As he ran into the room, he scanned the crowd of ghouls, counting at least
thirty ghouls before springing into action. Some were poised at the door
heading towards the central meeting room, others towards the middle.
Whoever had placed them didn't expect an attack from that particular door.
A fast look behind him showed that he door had been reinforced, but he'd
busted through as if it were made of paper. 'Ok, so they did expect an
attack. Just not from a vampire.' Whoever had set up the defense didn't
know about Matthew, apparently. No matter, Matthew had a job to do.
Matthew leapt over the ghouls, slamming into the wall by the door. All the
ghouls looked at him, as if trying to figure out what they were to do.
Matthew didn't wait. He brought the Valkyrie to his shoulder and pulled
the trigger.
The Valkyrie's recoil was very strong, with the feeling that it wanted to tear his arm off. However, his newfound vampire abilities allowed him to ignore the pain and start loading the next round. The first shot round had ripped through the ghoul ranks, taking out about five of them. Next he grabbed a slug round. As quickly as he could, he loaded, aimed, and fired again. This round passed through a line of ghouls and punched a hole in the far wall. He was suddenly thankful the central meeting hall was behind him. A ghoul was suddenly upon his right flank. Matthew yanked out the Walther, pointed it at the ghoul's head, and pulled the trigger. It fell in a pile of ash and parts. Sliding the Walther back into its holster, he grabbed his next shot round, slammed it into the Valkyrie, snapped down the loading hatch, aimed, and pulled the trigger.
It went on much like that for the next few minutes: load, aim, fire, repeat. He started loosing track of just how many ghouls he was taking out. He only saw where they were and fired in that direction. Suddenly, he loaded a round and found nothing to aim at. He was surrounded by piles of ash and severed limbs. He also noticed just how heavy and fast his breathing had become. He took a deep breath, held it, then slowly released it. Now that his breathing was back under control, he checked all corners of the room for any surviving ghouls. Finding none, he started for the door.
As he approached the door, he heard movement further inside the building. Looking down the hall, he saw the rescue team on the way out, escorting twenty-five people. All the hostages had made it out. Seras broke rank and ran over to him. "Matthew! You're ok!"
Matthew looked down at himself. Seeing everything in one piece he looked up. "Yeah, it seems so. Good to see you're ok too."
Seras shrugged. "Not too many ghouls where we were. Heard a whole lot of gunfire where you were, though."
He nodded. "Yeah. Gotta hand it to Walter, though, he makes some damn fine weaponry." He held the Valkyrie under his left arm and rubbed his left shoulder with his right hand. "Hurts like a bitch to shoot, but works great."
"Well, the mission is complete. Alucard got the vampire."
Matt looked at her. "Really? Good."
"Yeah. Complained that it was too easy, too."
That got a chuckle from Matt. "I take it that's common." Seras nodded. "Oooh Kaay. Anyway. So are we sprung?"
"Sprung... Oh, can we leave? Yes. We can head back to base."
Matt gestured to a nearby transport. "Shall we go?"
::The Next Day::
Matthew woke up and got out of bed. Today was the day. Today he would talk to Integra and find a way to convince her to let him access the internet. He really needed to get in touch with his folks. A lot longer, and he probably would become worthless to Hellsing, his mind bogged down with fears about what they would say about what he'd become and what he'd done. As for his worth to Hellsing, he felt encouraged by the previous night's mission. His shoulder had recovered from the beating it had taken. He pulled on his jacket, making sure the Hellsing coat of arms showed on his chest. For better or worse, he was a member of this organization. He started out of the room, walking through the dark corridors of the Hellsing facility.
Soon after he was heading up the stairs to Sir Integra's office. He was certain she already knew he was coming. First, it was logical. They'd just finished a really big mission and it was a complete success. Second, she probably had cameras trained on the stairs so would know instantly if someone were coming. Still, when he reached the doors he knocked. "Enter," came the reply from the door. Collecting his wits, Matthew opened the door and entered the office.
The room looked exactly as the same as the last time he saw it. And at her desk, as usual, sat Integra Hellsing. She wore her usual green business type suit with a blue scarf around her neck held by a silver cross. Her tanned face was bracketed with long blonde hair, and a pair of blue eyes stared from behind her glasses. The only change was in Matt. This time, he did not show a major lack of confidence as with the last times. The first time he spoke with Sir Integra was right after he arrived. He probably got permission for his first couple e-mails because he was still new and a good bit frightened, which made complete sense considering the situation. The second time he was still unsure of himself, but he hadn't quite earned enough trust to be given a lot of freedoms. Now, while still a little uneasy with his physical changes, he'd adjusted to his new position. That confidence showed through. "What can I do for you, Mr. Jemeth?" she asked, once again getting straight to the point.
If she was going to be all business, then so would he. "Sir Integra, I request permission to access the internet on a regular basis."
Integra leaned back in her chair. "I've heard all the reports of the last mission. I still don't see how you have proven your worth to this organization."
Just a month ago, that comment would have made Matthew slump his shoulders in defeat. Now, his only physical reaction was a slight squint of his eyes. "Permission to speak freely."
If the change in reply had surprised her, she didn't show it. "Granted."
He chose his words carefully, and when he spoke he kept his tone neutral. Getting angry wouldn't solve anything. "With all due respect, I find it difficult to believe that I could take out about thirty ghouls single- handedly, allowing Seras to escort a team of soldiers to successfully rescue a large number of hostages and still not prove my worth to this organization. I understand that with my previous missions I was doing exactly what Seras was, making me rather redundant. If that last mission didn't prove my worth, nothing will."
