DISCLAIMER: HELLSING IS OWNED BY KOUTA HIRANO. I DO NOT OWN ANY OF IT'S CHARACTERS

FIRE EMBLEM IS OWNED BY NINTENDO. I DON'T OWN ANY OF IT'S CHARACTERS EITHER.

ITALICS=THOUGHTS

BOLD= IMPORTANT DATES, PLACES, WEAPONS, ECT

BOLD ITALICS=NARRATOR

(NOTE: Wow, you made it to Chapter 3... you must actually be interested in this story to keep reading it. Still, if you've made it this far and you still haven't been sold, I won't dissuade you from continuing or stopping.)


Ylisstol, Ylisse
July 17, Age 2609 (9:21 A.M.)

"So this is Ylisstol..." Walter muttered to himself as he entered the city with the rest of the Shepherds.

The group had turned in after managing to put out much of the fires that had been caused by the undead that attacked them. Walter had managed to re-enter their camp without much trouble, though Frederick did interrogate him on his whereabouts. Telling him the truth, he told him that he had went after Lucina—refraining from mentioning the girl by name as per her request—though he did leave out the fact that he'd managed to confront her. Frederick didn't see through the half truth, and let him be afterwards.

They left for the capital after a short night's rest, leaving early that morning. Arriving, Walter was greeted by a wondrous sight. The city was a bustling metropolis. The buildings heavily reminded him of European renaissance era architecture. Quartz colored walls surrounded the city, which was an ocean of activity. The streets were filled with pedestrians. Various vendors and markets lined the sidewalks. Signs were at nearly every street corner, each pointing to either a market or a restaurant, and at the center of it all was a palace that towered over all of Ylisstol.

"It seems the Risen didn't make it to the city," Frederick commented. "The city also seems to have been spared from that terrible quake."

The knight was correct, there wasn't any sign that Ylisstol had suffered from any seismic activity.

"That's a relief..." Lissa wiped some sweat from her brow. "That would've been terrible if it did."

Chrom nodded in agreement.

Following behind Chrom, Walter took in the sights. Wandering through the streets, they began to make their way through the lower districts. From what Walter could tell, not one person was aware of the danger that they had been protected from just last night. Truly a great blessing that it had been dealt with.

"Look!"

Walter raised a brow as a crowd began to form ahead of them.

"The Exalt has come to visit us!"

The butler hummed as he noted the excited expressions on the pedestrians' faces. Curious, he looked past the crowd. To his surprise, he spotted an ornately dressed woman wandering amongst the people. She had blonde hair—the same golden tone as Lissa's—and the same mark that Chrom had on his right shoulder on her forehead.

"The Exalt is your ruler: correct?" Walter inquired.

"Yes," Frederick answered. "Exalt Emmeryn."

Walter crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow as he watched Emmeryn interact with her people. She looked so serene.

"Is it safe for her to be wandering amongst the crowd like that?" the butler frowned. "I mean, she's without an armed guard; what if she were to be attacked?"

"The Exalt is a symbol of Ylissean peace, Walter," Frederick explained. "Peace is one of Ylisse's most prized qualities. The people adore Emmeryn for practically being the purest incarnation of pacifism; no one would dare take up a weapon against her."

"Indeed..." Chrom joined. "And with Plegia constantly poking at our borders, the people of Ylisse need her now more than ever. Her presence seems to placate the people's fear of war."

"Then Ylisse is very lucky. Most rulers would've marched troops on their enemies if they were invaded daily," the aged butler smiled. "Truly, she must be a wise ruler; especially impressive, given that she looks only a few years older than you, Chrom," Walter noted.

"Yeah, she is! She's also the best big sister ever!" Lissa shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Yes, I imagine that she would-" Walter paused for a moment. Alarm bells went off within his head as he mentally slapped his forehead.

"Wait..." Walter turned on his heel to face Chrom and Lissa. "You two are part of the royal family!?"

Chrom nodded.

"Yes, Emmeryn is our older sister," he replied. The prince was amused as Walter straightened his posture.

"Forgive me for my dreadful manners, sir," Walter went into complete butler mode.

"It's fine Walter..." Chrom chuckled. "Being royalty shouldn't change how you treat me; I'm a person first, royalty second. Besides, I'm not one for formalities," the blue-haired lord explained. When Walter loosened up his posture, he gestured for him to follow.

"Let's head to the palace. We'll meet Emm there once she's finished strolling through the city. Besides..." Chrom shot Walter a smirk. "I'm certain she'll want to meet you, Walter."

With that, the quartet began to make their way to the palace.


Ylisstol, Ylisse - Royal Palace(Throne Room)
July 17, Age 2609 (10:00 A.M.)

Walter was speechless as they entered the palace. It was naturally much larger than Hellsing Mansion, but it even put Buckingham Palace to shame. It was absolutely breathtaking to stand in such an incredible piece of architecture. The proper Englishman he was, he was just astounded.

"Chrom! Lissa! Welcome home," Emmeryn greeted her siblings. Walter noted her serene tone, befitting a pacifistic, benevolent, ruler.

"Good day to you as well, Frederick. How fared you all?" the Exalt smiled.

"Well, we shouldn't have any problems with bandits for the time being, seeing how as our new friend here sent them a particularly strong message," Chrom replied, referring to Walter.

