Dumbledore stepped out from his office to find a number of orcs beating on the statue with long wooden clubs. He raised the Elder Wand once and all of them went flying- they slammed into the nearby walls and fell to the floor, stunned.
The fellows of the beasts were on either side of him. They turned to face him as he stepped out into the hallway, and rushed towards him. They raised blades and fixed arrows to their bows as they advanced, preparing to strike.
The bowman took their positions as the swordfighters came first, shields raised. The bowman fired, right at Dumbledore. He waved his wand, and the arrows shifted path mid-flight and hit the swordsmen.
Those who survived whirled on their attacker, and in a blind rage began to fight each other. Dumbledore said nothing as he lowered his weapons and swept down the hall, right past them and to the stairs.
A woman he had never seen before was standing in the hallway before him. He stopped, his sword raised.
"A sword is unbecoming of a sorcerer." The woman said, almost musically. She seemed too beautiful to describe: She glowed with an ethereal light. Dumbledore did not know what to make of her.
"I am Albus Dumbledore." He said. "The Headmaster of this school. May I have your name, milady?"
The woman smiled.
"I am Morgan Le Fey." She said warmly. She curtsied to him, her golden garments trailing the ground. Dumbledore tightened his grip around the sword.
"The Morgana-"
"I am indeed." She said. "I am the only student to the man you consider to be the greatest wizard of all time… Merlin himself!"
"And yet you turn your back on his teachings to serve Dracula." Dumbledore said, his voice cold.
Morgana laughed. It was a chilling sound, but somehow beautiful at the same time.
"Merlin is remembered as a magician… not a philosopher." She sneered. "He used his talent to serve muggle kind, and for what? For them to kill each other in more sophisticated ways. No… as a witch, my duty is to my craft. Perfecting my magic."
She raised her hand towards him and pointed a long, elegant finger at him.
"You are no different than he, Headmaster." She said quietly. "A brilliant mind tainted by a pure soul…"
"I am not so pure as you assume." Dumbledore said quietly.
"Is that so?" Morgana asked idly. "Well. If that is so, then I suppose you too will join the forces of darkness… along with the rest of us."
"The rest?"
She turned away from him. Dumbledore was almost tempted to strike her from behind. Merely speaking with her made him uneasy- he was not so confident in his abilities to think he could do battle with the student of Merlin himself and win.
"This castle…" Morgana whispered. "Is the ideal location for Dracula. Its bloody history and its ties to the otherworld has led rise to forces beyond that of anything that has been seen before."
She glanced back at him, and smiled.
"Even you, I am sure, know very little of this castle's past." She said. "There are things that happened in these walls that have never made it into the pages of history. In many cases… under your own nose."
Morgan Le Fey had not made the mistake that many of his peers had made: he was not omniscient. She perhaps had a better handle of his capabilities than even Voldemort himself. This was indeed an enemy to be feared.
"There are good things too." Dumbledore said. "And we will fight to protect them."
"Goodness." Morgan Le Fey said, as she turned her head back around. "And graciousness. Kindess, and charity. Good, and Evil. What does it all mean? Absolutely nothing!"
An intense light began to emanate from her. Dumbledore had to fight to avoid averting his eyes from her. It was almost like looking into the sun itself.
"Hear me, Headmaster." Morgana's voice rang out around him. "I am the heir apparent to Merlin himself! I will not allow the children under your care be subjugated out of your love of muggles! I take pride in being a witch, and will use my powers as I see fit!"
The light faded. Morgana had gone. Dumbledore tried to regain his composure. His mind was racing: He had to secure the school and the students, before fighting Morgana. He could not risk failure. The alternative was unthinkable.
He set off down the hallway.
…
The Slytherin Common Room was in a bit of an uproar. Professor Snape had come and secured it himself immediately after the invasion had become. The house prefects were standing guard around the perimeter.
"Despicable." Pansy Parkinson spat at her boyfriend, Draco Malfoy. "I can't believe this has happened now. 1999 is four years away!"
"This is Dumbledore's fault, I'm sure." Draco said darkly. "It is he who opposes the Dark Lord…"
A little first year with bright red hair glanced up at him. Her expression was blank and unreadable.
"What?" Draco asked coldly, his voice tinged with an aggressive edge.
The girl did not even flinch.
"There is only one Dark Lord." She said simply. And then she smiled.
It took Draco a moment to realize what she had just said. He stepped forward and grabbed the girl around the neck of her robe.
"If you love Dracula so much you can go join him." He sneered.
She stared at him, her expression blank and unassuming. She was not intimidated by him in the slightest.
