Chapter 10

Purify

"Again Illiana! Come at me again!"

The woman never thought she would fight with a sword, let alone two of them. Upon three days of observation, Illiana noticed that Rick was extremely traditional; from this house all the way down to the way he dressed.

He wore frilly shirts sometimes, and tight pants with high boots, she thought he looked gorgeous though, in his flowing coats and crisp white suits.

"Again!"

Training with him was like dancing almost, he was so beautiful, with his long hair and thin, yet built, frame. His eyes caught her off guard, and half the time she didn't pat attention.

Rick gasped as she cut her hand and fell to the floor with the force of his blow. She looked down at the blood on her hands and he immediately held a cloth over it.

"Darling, you have to pay attention." He said softly.

"I'm sorry."

But she still felt as though something wasn't right, like all of her past was missing. All she remembered and all she saw was this man, Rick. She felt like she should know more.

"Rick?"

Her timid voice made him smile, "Yes?"

"Are we…married?"

His blue eyes sparkled with happiness, "Do you want us to be?"

She blushed, she wasn't sure. She just, "Well, I thought that we had to be. I don't understand why I live here, and why you treat me so nicely."

Rick smiled, cupping her face with his free hand, "I love you."

"Sir?"

The entrance of the butler disrupted her chance to question his feelings. Rick stood and approached the other man, "What is it? That bloody vampire isn't being a problem is he?"

"No sir. We haven't seen any movement from him at all. But, I do have some news."

"I'm listening."

"The queen. She has finally passed."

Rick smirked before looking back at Illiana with an extremely sad look on his face. "Oh no, that is horrid news. Illiana, darling, I need you to go back to our room."

"Alright."

She never questioned him, even when she wanted to. He almost treated her like a child, but he did so with such kindness that any questions she wanted to ask, almost always died down to nothing.

Illiana sighed as she untied the heavy weights from her wrists. He long, tan, skirt billowed about her legs as she traveled down the long hall. Her white top was slightly stained with blood and her hand was still soaking the cloth she had been given.

A dark chuckle made her stop, "Leave the kid, I smell better blood."

She started to walk backwards down the hall as two men rounded the corner. They were dressed alike, in what seemed to be uniforms; their teeth glinted in the chandelier light.

A whimpering noise came from the hall they were just in and for a fleeting moment her natural mother instincts kicked in, but that disappeared as she bumped into a firm chest and a arm wrapped securely around her shoulders and across her chest.

Rick's blue eyes glinted dangerously, "What were you two doing?"

"N-nothing sir. Nothing at all."

"You were going to harm my angel."

The two vampires shook their heads, "We didn't know sir."

Another whimper sounded in the hall and Illiana broke away, running around the corner and dropping by the side of the small child on the floor. He had wispy black hair and bright green eyes that he watched her with carefully. He looked completely pained and afraid.

Illiana picked him up and examined his neck, the gashes made her eyes burn. She came back around the corner with the child clinging to her for life, "Rick. They attacked him."

Rick came down on the vampires that were whimpering at his feet, "Where did you get him?" he barked.

"W-we found him."

"You marred a human child!" his white hair floated around him as he approached the woman and child, "Take him to our room. Darling." He said, brushing the boy's hair with his hand, "I'll send a doctor soon."

Illiana nodded and walked down the hall. Any doubts about Rick had completely vanished. He was perfect.

"As you can see behind me, there is sheer pandemonium taking place inside the palace. The death of the queen has administered a heavy and devastating blow to this country. As the extended noble family struggle to put a new ruler on the throne, the knights try to figure exactly what happened to our queen. Who, before her death, was in perfect health."

Seras turned off the television and whipped the tears from her eyes, "Master?"

Alucard ignored the lone, blood, tear that ran down his face. He turned off the television, silencing the news broadcast. "I can smell that filthy human all over this."

Pip sat down in a nearby chair, "Do you think he murdered the queen?"

The blonde female in the room shook her head, "And get away with it? It was the queen!"

The No Life King growled and clenched his fists, "I smell war."

"Master?"

"Get out."

"But master!"

"Alucard!"

"Leave!" as the two lower vampires left the room he sunk deeper into the large chair, spreading his legs and throwing back his head. Images of the many wars he had lived through over the many centuries ran through his head like a movie. As much as he loved war and destruction, he did value peace.

He stood from the chair and walked across the room. Those documents, the one's Illiana managed to save from the fire. They were burnt around the edges but he could still read some of it clearly. "…. anti-vampire serum… Birth of No Life Queen…successful…clone…"

Alucard couldn't contain his anger and punched a hole in the wall. Illiana was right; she was a weapon, a weapon specifically for winning a war…a war between humans and vampires.

Seres and Pip followed the vampire silently as he stormed from the house. They knew this was big and they knew that Alucard was willing to shed blood in order to get answers.

"We have no choice, he's the closest."

"But we all know what he did. We-"

A chuckle made the remaining knights turn to the large doors leading into the vast, cold, room, "Speaking ill of a noble. How very un-knightly of you all."

Rick smiled brightly as the other men stood and bowed to him slightly. One of the men, the son of a former knight and the youngest at the table, stayed standing as the others sat down, "Sir Rick. We've made a decision."

The white haired man sighed and walked to the throne at the head of the room, lounging in it, "Have you really?"

"Sir Erin! We have not authorized that decision!"

The young man ignored the older, "We have decided to seat you on the throne. As King of England."

Rick couldn't keep the wide smile off his face, "Excellent."

All of the men seamed to fall into a haze and they asked simultaneously. "Your first order, my lord?"

"Prepare for war gentlemen. I will wipe the vampires from this land, and create a pure country."