Chapter 1 IMPRISONED

Integra Hellsing shivered. She was cold, hungry and tied up. Integra struggled against her bonds but with little luck. The gag on her mouth was also much too tight for her to shrug off.

As her eyes adjusted slowly to her dark prison, she looked about desperately for cracks or weakness in the coffin. Unfortunately, this was to no avail. She was trapped in Alucard's coffin with no hope of escape until someone chanced upon her.

"How ironic that when I asked Walter to order the coffins, I told him to get an extra sturdy one for Alucard," she cried inwardly in frustration.

Voices and footsteps alerted her to the fact that someone had entered the room.

"Lord Alucard. I have not heard from Sir Integra for the last two days. It is unlike her to simply disappear without leaving instructions as to her whereabouts."

"I have told you already. I was on my way to her chambers to discuss certain matters two nights ago when I saw her leaving with two of the Queen's men. They were in a great hurry. I offered to accompany her but she refused me on the basis that her meeting was top secret. Her express instructions were that she should not be disturbed until she returned. She has taken Pip with her and is in no danger."

"Certain matters?" the older man quizzed.

"Personal matters, Walter."

Integra was furious. The nerve of the vampire! How dare he kidnap her from her own bed two nights ago and make up this ridiculous tale as to her whereabouts? Somehow, she had to let Walter know where she was.

Kicking desperately against the coffin, Integra tried to make as much noise as she could to alert her faithful butler as to her predicament. Unfortunately, Alucard appeared to have anticipated this and the thick lining of cloth padded around the coffin prevented her from making as much noise as she had hoped to.

"Lord Alucard ... is there something or someone in your coffin?"

"Yes Walter," replied Alucard grinning mischievously. "Seras is in there. I do not have to report to you, our after-office activities, do I?"

"No. Not at all," Walter replied uncomfortably. "Look Alucard, Seras is your charge but do not go too far. She is a member of the Hellsing organization afterall."

"As you have mentioned, the training of my subordinate is out of your jurisdiction, Walter. Now if you will excuse me, I do believe you have other matters to attend to?"

Integra panicked as faltering footsteps indicated that Walter was leaving the dungeon. If only the butler had insisted on examining the contents of the coffin.

The few minutes that passed thereafter seemed an eternity to her. Lifting the heavy cover of the coffin, Alucard peered in amusedly at an extremely enraged but helpless Integra.

"Now, now, Lord Hellsing, I must ask you to be more gentle on my sleeping quarters."

Integra glared at Alucard. Her expression was one of a mixture of loathing and anger.

"There, there, my pet. No one knows where you are. Walter is unlikely to call the Queen within the next few nights and will so remain unaware that Seras and Pip are out on a wild goose chase. If you must know, they seek an alleged freak chip factory in Hong Kong, which unfortunately, does not exist outside my imagination."

"Curse you Alucard," screamed Integra silently in her mind.

"Words, words, master," mocked the vampire. "By the time Walter realizes that 'your' meeting with the Queen's men never took place, it will be too late for him to do anything about it."

"What diabolical plans do you have for me? Normal people derive no pleasure from kidnapping women from their beds in the dead of the night. Reverting to your nasty habits, nosferatu?"

Alucard said nothing but merely smiled as he stroked her creased brow.

"If you are a man, let us settle this by guns. I would rather be killed than humiliated by the likes of you."

"But I am not a man," he reminded her playfully. "And killing you is hardly my intention, dear pet. Hush now, the moon is rising. It is a beautiful night is it not?"

Without warning, she felt his fingers press onto the back of her neck. Against her will, her muscles relaxed; she was losing consciousness rapidly. Laughing cruelly, Alucard lifted her limp body. The smirk on his face was the last thing she saw before she blacked out.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Chapter 2 A NIGHTMARE

Walter looked in surprise at the forbidding castle before him. The plants around the castle were dried and shrivelled. The air was bitterly cold but Walter was sure that the temperature was not the reason for his unease; it was the overbearing stench of death and decay in the air that unsettled him.

He watched cautiously as the heavy doors in front of him slowly creaked opened. A hooded figure behind the doors gestured for him to enter. Grimly, the butler made a final check on his trusty garrotes.

