The Belmont Clan

The Belmont Clan: Cursed Blood, Cursed Destiny

A Chronological Essay of the Heroes of

By Eric 'Erico' Lawson, Morningside College Games Club Historian

To trace the Belmont heritage to its beginning, we must first go back nearly a Millennia, and to the religious wars known to the Western World as the Crusades. Long before the advent of the printing press, even before gunpowder and the inventions of the Eastern World made it across the trading routes to general use, there was Vlad Tepes, or as he was first known, Matthias Cronquist, the man who would one day be known as Dracula, the Prince of Darkness.

Circa 1100 A.D: Castlevania: Lament of Innocence (PS2, 2003)

Before Simon, before Trevor, before Richter, there was their great ancestor, a hallowed knight of the realm who carried the family name with pride and honor. Leon Belmont is the one who would begin the ongoing battle against the night and the creatures of it, resigning his knighthood in disgust when the authorities, too busy with the Crusades to ponder over such 'petty' concerns, gave not even a second thought to when the lovely Maiden Sara Trantoul was captured by Walter, a Vampire who lived in the nearby cursed woods. Informed of her fate by his close friend, Matthias Cronquist , Leon deigned to rescue her from the Vampire Walter, no matter what the personal risk. Fortunately, fate handed him a tool of divine strength, in a vagabond alchemist who gave him a weapon beyond measure; a whip enhanced by alchemy. Armed with his new weapon, and using the mystical relics found within Walter's castle, Leon at last discovered the truth; Walter was but a front to the true darkness. Matthias Cronquist, lamenting the loss of his Elisabetha(Lisa), had formed a covenant with the powers of darkness. Sara Trantoul, weakened and in the early stages of her change to Vampirism, sacrificed her life energies and melded her spirit into the whip Leon carried. No longer was it a mere alchemy powered weapon; now it was the bane of the nightwalkers, the "Vampire Killer". Enraged and grief stricken, Leon took up the weapon which carried the very essence of his love and destroyed Walter, and even the incarnation of Death itself. He then swore from that point forth, that he and his descendants would always be there to fight against Matthias and the forces of darkness he had allied himself with. Matthias fled for the far East regions of Europe , and Leon Belmont, if not his relatives, presumably followed. So began the battle for all mankind's souls....

1450 A.D. Castlevania Legends (Game Boy)

Many years later, Dracula had remained quiet, amassing his unholy powers for the great strike. Severed from life, he had little left but his hatred, and that was enough to guide him. But as the legions of terror set out to claim all of Transylvania and Europe for Dracula's rule, a new Belmont stepped forth to cease his machinations, and this time...

It was a woman.

Sonia Belmont, carrying the traits of her ancestor before her, and the iron will of her own determination, fought her way through horde after horde before striking into Castlevania itself. Wielding the Vampire Killer, she seemed unstoppable. But there was one person who still had doubts, who felt it necessary to give her a test.

That person was Alucard, Adrian Fahrenheights Tepes. The son of Dracula, and a Dhampire(Half-Vampire), he was also in love with Sonia, and cared about her welfare deeply. But when Sonia defeated him soundly in combat, Alucard stepped back and let her pass with his blessing and final farewell...Alucard left, not to be heard from again for some time.

Sonia went on to defeat Dracula, saying that he would never win, because the human spirit would always triumph. Once again, Dracula faded into oblivion. Once again, the Belmonts had won.

As the battle passed, and as time did, Sonia gave birth to a healthy baby boy...unnaturally healthy, and with more power in him than she had held. This was due to his heritage...and to the power that his father's seed had planted in Sonia's womb.

She would name him Trevor.

1476 A.D. Castlevania 3

Warakiya( Wallachia ) Village was a small outpost of human civilization relatively close to the old stomping grounds of Castlevania. It was here that the battle would begin again. Dracula rose from his grave, revived now only as he could, by the blood sacrifice and dark rituals of his devoted followers, the dwellers of sin and the night. Legend says that Dracula rises once every 100 years, but as time would prove, this was not always the case. Rarely, indeed. Terror and chaos fell across the land as Dracula's minions arced outwards. And there in their time of need, the citizens turned to the people they themselves had made social pariahs and outcasts; The Belmonts.