"Is that so?" Emmeryn approached and inspected the aged butler. Out of habit, Walter straightened his posture and bowed. The Exalt expressed surprise briefly, before letting out a small giggle at how polite Walter was acting.

"He looks and acts more like a butler than a warrior," she grinned. "What is your name, sir?"

"Walter C. Dornez, milady," he answered. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Emmeryn. Your siblings have spoken rather highly of you."

"I would hope that they did," Emmeryn laughed. "You have all my gratitude for defending Ylisse's people from attack."

Walter bowed once more, in the traditional butler-esque fashion.

"I am pleased to serve, ma'am."

"If I could interject," Chrom stepped forward. "With your permission, I would like to make Walter a part of the Shepherds. He not only saved our lives once, but twice. I think it's only fitting that he joined our ranks."

The Exalt nodded.

"He has garnered your trust, so he has garnered mine. The Shepherds could use a gentleman like him," she replied tranquilly. "Is there anything else of note you wish to inform me of?"

"Unfortunately, yes..." Frederick stepped forward. "Though we have no concrete evidence, we have reason to believe that the brigands we encountered in Southtown were—in fact—Plegians. If we're correct in our assumption—which I sincerely hope we're not—that means that our fears have been confirmed; Plegia is starting to invade, albeit very slowly."

"This comes as no surprise," Emmeryn sighed. "Anything else?"

Frederick nodded.

"I take it you also heard of our encounter last night?" the great knight asked.

"Yes," Emmeryn's bodyguard, Phila, stepped forward. "This was not the first attack by these creatures. Small towns have been reporting attacks led by—what they can only describe as—the risen dead. So far our men have been containing the situation, albeit rather sloppily," the captain of the Pegasus Knights crossed her arms.

"We don't have any idea where to hit these creatures to permanently subdue them. The only option we have, so far, is to continuously slash at them until they stay down."

"Have you tried attacking either the heart or the head?" Walter suggested. "We found it to be the quickest way of dealing with these monstrosities."

"How did this idea occur to you?" Phila inquired.

"It was... a hunch..." the butler replied cryptically. He didn't want to reveal too much, at the very least nothing unnecessary. Him being experienced with undead was something he preferred be kept under wraps.

Feeling that the answer was satisfactory, Phila shot Walter a smile.

"Thank you for this information. I'll be sure to inform our soldiers about this weakness."

She then left to spread the knowledge of the weakness.

"If that's all, then Chrom and I must attend a meeting with the various nobles and aristocrats," Emmeryn gave a polite bow.

"Naga, give me patience..." Chrom muttered as he followed behind his sister.

As soon as the duo were out of the room, Lissa's hand darted for Walter's.

"What the-"

"Come on, Walter!" the princess energetically started leading the butler away. "Lemme show you the Shepherds' Garrison!"

"I'm pretty sure I can find it on my own..." the aged butler smiled sheepishly as he was dragged out of the room.


Ylisstol, Ylisse - Shepherds' Garrison
July 17, Age 2609 (11:12 A.M.)

(Play song ~"Here we are! The Shepherds' Garrison! [Fire Emblem Awakening OST])

"Here we are!" Lissa opened the doors to the garrison and led Walter inside. "The Shepherds' Garrison! Go on and make yourself at home!"

Walter honestly didn't know what to expect when he wandered into the base of operations for the militia he'd joined. Still, whatever he'd expected, the reality was a far cry. The entirety of the garrison was a cluttered mess. There were crates and barrels of weapons all over the place. The walls were stained with some form of dirt. Various forms of trash littered the ground. Finally, cobwebs were found at just about every corner of the room. It was a mess, an absolute mess that Walter found nigh intolerable.

"Well... this certainly is... quaint." Walter muttered under his breath. "Maybe a bit of a...uh... a fixer upper..."

"Lissa, my treasure!" a young lady—about Lissa's age—ran up to the blonde healer. Compared to Lissa, this girl wore clothes even more noble like. She held a parasol at her side, and her hair was styled into multiple complicated curls.

"Are you alright? I've been on pins and needles with worry!" the girl pulled Lissa into a tight embrace.

"Oh, hey Maribelle," Lissa wriggled out of the hug.

"Don't "Oh, hey" me! I've sprouted fourteen gray hairs fretting over you!" Maribelle glared daggers at the other blonde. Lissa grinned like a child.

"Aw, you worry too much. I can handle a battle or two!" she laughed. "Although, I could do without the bugs and the bear stew."

Walter raised a brow.

"I seem to recall that you enjoying my cooking..." the aged butler crossed his arms. "In fact, you found the stew so delicious, you BEGGED me to cook more..."

Lissa glared at the butler.

"Oh, shut up, I was hungry," the princess grumbled.

"Oh yes, that was most DEFINITELY the reason you ate multiple bowls..." Walter quipped. Lissa puffed up her cheeks, and looked away.

"Hey, squirt!" a muscular man with pale gold hair suddenly walked into the garrison. "Where's Chrom? I bet he had a rough time out there without Ol' Teach and his trusty axe!"

Lissa scoffed.

"Oh, so you're "Teach" now, Vaike," Lissa chuckled to herself. "And here I thought the lack of wits was something you were born with. I guess you can teach it as well."