"I think you forget Draco." The girl said. "That the Dark Lord is not fated to lose in 1999… it is the year of the Final Battle. The two are very different things."
Malfoy released her. Her robe slid from his fingers as she straightened herself, and then curtsied.
"Forgive me." She said. "We have not been introduced, have we? My name is Celia Fortuna. A pleasure."
The little girl rose from her curtsy and smiled at him, serenely.
"Do you truly believe, Draco, that Voldemort can defeat Dracula and claim his place as Dark Lord?" Celia Fortuna asked. "I have read the cards, and seen the future… and I have seen nothing."
"You're a first year." Pansy Parkinson said sharply. "You haven't studied divination-"
Celia giggled.
"Divination is more of an innate talent than a study… as even that hag Trelawney will tell you."
She considered Malfoy carefully.
"You fear me… don't you?"
Malfoy did not deny it. He stared down at her with nothing but contempt. Parkinson gave him a look.
"Draco…"
"Cast her out."
"What?"
"If she wishes to side with Dracula, we cannot give her sanctuary here."
"But the Professor said-"
"He didn't know what this girl was." Malfoy snapped at her. Pansy recoiled, a little apprehensively, as Celia smiled serenely. Malfoy turned towards her and drew his wand.
"You would draw your weapon on a child?" Celia asked, as Malfoy raised the wand above his head. "You truly believe-"
He brought down the wand and unleashed a curse. Celia stood there, unflinching as the curse hit the barrier surrounding her and exploded.
People screamed as the blast from the curse sent a force reverberating throughout the room. The beautiful goddess statue that professor Snape had left behind to protect them tipped over, falling to the floor and shattering.
Malfoy stood there, open mouthed, as Celia smiled.
"May the darkness consume you forevermore." She said quietly, as thick black liquid began to seep into the room. People screamed as Malfoy whirled about, waving the wand wildly about.
Celia stepped forward, past the screaming students and towards the door. Without hesitation she slipped out of the room and into the castle proper.
…
In Ancient Greece the Hydra had been a formidable monster. Heracles himself could not defeat it, as each time he would remove one of its many heads two more would grow in its place. It was only with the help of his nephew, Iolaus, who cauterized the stumps of the removed head with a torch, that he was able to defeat it.
Charlotte took no pride in what she defeating it.
Several sharp blades of wind shot through the air, severing all heads at once, followed by an intense blast of flame. The body lay limply at her feet as she examined it. Once she was sure that she had properly removed all of its heads, she kicked it once with her heel killing it on the spot.
"Oh my." Minerva breathed. "A feat worthy of Heracles himself."
"No." Charlotte said, shaking her head. "I would not think to compare myself to one such as him." She frowned, thinking deeply. Medusa Heads were a very common sight in Dracula's Castle. She herself had even encountered Medusa personally. But she could not recall a Hydra ever being documented…
"Charlotte? Is something wrong?"
"No," Charlotte said. "I'm just thinking. That's all."
The three of them- Harry Potter still invisible, trotted off down the hallway. Minerva McGonagall cast anxious looks left and right.
"I don't like this, Charlotte." She said urgently. "I don't think-"
A man in a pointed hat was standing at the end of the corridor.
"Headmaster!" Minerva said, relieved, as she began to trot off towards him. Charlotte, whose eyes were sharper, recoiled slightly, eyes widened, and then leapt forward, grabbing her arms.
"That isn't Dumbledore!"
The man surveyed them. His brow furrowed.
"Dumbledore…" He breathed. "The name… It has reached my attention before…"
He raised his hand.
"I am Saruman, Of Many Colours." He said. "This castle… It compels me…"
"Saruman?" Minerva repeated, a little befuddled. "Who-"
"He was the head of the White Council of Middle-Earth." Charlotte breathed. "The mentor of Gandalf the White, and scholar of the Rings of Power!"
The Wizard surveyed them both, his eyes narrowed.
"You know much of me, woman." He breathed. "How do you come to know such things?"
"I'm a scholar myself… of the history our world." Charlotte said, stepping forward. "I know of your fall from grace… how you betrayed the Order, and Gandalf…"
"Gandalf." The wizard sneered. "The name is poison to my ears. Are you his student? Must I destroy you, to fulfill my ambition?"
He extended a long, crooked finger at them. Charlotte's eyes fell on the ring on his finger. She gasped.
"That ring…" She said. "No… it can't be… The One?"
This time Saruman looked completely taken aback.
"How do you have such knowledge?" He demanded. "Who are you?"
Minerva stepped forward, her wand raised, and stood behind Charlotte.
"My name is Charlotte Aulin." Charlotte said quietly, her hair billowing behind her. "I am sworn to destroy Lord Dracula, and all of his servants! You… and that creature that crafted that ring… will fall by my hand!"
