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Chapter III – A Choice Is Made
Pain.
Darkness.
Those were the only two things that Seras could sense right now. Anything else was long forgotten, buried down in the deepest places of her mind. Her whole body felt like it had been crushed and flattened. Bones felt shattered and the splinters stabbed into her muscles, causing them to seize up in agony. She felt hot – unbearably hot. Her breathing came out in shallow gasps as the air around her felt thin and void.
In her panic, her other senses began to return. She wiggled her fingers, her nails scraping along a hard surface as the rest of her body twitched. The feeling of her legs and feet returned to her, and a dull ache began to concentrate itself on her stomach. Her eyes finally fluttered open, revealing that she was lying face down on a ground that seemed to be made of varnished marble. It felt cool against her squished nose and other exposed skin. But unfortunately it did nothing to soothe the intense heat that radiated around her body, as if the core of her being was a star, pulsating with a power that was too much for her to handle.
The pains in her stomach intensified, so Seras decided to finally try and finally push herself up off the ground in the hopes of easing the pressure on her abdomen. Her limbs were shaky as she did so, and she almost fell down again. But she kept pushing herself, despite her body's protests. It was like her whole body was made of lead. That or someone had increased the forces of gravity.
Seras coughed and doubled over as another sharp pain shot through her stomach. It almost reminded her of the really bad period pains that she used to get while she was still human. An involuntary groan escaped past her lips before she finally forced herself to look up and figure out where she was now. Her memories of before she had woken up here were fuzzy at best. All she knew was that she needed to run. She needed to escape.
But escape from what?
There was no way that Seras was sticking around to find out.
Gasping in pain, the draculina opted for simply crawling forward on her hands and knees. Her head finally felt light enough to look up properly and take in her surroundings. She appeared to be in some sort of hallway. It put the grandness of the Hellsing manor to shame. However, the hallway seemed to stretch on for an eternity. There were no doors on either side, just simply one long passageway that led into darkness on either end. An occasional table or bureau decorated the sides, along with many candles that adorned the walls providing the only source of light.
The ground was some sort of grey marble with a faded dark red carpet travelling down the middle like a never ending road. The dark stone walls curved towards the top, forming arches before meeting each other on the ceiling. Each arch seemed to be adorned with intricate patterns and symbols, though most of them just looked like meaningless swirls to Seras.
She was quickly snapped out of her thoughts when another sharp pain shot through her stomach. She doubled over once again, pressing against her abdomen with her hand in a feeble attempt to stop the pain in its tracks. It didn't work. Seras hadn't even realised that she had squeezed her eyes tightly shut until she opened them again, only to be met by the sight of blood dripping from her, staining the plain white dress she was wearing.
Terrified, Seras reached a hand under her dress before pressing it between her legs, the tender pain shooting through her whole body instantly. Seras yanked her hand back, pulling it out of her dress once again before staring down at her fingers in alarm. Thick blood coated her pale fingers. It oozed down into the palm of her hand and Seras could no longer control the whimper of fear that escaped her.
What was going on?
A sudden movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention, and the young vampire gasped and looked back up to see a figure leaning against the pillars of one of the arches a few feet ahead of her. Seras blinked, and the figure became clearer. His red trench coat seemed to billow out in a breeze that Seras could not feel. His hands were nestled deep in his pockets and his red fedora cast most of his face in dark shadow. But Seras could still see that all too familiar smirk dancing across his lips.
"Master!" Seras cried out, reaching her blood stained hand out towards him.
Her master didn't move. Even though she couldn't see his eyes, Seras knew that they were boring directly into her own. It was always like her master could see right into her very soul. She always felt exposed when he looked at her. It was if he knew every part of her in intimate detail and there was no recess of her being that he had not touched. It sent a shiver up her spine every time.
Seras pulled her hand back slightly, confused and frightened.
The smirk never left her master's face as he slowly turned around and began walking into the darkness of the hallway, never once looking back at her.
"Master, wait!" Seras pleaded, pushing herself forward again, only for another stab of pain to halt her in her tracks. This time it was way more painful than before. So painful that Seras let out a blood-curdling scream, her hands gripping her abdomen as she felt like she was about to be torn in half. The pain came and went in waves, and whenever it subsided for a few seconds, Seras pushed herself forward again, desperate to follow her master.