It was Trevor Belmont, now a strong and strapping lad, who would take up the whip and carry on the legacy. Along the way, he would meet up with three helpers. Grant Danasty(Dynasty), a pirate whose family had been killed by Dracula and who swore vengeance, Sypha Belnades, a mystic of the magical arts and novice vampire hunter(Who would later turn out to be female, and possibly Trevor's love interest), and even a strange man with stranger abilities that were similar to Dracula's...the ability to transform into a bat, and the power to hurl fireballs from the depths of his black cloak.

This man called himself Alucard.

Together, Trevor Belmont and his helpers set out to defeat Dracula, and did once again, triumphing over three horrific incarnations of the Prince of Darkness. The endless night ceased, and day brought new hope once more.

Alucard left after that, troubled over events and the role he had forced himself to play. Trevor never saw Alucard again, but he would remember the man who was, unbeknownst to him, his father, and pass down the tale of the brave and cursed soul that aided him in his darkest hour to his children, and to their children.

Grant Danasty, his vengeance served, left for points unknown. As of yet, it is unknown what became of the strange man who could walk on the underside of blocks.

And as for Sypha Belnades...as Castlevania crumbled, the mystic pulled the hood of her blue cloak down, and shook free her long and flowing head of blond hair. She settled at Trevor's side, content to watch the sunrise with the man whom she had helped save the world with. An innate estimate would be that she and Trevor would one day create the next generation of the clan, allowing her own innate magical talents to further strengthen the Belmont blood.

1576 A.D. Castlevania Adventure (Game Boy)

Christopher Belmont took up the whip and rose against Dracula, carrying on the family tradition.

1591 A.D. Castlevania Adventure 2 (Game Boy)

Dracula, perhaps having learned from his past mistakes, kidnapped Christopher Belmont's young son, Soliyeu from him and taunted the Belmont to come after him once more, now holding the future of the Belmont clan in his clutches. Dracula underestimated the fury of the Belmonts once again, however, as Cristopher not only rescued his son, but defeated Dracula once again.

1691 A.D. Castlevania 1 (NES) /Chronicles (PSX) /Super Castlevania (SNES)

"Every one hundred years, the followers of darkness unite and summon from the depths their Lord and master, Vlad Dracula..." Such was the case one very bitter Good Friday, and the Belmonts were needed once more. Here, it was Simon Belmont who rose to the cause, striking Dracula back and making the world safe once more. But Dracula, ever crafty, ever thinking, had found a new way to ensure his success; the consequences of Simon Belmont's victory over the Prince of Darkness were not immediately felt.

1698 A.D. Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest (NES)

In his last moments of life, Dracula placed a curse on Simon, which would cause him to age and die prematurely. The only way to prevent his fate was for the vampire hunter to collect Dracula's body parts from around Transylvania , where they had been scattered, and then reunite them at Castlevania, reincarnate the Prince of Darkness, and destroy him once again. Thankfully, the stout-hearted Simon proved ready to the task, and once again snatched victory from a by now very embittered walker of the night.

1748 A.D. Castlevania: Harmony Of Dissonance (GBA)

Lydie Erlanger, a close friend of Juste Belmont, was kidnapped and dragged to Castlevania, despite the best efforts of Maxim Kishine, who returned to Juste weary in mind and body, and seemingly knowing only that Lydie was in danger. Setting off with his best friend since childhood and fellow vampire hunter trainee, Maxim Kishine, Juste went to rescue the fair damsel, and eventually ended up having to save Maxim as well from his state of possession by Dracula's wraith spirit. Maxim had fallen victim to Dracula's control, due to his jealousy of Juste's abilities. Only through the power of friendship was Dracula's control shattered and the Prince of Darkness banished once again.

