Hellsing: Opposing Force

by Chad Emperor of Mankind

The US Military has developed a new unit with cutting edge technology and experimental equipment. They also acknowledge the growing threat of the supernatural world as well as thinking of forging new alliances in Europe. Thus this experimental group is deployed with the goal of securing an alliance with one of the oldest supernatural hunting organizations in Europe. Hellsing.

Operation Boots on the Ground

Cheddar, England

1999

In the increase of recent [REDACTED], the US Government has approved of sending its best unit to assist the various organizations of [REDACTED] in order to handle the threat. A detachment of United States Marines from the Special Operations unit, [REDACTED], has been deployed to the village of Cheddar in response to a massive outbreak. We have confirmation that the local British organization, [REDACTED], is sending their own into the town as well. Find the target and eliminate them along with all other threats. Rescue any survivors before making contact with [REDACTED].

The pilot of the aircraft turn the radio off on his board while the copilot focused at the window in front of them. Both pilots were in OD jumpsuits and had on full flight helmets with night optics on and mics near their mouths. In the back of the aircraft was about 13 men clad in full combat gear and armed with various weapons. Their uniforms were completely covered in M81 Woodland Camouflage with PASGT helmets of with the same camo cover. Their faces were covered in modified M40 gas masks which lens have a green tint in them from the built in night vision optics. Their chests were covered by a heavy looking black vest that had an slight futuristic look to it with the OD LC-2 Harness over it. In their black gloved hands were various rifles and weapons like the M4A1 Assault Rifle, the M16A2 rifles, one with an M249, and finally a medic with an MP5 SMG.

"Hey. Where the hell are we anyway?" One man, an black man judging by the color of his skin since his shirt sleeves were rolled up past his elbow. He held an M249 LMG while glancing over to his buddy next to him.

"Well the pilot thought we were going to your mother's house. So far this route looks familiar." The man next to him joked in a slight redneck tone, an M16A2 slung in front of him and resting in his lap. The machine gunner next to him snorted and shook his head.

"Yeah, that's real cute, Jackson." His reply came clear through his gas mask though it did sounded slightly muffled. Jackson grinned behind his own gas mask and nodded his head.

"Any time, any where." The man replied, before having a spent shell casing bounce off his helmet courtesy of the man across from the machine gunner.

"Dammit, Jackson! I was trying to get some sleep." The man, a Corporal judging by his rank on his uniform sleeve, glared at the man from behind his gas mask. The corporal was armed with an M4A1 with an M203 attachment below the barrel. The man next to the Corporal on his right stirred and glanced over.

"Oh great. Now you woke me up, Shephard." He groaned, lifting his arms into the air to stretch them. The man was kitted in the same gear like all the Marines except he was Hispanic by the sound of his voice and his slightly dark-tan skin tone on his arms. He had an M16A2 slung over his torso with the barrel pointing down at the floor. By the rank patch on his sleeve, he was a Lance Corporal.

"Sorry, Ramirez. Nearly forgot that you were right next to me trying to get rest too." Corporal Shephard replied, while Lance Corporal Ramirez lowered his arms back down. The Marine simply nodded for a moment before glancing over at the only man standing in the bay area.

"Hey, Sergeant! Are we there yet?" Ramirez questioned, purposely starting off the barrage of other Marines' jokes and bullshittery.

"What about now?"

"I gotta pee!"

"I gotta take a shit!"

"I'm hungry!"

"Peterson keeps touching me!"

"Alright, my ungrateful children! Listen up!" Sergeant Mitchell shouted, which the Marines promptly complied. Instantly the bay area was quiet except for the engines outside the aircraft and Sergeant speaking. "The situation is pretty grim. We have reports that the the target has amassed himself a large armed of followers which may be armed with various weapons collected off of response teams that were sent in by British Police as well as their own version of SWAT teams called the Specialist Firearms Command. Normal weaponry is ineffective on these hostiles so your normal rounds have been replaced with specialized ones. Aim for the head or heart area as a few hits in that area from these rounds will destroy the target instantly."