Halt. Scream. Crawl forward. Halt. Scream. Crawl forward. Halt. Scream. Crawl forward.
It felt like it was never going to end.
The pain only grew more intense the further Seras pushed herself. She was beginning to feel hot blood trickling down her thighs, staining her dress even more and leaving a trail of blood behind her as she fought to continue crawling forward. It felt like her insides were being squeezed and tortured. But she had to keep going.
Why hadn't her master helped her?
She felt completely and utterly alone and abandoned. Just like that night.
Gritting her teeth, Seras tried to pick up her pace, practically dragging the lower half of her body as it became paralysed by pain. She wasn't going to give up. She wasn't going to give in. More blood continued to gush out of her, making her weaker and weaker. But it was all worth it when the hallway seemed to finally open out into a much larger room – no – a great hall.
The walls appeared to stretch upwards forever, the ceilings dark and invisible as if she was staring up at the very surface of hell itself. Arched windows revealed nothing but pitch blackness outside. Seras very much felt like she was trapped in her own small corner of hell. Was that it? Was she dead? Was she in hell? Was she being tortured for choosing to turn her back on her humanity and become a creature of the night, defying the laws of nature and cheating death?
What caught Seras' attention was a large throne in the middle of all the madness. It looked to be made of gold and red velvet cushions, almost reminding the young vampire of the chair in her master's quarters back in the Hellsing manor. Only this one was much fancier and fit for a king. It sat empty, but Seras could feel the power radiating from it.
However, Seras didn't have time to gawk further as another wave of intense pain shot through her, this one being the worst one so far. She threw her head back and screamed, collapsing into a heap once again in a puddle of her own blood. Crying, Seras curled into a foetal position, her stomach still feeling like it was being ripped apart. Her whole body twitched and writhed. Blood splattered from between her legs and that's when Seras felt something move under the fabric. The pain had subsided slightly only to be replaced by a throbbing sensation rather than sharp stabs.
Seras gasped for air, uncurling herself slightly to see something crawl out from under her dress. All the female vampire could manage in response was a weak whimper, her throat constricting in fear and preventing any other sound from escaping her. She finally forced herself to glance down to where she had felt the movement, only to see…
Herself?
The second Seras finished crawling out from between the first ones legs who could do nothing but watch in horror. Naked and covered in blood, the other Seras continued to slither along the floor before coming to a stop next to the throne and nuzzling the leg of the occupant who Seras only now just noticed. The other Seras finally gazed back at her, her eyes wild and glowing red with a sinister smile on her face. A gloved hand reached down to pet the top of her head and she leaned into the touch.
Seras followed the arm up to see her master was the one now occupying the chair, his hand still resting on the other Seras' head as he crossed once leg over the other. He was staring at the original Seras with a look of pure disgust, to which she collapsed once again in response, staring at the two of them together, feeling very much like an unwanted outsider. Her body grew weaker to a point where she was struggling to keep her eyes open. All of her limbs ached as they lay sprawled out in her own blood.
Click.
Seras looked back up just in time to see the barrel of her master's gun pointing towards her.
BANG!
Air was sucked into her lungs so rapidly that Seras almost choked. She bolted upwards, only to smack her head against something hard, knocking her back down again. The dull ache of the pain only lasted a few seconds before her body healed itself from the blow, and Seras attempted to stretch her arms out above her, only to once again be met by a hard wall.
Her eyes slowly opened, her eyelids stiff as if this was the first time she had opened them for years. She wiggled her body only for it to be met with more hard stone walls surrounding her. She was trapped in something. It didn't take long for her claustrophobia to kick in, and Seras began to gasp, unable to make heads or tails of what was going on. Where was she? What happened?
Panicking, Seras pushed her arms forward again, this time placing her hands flat on the surface. Whatever the object was that was keeping her caged gave way, much to her relief. The sound of stone scraping against stone stung the vampire's sensitive ears as she tried to make sense of her surroundings. Finally a dull light was let into Seras' prison and she slowly pulled herself up into a sitting position. Her head spun for a few seconds before settling, and her whole body felt stiff and heavy. The smell of dried blood and dirt assaulted her nose.
