Welcome back! Thank you so much for your reviews! I'm super excited that so many people are enjoying the story so far, and that I have a lot of you confused as to what's going on lol. I guess you'll just have to keep reading to find out mwah ha ha ha haaaa!
Chapter IV – Complete Ignorance
The silver light of the crescent moon bathed the whole chamber in a soft glow. Seras found herself unable to look away from the twinkling stars in the night sky, hoping that all of this was just a bad dream. A deep pit had formed in her stomach after she had made her decision. Something just didn't feel right, and the young vampire couldn't quite put her finger on it. Her instincts screamed at her, yet she couldn't translate what they were trying to tell her. Perhaps it was simply because she was in a strange new place full of strange new people. Yes. That had to be it. While their motives were questionable, Anastasia had promised that no harm would come to her.
Though she could always be lying.
However, if that was the case, surely they could have killed her long ago? Why bother saving her, only to then kill her themselves? Why was Anastasia so keen to help her? The red headed woman's riddled answers didn't make very much sense. Despite the pain of the memories, Seras thought back to what her master had taught her: vampires were selfish. They only did something for others if there was something in it for them. They were creatures that were the epitome of greed and desire.
Seras sighed to herself before running her hands through her blonde hair, hunching further over as she continued sitting on the edge of the large coffin that had been provided for her. It was intricately decorated with all kinds of symbols that the young vampire couldn't hope to decipher. The inside was laced with the finest red silk that was soft beneath her fingers. It sat in the middle of where one would expect a four poster bed to be, with red velvet curtains surrounding the space to aid in blocking out the light of the day. Matching curtains billowed out from the wide and open double doors that led out onto a stone balcony, providing the perfect view of the beautiful night sky.
This place was far grander than anything Seras had ever experienced. According to Anastasia, this was her room now for as long as she wanted it. She had then been abruptly left alone when Levi had arrived and whispered something into Anastasia's ear, much too low for the draculina to hear. Not that she had the energy to pay attention anyway.
Seras tore her gaze away from the stars to finally fully take in the room she had been given. It was a large circular room at the top of a tower, with dark varnished double doors that closed her off from the rest of… whatever building it was they were in. Seras still wasn't sure exactly where she was. It didn't look like the room had been used in years but it seemed to be well maintained. The floor was a grey stone predominantly covered with the softest rugs and furs. Tapestries decorated most of the stone walls. Candles hung unlit from the walls along with a chandelier that hung from the pointed ceiling.
Apart from all of that, there wasn't much furniture. There was what looked like a closet, a vanity, and a chest of drawers, all made out from the same dark, varnished wood as the doors. A chest was also pushed up against the wall and there was another smaller door that Seras had yet to explore the contents of. But she didn't dare move from this spot.
Despite the medieval richness of the room, Seras couldn't help but feel like she was a prisoner, trapped in a dark and twisted fairy tale. How had her life come to this? Never in a million years would she have guessed that she would be in this situation. Throughout her entire immortal life, Seras kept expecting to wake up back in her tiny London flat, and that all of this had just been a bad dream. She had never been shot and killed by her master. He had never turned her into a vampire. In fact, none of this stuff even existed. She would be back in boring reality, living a normal human life.
At nineteen, Seras had never really thought much of her future when she had still been human. She had just managed to start her dream career of being a police officer, following in her father's footsteps. That was the only goal that Seras had ever really set for herself in life. But she supposed she always thought that she might get married and have children one day, just like most people did. Not that she had ever really delved into the world of romance, but at the time, she figured she was still young and had plenty of years ahead of her. How wrong she had been.
But now that world only existed in some other reality. Did she regret her decision to become a vampire? She wasn't sure. A part of her always felt like she should have died that night. It seemed to be what fate had wanted. She never understood why her master had saved her. After seeing his full power, surely he could have just easily rescued her without having to shoot her? Was he just showing off? Was he bored and the whole thing was a game to him? Even Integra had been confused by his actions. But her master never gave anyone a straight answer.
The sound of a door opening behind her caused Seras to immediately leap up into defensive mode. She shot up from the edge of the coffin, bearing her teeth at the intruder as they made their way into the room. Her red eyes locked onto what looked like a young girl, possibly physically a few years younger than what Seras was. She didn't seem at all startled by Seras' reaction, almost as if she experienced this kind of thing all the time.