Several Marines examined the rifle magazines, noting that the bullets were cased in the usual brass casings and looked the same save for some markings on the tip. The pilot turned on the intercom and spoke into the passenger bay. "Get ready! We're landing in a minute!"

"Alright, Marines! When we land, you will break off into fireteams before moving towards the main village! Make sure to watch your sectors and use your gas masks' built-in NVGs to move through the dark!" Mitchell continued as the aircraft began to descend. The rear area slowly began to lower its rear door once the aircraft was merely feet off the ground. The wheels of it touched the dirt and instantly the 13 Marines were charging out of the back of the aircraft. They quickly formed a perimeter to secure the area as the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey hovered back into the air. The aircraft began flying forward in the direction of the nearest airfield which it had authorization to land at, quickly approaching the police checkpoint set on the ground a few miles away from the town. Meanwhile the Marines broke up into four-man fireteams, the Sergeant attaching himself to the third, and proceeded to make their way towards the town.

Corporal Adrian Shephard was in charge of his own fireteam which consisted of the Automatic Rifleman, Private First Class David Towers, the engineer and Assistant Automatic Rifleman, Private First Class Steve Jackson, and finally the rifleman, Lance Corporal Juan Ramirez. He motioned for them to move in a wedge formation to which they complied. This meant that Ramirez was on point with Shephard behind him on his right, Jackson on his rear left and Towers on rear with the M249. Ramirez lead the way for them while Adrian glanced around to make sure they were in visual range of the other fireteams. Satisfied by what he witnessed, he focused back on security of the entire unit, making sure he would cover his battle buddies like they were doing with him.

The entire squad swiftly cut through the forest, the entire area highlighted in an eerie green haze through the gas masks' NVGs. Most of the riflemen in the squad shifted their aim constantly as the three fireteams started getting closer to the village. Most held their weapons tightly, being that this was their first major mission that involved a situation like this. Suddenly Ramirez held up his left fist closed in the air, signalling for them to hold. The fireteam, after receiving a nod from Shephard, complied with the order along with the entire squad doing the same by getting down on one knee and holding their position.

"Heads up. Multiple figures running towards us at 12 o'clock. I see one young female police officer running towards us with several shamblers armed with guns about 100 meters behind chasing her. Permission to engage the targets and move towards the officer to provide assistance?" Ramirez asked over the squad comms which was built into their gas masks like the NVGS were. The Sergeant looked to where Ramirez called out, witnessing a rather terrified young woman in a British police uniform running ahead of a pack of armed decaying men and women. By some of the clothing they were mostly former police units or the villagers themselves. Mitchell glared at the zombies before aiming his own M4A1 Grenadier at them.

"All Marines! You are weapons free on the shamblers! Shephard! Have your fireteam get that civilian out of here and escorted to safety! Ramirez! Secure that civilian ASAP!" The Sergeant order over the comms, earning the instantaneous response in the form of chattering gunfire. The two other fireteams opened up on the Ghouls, some of them instantly crumbling upon the kill hits, while Shephard's fireteam moved up towards the police officer. Ramirez rushed over towards the Police Officer who had fallen when she heard the gunfire. She glanced up to see the eerie green light of the gas masks' lenses with a set of eyes looking at her while a hand grabbed under her arm.

"Don't worry, ma'am. We're the rescue team. Are there any more survivors in the area?" Ramirez quickly questioned the woman while simultaneously beginning to pull her towards the treeline for better coverage. He held his M16A2 in his right hand while dragging her with his left. The woman, a rather voluptuous and buxom one if Ramirez was seeing things correctly through his gas mask, glanced up at him with a fearful expression on her face, often wincing when the bullets from the ghouls returning fire got close.

"No! There isn't anymore survivors! He-he killed them all and turned them into them!" She exclaimed in her English accented voice, earning a curse from the Lance Corporal. He quickly slung his rifle and swiftly picked up the police woman bridely style. He was on his feet, keeping her close to his chest since it was the most strongest area currently on his body to pierce with bullets. He quickly rushed back to the treeline, often taking rounds to the back of his vest much to his relief. After all, they were primarily 9mm rounds thanks to England's shitty gun laws and police force.