"Ha! Never doubt the Vaike!" his expression then soured after a moment. "Wait… was that an insult?!"

Walter chuckled as he watched the comedy before him.

"If I may beg your pardon…" a gentle voice spoke out. Turning, Walter saw the voice belonged to a woman, at least Chrom's age. She wore a silver breast plate over a purple thigh high dress—odd combat attire Walter noted—and matching boots that ended just above the knee. She wore silver armor all across her arms, engraved with intricate designs. Her curly hazel hair reached below her waist, and perfectly framed her pale face.

"When might we see the captain?" she asked meekly.

"Poor Sumia. She's simply been beside herself with concern." Maribelle spoke in an almost taunting tone. "Her eyes were scanning the horizon all day during training. She might have earned fewer bruises fighting blindfolded."

"I wouldn't take that tone if I were you, young lady." Walter suddenly chided, startling everyone, sans Lissa. "After all, you weren't much better, correct? I seem to recall you mentioning 'spouting fourteen gray hairs' with worry over Lissa. Not exactly in a position to criticize this young lady, Sumia if I heard right."

Maribelle frowned, hiding the clear surprise at being berated.

"Besides, it's quite the kind gesture that this young lady was worried enough about Chrom's well-being that she'd keep a weather eye on the horizon for him," Walter smiled warmly at the young lady.

"W-worried?" Sumia blushed. "Well, I... he's our captain and our prince! I- I... well of course I'd worry!"

Walter chuckled quietly to himself.

"Whose the old guy?" the man named Vaike tilted his head quizzically and inspected the butler. Walter bowed as he usually did.

"I am Walter Dornez," he introduced. Lissa stepped beside him.

"Chrom recruited him into our ranks," the princess explained. "He's really strong! You should see all the tricks he's got up his sleeve!"

There was a brief silence throughout the garrison. The quiet was broken by Vaike bursting into laughter.

"Are you sure Chrom's not gone crazy?" Vaike scoffed. "I don't know if you've noticed, but this guy's old."

Walter didn't flinch at Vaike's insult.

"Nonsense, Vaike. I'm still in my golden years. Besides…" the butler suddenly dashed behind Vaike, and easily locked the warrior's arm. "I'm only sixty-nine; that's not that old..."

Walter quickly flipped Vaike over his shoulder, and slammed him into the ground; re-locking his arm quickly.

"Uncle! Uncle!" Vaike pounded the ground in pain. Walter smirked as he released his grip on the warrior.

"Perhaps you should call me 'Teach' instead..." Walter hummed in satisfaction.

Lissa burst into laughter as Vaike collected what was left of his dignity and sat down in a chair in the corner. Maribelle—in contrast—rolled her eyes as she stormed off.

"Such a disappointment..." Maribelle grumbled. "I'd hoped you were cut from finer cloth, Walter..." the noblewoman left the garrison with a huff.

"Don't take it to heart, Walter," Sumia smiled sheepishly at Walter. "Maribelle will warm up to you eventually."

"Or she'll burn too quickly," Lissa snickered. "But seriously, just give her time."

Before Walter could reply, the doors burst open. Entering, Chrom came in with Frederick.

"Ah! Captain, you've returned!" Sumia took a few steps forward. "I was…er I mean, we were so-" before she could finish her sentence, the Pegasus Knight suddenly tripped over... something—Walter couldn't tell what the hell caused her to fall.

"Sumia!" Chrom rushed over to her side. "Are you alright? Was it those boots of yours again?" The blue haired prince helped Sumia to her feet.

"No!" Sumia answered quickly. "I mean, yes! I mean…" she let out a hefty sigh.

"Nevermind…" she gave up. Chrom nodded, helping the hazel-haired woman to her feet before turning his attention elsewhere.

"I take it you have news, sir?" Walter sat in a chair beside Vaike, who was slowly edging away from the butler.

"Yes," the prince replied. "All right, listen up; tomorrow morning we'll be marching over to Regna Ferox!"

"Regna Ferox?" the aged butler raised his hand, out of courtesy. "What's Regna Ferox?"

"It's a unified kingdom to the north of Ylisse's borders," Frederick explained. "It's inhabited by barbarians, or so it's said."

"They aren't barbarians, Frederick," Chrom corrected. "It's actually inhabited by warriors. Warriors whose strength will come in handy when it comes to repelling a new menace, the Risen," he paused for a moment to check that everyone was following.

"Normally, the Exalt would request aid in person, but the recent events have the people fearing what would happen if my sister were to leave the capital. So the task has been passed to us," the prince continued. "Now, this mission is strictly voluntary. So if any…"

"I volunteer!" Lissa interrupted her brother's speech.

"I volunteer!" Vaike raised his hand. "You'll be needin' Ol' Teach for this one!"

"I'll go as well..." an unfamiliar voice added. Walter took note of this volunteer. No one else seemed to notice the huge fellow in the corner.

"Where did he come from?" he muttered under his breath.

"I… I… um…" Sumia stuttered.

"Yes, Sumia?" Chrom raised an eyebrow. The Pegasus Knight sighed again.

"It's just that I don't think I'm ready for a proper mission just yet..." she said dejectedly. "I'll probably just get in the way."