"I'm sorry, my lady, but I figured if I had knocked you would not have let me in," the girl spoke softly, and Seras relaxed her stance slightly, but still refused to take her eyes off the strange girl.
The girl reached into the pockets of her blue skirt, pulling out small pale sacks that were tied up with rope. Her brown eyes focused on untying the rope, and Seras took this chance to examine the new stranger. She was very small, even smaller than Seras herself; no taller than five feet at most. Her face was like a china doll, pale and a hint of rosiness to her cheeks. Her brown hair fell in soft curls down to her waist, and her dress, while pretty, did not match the glamour and prestige of Anastasia's attire. The dress was simple and blue, made from cotton with a white apron wrapped around the front. Black boots were visible just below the ankle length of the skirt.
The brown eyes confused Seras, and she tried to sniff the air as subtly as possible. She was a vampire, but a very weak one. Not a pure Nosferatu. Her bloodline was diluted, just like a lot of the vampires that Seras had fought while working for the Hellsing organisation.
"Ah-ha!" The girl cried out happily as she finally untied one of the bags. "This should help you."
She made a move towards Seras, who jumped backwards in alarm.
"What are you doing?" Seras hissed.
The girl froze, her eyes becoming apologetic when seeing the draculina's obvious fear and suspicion.
"It's okay, my lady, I'm just sprinkling your coffin with some soil of your birthplace. You're still fairly weak after your attack," the girl explained before slowly sprinkling the dirt under the red silk. "I'm glad to see that you're up on your feet again. I was beginning to wonder if you were ever going to wake up."
Seras shook her head, trying to clear it. She wasn't sure how much more she could handle. There were too many new faces, new voices, new sounds, sights, smells… It was overwhelming. Her eyes burned, and her fists clenched tightly at her sides. Her whole body became stiff, and the young vampire wanted nothing more than for the floor to swallow her up.
"My lady, are you okay?" the girl suddenly gasped, looking like she wanted to move towards her, but also didn't want to frighten the draculina any further. Instead, her arms simply waved awkwardly at her sides, looking completely helpless. That made two of them at least.
"I… I'm fine…" Seras managed to choke back, attempting to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat.
"If I may speak plainly…?" the girl asked, and when Seras didn't answer, she spoke again anyway. "You don't look fine."
Seras blew a stray strand of hair out of her face. "Well let's beat you up, take you to an unknown location full of strange vampires and see how you feel."
The corner of the girl's mouth tugged slightly into a smile. "Perhaps I have been in that situation so many times now that I am almost numb to it."
Seras eyes widened. "Oh… I'm sorry… I –"
The girl giggled. "It's alright, my lady."
"No it's not!" Seras cried out, shocked at the blasé reaction and reaching the end of her tether. Was she the only sane person in this world? "Who would do such a thing to you?"
The girl shrugged. "A servant's life is never dull. I am simply a possession and prize of battle. My master or mistress is killed and I am taken by the victor. It's just how things work."
"But… that's not right…" Seras trailed off as she seriously began to question the world she had gotten herself into.
The girl tilted her head in confusion.
"Why don't you just run away?" Seras asked.
"Why would I?"
"Because you're not a piece of meat," Seras explained, "and it's not fair that you're treated like this."
The girl still looked confused. "My lady… I really don't understand what you're talking about…"
"And you don't have to call me 'my lady'!"
"Would you prefer 'your highness'?"
"What?! No! GAH!" Seras growled, growing more and more frustrated. But she felt incredibly sorry for the girl. Obviously she must have been born into servitude and did not know any other way of life. The vampire world was brutal. Seras couldn't believe that a girl as young and innocent looking as the one in front of her could be treated like this and everyone act like it was no big deal.
"I'm sorry, my lady, have I upset you?" The girl began to sound scared.
"No!" Seras quickly turned her voice into a more gentle tone. "No… I'm just… confused… Nobody has bloody explained anything to me! Nothing in this daft fucking universe makes any sense anymore! I feel like I'm going insane!"
"You're not going insane, my lady." The girl slowly came closer, still looking unsure of how best to approach the situation.
"Please stop calling me that," Seras weakly begged, fighting back tears.
"But you're my mistress, what else would I call you?"