"Survivor is secured, sergeant!" The Lance Corporal called out on his comms once he was back with the fireteam. He crouched down behind the tree for cover for him and the police woman who practically wrapped both her arms and legs around his torso. As much as the Marine could enjoy this, he was currently in a combat zone against zombies and he had to assist his fellow Marines right now. Carefully pulling her off his chest and setting her down behind the tree, the Marine removed his rifle off his back and looked the police officer in the eyes. "Stay here for now! Once we take care of these shamblers, we'll be moving you to a safe zone for extraction!"

Ramirez rushed back next to a rock cropping which Corporal Shephard was using as a firing position from. Hitting the selective fire switch to semi-auto, the Lance Corporal popped up and began hitting targets in the head with his rifle. Most of the riflemen did the same, mostly to conserve ammo since the village had a rather large population and they were only limited on so much ammo.

Police Checkpoint

Few minutes prior to firefight in Cheddar

"What the bloody 'ell!?" Someone shouted loudly when an unknown aircraft suddenly zoomed barely above the treeline. Several people dived to the ground while a few ducked with their arms over their heads. The police, already shaken by both the events in Cheddar and now the unknown aircraft, slowly got back to their feet as two figures slowly walked over. One was an elderly looking man with a monocle and butler outfit while the other was a tan skinned, long blonde haired women with a pair of round glasses over her blue eyes and a trench over her torso as well. She had a cigar in her mouth as she glanced over at the main police inspector in charge who was now shouting again. "Seriously! What in the bloody hell was that thing?"

"That, Inspector, was an experimental American Vertical Take-Off and Landing aircraft made by Bell Boeing called the V-22 Osprey." The woman replied calmly, briefly taking her cigar out of her mouth to exhale a puff of smoke. "Now as to why it was flying away from the direction of the village is concerning. I don't recall any American bases at all in England that are still around. After all, the Cold War ended mere years ago."

"Perhaps there is a joint-training exercise between the US and our armed forces?" The butler suggested politely, which earned a negative response from the woman.

"No. It wouldn't be a field training operation. Or else the SAS or Army would also be here instead of it just being the police." The woman answered his suggestion, still thinking about the aircraft. The V-22 was rumored to be limited to the USMC, the USAF and the USN but there were no insignias visible on the aircraft when it flew by. It did have an odd desert camouflage paint scheme that people only managed to get a glimpse of from the visible lights on the ground. That ruled out test flight as well as training operation. This confirmed the woman's suspicions along with her concerns. "The Americans are getting involved in the Cheddar situation."

"Odd. Why would the Americans get themselves involved in English affairs? They normally tend to stay out of the supernatural affairs." The butler commented as the woman pulled out a blocky phone from her pocket. She quickly dialed a number on the phone and placed it against her ear. After hearing the dial tone once, the person on the other end answered it with an eerie voice to any normal person. "Yes, master? What is it you wish to call me about?"

"There has been a change in plans, Alucard. Apparently the American Military is getting involved with the situation at Cheddar. How far are you from the village?" The woman inquired with concealed urgency in her voice.

"Less than a few minutes. In fact, I can see some of the rooftops not too far from here, master. However, do you want me to eliminate both the original threats and the Americans?" Alucard asked with a hint of glee in his voice, probably desiring to take on some American soldiers if he was permitted. However, Sir Integra Hellsing would have none of it.

"No, Alucard. You will not harm the Americans at all. Last thing we need is to make enemies of the United States. If anything find out how why they are here and then take care of the situation in Che-" At that moment, gunfire echoed in both the distance and in the background of the phone call. The police and various inspectors glanced over in the direction of Cheddar where the fires were echoing from. By the sounds of the weaponry, Integra could tell that they were M16A2s, M249s, and M4A1s. This was the final nail to support her strong belief that an American unit was operating in Cheddar. "You better get there fast before those Americans get torn to pieces. They may be the strongest military in the world but I doubt they even can comprehend the threat that vampires impose on them."

