Greetings! Again, I would like to thank you all who are accompanying this; I hope that you are enjoying reading as much I am enjoying writing it. Here I bring chapter seven named Richter, feeling a great sense of nostalgia from good memories of the game Castlevania: Symphony of The Night, and I am certainly that some of you will also remember a little those long hours expended exploring Castlevania as Alucard while searching for Dracula! A little tribute in honor of all fans of this memorable title!
Enjoy!
Chapter 07: Richter
Still carrying with him thoughts about his friend's family, Soma spent that entirely week thinking about what he had already remembered, somehow trying to relate the still fragmented images with his memories of Leon and the events that started the war between Dracula and the Belmont clan. His efforts proved to be useless, for after he had left his previously life and everything related to the blond knight behind, a large black ocean appeared inside his head from which small islands emerged, containing isolated events which still did not reveal much to him, such as the strange and turbulent dream that he had after seeing Adrian for the first time with his memories beginning to return.
That was another very complicated matter for him to deal with.
It seemed crazy, he often caught himself thinking, about how that could even be possible. Besides the memory of having searched for a small boy all over Castlevania and not having found him, there was nothing else in his mind in that moment that showed more about the boy. He didn't even remember how he looked, let alone something that could relate him to the man with long black hair who was also there with them in the mansion, but still...
It was him... His son... That was an absolute certainty in his heart since the moment he laid his eyes on the dhampir.
There were many questions that continually confronted itselves inside his head and he desperately wanted answers, something that could explain what was happening, why he had this certainty. He wanted to force his subconscious to remember a little more, anything that could show him something more about the other man that was still to him as mysterious as he was on the day they first meet five years ago.
When they were all together he sought to be as discreet as possible, sociable without attracting much attention to himself and avoiding as he could addressing Genya Arikado more than was strictly necessary, being cautious. But when he was alone on certain points of the mansion where he had a wide view of the halls, Soma began to develop the terrible habit of watching the other man from distance when he was absolutely sure that the other hadn't noticed him.
He stared at him as if he was part of a large complex puzzle whose parts were difficult to fit in... A comparison that was not entirely untrue.
In that exact moment Soma was on the second floor of the old Belmont mansion leaning close to the end of a corridor with his silhouette partially hidden by the wall. He stared thoughtfully at the dhampir while he and Julius chatted on the lower floor of the mansion, his attention mostly on the black-haired man.
It was when he heard footsteps echoing softly over the carpet approaching him from behind and he briefly diverted his attention from his friends and saw Mina stopping at his side. The young priestess looked at him as well at the two men on the lower floor, and with understanding in her countenance the woman touched her friend's shoulder gently with one hand and gestured for him to accompany her. At first he made no reaction, then slowly nodded in agreement and after casting one last glance at the dhampir and the hunter, Soma followed her and they silently walked away.
They walked for a few minutes until they reached the staircase that led them back downstairs, and then went on a little longer until they left the mansion completely. The sky that day was completely cloudy, not allowing the sunlight to pass which made the gray outside's environment even colder with the season's advance. It seemed to reflect the current mood of the silver-haired man, who, with the young woman beside him, walked on until they went deeper into a garden that had been grown near the northern area of the old building.
And far from ears that could easily catch any conversation, Mina finally addressed her friend going straight to the point.
"You've been watching him a lot these past few days."
Soma remained silent and she looked at his face.
"Why don't you try to talk to him?"
"I don't know what I'd say..." He told her.
"Even so, I see clearly how much you want it. It's written on your face, partially hidden in your eyes."
"After what happened at Castlevania I tried to talk with him about what happened at the castle, but I didn't have much success, since then I've never tried to get closer to 'Arikado' in the last few years." The silver haired man said the name feeling only at that moment how strange it sounded pronounced by his own mouth. Shaking his head, he continued. "Would not it be strange of me to suddenly show great interest in friendship? And also, as much as I've been ignorant of everything so far, Adrian has never been. He always knew and never tried to approach me for anything more than simple cordiality between acquaintances."
Mina stopped and looked at him meaningfully.
"You're afraid to talk to him, Soma."
The man stared at her in surprise, not knowing what to say at first. After a moment of silence, he began to speak slowly.
"I try to remember, but I still can't... I'm not afraid to talk to him... I just fear that the things I did in my past might have been terrible to the point that he couldn't bring himself to want to get more involved with me than we are today for the simple fact of knowing that I am the reincarnation of his father..."
The priestess put a hand on his shoulder and told sympathetically.
"You'll never know if you don't try, Soma. For everything there is a beginning. I'm not saying to become best friends overnight, but talk to him, show that you're willing to have a good relationship now, as you are today. Try it, and then you'll see if he will accept."
The silver-haired man smiled gently and nodded silently in thanks. Mina changed the subject and talked about lighter things with her friend as they continued the brief walk through the garden and Soma accompanied her, though a majority of his thoughts were still focused on the dhampir.
