DarkeningShadow77: Thank you so much for your kind words! They have made my day when I read it ;w; I just hope that you'll be able to enjoy the rest just as much!
Same counts for everyone else reading, of course! :)
~ 1-1: Beginning
During his march through the countryside, Trevor hadn't come across any other village or town. It was all deserted with one creature here and there, such as giant rats and dogs. He successfully chased them away without any trouble. The further he had left the town, the less he could see and soon enough, he decided to turn on the oil lamp which he carried. Wasting any of the oil wasn't recommended just in case more people were going to be aggressive. Refills weren't expected anytime soon.
At the same time, not being able to find another village meant that he would need to rest outside. Luckily, he came across a lonely hut by the road. Most of it was destroyed, only two walls were fully intact while half of the roof was gone. Those who had come by must have stolen some planks for themselves or monsters chased the hunters out that were there. This shelter was better than nothing, Trevor thought and found himself the last corner. He turned off his lamp to not draw any attention to himself. Even then, Trevor couldn't allow himself to be asleep for too long, he would usually just nap for a while. His body would rest and still be awake enough to notice any unusual noise. With a low sigh, he pulled his cloak closer around him. It was chilly and he could feel the wind blow through the cracks of the damaged walls.
Not long after Trevor had allowed to close his eyes, he had found himself awake, having him seemingly slept through the night. He was awoken by the rain drumming against the roof. Or, at least, the few planks above him. The surroundings were lighter than before, though covered by the curtain of rain. Trevor groaned to himself, he had wanted to get up earlier. He needed to walk some more distance until he would arrive.
As the hunter packed himself up to protect himself from the rain, he wondered if his home village even existed anymore. It has been years after all and it might have changed quite a lot since the last time he had seen it.
The memories of Warakiya Village were dull in the back of his mind. There was no color to them. A bunch of different smells he associated with it and another strange mix of sounds and melodies. It was far away from him now, but Trevor remembered it fondly nonetheless.
There was something ever so innocent about his past that the hunter almost had to laugh about it.
Who knew that, back then, those people with whom he shared his childhood with, would turn theirbacks on him and his mother, declaring them the children of the devil?
A weird turn of events which he wasn't able to comprehend as a child. Yet, that was what life was all about, it changes all around on your whenever you expect it the least. Trevor sighed to himself, he could only hope that this kind of change would grace him with a better future. It eventually had to show itself if he was to take matters into his own hands, right?
Despite his legs protesting every now and then, Trevor didn't stop on his way. Taking a rest wasn't exactly comfortable while it was still pouring. The path getting all muddy and the air cooled down significantly. It kept going until the sun was setting already and the faint shadows of a couple of buildings were seen. That motivated him enough to keep going while his cloak was becoming heavier on his shoulders. To his dismay, he had to find out how most of these buildings were in ruins and Trevor felt his heart sink in his chest. It was to be expected, he had been told that the forces of the Lord of Darkness had been brutal.
When he was getting closer, it was awfully silent. The hunter tried to listen for any signs of life, he couldn't see anybody behind the windows or the ruins of the houses, but he did spot movement. Unfortunately, the hunter thought, those might not be any humans. However, he did immediately go for the remains of the church of the village which is in one of the best conditions. It even had some of its roof and all four walls somewhat intact. No matter if it was destroyed for now, it was holy ground that the demons couldn't enter. Trevor would try to plan from there.
His steps towards the gate trigged something. There was suddenly a lot of noise around the church, he grabbed his Vampire Killer instinctively and remained on the spot. He watchedevery opening on the front of the church until a group of three people stepped to the open gate with its old copper doors which were barely hanging in to begin with. The three looked tired and worn, their faces spoke of exhaustion and their clothes were ripped. As soon as they spotted Trevor, they backed off with their pitchforks and broken lances. They didn't believe that there could have been another human around. Frankly, if the hunter had been in their place, he wouldn't have imagined to see any person in the next years.
"You, young man, what do you seek in this destroyed village? There is nothing for you to do here." It was the tallest man, the clothing reminded him of a priest, but he was a bit too young to be a serious holy man. Then again, these days called for drastic measurements.
Trevor lifted his hands to them once he had put away his weapon. "I was sent by the Church to rid this county from the Curse." Better be honest about it, people should be his allies rather than his enemies.