Before Chrom could respond, Walter stood up and patted her on the back.

"I'll keep an on this young lady," the butler earned a look of skepticism from Vaike.

"I'm not sure, Walter..." Chrom put his hand on his chin. "Will you be able to-"

"You know for a fact that I'm more than capable of defending multiple people," Walter gave Chrom a look of assurance. "I'll make sure that nothing happens to her, Chrom; you have my word."

The prince was silent for a moment.

"Very well..." he relented. "Just make sure that Sumia is by your side at all times. As for everyone else…" he turned his attention towards the rest of the Shepherds.

"We leave Ylisstol at 8:00 A.M. tomorrow! Don't be late!" Chrom commanded. Everyone stood at attention.

"Yes sir!"

As everyone filed out of the room, Chrom gestured for Walter to follow him. Taking the butler aside, he began to speak with him private.

"I know that you were only made an active member of the Shepherds just little over an hour ago, Walter," Chrom began. "However, I think it's best that I confer upon you the responsibility of chief tactician of the militia. A man of your age certainly has built up enough combat experience that you could adequately lead a small group, correct?"

Walter was briefly taken aback. Him? A tactician? Yes, he certainly was well-versed in military tactics, he'd learned much from his time as a Hellsing agent. However, was he truly worthy of such trust?

Perhaps not, but... Walter looked up. I can certainly do my best to ensure that no lives are lost; it is the least I could. Maybe this will serve as my chance to do some good for once...

"I'd honored to serve as your tactical advisor, sir," Walter bowed. "I shall do my best to keep everyone alive and well."

Chrom smiled.

"That's what I wanted to hear."

(Song ends here)


Northern Ylisse - The Northroad
July 18, Age 2609 (9:00 A.M.)

As they marched north towards Regna Ferox, Walter took the time to speak with each individual Shepherd. Learning of their strengths and weaknesses, he made sure to keep a mental list of possible tactics he could utilize in the future. Sully and Frederick were their cavalier units, Chrom and Vaike were their ground units, Virion was a long ranged archer unit, Lissa was their one healer—going to need to keep her safe—and Sumia was an air unit. There were many possible methods and tactics he could come up with with such a plethora of units.

Even if my tactics fail, I'll be able to pull everyone's weight by myself, Walter thought to himself. So far, there's nothing that could feasibly match me in combat. Now that I know how to deal with the Risen, there should be no problems.

Yes, he was certain that he could deal with anything that came at him or the militia.

Continuing north, the Shepherds came to a river. Stopping there for a moment, they quickly sent Frederick to scout out the area ahead. As they waited for Frederick to return, Chrom addressed the troops.

"Alright!" he hollered from the front. "This is the point of no return! If any of you have any second thoughts, turn back now and return to the capital! There will be no turning back after this point!"

When no one voiced any intention of leaving, Chrom continued.

"Very good..." he smirked. "Then I suggest that we-"

"W… Wait for me!"

The group turned to see a man on horseback in a mad rush to catch up to the them. Chrom shook his head in slight annoyance.

"Stahl…" the prince sighed. Upon reaching them, the man named Stahl dismounted his horse and sighed.

"Why was I the last to hear about this expedition to Ferox?" he complained. Lissa shook her head in exasperation.

"Vaike…" she muttered. Said blonde-haired warrior took a few steps back.

"What?" he asked, slightly confused. Walter smiled, hiding his displeasure.

"Weren't you supposed to inform the Shepherds that didn't attend the meeting about the mission? It seems "Ol' Teach" is beginning to grow forgetful..." the butler taunted. "Truly living up to the "Ol'" part of the title."

"Hey!" Vaike glared at Walter. "The Vaike never forgets! I just don't always remember, is all!"

"That's called forgetting." Walter retorted.

"I swear, Vaike..." Lissa scoffed. "If you didn't constantly shout your name, you'd forget that too," the blonde healer sighed.

"In fact, did you remember your axe this time?"

"Hey!" the warrior shook his fist at the Ylissean princess. "That was only one time! … Okay, twice, but training sessions don't count!" Vaike slung a large bag over his shoulder.

"I have my axe right here, so I'm ready to roll!" he declared.

"I may not be..." Stahl clutched his stomach. "I missed breakfast. There was so much food too. Cakes, muffins, and… I guess I'll tell you guys while we march."

Walter stuck his hand out towards Stahl.

"I don't believe we've been acquainted. My name is Walter Dornez," he introduced. Stahl shook Walter's hand cheerfully.

"Nice to meet you. My name is Stahl," he grinned. "Miriel told me we had a new Shepherd, but I didn't expect him to be so…" his voice trailed off.

"Old?" Vaike finished for the green clad knight.

"Oh come now..." the aged butler smirked. "I have plenty of life in me."

As they conversed, Sumia stepped out from Walter's shadow. Surprised, Stahl greeted the Pegasus Knight.

"Oh, hey Sumia!" Stahl laughed. "I didn't know you were part of this mission!"

"Yeah..." Sumia replied cheerfully. "I'm shadowing Walter today. If we get into a battle, he's going to help me out."

"It's good to see you, Sumia," Stahl smiled at his fellow Shepherd. "I just hope Walter's up to the task."

