Castlevania: Aria of the Ascending Soul
Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix
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Julius stood up and struggled his way into his coat as he held his phone to his ear. The frown on his face was now etched into his brow. Richard hadn't really ever seen true magic before, so saying 'lightning' was a worrying issue. Both Valencia and Yoko manifested lightning magic as orbs, but why were their family at the Belmont family home? Striking out at Gabriel, who would have been following his duties as a doctor, was worrying. Advising Richard to confront them wasn't something he was going to do if they were going to strike doctors.
But what could he do then?
The boys didn't fully grasp the clan's dynamics at this point.
"Stay hidden I'm coming home though not exactly in a way you might expect." Julius ordered lowering his voice to not grab someone's attention. If there were Aulins a familiar might also have been unleashed. Was there in one half the clan or both halves?
"Ok dad..." With that Richard hung up and Julius finished putting on his gear before switching to texting.
'I need you to reassign the portal to me.'
'I would know why.'
'Valencias' family is at the family home.'
there wasn't any further contact, addressing the messages to 'Genya' or 'Arikado' was something he normally did. But at that moment all he thought about was talking to Alucard without humoring the need for using the false identity for the sake of speed.
Yet the sudden sensation of the portal tickling at the back of his senses was a surprise even to Julius. It suggested that Alucard was in his Sanctuary already and he would reasonably be at work. Not that Julius had time to ponder the occurrence as he strode through the portal and was stunned by what he was greeted by.
Every single family member who was dead and a toy were standing in the receiving room staring directly at him. Save Leon who was in the form of a living lion, they were all there with this expression of expectancy on Leon's face and... Well it wasn't as though the stuffed toys could 'have' a facial expressions. But they were staring at him while Alucard stood in the center of the room just as focused on him.
"Yoko, her mother and brother are missing."
Alucard gave no greeting and cut straight to updating Julius which only made the Hunters' concern grow. Even as he spoke, Julius watched as Alucard began the gestures that went with reassigning the portal's exit spot.
"Richard called me, whispering that Valencia's family had come over, dragging a body with them. What has set them off?" The stuffed toys joined him as did Leon and some time in the future, Julius would see the humor. The idea of the Belmont who finally defeated Dracula was going home at the head of a small group of stuffed toys ensouled by those who had defeated Dracula before.
For now his worry expanded beyond annoyance at what the Belnades were doing at his family home. But now it included worry over Valencia and Yoko given that they 'and' Yoko's brother was missing. He wasn't stupid, as the spell adjusted he could only imagine the guy the family had 'was' the forbidden male.
"My presence will be meaningless, as I was the one who supported the boy being kept. There are other issues that must be attended."
"Honestly I don't know what I can do for Yoko's brother. I can only hope I can stop them from hurting Valencia or Yoko," Julius lamented, as Leon took point.
"I will speak." Leon replied as he walked into the portal with little other fanfare.
"I mean if you think you can get a bunch of angry women to listen to you," Simon pointed out despite the lack of aggression in his voice. After all, women would listen, 'witches' had the power to back up the shut out.
Sophia couldn't find the energy to argue, instead she wrung her hands in anxiety and flew through the portal after Leon. Trevor would need to be near the boy, the house was old from what she had been told. But how far back in time was Kazu?
Trevor charged in after Leon, determined enough that he wove through the lion's legs and paws to get in. There was no 'grand manor' when he first faced Dracula, he had a simple cabin. Because he was assigned to Kazu there had never been a cause for Kazu and thus himself to visit. Sophia had described it as something of a museum of history for the Belmonts. Something shared across the Belnades while Grants' kin maintained safe houses while the Aulins, Morris, LeCardes lived in modest though large homes.
Though it was pretty off putting to find black suited, black sunglasses men standing on either side of the front door of the Belmont Mansion. No pins to show affiliation and the not a flicker of emotion on their faces. Even when a stuffed Labrador dog charged out of the portal.
Now when 'Leon' powered through, that proved an interesting story as both men recoiled. One turned quickly to the door and began working to unlock it while the other, a slightly bigger man, stepped between the two!
"It worries me that they are ok with a charging lion. I realize Japan has likely been showing stories about Leon." Juste mused worriedly as he watched with a frown as a man actually attempted to 'wrestle' Leon.
"Yet if these are not anyone from any of our clans, then how did they convince them its safe to 'fight' a lion? Our world is not the same as everyone else." Christopher pointed out as Leon pounced on the nearest man. Fierce though his claws and fangs were, he wasn't going for vitals.