Around the next corner came a skeleton, its light eyes immediately focused on the hunter and ran towards him. The massive man of the group rushed out quicker than one would think of him, he smacked the skeleton across the chest and shoved him back.
"Get in, get in!", he barked angrily and despite the fact that Trevor would have been perfectly able to defend himself. He escaped to the church and the attacker followed after him. Together they pressed themselves against the gates to close them. With every other enemy, this would have been laughable. Considering how the demons couldn't cross the borders of the church as long as all its walls were up, it proved itself to be somewhat effective.
These three men weren't the only inhabitants of the church, there was a handful more of them. All were of young age, the hunter would even suggest that most of them were younger than him. Their eyes were set on Trevor at once. They watched him with caution, but at the same time, they almost looked relieved to know that people didn't abandon them completely.
The young priest approached him and took him by his shoulder, he offered him a gentle smile. "We welcome you here in the remains of this village, traveler." The others had already prepared a fire under a part of the roof, Trevor was lead to sit with them. None of them complained about it, though the hunter kept himself ready just in case they would change their mind about him. Especially as soon as they would hear his name. For a second, he pondered if he should just hide his family name, but that was against his honor.
There was nothing wrong with him or his ancestors, nothing to be ashamed about.
"Thank you for your generosity." Trevor finally pulled off his hood and edged closer to the fire. The warmth was more than pleasant to his frame which had been freezing to his bones. He rubbed his hands, making himself somewhat comfortable while he could never shake off their gazes. "I am glad to see that I found other people around, especially here. I would have been devastated if no one survived." Speaking his mind was important to win their trust, he figured. Besides, Trevor was a bad liar anyway, so might as well be honest.
A young brunette beside him leaned to his side with interest. Her mischievous smirk was making him somewhat uncomfortable. "You speak as if you were hoping to see someone special!", she hummed in amusement as she wiggled her eyebrows in a suggestive manner.
The hunter coughed into his fist and shifted a bit away as he felt his cheeks changing color. "You are mistaken. I returned for this used to be my home many years ago." As if their curiosity wasn't great enough, now they were glued to his lips. Trevor wasn't used to this much attention. It was difficult to ignore it and he knew that his voice would shake if he continued to explain. Luckily, the priest leaned forward and squinted his eyes. The drumming of the rain drops against the roof and the crackling of the fire filled their ears, the faint sound of thunder in the distance.
"I have to admit, you do look familiar, but my memory is rather fuzzy. Would you mind telling us your name?" Before Trevor could even begin to take a breath, he added quickly with a weak laugh: "My name is Aurel! I used to be a priest in training, but seeing how most villagers were either killed or chased away... I felt the urge to take over and give hope to those few who decided to stay. We wait for the terror to be over for none of us have anywhere else to go." And escaping didn't lead to immediate safety. You could be slayed by demons either way, so the decision to stand their ground was understandable.
"I was born in this village and lived with my mother in a hut." In any other part of Wallachia, Trevor wouldn't have had a problem with telling his name right away. Yet, some form of childish fear crawled up his back and he shook himself. If he was to be casted away again, he would have have no other place to return to. Trevor was technically still banished, he told himself that much, as he took another breath to continue on. "I am Trevor Belmont. We were chased away from here when I was little." Everyone held their breath. Some nodded to themselves and other mumbled how they did hear of the name before. In the village, they had one stories or two in general about it actually, though they made it seem like the events happened decades ago. Some were positive while others were more negative. The majority of those ten people did admit that they were too young to remember anything proper. Even Aurel, who looked like he would be the oldest of them all, had to ponder a lot about it, though he did raise his hands to calm the rest of them down.
"Well, if the Church is trusting him, so can we. He remains unharmed after entering these four holy walls, we can safely assume that Trevor comes with good intentions. We can set those stories aside. If we were to believe one of those, then those that speak of his ancestors' blessed blood!" A knot formed in the hunter's throat and he gazed down, beginning to grow shy from everyone around him, especially the genuine words of the priest. "Therefore, we welcome you back home, Trevor, even if Warakiya is nothing like it was before…"
This tugged on the hunter more than he liked to admit. He shifted in place again so that he could square his shoulders properly. The warmth of the fire had completely covered him and the pleasant sensation had his muscles relax some more. "What happened exactly?" This set off another moment of silence in which they looked at one another as if sharing their frightful memories in mind. The hunter felt a bit worse for evoking these memories again, but the brunette from before did her best to explain.