"Don't worry, guys," Chrom joined in the conversation. "Walter is much more than capable of holding his own."

Though Sumia seemed assured, Stahl and Vaike didn't look too convinced. Though they didn't voice their concerns and left it at that, Walter could tell that they weren't too certain. Still, he would prove himself capable in time.

"Milord!"

The group turned to see Frederick riding towards them, returning from his scouting mission. The expression on his face told Walter that there was trouble up ahead.

"What is it, Frederick?" the blue haired prince unsheathed his sword. "Is something wrong?"

Frederick nodded.

"The road ahead is littered with Risen..." he pointed across from the river.

"My God…" Walter looked beyond the horizon to see countless Risen ahead of them. "Have the Risen really spread this far?"

"Remember…" Chrom got into his battle stance. "Aim for the heart or the head."

The Shepherds immediately mobilized, prepping their weapons and materials. Wandering to the convoy, Walter ensured that everyone was properly equipped. Vaike was meanwhile unzipping the bag that supposedly carried his axe.

"I'm definitely going to leave an impression on them with my…" the blonde warrior paused. Walter and Lissa shook their heads in annoyance, knowing what exactly was wrong. Sully walked up to Vaike and back handed him.

"You forgot your axe again!?" the red-haired cavalier growled. "That's the third time!"

"We've no time to be arguing amongst ourselves!" Walter announced, pointing to the horizon. "The Risen have taken notice of us, we must act now!" Walter shouted as he slipped his gloves on.

"Vaike, stay close to me. We may not be the best of friends, but I'd rather you not die today," the butler stood in front of the man. Vaike was going to protest, but the sight of Walter's wires springing into action silenced him.

"Woah…" Sumia stared at the wires in fascination. The butler frowned as he scanned the horizon, his wires orbiting him as they always did.

These ones don't seem as well armed as the ones from last night... he noted. An all out assault seems to be the best strategy at the moment. Give them no chance to surround us, and eliminate all of them as we go along.

"Charge forward!" Walter barked. "Give no quarter, and clear the path!"

"Alright!" Chrom unsheathed his sword. "You heard the man! Charge!"

The group charged the Risen while Walter stayed back to defend Vaike if any Risen dared to attack.

The group easily cut down any Risen in their path. Despite being outnumbered, the Risen posed little to no challenge for the Shepherds; just as Walter had thought.

The Risen took notice of how Walter stayed in the back, and attempted to attack the "defenseless" old man. Much to the surprise of the group of Risen, they seemed to be slowly falling apart.

"Child's play..." Walter's wires danced around him cutting the Risen in his path. "You pose no threat to me..."

Sumia joined in the fray, and attacked any undead that Walter missed. She gracefully speared her opponents with her lance, riding on the back of a snow-white Pegasus.

She's not half bad... the butler smiled at Sumia's impressive skill with the lance.

"Can I get some help here?!"

Walter and Sumia turned to see Vaike, running away from a group of Risen. While the situation was dire, it was still somewhat comical to the duo.

"I thought I told you to stay close to me..." Walter sighed. "Did you forget how to follow orders as well?"

Vaike glared at the older man, whilst fleeing his attackers.

"Har har! Very funny!" Vaike replied sarcastically, narrowly avoiding getting his head sliced off. "Can you please help me out!?"

Walter scoffed at Vaike's plight. Moving to aid the man, he halted when he noticed an even greater group of Risen approaching from the west. Realizing that he had to prioritize crowd control, he turned to Sumia.

"Sumia..." he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Can you go save Vaike? The Risen seem to have reinforcements on hold."

Sumia looked down, unsure of herself.

"I don't think that I can-"

"Don't feed yourself that two bit "I can't do it" nonsense," Walter stopped her mid-sentence. "I've been watching you fight, Sumia. You're just as skilled with a lance as Frederick and Sully. You honestly don't need me to protect you."

The butler snapped his fingers, causing his wires to cut up a Risen that was crawling up behind him.

"Go, help Vaike." Walter urged.

The Pegasus Knight let Walter's words sink in. With a determined expression, she nodded.

"Got it..." Sumia let out a loud whistle, catching the attention of the Risen chasing Vaike. "Hey, freaks!" the soft spoken brunette gripped her lance tightly.

"Come and get me!"

Taking the bait, the undead corpses charged at Sumia. Pausing to see what Walter was up to, Chrom was shocked by Sumia's sudden surge in confidence. The group of Risen raised their axes to attack, only to be interrupted as Sumia charged through them on her Pegasus.

"That's a good girl..." Sumia cooed. "Let's show these guys what we can do."

Showcasing why she was a Pegasus Knight, Sumia began to decimate the Risen.

Elsewhere, Frederick and Stahl rushed several squads of Risen on horseback, leaving a trail of disintegrating corpses in their wake.

"You've improved, Stahl," Fredrick decapitated a Risen that had rushed him. "Last time we battled together, you almost fell off your horse several times. Did you glue yourself to your horse?" the usually stern great knight joked.

"Hey, the drill instructor CAN crack jokes..." Stahl retorted. "In seriousness, your advice from a few weeks ago helped."

He chucked a javelin straight into the chest of an incoming enemy.

"Glad to hear that."

