You don't have to like it. We just have to get you through this alive.
[ He tests his hand, opening and closing his fingers. They're moving as he tells them, at least. No permanent damage there, at least. ]
I'll be more careful, and we'll see if we can reverse whatever's been done to the castle. I- shit, going to take a while to get used to people coming here to kill me. Been a while since anyone tried that.
[Alucard brings Trevor's wrist up to his mouth. His teeth scrape over skin before fangs sink in, and---
he isn't drinking. He wants to, but knows better. Focuses on tasting for poison. The antidote is so very strong, to the point where his nose wrinkles a little for it. But that means it's working, and so Alucard lets go.]
We're in the clear. Let's go get some answers.
[Trevor's wrist doesn't fall out of Alucard's hands entirely. He bandages the punctures first, and then? Then it's go time.]
[ He chuckles when Alucard wrinkles his nose. It's- it would be almost cute, in any other situation. As things are, maybe less so. ]
That bad, hmm?
[ Once he's bandaged, he places a hand on Alucard's shoulder to still him. Adjusts the crown and his robes, adjusts locks of hair knocked out of place by the chaos. Until he looks like a king again, unchanged by all of this.
The cuffs that hold the assassin's arms and legs to the ground are wrapped with night creature leather to keep them from burning through the arms of prisoners, a mercy intended more to keep prisoners from letting their hands be severed to escape than to lessen suffering, but the metal core of them is still silver. A vampire's strength is useless against them. The ground on which she lies is a circle of marble over a silver plate, and the cuffs connect to that plate through silver chains to keep the captive from simply tearing them out of the floor. floor of the entire room is tilted slightly, with a trench about half a foot deep running down it. At the circle, the trench splits, going around it in both directions before rejoining at its base. Water runs down this trench constantly, with a system of pups beneath the floor taking the water from the lower side of the room and moving it to the upper side so that the circle is surrounded at all times by running water.
Above the circle of marble is a great chimney, long to keep excess light from entering the room. At noon, when the sun is directly above the castle and only for that few seconds, light will flood down onto the circle and the white marble will absorb and reflect it so that it strikes the prisoner's entire body at once.
Trevor knows this arrangement as a prison devised by Leon Belmont and Mathias Cronqvist together in order to keep the invincible vampire who once ruled these lands captive in the absence of a way to kill him. One which they never built, because that vampire died when Dracula came to power. God knows how plans for it fell into Dracula's hands, but they must have somewhere along the centuries.
The assassin hisses and struggles when they enter. She flickers once or twice, and the castle adds another few lights to the circle around her and eliminates the few shadows that remain. ]
[Alucard stays still while Trevor rearranges everything so it looks just so. But he does the same for Trevor in turn, because he must. Mostly it's Trevor's hair that's terribly out of place, but the shoulder armor is slightly askew, and that shouldn't be the look he has for an interrogation.
He's so quiet as they approach the holding cells. It's a reminder of what his father once was, at the height of cruelty before Lisa appeared on his doorstep. Why all manner of other countries feared and still fear Wallachia, and how poorly things might go if Dracula's quest fails.
But here? In this moment? It's a comfort. Not only that whoever this is that attacked Trevor is restrained, but that they're suffering for the action. Good. Good.
Alucard's eyes rest on the assassin after Trevor speaks. It's wise to let silence hang heavy for a few moments before all of this begins in earnest. Let the ice cold gaze of the prince judge, but there's another trick involved too. If this woman is a vampire, then Wallachia must know of her. She looks too distinctive for her to be a stranger and yet...
[ The assassin tests the cuffs again, tugging at them more violently, with force that will almost certainly do damage even to a vampire. They don't shift. She looks Alucard over, then Trevor, then turns her face up to stare into the chimney above her. The night sky is there now, but day will come in a few hours. The dread hasn't set in yet, but it rarely does before the sky becomes light. Vampires don't often get the chance to watch a daylit sky, least of all for hours at a time. But that's part of this - letting them see it for hours before noon hits and destroys them.
Stripped of the uniform and mask, she's small and slight with eyes a little too big for her face and other features a little too small. She was clearly turned disturbingly young. She nods before she answers verbally. ]
[The age catches Alucard's attention. It's borderline too young, a turning that if his father knew of it, he would have investigated the matter. He doesn't like it, and it sets off alarm bells immediately.
[ There's no sign in her tone that that was meant to be sarcastic. She just throught that was an acceptable answer. Trevor clears his threat, and she looks up at him then back upward again, less cowed into answering more completely and more simply made aware that the first answer wasn't complete enough. ]
It is wrong, that there are humans in the castle. We turn so to not be humans. To be better. We should not be taking orders from them.
[ She tugs her hands against the cuffs again. There is a crack this time and she looks at that hand in interest, wiggling her fingers. Two of them don't move. Trevor barks a stern 'Stop that.' She doesn't seem particularly concerned with it. ]
Fourteen. [ And then, after a moment- ] Turned myself.