"HOW ABOUT MY FUCKING NAME!" Seras exploded, causing the whole room to rumble and shake. The young girl in front of her dropped to the ground, shaking slightly as she moved her hands up to protect her head. Seras' breath came out in wild pants as she struggled to hold herself together. It felt like there was a violent tornado inside her skull, her thoughts spinning so fast that she couldn't grasp at any of them. All she got was brief flashes of rage, confusion and fear.
The girl squeaked slightly in fear, immediately snapping Seras out of her state.
Oh god… What had she done? What was she becoming?!
Seras collapsed to her knees before slowly crawling towards the girl and wrapping her arms around her. She hadn't meant to frighten her. She was just sick of the way everyone was treating her. She didn't want to be anyone's superior. She didn't want to be anybody's mistress. She just wanted to be Seras Victoria. No territory wars, no fearing for her life, no deranged master…
"I'm sorry," Seras whispered, ashamed of herself. She had no idea where all that had come from.
"Lady Anastasia warned us that you were a bomb ready to explode," the girl chuckled out, despite everything.
"It's not funny," Seras chided. "I shouldn't have exploded on you like that."
"I guess we just didn't realise how little you knew about everything. We're going to have our work cut out for us."
They both pulled away from each other.
"What do you mean?" Seras frowned, beginning to grow frustratingly confused again.
"I suppose we better start from the beginning," the girl said, smiling as she held out her hand. "It's nice to finally meet you properly, my lady. I'm Eva."
Seras smiled for the first time in what felt like forever. She gratefully placed her hand in Eva's and shook it. Finally, something that felt normal. There was something soothing and calming about Eva's presence. She could very much see herself becoming close friends with the girl. She seemed really sweet and kind. She was probably the first person to actually consider Seras' own feelings in this situation and she was incredibly grateful for that. There was nothing unsettling about the girl like what she experienced with all the others she had met. The draculina supposed that this was the closest to normality she was going to get.
"I'm Seras."
Eva giggled as they both released each other, settling into a more relaxed position on the floor opposite each other. "Yes, I know that already."
Seras took a deep breath, trying not to be weirded out by that. "Where am I?" she finally asked, deciding that knowing her location would be the best place to start.
"We're just by the Hungarian and Austrian border," Eva explained. "Az ördögvár to be precise."
Seras stared at the servant girl blankly.
"A castle. You're in my mistress' castle." Eva couldn't help but laugh.
"Soooo... Anastasia is your mistress?"
Eva smiled. "That's correct. But she has many servants and thus sent me to serve you."
"But why though?"
Eva looked confused again and Seras had to try and force down her frustration. Seras was simply here to train to defend herself. She didn't need a servant, let alone want one. It all felt so wrong and archaic. It had been weird even back in Hellsing when Walter had assisted her all of those years ago. But that had been slightly different. Walter wasn't her servant, and they were on more equal footing: they both had masters to serve. Plus Walter was paid, and judging by what Eva had already revealed to her, it sounded like she was more of a slave than a servant.
"Because, that's what my mistress commanded?" Eva answered as best as she could. "Do you want me to leave?"
"No!" Seras answered quickly, grabbing hold of Eva's wrist in a panic before letting go once she realised how odd her behaviour probably seemed. "I mean... you're the first... nice... person that I've encountered..."
"The others aren't that bad," Eva tried to reassure her.
"You would say that." Seras sighed, curling into a tight ball and resting her chin on her knees. More so than ever, she felt like a lost child. She had been taken in by these strange people and this place felt like an alien planet. They seemed to have so many different ways and customs. It didn't even feel like she had stepped back in time. It was more than that. These were different creatures... a species that Seras was now a part of, no matter how much she tried to cling onto her humanity. This world was so foreign to her that it might as well be an alien world.
Her master had never really delved into much detail about the vampire world. He himself hadn't been a part of it for centuries. Even after her transformation, life at Hellsing still very much felt human. She had a routine and dealt with humans on a daily basis. Here, everything was all vampire. It was dizzying. Maybe if her master had prepared her and explained things, she wouldn't be feeling so lost right now. Why hadn't he taught her about vampire culture? Was it because he assumed he would be bound to Hellsing for eternity? Did he not think it necessary? But master was such a proud vampire. The king of vampires. The oldest and most powerful of them all. It just didn't sound like him to keep Seras' heritage from her.