"Very well, master. I shall see to it immediately. After all, it is a beautiful night out right now." Alucard acknowledged, hanging up the call and returned the phone into his coat pocket. He glanced up at the moonlight sky with a grin on his face before moving closer to the town of Cheddar. So far, he heard a mixture of American weaponry and the lighter weapons used by British Police forces which convinced him that the American unit was locked in a firefight with ghouls. Needless to say, he decided he wasn't gonna miss out on the fighting.

Cheddar

"Ha! These shamblers are a threat? I've seen rednecks more dangerous than these things!" Towers shouted loudly as he mowed down a few more of the Ghouls with his M249. Already less than five minutes into the firefight, the ghouls were starting to drop rapidly in numbers much to the relief and concern of Sergeant Mitchell. Honestly the village did have a large population but it appears the ones with guns were the only ones to show up so far. If so, then where were the shamblers without firearms at?

Within a few moments later, most of the fire had cease with the armed shamblers crumpled on the ground deceased permanently. The Marines slowly began to fan out, carefully checking for any corpses and shifting through the piles of dust here and there to make sure if the dead were truly dead now. So far, the ghouls they encountered were confirmed kills and numbered at least over 100 or so. It was a good thing that Ghouls only know how to use firearms and have zero experience in tactics or combat otherwise the squad could have been overrunned easily by that many armed shamblers.

"Sergeant. Area is secured. No sign of the priority target or any other shamblers in the AO." Corporal Michaels of Fireteam 2 told the Squad leader as his unit walked over with him. Meanwhile the squad's medic/corpsman, PFC Peterson, was examining the police woman's physical health and her eyes by Shephard's team to see how if she was injured or mentally troubled after the events that occurred. A few seconds later, Peterson turned off the slit lamp and returned it into his pouch of medical tools before slipping back on his gas mask.

"She's physically healthy, Sergeant. However, she is definitely having emotional trauma. I recommend we call in the evac bird and have her extracted to safety and a clinic." Peterson informed Mitchell, getting back to his feet and collecting his MP5 off of his pack. Mitchell thought for a moment over this. Currently they had no clue where the main target, the vampire that created this mess, was nor the location of the other shamblers that are left. However, he can confirm that none of the shamblers had any explosives or RPGs so it would be somewhat safe for the Osprey to arrive. Mitchell, after weighing his options carefully, decided to call it in. After all, it would be best to get the civilian to safety first before taking on the priority target to avoid any chance of the woman being used as a hostage by the vampire. Plus there is the off-chance they might get lucky and the Hellsing agent will take care of it for them.

"Goose 1, this is Alpha 1. I need a fast extraction for one civilian. Most of the more dangerous targets have been eliminated but priority target is still at large. Proceed to the LZ with caution." Mitchell ordered on his radio while Ramirez went over to check on the woman himself.

"Alpha 1, this is Goose 1. Solid copy on your last. ETA is five mikes out. Also be advised, Codename Dracula of the Hellsing Organization has entered the playing field. Command plans to meet with the leader themselves, but we do not want any encounters with the main weapon of Hellsing for fear of hostilities breaking out. Get your asses to the LZ, boys. And if you get a chance to take out the priority target, do so or else leave him for Drac. Goose 1 out." The response from the Osprey came in clearly, meaning that the mission parameters were changed right then and there.

"Hey, Police Woman? You have a name?" Ramirez questioned, earning a quick glance from the woman. A bit panicked, she quickly cleared her voice and answered with a slight stutter.

"It's Seras. Seras Victoria really." Ramirez repeated this name several times to himself to make sure he would remember it before placing both of one hand on each of her shoulders.

"Alright, Seras. Listen to me. We're gonna be moving in a few moments to a clearing where we will be expecting for an extraction to get you to safety. I need you to remain calm and listen to our orders. Can you do that for us, Seras?" Ramirez calmly inquired, earning a quick nod from the young woman. He grinned under his gas mask and got back to his feet. Shephard glanced over at the scene for a moment before turning to Mitchell who was beginning to speak.