That's too young. Dracula's laws are 25 and older. Between 18 and that age he'll consider allowing it. Something about brain chemistry. Ability to make decisions. The law as it stands on the books is mostly a scientific paper.
[ Trevor follows, hand not leaving his sword. They're going to have to move her before noon, but that's going to be a whole affair in itself. He only speaks when they leave the room. ]
Well, shit.
[ The ambassador is going to need to hear about this, if nothing else. This doesn't seem like an act of war on Trantoul's behalf, but they'll need to know for sure. ]
I'll have the castle shut the sun hole before it passes. We're leaving her in there.
[She isn't allowed out. She's going to create an international fucking incident is what's going to happen.]
Go contact the ambassador and take care of notifying Trantoul. Better that Theodora informs them than you given the situation, but they have to know immediately. Their response determines what we do next but--
Not unless they feel like making a compelling argument in her defense. I doubt they will. Trantoul doesn't recognise non-humans as citizens.
[ Which brings up the question of what must have happened in order to make her think turning would be a good idea. Assuming that any of that is true, that she's not just lying to protect a sire who turned children. ]
The choice is yours. But you know what I would have to recommend.
No. There's no choice in this matter. Not according to my father's laws.
[If the child is under the age of sixteen, they too must be executed. Their mind, stuck in the age at which they were turned, will either age and their body will not match, leading to trouble, or else they will be at the same mental age as well. Either is crueler than death.]
Go contact the ambassador. I'll begin the written words for contacting Trantoul about this. We can resume questioning after that, with you as lead.
Right. I'll meet you once I've sent the summons and looked over the archives to see if I can find her or her sire. Being able to use the shadows up weapons to attack is rare enough to narrow it down.
[ It's two hours later when he seeks out Alucard. He's a little paler when he does. It's mid-morning, now. Neither of them have slept in far too long. ]
[Alucard's spent most of his time in his Office of State. Dracula's, technically, with no changes to the decor. He has a few drafts of required paperwork that needs to be dashed off, and all he's waiting for is the last bits of information to fill in.
He stands immediately, aware of Trevor's state.]
Good. And then you need to sleep, you look like someone fed from you far too much.
Using the shadows like that? That's not common. The only vampire thought to have an affinity with that sort of thing strong enough to pass on to a fledgling was called Brauner. He was killed a few generations back by the Lecarde clan.
[ He falls into line behind Alucard, sighing. ]
They- they were wiped out a few years before I was born, when Trantoul began to crack down on unsanctioned magic. Eric Lecarde and his two daughters. Twins. Either would have been about the right age when it happened.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[ He tests his hand, opening and closing his fingers. They're moving as he tells them, at least. No permanent damage there, at least. ]
I'll be more careful, and we'll see if we can reverse whatever's been done to the castle. I- shit, going to take a while to get used to people coming here to kill me. Been a while since anyone tried that.
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[Alucard sighs. The clock is almost at ten minutes, and so Alucard gestures for Trevor's wrist.]
It is as I said. You hold power now. Real power. You're a likely target, same as any of us who have slightly more power than anyone else.
[He doesn't say the second part. That this may just be because Trevor is a Belmont, and that means the job was never finished.]
We'll find out in a few minutes at any rate. I assume that for interrogation, it's better that I remain quiet?
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[ He extends his arm, letting his wrist fall into Alucard’s hands. ]
Ask questions, if you have them. Looks better that way than if you have to ask them through me. Leave everything else to me.
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[Alucard brings Trevor's wrist up to his mouth. His teeth scrape over skin before fangs sink in, and---
he isn't drinking. He wants to, but knows better. Focuses on tasting for poison. The antidote is so very strong, to the point where his nose wrinkles a little for it. But that means it's working, and so Alucard lets go.]
We're in the clear. Let's go get some answers.
[Trevor's wrist doesn't fall out of Alucard's hands entirely. He bandages the punctures first, and then? Then it's go time.]
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That bad, hmm?
[ Once he's bandaged, he places a hand on Alucard's shoulder to still him. Adjusts the crown and his robes, adjusts locks of hair knocked out of place by the chaos. Until he looks like a king again, unchanged by all of this.
The cuffs that hold the assassin's arms and legs to the ground are wrapped with night creature leather to keep them from burning through the arms of prisoners, a mercy intended more to keep prisoners from letting their hands be severed to escape than to lessen suffering, but the metal core of them is still silver. A vampire's strength is useless against them. The ground on which she lies is a circle of marble over a silver plate, and the cuffs connect to that plate through silver chains to keep the captive from simply tearing them out of the floor. floor of the entire room is tilted slightly, with a trench about half a foot deep running down it. At the circle, the trench splits, going around it in both directions before rejoining at its base. Water runs down this trench constantly, with a system of pups beneath the floor taking the water from the lower side of the room and moving it to the upper side so that the circle is surrounded at all times by running water.
