Castlevania: Aria of the Ascending Soul
Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix
Beta By: Lady Lunar Phoenix
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"So, we're missing the dogs of our family..."
"Simon," Christopher didn't even 'try' to hide his exasperation at his kin.
Yoko's suite didn't look tampered with, the pair of Belmonts were rooting through the place, checking for anything out of place while they were gone. The kitchen, and other areas all seemingly normal to the men. Simon stating he would only 'report in' once everyone got together, leaving the pair with only the suite to fill their time.
And wait...
Where 'was' Juste and Richter?
Christopher was working his way up to the window to check outside for any signs of the pair amid the serene garden below. Again, and despite Simons' seemingly indifferent air on the matter, Christopher had been passively, more aggressively, ordered to go and check the window. Now with enough elevation for himself, he could see Simon looking at the door with increasing frequencies. But for his limited view outside due to bushes and the occasional small tree, he couldn't see either sentient, ensouled, plush dogs.
"I don't see them, and I doubt they could have been locked away by accident anywhere," Christopher announced as he let the curtain drop before making his way across the window to the desk. "Well I mean unintentionally by accident. There's really nothing stopping someone from scooping one or both of them up and shoving them in a box before locking it."
"I guess we make another trip around the Vatican..." Simon grumbled as he stalked to the door.
"Let's leave the pair a message in case they met up and are on their way or if just one gets here..." Christopher suggested as he began rooting around for some writing utensils.
"We go, check an area, then return here to check in and go again." Simon finally announced, his arms folding across his chest. Christopher may have been 'joking' about the box, but Simon hated how the Vatican felt. Sure the fur was fake, but his mind was making it feel real as if it stood up on ends. 'I should 'not' be having experiences the likes of which only happened when I was in the castle...' he mentally growled.
Yoko's suite proved to be undefiled, so he had less cause for alarm, but that didn't help that this place currently was the 'only' place. Old hunting instincts insisted that he hunt and kill whatever was causing this... But all it took was a brief look in a shiny surface and see that annoyingly furry face stare 'back' at him to remind him.
On the desk he could see Christopher apparently finish whatever message he was making. With the sound of him struggling to fold the paper was some of the only noise he could hear. Soon the bear dropped down and was carrying said sheet over to where Juste liked to stuff things. Basically right under the book shelf, just small enough for a vacuum nozzle or pup paw.
"So I checked the kitchen, the dinning area..." Christopher recounted, his voice drifting as he tried to parse where the other two Belmonts went given the direction they went.
"If we were human I would suggest splitting up, but in this case we might as well go together," Simon finally grumbled out.
Which caused Christopher to give him a surprised expression before slowly nodding. "Very well."
Soon out of the room and on the move the first thing that touch their ears was the sound of the kids. Rather joyful in tone, it was comforting, momentarily until they started to get close enough to understand what they were hearing.
"You're such a cool looking dog Mr. Richter... I didn't know you looked tough!"
"He'd be scary if his ears were up like those other dogs. I'm glad they're down."
The two bears stopped and exchanged incredulous glances at each other before they started running down the hallway. Seeking out the source of this strange sudden 'praise' conversation. The words were bounding off the hallway, and there was a chance that Richter was on his way 'back' to Yoko's suite so... No reason to run save the way the kids were describing Richter.
"What if he fell into a vat of dye?" Christopher suggested as they approached the end of the hallway.
"I'll find a way to die laughing in this form."
Simons' snarky retort was choked back as they rounded the corner. Stunned by the sight of a large German Shepard walking down the hallway with a veritable honor guard of kids by their side. The markings were very similar to what Richter normally had, only shaped and refined by a living dog form... But for Christopher that was the only thing he could really 'tell', while Simon knew enough about dogs to realize these colors were 'off' for a real... dog...
Richter, for his part, stopped walking the moment he saw the pair of stuffed bears off in the distance before him. He momentarily forgot his surprise and settled on the gleeful realization that one of those bears was now a glorified chew toy compared to him... 'Unless they will transform under the same stimulus as I did in which case, its bear baiting time...'
"Look Mr. Simon! Mr. Christopher! Mr. Richters' a real dog now!" The children called out, before Richter took a dash out away from them. Just in case they got it in their heads 'again' to hug him to near chokehold intensity.