Integra thought on that for a moment. She, of course, knew all about his mission history. It could be that she wanted to test him, see if he would stand up for himself. He could almost understand why she would. Finally, she replied. "Fine. You have your access. Go."
He bowed his head. "Thank you, Sir Integra." He turned and left, trying to keep himself from smiling until he left her office.
The Valkyrie's recoil was very strong, with the feeling that it wanted to tear his arm off. However, his newfound vampire abilities allowed him to ignore the pain and start loading the next round. The first shot round had ripped through the ghoul ranks, taking out about five of them. Next he grabbed a slug round. As quickly as he could, he loaded, aimed, and fired again. This round passed through a line of ghouls and punched a hole in the far wall. He was suddenly thankful the central meeting hall was behind him. A ghoul was suddenly upon his right flank. Matthew yanked out the Walther, pointed it at the ghoul's head, and pulled the trigger. It fell in a pile of ash and parts. Sliding the Walther back into its holster, he grabbed his next shot round, slammed it into the Valkyrie, snapped down the loading hatch, aimed, and pulled the trigger.
It went on much like that for the next few minutes: load, aim, fire, repeat. He started loosing track of just how many ghouls he was taking out. He only saw where they were and fired in that direction. Suddenly, he loaded a round and found nothing to aim at. He was surrounded by piles of ash and severed limbs. He also noticed just how heavy and fast his breathing had become. He took a deep breath, held it, then slowly released it. Now that his breathing was back under control, he checked all corners of the room for any surviving ghouls. Finding none, he started for the door.
As he approached the door, he heard movement further inside the building. Looking down the hall, he saw the rescue team on the way out, escorting twenty-five people. All the hostages had made it out. Seras broke rank and ran over to him. "Matthew! You're ok!"
Matthew looked down at himself. Seeing everything in one piece he looked up. "Yeah, it seems so. Good to see you're ok too."
Seras shrugged. "Not too many ghouls where we were. Heard a whole lot of gunfire where you were, though."
He nodded. "Yeah. Gotta hand it to Walter, though, he makes some damn fine weaponry." He held the Valkyrie under his left arm and rubbed his left shoulder with his right hand. "Hurts like a bitch to shoot, but works great."
"Well, the mission is complete. Alucard got the vampire."
Matt looked at her. "Really? Good."
"Yeah. Complained that it was too easy, too."
That got a chuckle from Matt. "I take it that's common." Seras nodded. "Oooh Kaay. Anyway. So are we sprung?"
"Sprung... Oh, can we leave? Yes. We can head back to base."
Matt gestured to a nearby transport. "Shall we go?"
::The Next Day::
Matthew woke up and got out of bed. Today was the day. Today he would talk to Integra and find a way to convince her to let him access the internet. He really needed to get in touch with his folks. A lot longer, and he probably would become worthless to Hellsing, his mind bogged down with fears about what they would say about what he'd become and what he'd done. As for his worth to Hellsing, he felt encouraged by the previous night's mission. His shoulder had recovered from the beating it had taken. He pulled on his jacket, making sure the Hellsing coat of arms showed on his chest. For better or worse, he was a member of this organization. He started out of the room, walking through the dark corridors of the Hellsing facility.
Soon after he was heading up the stairs to Sir Integra's office. He was certain she already knew he was coming. First, it was logical. They'd just finished a really big mission and it was a complete success. Second, she probably had cameras trained on the stairs so would know instantly if someone were coming. Still, when he reached the doors he knocked. "Enter," came the reply from the door. Collecting his wits, Matthew opened the door and entered the office.
The room looked exactly as the same as the last time he saw it. And at her desk, as usual, sat Integra Hellsing. She wore her usual green business type suit with a blue scarf around her neck held by a silver cross. Her tanned face was bracketed with long blonde hair, and a pair of blue eyes stared from behind her glasses. The only change was in Matt. This time, he did not show a major lack of confidence as with the last times. The first time he spoke with Sir Integra was right after he arrived. He probably got permission for his first couple e-mails because he was still new and a good bit frightened, which made complete sense considering the situation. The second time he was still unsure of himself, but he hadn't quite earned enough trust to be given a lot of freedoms. Now, while still a little uneasy with his physical changes, he'd adjusted to his new position. That confidence showed through. "What can I do for you, Mr. Jemeth?" she asked, once again getting straight to the point.
If she was going to be all business, then so would he. "Sir Integra, I request permission to access the internet on a regular basis."
Integra leaned back in her chair. "I've heard all the reports of the last mission. I still don't see how you have proven your worth to this organization."
Just a month ago, that comment would have made Matthew slump his shoulders in defeat. Now, his only physical reaction was a slight squint of his eyes. "Permission to speak freely."
If the change in reply had surprised her, she didn't show it. "Granted."
He chose his words carefully, and when he spoke he kept his tone neutral. Getting angry wouldn't solve anything. "With all due respect, I find it difficult to believe that I could take out about thirty ghouls single- handedly, allowing Seras to escort a team of soldiers to successfully rescue a large number of hostages and still not prove my worth to this organization. I understand that with my previous missions I was doing exactly what Seras was, making me rather redundant. If that last mission didn't prove my worth, nothing will."
Integra thought on that for a moment. She, of course, knew all about his mission history. It could be that she wanted to test him, see if he would stand up for himself. He could almost understand why she would. Finally, she replied. "Fine. You have your access. Go."
He bowed his head. "Thank you, Sir Integra." He turned and left, trying to keep himself from smiling until he left her office.