People have gone insane, she mumbled as she embraced her legs and pulled them close. Darkness fell over everyone and evil acts have been committed. In a way, they believed that the Curse was a way of God for punishing humanity. For getting off the path this much, for turning His created realm to one resembling Hell. The village itself had been destroyed by an army of demons which was led by the "Wallachian Demon", as they would call it. A group that would raid the countryside and claim more and more land for its Master, Lord Dracula.
"Now it seems like that the giant Skeleton Knight by the graveyard and his... Fellow monsters have taken over these ruins and turned it into their stronghold." Aurel crossed his arms and frowned as he stared into the fire. There were other troubling beasts around, but the skeletons were most common.
Trevor took hold of his cross around his neck as he looked around the group. "God has not abandoned you and neither is this any of His work. Lord Satan has sent the Antichrist to us, it's a test of faith and strength." With that, the hunter got back on his feet with his gaze turned to the altar and the massive cross which was unbroken. "And I will defeat this Skeleton Knight to prove to you that there is hope." His determination was leaving the rest speechless. They had wanted to tell him that he would be better off staying with them for at least another day, but the hunter wouldn't listen. He approached the altar, lightning struck near them, everything became bright for a second. The enormous drumming of the thunder cracked in their ears.
For a moment, the hunter could only stand in front of it, awestruck by the size of the cross before him. It was imposing and heavy. He swallowed nervously and knelt on his knees, folded his hands to a prayer to God for this was where is holy mission was to start.
Trevor prayed for strength, both physically and mentally. For guidance and help in need when he would be blinded by the devil's tricks. All of this was spoken in his mind, his worries and hopes sent to God and His angels. Only then let he raise his voice to a whisper as if to round up his prayer with a psalm he remembered.
"Even though I shall walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me." His lips were trembling and not from the cold alone. "Your rod and your staff, they comfort me."
In the end, his last thoughts were with his ancestors and pleaded for their blessing, too. Trevor would rid their name of shame, would clean his ancestor Leon's name and clear the one of his mother, too. As one of the chosen warriors of God, he would do his duty.
As his eyes fluttered open again, the hunter could feel determinations flood his mind and body again. Strength welled underneath his skin, his hands turned to fists. Not even the lightning or thunder around him could make him flinch anymore. Then, as if ignited by the thunder, Trevor swung around and marched to the gates.
He hesitated in one moment, threw one last gaze to the others with his hands on the broken, cold metal. They returned it his gaze with awe. Aurel crossed himself instead of speaking up, there was no need for any of it. Trevor couldn't help but smile at that gesture. Even between the greatest rumble, there would be life and no force of evil could extinguish what God had created, but it certainly tried. With newfound courage, the hunter swung the gates open. With his Vampire Killer at hand, he was ready to take out the demons which had infested his childhood home.
The skeletons, which were patrolling around, weren't too much of a problem. As frightening as they looked with their glowing yellow eyes or the strips of rotten meat hanging from their bones. Mostly, one hit of his whip was enough to have them break apart and watch them burst into flames and ashes. They weren't exactly sturdy against his strength... The bats were a greater nuisance, they would rush down on him to nibble and bite down on skin. Clearly, they weren't satisfied with the corpses on the floor which they feasted on. His hands would smack them awa. If he saw them dashing down towards him, he slashed them with dagger, either cutting their wings off or their hairy bodies in half.
It was between other ruins when Trevor spotted a light. As he edged closer by hiding behind a single, half-broken wall, he saw a giant bonfire with a whole pack of werewolves sitting around it. The flames were redder than one would imagine. Obviously, since it was still pouring, this wasn't supposed to be natural fire. These werewolves reminded him of the one he had fought off in the town. Perhaps one of these had found their way there. At the end of the circle rested a giant skeleton. His hollow eyes watching the monsters prance around the fire in a wild dance while his dark blue armor shimmered from the flames. While its body was resembling the bones of a human, its head was more of a bull with its long snout and thick horns coming out of the skull. Next to him laid a longsword and a round shield with an inverted red cross on it. This must have been the leader, the Skull Knight, of whom the villagers had talked about earlier.
