Castlevania Nocturne: A Guardian's Tale (Part 2)

The Road to Hell

Emma woke up to a polite knock at her door. "Come in." She sat up.

"Good morning." Maria came with a tray of food. "I brought breakfast,  thought you'd like company."

"Thank you Maria." Emma swung her legs out of bed, planting her feet firmly on the rug and gingerly standing herself using the bedpost as support.

"Emma you don't have to do that!" Maria worried. " I can sit at your bedside."

"No. It's okay." Emma grunted with a hand against her belly. "I have to get out of bed eventually." She felt a burst of energy walking to the small table and sitting down, happily waiting for Maria to sit across from her. There's nothing Emma loved more than food with good company.

"I'm surprised you're able to stand." Maria said amazed while they ate breakfast.

"We Nephilim are a sturdy breed." Emma nodded after swallowing a chunk of bread. "I could stand and walk  mere hours after my daughters were born. Surprised the hell out of the midwives. I will never forget the look on their faces."

"Your daughters." Maria wondered. "My ancestors."

Emma paused, nearly dropping her fork.

"Why didn't you ever tell us?"

"It wasn't an easy thing to tell." Emma replied quietly. "We were planning to tell you and Richter, but I guess the opportunity never came." She held back a nervous yawn. "I'm sorry I didn't reveal it sooner."

"It's all right." Maria understood. "Richter wouldn't have believed you. Neither would I, but after everything that's happened, and years of you watching over us, it makes sense. It's easy to accept."

"I'm glad." Emma's glyphs prickled when Maria looked at her. "You have my daughters' eyes, you and your mother. It's incredible."

"What were they like, your daughters? Your mother said they were twins." Maria asked.

"They were." Emma smiled. "Iris was very outgoing, inquisitive, and a social butterfly all around. She had the angel's nature of being a people person and connecting with humans. Rosie was more introverted and quiet, she preferred keeping to herself but enjoyed being in the company of her close friends and family.   Both were incredible mages. After my father went into dormancy they took over the castle where I was born and ruled together for generations. Their descendants still live there to this day as the city's royal family. "

"I'm descended from royalty?" Maria exclaimed surprised.

"Yes." Emma nodded. "The Lecarde Clan. They're not like royalty here who keep everything for themselves without giving back. No. My daughters. Our family, shared their resources with the people and protected them with their magic. If the French monarchy were like them, they'd still have a  head on their shoulders, with no revolution to speak of ." She winked. "You got your magic from Rosie. Humans can't summon creatures from other worlds. It's a gift inherited only by angelic bloodline. Seeing you with your familiars puts an indescribable joy in my heart, knowing my girls live on in you."

Maria's eyes twinkled in admiration, she wished she knew the truth about her own ancestor years ago, all the stories she could tell! Her ancestor, the revolutionary! "What was it like, growing up in a castle?"

"Amazing." Emma reminisced. "I was born in the castle my father inherited from my grandfather.  Picture the most grandiose castles in all of Europe, they are mere hovels compared to it, with the extensive knowledge mankind has forgotten, but for a child it was a world of its own. There were so many rooms to explore, so many grand halls and hidden chambers. Always something new to see, some hidden nook or cranny you missed on your first passage. Much of my childhood was spent exploring the vastness behind its walls.