Necropolis

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

Necropolis is the second episode of the first season of Netflix's original series, Castlevania.

SynopsisEdit

Trevor Belmont drifts into the panicking city of Gresit, where he learns of tan ancient evil and makes a surprising vow.

PlotEdit

This episode unfolds where the previous episode left off, in the tavern in Murdenu, the small town on the outskirts of Gresit. Bosha is still complaining about the Belmonts, as the unnamed man, sitting not far from them, grows more frustrated. Drinking more than he should, the man stumbles his way to the bar and asks the bartender for one last tankard of ale before taking his leave. The bartender is disinclined to give him another until he’s produced some coin. Fumbling through his clothes, the man doesn’t seem to have any luck.

As he's searching his clothes, Bosha notices the family crest on his tunic. He identifies it as the Belmont coat-of-arms right away, but the man tries to diffuse the situation. Bosha is having none of it, claiming that "everyone knows" the Belmonts were excommunicated by the Church and had their lands confiscated because of their dealings with black magic. Bosha blames the Belmonts for bringing evil into the world and for the rise of Dracula's army of monsters, so he finds this as the perfect opportunity to rid the world of one of them, but he demands a confession first. The man, however, refuses and tries to set the record straight, and leave, but to no avail. After the patrons attack him, the man admits that he is Trevor Belmont, the last member of the clan. After a brief brawl, he leaves the tavern, seeking a place to sleep.

On the following day, Trevor arrives in Gresit, a city under siege by Dracula's army. As Trevor overlooks the city, several persons inside scream at waking up next to the mangled corpses of their husbands and children. Severed heads on stakes line the walls, and the ditches beneath the street bridges are piled high with corpses. The townsfolk are so fearful that the gates are barricaded, but fortunately for Trevor, no one has bothered to repair the broken grate over the city's sewer outlet. "Never thought I'd be crawling up a **** pipe in search of breakfast", he grumbles.

In the city square, Trevor's last coin buys him a strip of goat jerky, and he walks about, munching his meager breakfast and talking with several of the town's residents. Several of them mention a local legend of the "sleeping soldier", a great warrior who supposedly sleeps in the catacombs of the city, but the residents are divided as to the cause of Gresit's current troubles - many blame the small tribe of Speakers in the city, and are confident that, once they are purged, as the Bishop has ordered, the demons will leave the city as well. But another warns Trevor darkly, "the demons come at night... but the Bishop's men come during the day."

While strolling down a street, Trevor encounters two of these men - wearing the vestments of priests, but otherwise carrying the air, and the weapons, of street thugs. The priests shove the Elder of the Speakers into an alley, warning him that the Speakers were told to be out of Gresit before sundown, and - parroting the Bishop's words that they are obviously responsible for the demons' presence - one draws a cross-shaped stave and prepares to beat the old man to death. Trevor lashes out with his whip, taking off the priest's index finger and causing him to drop the stave. Trevor proposes that the two priests leave the old man alone and depart without further violence, but the second priest draws a knife and lunges at Trevor. Neither of the priests realizes they are dealing with a trained fighter, until a second lash from Trevor's whip rips the second priest's left eyeball clean out of its socket. Done with trying to be reasonable, Trevor orders the first priest to pick up his half-blinded cohort and make themselves scarce, which they do. The Elder thanks Trevor for his help and invites him to stay in their hut.

The Speakers have come to Gresit to offer aid to its people, since medical services and even basic order have broken down with the nightly invasions by demons. Trevor says it is not safe for them to stay, while the Church is blaming them for those invasions, and, from what Trevor saw and heard, too many of the people are willing to believe it. The Elder admits there is another reason they are staying - the legend of the sleeping warrior, a being supposedly powerful enough to defend the people from the monsters. One of their band went down into the city catacombs to try and find him, but failed to return. The Elder is reluctant to say more, but one of the younger Speakers, Arn, confesses that the missing Speaker is the Elder's grandchild. Reluctantly, Trevor proposes that if he recovers the Elder's grandchild, or at least their remains, the Speakers will leave Gresit before nightfall. As he is leaving the hut, the Elder confides to him that death does not frighten them - the only thing that does is living without having done their best to help others.

CastEdit

• Richard Armitage as Trevor Belmont
• Graham McTavish as Count Dracula (credit only)
• Tony Amendola as the Elder
• Matt Frewer as the Bishop (credit only)