"How did this happen..." Simon asked, jealousy warring intensely with suspicion as he stood there watching this off colored dog come jogging up to them. The children followed behind Richter with eager anticipation, forming a ring around the three 'animals'.
"I... think its something to do with what Soma did. All the children did was start singing and it lead to this happening. However; before we compel the children to try it again on you, we should wait..." Richter explained patiently. "If we're going to stay in this form, or not. Remember you two 'are' bears and no one is going to allow a pair of bears to just roam the Vatican."
"Indeed..." Christopher agreed after Richter 'spoke'. While Simon and himself were eternally silent, Richter was now making a variety of low guttural dog-trying-to-make-human-sounds.
"Can't stop me if I eat them first..." Simon commented off handedly and got a pair of looks from his family members.
"I hope you were based off a sunbear," Richter snarked before looking around... "Where is grandfather?"
"Ah..." Christopher paused and looked around the kids. "So he's not with you? Damn..."
"Listen! Mr. Richter sounds like he's talking to them... Maybe if we sing the bears will transform..." One kid in the back suggested.
A suggestion that quickly got multiple kids to start trying to hum and sing their personal favorite hymns or songs. Turning what 'could' be a lovely melody into just, well intention noise, that only brought the nuns and priests out of their rooms...
"A dog? Children you know there are no pets allowed!"
Simon blinked as he watched the adults descend on the kids while Richter just coolly observed the shooing gesture several of the nuns were giving him.
"We didn't!"
"Its Mr. Richter! Sister Yoko's doggy!"
"Are... are you lying in the house of our Lord?!" Could anyone sound more scandalized than a 92 year old nun?
"They're telling the truth, Sister, we don't know what happened. He just changed into a real dog!"
"This is going to get bad... Unless.. Oh is that what his scent is?" Richter noted as one of the Fathers tried to approach him.
"I fear the children speak the truth. Brother Andrews... The toy was the only dog in Choir practice and mid song turned into 'that'." Father Agosti called out as he walked after the choir with Elmo tucked in his arms. Agosti feared that Elmo would scream if he got closer, but at least he was allowing the man to keep an eye on the boys.
Richter sat down next to his family and gave a nod, his face actually reflecting his ironic feelings to a degree.
"Think we can sneak away?" Christopher asked.
"Think 'Snuffles the Wonder Sniff' can now find Juste?" Simon barely got that out before Richter snapped up his head into the very dog mouth. "You bastard, and you better be grateful that I can't smell."
"Really, Richter? You're a grown man and he's serious, your grandfather is the only one among us unaccounted for now.
"Noo! Don't eat Simon!" Several of the kids dashed forward to the trio in an effort to rescue their trusty Rescue Bear. Though Tony and a few other older boys immediately put themselves between Richter and Elmo's line of sight.
"Hey, don't say stuff like that!" Tony ordered...
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Afternoon sunlight was dancing amid the shards of broken raw glass created when Soma had brutally summoned the castle back into the world. Sand had melted and reformed into glass that then broke in response to the force of castle's presence and impact upon landing. Which then created one final snag on the effort to 'leave'. There was no way to just 'bring' a bus or van to carry the former kidnap victims out of the castle. Footsteps would crack raw glass, but the increased weight of buses or vans would shatter the glass and grind through the tires.
Though he wasn't in the Master Chambers, Alucard was able to push the Castle into opening the front gates. He stood at the window and observed the soldiers as they prepared to escort the humans from the grounds. There was a tent to run check ups and gather information on each person who was rescued. A line of people stretched out from them through out the front of the castle, some people wearing thin blankets over their night clothes that the zombies had provided. Others fully dressed from when they had been grabbed.
Those processed through the tent were then guided to the front of the castle and out onto the road back into Alijiba. He could see them from his vantage point, soldiers two by two down the road eventually indistinguishable from the dead husks of trees. There would be buses to carry the victims of the cult to proper hospitals and the means that they could return home.
There were were also officers 'in' the castle...
"So who's the floating Halloween prop?" A harden soldier snarked as he looked at the supposedly 'floating' black raggedy robes hanging in front of a door.
