Castlevania: Of Darkness and Light

Awakening Among the Ashes

All I remember is falling.

Rather, the sensation of falling. I wasn't aware of anything else. No sight, sound, smell, or even a thought of myself. Just a freefall through the void.

I didn't even know myself, who or what I was. My mind is an endless gray fog within an empty void, clouding my brain and wafting through my body. No, that wasn't it, I wasn't aware I possessed a body, I was only a presence drifting through the clouded abyss, unaware of who I am or what I was. I had no identity, no name, no face, no body to speak of and no gender to identify myself. I was only a semblance of sentient thought drifting through eternity, peacefully oblivious the passage of time and the gray muted shadows enshrouding it. I was nothing but a semblance of something.

Until I crashed, a jarring impact  tore throughout what I knew was my entire body.

The pain brought back the semblance of a physical form. It started out a dull drumming, a small presence inside myself that didn't overwhelm me but couldn't be ignored. It wasn't enough to clear the haze until it grew into a dull prodding, poking me like a biting insect until I had to fully acknowledge it was there.

Okay, that hurts, where does it hurt? The more aware I became of it, the deeper it grew. Until it throbbed mercilessly through my whole self, a knife digging into me until I could no longer feel as a passing cloud. The pain brought back the awareness of a physical state, and with it the knowledge I wasn't a semblance of mere thought anymore. I was more than thought, I was made of something that was capable of extreme discomfort. 

 It hurts, why does it hurt? I shudder as the blackness gradually fades from my mind. Slowly but surely, I began awakening into consciousness. I now have a physical body and a mind controlling it. I had an identity, even if I didn't know who it was. I was an actual something even though I was in a lot of hurt. I am myself and I know who I am, I can feel what I am even though it's not pleasant. I feel bones and muscle. I can hear my heart beating within my chest and the air gasping heavily through my lungs. Soon I could feel and recognize the different parts of myself, head, toes, legs, arms, fingers, feet. This is what I am and I can do.

Dear God  it hurts! My entire back feels like its on fire! The burning coals buried between my shoulder blades. My first breath of life was a shuddering cry of pain. Everything feels quiet, I utter a drawn-out groan, curling myself up  and clenching my fists. I feel the sharp pain in my back, savage, unbelievable. Only when I relax my muscles does the pain shrink into a hard throbbing.

I open my eyes onto a dark field beneath the stars and the full moon. Light flickers in my sight of the surrounding grass, charred from wildfire and sparkling with ember.  I look at myself and see I am a human woman, naked as a newborn and freaking chilled to my bones.  At least my back doesn't feel like it's burning anymore, but I do feel a heavy throbbing between my shoulder blades.

How did I get here? I knew nothing of who I am, where I came from, or what I was even doing naked in the middle of a burning field, but my mind wasn't a empty void. Was it a memory, I don't know, but in my mind was an image of a great forlorn castle, an ominous shadow against the landscape.

Castle Dracula.

A name! I knew its name! That had to mean something! Maybe that's where I came from. A compulsion stirs in my brain, a deep instinct. I need to go there. I don't know why but I must find it, quickly.

I shamble my arms and legs, trying to get used to their motion. The fact I had limbs I could move was new to me, but I couldn't right myself up. Well, guess I'll have to learn to walk on my two feet if I'm gonna get anywhere.

The grass rustles and I shield my eyes from the light of two lamps.

"Dear Lord." An older voice gasped.

"What the hell is she doing out here?" his female companion said.

I moved my hand away, my eyes adjusted to the light when I saw an elderly couple holding lanterns and staring at me. Surprised to see me here as I was. "Don't go near her!" The man warned the woman who gently approached. "Relax, she's harmless." She snapped at him.

"Darling, think for a moment!" Her husband persisted. "A fireball crashes in the middle of the field and in the center of the burning impact is a seemingly defenseless naked woman?  Too suspicious if you ask me. It could be a new breed of 'em night creatures."

"Does she  look like a demon to you?"

"You never know with these bastards. She could be appearing as human to fool you before slitting yer throat." He pulled a knife out. "Better not to take chances."

"Wait!" I cried, surprised at my own voice and the fact that I could talk. "I'm not a demon! At least I don't think I am, whatever it is, I don't mean any harm!" The shivering fear in my voice convinced them enough.

"Easy my dear, you're safe." The woman reassured. "I don't know how you ended up in this field, naked as a newborn babe, but I do know you're scared. Come, we'll take you home and get you dress and fed. Maybe once you're settled you can tell us what happened."

"Darling, you sure that's a good idea?" The man asked still hesitant.

"Sure in my bones." The woman draped her cloak over me. "Here. Let us help you up." I wobbled on my legs and stumbled. "Good lord, it's like you've never stood on your own two feet before! Here. One foot then the next, there you go." Instinct kicked in and I was up walking, covering myself with the cloak gently guided by two old farmers. The ground was cold and wet beneath my feet and my skin prickled goosebumps from the chilled air.

"Do you have a name dear?" The woman asked.

I shook my head. "No. I don't even know who I am, or how I got here."

"Oh boy, amnesia." The man grumbled in sympathy. "There'll be much to figure out when we get back home." "There will indeed." The woman patted my shoulder. "But we'll figure it out one step at a time."

I hope so, I thought doubtfully, but I did know one thing for certain. The Castle. I needed to find Castle Dracula.