1792 A.D. Castlevania X: Rondo of Blood (PC-SNES)

Dracula is revived once more, but takes his time, choosing to observe the new Belmont , Richer. After some time, the master Vampire resorts to the tried method of kidnapping loved ones, but expands on it to have a total of four kidnapped women from Richter's village, one of whom is Richter's beloved, Annette Renard. The stalwart youth sets out with whip in hand to repeat what generations before have done. Along the way, he rescues his lady Annette's younger sister Maria, another of the four, who despite her age proves to have immense power and vivacity that proves invaluable in the fight.

1797 A.D. Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night (PSX)

Castlevania is supposed to arise only once every century; but despite the defeat of Dracula but five years before, it mysteriously appears once more, just as Richter Belmont goes missing. Rising from his 350 year slumber, Alucard is troubled by the new dark energies and ventures forth towards Castlevania to investigate; unknown to him, Maria Renard, now a stunning young woman and fighter, also ventures towards Castlevania to investigate the disappearance of Richter. They meet many times through the castle's interior, and although their conversations are brief to begin with, they eventually grow to know and trust one another. Through his trials, Alucard uncovers a hidden plot to revive Dracula by the dark priest Shaft, who has kidnapped Richter Belmont, the strongest of all vampire hunters, to protect the gateway to Dracula's place of rebirth. Using a pair of glasses Maria gave to him, Alucard sets Richter free by destroying Shaft's possession sphere that hovers above the Belmont. With a few brief words to the relieved Maria and the stunned Richter(Who recognizes Alucard as the one who aided his ancestor countless years before), Alucard bids them leave while they can and goes on through the portal to an 'inverse' Castlevania, where he collects the pieces of his father and arrives at the inverse pyramid deep in the keep's bowels. Destroying Shaft with ease, Alucard is at last confronted by his father, who orders his son to join with him in remaking the world. Alucard refuses, remembering well the lessons that his mother gave to him, and using the love of Dracula's beloved Lisa as his guide, he strikes his father down once again. At his end, as he fades away, Dracula seems remorseful for his ways, begging for Lisa, wherever her soul rests, to forgive him. He bids his troubled son adieu, and Alucard flees as the two Castlevanias collapse once more. Afterwards, Alucard parts ways with Maria and Richter, tired of his quest and all too willing to fall back into the cold hands of dreamless slumber. Richter urges the heartstrung Maria to follow him, and this the maiden warrior does with great haste.

"I cannot let him leave my life." She says, shaking her head.

It is unknown what became of them.

1854 A.D. Castlevania 64 (N64)

In a time approaching the end of the Romantic Age, Dracula made another desperate bid for victory. Thankfully, Reinhardt Schneider, a descendant of the Belmont line who was the best of his generation, was there to put a stop to the Prince of Darkness's ambitions.

1897 A.D. DRACULA (By Bram Stoker)

In a time which all thought at last to be calm, Dracula forewent his typical plans and instead sought to change residences, ruling humanity in a subtler way. Thankfully, he was stopped by the strong wills and hearts of a few brave souls. The most notable among them was Quincey Morris, who died in their heroic attempt to put an end to the Prince of Darkness. Quincey, another off-branch descendant of the Belmont clan, had his name and efforts carried on by his son, who was two years old at the time...

1914 A.D. Castlevania Bloodlines (Sega Genesis)

Elizabeth Bartley, the niece of Lord Dracula, was revived by an occultist witch who found incantations too powerful for her to control. Renewed, Eliza set out to revive dear her Uncle Dracula, and it fell to friends John Morris and Eric LeCarde to stop him. John carried the Vampire Killer whip into the fight, and Eric wielded the LeCarde Spear, which apparently had been handed down in his family for years. A reasonable guess as to the origins of Eric LeCarde is that he is another descendant of Alucard, which gives credence to some who hold to the belief that Alucard did not vanish from 1797 alone, but with the lovely Maria Renard accompanying him.