Looking up, Seras noticed that she had in fact been lying in some sort of stone tomb. It was unmarked, but grains of dirt were scattered on the stone and around it. She slowly dipped her finger into the dark flecks before bringing it up to her nose and sniffing. The smell reminded her of the wet and rainy days back in England. This was English soil. The soil of her birth.
Wiping the dirt off her hands, the draculina investigated further, positioning herself to climb out of the stone coffin only to freeze in place when she noticed that she seemed to be encased in a much larger tomb. It looked almost like a family crypt that Seras used to see in old, fancy estates and castles. A few other empty stone coffins lay beside her, and her senses told her that she was alone in the room. But she couldn't be sure. She felt so weak.
The vampire stood unsteadily on her feet, looking around some more. A few candles dimly lit the room and a few empty glass jars and bottles lay scattered on the ground by her feet. Large stone pillars held up the ceiling and there appeared to only be one dark wooden door leading in and out of the room. Some dried blood stained the stone of the ground and the coffin Seras had woken up in. A quick sniff confirmed that it was her own blood.
The smell immediately brought back memories, and Seras clutched her head as they pounded into her brain one painful punch at a time. What she had done to the campers… running for her life… being attacked… then… then… someone saved her? That had to be the case, otherwise why was Seras standing here right now? But… why would someone save her? Vampires rarely if ever cared for the fate of strangers.
Seras tried to push her senses further, but it was like trying to stretch a stubborn elastic band. It was so stiff and weak that it couldn't reach very far, snapping back to her. But if Seras had to go on instinct, she knew that at least someone had to be nearby. Someone had taken great care in ensuring her recovery from her attack. They had even gone to the trouble of using the soil of her birth. Where had they even gotten that from anyway? What did they want with her? They must want her for something if they had kept her alive.
Fear began to rise in the young vampire once again. She needed to get out of here. She needed to escape.
Taking one unsure step forward to test her legs, Seras sighed with relief when she didn't immediately collapse. She was still spooked from her weird nightmare and was worried that the pain from her dream would return any second. The draculina made her way towards the door and pressed her ear against it, listening for any signs of movement. There wasn't any.
With a suspicious frown, Seras bent down to grab on of the glass bottles from the ground before smashing it against one of the pillars, leaving the edges jagged and deadly weapons. It was better than nothing she supposed.
Seras pulled on the metallic door handle. The door was heavy but no match for her vampire strength, even in her weakened state. On the other side, she was immediately met with the sight of a stone staircase leading up. Torches were lit on either side of the door, but the rest of her surroundings were encased in darkness.
"'Guess I'm going up," Seras whispered to herself, remaining on high alert as she slowly ascended the stairs.
They were very old and worn with imprints of where people had been walking for decades, perhaps even centuries. She made sure to tread carefully, almost gliding along the steps to ensure she didn't make a single sound.
Finally she reached the top where another smaller wooden door stood closed. Her ears pricked up when she heard what sounded like hushed voices coming from the other side. She held onto the glass bottle even tighter, nearly smashing it in her own grip in the process. When she was a few metres from the door, she froze and cocked her head to try and listen to the conversation on the other side.
"You got any twos?" someone asked.
"Go fish," someone else replied.
Seras frowned. Someone was playing Fish on the other side? What the fuck was going on?!
Both voices sounded male.
The first voice she had heard sighed loudly. "It's been weeks. I'm sick of guarding her."
"Hush," the other voice replied harshly. "Eva checked on her earlier and she's almost fully recovered."
"She's so pathetic. Why are we doing this?"
"Boss' orders."
"I'd much rather be doing something else with my time." The first voice let out a loud huff.
"Don't let Ana hear you say that," the other warned.
"I just hate how we're stuck on babysitting duty while she goes off and disappears."
The other male merely sighed in response.
"We should never have gotten involved in this."
"Do you like keeping your limbs attached to your body? Yes? Then shut the fuck up!"
"Ssssh the poor little draculina might hear you, remember?"