Whatever the case, Seras was paying the price for it.
"I know they may seem scary, but they are the nicest masters I have had in centuries," Eva continued to explain. "They're very old and very powerful; you probably just find that intimidating."
Seras sighed again. "I know so little about this world. My..." she gulped, "my master never really explained much to me. After I drank blood properly for the first time, he disappeared and I was on my own for so long. I had no teacher. Then when he returned, I don't know, it was like something had changed. He helped me with some things yes, but after a while, it was like he couldn't bear to be around me."
The young vampire wasn't sure why, but the memories of his distance tore at her heart. It was even worse than when he had vanished for all of those years. At least then, she could always sense that he would one day return. But this had been different. She hadn't known what to make of it. It was all unknown and that was what frightened her. Even Integra had been acting strange now that Seras thought about it...
Seras curled up on the chaise lounge in the small study she liked to frequent when not helping to train the soldiers. It was a quiet evening and she was bored, so she settled for reading one of the many books in the Hellsing collection. There were so many titles that Seras had never even heard of. Most books were about the supernatural and the occult, though most of it was likely a load of rubbish. She had realised that the moment she had picked out a book about vampires and their weaknesses and saw that garlic was first on the list. Where had humans even gotten that idea from?
Sighing to herself, she turned her attention away from the literature she had picked up and stared into the fireplace, watching as the flames glowed and danced. It was a relaxing sight. It was homely. Smiling, Seras leaned further back into the cushions, feeling happier than she had ever felt in her entire life. Her master had returned, London was re-built, and the threats from the creatures of the night had receeded thanks to her dedication to the Hellsing organisation over the years. Hellsing and the Vatican also had a rather unsteady alliance after the battle with Millenium.
For the first time in her life, Seras felt like she was somewhere she truly belonged. She had a sense of purpose even stronger than the one she had felt when joining the police service. She was a part of something big. She was a protector of Great Britain. Even though the supernatural world was still new and scary for her, it was also thrilling and exciting at the same time. She felt strong. She felt powerful. She felt like she was ready to take on anything that was thrown her way.
A content feeling washed over the draculina like a warm ocean tide. She let it spill across her entire body, savouring the sensation. Her body positively glowed with it. It allowed her to continue reading with a new sense of purpose. Perhaps the more research she did, the more she could impress her master and Sir Integra. All she wanted to do was make them both proud. The determination settled in her stomach like a rock, weighing her down and forcing her to concentrate. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, and Seras would turn it into something useful.
She flicked through a few pages to try and find something that seemed more accurate and noteworthy when she froze as something finally caught her attention. She stopped flicking through the pages and stared down at what looked like notes and scribbles written in a very elegant script. It was almost impossible to decipher, but Seras gave it her best shot, squinting to try and make out a familar pattern to the wild, cursive handwriting.
Lucy Westenra terminated.
What?
There was something about that name that seemed familiar, but Seras couldn't quite put her finger on it. Why would someone make a note of something like that anyway? Whoever had written it had obviously hastingly scribbled it down – perhaps they were in a rush? What was so significant about that?
Seras read on, and it was almost like someone had been thinking aloud, using the book to scribble down thoughts. There were a few meaningless diagrams, and some random letters, codes and initials, all of which flew straight over Seras' head. But the young vampire found herself captivated by the mystery of it all. Some of the words of the actual text of the book had been scribbled out, only to be replaced with the elegant script of the editor.
"Companion?" Seras read out loud, still struggling to read the handwriting. "Huh? The... the third sister remains missing?" Next to this were a list of countries, some of them ticked off while others had been left blank. Romania, Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Germany, and many other European countries. It all seemed so random and nonsensical.
In the end, Seras gave up and simply shrugged, closing the book before absentmindedly tucking it into her side for when she decided to get back up and put it back where she found it. Whoever had written those notes was probably bonkers. Most likely someone obsessed with the supernatual, and Hellsing had acquired the book in case there was any important knowledge in it. That's what Seras had managed to figure out when rumaging through the never ending collection.
However, her thoughts were soon interupted by the sound of harsh whispers. Seras didn't move as she strained her ears to listen, her vampire hearing picking up two voices that seemed to be walking up from the far end of the corridor towards where she was nestled.
"I mean it, Alucard, if you're hiding anything from me –!"