Trevor knew that he couldn't take on all these werewolves at once, it wouldn't be wise to get them all to attack him. His hands stroked over the wall and there was an idea popping in his mind. Once he could hear a part of the pack near him, the hunter threw himself against the bricks, pushing and pressing against it until the poor construction couldn't stand anymore. It collapsed on many beasts, squished them under their weight or, at least, they weren't able to crawl out anymore.
The Skull Knight jumped on its feet and pointed at Trevor. "Seize him and deliver his head to me!", boomed its rattling voice out of his chest. However, instead of attacking him, the skeleton grabbed his sword and shield and escaped in slow steps. Since as massive as it was, it couldn't run due to its' weight. The rest of the pack, four of the demons, charged at him. Between the other ruins came out other skeletons to approach him, too. The hunter did his best to defend himself, one crack here, another dagger there. His enemies were jumping around and slashing the air. Trevor found himself dodging more than actually attacking with this number of foes around him and they soon were able to form a circle around him. Trevor spun in his spot as they drew closer menacingly. If he was to attack even one of them, the rest would throw themselves on top of him. Suddenly, a rock flew right against a werewolf's head. It yelped out and another couple of rocks hit the rest from above. Panic and confusion broke out between the monsters, but Trevor had quickly spot some of two of the villagers on top of the ruins. They rained rocks and bricks on the demons. From behind another wall ran three others, among them was Aurel. Screaming and yelling, they seemed more frightening and have the monsters focus on them instead. Seeing how they were weaker than Trevor, they did went for them. The hunter followed up to get rid of some of the skeletons for they were easy to take out. However, Aurel had to take a deep breath to yell at the hunter from his distance as he jabbed a werewolf in the chest.
"Follow the Skull Knight!" He pointed at the direction the skeleton had fled to. "It will try to escape! You have to stop it!"
As frightened as Trevor was with leaving them alone with the beasts, he figured that they had survived for so long for a reason and would be able to defend themselves. At least, they could get back to the church before any real damage was done. The hunter tore his eyes away from the fighting villagers and turned to speed up to catch up with the Skull Knight.
On his way, Trevor arrived by the graveyard and he noticed how many of the graves were open, holes all over the ground. His stomach twisted at the mere thought of how many poor souls were resurrected as demonic creatures or how many had to function as food to the demons.
Soon enough, part of these demonic creatures rose from the holes, rotting corpses climbing out of them and hasting towards Trevor. He whipped from side to side at any of them who dared to come close. They were just as fragile as the skeletons from before, though watching them collapse into a pile of meat with worms crawling and digging in all over had a different effect on him. Needless to say, the smell was more than nauseating, but Trevor preferred to focus on the main target which knew that it was going to lose this race.
Thus, the Skull Knight came to a halt and turned around to face Trevor who was getting closer by the second. It armed itself with its sword and held up its shield as if waiting for one attack by the other. Trevor slowed down to save up some of his energy for this fight. Obviously, this fight was going to be a lot more difficult than the rest of the skeletons that he had faced before.
"Foolish human! What makes you come to the Lord's territory? What makes you believe that you can claim back what is rightfully ours?!" Its voice resounded in the area, barely muffled by the rain and thunder. Trevor shuffled his feet in place to get ready for any attack, the muddy ground slippery under his soles. Perhaps he could use this as an advantage, he thought to himself. Though he was aware that it could be just as well his own doom if he was careless. It was then when it spotted the Vampire Killer in his hand and Trevor could swear that he saw a yellow sparkle flaring up in the empty holes of its skull. "You are different, human, your blood is of different origin. What a shame that I will have to smash your head, but Lord Dracula will shower me with riches!" The Skull Knight laughed hollowly or Trevor thought so, for the sound was so metallic that it hurt his ears.