"I don't know who you are or what you want with us. However, if you do not return Sir Integra unharmed, I will personally see to it that you regret this with every inch of your life - or lack of," swore Walter under his breath.

The castle's dim walkways seemed endless. Walter struggled to keep up with the hooded figure as it floated ahead of him with ease. "I am not as young as I used to be," lamented the butler mentally, trying to catch his breath. Finally, the figure stopped before a heavy iron door. Walter had seen many horrific sights in his time as an active agent for the Hellsing family but this did not alleviate the horror that threatened to overwhelm him as the figure took hold of the doorknob. For where a human hand should have been, there was a rotting claw like appendage. Walter could not help but stare at the hand, which was covered with scales and festering with rot, as it turned the knob slowly.

"The one you seek is inside," hissed the hooded figure, throwing aside the heavy door. As swiftly as it had arrived, the figure disappeared, almost as if it had melted into the shadows.

Trembling in spite of himself, Walter stepped through the doorway. The ringing clang of the door as it shut behind him did little to comfort him. "I have to find her and kill whoever is responsible for this," muttered the butler under his breath.

"Finally, our guest is here. Let the merrymaking commence," cried out a man in the darkness, moments before the room exploded with light.

Squinting his eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness, Walter looked around the huge hall in amazement even as he struggled to take in the grandeur before him. He had not expected to find such a well-preserved room in this derelict castle. The room he was in was huge, its height and length each at least 300 feet or more. Proud and colorful banners hung from towering columns. Imposing stained glass windows adorned both sides of the hall and soft blue light streamed in through the top of them. Stories of battles appeared to be the predominant theme of their intricate designs. Turning his eyes away from the ceiling, Walter surveyed the thousands of candles that lit the great hall. Extending from where he stood and to the other end of the hall was a long oaken table, around which hundreds of men and women were congregated. The people appeared to be in jovial spirits as they participated in what Walter supposed was a feast.

Walter could not help but stare. All the people were dressed in the most magnificent and rich clothes. Many were adorned with ornate jewelry; some of them even had crowns. Laid out on the table were golden dishes on which mountains of the most delicious looking food was placed. The people were noble and beautiful in appearance and they chatted happily among themselves; no one seemed to notice Walter or pay him any attention as he walked towards the table.

All of a sudden, without warning, a hush fell over the room. The figures stood deathly still as if they had always been wax figurines instead of the living people they were. Even the air in the room, which had been warm and comfortable a moment before, had become cold and stagnant. For a moment, Walter stood perfectly still, not knowing what to expect from this strange turn of events.

And then he heard it. Cutting through the deafening silence was a giggle, a woman's giggle to be precise. It sounded as if as someone at the other end of the great hall had escaped the strange spell too. Cautiously, Walter made his way towards the far end of the hall. As he walked past the frozen figures, he noticed that the faces of the men and women at the feast were beginning to look less refined than the earlier people he had observed. Although dressed in finer clothes, hooked noses and feral eyes replaced the noble handsome features of the earlier revellers. When he had gone a little further, he found hunched beings that looked even less human than the ones before. While the people positioned nearer the other end of the hall (the end from which Walter had entered the room) looked carefree and happy, the faces that he now met looked cruel and haughty: this was about the middle of the room. A little further on, the faces of the revellers looked even less human and more cruel and dreadful. Their clothes were even more magnificent than those he had seen in the middle of the room and their jewels more beautiful. Yet, they were hunched with almost demonic features; some of them even had dried scaly skin more akin to a snake's. Walter shuddered as he caught sight of an old wizened man - his scaly claw was clasped firmly around a jeweled goblet as he toasted (or was in the middle of toasting) a hag with three eyes. Although he had long prided himself for his nerves of steel, Walter was painfully aware that an overwhelming sense of fear and panic was threatening to consume him.

"What is this place?" wondered Walter in morbid curiosity as he walked along until he came to a huge and richly upholstered chair at the very end of the table. As the chair was turned, Walter could not see who was sitting in the chair. He was, however, sure that the earlier male and female voices had come from this end of the hall.

"Welcome Walter Kum Dorne, my old friend," the male voice spoke again, this time from behind the rich upholstered chair. Walter supposed that it belonged to the host of this macabre feast.

"Who are you? Why do you call me 'old friend'? Do I know you? Turn around so I can see your face," said Walter, holding up his garrotes as bravely as he could.

