Castlevania: Sym-Pony of the Night
Castlevania: Sym-Pony of the Night
The Long Library. It was one of the quieter, more respectable locations within Castlevania. Relatively, I mean. It was still full of unspeakable undead horrors, but less so than in the rest of the castle. This is Dracula's home we're talking about. The room was adorned from floor to ceiling as far as the eye could see with shelf upon shelf upon shelf of assorted books, some docile, others evil.
A pillar of light suddenly appeared at the end of the hall, and a figure appeared from within. Alucard, the son of Lord Dracula, emerged from the shimmering light. He wore a jet-black cloak and clothing, contrasting strongly from his aged white hair, with a sleek sword held in the scabbard by his side.
He glanced behind him. As usual, the numerous tomes filled with ghoulish horror and hellish incantations had become animated and bloodthirsty. He swiftly turned to face them and, with a slash of his sword, left them lifeless and powerless on the floor. He turned back and entered the inner sanctum of the library.
This inner room was much less lavish and bright than the outer hall. The walls were coloured a dark brown with but a single bookcase affixed to them. The entire room was lit by two candles hung on the walls. The Master Librarian sat within, scribing a book at his desk. He also happened to be the weapons- and armor-keeper within the castle. He glanced up and noticed Alucard, “Ah, young Master, what can I do for you?”
Alucard responded, “I require your finest sword, and a set of iron platemail.”
The Master Librarian nodded his head so broadly it could have easily been mistaken for a small bow, “Of course, young Master. And how will you be paying for these?”
Alucard deftly retrieved a small sack from his person, which contained a beautifully cut garnet, in addition to several other dazzling gemstones. “These should suffice.”
“Excellent.” The Master Librarian smiled and shuffled backward to retrieve his master's requested items.
While Alucard waited, a small, white creature walked into the room. He was puzzled; he had never seen nor fought any such creature within the walls of this castle. Aside from this, evil monsters never entered into the room of the Master Librarian. Alucard's gaze focused on the white creature. It had four cloven hooves, a dull horn atop its head, and a finely curled purple mane. It had a pair of leather packs by its sides. He assumed it was a horse of some sort. It certainly wasn't a human, much less a Belmont.
The creature took notice of his observation. She turned with a smile, “Hello there.”
Alucard's focus silently snapped away from the horse.
The Master Librarian returned, “Here is your equipment, young Master.” He noticed the small equine, “Ah, Rarity! A pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
Rarity fluttered her eyelashes, “Always good to see you.”
Alucard ignored the equipment for a moment. He asked the librarian, “Who is this?”
She answered before the librarian, “My name is Rarity. I'm from Equestria. Ponyville, to be precise. And you are?”
The young vampire had never heard of such a place, not that it really mattered. He remained in silent thought for a moment, before divulging his name, “...Alucard.”
Rarity turned to the librarian, “You're right, he isn't exactly a talkative one.”
He posed another question, “What business have you here?”
The unicorn gracefully answered in turn, “I've come here to collect gemstones for my fashion designs. And speaking of which...” she turned to address the librarian, “do you have any more?”
“That I do.” The librarian gestured towards the small bag that Alucard had just set upon the table.
Rarity examined each one carefully, her eyes widening further as she gazed upon each one.
“Beautiful.” She whispered to herself. “And as compensation...” Her horn emitted a dim blue aura, and a sizeable brown leatherbound book rose from her right saddlebag to the librarian.
He read the book's title aloud, “Supernaturals: Natural Remedies and Cure-Alls That Are Simply Super. Thank you, this will make a fine addition to the library.”
“Think nothing of it. It's the least I could do for these lovely gems.” Rarity eyed the gems again. “Oh, and are you finished with the last book?”
“Yes, I just finished scribing it.” The librarian carefully picked up a thinner, green book from his desk and extended it out to her. Rarity took it from him with her unicorn magic and refilled her left saddlebag with it.
Alucard took this opportunity to speak up, “Exactly what are you two doing?”
Rarity answered, “Oh, you don't know? I collect gemstones from the Master Librarian here in exchange for the opportunity for him to copy some of the books from my local library.”
The librarian nodded in agreement.
Alucard turned to him, “And you thought this irrelevant to tell me? I would have been interested to know the use of the precious gems I have been selling to you.”
Before he had a chance to answer, Rarity's eyes widened and she spoke, “You're the one finding these gemstones!? Oh, thank you! The gems here in this castle are the most perfectly cut I have ever seen!”
Alucard responded, stone-faced, “My father tended to be quite fastidious about his possessions.”
Rarity was intrigued, “This is your father's castle?”
Alucard nodded.
Rarity saw an opportunity, “Could you, maybe, ask him where he got such amazing gems?”
Alucard sighed, “My father and I can no longer be considered family. In fact, I've come here to kill him.”
“Oh.” Rarity was speechless.
An awkward silence hung in the air.
“Oh, I almost forgot!” Rarity spoke up, “Master Librarian, I would like you to have this. Think of it as a token of my appreciation.” She opened her right saddlebag and out came a carefully folded black cloak of fine silk.
The librarian politely accepted the gift, “Ah, thank you Rarity. It looks wonderful.”
“Oh, but I haven't shown you the best part!” Rarity deftly unfolded the cloak and slung it over her back. It silently turned a bright purple, matching the pony's mane. “It wasn't easy, but I had a friend of mine assisting me, and I've managed to make a cloak that changes colour with but a thought of the wearer.”
The librarian thanked her profusely before she took her leave with her new bounty of gems, leaving him alone with Alucard.
Alucard remained silent for a long moment, almost two moments. He then spoke sharply, “How much for that cloak?”
The librarian answered slyly, “Well, it bears a powerful enchantment, so I would place it at, oh... thirty thousand gold pieces.”
Alucard stepped back, “Thirty thousand!? A diamond the size of your fist costs less!”
The librarian gave a smug smile.
Alucard scoffed, then turned and left the library.
Days later, Alucard returned. Breathing heavily, he clutched a massive bag of gold pieces slung over his back. He dropped the sack on the floor in front of the librarian.
“I knew you'd be back.” the librarian smiled.
Alucard ignored this remark. He pointed a single finger to the enchanted cloak, hung humbly on the wall. “I'm interested in this.”
Author's Note: I played Castlevania: SotN and decided to write this for fun. That's about it. It's just a one-off I came up with and decided to roll with. Thanks for reading.