In a different part of the battlefield, Sully had been soloing a group of the undead bastards for awhile. Running through several Risen, she let out a battle cry as she killed the monsters left and right.

"Hell yeah!" she fist pumped. However, she was so into the moment that she failed to notice that she missed one. The Risen lunged at her, going for her head.

Whoosh!

A well placed arrow stopped the Risen from dealing Sully any damage, killing it instantly.

"You should really watch your back, my dearest Sully..." Virion stood a good distance away, sniping any Risen that was within range. The red haired cavalier rolled her eyes at Virion's sad attempt at winning her heart.

"Why don't you mind your own business, Ruffles! I don't need your help!" Sully grit her teeth. The archest of archers proceeded to snipe another Risen that was crawling up behind Sully.

"I beg to differ, milady," Virion rapid fired three arrows—each hitting their mark—a cheeky grin on his face. "You seem to have problems watching your own back. You're too cocky."

Sully clicked her teeth in annoyance.

"I'm cocky!? If I'm cocky, then I'd hate to know what the hell you are!" she took out her frustration on a few more Risen.

"Well, I have a right to be cocky," he dodged a barrage of throwing axes. "My kill count—as of this moment—is ahead of yours by about ten." Virion pulled out two arrows, and embedded them into the skulls of two Risen.

"Make that twelve."

"Really!?" Sully ran down a whole mob of the undead enemy. "If you want to compete, then we'll compete! I'll show you that I don't need a pathetic yellow bellied noble watching my back!"

The silver-blue haired archer sighed.

"Very well..." Virion prepared another arrow. "Prepare to be left in my dust..."

While the two "lovebirds" competed for dominance, Walter held off the reinforcements that were pouring from across the bridge to the north. The aged butler continued to showcase the skills that earned him the moniker, Angel of Death. Luminescent blue wires danced across the bridge, leaving his enemies decimated.

"Pathetic..." Walter summoned his wires back to his side. A barrage of arrows flew straight at him. With the swipe of a hand, each arrow was cut out of the sky by the razor sharp wires.

Vaike seemed to be the only one not in the heat of battle. You really couldn't blame him though, since he lost his axe. So yeah, the situation he was in was entirely his fault...

"Where the hell is my axe!?" Vaike hid behind a rock while Sumia continued to protect him.

"Oh..." a unamused voice spoke out beside him. "I wondered what manner of ignoramus would mislay their weapon..."

Vaike turned around to see a female mage standing over him, with his axe in hand.

"Whoa, that's my axe!" he happily took the weapon from the mage. "Thanks, Miriel!"

Miriel rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"The duration that you've managed to survive baffles even I. Take your axe and get to work..." The sociopathic mage tossed Vaike his axe. "The next time you misplace your weapon, I'll fasten the weapon to your hands… permanently."

The warrior gulped as he ran off to aid Sumia.

Elsewhere, Walter had met with Chrom, and now stood back-to-back with the lord. As he swiped his hands, commanding his wires once more, the butler was briefly stunned when his wires briefly fizzled. To his further shock, they struggled to cut through Risen.

"Something's wrong sir..." Walter breathed heavily. "My wires... they're... not working..."

Chrom dodged an incoming arrow.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he deflected an attack before countering with his own.

"I... I don't know..." the butler replied with difficulty.

Suddenly, Walter felt his heart pounding in his chest. His breaths became abated. He was tired, more tired than was natural. Something was very VERY wrong with him, and he didn't know what it was.

Slowly—weakening like their master was—Walter's wires began to lose their strength and fade. Without his weapon, the butler was unable to properly deal with the numbers. Without crowd control, the two—Walter and Chrom—began- to steadily get surrounded. As they were, Walters wires began to grow more and more weak; eventually their luminescent glow beginning to fade.

"Walter!" Chrom took note of the slowly weakening wires. "Your wires!"

"I know!" the butler clicked his teeth in frustration. He wrapped his wires around the legs of a Risen and then tossed it into it's allies. Realizing that he wasn't going to last much longer relying on his wires, he had to call for aid.

"Frederick!" he hollered. The great knight heard the call and began riding towards the duo.

"What is it!?" he asked.

The group of Risen that they were dueling were slowly closing in on them.

"I think we can use some help here!" Walter called out as his wires began to quickly lose their glow.

Frederick nodded as he dodged an incoming axe strike from the Risen Chief. He made a beeline for Walter and Chrom, shoving anything that dared to get in his way. Seeing the great knight in action, Miriel provided decent cover fire with her fire tome. She pelted the unsuspecting Risen with a hail of flames.

"I seem to have cleared you a path, Frederick..." the battle mage said simply. "I recommend you take this advantageous circumstance whilst you have ample time."

Frederick nodded as he jumped into the mash pit of Risen that surrounded Chrom and Walter. As he did, Walter's wires finally lost their glow, and were rendered nothing more than useless strands of dulled metal. Knowing that he was useless without a weapon, he turned to Frederick.

"Frederick, hand me your sword!" Walter yelled, desperate. Hearing the plea, the knight unsheathed his spare weapon, and tossed it at the aged butler.

"I assume you know how to use one?" Frederick held his lance at the ready, standing beside both Chrom and Walter. Walter caught the blade and entered a fighting stance.

"It's been awhile, but yes," he slashed cleanly through a Risen.