The other black clad man was working on the door and when he pushed it open hedragged his partner in with him both. Bracing against the door and were pushing against Leon's full weight. Not that it stopped Trevor, his duty was too important so he wove his way through lions hind feet, doors and human suited legs. No matter what he needed to reach Kazu and settle down his powers.
Yet for all the grandeur of the Belmont Mansion, Trevor could only really focus on his duty to Kazu. Call it programming from when Yoko created the body all those years ago, or the growing paternal love he developed for the boy. Watching over Kazu as he started crawling, to leaning on Trevor to take his first steps, all the way until he announced proudly he got into his first pick for university. While Kazu had his own father, and Trevor wasn't one to overstep, it wasn't as though he was emotionally detached. As much as Simon was attached to Yoko, bear fists flying. The mansion was about as big as Trevor expected, with a lone entryway with the expected side table and flowers. Sophia took lead, invisible to the living he could hear her as she called out to Kazu.
The hallway branched out into various rooms, from living to library to dining room, but where would they hold people against their will? Gabriel was reported being at the entry way so he was likely in some side room, but Richard would have had to be in the upper floors... "Sophia check the cellar!" Trevor called out and watched as his wife's robes arched down into the floor though half of it stayed up, leaving her feet poking out. She rushed about the floor the way he did when he helped Kazu mop.
Behind them the door started to open with Julius' voice calling out, "There is a second cellar!"
"Sophia! Go lower! There's another floor!" Trevor called out, his spirit voice whispering through the floor to his wife. He could see her feet straighten up then all of it disappeared into the floor while behind him he could hear Simon swearing a storm up and Richter calling out a quick 'you don't want to know!'
"So which of you got the fancy mansion?" Trevor asked as he slowed to a halt in the center of the massive hall. His eyes going left and right as he looked for where a doorway could be hidden.
"That's me!" Richter called out and took charge when suddenly Sophia's blond head shot up right in his way! Instinct made Richter shoot his front paw out as though Vampire Killer was in the grip as he skidded across the floor! Allowing him to slide into her face and look like he was booping her nose.
"There's a fireplace that burns 'holy' fire, it moves and leads into a second cellar," Richter explained as he put down his paw. He turned off towards the side and made his way towards a lovely long kitchen, as he ran he shouted to the group behind him. "Everyone has a little sin, so the flames keep the appearance steady, and a second cellar for what was 'intended' as those touched but able to be saved from the Dark Forces. Or put down should we fail."
"Smart," Christopher nodded as the front door could be heard being knocked open with a sternly roared out 'Move!'. The dining hall was lovely, warm wooden walls and floor, the table wasn't set up but it was long and lovingly polished while shelves and side tables rested against the walls for when grander meals were meant to be presented. At the end of the hallway, where normally the head of the family would sit, against the wall, rested a stand out stone fireplace, large and crackling with a warm friendly fire behind an iron gate. Richter wasted no item joining Trevor and began began pushing against the right side of the fireplace to move it. Despite the futility even as the other two stuffed Belmonts joined them.
After all the fire place had been meant for several purposes and being moveable by a childrens' toy or a number of them was not one of them.
"Leon!" Christopher called out and quickly was answered by the weighted steps of a nearly fully grown lion at full charge. It was strangely impressive to see Leon on the move like this, if no other reason than because he knew nothing of them. Each Belmont could look at their stuffy predecessor and feel in awe of the man before him regardless of the shell that held the soul.
Yet with Leon there was no one else and he had arrived already transformed. No soft fake fur waving in the air, the mane was thick and rippled with the wind from Leon's passing and as Leon slid beside the fireplace over Trevor and and Simon and gave his own strength to their pushing. 'He can talk to, without Kazu or Soma we have no one who can be heard. They could try to say Yoko was commanding us to do this. But Leon actively puts that theory to rest... Unless someone has a sleep spell and uses it successfully on Leon I suppose...' Christopher mused as the door began sliding open.
There 'was' a concern that the floor would carry the noise Leon made running though alerting the Belnades down below. While a sensation of someone staring at him caused Christopher to pause and look around. A glance up and he saw a man hiding in the shadows of a door, but when Christopher lifted a paw to wave at who 'must' be Richard. The man stared in surprise, and when Juste, catching sight of Christopher's behavior stopped and also gave a wave... Well the surprise was understandable.