Instead of answering to the monster, it wasn't worthy of any kind of answer anyway for it was a pathetic creature of Hell, the hunter let the whip crack in the air. The Skull Knight drummed its sword against the shield in response. As Trevor hurried closer and snapped his weapon at him, he had to realize that the shield and armor were immune to any of his hits. The daggers were reflected from it, too. One swing from the longsword of the Knight knocked over graves and the rocks shot through the air like projectiles. Mud and earth followed and making it harder to see. The hunter tried to aim for its skull which the monster kept protecting with its shield, but it was hard to get close enough to land any kind of hit. One swing of the blade would have definitely been fatal. Trevor had to risk getting hit though if he ever was going to be able to whip its head off, ducking under the blade as it barely passed his own head. He could feel the gush of air above him and perhaps it cut a hair or two. The shock of the moment hadn't the hunter paralyzed. He reacted immediately and got back up and slashed the whip across its fleshless face. With a hollow yell, the Skull Knight staggered back and swirled his sword around in a desperate attempt to hack Trevor in half. The hunter gasped and held his breath, avoiding the blade, but he didn't back away too much and instead moved to the side while the foe was unfocused. Another snap from the whip on the back of the skull, he spotted dark cracks after the impact and another bloodcurdling scream parted the thick teeth. The sword fell from its hand and slammed into the mud, more than half of its blade covered.
Now it was its shield that was wildly shaken above and around its skull to protect itself. Yet, this was only a matter of strategy now on how Trevor was going to take the Skeleton Knight apart.
Seeing how the skeleton staggered in place, Trevor let his Vampire Killer wrap around one bony leg and gave one strong thug. With the muddy ground, it was slippery enough to pull this heavy beast. In fact, it was quick enough to pull its leg in the air, the enemy collapsed in the front from the strength. Before the skeleton had hit the ground, the hunter had let go off the other and hastened to the discarded sword. The iron was as heavy as it looked, Trevor let out a strained groan when he took hold of the hilt. It was enough to lift it with both his arms and he dragged it along through the ground, leaving a furrow in the earth behind himself. His steps quickened to get to him when the monster struggled to get back up and off the ground. With one bit of his remaining strength, Trevor pierced the sword through the back of its armor. Another ear piercing scream burst from the demon. It shifted and flapped with its arms and legs in this position, but the movement was slowing down further and further. The hunter watched with a mix of terror and awe how the Skull Knight was falling apart in front of him. The bones disengaged themselves from one another, many more growls and yells rumbled out as if that was going to stop its end until the skull finally snapped from its neck and the bones caught fire. Only the armor, sword and shield were left behind.
As the skull burned out, Trevor spotted something in particular in one eye socket. Between the flames shimmered something in dark red. Once the fire had died out, he trailed over the mud and bent down to retrieve an orb. It wasn't any bigger than his palm, but it was warm and pulsating like a heart, full of life and energy. The insides wobbled like red fog and the hunter could swear that he had seen a glint of the Skull Knight within it. Without thinking twice about it, Trevor let the orb slip in one of his leather pouches.
The sky seemed to have cleared to watch the conclusion of this battle, Trevor noticed with a light frown. He looked up to see how the sky wasn't as dark anymore, he could even spot one star or two.
The hunter was soon distracted by the sounds coming from the village. It was the group of the church that hastened towards him, but instead of seeing the same tired glint in their eyes, there was something hopeful to them. Without any hesitation, the priest approached him and took him by both his shoulders.
"You… You have done it!", he exclaimed in utter joy, though that only left Trevor confused. They hadn't seen him battle the Skull Knight, but he was glad that they had made it past the group of monsters from before. Aurel registered the expression and his smile softened. He gave a squeeze to his shoulders before he pulled his hands backs and he looked beside him to spot the lonely armor in the mud. "The demon's army was connected to him. It seemed, when you had slayed the Skull Knight, the rest noticed and fled away from us as if we had been the greatest danger all along. We hadn't seen any other on our way back to the church and as we realized as much, we had needed to see what was of you." Some form of fear swung in his voice, but it was evident that they weren't afraid of Trevor and instead for his safety. Of course, Trevor wasn't used to this sort of reaction.
The hunter threw one last gaze to the remains of the Skull Knight. "It was only one step closer to Lord Dracula. This is a warning to him, to let him know that someone is willing to put an end to this." Trevor pressed his lips together. This foe was most likely nothing compared to its master that had created him in the first place.
However, Aurel wasn't distracted by this mood and offered him another gentle smile. "Please, let us offer you a place of rest and some of what we have left. It's all that we can do, but we have to show our gratitude somehow."
