Monster Mash Chronicles: Vol 1 Dracula And His Son

The Ceremonial Feast

It was a warm night, to warm for an October evening in Castlevania. The dark hills surrounding the our home seemed to sparkle tonight.

The castle almost looked like it glistened in the evening night. Dark shadows were casted on the outskirts of the castle from the gargoyles standing tall on the castles edge; guarding it, protecting the ceremonial feast.

My mother always stood by the old oak tree, where the owls would gather around her. She would leave mice for them and talk to them. She called the owls her friends.

This particular evening all the owls had gathered on the great oak tree just outside the castle. I could see them from here. It was as if they too were mourning her death.

A beautiful white owl flew past me, his eyes never leaving mine. He looked at me and I could feel his pain. He was mourning her, as I was.

My father came out of the castles front door, in a second he was by my side, he flew so graciously in his bat form.

"Son, come inside, the family wants to gather now for the ceremonial feast" He didn't look at me. He hasn't been able to look at me, not since she passed away.

I looked a lot like my mother. Her dark skin, her almond eye shape, I even had her hair color, dark and with just a hint of gold shimmering strands. I just wish he would look at me.

"Why must we do this feast father, she hated this ceremony. Found it barbaric. This is no way to honor her memory." Im trying to provoke him, I hope he looks at me.

Looking down at the cobble stones that are beneath our feat my father started to speak.

"Blaine, the ceremony begins now." Suddenly shape shifting into his bat form he glided into the house, going into the second story window opening.

I did the same. My bat form wasn't as seamless and as beautiful as my fathers. But he had been doing this for over a century before I even learned how to shape shift.

I flew into the window and clumsily landed on the rug as my human form.

I was greeted by my great aunt Elvira as she stood at the end of the small corridor, holding something out for me.

"Aunty I thought you wouldn't make it tonight. Monsieur said you just had surgery on your arm."

I couldn't tell if she had the surgery done. She was wearing the ceremonial black robe.

She handed me one and I quickly put it on. I could hear the others as we walked down the corridor. Their voices grew louder.

"Yes, I had surgery just a fortnight ago but I never miss a ceremony. Especially not my best friends ceremony." She smiled and squeezed my hand, she had a beautiful thick Russian accent and her hair was as dark as night with a striking white streak running from the front down to the back.

We had reached the ceremonial chambers, every royal family had a ceremonial chamber in their home.

When a monster from that families line would die, the deceased husband or children would gather along with the main heads of the royal family to celebrate the ceremonial feast.

It's a round room, with ancient scriptures written on the ground. Windowless, one entrance, one exit. The walls in most chambers are black and red. The Lyko's however had a black and dark blue chamber to signal their praise for the moon; which gave them their werewolf powers.

But tonight we were in our royal family chamber. The ceremonial chamber of the Dracula's.

In the chamber stood my father, next to the high priest of the church of night. Besides them the main family heads.