'No. Ah'm NOT wearin' this.'

'Would you prefer to go into battle without any protection whatsoever? I'm sure you'd make a marvelous target for our enemies.' Walter's response was painfully dry.

The last half hour had been spent trying to convince the ex-Priest to don the Hellsing uniform. It wasn't really a matter of allegiance; it was more or less an issue of wearing something bulletproof. Not to mention, the cassock he was so accustomed to wearing had been ripped to shreds long ago, so that wasn't even an option, as much as he wanted it to be. Normally his regenerative qualities would have had a major hand in keeping him alive during battle, but now that the abilities were suppressed, taking extra precautions shouldn't have even been an issue. Anderson was more than willing to make it an issue, though.

'Nae, I don' want to go at all.' The Paladin growled at the smaller man.

Walter had become more than exasperated throughout this entire ordeal. He'd done his best to keep his cool – a proper Englishman would always do his best not to lose his temper. However, Anderson had been grating his nerves and pushing all the right buttons in exactly the right order, and he'd had about enough of it. With all due respect to Integra, this pet project of hers was quickly turning into an episode of babysitting gone awry. If Walter could have had it his way, he'd have just sent Anderson straight back to the Vatican all tied up with a bow, whether or not they wanted him.

'Well.' The butler began, feigning loss. 'I've done my best to convince you.' He offered a shrug. 'I can safely say that if you sustain any damage, you will not be missed, Sir.'

He turned his attention to the Draculina.

'Miss Victoria, I'm leaving this up to you.' He smiled casually at her. 'I've provided the arms and uniform. I'll leave it to you to get him to use them.'

Seras sputtered and reeled for a moment. How on earth did Walter expect her to convince Anderson of anything? She reckoned that getting the Paladin to wear Hellsing's colors would be about as easy as bailing a sinking canoe with a sieve. She watched in utter defeat as Walter waved to her a polite goodbye, and made his way out of the room. Anderson stood directly to her right, still staring at the monster of a revolver. She looked at him, and then back at the Armory door as it slid shut. Then, back to him again.

Alright, the odds were at least… somewhat in her favor. If anyone from within the Hellsing Organization could convince Alexander Anderson of anything, it would definitely be her. Her chances would have certainly been a bit higher if not for the fact that everyone seemed to want to step all over the Paladin at any chance they got, but this is what she was given to work with. Hopefully something would stick.

'Um, Father…'

'I don' want tae hear it, Draculina. I'll go out an' fight ghouls and vampires, but not while championin' Hellsing's name.'

He was incorrigible. Never in all of her twenty two years on this earth had she ever met someone so exceedingly pompous and stubborn.

Well, actually now that she thought about it, Alucard wasn't a far cry…

'You have to listen to Sir Integra,' She begged him. 'You're going to get pummeled if you don't. Please…'

Anderson looked down at the withering Draculina, and then back at the revolver. Rolling his eyes, he turned and set the gun down on the workbench, and glowered at the young creature of the night. He was not impressed. This was another tactic to get him to feel sorry for her, or what have you. It couldn't be anything more. He'd definitely heard what Integra said, and he didn't appreciate being threatened with becoming her vampire dog's next meal. He heard all of the defiance and vitriol in her voice, and as far as he was concerned, that's the only way it could have possibly been interpreted.

'An' jes what does It matter to you, Draculina?' He delivered the question quite scathingly.

Seras crossed her arms at him. She'd had nearly enough.

'Because,' she protested. 'There's not a damn reason in the world for you to just go out there and die.'

'Bein' held captive by a houseful a' Heretics is reason enough, I'd reckon.'

Seras bristled. 'We saved you!'

'Saved me? Only the Lord can save me. Ye want to corrupt me!'

'No, we're trying to help you!'

'By denying me my Religion!' He roared. 'You lot think yer helpin' me by preventin' the strength of God to flow through me?' The Paladin towered over her, Emerald eyes blazing. 'Nae, all yer doin' is corrupting a servant of the Lord to support yer own Godless crusade. No better'n that fool, Maxwell.'