"Alright, Marines. The mission has just changed. Command wants us to pull out of here before that Dracula himself arrives. So grab your kits and lets double time it to the LZ. Maybe if we're lucky, we'll get a chance to take out the priority target along the way." Mitchell announced, pointing the way towards the LZ. The Marines quickly regroups while Seras got to her feet as well. "Ramirez! You're pointman! Take us to the LZ! The rest of you! Squad wedge formation!"

"Fuck me..." The Lance Corporal muttered to himself before walking towards the front. Once the unit formation was complete, Ramirez led the way with the others in tow. Seras decided to stick with Fireteam 3 in order to feel somewhat safe in this part of the forest. Often each individual would glance around as they moved to ensure security of the entire unit. So far, they had yet to encounter any more opposition forces nor the priority target. This made the entire unit on edge since they have never really encountered a vampire before.

"Hold up." Ramirez spoke up, holding his fist up once more. Everyone took a knee while a Marine pulled Seras down to the ground quickly. They aimed their weapons around while Ramirez tried to listen carefully. "I think I hear something and see movement up ahead. About 500 meters in front of us."

Mitchell and everyone else glanced into the distance through their mask's NVGs to see glowing eyes and silhouettes looking back at them. One of the Marines, PFC Johnson, slung his M4A1 in exchange for an M40A1 on his back. He carefully adjusted the scope before staring down the sights to see clearly. He scanned the group in front of them, centering his attention on one man with priest clothing on. "Sir. I have eyes on priority target. Permission to engage?"

"Are you sure its the target?" Mitchell questioned, wanting to be sure that he wasn't seeing a Shambler instead of the target. Johnson took a quick glance at the target, revealing him to not be in a state of decay like the rest of the shamblers along with having an impatient look on his face. Obviously he was waiting for them to the point that he had his arms crossed and his foot tapping.

"Affirmative. He's wearing a priest outfit and isn't decayed. In fact, I think he's waiting for us to show up." The sniper replied, confirming his target.

"Copy that. If you have a clear shot, go ahead and take it. If you miss, then we're gonna have to engage at long range and keep him back from us." Mitchell answered, motioning for the Marines to ready their weapons. Johnson quickly adjusted his aim, accounting for both the distance and the bullet drop. He slowly began to pull the trigger when suddenly the vampire disappeared from his sights and he was slammed into a nearby tree from a blow to the chest. He hit the tree trunk with a sickening crack and fell to the dirt dead while all hell broke loose. The Marines began to fire at the vampire that just tossed one of their own aside like a ragdoll, shaken by his speed. Instantly the vampire was on them like a flea. One Marine, PFC Kowalski, had his left arm ripped off while LCPL Vernon was instantly killed with a near decapitation by the vampire. Fireteam 1 quickly began to move back with Fireteam 2 while Mitchell pushed Seras over towards them.

"SHIT! GOOSE ONE! WE NEED AN EVAC NOW! IT'S A DAMN AMBUSH! FIRETEAM 1 JUST GOT ANNIHILATED BY-ARGGHHH!" The Sergeant screamed in pain when his PCV failed on the second blow from the Vampire and the fist when through his chest and out his back. Meanwhile Fireteam 3's leader, Corporal Domingo, tried to carry Kowalski with him to follow the others but the vampire was upon them instantly. Kowalski was thrown far towards the ghouls who instantly tore the screaming Marine apparently while Domingo had his throat ripped out by the jaws of the horrible creature. The remaining two fireteams began falling back, firing at both the Vampire and ghouls who began to pursue them.

"Holy crap! That thing just tore up Fireteam 3 and the Sergeant within seconds! The hell we gonna do now?" A member from Fireteam 2, PFC Sanchez, cried out right before he was dragged off by the vampire screaming. Peterson tried to go back for him but Michaels and the remaining member of Fireteam 2, LCPL Stevens, had other plans for him.