Slowly, a man arose. As he turned to face the butler, Walter recognized his host.

"Lord Alucard, you scared me ... what are you doing here?"

"Shh, old man, not so loud, you will scare my love," said Alucard, putting a finger on his lips before returning his attention to the bundle in his arms. It appeared to be a person wrapped in nothing but a huge white cloth that covered his (or possibly her) face and most of his body. Alucard smiled mysteriously as he kissed his fretting charge gently.

At Alucard's "ministrations", the figure giggled - a woman's giggle. Walter froze as he realized the familiarity of the woman's voice. Slowly and deliberately, Alucard placed the woman on her feet. Removing her hood, he ran his fingers through her long icy blonde locks. The look on the vampire's face was one of pride and possessiveness. Walter could only watch in horror as the woman he had once known to be Sir Integra, lifted her head and snarled at him, revealing a pair of fearsome fangs.

"Hush now my pet, I know you must eat." laughed Alucard as he coaxed her comfortingly. "Now, now, Walter, where are your manners? Your lady is hungry so we must get her something to eat."

As he looked Walter in the eye, Alucard smirked, "Cat got your tongue, Kum Dorne?"

Walter seethed in anger – both at Alucard and at himself for having allowed this to happen. "We should never have trusted you. I myself should have killed you a long time ago."

"And she would have died that night her uncle found her in the basement," Alucard retorted. The tone in his voice was one of amusement. "But this is the way the wheels of fate turn and instead, I have myself a pretty pet." Alucard smiled as he placed an arm around Integra's waist possessively, pulling her into an embrace.

"The lady must feed. Bring in the feast."

Integra purred in contentment at Alucard's touch but watched intently as two hooded men entered, bringing in a young woman. The young woman appeared no older than Integra's twenty-three and was trembling like a child as she was roughly escorted to the table. Walter shuddered to think what lay underneath those hoods.

"Ah, thank you my faithful servants. My pet, your dinner has arrived. Does it not please you?" laughed Alucard, combing his fingers through her hair once more. Integra said nothing but licked her lips excitedly as the woman began sobbing.

"Sir Integra, nooo ..." screamed Walter as he watched Integra shrug off both the cloth draped around her body and Alucard to approach the terrified woman. Even as an undead, it was no denying that she was a graceful woman. As disgusted as he was by the sight, Walter could not tear his eyes away from his mistress as she masterfully latched her fangs into her petrified prey's throat.

The few minutes seemed an eternity to him as he helplessly watched her drink, transfixed in horror. The woman struggled briefly before slumping lifelessly at Integra's feet. To his horror, Integra merely giggled, apparently drunk with bloodlust as she knelt down to continue her drink.

"Monster, what have you done to her?" yelled Walter, horrified at the spectacle he had just witnessed.

"Nothing much, I have merely given her a new life." Alucard smirked, walking over to Integra. Coaxing Integra from the almost bloodless body, he lifted her once again proudly in his arms. Although initially reluctant to leave her kill, she on her part did not protest. Instead, she obediently placed her arms around his neck as she engaged him in a lustful kiss.

"What in the world have you done, you fiend? How dare you taint one as noble as her? Sir Integra, stop this madness!"

To Walter's shock, Integra paid him no heed. Even as she continued kissing Alucard, she began slowly undoing the buttons on his shirt. "Integra love," the butler cried, stricken in disbelief at the sight, "I beseech you, come to your senses!"

Alucard looked up, his eyes betraying his amusement. Breaking the embrace of their lips, a sly smile crossed his own. "Taint her? I have merely cleansed her of her filthy humanity. A human with such power and beauty is a rare find. Would you rather see her waste away as a mortal? Look 'god of death', isn't she more beautiful than ever? I will make her powerful, second to none other than myself. We will drink until we are filled and until everyone lies dead at her feet. We will live forever, gods until the end of time - me and my dark shiva."

"You are nothing more than a filthy demon."

"And yet she begged me for it. Imagine, your proud Hellsing going down on her knees, begging me to take her."

"Liar."

"Shall we show him how it was after your rebirth my lovely? Shall we?" mocked Alucard.

Placing a giggly Integra on the table, Alucard laughed cruelly at the shocked expression on Walter's face as he proceeded to remove his remaining clothes.