He narrowed his eyes at her.

'Ye listen tae me now, daughter of Lilith. I am Iscariot. I answer to no one's cause but The Lord's.'

Seras grit her teeth at him. This was infuriating. Anderson was so blind with his own righteousness that he couldn't look past his doctrines. He couldn't see the opportunity that Integra had so generously presented him with. Why couldn't he understand? Fighting unholy filth was still fighting for God, no matter which army you allied with. Hellsing, Iscariot, the Vatican… they were just names. Just labels. If he could get past that, if he could only see…

'Then do it, Judas.' Her tone was deep. Angry. The Vampiress' eyes flashed vermillion, and she scowled at him. 'You say you fight for God? Then do it, and stop wallowing in semantics.'

The Paladin stood there dumbly; watching as Seras turned from him, strode over to the far right wall, and plucked her Harkonnen from it. She slung the massive gun over her shoulder with little effort, and bent down to pick up her ammunitions case. As she made her way to the Armory door, she flashed the blonde man a judgmental glare.

'We have the same goal, Father.' Seras' tone was commanding, but then she paused, her expression softening a bit. 'Don't… let your beliefs get in the way of that.'


Seras sat on the bumper of one of the Humvees in the assembly yard, sorting her ammunition and thinking quietly to herself. She was actually enjoying the small moment of peace she had to herself, especially since she knew what would be coming to her in a few hours. It wasn't that she disliked purifying; she just… didn't want to have to deal with both her master and Anderson at the same time.

'Seras, you're projecting your emotions again.'

Well, speak of the Devil.

Sorry Master.' She replied mentally. 'It's just… I don't know. I'm not sure if …If having Father Anderson join us tonight is such a good idea.

She could practically feel Alucard's amusement. It bubbled around her, rising like shaken soda water. In retrospect, she probably could have chosen her words a bit better.

Having problems with the new pet already? What a shame, he isn't even housebroken.

He's just being stubborn, that's all. He'd rather go and get himself shot to pieces instead of wearing one of our uniforms, for protection's sake.

Then that's his prerogative, Seras. Don't concern yourself.

She sighed. How easy it must be for him to say such things. How simple it must be, for someone who makes little distinction between what is moral or immoral. Those two words might as well have not even existed in Alucard's vocabulary. She wished she could let the issue go, but it was just too problematic. Her conscience was still too loud, and the last thing she wanted was to see Anderson die at the hands of a ghoul, especially in his current condition. How long had it been since he was just …human? Would he even be able to handle himself as such, or would he still try to fight like a regenerator?

In any case, Alucard continued. Prepare yourself. Master Integra is sending the third regiment out right now. We'll be on the move soon.

Seras wrinkled her brow. Yes… Master.

The Vampiress clasped her ammo case shut, and hopped down from the bumper. She straightened her skirt and her gloves, and with minimal effort, slung the anti-Midian cannon over her left shoulder. Predictably, Alucard materialized in front of her from an amorphous black miasma, but he said nothing to her. He offered her a curious grin, and that was it. Seras didn't question it. She hadn't the energy to get into guessing games with her Sire.

'Master is on her way… she's got our new Dog with her.' Alucard looked down at the Draculina from the corner of his eye. Seras lifted an eyebrow at him.

'And… the regiment?'

'They're waiting for us at the rendezvous.'

They stood together, side by side, waiting for the arrival of their Master and new, albeit unwilling companion. Seras wanted to say something. She wanted to ask Alucard what he thought of all of this. It was so unfair that he could easily break her mental barriers and peer into her mind whenever it struck his fancy – but she could not do the same to him.

When Integra finally appeared in the archway leading from the compound, Seras' eyes widened. The flaxen-haired Knight had a smug look of satisfaction on her face, and Anderson stood beside her, glowering.

It was a sight Seras never thought she would ever see in her life, or un-life. There, the Paladin stood – unhappy as ever, spectacles glinting menacingly in the moonlight. Only now, he didn't look like a Vatican Priest, he looked like a soldier…

A Hellsing.