"Poor man, being in his 60s, Julius has grown men for sons, a whole life time never knowing this legacy and..." Juste mused aloud.
"And there's animated stuffed toys in it. We need to be careful, isn't Gabriel a doctor? What if he wants a stuffy assistant? If he works with children I mean," Christopher inquired before they turned and joined the rest of their ghostly family.
With one last heave, Leon got the Fireplace moved enough that he could fit into it, while the stuffy were confronted with another door.
"Richter," Simon began slowly.
"Not in my time," Richter countered as he began studying the door. It had a small hole for a nob where it was meant to be slide to open, which made sense because of how the Fireplace had been built It wasn't meant to stick out in such a way that people could say 'ok why is THIS wall so thick?' But it was also too small for Leon to use easily. "Let me up higher," Richter ordered propping himself up on his feet and reached with his front paw.
Richter was proving to be a pair of paws too short, yet Leon answered by grabbing Richter by his back and hosting him up.
"Now I get why people fear for small dogs," Richter noted dryly be sticking his paw into the little groove. Meant for human hands it was a small circle and he pulled it to the side allowing the door to open. Leon slipped his paw into the doorway to try and help, yet amazingly it resisted him. It was almost insulting yet Leon put his paw down.
Once Richter got the door fully open he gave a brief word and Leon put him down. All five plushies began charging down the stairs while Julius caught sight of Richard on the second floor, though the man ducked back into hiding when he saw the guards.
'You should be able to feel safe here.' Julius thought disgruntled as he broke free and went after the stuffed animals. "This is my family, how do you think its acceptable to accost the proper owners?" He demanded of the pair behind him.
He could see the touches of his own family trying to make this their home, the family paintings of his family while they were living in Japan. While in the corner of his eye he saw other paintings of other members of the clan over their extensive history. Somehow knowing that some of them were there in literal spirit was alarming.
'But what if they weren't here?' He mused as he turned towards the direction the plush Belmonts had gone. It 'was' a question. "Leon let me go first, they could very well try to fry you." Julius instructed, causing the lion to back himself up back out of the entryway.
It made sense though, being here. The Belmont estate had the sealing room for Dark Children, like Witches or Sorcerers that wielded magic. A momentary concern roused in him that they may have just intended to seal the Valencia and her family up in the basement and leave. Unaware that the boys were home and lashed out because they would have been carrying someone. Someone...
'That is odd, if they are merely bringing Kazu, where is Valencia and Yoko? If they're already here, did they get in before the boys came home? It wasn't as though Valencia didn't have a key but keys were passed down not copied. Relinquish the key, relinquish the duties binding you to a path of endless warfare.
Though there was that massive door in the way...
At said base, the hallway opened up to a small alcove meant to help the jailers with their prisoners. Large enough for three people, the door itself was covered in arcane sigils that glowed in the sight of those with holy power.
That it was glowing with use made his heart sink. Let the house be broken into by the Dark Forces, some loyalist of Dracula or anything but this. I can't understand them, Leon can and can speak but...'
Down below him it was clear the Stuffed Belmonts were stuck, yet as he watched the more German Sheppard colored dog took center stage, raising his paw he placed it on the door. Startling Julius as he watched the sigils all begin to shut down!
"Ego, Richter Belmont, Impera tibi, Aperi!"
The Belmonts in question were quiet for him but as the sigils went down Simon gave a small sound of approval. "A master override, even if you never knew you would be here... You planned out in case of emergency strats."
"High praise from you," Richter replied as he lowered his paw. "It was meant for me, if I succumbed again. I can't unlock or override if my soul is controlled by Darkness." he explained as they turned and waited for Julius to open the door. Richter might have had the power to put the key in and turn it, but they couldn't push it open what with the knob.
Yet the words held heavy on the rest of the group, knowing this was meant to hold the proclaimed 'most powerful belmont'. After Darkness proved no one was unbreakable.
Behind them they could hear Leon's irritated Growl and the sounds of scuffling, but Julius forged ahead, grabbing the knob and twisting it open.
Ahead of them was a long meeting table, at the head was an elderly woman, so old she could have been around Julius' parents time. But that was just how the weight of scars hurt the body, Valencia's mother, the wrinkles from the strain and stress the history of their line inflicted pulled her flesh downward. Eternally frowning, sobbing and mourning. Always screaming for revenge.