The mocking sympathy made Seras' blood boil.
Something then smashed and Seras could only guess that one of them had thrown something.
"Hey watch it! I've only just grown this eye back!" the first voice she had heard snapped.
"Keep your voice down!" the other hissed out. "We don't want to scare her if she wakes up!"
"The bitch can go rot for all I care!"
"Hold your tongue!" a familiar female voice suddenly entered the room, causing Seras to jump further back from the door. "Edmund you need to refer to her with more respect! After all, I'm sure the last thing you want to do is antagonise a draculina."
"And what exactly is His Majesty going to do about it?" Edmund sneered back.
"I wasn't referring to our lord," Ana replied darkly before chuckling.
Seras had had enough. The mention of her master was too much for her. She was getting out of here.
Screaming like a wild animal, Seras burst through the door, bottle held in front of her as she pointed it towards the three vampires in the room. It appeared to be some sort of back kitchen area filled mainly with wooden tables and chairs. The three vampires were startled slightly by Seras' sudden appearance, but otherwise remained unmoving. Seras watched them as she backed herself into a corner, still holding the broken bottle in front of her, ready to strike if they dared to come near her. She could feel dark energy swirling around her, but it was weak.
Her red eyes moved to assess the vampires in the room with her. They were the real deal, she could immediately tell. Real full vampires. She had never officially met any before unless you counted the brief encounters she had when accidentally crossing into their territory. It immediately had Seras on edge. She was outnumbered and outmatched. She could tell that these vampires were older and more experienced.
The two males remained sat down near one of the smaller wooden tables, their card game forgotten about as they lay spread out across the table in a mess. Glass pieces littered the stone tiled floor which Seras guessed was the object that had been thrown a few seconds ago. A few rays of moonlight shone into the room through the small glass windows behind her, but other than that, the room was very dark and grey.
One of the males was much larger than the other, and he almost reminded Seras of a typical lumberjack. His whole body was covered in thick brown hair, giving him a very shaggy and unkempt appearance, and his beard was long and fell down to his chest. He was dressed in simple faded light blue jeans and a cream coloured t-shirt. His red eyes stared at her, his expression neutral as he appraised her before a humorous glint appeared in his eye.
The other male, Edmund, was a lot smaller, but looked far more sophisticated. His blonde hair was more neatly groomed and brushed back away from his face. His nose was sharp, as were most of his features. His attire consisted of a white shirt covered by a white polo jumper, and smart brown trousers. His posture was stiff unlike the relaxed one of the male opposite him. He regarded Seras with a sneer before folding his arms across his chest and looking away, almost as if he was bored.
Seras' eyes then fell to the female who was stood just in front of the doorway opposite her. Her hair fell straight down to the middle of her chest and was a vivid red. She dressed in a more old-fashioned Victorian style red and black dress that she had pulled up to the middle of her lower leg for ease of movement, revealing black high heal shoes that shone in the moonlight. The bodice portion clung to her every curve and her expression remained blank as she stared back at Seras, unintimidated.
That's when Seras recognised her.
"You…" she gasped out, pointing the bottle at the female specifically.
The female – Ana – smirked in response.
"How nice for us to have crossed paths again, Seras Victoria," she chuckled. "I trust you are feeling well rested and recovered?"
She made a move towards her, but Seras backed up, holding the bottle more firmly.
"I'd stay back if I were you," Seras warned, narrowing her eyes at them.
The larger male vampire burst out laughing. "I'm sorry, sweetheart, but it's hard to take you seriously looking like that!" He continued laughing. Even Edmund cracked a small smile, though he still refused to look at her.
Seras looked down at herself and only now just realised that she was dressed in some sort of small, blue cotton nightgown that rested just above her knees. It hung from her shoulders by thin straps, and that's when she understood exactly what the large male vampire was talking about. Here she was in a nightgown, covered in dry flakes of blood and mud, threatening a bunch of elder vampires with a broken bottle. She must look bloody ridiculous.
At that thought, Seras relaxed slightly, lowering the bottle before her eyebrows furrowed in embarrassment. She was constantly just a big joke in the vampire community. No one ever took her seriously. Then again, she never gave them much reason to.