"What are you ...?"

"I am merely showing you how she wanted me, how she begged me. You have no idea what a lustful whore you have been serving for years Walter."

"Shut up. Do not speak of Sir Integra in this manner demon."

"I see your temper has not been diminished over the years 'god of death'. But you are too late. Or perhaps you had wished for her to behave like this with you old man, while she was still human? Hear how my pretty moans."

"Stop it. Stop it or I'll ..."

"You'll what?"

Walter clenched his eyes in both defeat and disgust, trying to drown out the images of what had just unfolded before him, ignoring the sounds of their wanton love making, no ... this could not be real, had he really failed to protect her?

Was this just a bad dream or a hellish nightmare come true?

----------

Walter awoke abruptly, drenched in fear. Wiping his sweaty brow, the butler all but ran to the telephone, almost tearing off the receiver in his anxiety.

"Hello? This is Walter Kum Dorne. Yes that's right, I'm calling from the Hellsing organization. I know it's three in the morning but this concerns a matter of grave importance. I need to speak to her Majesty's office on urgent business, now."

Walter clenched his teeth in anxiety. "Please let her be there," he muttered under his breath. "Please let it just be a nightmare, the ramblings of an old man's confused mind, and no more."

He bit his lip as he finally heard a voice on the other end. "Yes ... yes, about that meeting three days ago ... what, she never turned up? I ... I understand." Walter replaced the receiver, ashen faced. "I'm going to kill him, the bloody Judas."

----------

Somewhere, in a train compartment, Integra slumbered uneasily, too weak to fight back or to escape. The vampire in whose lap she slept smiled possessively while he stroked her head gently. "I think the old man finally suspects," he said as he chuckled to himself, "Sometimes you humans are more astute than you give yourselves credit for but it is much too late now. Sleep tight, my master, sweet dreams my pet."

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Chapter 3 DECIDING LOYALTIES

Walter sat worriedly in his chair. This was a scandal that could potentially cripple the Hellsing family's credibility – Lord Hellsing, stolen from her own manor. The present Sir Integra and the Hellsing family had their share of political enemies, people who were more than ready and willing to see to their downfall as soon as handed the opportunity. If not handled correctly, this embarrassment could present his mistress's enemies ammunition to attack her credibility as heir of the Hellsing family and head of the Protestant Knights of England.

And yet here he was, with no clue or inkling as to her whereabouts. All that he knew was Alucard had told him a deliberate lie with regard to Integra's meeting with the Queen. The wildcard had turned against its master and he had no idea where the vampire had taken her. Could he risk seeking help from the other knights, people he did not trust?

The telephone rang, distracting the faithful butler from his inner turmoil. Walter picked up the phone hesitatingly.

"Hello?"

"Hello? Walter is that you? May I speak to Sir Integra? The freak factory we were sent to investigate in Hong Kong does not seem exist. Lord Alucard told Seras and me that we would find it here within the SAR but we've not had any luck so far."

"Pip is that you?"

"Yes. Walter, what's wrong?"

"Plenty. I need you to come back to England immediately, and bring Seras with you. It's a blood AB situation."

----------

"Well, what did he say?" Seras asked her companion curiously. "Is the information given by master correct?"

Pip answered edgily, "The mission is off. We need to get back to London immediately."

"What?"

"It's a blood AB situation."

The color on Seras's face drained at the mention of the term. Pip muttered nervously, "I'm afraid so; something's happened to Sir Integra."

----------

Walter eyed Pip nervously. "Are you sure about this? Can she be trusted?"

"Walter, you never had problems with her loyalties before," replied Pip. "Don't tell me you suspect that she will betray Sir Integra?"

"Yes but that was when we were fighting the freaks. We're fighting Alucard now, her master. Whose side do you think she'll be on?" questioned the butler aridly.

"I trust Seras to do the correct thing."

"The concept of the 'correct thing to do' is a subjective one, Pip."

"What chance do we have without her?" pointed out Pip. "Alucard has left no clues as to where he has gone with Sir Integra, if he has indeed taken her as you say. Walter as you have pointed out, we cannot allow anyone outside this room to know that she is missing. I know you are upset but calm yourself. I may not have been with the Hellsing family that long but I know it's unlike you to act so irrationally."

