Hellsing

Strangers in the Night

Disclaimer:I know that you know that I know I don't own anything.

Chapter 0

[Scene 0]

It is night in London, and it is dark.  Clouds hide the moon and the stars.

I fear not the darkness.  I dwell in it.

In the walkways near the Thames, cold wind blows.  A trench coat is not enough for the coolness.

I am not chilled.  I am colder.

London's fog obscures vision, blinding the eyes.  It is like soup suspended in the air.

I am not blinded.  I see what is beyond.

A foghorn signal a ship's passing.  The load sound rings the ears.  Faraway, Big Ben sounds the hour.

I hear whispers in the noise, in the passing of the wind.

The dank smell of the fog fills the nostrils.  It does not smell very nice.

That is not what I smell.  I smell fear.  And I hunger.

A smile, and then a blur, ends the stillness.

[Scene 1]

A man is running in London.

He is wearing motley clothes.

He has yellow eyes.  The color of an animal's eyes.

He sprints but does not breath.

He is undead.  A FREAK.  A fake vampire.

Behind the FREAK, a woman is giving pursuit.

She is in uniform. She is a policewoman.

She has red eyes.  They look noble.

She also does not breath.

She is also undead.  She is Victoria Seras.  A true vampire.

The fog is thick.  Visibility is low.

Yellow eyes peer through the murk, looking for escape.

Red eyes gaze through the gloom, looking for prey.

The FREAK turns to a small alley.

Seras smiles.  She knows these streets well.

The FREAK hits a trash can, spilling the garbage.  He swears out load.

Seras smiles again.  She judged the distance easily.

The hunter and prey exit the alley.  They came upon an open area near the river.

The FREAK stops.  Her turns around, looking for a place to hide and ambush.

The FREAK sees nothing but darkness and fog ahead of him.  There is nowhere to hide.

Seras was getting closer and closer to her quarry.  She sees the vague outline of her prey.

That is enough.  Seras aims her pistol.

Her prey vanishes.  There was even no sound.

Seras stops and readies her gun for a surprise attack.  The event worries her.

There is nothing but silence, and the distant foghorns from the Thames.

Nothing lasts forever.  Slow footsteps come from one direction.

Seras points her gun at the sound.  Slowly, a man comes out.  He looks Asian.

It was not the FREAK.  His clothes are elegant, and his poise shows discipline.

Seras speaks out, but keeps her gun at the ready.  "It is unsafe here.  There is a criminal." she said.

The man continues walking, but does not reply.  He walks with his eyes closed.

Seras sense no threats in the area.  Her sixth sense relaxed, she put her gun back in its holster.

The man gives no reaction to her, and continues walking.  He disappears in the fog.

Seeing that the man was gone, Seras goes in search of the FREAK.  She draws her gun again.

She looks around, her mind's eye scanning the vicinity.  There is nothing there.

Sensing something, she turns back towards the alley.  She carefully enters.

She sees the FREAK, but not in the way she expected.  He is headfirst in a trash can, and unmoving.

As careful as she could, she approached and kicked several times.  The FREAK rolled out.  What she saw shocked her.

The face of FREAK was locked in a expression of remorse.  It was dead.

A strong gust of wind blew into the alley.  With the wind came the faintest whispers.

"My path is set.  Your path is set.  They are not meant to cross.  Let me be."

[Scene 2]

Seras called the Hellsing Institute.  She wanted to go back now.

An armored van came.  She wanted to bring the cadaver to base for study.

Using her vampiric strength, she picked the corpse and threw it in the back of the van.  She got on afterwards.

The van then took off and headed to Hellsing Manor.

Along the way, she thought about what just happened.  It made her feel bad.  It made the humans feel bad.

All of them felt uneasy.  The face of the FREAK was unnerving. 

With its mouth wide open, tears still flowing from the eyes, the freaked looked alive.

However, when she touched it, Seras felt the rigor mortis.

Trying to shrug off the shock, she looked to more productive activities.

Using the computer on the van, Seras looked up the profile of the FREAK.  It was said that this FREAK was the psycho.

"This FREAK finds no value in life.  He would kill, just for fun, and often engorges himself with blood." said the computer.

What kind of horror did this?

What does the stranger, the dead FREAK, and the voices have in common?

After pondering for a few moments, she stopped.  Being a vampire, she has all eternity to think.

She doesn't notice that her sire had appeared from the shadows.

Alucard slipped out of the shadows of the van.  He lingered for a few moments, watching his childe from a distance.

Seeing his childe in doubt, Alucard drew his face close Seras' ear.  He observed her for a few moments more.

Finally, he announced his presence.

"Good policewoman.  Remember that you're no longer shackled by mortality." said Alucard.

Seras almost jumped up in surprise.  She turned to face her master, her face in surprise and bewilderment.

Alucard just smiled right back at her.  He knew that it would make his childe feel a lot better.

And it did.  Seras has always turned to her master for strength, for guidance, and for answers.

She looked up at Alucard, not saying a word.  Their eyes locked, and a few moments pass.

In an instant, Alucard found out what had transpired in the night. 

He broke eye contact, looking at the FREAK keenly.

