A Living Legend

Warning! This article contains spoilers. Proceed at your own risk.

"He's a living legend who's known my family for hundreds of years. And he appears from nowhere, saying I should go with on this important mission to fight evil. And I'm a Belmont. How can I refuse"

— Richter telling Annette about Alucard

A Living Legend is the first episode of the second season, and the 9th episode overall, of the Netflix original series, Castlevania: Nocturne.

Synopsis[]

Alucard seeks help from Richter and his friends in the wake of a devastating loss. Elsewhere, Erzsebet makes plans to conquer Paris.

Plot[]

Three years ago, Alucard reached the tomb of Sekhmet, where four vampire guards emerged from the ground, and one exited from the tomb's entrance. Alucard warns them to let him pass through peacefully or perish by his blade. Two of the four guards attack Alucard by stabbing him from either side, but Alucard evades the attack and bifurcates the two. He then deals with the remaining three effortlessly and proceeds into the tomb. There, he opens up one of the corked jars and drops a single drop of its blood content onto his hand. The blood floats in the air, and a burst of light evaporates. Then another guard tosses her weapon at Alucard, who dodges it and defends and defeats the two large and muscular-sized guards.

Heading deeper into the tomb, Alucard reaches the coffin, but discovers that it is empty.

In the present, Maria stands atop a ruined building and watches as the sun rises over the horizon. She soon joins Annette and Richter as Annette surmises that Erzsebet must have exhausted her power to no longer be able to maintain the Solar Eclipse. Annette suggests they launch an attack again while she's weakened, but Alucard claims she's not weak and apologizes for not arriving sooner. He then asks who they lost, and Richter answers, they have to leave Maria's mother behind except she isn't quite dead, and Alucard extends his apologies, understanding her pain.

Just then, Mizrak arrives with a bucket and a dead pheasant in hand. He informs the group about locating a well near a place where they can rest. Alucard asks the group about the extent of their knowledge about Erzsebet. Annette discloses they know she absorbed the power of an Egyptian goddess known as Sekhmet. Alucard mentions he investigated the source of her power in an attempt to discover her weakness. The place was Sekhmet's tomb, which functioned as a temple and tomb. Annette asks if Sekhmet is dead, and Alucard confirms she has been dead for a thousand years, but notes her blood had been stored there for thousands of years. Richter then asks why her blood was stored there, and Alucard answers that it was believed that Sekhmet would one day return to the Earth and rule again. However, someone has been drinking her blood, which Annette surmises was Erzsebet, and Alucard nods in agreement. After Richter notes Erzsebet's strength caused them to flee, Annette asks Alucard if he has a plan. Alucard explains that Egyptian Gods have two souls called Ba and Ka; the first is in the blood, and the other is in the heart preserved in the mummy's body. Richter misunderstands the context, which Mizrak chimes in to clear up Richter's confusion. From there, Alucard mentions the hope of possibility, stating that years ago, Sekhmet's body was stolen. Her former high priestess Drolta did everything she could to conceal the fact. For the past few years, Alucard has scoured the world in hopes of finding it, and upon reaching France, he believes the mummy is in Paris and enlists the help of Richter as a Belmont. As Alucard states this, Maria glares at Richter, who sighs deeply.

Meanwhile, at the Vendée, Erzsebet holds Drolta's shriveled-up corpse in her arms and tearfully vows to make Alucard pay for his treachery as several cult members and Thyme watch her. Standing in the shadows on the second-floor balcony, Olrox quietly watched this.

Standing by a stream of water, Annette joins Richter. Richter briefly tells Annette about his clan's history with Alucard and how he now wants her to help him with his mission. However, he knows that Maria won't come as she still has Tera on her mind, and Annette asks if Richter doesn't want to leave Maria. Richter denotes that Maria would want revenge on the Abbot Emmanuel and Erzsebet, the former trying to sacrifice her to the Messiah and the latter for turning her mother into a vampire. Despite Richter's hesitance to help Alucard, Annette argues staying there and being defeated isn't part of the plan either. This makes Richter sigh deeply and Annette sheepish to try and console him.