This kind of helpfulness was still something that Trevor wasn't used to and he felt how his cheeks heated up. "You don't have to do anything. This was my duty." He nodded to underline his words, but the villagers wouldn't have any of it. The brunette woman from before took him by his arm, which didn't help at all, his frame became even more paralyzed from the touch. It was almost ridiculous, Trevor cursed bitterly to himself. He could face any kind of terrible creature, but something like this was throwing him off.
The world sure was a strange place.
"Now, don't be too humble!", the woman purred with a meaningful smirk. Trevor had to tear his gaze away before he could interpret more into it than necessary. "The Devil's castle isn't too far from here. What if we were to tell you how to get in? Would you accept our kind offer in exchange for that?" She spoke as if their offers from before weren't tempting enough which, quite honestly, when the opposite was true. Yet, now he couldn't deny that this kind of knowledge would be essential for his mission. With his head bowed a little, he agreed and they made their way back to the church with Trevor between them.
For the first time in many long years, Trevor was willingly allowed in a group of people and they all welcomed him happily. Naturally, the hunter was far from feeling that he was part of this group, but he was more than content to know that he was accepted as a guest. As promised, they shared some of their food with him as they sat around the fire back at the churc. After they prepared dinner, they told him of the next location that he should aim for.
The Clock Tower of Untimely Death.
At least, that's what everyone somewhat near Lord Dracula's castle would call it. The building was one of the main towers of the castle. It was connected by a bridge to the main halls and thus useful if one wanted to get to the Lord of Darkness. This was a route that apparently many had tried to conquer when wanting to vanquish Lord Dracula by themselves. Not a single one had returned once they had entered. It was just as dangerous as the name would suggest and the few travelers and soldiers that did pass the Clock Tower would speak of the sights and sounds they could spot from the ground. Just looking up at the ominous building was a proof of the presence of the Antichrist among Earth.
"A group of soldiers that patrolled around the countryside would tell us that the Wallachian Demon lives at the top of the Clock Tower…", mumbled one of the villagers as he nibbled on the hard bread in an attempt to make it softer. "Coming down with a horde to take more and more land in the name of its master and Lord Dracula."
Trevor frowned at his words and squeezed his eyes. "Its master? So, you mean, the Lord of Darkness isn't its master?"
"Of course, Lord Dracula is the master of all demonic creatures that now roam this world." Aurel had taken over the word again and shook his head in defeat. "But it seems like he isn't the only vampire that has some sort of control. Some rumors say that it's his wife, some others claim that it's his own son that takes command of some of the stronger monsters. After all, the Lord of Darkness has his minions to keep everything under control. It would be up to impossible to keep this massive horde under his eyes at all times." And as long as they would follow his will and orders, Lord Dracula wouldn't have to check up on any of them. Now that Trevor had gotten rid of one of his minions, the Lord of Darkness might reconsider his strategy. "It's shameful how helpless we are in comparison to what this demon is planting all over... But I am proud that we haven't grown mad from it all like some others did…"
It must have been terrible to watch Wallachia be torn apart by the Curse one by one. Something that he once had called his home was now a shadow of its own self. "You are far from helpless then", the hunter concluded and allowed himself to smile reassuringly. "If you were able to survive for so long and believe in God and His strength, then you might be stronger than you think." His words didn't fall on deaf ears, the villagers remained silent for a moment and weighted the meaning of those words before some of them gave light nods. Trevor knew that they didn't believe in themselves as much as he did, but apparently treasured these words.
"It's late and this has been an eventful day. We should all get some rest." Aurel got up on his feet and brushed off the dust from his clothes while the others searched a place near the fire and curled up in hope to not feel too cold during their sleep while the breeze found its way in their shelter.
Now that the monsters were gone, it was awfully quiet. No screaming, no yelling, no howling. Trevor welcomed the silence more than anything, grateful once more for the kindness of the villagers and the fact that he was allowed to be asleep for a few hours before the day would rise again. In fact, the hunter didn't even mind sleeping on the floor. The flames of the fire were comforting enough for him to relax and he pulled his half-dry cloak over himself like a blanket and let his mind drift away. Images of this night flew by his head, but soon vanished the next morning just as quickly as they had come.
Phew, another chapter edited! Got a bit more to upload sometime, but exams are on their way and I'll have to write a paper, so expect some delay... I hope this was enjoyable, at least!
See you next time!