"Peterson! Stick with Shephard's team! We will stall them for now! Move it!" The Corporal ordered while him and Stevens began firing at the storming group of ghouls and the lone vampire. The medic reluctantly complied, hearing the gunfire and explosions from the M203 start to fade away before being replaced by the screaming of both Marines. The remaining five Marines and the police woman eventually reached another clearing which unfortunately ended being a dead end with a small cliff face. Towers shifted his aim at the soon-to-be arriving shamblers and vampire with Jackson and Peterson next to him while Shephard and Ramirez looked for a way out.

"Goddammit! This is fucking bullshit! We fought 100 plus ghouls and nearly escaped only for this goddamn horse shit to happen!" Ramirez shouted behind his mask, glancing at the cliff face for any way up. Shephard glanced back around and motioned for the police woman to come over. Seras rushed over where Adrian was only to get a pointed finger in her face.

"Stick with Ramirez for now. We'll be trying to hold off the shamblers and vamp." He told her calmly in hopes of avoiding further panic. She nodded her head and was surprised when Adrian handed her a Desert Eagle pistol he pulled from his holster on his thigh. "Here's something that will work against those shamblers and the vamp. Aim for the head, the heart or the crotch if all else fails. They have at least one of those things at least."

Seras examined the pistol before holding it in her hand firmly. She went over to Ramirez who was attempting to find some sort of gripping on the cliff face to climb out. So far he was only getting loose footholds and dirt all over him. At least he didn't get any in his face thanks to his gas mask. Adrian had the him and the other three Marines spread out in a spaced out line, aiming their weapons at the incoming ghouls. The defensive line was about 20 meters away from the cliff face, almost practically up against the wall at this rate.

Towers readied his M249 while the others steadied their assault rifles for the incoming horde. They watched as the horde of shamblers slowly approached. However, the ghouls had some new followers with them and they knew them. Among the shamblers were nearly all of Fireteam 2 and all of 3 with Mitchell among them. They had their M4A1s and M16A2s on them and were just shambling towards the group. A total of eight Marines were now pretty much ghouls thanks to the damn vampire and the survivors would probably join them soon.

Suddenly the ghouls all stopped while at the same time, Shephard heard a scream of pain from Ramirez behind him followed by a new voice. "None of you will move unless you want the girl here to lose her head."

Peterson slowly glanced to his rear left to see the vampire holding Seras hostage with his sharp fingers pressed against her neck threateningly. Nearby about a few meters away from them against the cliff wall, he could see Ramirez propped up against the wall with his left leg clearly broken from whatever the vampire priest did to the Marine. Judging by the slowly bobbing of his head and the fact both of his hands were gripping his leg meant that Ramirez was alive at the moment.

Shephard himself had turned around and slowly stood up, glaring at the vampire behind his gas mask. The vampire tightened his grip on the woman while giving him a snarl. He examined the man closely, instantly taking note of the US flag on the man's right shirt sleeve. "Americans? Why the hell did you American soldiers come all the way here to die?"

"It's Marines, jackass." Towers said out of instinct, much to the cringe of Peterson and Shephard. Needless to say, the vampire didn't really care for the insult or even paid any attention to it. He examined the man further for answers until he noticed a patch on his left sleeve. The patch was a black shield with a grey outline on the outer rim. There were three diagonal lines running across which were red, white and blue from top to bottom. In the center of the patch in yellow letters were the letters 'HECU'.

"HECU? What are you? Some sort of Marine Special Operations unit?" The vampire inquired, unsure what his prey was. Adrian, figuring he could stall for time, decided to answer the question in hopes the vampire would inquire more and lose track of time.

"Something like that. Hazardous Environment Combat Unit. Pretty much trained to fight in unusual situations along with hazardous combat areas." Adrian answered, noticing that Ramirez had fallen over on his right side at the moment, gripping his left leg with his left hand while the right was stuck underneath his right side. He let out a groan of pain which caused the vampire turn his head towards him.

"Shut up, food! Your pain will be over soon." He turned his head back over to the remaining Marines with a sickening grin on his face. Instantly the Marines heard the cocking of weaponry as their former HECU squadmates now aimed their weapons at the living. "As for you, I'm afraid I don't have time for pleasantries for now. Don't worry. You will join your fellow Marines soon enough."