Saruman roared, and an intense burst of magic blasted from him. Minerva stepped forward, swatting it aside with her wand, as Charlotte blasted him with an intense beam of light. The wizard caught it in his staff, flung it back to her, and then charged… drawing a small sword at his side.
Charlotte knew she was in trouble: She was certain that she could handle Saruman's magic- in fact she knew she could- but in melee combat he was perhaps her superior. This was the man who had scoured the shire, after all.
It was all she could do to block the blade with one that she summoned from her book. Because of her great age, and because she was a woman, she was unable to stop Saruman from breaking her guard, and then cursing her.
"Agggggh!"
She flew backward, slamming into the wall behind her with a massive thud. Minerva turned around to help her, as Saruman raised the blade towards her-
"Noooooooo!"
Saruman cried out in shock in surprise as Harry Potter threw off the Invisibility Cloak and threw himself at him, knife raised. The wizard had to pivot mid step to avoid the strike killing him instantly- even so, the blade embedded itself into his shoulder.
"How-?" The wizard demanded, as Harry glared up at him with an intense fury. Minerva recovered quickly, raising her wand. The knife embedded in Saruman's skin became a viper, its fangs digging deep into his skin-
The Wizard reached for the viper and ripped it out by the throat. It hissed fiercely as he threw it in Harry's face.
"Calm down!" Harry said to it, in Parseltongue, as it connected to its face. The thing lay there, seemingly stunned, as Harry stood down the older wizard, his hand clenched around his wand.
Saruman was breathing heavily- doubtless the poison of the viper was running wildly through his veins.
"You-" He rasped. "Will pay for this!"
He turned, his cloak billowing behind him, as he darted off into the darkness. Harry almost pursued him, but McGonagall called him off.
"Mr. Potter!" She snapped. "Even as he is now, you cannot best him!"
Harry stopped, frozen, and then nodded. Charlotte Aulin slowly rose to her feet, shuddering slightly.
"His power is immense." She rasped. "That… ring…"
She fell to the ground. A shocked looking Minerva and Harry rushed over to help her stand back up. Their greatest asset against Dracula had just fallen.
…
A/N
My apologies if I butchered LOTR lore. I'm far from an expert. But one of the things I really wanted to do with this story is incorporate more 'classic' fantasy elements to Castlevania as opposed to the more gothic horror vibe. So I've thought a little bit about more fantasy characters to incorporate into the plot. For this chapter I featured Morgan Le Fey (Who is technically canon) and Saruman, from LOTR. Now I took a lot of liberties with both characters (For example, Saruman is in possession of the One Ring, and Morgan Le Fey has a more Harry Potter oriented background and motivation) but this is all in good fun and isn't meant to be completely 100% in line with established lore. I want to establish this now because there are some really strange things planned that I don't think anyone will see coming, so… uh, stay tuned for that. Oh, and all of these characters will be Dracula's Servants. Even Death bows his head to him, after all.
Ah yes, and I also want to feature as many Castlevania protagonists as possible. I took a lot of liberties with that as well. (Shanoa still being alive at this point is probably the most obvious one) but one of the big, big, big stretches I had to make was featuring Celia Fortner from Dawn of Sorrow in this story. Apparently in the game she's twenty-six years old (What?) which is about half of what I assumed she was when I decided to try and incorporate her. Stupid anime artsyle.
Her age isn't really important, and I really like the idea of her witnessing Dracula's downfall in 1999 firsthand, so we're going to ignore all that and pretend the timeline adds up for story purposes. Oh yes, and I also decided to change her name to Fortuna… which is actually the Japanese version of the character's surname. This was done because of her role in the story, to emphasize her role as Dracula's 'seer.' Again, when I first researched the character, I was certain her last name was Foster… but it's actually Fortner. Whoops.
Oh yeah, and I'm not sure when this is coming to come up in the story… but Stella, Loretta, and Charlotte all went to Hogwarts! Considering their ages, they all must have gone around the same time, but never crossed paths. Crazy, huh? I initially thought Loreta would be in Ravenclaw, like Charlotte, but I took a look at her design and decided that she was a Slytherin instead. Her sister Stella is in Gryffindor, and I really think the housing choice suits them!
Jonathan did not go. He was training to kill Dracula at that point, and isn't even really British… he's American, like Quincey Morris from the novel. I'd like to think he would be in Hufflepuff to round out the houses, but I suspect he would actually be in Gryffindor. Who knows?
Anyway I'm sorry about how convoluted these explanations have gotten. Hopefully the story doesn't become too convoluted as we progress.