Voicetesting

[kismetatropos]

I know not what you are planning, but I do not like being kept in the dark. No matter where you send me, you will not keep me contained.

You are aware of that, are you not? Do not expect me to take this insult so passively.

Comments

[alwayskidnapped]

...Well, the name certainly just gives itself away, doesn't it? If it makes you feel any better, my mun has placed me in a game that traps us all into a few... houses full of monsters with no escape. They tend to kidnap people and experiment on them, too... I was a target the last time around.

[ She shudders, remembering. ]

...They made me into a vampire, you see.

[kismetatropos]

[He stares at her tale, his normally stoic expression one of complete horror.]

Fate is cruel.

[alwayskidnapped]

Indeed, it is. I escaped such a fate at home, thanks to the man who is now my husband. It... does not help matters much that Dracula's reincarnation is wandering around, either. The boy is nice, but when Dracula comes out to visit... I lose control.

[ She frowns. ]

I seem to be triggered by blood, and him... and the darkness. Other than that, I am able to remain somewhat normal.

[kismetatropos]

[He's starting to get used to the idea of the Dracula that others are speaking of not being the "Dracula" he knows. At least, he doesn't think so.

He gives her a grave look.]

Keep as much light in yourself as you can, my lady. Fall completely to the darkness and you will lose yourself.

[alwayskidnapped]

I am trying, but it's not easy. Not in this place. There's so much death... there's nothing to look forward to. At home, I'd just been reunited with my husband after a year of absence, and to be in this place... I sometimes wish he was at my side, but I know that is selfish and that he is better at home. The same with my younger sister.

[ She shakes her head and sighs. ]

I don't know how long I will be able to truly retain my humanity, but I will do my best.

[kismetatropos]

Hope that you and he can be reunited. It will give you strength.

[He cannot truly feel sorrow for another being anymore, but he still regards her with some glimmer of sadness.]

Succeed where I have failed.

[alwayskidnapped]

Thank you. He always seems to know what to do, and I miss him terribly. Perhaps someday, my mun will let me go home and back to him.

[ She shakes her head quickly at him, frowning. ]

Don't say that! You have not failed in anything! You must pick yourself up and carry on...!

[ Annette knows more about him than she's letting on, that much is obvious, she just... doesn't know how far to take this. ]

For your own sake... you must not think that you have failed. You haven't, not at all.

[kismetatropos]

[He does not smile at her words, but his expression softens just enough.]

You are kind.

[Too kind for a creature like him.]

[alwayskidnapped]

You are, too. Can you not see that?

[ She tilts her head. ]

I am not lying to you, though. You have not failed... failure is giving up. You haven't done that, have you?

[kismetatropos]

[If he could smile, he would be. There is something of a glimmer in his eyes, just a hint. A reminder of the man he used to be.]

No, I have not failed. I will not fail.

[alwayskidnapped]

Good. You must always look forward, no matter what. You alone... can and will save the lives of tens of thousands of people. I'm sure of it.

[ She wants very much to tell him of... well, another version of himself. One who had aided her sister in saving her husband, and from her knowledge, is still saving people, but she keeps her mouth shut. ]

[kismetatropos]

I hope that I am capable of accomplishing such a task.

[alwayskidnapped]

Of course you are! You are one of the only people in the world who can. You will do well.

[kismetatropos]

You have such kindness. Your husband is a lucky man.

[alwayskidnapped]

No, I think that it is I who is the lucky one. He could certainly do far better than me.

[kismetatropos]

Your good nature must do good for him all the same.

[alwayskidnapped]

I don't know about that... I wasn't able to stop him from making a mistake that cost him dearly and separated us for a little over a year, but at the very least he did come home to me, so I suppose that is what matters.

[ She won't go into detail, of course -- it's not Alucard's problem, and it hadn't been anyone's fault except for that stupid 'priest,' Shaft. ]

[kismetatropos]

[Alucard can understand at least in a manner of speaking. He can't remember much of his humanity, but he dearly cares for Sypha, even now when he can barely remember her name.]

You will one day be reunited. Remember that.

[It's all he can do to comfort her.]

[alwayskidnapped]

Perhaps! I can only hope that one day he can put his demons behind him, and we can go back to being a normal family.

[ Not that they were ever normal to begin with -- the Belmont clan carries a stigma, it always has and always will, but it's something she's willing to live with if it means keeping Richter with her. ]

[kismetatropos]

[He nods.]

Perhaps he will find it possible. A man will do anything to protect his family, that much I know.

[alwayskidnapped]

Yes, that is true. Family is important, after all... which is why I am grateful to have him in my life. My family, save for my younger sister, was killed long ago thanks to Dracula.

[ She shakes her head and sighs. ]

But enough depressing conversation. It does no good to dwell on the past, right?

[kismetatropos]

Dracula has taken the lives of many.

[It's the closest he can come to sadness, thinking about what may have changed had he succeeded 30 years ago.]

I suppose not.

[alwayskidnapped]

He has, but there will always be someone who is willing to rise against him. That is something you and my husband have in common.

[ She offers him another kind smile. ]

Now, back to the subject of being forced into games. Tell me more about the game in which your mun wishes to place you?

[kismetatropos]

So long as the Belmont line lives on.

[That fills him with confidence. He cannot do it alone, after all. He is no longer capable of handling holy items.]

It is an enormous tower, one hundred and one floors tall filled with people snatched from their worlds, told that they no longer have a world to call their own. They are told it is for their protection, yet dark creatures roam the halls.

[alwayskidnapped]

It will. Rest assured, there will be many more Belmonts in the future.

[ ...Well, if she has it her way. Richter doesn't seem keen on the idea of children, but she really doesn't care what he wants when it comes to kids. If she wants them, she's getting them. End of story. ]

I see... that sounds very much like the castle. Well, barring the fact that the captors enjoy lying to the residents by telling them it is for their own protection, of course.