...
Sitting on the throne of the night the vampire took a sip of blood from his goblet. With his face turned into a mask of severity, cold golden eyes staring at the front door of the hall, Dracula waited for his opponent's arrival. He had kidnapped the young girlfriend of the current Belmont heir and also a little girl who he believed to be a distant relative in order to force him to come to Castlevania and thus completely annihilate the family of hunters.
As he thought of the Belmonts the blood began to boil in his veins and he felt a deep, voracious and growing hatred inside his heart that entwined with his soul, increasingly felling the darkness grow within him, seize his body, and he gave himself to it completely, plunging into the sea of fury and blood.
The entrance door to the throne room opened and a tall man with long brown hair, dressed in an elegant royal blue garment entered the room, walked resolutely to the center, glared at the vampire and exclaimed arrogantly.
"Die monster. You don't belong in this world!"
The vampire frowned in a mixture of irritation and contempt. As if with simple words he would out of nowhere just drop dead on the ground. Really...
"It was not by my hand that I am once again given flesh. I was called here by humans, who wish to pay me tribute."
"Tribute?" The Belmont spoke in disbelief, sounding as if he had been offended. "You steal men's souls, and make them your slaves."
"Perhaps the same could be said of all religions." The vampire replied sarcastically.
Richter took a step forward.
"Your words are as empty as your soul. Mankind ill needs a savior such as you."
"What is a man?!" Dracula shouted, seized by sudden fury.
He rose from the throne and threw the empty goblet away; it broke into several pieces as it touched the floor.
"A miserable little pile of secrets!" The vampire sneered coldly, watching the Belmont with narrowed eyes. "But enough talk; have at you!"
Dracula teleported to attack his opponent who wielded the whip, ready to fight; Then suddenly the whole scene was enveloped by a deep darkness that seemed to linger for a long time until finally it began to dissipate. When this happened, the vampire was lying on the small staircase in front of the throne, with his elegant garments blooded and ripped apart.
Looking at his opponent he didn't see the Belmont heir who had been there to face him, but another man... He was tall, wore black armor, and carried in his hands a long silver sword and a red shield bearing the symbol of a beast. He had long golden hair that fell on his back, white skin and golden eyes that looked at him with indifference.
"Tell me. What... What were Lisa's last words?" The vampire asked in a choked whisper.
"She said 'Do not hate humans. If you cannot live with them, then at least do them no harm. For their's is already a hard lot.' She also said to tell you that she would love you for all of eternity..." The dhampir answered soberly.
Dracula closed his eyes and felt a deep sadness overcome his spirit.
"Lisa, forgive me." he whispered, and looking at the other man, told him. "Farewell my son..."
Soma awoke suddenly from his sleep, confused and disturbed. The feeling of deep sadness was still present in his heart, and without any conditions to even try to sleep again, the silver-haired man decided to walk a little to think and try to calm his spirit.
As he stepped out into the hallway he bumped into a piece of décor he had forgotten it sat by his door, and cursing softly, carefully the man rearranged the pot in its spot hoping no one had heard him.
Walking through the corridors with only the silence and the pale moonlight that pierced the windows as companion, he allowed his thoughts to bring back the strange dream.
The figure of the man with long brown hair and blue garments was familiar to him, he was sure to be someone from the Belmont clan though his real name he could not remember as his memory remained still vague and incomplete. The other, however, had stirred within him in a way that made him uneasy. Contrary to the dream he had had the other night, this one showed him briefly the real face of his son, whose facial resemblance was undeniable with the current appearance of Genya Arikado, even under the effects of the illusion and only served to confirm the certainty that the black-haired man was indeed Adrian.
And also the conversation they had, the name he said...
Lisa... Again the word echoed clearly in his mind and Soma shuddered, running his hands over his face.
Why did that name bring so much anguish and sadness? Who was this woman? He tried to force his mind to remember but only saw a deep darkness that revealed nothing more to him about his past.
The silver-haired man came downstairs to the library, deciding to stop there and try to rest his mind, but upon entering the room he realized that he was not alone.
"Arikado..."
The dhampir, wearing only a large white shirt unbuttoned on the top and black trousers, no sign of the dark suit he used to wear, watched him from the chair where he sat. The fireplace was out and the only source of light came from the moon, entering the room and partially touching the face of the black-haired man.
"Soma... Why are you awake at this hour?" He asked.
"I cannot sleep. Could even say that my dreams don't help me much." The other answered, walking to stand next to the window to look at the night landscape.
"Dreams?" Alucard questioned with mild curiosity.
"It's about things... that happened a long time ago in my life, but they are not important right now."
The silver-haired man shrugged, and a not very comfortable silence settled between them. After a few minutes, Soma looked at the other man and asked, trying to break the awkward quietness.
"So... Do you often come to the library?"