Back at the Vendée, Erzsebet stares at the pool of water as Olrox watches her from a second-floor window. Soon, a newly turned vampire Tera arrives, and Erzsebet asks that Tera demonstrate her magic]] for her. In defiant, the lifeless-looking Tera casts a fire with one hand and attacks Erzsebet's face with it. After recovering from the spell's flame, Erzsebet grabs Tera's neck, chastises her for not being as loyal as Drolta was, and drags her face into the sunlight. To prevent the sun from burning her, Tera casts an Ice spell to shield her from the sun's light, which to Erzsebet's annoyance. Tossing Tera aside as she gasps for air, Erzsebet claims that she's not Drolta, but she'll have use for her, and then mentions how Emmanuel sacrificed Tera to her because he loves her. Erzsebet then orders Tera to fetch Emmanuel, but Tera argues that she doesn't know if her ice can protect her from such a long distance to Machecoul. However, Erzsebet demands it, so Tera casts an ice spell that hovers above her head, and she heads to where Emmanuel is.

At the Abbey, Edouard takes the corpse of a Templar and places it into a shallow grave as Emmanuel prays for the deceased soldier. Emmanuel then asks Edouard about the fact that there were no songs that day, but Edouard dodges the question, stating his sympathies for the departed. Edouard's sympathy irks Emmanuel, whose outburst thereafter makes him realize that the other Night Creatures were influenced by his songs. Emmanuel then asks about Annette but doesn't mention her by name, saying that if she was his friend, Edouard confirms it, which Emmanuel finds impossible as night creatures don't retain their previous life memories. Edouard then states that Emmanuel prays toward his deceased Templars, but not for his deceased night creatures. To that point, Emmanuel claims that Edouard and the others are beasts from hell, and it's wasted on them. He also admits that is where he'll one day be heading toward.

Just then, Tera arrives, and Emmanuel concernedly rushes over to her. Tera coldly asks if Emmanuel won't comment on how beautiful she looks. Emmanuel claims they've saved their daughter, but the remark doesn't amuse Tera, and he relays that the Vampire Messiah demands his attendance. Understanding why Erzsebet had sent Tera, Emmanuel asks if she's her Messiah now, too. Tera refuses to answer, and so Emmanuel asks what Erzsebet wants. On the other hand, Tera says he must see her when she calls him, and Emmanuel asks if Tera still loves Maria even if she's now a vampire. Tera lashes out that she does, which scares Emmanuel. As Tera walks away, Emmanuel asks that Tera stay away from Maria or else her sacrifice will be for naught, and Tera sarcastically called him a "loving father" even after he tried to sacrifice their daughter to Erzsebet and takes her leave.

Later, the night creatures return to their cages in the cellar and stop Edouard from entering his cage. Emmanuel asks him what he'd do if he didn't cage him and if he'd do more than sing. Edouard does not answer as Emmanuel walks away.

Sitting on a ruined wall, the despondent Maria is joined by Richter, who hands her a plate of meat, and she starts to eat it. Richter claims that whatever happens to her mother won't bring her peace and that she must accept that she's now a vampire. Maria coldly states that she should accept the fact, making Richter regret his curt remark, and Maria rebukes him for talking as if Tera meant the same to him as it did to her. This causes a brief debate between them about how they had to leave Tera behind. Tossing her plate to the ground, she demands that Richter be the coward that he is and leave for Paris, as she no longer wants him here.

On Tera's side, she reaches a safe area where she's approached by Olrox, who welcomes her to the immortal life. He asks if she has fed yet and notes that it's not animalistic behavior to do so. However, Tera threatens to expose him for the traitor that he is and assures him that she doesn't intend to return to Erzsebet. Olrox compliments Tera for following her heart, but suggests eating something first and directs her attention to a drunkard walking down the nearby road, triggering her innate vampire instincts. She then proceeds to attack the drunkard.