"I like her!" the larger male vampire shouted out again. "She's funny!"
Edmund rolled his eyes.
"There's no need for bold threats, Draculina. We're not going to hurt you. You're far more valuable to us alive," the large male added, and Seras wasn't sure if that was a threat or a joke.
"I… I don't understand…" Seras almost felt dizzy with confusion.
Ana kept smirking at her, even as she began to speak. "Enchanté, little draculina. I'm Anastasia."
She held out her hand for Seras to shake. The draculina stared at it for a few seconds before slowly placing her small hand into Anastasia's much more elegant one. Anastasia shook it, but when Seras moved to pull away, she tightened her grip, preventing Seras from escaping.
"I think it's best that I speak with Seras Victoria alone." She glared towards the two men. "We have much to discuss and I want to make things as easy for her as possible."
"Yeah yeah, we can take a hint," the larger male groaned as he stood up before leaving the room, promptly followed by Edmund. The door slammed closed behind them, leaving Seras all alone with the female vampire who had threatened to kill her should they ever cross paths again. She once again tried to pull her hand out of Anastasia's grasp, but to no avail.
"Do not be afraid," Anastasia reassured.
"It's kinda hard not to be…" Seras mumbled awkwardly.
"How are you feeling?" She ignored Seras' remark.
"Ummm… okay I guess…?" Seras frowned in confusion.
Anastasia's eyes trailed over her, making Seras feel even more uncomfortable. It almost reminded Seras of an overbearing mother. Not that she would know what that felt like. She was now torn between wanting answers and wanting to get the hell out of there. She had never been around any other vampires apart from her master for such a long period of time. She didn't know what to do or what to say. But Seras figured she needed to start somewhere.
"Th-thank you," she stuttered out at last.
Anastasia raised a delicate red eyebrow.
"For saving my life," Seras clarified before looking away awkwardly again.
"That Elias is a brute," Anastasia growled out. "I wouldn't wish him on my worst enemy."
"You know him?" This shocked Seras.
Anastasia laughed. "Most of us older vampires know each other. It's a small world to us after all."
"But why?"
Anastasia stopped laughing. "Hmm?"
"Why did you save me? Especially after our previous fight?"
Anastasia was silent for a few moments, almost as if she was trying to think of the correct wording. "I suppose that after what transpired between us, I wanted to see what you would do next. It's been so long since I've been in the presence of vampire royalty. I suppose our kind can't help but be drawn to you. So I followed you. It was quite entertaining until that barbarian showed up. I must say that you were very brave yet stupid to antagonise him in such a way." There was a hint of amusement in her eyes.
"Well trust me, I don't go purposefully looking for trouble," Seras replied, finally managing to pull her hand back. "But I still don't understand…"
"Perhaps I just saved you for selfish reasons," Anastasia continued to explain. "Perhaps in you I see a new little project. Perhaps it's because you're a draculina and having you around will certainly make things more interesting in this boring eternity." Her red eyes once again scanned Seras.
"A project? Thanks but no thanks. I appreciate you saving me, but I really need to get out of here." Seras made to take a step towards the door.
"Where will you go?" It sounded like Anastasia was trying to hold back laughter.
"I don't know." Seras shrugged. "Anywhere but Europe."
"Why?"
"I think you know why." Seras was now beginning to grow really frustrated with this woman.
"I want to hear you say it."
"I'm scared, okay?!" Seras finally shrieked, throwing her arms out at either side.
"Of what?" Anastasia continued to press.
Seras growled lowly to herself before whispering, "my master."
Anastasia laughed again, this time sounding more maniacal. Were all vampires this crazy? Was Seras the only sane one in existence?
"Aren't we all?" She laughed again at her own joke.
"You don't understand," Seras began pleading before stopping herself. What was the point? This lady was clearly a waste of time.
"Seras Victoria…" Anastasia spoke her name as if trying to sound it out. "You truly have no idea what you are, do you?"
"A vampire?"
Anastasia laughed again. "Okay, I think I'm inclined to agree with Levi. You are rather funny."
"Stop laughing at me!" Seras demanded, feeling more and more like a circus freak every second.