Above the circle of marble is a great chimney, long to keep excess light from entering the room. At noon, when the sun is directly above the castle and only for that few seconds, light will flood down onto the circle and the white marble will absorb and reflect it so that it strikes the prisoner's entire body at once.
Trevor knows this arrangement as a prison devised by Leon Belmont and Mathias Cronqvist together in order to keep the invincible vampire who once ruled these lands captive in the absence of a way to kill him. One which they never built, because that vampire died when Dracula came to power. God knows how plans for it fell into Dracula's hands, but they must have somewhere along the centuries.
The assassin hisses and struggles when they enter. She flickers once or twice, and the castle adds another few lights to the circle around her and eliminates the few shadows that remain. ]
Your Prince has questions. You will answer.
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He's so quiet as they approach the holding cells. It's a reminder of what his father once was, at the height of cruelty before Lisa appeared on his doorstep. Why all manner of other countries feared and still fear Wallachia, and how poorly things might go if Dracula's quest fails.
But here? In this moment? It's a comfort. Not only that whoever this is that attacked Trevor is restrained, but that they're suffering for the action. Good. Good.
Alucard's eyes rest on the assassin after Trevor speaks. It's wise to let silence hang heavy for a few moments before all of this begins in earnest. Let the ice cold gaze of the prince judge, but there's another trick involved too. If this woman is a vampire, then Wallachia must know of her. She looks too distinctive for her to be a stranger and yet...
...he doesn't recognize the face at all.]
Your target was Trevor Belmont, correct?
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Stripped of the uniform and mask, she's small and slight with eyes a little too big for her face and other features a little too small. She was clearly turned disturbingly young. She nods before she answers verbally. ]
Yes. The human.
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He'll ask that question in due time. For now...]
To what end?
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[ There's no sign in her tone that that was meant to be sarcastic. She just throught that was an acceptable answer. Trevor clears his threat, and she looks up at him then back upward again, less cowed into answering more completely and more simply made aware that the first answer wasn't complete enough. ]
It is wrong, that there are humans in the castle. We turn so to not be humans. To be better. We should not be taking orders from them.
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[The response is a child's logic. He doesn't like it. Makes the vampire worry.]
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Fourteen. [ And then, after a moment- ] Turned myself.
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That's too young. Dracula's laws are 25 and older. Between 18 and that age he'll consider allowing it. Something about brain chemistry. Ability to make decisions. The law as it stands on the books is mostly a scientific paper.
Alucard manages to go even more still.]
Why?
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[ Another experimental tug with that same hand. Trevor brings his hand to the sword at his waist and she settles. ]
I had blood, so I took it. Then I was stronger, and humans had to stop bothering me.
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[This one is cautious. Because if she answers no, then this is a whole different ball game.]
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Trantoul. A human land. Too many human lands.
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She's a citizen of Trantoul. That means that the situation has become infinitely more complex, and today? She cannot die.]
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Well, shit.
[ The ambassador is going to need to hear about this, if nothing else. This doesn't seem like an act of war on Trantoul's behalf, but they'll need to know for sure. ]
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[She isn't allowed out. She's going to create an international fucking incident is what's going to happen.]
Go contact the ambassador and take care of notifying Trantoul. Better that Theodora informs them than you given the situation, but they have to know immediately. Their response determines what we do next but--
[He hates this.]
She can't live, can she?
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[ Which brings up the question of what must have happened in order to make her think turning would be a good idea. Assuming that any of that is true, that she's not just lying to protect a sire who turned children. ]
The choice is yours. But you know what I would have to recommend.
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[If the child is under the age of sixteen, they too must be executed. Their mind, stuck in the age at which they were turned, will either age and their body will not match, leading to trouble, or else they will be at the same mental age as well. Either is crueler than death.]
Go contact the ambassador. I'll begin the written words for contacting Trantoul about this. We can resume questioning after that, with you as lead.
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[ It's two hours later when he seeks out Alucard. He's a little paler when he does. It's mid-morning, now. Neither of them have slept in far too long. ]
I have questions for her.
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He stands immediately, aware of Trevor's state.]
Good. And then you need to sleep, you look like someone fed from you far too much.
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[ He shakes his head. Blood loss might be contributing. The poison's effects, even neutralised, might be taking a toll. But more than that- ugh. ]
I know who she is.
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[Alucard tenses as he walks to the door.]
Castle. Long enough corridor for conversation, please.
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[ He falls into line behind Alucard, sighing. ]
They- they were wiped out a few years before I was born, when Trantoul began to crack down on unsanctioned magic. Eric Lecarde and his two daughters. Twins. Either would have been about the right age when it happened.
(no subject)