The familiar army green ensemble, accented with combat boots and white gloves actually didn't look half bad on him. She was surprised to see him in it, no doubt, but she was relieved. Seras supposed that taking a bit of a strict tone with the Paladin hadn't done too much harm to him, at least that much was clear. It was just so strange to see the Hellsing crest on him. Strange, but promising. Her excitement dulled when her Master began to speak, though.

'Well, would you look at that? Pious Paladin Angel Dust – a sheep in wolf's clothing. This should make for a very interesting night.'

Integra rolled her eyes at the backwards metaphor.

'Keep yer accursed maw shut, ye demon.' Anderson snapped back.

The No-Life king gave his Master a devilish grin. Indeed, this would make for an interesting night. Integra cleared her throat decisively, and took a few steps forward, leaving the Paladin standing awkwardly behind her.

'Alucard, you have orders to go on ahead. I will be sending Seras alone with Anderson. Your mission is to seek out any undead scum that would stand against us, and destroy them.'

The Vampire gave a low chuckle, and bowed. 'As you command, my Master.'

And with that, he seemed to evaporate.

'Now, for the two of you…'

Integra turned back to Alexander, giving him a very stern look. She knew how risky this was. Regenerator or not, Anderson was still an overly righteous, God-loving, Bible-thumping fool, and that alone could get anyone into serious trouble. She hoped she was making the right decision by sending him out with Seras, tonight. It seemed that the young Vampiress had a certain kinship with the man, despite their obviously differing viewpoints and backgrounds. It was a bit uncanny. There was definitely some hostility between the two of them, but Anderson didn't react to Seras with half the resentment that he did with Alucard.

'I want you to stay together, above all.' She turned to Seras. 'You need to keep an eye on him. Make sure he doesn't over-exert himself. Make sure he comes back alive.'

'I kin' handle myself jes' fine -'

'This is not something up for discussion, Anderson. Whether you think you can handle yourself or not isn't my concern. My concern is to expose you to our work, and make sure you come back alive.'


The drive to the rendezvous wasn't especially long, but it was awkward. Anderson sat in the passenger seat, sulking and yanking at the Hellsing coat of Arms on his bulletproof vest. Seras had wanted to tell him to stop pulling at it a few times, but thought better of it. The last thing she needed before a mission was to have a screaming match with an indignant Priest. Instead, they drove in silence. Well, for Anderson, at least. As much as Seras tried to ignore it, she couldn't. Alexander was projecting his thoughts – much like she had done to Alucard. Every emotion, even every image in his head seemed to resonate freely from him. It was like listening to a radio program - A very angry, preachy radio program.

'…We're getting out here.' The Draculina parked the Humvee a few blocks away from the rendezvous, so as to not rouse any attention from civilian onlookers at a centralized point. Missions like these required some tact.

'An' we're gonna be walkin' the rest of the way?' Anderson's voice was unexpectedly calm.

'Yeah, the third regiment has this area surrounded, so we can walk freely.' She shut her door and moved to the back of the vehicle to retrieve her weapon. 'You've still got that gun Walter gave you, right?'

'Aye.' The Paladin reached for it, drawing it quickly from the holster he'd been given. 'It's loaded.'

'Good.'

Their conversation was brief, but curiously civil. Maybe Seras was wrong… maybe this wouldn't be too bad of an idea.

'Come on, then. This way.' She motioned to Anderson, and he followed.

They were on high guard the entire way. The hairs on the back of Seras' neck tingled …she could feel her quarry. She could smell them. FREAK vampires always had a very distinct scent – a bit like burnt rubber. As they progressed into the borough further, she became aware of other scents… ghouls. And… there was one more she couldn't quite place. It was unusual. Something about that particular smell had an almost menacing quality to it, and she was sure she'd caught a whiff of it it once before.

Master… Are you there?

I am, Police girl. What do you see?

I don't …see anything yet, but… do you smell that? Something's different, here.