Anastasia's laughing slowed to a stop before she hummed as she gazed down at Seras thoughtfully, tapping one of her fingers against her chin. "You truly are a wonderfully unique creature," she began speaking again as she slowly circled the younger vampire. "You have the power equivalent to that of a god and you don't even realise it."
"Eh?"
"Seras Victoria, you were created by Dracula himself; the vampire king; the first and most powerful of our kind. Surely you must have figured out by now that you are no ordinary vampire?" Anastasia began to explain.
"I… I…" was all Seras could stutter in response.
"I was hardly going to let you go to waste on that filth. Such beauty and uniqueness needs to be moulded by noble hands. You're a rare diamond that simply needs to be polished in order to shine. All of that power is locked inside you, almost fighting to burst out at this point. I saw it… I saw it when you tore apart those campers. We just need to be able to access it and control it," Anastasia explained.
All of this went way over Seras' head, but she tried to simplify what she had just been told as best as she could. "So I'm what… a ticking bomb?"
"A ticking nuclear bomb."
Seras gulped.
"But everything will be fine, Seras Victoria, because you have me now," Anastasia got that weird glint in her eye again. She almost looked like an artist who had just been blessed by the muses.
"What are you saying?"
"I can help you. I'm placing you under my care," Anastasia declared.
"Wh-what?!" Seras gasped. "So that's why you saved me? You want to turn me into some sort of weapon?! Oh no no no no no!"
"You fear your master, right?" Anastasia questioned as she ignored Seras' protests.
Seras found herself nodding before she could stop herself.
"So wouldn't it be great if you learned how to defend yourself against him?"
"I… I don't know…"
"I hear Hellsing is old and sick. How much longer until the vampire king is free? How much longer until he is free to wreak havoc on the continent again? How long before he finds you? I've seen first-hand how he executes those who displease him. He knows the slowest ways to kill and torture anyone… he makes it last until they're begging for death… fledgling or no fledgling… His Majesty is a man of his word. There will be nowhere on this earth you can hide from him. He'll always find you –"
"Okay! Stop it!" Seras shrieked, placing her hands over her ears.
"I'm just telling you the truth, Seras Victoria," Anastasia replied innocently, her voice almost hypnotic as she folded her arms across her chest. "The choice is yours. You can run… or you can stand your ground and fight… after all, you're the only creature alive powerful enough to stand a chance against him. Don't you want to prove yourself? Show him you're not just a pathetic weakling? Get revenge on him for the way he has treated you?"
"Enough!" Seras pleaded again, unable to take much more of this. It really felt like Anastasia was trying to push every button possible, hoping that one of them was the right one.
Deep down though, she knew that Anastasia was right… She didn't want to spend the rest of her life on the run. But there was no way she could fight her master either. She didn't want revenge. Sure, he'd hurt her, but that didn't mean that she wanted to hurt him back. But… if she learnt just enough to defend herself should she ever come across him again… He wouldn't hunt her down like Anastasia had said, right? Her master had gotten rid of her because he couldn't stand her anymore. So why would he go looking for her?
Then she thought about the vampire who had attacked her – almost killed her! She never stood a chance against him. Seras was powerless. She would be dead right now if it wasn't for Anastasia. In fact, it was a miracle that Seras hadn't been killed sooner.
Seras was lost and alone. She knew so little of the vampire world. This could be her only chance to learn to use her powers properly and fight back. Then she could move on with her life. The opportunity was being offered to her on a silver platter by a senior vampire no less. A vampire that seemed determined to mould her into a fighter. Seras would be stupid to pass up on this chance, even if she didn't trust the new vampires she found herself with.
Seras took a deep breath. Her decision was made.
She looked back up at Anastasia who was watching her every move with an excited sparkle in her eye.
Seras just hoped that she didn't live to regret her next words.
"Okay. I'll do it."
Dun dun duuun! What have you gotten yourself into Seras? This chapter took so much tweaking, so I just hope that it's okay. It was one of those stubborn ones that I struggled to translate from my head and into text. But anyway, feel free to let me know what you think. It's always a huge help! Until the next time, take care of yourselves!