"Pip, Integra is missing. Stolen from right under my nose! How do you expect me to remain calm?"

"Will you get a hold of yourself? The last thing we need now is for you to go into pieces."

"Damn it all, Pip. I ..."

A small knock on the door was heard as Seras peeked shyly into the library. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop but since you're talking about me, do you mind if I join in instead of just hearing it in the basement?"

Pip whistled in amazement. "That's one hell of a hearing system you've got there Vicky."

"Vicky?" asked Walter, one eyebrow raised.

"I do believe Victoria is my name," said Seras pinking for a moment. "Anyway, if you would rather I go ..."

"No, come in Lady Seras. I doubt making you go back to the basement is going to make a difference to anything."

Seras flushed a little. The cold tone in Walter's voice was discomforting.

"But master would never ..."

"Lady Seras, I do not wish to cast any aspersions on your judgment of character but do not romanticize Alucard - he is not, by any stretch of the word, a good man," spat Walter bitterly. "I understand that he is, as far as vampires are concerned, your father but do you know what he was like before the Hellsings subdued him?"

Seras shook her head. There were so many things she did not know about Alucard. Yet, she did not think that Alucard would mean Integra any harm. Even when she had her childish crush on him, she was all too aware of the affection her master harbored secretly for Sir Integra despite his delight in needling her.

"It may interest you to know that Alucard was," continued Walter, this time in a tone less accusing (and a little more like the polite and gentle Walter she was used to), "once known as Prince Vlad the Impaler."

"Dracula," echoed Pip stunned. "You mean he ... Alucard is ... this is amazing."

"The legends, though now somewhat exaggerated, carry the hint of truth in them. Alucard is the infamous Dracula, whose merciless tyranny is well documented. He attempted to take over London, the only stumbling block in his way was a proud noble man named Van Helsing. Lord Van Helsing's struggles were bitter and costly. Dracula did not submit to Sir Integra's great grandfather easily. It was truly a hard battle before Lord Van Helsing and his friends could finally tame Dracula, one that came at the cost of much blood."

Seras nodded mutely.

"Do you? Do you seriously know what your dear master was like?"

"Walter, you're being too harsh on Vicky here," defended Pip.

Walter paused, guiltily aware of Seras' growing unease. "I'm sorry my lady but you must understand my concerns as to your divided loyalties in this matter."

"I understand Walter. No offence taken. However, your premonition of him taking her by force was just a dream, was it not? There is no evidence that ..."

Walter's face was grim. "I do not wish to doubt Alucard without adequate proof too Lady Seras, but as you must no doubt concede, the recent events have affected his credibility. Lady Seras. I understand from Pip that Alucard was the one who had tipped you two off on the freak factory in Hong Kong. Prior to that, has anything unusual taken place, in particular anything that would involve Sir Integra or Alucard?"

Seras paused. She bit her lip nervously before she continued, "Walter, do not jump into conclusions but something has indeed been bothering me before I left for the mission."

"And do you think it could it have had something to do with Sir Integra's disappearance?" asked Pip.

"Kidnap," Walter corrected Pip.

"We still don't know at this point whether it is kidnap or ..." Seras retorted.

Stares were exchanged frantically between the three.

"And what do you call taking a woman from her bed in the middle of the night?"

"Seduction?" offered Pip, trying to inject some humour into the tense situation.

"Shut up!" yelled both Seras and Walter.

"Look, I'm sorry Walter," Seras continued, "but it was only a nightmare. You don't know if it was a kidnap or whether they left together and she willingly."

"But why else would Alucard lie to me? He told me that Pip had accompanied Sir Integra to meet the Queen. As it turns out, the Queen never got to see Sir Integra. Neither was Pip with her as he has evidently, been hunting down a red herring in Hong Kong with you."

"That's true," added Pip. "Alucard was the one who had tipped us off on the freak chip factory."

Seras glared at Pip. "You're not helping matters."

"Lady Seras, you were saying ..." prompted Walter.

"Oh yes. Well, as you know, I have not really been eating well since my ... uhm ... changing," stammered Seras haltingly. Seras' vampirism was always an awkward topic for her. "The night before we left for Hong Kong, I was struggling to eat normally again, you know, food rather than my assigned blood rations. I'm afraid I threw up most of what I had stuffed down really. Just as I had finished retching, I looked up to see a rather displeased Sir Integra standing behind me."