"There is nothing that you need to worry about, my master." Seras could practically hear the smirk on his face.
Intregra grumbled, "I'm too old to be playing your games anymore."
"Who said I was playing a game?"
"Your face."
"This is just my normal face," Alucard protested, obviously enjoying their tiffs like he always did.
"You forget that I can lock you up and punish you until you tell me everything I need to know," Integra threatened darkly.
Seras frowned. This didn't sound like their typical arguments. Integra actually sounded... concerned?
"And I told you that there's nothing you need to know," Alucard continued, his voice sounding more and more manical and insane, which never failed to send a shiver down Seras' spine. "You should be careful with that temper of yours, my master. It can't be doing your heart much good at your age."
Seras nearly jumped out of her own skin at the sudden, loud sound of a gunshot that echoed around the mansion. Integra then came into view, passing by the doorway of the study where Seras had remained frozen to her seat. She was in the process of placing her gun back in her coat pocket when her icy blue eye met Seras' red ones.
"Agent Victoria." Integra nodded in greeting before spotting the book that was tucked under Seras' arm. "What do you have there?"
Seras looked down at the book before bringing it back out from her side to hold casually in front of her. "Just a random book I found," she answered, "and I thought it might help me with my vampire abilities or something."
"Is that so?" Integra reached for the book and Seras handed it to her master's master wordlessly.
The knight's eye scanned the cover, her face betraying no emotion at all as she kept hold of it, showing no signs of giving it back to Seras. Seras let her hand drop in response, waiting for her boss to speak again.
"Well you'll find no such help in here," Intengra finally responded.
"I gathered that as soon as I saw the bit about the garlic." Seras chuckled before frowning. "But Sir, what are those weird notes inside that book?"
Integra raised an eyebrow.
"I couldn't understand most of them as the handwriting was too hard to read, or they were just simply meaningless notes," Seras continued to explain, hoping to probe the knight for answers.
Integra flicked through the book before immediately closing it again. "My ancestors tended to make notes on anything they found of interest. They will be of no importance to you."
"Yes, sir," Seras replied in defeat.
"Disturbing my dear fledgling's study time are we, master?" Alucard asked as he came into view, his usual amused and wicked smirk pulling up to reveal his sharp teeth. "I must say that I am impressed by your curiosity, Police Girl. I see much has changed in my time away from you."
"Yes, master." Seras beamed, excited that she was pleasing her master with her actions.
"Even so," Integra interupted the two of them, "I'll be sure to oversee her education. After all –"she turned back to Alucard with a stoney expression " – we don't want her getting any silly ideas, do we?"
Seras watched as Alucard and Integra stared at each other in some sort of silent stand-off. Whatever argument was going on between them, it was mainly going on inside their heads, away from Seras' curious ears. What kind of silly ideas was Integra talking about? Surely if she came across anything that was incorrect, they would both steer her in the right direction? Plus she wasn't completely stupid. Sure, she was nowhere near as smart as Integra or her master, but she wasn't completely lacking in the brain department.
"I can look after my own fledgling," Alucard finally said out loud.
"Yes," Integra agreed, "and that's what worries me."
Alucard glared at his master, but otherwise said nothing else in response. Seras' eyes darted back and forth between the two of them, still completely in the dark about what was going on. Why would Alucard looking after her worry Sir Integra? They had both been acting so weird lately. It gave Seras an uneasy feeling. She knew her place, but still, that didn't stop her from feeling excluded. Was there some sort of new threat that they weren't telling her about? Still, Seras managed to keep her mouth shut, fearing both of their wraths if she questioned them.
Then, without another word, Alucard skulked off, leaving the two women alone. Seras watched the spot where her master had once stood with confusion. There was an almost unbearable urge to follow him and take her place at his side where she always felt like she belonged, but she ignored it. He was obviously now in one of his foul moods and he was difficult to be around when he was sulking. The last thing Seras wanted to do was to make things even worse.
"What's with him?" Seras asked, turning to look back at Integra who seemed to have been already watching her.
"Oh, he's just mad that he can't get his own way, as per usual." Integra rolled her eye before crossing her arms over her chest, still keeping a tight hold of the book that Seras had been reading earlier.
Seras sighed, already not looking forward to heading back downstairs later. "At least you're not the one who has to share a dungeon with him."