Alucard uses a whetstone to sharpen his blade and is joined by Maria, who sits beside him and asks what vampires genuinely are. She states how Richter and her used to kill them for fun, because they were evil creatures need to be fought and killed. She then asks what it was like to have one as a father. Alucard corrects Maria's question, stating if all vampires are evil, which he thereby states not all are like Erzsebet and his father, toward the end, was good. He at least loved his mother and comments on how he's known men who were far eviler than him. Maria relates with Alucard's last remark as he father is like that, has done evil deeds, but is still good. Alucard remarks about "family," and Maria asks for a way to redeem them. Still, Alucard states that love is capricious, but one can probably redeem oneself. After a brief pause, Maria asks how Alucard's father died, and he states that he killed him.

The sounds of drum beats fill the area, and Maria spots them, stating they're the National Guard, and heads straight toward them. Unbeknownst to Maria, Tera watched Maria run toward the revolutionaries with blood trickling down her mouth.

Using a Magic Circle, Annette enters the spirit realm and communicates with Cécile. Annette quotes Cécile about how light can be found even in darkness, but she remarks that she has yet to find it herself. She goes on to lament how they lost badly and how the enemy's power swept away Papa Legba. Still, Cécile states that Papa Legba is a gatekeeper who opens and closes the door to the spirit world and that she must try harder by seeing and hearing. Sheepishly, Annette asks why she was entrusted with this task and claims that Cécile is better than her, but Cécile advises her to see and hear. The response astounds Annette as a giant spiritual snake-like creature heads toward her, causing her to lose her concentration. Richter appears before Annette and tells her they should head out as Maria no longer wants him there. Annette claims that Mizrak can watch over her from now on; Richter also comments that someone else can watch over her.

At the Vendée, Emmanuel arrives with a few of his night creatures, and Erzsebet fawns over Drolta's corpse. Once Emmanuel arrives, he addresses Erzsebet as the Countess, but Thyme corrects him to address her as her Magnificence. Emmanuel stops a night creature from growling and suggests they continue their plans of crushing the Revolutionary stronghold in Nantes. Erzsebet scoffs at the idea and rejects it, proposing they head to Paris instead. She then states that's not what she called him there that night, but Emmanuel corrects her and says she summoned him. Annoyed by Emmanuel's retort, Erzsebet asks how many night creatures he lost; Emmanuel states more than he'd like but assures he can create more and notes that she suffered her own losses, too. Unimpressed by Emmanuel's comment, she states that he can use his monks to create more night creatures. However, Emmanuel refuses, which shocks everyone in attendance there, and Emmanuel elaborates that sometimes the night creatures retain their souls. He further adds that his men were Christians like him and would rather let them rest in peace. The revelation gives Erzsebet an epiphany to revive Drolta, but Emmanuel remarks on the risks and futility of doing so, stating vampires have no souls. However, Erzsebet doesn't care as she rebuke his hypocrisy, still coerces him to do it anyway.

On Alucard's side, he stands beside Mizrak as Richter and Annette soon join them. After Richter states that Edouard has made his choice, Annette asks about Maria; Alucard states she's joined the Revolutionary Army. Mizrak offers to join her, and Richter wants to relay a message to her but decides against it as he'll tell her himself when it's all over.

As Mizrak watches Alucard and the group head off, Olrox appears as a black shadow behind Mizrak but disappears when he turns around.

Within the Abbey's cellar, where the Infernal Machine was, Erzsebet watches as Emmanuel uses the machine on Drolta's corpse, which revives her as a night creature. Elated, Erzsebet welcomes the newly revived Drolta, and she thanks Emmanuel for reviving her, but notes that she should not expect her to obey him in the slightest. Emmanuel gave no response as he was far too tearfully emotional by what he had witnessed then and there.

Cast[]

Quotes[]

– Alucard: "You made me kill every last one of you and there's nothing *** here."

– Alucard: "An Egyptian deity has two souls, called the ba and the ka. The first is present in the blood. The second is in the goddess's heart, which is preserved in her mummy." (Richter and Annette look at each other in confusion)

– Richter: "She gave her heart to her mother?" (Alucard sighs)

– Mizrak: "It's an ancient pagan practice. A preserved desiccated corpse."