South of them, Sumia managed to stop the steady onslaught of Risen; with very minimal aid from Vaike.

"That's what you get for messin with the Vaike!" the blonde warrior raised his axe in triumph. "Who's on top now!"

Sumia shook her head in amusement.

"I seem to recall that half the time they were chasing you around the battlefield..." she laughed.

Searching for more enemies, her eyes wandered over to the large group of Risen that were very quickly overwhelming Walter, Chrom, and Frederick.

"Oh no!" she cried with wide eyes.

The three warriors had no where to go. There weren't any openings or gaps in the horde. Worst of all, they were quickly losing steam.

Walter's swordsmanship, for lack of a better word, was mediocre. He hadn't any need to pick up a sword in years. By the time Integra was fifteen, she easily outmatched him in terms of sword combat. There were times when he'd have to resort to using his monofilament wires just to avoid getting hit, which Integra always called him out on. Eventually Alucard began to teach her the finer points of swordplay, passing down everything he knew about the art.

I'm going to need to study swordplay again if my wires are going to crap out on me like this! Walter grunted as he slashed through another Risen. My age and stamina have never been a problem in past few years! Why am I having performance issues now of all times!?

"Walter, heads up!"

The butler looked up to see Sumia on her Pegasus, flying above them. A clever idea quickly popped up into Walter's head.

"Sumia, can a Pegasus handle the combined weight of four people!?" he inquired as he barely deflected an incoming strike to his head. Sumia nodded.

"I guess, but do you need any help down there?" she asked.

"I think we're going to need to take a flight out of here, Sumia!" Walter slashed at several more Risen. "Chrom, Federick! I need you two to cover me!"

"Take a flight... oh..." the Pegasus knight quickly realized what Walter was up to. "He's either the most insane old man I've ever seen, or the cleverest."

The butler tried to concentrate as much energy as he could into his gloves. Walter's wires weren't responding to his commands.

Come on... I just need you to do one last thing...

He smiled as the wires attached to his right glove faded back into existence, albeit very dimly.

"Chrom, take my hand!" he commanded. "Frederick, hold onto Chrom!"

"What're you doing?" Chrom grabbed hold of Walter's free hand

The butler smiled as his wires wrapped around the leg of Sumia's Pegasus. He gave Sumia a thumbs up.

"Walter…" Chrom quickly realized what was about to happen. "Don't you dare…"

Walter smiled sheepishly as Sumia's Pegasus dragged the butler, the knight, and the prince into the air. Frederick and Chrom screamed their heads off as they were dragged out of the mash pit made up of Risen. Walter chuckled to himself as he watched the two scream for their lives.

"And for my next trick..." the aged butler eyed the horde of Risen. "I have just enough energy to do this…"

He used the last of his stamina to command his wires to cut the group into nothing but bloody bits. Watching the carnage from afar, the butler had a satisfied smirk on his face.

"Walter..." Chrom looked towards the ground. "If you only had just enough energy to do that..." the prince looked up to Walter with concerned eyes.

"...how're your wires still attached to Sumia's Pegasus?"

The words hit Walter a second later.

"Oh dear…"

As if on cue, the wires retracted back into the butler's glove. The three Shepherds dropped like rocks a moment later. While Chrom and Frederick fell on their backs, Walter landed in a much more graceful manner.

"That went better than I thought it would..." the butler dusted himself off. "Are you two alright?"

Frederick only gave a thumbs up, while Chrom steadily got to his feet.

"Never do that again..." the prince of Ylisse coughed up some dirt.

"No promises, sir," Walter replied cheekily. His attention turned to the Risen Chief. "Chrom, Frederick, I recommend you two rest up. We seem to have one last hurdle to jump over."

"Are you sure you can take it?" Frederick sat up. "You look no better than us."

The butler eyed the remaining Shepherds. Vaike was being tended to by Lissa, Stahl looked like he was out of steam, and Miriel seemed to be distracted by the vegetation, which really annoyed Walter to no end. Finally, Sumia seemed to be engaged with the Risen Chief.

"What!?"

Sumia charged the monster on her Pegasus. As lance and axe clashed, it became apparent that she was fighting a losing battle. One good punch to the face later, and Sumia was launched off her Pegasus. The Risen Chief raised his axe, intending to go for the kill, but was suddenly stabbed through the back by a silver sword. It slowly disintegrated into smoke.

The Pegasus Knight looked up to see Walter.

"You shouldn't have faced the leader alone…" Walter chided. "Am I going to need to save you lot every time you so much as stub your toe?" he said jokingly.

Moving to pick the hazel-haired woman of the ground, Walter suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest. Letting out a pained groan, he dropped to his knee.

"Walter?" Sumia's eyes were wide with concern.

"I'm alright..." the butler lied, his blood feeling like it was burning. "Just call Lissa over here so she can-" Walter let out a violent cough, blood exploding from his mouth.

"Walter!" Sumia cried out as the butler fell forward.

Lying face down on the ground, Walter wheezed as he coughed up another glob of blood. The pain, the exhaustion, Walter realized what was wrong with him. He'd experienced these ailments before.

As he slowly lost conscious, Walter took the moment to silently curse Millennium for turning him into a vampire.