Integra's one good eye twitched.
"What?" asked Seras.
"Tell me Seras," Integra began as she pulled a cigar out from her pocket, lit it, and inhaled deeply before exhaling again, filling the room with smoke. This instantly had a more calming effect on the obviously stressed knight. "Does Alucard give you any trouble down there?"
"Ummm..." Seras was taken aback by the question. "Like what?"
"Does he stay away from you?"
"Yes, I suppose," Seras answered, unsure where Integra was going with all of this. "I mainly just hear him pacing his room, which can get a bit annoying sometimes, but that's the only way he bothers me."
Integra chuckled, though at what, Seras didn't know.
"Did I say something funny?" Seras was beginning to feel incredibly self-conscious. Her cheeks flushed slightly as Integra took another puff of her cigar before she turned to leave the room, seeming satisfied that she had gotten everything that she needed from their conversation.
"Not at all, Police Girl," Integra responded as she stopped in the doorway, keeping her back to the young vampire who watched her from behind. "You are very much an innocent spirit – completely unlike any vampire I have ever met. You would do well to cling onto that, no matter what Alucard says or does to you."
Seras blinked the memories away as she once again forced herself to focus on the here and now. She hadn't noticed that tears had started to well up in her eyes, and as she blinked again, her vision was smeared with red. Rubbing the blood away from her eyes before Eva could notice, she cleared her throat as if trying to pretend nothing had just happened. If Eva had indeed picked up on Seras' change in mood, she didn't show it.
"I'm sure he had his reasons," Eva spoke quietly, looking around the room before her eyes finally settled back on the draculina.
Seras shrugged. "I'll never find out now anyway. He doesn't want me anymore."
Eva remained silent.
"Which is why I have to train to defend myself. I'm tired of being weak and running for my life all the time. I just want to get on with my life in peace and not have to worry about looking over my shoulder all of the time," Seras explained, standing back up to stare at the moon once again.
"Welcome to the vampire world." Eva giggled. "You'll never be able to stop looking over your shoulder, no matter how much you train. You're Dracula's creation. People will either want to keep you or kill you. There's no escaping the blood that binds you to this immortal life."
Seras whimpered as she ran her hands through her hair. "Why couldn't I have been more like you? Why did I have to have been sired by the most powerful vampire in the world? Everyone thinks I'm just like him, but I'm not. I'm not some insane lunatic that enjoys torturing people. I don't want to hurt anybody, nor do I think I'm better than everybody else. I just want to be left alone."
Eva watched her sadly, and that just made Seras feel even worse. She didn't want pity. She just wanted everything to go back to normal. But which normal did she mean? To the time before she was forced to leave Hellsing? Before Millennium? Before she met her master and was turned into a vampire? Seras wasn't sure where she fit in anymore. Her whole life had been nothing but strangeness and hardship. The one constant she thought she would have in her life was now gone and blocking her out.
"My lady, we don't have to continue talking about all of this right now." Eva's voice interrupted her thoughts. "You're exhausted and still need your rest. But, forgive me for saying this, you might want to clean up first?"
Seras looked down at herself, realising that she was still in the state that she had awoken in earlier. Sure her tattered clothes had been replaced by a plain blue nightgown, but her skin was still grimey and caked in dry blood. Her hair had felt like a tangled mess when she had run her fingers through it, and her muscles were aching.
"Yeah," Seras agreed, "I'd give anything for a hot bath right now."
"As you wish, my lady." Eva curtsied before vanishing from the room in a blink of an eye.
Seras remained frozen, still hating the fact that the young girl was intent on following her orders. But right now, she couldn't bring herself to argue. Eva was probably going to be her only friend and source of help in this place, so she guessed she would just have to play along.
It seemed that Seras was going to have to be doing a lot of that if she was going to survive.
Man, this chapter gave me so much trouble. Not the actual creative side of it, but for some reason, the document kept glitching. All of my speechmarks turned upside down and I have no idea how. Even my tech savvy boyfriend had no idea how I'd managed to do that. Then my spellcheck turned itself off and I couldn't get it back which made editing an even bigger headache. So yeah, I apologise if there's more errors in this chapter than usual. Anyway, feel free to leave a review, even if it's just a little smiley face or something. It all helps. See you again soon!