Yes, I caught the scent when I first arrived. Just stay in the shadows… be on your guard. There are more than freaks and ghouls here.

Yes, Master.

'Draculina… there's somethin' afoot.' Anderson said, doing his best to keep his voice at a low rumble.

'I know. They're around here somewhere… they're close.' She narrowed her eyes at a particularly dilapidated looking building. 'There.' Seras hefted the Harkonnen up, and popped out its stand. 'They're in there. I can smell them.'

Her eyes closed. Her third eye opened, and the young Vampiress' vision shot forward with incredible speed and clarity – she could see inside the building now, plain as day. The building was crawling with undead, most of them ghouls – Although there were a small band of FREAKs sitting in a semi-circle on the first floor. They had lit candles; it looked as though they were performing a ceremony.

Master, I found them. There's so many of them. I can't tell what they're doing.

I see them.

What are my orders, Master?

A deep, menacing laugh resonated through her head.

Dust to Dust, Seras Victoria. Crush them.

Seras hunkered down over her Harkonnen and narrowed her eyes. She'd take out the second floor first. With amazing deftness, she pulled a shell from her ammunitions case, and slid it easily into the magazine, pulling the action shut with a loud click.

'Acknowledged,' she answered.

'Eh? You see 'em?' Anderson still stood beside her, his fingers wrapped protectively over the grip of the revolver. Despite his past training, he was still a bit shaky with the idea of having to fire a gun, and he silently prayed that the Harkonnen's shell would take it all out in just one shot, without any further commotion. Partly, it would give him a reason to return to Hellsing without any 'insight' as to how they were any better than Iscariot. Partly… he was afraid to die.

'Yeah. There's… a lot.'

'…Damned vile creatures.'

Seras was the last person he'd ever admit being afraid to. If he were to let his guard down even a little, if he were to allow the succubus to have even one shred of him, she'd take everything, and he'd be left as nothing more than husk. He was sure of it. What he didn't realize however, was that he had been projecting, and Seras heard everything he thought about in his head.

Father… now's not the time to get cold feet.

He bristled at her. 'I tol' ye, stay outta my head!'

'Quiet.' Her command was firm. 'You have to stay quiet.'

It was too late, though, they'd heard him. Seras watched as the vampire coven seemed to grow more alert to an outside presence. The ghouls in the upper levels of the building began to stir, and they moved sluggishly down the stair corridors, some of them pushing others out of the way, causing them to fall over the banisters with a distinct, sloppy crunch.

'Damnit.' Seras was not happy.

Take them out now, Seras.

And that was that.

The Harkonnen went off like a bomb, the shell whirring and whistling its way toward the building. When it hit, chaos erupted.

The building moaned and cracked under the explosion, almost as if it were crying in pain. Fire began consuming it quickly. The same could not be said for the ghoul army, however. While Seras' depleted uranium shell had done a significant amount of damage, there was far more of them than she had accounted for. She wondered to herself how so many of them could have resisted the blast, but unfortunately, she had little time before the undead horde began advancing on her and her Catholic compatriot.

'Anderson, your gun! Now!'

He didn't hesitate. Skillfully, the Paladin drew the gun from his holster once more, and found it surprising at how easily he got his sights. His hand tightened on the grip, and he steadied himself. Everything seemed as though it was slowing down. He looked straight down the barrel of his gun, and pulled the trigger.

He was astonished at how little kick it had, and how much damage it had done. Walter certainly was right – those bullets were explosive. The one shot had managed to subdue three of the ghouls, and as much as he hated to admit it, he was impressed. He watched with mirth as hot molten silver exploded from within the core of the bullet, raining down on the creatures like holy fire-rain. They groaned and hissed in agony, the liquid hot metal burning through the rotting flesh.