"Fuck it! We're gonna kick your ass once this is over!" Jackson shouted as him and Towers opened fire on the ghouls. Adrian dived down once the ghouls fired at them. The vampire moved over toward Ramirez with Seras in his grasp. Adrian felt almost hopeless until he remembered something important involving how Ramirez was laying down on one side. The vampire reached Ramirez and roughly placed Seras against the ground, pinning her with one hand. He reached over with his fear hand and slowly pulled Ramirez over by his vest's collar.

"Don't worry. Your blood will be particularly tasty since I can smell the virgin blood em-AGGROH" Instead of finishing his sentence, the vampire got a barrel of a Desert Eagle into his mouth with Ramirez glaring at him. No words were needed when Ramirez swiftly pulled the trigger rapidly. The back of the vampire's neck and head exploded in a mess of gore from the .357 magnum rounds the Desert Eagle chambered. The creature let go of both him and Seras and stumbled back while gurgling his own blood in his throat.

Ramirez, however, wouldn't give him a break as he fired the rest of the magazine in his head and place one in his chest. He heard his firearm clicked and quickly reached over to grab his M16A2 laying nearby. He felt a sharp pain up his left leg when he rolled to reach it but brushed it aside as he reclaimed his primary weapon. He aimed back up at the vampire and proceeded to fire away into the creature's chest. "Dammit, Shephard! Use that damn thing before this fucker tries to eat me again!"

Shephard, knowing what Ramirez was referring to, reached into his rigging on his vest to pull out a wooden stake of all things. He watched as Ramirez managed to hit the vampire's heart full on but the thing was still squirming when it fell back, almost possibly regenerating itself. In a quick dash of speed, Shephard practically dived down on the damned monster and drove the stake straight through its heart.

Instantly the beast let out a dying shriek before finally crumbling into a pile of dust. Nearby, all the ghouls suddenly did the same, all collapsing into their own piles of dust. Only thing that didn't turn into dust was the vests, gas masks, and PASGT helmets of the ghoulified HECU Marines and their weapons. Ramirez, after witnessing an end to all this chaos, let out a pained sigh of relief and let his weapon down on the grass. "Oh thank god. That was way too close. Nice one, Shephard. Nice one."

Peterson rushed over and examined the man's leg while Seras slowly got to her feet, her ears slightly ringing from the Desert Eagle going off right near her face. Peterson quickly rolled up the pant leg and rolled it back down. "Damn. Glad your arms didn't get broken from that hit, Ramirez. Else you would have his meal. Well I think the leg might be a clean break if you're lucky. Either way, you ain't walking for a while."

"Okay, Peterson. Just help me up and let's try to find a way back home." Ramirez replied as Peterson lifted him up to support him on his right side while Jackson walked over to support him on his left. Towers glanced over at the area one more time, noting that a glare was starting to mess with his optics. He switched off his NVGs, seeing that it was dawn with the sun slowly starting rise. He took off his helmet off along with gas mask for now, allowing himself to get a breath of air without wearing the mask. His shaven head was hidden underneath a sweat covered durag while his face was that of a strong African-American man.

"Hey, Shephard. What happens now?" Towers questioned, glancing into the direction of the twilight. The Corporal pulled off his own mask, revealing his own chiseled face with his brown hair and brown eyes underneath the helmet. He took a few deep breaths as well, trying to think about what to do now. He let out his own sigh of exhaustion or frustration and sat down on a rock with his hands holding up his head.

"Honestly, I don't know. Goose 1 had orders to fly off if they lost contact with Mitchell so extraction is out of question. I haven't seen any sign of Drac anywhere so I don't know if we should try and make contact with Hellsing or not. Ramirez has a broken leg so we can't really run much. Also do we really want people to know that the Americans were involved here without any warning from the government or even possible permission?" Towers winced at this last part, knowing what the implications could mean.