"And?" asked Walter curiously.

"She made a comment about my stubbornness and how foolish I could be, traits which she attributed to master. She then cut her finger with a knife she was carrying before holding out it out to me. I didn't want to take it at first but the hunger was too great and the smell of her blood in such close proximity was driving me crazy. Without realizing what I was doing, I had licked the warm liquid off her fingers."

"Yes. The blood of a Hellsing will revive a vampire close to death but what is so odd about that? Sir Integra may appear cold but she is not unfeeling and it was an open secret that you were starving yourself to death by refusing to touch your blood rations."

"I understand and I am grateful to my lady. The only thing that comes across as strange to me was what she said to me after that."

"Which was?"

"She mentioned that it was the second glove she had slit in 2 days."

"That seems to imply that she must have done something like that the day before. What does this mean?" asked Pip.

"She also said something else. Something about her bloodline thinning, I think. Her exact words were 'I didn't think I would have to feed you again so quickly; oh well, the Hellsing blood must really be thinning in me.' I thought it odd although I didn't make much of it then."

"I am afraid it makes perfect sense to me. Sir Integra must have fed a vampire the day before," pointed out Walter slowly, "A vampire she had obviously mistaken for you."

"And this means?" asked Pip uneasily.

"Alucard is bound to the Hellsings for as long as their line exists. He can only be freed on the extinction of van Helsing's bloodline or ..."

Seras gulped uneasily.

"Or?" prompted Pip.

"Or if a Hellsing offers blood of his or her own free will to him, without condition, without renewing the seals that bind him to them."

"And if it wasn't Seras that earlier night but ..." echoed Pip nervously.

"He would be free."

"But why would master do that?" Seras felt a sick thump in her stomach. As much as she hated to admit it, Walter's deductions made perfect sense.

"Don't you see? Without Sir Integra's control, he would be free to do as he pleases. Free to destroy the family that has held him captive for a century. Free once more to wreak havoc and bloodshed as it is his nature to do so."

"But even if he craved to be free, he wouldn't harm her. He has saved Sir Integra's life on more than one occasion when he could have killed her or left her to die," Pip pointed out quickly. "Unless he was afraid that there would be more Hellsings other than Sir Integra."

"No. She is the last of her line at the moment and he knows that. Alucard's motives in this matter are a mystery to me. There are times when I genuinely thought he cared for her, or as much as he could for anyone other than himself."

Seras said nothing. Her thoughts were on an incident two months back: Integra had been down with a serious case of pneumonia following completion of a mission that had the whole Hellsing organization camping in the rain for a week. The doctor insisted that Integra be kept in bed and away from her work for at least a month. When he could not be swayed, pointing out the seriousness of her condition, Sir Integra tried to make light of the matter by declaring jokingly that other than death, only the good doctor could keep her away from her work.

Seras had expressed concerned for Integra's health (whom she had come to respect and like) on hearing the doctor's comments and Alucard had dismissed her as being "weak and human". He mocked her mercilessly then for "being bogged down by petty human emotions and the like". He, however, obviously did not realize that Seras was all too aware of the fact that he spent all his nights that month keeping vigil by Integra's bed, after Walter had retired for the night.

There was no mistake; Integra was someone special to Alucard.

Walter turned grimly to Seras, his commanding tone breaking her reflections. "Lady Seras. I will not force you to act if you are so unwilling. You have sworn allegiance to the Hellsings yet I will not bind you to that promise if you are unwilling to keep it. I cannot however, promise that I will not fight you if the need arises. Declare your loyalties now - if it is Alucard who has kidnapped Sir Integra, whose side will you be on?"

Seras paused for a moment before replying calmly, "I did not forget my promise to protect the Hellsings, England and all its children. Alucard as you say, is my sire. However, if he has betrayed Sir Integra, I will fight him to the death. But until I myself see proof of his treachery, he is innocent in my eyes."

"Yes, even to the undead, the rules of natural justice must apply," added Pip, nodding solemnly. "I'm glad we all are able to resolve our little issues ... but what do we have to work on other than the fact, she's gone and he's gone?" continued the mercenary curiously.

"Well for one," said Seras uneasily, "I can't feel master's presence. I don't think he's in England anymore."