It had been too long. Anderson forgot about how much the hunt thrilled him. He had forgotten about the intense rush of pleasure, the feeling of ecstasy that overtook his entire being. This was just too good. With each shot fired, his excitement increased. The sound of snapping bone – the ghastly noises these unclean demons made; it was all too much. It was a sensory overload, and he loved every blessed second of it. As he made his way through the ghouls, he cackled at them, shouting bits of scripture at them as he turned them to dust. The fire danced in his eyes, and he was more aware of his surroundings than he'd been in the last three months. It felt as though the cotton in his head had been removed. Everything was so clear now, even with the seals… he felt unstoppable.

'Show me some hell, ye demon spawn!' He howled. 'Dance, you Godless Freaks! Dance!'

The carnage continued on. Seras and Anderson were merciless, and together their force was double what it would have been individually. For not having any of his regenerative powers at his disposal, Seras was exceptionally impressed with how well he fought, and she made a mental note to laud him for that after all was said and done.

Seras emptied a few more bullets into the last FREAK vampire. With a hissing scream, the creature's eyes rolled back in its head, and disintegrated into dust.

And then…

'F-Father – Anderson… Quick! On your left!'

It happened too quickly. He hadn't had time to react. Something had lunged at him... something big, disgusting, and slavering. Alexander was knocked to the ground, his skull cracking against the pavement, hard. Whatever had tackled him was now pinning him down, breathing hot and heavy into his face.

Slowly, he opened his eyes. Red met yellow. Those eyes weren't human… or vampire.

'L-Lycan…' he stuttered.

The creature had its massive paw of a hand pressed against his throat, its fangs bared at him in a menacing grimace. A growl emanated from the depths of its gullet, droplets of hot saliva splattering on the Paladin's cheeks. Anderson tried to move, but found himself unable to. I can't move, he thought to himself, his mind in a panic. I can't move! Cursed bloody Protestant filth.. If not for these seals...

He struggled as hard as he possibly could, but it was of no use. The monster opened its maw further, more than ready to finish off its prey. Defiantly, Alexander glared up at the beast, bearing his teeth right back at it. If he were to go down like this, he'd go down without being a coward. He could face this creature, whether or not it meant his death.

'Bring it on, ye monstrosity.'

BANG!

The beast seemed to be frozen. Its mouth closed, and it seemed to be thinking. Amber eyes left the Paladin, and looked up, instead. Anderson felt the weight lift off of him as the creature got up slowly, and turned. It let out a massive roar as it met its assailant.

BANG BANG BANG BANG!

The beast's legs began to shake, and it gurgled, a whimper escaping its unholy mouth. Those ghostly yellow eyes rolled up into its head, and blood began to pour like water from its neck. Smoke rose from the bullet wounds, and slowly, the head slid off of the body as though it was melting ice. The wolfish head tumbled from the shoulders, and landed on the cobblestone ground with a wet thud. The body followed suit, and within seconds, the corpse of the creature withered away to ash.

Slowly, Anderson gathered his wits and managed to lift himself up off of the ground into a sitting position. Shakily, he ran his fingers through his hair, almost as if he were trying to make sure he was still completely intact. Thankfully, he was, save for the gash on the back of his skull. It took him a moment to focus, but sure enough, there stood Seras before him, her gun at the ready, barrel still smoking from the last shots fired. Her expression was one of complete terror. Those aqua eyes were wide with concern, and she even looked as though she might cry.

The Draculina let her firearm drop to the ground, and she approached the ex-Priest, extending a hand to him. He accepted it without question, and in one swift move, she hefted him up off of the ground, and after a moment or two of looking him over for signs of damage, allowed a soft laugh to escape her lips.

'...Lycans.' She quipped.

Anderson blinked.

'Y-Yeah,' He replied, more than a little dumbstruck. '...Lycans.'


A/N: DUN DUN DUN! The plot thickens! :P I will probably draw Anderson in Hellsing uniform later… might not post it here though. If you guys want to keep up with me art offsite, I do have a livejournal account where I post my scribblins. My username there is teapunk!

And as always guys, thanks loads for the reviews. It helps me keep these chapters coming! If there's something you want to see later on, let me know and I'll do my best to add it in!

edit: changed the ending 'round :S I was having some trouble with trailing this into chapter eight, and this makes the transition easier :3