"Yeah. Guess that does sound like a political mess indeed. Though I really don't know if I should care or not about Clinton after the whole Monica Lewinsky ordeal." Towers added this last part to himself, not really sure what to make of that topic. Shephard shook his head at this, noting that Seras was helping Ramirez instead of Peterson who was using the chance to collect the tags of their eight dead squadmates. Jackson had his own mask pulled down, revealing a slight stubble which was growing on his face. Meanwhile, Ramirez had his own mask ripped off to show off his youthful face and sharp features like his piercing brown eyes. The Lance Corporal had a light sweat drenched across his forehead from the events of the fighting which everyone had at this point.

The Corporal thought to himself for a few moments, determining the best course of action for now. At this point, the only choice they had was walking towards the police checkpoint outside of town and bullshitting their way out of this mess. There was always the excuse of saying they were doing a field training exercise when they happened to encounter the area. Shephard pulled his mask back on and lifted up his M4A1 Grenadier. "Come on, guys. We still have one remaining objective left."

"You serious, Shephard? You still want to wrap this up right now even though Mitchell is dead?" Jackson questioned, unsure at this point whether to agree or not. Shephard nodded his head and adjusted his helmet on his head.

"At this point, Hellsing is our only option. If intelligence is correct about her responding on scene with the police, then the leadership will present there. Command wanted us to make contact with the Hellsing Organization for a possible joint-partnership so let's get this done. If not, at least we can ask them for a ride home." Adrian replied, motioning for them to follow. Jackson thought for a moment and simply shrugged.

"Alright then. Peterson. You got all the tags right?" Jackson asked, earning a thumbs up from the medic. Peterson placed all eight dog tags into his medical bag as he walked over with his MP5 in hand. Towers got to his feet after hooking up his helmet and gas mask to his pack. He heft up his M249 and took point while everyone else followed. They slowly trudged their way over towards the direction of the police checkpoint. Unaware to the group, the Hellsing's Vampire known as Alucard watched them leave before calling his own master.

Police Checkpoint

A few minutes later...

"Alucard. You mean to tell me that only 13 men took on a Vampire with an entire army of ghouls at its disposal and managed to defeat it, which you claim to have not interfered with, while losing eight of their own, another one wounded and a lone survivor from the police force?" Integra questioned, unsure if she was hearing this correctly or not. While she was not surprised that they would have lost a lot of men against a vampire, it was the amount of men that even responded to such a scene and still managed to defeat it. Normally if Alucard was busy or if there were more ghouls than usual, she would have to send at least a full platoon just to handle the ordeal along with a few casualties at the cost of a successful mission. However sending a lone squad would be suicide.

"I assure you, master. I was intrigued by them myself. However I will confess that I didn't think they were normal soldiers after seeing one of them having to take two blows to the chest for him to be killed by that garbage excuse of a vampire." Alucard replied, slowly following the group from a distance as they started getting closer to the police checkpoint. "I suspect it might have to do with their strange vests. They look like steel black plates that cover their torso area completely. I can find a working vest off one of the dead Americans for Walter to examine if you want."

"First tell me where they are right now and then go see if you can find one that's in one whole piece. Then come back here at once." Integra ordered, walking out of the police tent for a moment to glance outside. Several police officers were gawking and pointing at something to her right. Upon looking in the direction, she noticed six figures approaching the checkpoint. Two of the figures were holding a third person while the other three were around them with weapons held at ease.

The lead figure in the front was wearing a military uniform with a black vest, green harness and helmet with a gas mask underneath with green lenses of all things. He held an American made M4A1 with an M203 underbarrel grenade launcher in his hands as him and the other five new arrivals got closer. Some of them were covered in blood while the one being carried had his left leg broken by the way it dragged.

The group slowly walked over with the police backing up while having their own weapons ready just in case. The man in the gas mask walked over to where Integra was before reaching up with one of his hands to pull his gas mask off. Once the mask was out of the way, he extended his hand towards her for a handshake before speaking. "Sir Integra Hellsing I presume? I'm Corporal Adrian Shephard of the US Marines. I was hoping we could have a moment of your time and also a lift to either home or a trip to the medbay."