– Richter: "Oh. Uh, sounds lovely."

– Erzsebet:"Speaker woman. 'Think what a powerful servant you would be', you said. You do magic. Do some magic."

– (Tera summon a flame, then proceed to incinerate Erzsebet's face in retaliation, causing Erzsebet to groan in pain. She grabbed Tera's neck)

– Erzsebet: "'Loyal too', you said. As if you could be another Drolta" (The sun sizzle Tera's face as she gasp in pain. She form a ice shield to keep her out of the sun. Annoyed, Erzsebet drop her) "You are not Drolta. But I have a use for you. The Abbot, the man who loves you but sacrifice you to me, go to him."

– Tera: "Machecoul's a long way. I don't know if I can keep making ice that far."

– Erzsebet: "Find out"

– Olrox: "Welcome to immortality."

– Tera: "What do you want?"

– Olrox: "Have you fed yet? It's impossible to fight it, but it doesn't make you an animal. You're not just a beast consumed by lust for blood. You have a mind which can think and a heart which can love.

– Tera: "I could tell her what a treacherous little you are. That's why you're here. Well you can relax. I'm not going back to Erzsebet."

– Olrox: "I see. That's good. You're following your heart then. But you might want to eat first."

– Maria: "What are they? Really? Vampires. Me and Richter, we used to think it was fun, which is stupid, to kill them. They were just evil things there to be killed. What's it's like to have one as your father."

– Alucard: "You mean, are they all evil? Well, they're not all Erzsebet Báthory. My father, in the end... I believe there was good in him. He loved my mother, and that made him... not evil, at least. I've known human men who were far worse."

– Maria: "Like my father. He's a Forgemaster.

– Alucard: (chuckles softly) "Families, eh?"

– Maria: "So, love? Love can redeem them?"

– Alucard: "Love is a fragile, capricious thing in this cold, fleeting world. But if anything can redeem anyone, then yes. Love. Probably."

– Maria: "What happened to your father in the end?"

– Alucard: "I killed him."

– Abbot Emmanuel: "Countess."

– Thyme: "Your Magnificence" (A night creature snarl at her but Emmanuel halt it)

– Abbot Emmanuel: "We need to discuss our next steps. We agreed our first objective should be the Revolutionary stronghold of Nantes."

– Erzsebet: "Ugh. Your trivial plan. No. When we are ready, we march on Paris. Cut this revolution's head off. I believe they're fond of beheadings. But that isn't why I summoned you here."

– Abbot Emmanuel: "You did not summon me. You asked me to come, and I agreed."

– Erzsebet: "How many of your hell-beasts did you lose?"

– Abbot Emmanuel: "More than I would have wished, but I can make more. You, too, suffered some losses."

– Erzsebet: "Your monks are all dead. Use them."

– Abbot Emmanuel: "No." (Erzsebet glared at him) "I won't do that. It seems, sometimes, the creature retains its soul. And those were Christian men. I will let them rest in peace, if God wills it."

– Erzsebet: "They're not simply your servants then."

– Abbot Emmanuel: "They will do as I command."

– Erzsebet: (An idea pops up in her mind as she look at Drolta's corpse) "You could bring her back. And she would still be herself"

– Abbot Emmanuel: (Gasp) "She's a vampire. She was undead. I don't know if the machine can work with such material. You are suffering, grieving. And your servant's death is difficult to accept"

– Erzsebet: "I do not accept it" (Scaring Emmanuel as she walk closer to him) "And you have the means to return her to me. You will do so."

– Abbot Emmanuel: (Panicking) "But she's a vampire. What I said about returning their souls? She doesn't have a soul."

– Erzsebet: (Scoffs as she grins) "You think that's the difference between us, don't you, Father Abbot. You and your monks have souls, and we do not. Bring her back."

A Living Legend

Contents

Synopsis[]

Plot[]

Cast[]

Quotes[]

Gallery[]

Screenshots[]

Concept art[]