Northern Ylisse - The Northroad
July 18, Age 2609 (8:12 P.M.)

Where am I?

Walter's eyes slowly fluttered open as he regained consciousness. His sight was dimmed, and his feelings were numb. He waited for several minutes before his body seemed to finally be back to normal. Sitting up, he took in his surroundings. He was inside a tent.

Probably a medical tent... the butler hypothesized.

Looking down, he was still in his normal attire. Noticing that his gloves weren't removed, he swiftly slipped them off. His eyes widened upon seeing the backs of both of his hands. On the back of his left hand was an odd symbol that seemed to resemble a six-eyed creature. On the back of his right was something that resembled Alucard's sealing sigil.

What in God's name…?

"You're awake."

Walter looked up, quickly concealing his hands in the process. Chrom had entered the tent, a relieved expression on his face.

"What happened?" Walter asked. Chrom pulled up a chair, and sat next to the butler.

"You blacked out after we secured our victory. We set up camp as quickly as we could, as you were apparently in critical condition according to Lissa."

"Is that so?" Walter sighed in sadness. "Maybe I should head back to Ylisstol. I don't wish to be a burden."

Chrom shook his head.

"Don't be hard on yourself, Walter," the blue-haired prince said reassuringly. "You were extremely helpful on the battlefield. We may not have won that fight without those amazing wires of yours, even if they gave out midway through."

"Perhaps..." the butler looked down at his black fingerless gloves on the table next to him. "If only I had access to my other two pairs of gloves..."

"What would a different pair of gloves do to help you?" Chrom questioned, eyebrow raised.

"Let me explain..." Walter crossed his arms, though making sure to hide the back of his hands. "If you haven't figured it out by now, my wires strength are directly proportional to my stamina; the less tired I am, the stronger they are..." the butler gestured to the gloves.

"I used to own three pairs of gloves, a white pair, a black pair, and these gloves right here. Each pair had varying strengths. The white pair gave me access to a substantially weaker variation of my wires, with the upside being the fact that it took a lot less effort to use them in turn. The black pair were balanced, not too strong or tiresome. My fingerless pair contain the most powerful wires at my disposal, but they take far too much energy to use continuously in battle, at least as I am now..."

"So you can't use them for as long as you used to..." Chrom raised an eyebrow. "Can't you make a new pair of gloves? I doubt attaching wires to them would be that difficult."

Walter shook his head.

"There's a reason I only kept three pairs of gloves..." the butler scoffed at Chrom's naivety. "The alchemy involved in making even the weakest version of my them would take at least a month to create. Not to mention the ritual needed to bless the wires requires immense concentration which I—as we are currently in the middle of a mission—don't have to spare at the moment."

"I see..." Chrom stood up. "Well as your superior, I order you to remain with the group for the entirety of this mission."

The Angel of Death laughed at his master's order.

"Very well. By your orders, sir."

The Ylissean prince nodded as he exited the tent. As he did, Walter's smile turned into a scowl.

"It seems I'm not quite as free as I thought I was..." he muttered to himself. "The artificial vampirization process seems to still have it's hold on me..."

Walter examined the sealing sigil.

"I'm going to need to examine this when I get the chance... with any luck, I'll be able to figure out what exactly is causing me such problems..."

The butler then turned his attention to the other symbol.

"A six-eyed beast and a sealing sigil. I doubt I'll find out what the six-eyed creature is, but a sealing sigil implies that something has been sealed within me... I'm fairly certain of what it is though..." Walter sighed in annoyance. "I might as well get some more rest... I have no doubt that tomorrow may just be just as exhausting as today; maybe more so..."

Closing his eyes, the butler let himself drift off into sleep. As he slowly let the sweet embrace of rest take him, he forgot all his worries for that moment. After all...

...things weren't going to get even more complicated, right?

How terribly wrong her was...


Writer's Notes

Y'know, I'm fairly surprised with how well this chapter held up...

Combing through the chapter—making corrections as I went along—I barely had to change much. I didn't add anything too noteworthy, and only tinkered with some of the wording. Most of my changes have to do with Walter and his wire problem. Other than that, nothing really noteworthy.

For my first real attempt at a battle scene, this was surprisingly well done—though it lacks much of the polish, and spectacle, of later chapters. Overall, I think this was my first decent chapter; not good, but not bad either.


Behind the Keyboard

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The gloves being tiered - In Hellsing, we know that Walter has at least three pairs of gloves: the white pair, the black leather pair, and the fingerless pair. I always wondered why he'd change gloves, despite the fact that he'd shown that he could use the wires utilizing any three of them. After theorizing, I eventually just came to the conclusion that each had a different level of power. It's my head-canon, and there's really no proof saying otherwise.

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The first signs - Anyone who's all caught up knows that I basically set up the biggest reoccurring plot element—thus far—in this chapter. Believe or not, one of the largest aspects of said plot element was just added on the fly. I decided to add "it" after concluding that it would add some more layers to the story; granted I never thought, planned, or imagined that it would lead to where it has so far. Imagine that... one of the MOST IMPORTANT aspects of later chapters was added at the last second...

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With another battle behind him, Walter continues his adventure through the land of Ylisse. What is it that the sealing sigil is sealing and what is the meaning of the second symbol on his other hand? Find out...

Next Time!