"'That' would be the manifestation and personification of Death itself," Max answered with a casual shrug.
Death turned its head as it noted that it was being addressed as though to note the living souls. The hunters were always of unique souls so this little cabal of normal humans was... "And why are there more humans in the Castle? I do not recall the Young Master extending such an invitation to the living."
"Well, they... want to help catch the cultists in the castle and bring them to justice..." Max recited before shrugging. "Couldn't get them to take 'no' for an answer so here we are."
"Oh really..."
The Commander began to back up as the 'Manifestation and personification' of Death floated from the door and started to approach them. He had already seen the zombies and skeletons moving about, and faced them down.
And remembered...
"Sir? SIR!"
Civilians were left alarmed as an older ranked soldier ran out of the castle shrieking in blind terror. He knocked several people down in his wild dash to the gates and the men with him were on his tail. Pleas for him to stop or snap out of whatever state he was in were wholly ignored as his hands scraped on the ground when he fell. Ignoring the sting of grit grinding into his callous palms he pushed himself up to his feet and kept running.
A few more soldiers broke from their positions to dog pile him into staying down with cries for a medic going out. While in the mans' minds' eye all he saw was his fellow soldiers... and despite the fact that these men were alive and calling to him in the present. His mind wound him back to the past, where they were all dead, mouths gaping open and blood tricking out. Eyes open and staring or just open gouged out...
All around him was the smell of death, of fallen brothers and sisters, and above him they kept marching... stepping on him...
"Ahh the living thinking you can just enter the domain of my master..." Death chuckled as it floated to the front entrance and allowed the soldiers to take notice of Its presence.
"Death, I did not bade you to leave your post," Alucard spoke at the window, resigned to the antics of humans. All he needed was to see the growing alarm of the living and how Death's location drifted.
"Ahh I see the Young Master calls," Death before teleporting itself away in a swirl of robes and darkness. Just to manifest in the room with Alucard and Soma, "You 'used' the power granted to you by the Master..."
Eyes of gold focused on It as Alucard looked up at the hovering entity. "Keep guard over my Lord Father, now that you have unsettled the living," Alucard reasserted the order.
Already Max was running out into the courtyard and somehow, the prisoners were mostly ok with the soldiers antics... 'Well maybe its because they've already been dealing with the undead so they've better reason to stay calm...'
"Hey do you crewcuts need help?" She called down from the top of the steps.
"He probably was here during the Demon Castle Wars," Charlotte noted, staying in the castle and her voice carrying to Max's ears as a soft whisper. "I can't believe they would let someone stay in the military after such a war..."
"What the hell is in that castle?" One soldier called out and got a bark of laughter out of Max.
"Pretty much. Look I'd love to stay and watch you freak out all over the place, but we have to get these cults out of the castle yesterday. Don't enter the castle, get the civilians processed and out asap. There's one last set of humans who might be able to be rescued, but we don't have a lot of time. If they 'can' be rescued we'll bring them to the village ourselves. But you," Max made a sweeping gesturing, "need to get done and get out."
The soldiers looked up at the looming castle, let their gazes work their way down to the ground where zombies stood in maid uniforms holding trays while skeletons were guiding people to and fro... Finally they began to nod slowly before turning back to their work or helping the commander back to his feet.
"Good work Max, Alucard can't step outside the Castle itself. I can feel him holding back the clock tower... It hits 13 oclock and its over for the few remaining transformed humans..." Charlotte noted with gust of wind, perhaps to suggest she would have sighed if she were alive.
"Does Alucard know the requirements though? We all know its the 13th hour, but maybe Death knows if there's any other requirements for us to restore the transformed humans?" John asked as he drifted through the wall and looked down the large hallway.
"When did the countdown even start?" Max asked as she stepped back into the castle and out of the light of the sun. "Say Alucard can hold back an hour each tick, so instead of 13 its 26...We need to get a fire lit under it."
"Lets ask, if Alucard can call back Death, then I'm fairly sure we can get Death to give us some idea..." John agreed as he turned and floated back to the study. The people needed to be processed and out of the grounds and to the village. The soldiers expected people left for now to stay another night... while the hunters all knew it couldn't be allowed to happen.