Seras followed her master's every move.  She too gazed into the face of the FREAK hoping to see the hidden truths.

She found none.

Alucard however, smiled.  He smelled a challenge..

This further bewildered his childe.

Sensing her confusion, he spoke out, reassuring her.  "Worry not, policewoman.  Your path will not cross his.  Mine will."

With that, he stepped back into the shadows, and out of the van.

[Scene 3]

London also had nightclubs.  This place was one.

It was dark, but multicolored lights from a disco ball crisscrossed the room.

A rainbow.  Indoors?  At night?  I am confused.

The fog is gone, but is replaced by a sea of young bodies.

I was once one of them.  Not anymore.  I dwell in things greater.

It was not cold, but hot, as the heat emanated from young bodies enthralled in disco.

Heat.  Warm blood pumping through young veins.

It was noisy, but this time, it was music.  Many people danced to it.

The whispers grow soft.  They tell me I will never gain such things.

All around, the scent of sweat and perfume intermingle, filling the air with hormones.

That is not what I smell.  I smell life.  And I hunger.

In one corner of a club, in a table, a man sits.  He looks Malayan, maybe 25.  He doesn't like a partygoer.

He is alone, accompanied only by a glass of scotch.  Nobody in the room pays any attention to him.

That soon changes.  He finishes his scotch and stands up, heading to the bar.

A few feet away, he stops.  He turns around, looking at the dance floor. 

He takes a deep breath and contemplates for a while.

Ah… I miss being human, having warm flesh…

Turning around again, he faces the bar.  He sees a free seat, right next to a geeky looking lady.

Sitting himself there, he initiates a conversation.

"Hello." he said enthusiastically.  He smiled like a child.

"Hi." replied the lady, a short haired brunette wearing thick glasses.  She smiled back.

"Do you want a drink.  I'm paying." he said.  Staring straight at the lady's face..

"Sure.  Thanks." replied the lady.  Smiling shyly from behind her glasses.

"Barkeep, a drink for the pretty lady over here.  Whatever she wants." he said. 

"Well, I've always wanted to try your best cocktail.  Are you sure stranger…" said the lady.  She looked at her companion.

Her words were cut short.  Her companion stared straight into her blue eyes.

"My name is Jon.  What's yours?" he asked.  He still stared straight at the lady's eyes.

"Oh, my name is Paige.  Say barkeep, could you cancel that cocktail?" asked the lady.  She let out a slight giggle.

"Oh.  Why not?  You don't want a free drink?" asked Jon.  He broke eye contact, and sounded puzzled.

"Ah, I was hoping for something better.  You want to go out?" asked Paige.  She was smiling like a schoolgirl with a crush.

"Okay then.  Where too?" asked Jon.  His voice was enthusiastic again.

"To my parent's house.  They're out to Spain, where it's hot and humid." said Paige.  She hinted at something.

"Okay." said Jon.  As soon as Paige had turned around, he smiled like a predator.

[Scene 4]

Paige led Jon to her home.  Along the way, she skipped, hopped, and played around.

Jon on however, was different.  While he intently listened, he just kept nodding.  He also kept his hands in his pocket.

Paige never noticed the silence of her companion.  She just kept talking and acting young.

When they reached the house, she lifted a loose floorboard on the patio.  It revealed a compartment with a key.

"See, that's where I keep the key.  Come visit me anytime." said Paige, giggling again.

The two entered the house.  Jon first, Paige last.

With the door closed behind them, Paige made clear her intentions.  She slung a shoulder on Jon and grabbed his crotch.

"You know, ever since my crush tricked me into sleeping with him, I haven't trusted me." Paige said coyly.

"Some men do not deserve the love of others." replied Jon.  At this, she kissed Paige.

The two went upstairs, and clothes came off along the way.  Moments later, moans and thumping came from the second floor.

Then, a loud moan of ecstasy.  However, there was only a female voice.

Soon, Jon came down.  He collect and put on his clothes.  He promptly went back up again.

He went straight to Paige's room.  Silently, as not to wake her up, he put his mouth close to hers.

While it looked like he was going to kiss her, he stopped a few centimeters away from her lips.  He started inhaling.

Slowly, a white stream escaped Paige's lips and flew into Jon's.  With each second, Paige seems to breath more heavily.

He could have continues, totally draining her of her life essence, but he did not.  Jon stopped.

By this time, Paige was breathing very heavily.  Jon frown, and faced the floor.

Jon lingered, watching Paige sleep.  While her getup in the club made her look geeky, he admits that she is indeed beautiful.

Hours passes.  Slowly, Paige's breathing returned to normal.  It was not sunrise.

Quickly, but still quietly, Jon went down, prepared a meal, and bought it up.

He set the meal on a nearby desk.  He got her alarm clock at set it to go off when the meal was still warm.  The sun was rising.

Looking to the window, he saw the first rays of the sun enter the room.  He walks towards the light.

Stopping a bit short, he slowly lets his hand pass the rays of sunlight.

His hand starts to wither.

Jon immediately pulls his hand back away from the rays.

Turning back to Paige he approached her, stroked her hair, and then kissed her on the forehead.

"Thank you.  Goodbye." he whispered.

He then put his hand together, chanted, and disappeared.