2035 A.D. Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow (GBA)

In 1999, Dracula and Castlevania rose again, and the Apocalypse should have come. Julius Belmont and a handful of unknown others put a stop to that, and locked Castlevania away inside an eclipse. 36 years later, another eclipse came, and Soma Cruz, a foreign exchange student was unlucky enough to be drawn to it. After being awakened by his friend Mina Hakuba, Soma was introduced to Genya Arikado, a tall and pale faced man with dark hair whose attractive, almost European features seemed out of place in their environment. Before too many words could be spoken, a legion of Winged Skeletons fell upon them, and though Genya unleashed a devastating and wholly unnatural assault, one escaped his wrath and Soma came to Mina's aid, striking the creature down, and somehow absorbing its horrific mutated soul into himself. Confronted by a quiet and thoughtful Arikado, Soma was told in simplistic terms that in order to escape the castle, he had to explore and learn about the castle. A tall order indeed, but Soma did, wielding the souls of the foes he defeated along with the strange weapons scattered throughout. He also met up with several strange personalities, like Graham, a televangelist gone horribly wrong who thought HE was Dracula, and Yoko Belnades, who was a religiously affiliated lady tracking Graham, who also seemed to be familiar with Arikado, stumbling over his name once, almost calling him "Alu...". He also meets up with a mercenary soldier by the name of Graham, who becomes a merchant in strange places, and a vibrant middle aged man who has but the initial 'J' to distinguish himself, ever since he awakened from his coma shortly after 1999. Of course, when all was said and done, it was revealed that SOMA was the reincarnation of Dracula. In order to forever seal away Dracula's dark powers, Soma had to enter the Realm of Chaos and defeat that intangible force itself.

But first, he faced against, 'J', who was in actuality Julius Belmont. The Belmont, who then had recovered his memories opted to 'do what he does best' by killing Dracula. His attack was blunted, however, as Soma threw him aside and cried that he had had enough. Julius laughed a bit, shaking his head and wished young Soma the best of luck in his efforts to seal Dracula's power. As an afterthought, the Belmont admitted he held back because he sensed Soma's spirit inside of Dracula's. With the Belmont's blessing, as well as the good wishes of all his other friends, Soma stepped into the portal to the realm of chaos and defeated the incarnation of entropy itself, forever destroying the powers of darkness that caused Dracula and his followers to bring suffering every 100 years. As a symbol of his victory, Julius commented to Soma as he was drawn back into the living world that the Vampire Killer had lost its power...presumably, the spirit of Sara Trantoul at last went to its final resting place, its purpose served and Dracula finally defeated. Genya Arikado also spoke to Soma in that hazy transfer, thanking the young warrior for putting an end to Dracula's curse. What proved odd, however, was that Genya also thanked Soma 'in the name of my mother'...This oath of gratitude seems out of place, until one realizes that Genya Arikado is in fact, Alucard, Adrian F. Tepes, still alive after countless years.

These are but the known stories. As historians and genealogists continue to piece together the missing links, further stories and further trials of the Belmonts and those of their line may develop. The Belmonts, as the years have gone by, have been strengthened by the blood of a Dhampire, of a mystic, and countless others that remain hidden from the annals of history. While the 21st century seems at last to have ended their lines' eternal war against the night, it is likely that in the past, there are battles untold.

In a sense, the Belmonts and their descendants represent the best of humanity, in spirit always, if not strength. As Alucard once said, "The only thing needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing." Today, he might correct that to mean good men and women, but the intention is there. Where those of weaker spirits and minds would shy away, the Belmonts stepped forth, charging headlong into a struggle they could not entirely comprehend. And time and time again, they proved that no matter how strong of a supernatural force was thrown against them, the one thing that made success happen over and over again was the strength of the human spirit. Perhaps it is not their powerful ancestors that makes the Belmonts so daunting a force...

But the spirit within that guided them all.

-END