the young man.  He had met him on one of his assignment away from Castlevania.  Young and impressionable, Villi was promised a large reward for helping him.  He proved to be both resourceful and deadly.  And he hated Dracula.  Apparently, Dracula had killed Villi's young bride.  Convenient.  Enough so that Shaft found the young werewolf good enough help in his plans.  Of course, when this was all over he might have to kill Villi.  "Did you finish slaughtering all horses at the DePothier mansion?" 

Villi shrugged.  "Yeah, I did it.  Killed every one of them."

"Good.  Now remember.  When dawn breaks and they found out about the horses, they have to know that it was someone who worked for Dracula.  Lisa's family has to know, also, where she was staying all this time."  Shaft sat down.  "I want you there to protect the girl.  Now that she's pregnant with the dhampire, she's more valuable then ever."

"Fine," Villi replied. "I will leave now, then."  He swaggered off towards the opening.

"Oh and one more thing," Shaft called out after him. Villi stopped, not turning.  "Kill Lisa's father.  In front of her."  Villi nodded and left the room.  Smiling wickedly, Shaft leaned back.  He worked hard and his moment would come soon.  He hated this place and would soon return home.  With the child.  The child was the key to everything.  With young dhampire, he could conquer Hyrule.

~Well there is the very first chapter my very first story!  Again this is a ZELDA story, but the first few chapters aren't going to take place in the Zelda universe.  Anyway, please read and REVIEW.  I cannot grow as an author unless I have some constructive criticism.  Still a few 'Your story rulez' never hurt anyone! Lol.~

                                                                             -DarthVegita-