"Sometimes to read, sometimes just to think in silence."
"You don't have any book on your hand now..." Soma pointed. "Am I bothering your thinking?"
"No." The dhampir replied merely, without attempting to continue the conversation, and again both were silent.
Feeling bothered and part frustrated, the silver-haired man ran his hands over his face and observed his silent companion who was now looking at another spot in the library, seeming to analyze the titles of the books while deliberately keep ignoring him. Looking more closely, Soma noticed some small details on the other man's pale face.
He's tense... And frowning, he realized sharply that it was precisely his presence in that place that was making the dhampir act that way. Deciding to push him a little more, he wanted to find out just exactly how far he could pull him.
"You seem worried about something," Soma said, breaking the silence. "Did you come here tonight to think about any particular problem?"
"Government affairs." The other replied evenly.
"Government affairs..." The silver-haired man repeated slowly. "... Like the ones that made you come to Castlevania, five years ago?"
The dhampir looked up and stared intensely at the other with narrowed black eyes, and Soma again pulled.
"You get bothered when I mention what happened at the castle, and it's not the first time this happens. I remember trying to talk with you shortly after the eclipse had passed and you always avoided the subject."
"There's nothing to be talked about that place, Soma. I've already asked you to just forget about Castlevania."
He truly didn't know what possessed him to say what he said next.
"Actually you mean to forget that I am Dracula's reincarnation."
Alucard visibly seemed to get even tenser.
"It's kind of hard..." The silver-haired man went on with a certain irony that he could not contain. "... since I was just kidnapped because of that very reason."
"Soma..." The dhampir began to say in a warning tone.
"Why?" The other questioned abruptly. "What did Dracula do to you?"
What was he doing? The silver-haired man screamed in his own mind. Throwing it all away into the trash can?! It was not for the conversation to go on like this. Why couldn't he stop?!
Alucard stood up quickly.
"He and I... these are things that stayed in the past, forgotten and completely erased. It doesn't affect me now. Whether you are his reincarnation or not, it doesn't change who you are today or the life you have. Do not give importance to these matters, they are not worth it."
"They aren't worth of my attention?!" Soma inquired, half incredulous and half irritated. "They performed a macabre ritual trying to wake him up again, and what if it had worked out and Dracula had returned?!"
"He will not come back!"
Alucard almost shouted, asserting loudly, harshly and conclusively in a way that cut the other man sharply like a razor, startling him, and also, in the deep, saddening him. They both stared at one another in silence; the dhampir breathing heavily and the other watching him with wide-eyed blue eyes.
Controlling his temper, Alucard then took a deep breath and said in a more calm and evenly tone.
"If I have any power over this matter, I will not allow it. You shall not lose the live that you have today, I can reassure you."
Soma watched him with a certain grimness hidden in his countenance, and inquired slowly in a whisper.
"What happened in your past was so horrible that you don't even want to think about it?"
"Enough Soma!" The dhampir cut roughly. "I will not discuss this with you. Listen to my advice and forget it, because that's what I did. For me, it doesn't mean anything anymore!"
Soma flinched, feeling as if he had taken a hard slap in the face, and stunned, saw the black-haired man turn back and walk briskly towards the exit.
"Arikado..."
He called out weakly and the dhampir stopped by the door without looking at him.
"You... Forgive me... I should not have made you remember memories that aren't pleasant to you..." The silver-haired man spoke neutrally, though inside he felt completely bitter.
Alucard said nothing, just went on his way and left the library in silence.
Tremulous, Soma leaned against the eaves of the window and looking at his reflection on the glass, he was astonished to see tears streaming down his face involuntarily.
"Soma..." Mina's soft, timid voice called him and he turned to find the young woman standing at the entrance to the library, watching him with sadness on her face.
"You heard..." he murmured.
"Yes... I'm sorry... I was awake and I've heard you bump into the decoration and realized that you had another nightmare again... I wanted to help and I followed you, but I didn't enter the library when I listened you speak Mr. Arikado's name... Don't worry, he didn't see me, I was hiding."
The silver-haired man nodded slowly, whispering.
"So... You know there's nothing to be done..."
The priestess approached her friend and took his hands in hers, stroking them gently.
"Some things take time... If it didn't work now, doesn't mean that in the future there won't be an opportunity to succeed... He is not ready yet to know your truth, Soma, he is not ready yet to accept... But don't give up, don't be like this..."
Breathing deeply and feeling a heavy weight on his soul, suffocated by a darkness that seemed to want envelop his spirit, the silver-haired man spoke to his friend in a ragged whisper.
"It's my fault Mina... I may not remember what happened in the past, but I'm sure, deep down in my soul, that it is my fault... I pushed him away... My son... I lost him completely..."
Not knowing what to say or how to comfort him, the young woman only embraced her friend and they remained in silence for a long time until the sun began to rise.
