The moment lasted like eternity. Two figures stood without any motion, as another lifeless part of the night city landscape, letting the flow of seconds stream around them. At last the pentagram-stigmated arms moved, sliding along the fragile figure in front of them, making it lean forward, enveloping it into an embrace... Long fingers, which could rip any enemy apart in seconds without effort, touched Vicoria's body lightly and carefully. Alucard tilted his head, kissing his young subordinate. Then his lips moved down, following the line of the slender neck, breathing another kiss at the place his fangs had turned a dying girl into an immortal being like himself. Unruly raven black tresses of hair mingled with golden ones, tickling Victoria's skin, which suddenly became supersensitive. The girl moaned softly, embracing her Master's neck with both hands and throwing her head back to get more... She felt electrified. Her body made a perfect arc, a natural response to the feeling which came to substitute the anger, fear and self-disgust, having overwhelmed her a few moments ago. So warm... Suddenly a big cold raindrop hit Victoria on her nose. And again. And again... The rain turned into a shover, its chill brought the girl back into reality. The tangled knot of emotions in her soul dissipated as well, leaving the only dominating feeling - terrible embarrasement. What the hell was she doing?! She jerked away as if being burned. Master! Master... He released her already, standing beside with that usual smirk on his face. It was as easy to read any emotions through this sarcastic curve of lips as through a concrete wall.
"Get in! Unless you want to soak to the bone." - Alucard turned to the car not looking at his perplexed partner any more. She meekly followed, getting into the driver's seat and starting the engine. Several minutes ticked away in silent speeding along the wet London streets... Victoria's state of mind was rapidly sliding to the mute panic. She glanced at the dark figure to her left, keeping the casual pose with crossed arms and long legs stretched as far as the Royce's spacy salon allowed. The same smirk was clearly seen - thanks to the enhanced vision of her new breed... What does he think? What was that reaction of his? Another act of pity as then back in Chaders or... The hot wave of embarrasement came again. Alucard audibly chuckled. Reading her mind? Oh, Jeez...
"Fabulous evening it was, eh, Seras? Full of surprises... Love that. - did she imagine that or he really winked to her? - Say something, cop."
"Ah... Uh-huh." - the vampire recruit fidgeted in her seat uncomfortably and bit her lip.
"Very informative. Care to rephrase?" - Alucard raised his arms, stretching with the dangerous grace of a big cat. Something shiny fell out of his coat and clanked on the floor. Alucard looked down at it and frowned. His gloved fingers motioned slightly and the tiny object floated up to be stopped and 3D-rotated in the mid-air under the attentive red eyes' gaze.
"Err... Well... What happened today was pretty... pretty disturbing. - admitted Victoria reluctantly, racking her mind over the possible topic to change the conversation. The unknown floating object, still scanned with her Master's eyes, gave her a helpful hint. - What's this, Master?"
"A memory... Kind of. The only thing I kept since... the old times."
"Oh! May I look at it closer?" - Victoria was honestly intrigued by now. A piece of Master's mysterious past! What could that be? So small...
"All right... But keep watching the road - to break my new shades and old head in an ordinary traffic accident would be kind of vulgar." - the faint light of Alucard's sense of humor appeared in his eyes again. His fingers made a lazy extending movement and the object floated closer to Victoria, halting between her face and the steering wheel. It turned out to be a golden ring. Obviously the old one, with a seal on its side, bearing a dragon, carved thoroughly on it. The seal had been heavily used - obviously, for a long period of its vast biography - the Latin lettering around the dragon crest was practically unreadable. "Vlad... - tried Victoria to spell the survived part of the writing, not much success she gained though. - What's this supposed to be, Master?"
"A dead part of my past, Seras. Before England. Before Hellsing... - Alucard's tone was heavy. He plucked the ring out of the air and pocketed it back. - Watch the speed, or you'll ruin Integra's fancy front gates."
Indeed, the dark bulky silhoette of Hellsing-Hall pierced the rainy night with a few lighted windows about a hundred yards ahead. The gate guard left his not very cozy, but at least dry outpost booth to check the newcomers. He looked into the car, nodded warily and motioned them to pass. The trip ended at last. Suddenly Victoria felt all the hardships and worries of the past several hours taking over her. She shut the engine and sighed in relief, climbing out of the driver's door. Alucard appeared beside her, looking down at her exhausted face. Victoria felt her heart sinking, she couldn't help to hesitate and worry about how she should behave now. No obvious ideas popped up. She just pretended to observe the laconic beauty of Hellsing-Hall's facade, when suddenly felt Master's presence in her mind. "Tired, police girl? Drink more blood! You are supposed to be tougher than now. After all, you have my blood in your veins!" The mental touch was colored with usual Alucard's irony, but it contained certain concern of his apprentice's well-being as well. Victoria raised her gaze and the two pairs of red eyes met. "Master... about today... I..."
"A-hem. Good evening, Lord Alucard, Miss Victoria. Welcome back." - came from the porch as a bolt out of a blue. Both vampires, caught off-guard, turned quickly. Walter K. Dornez, Hellsing's butler, gunsmith, coordinator and retired Angel of Death stood in the opened doorway. His neat attire was perfect despite the late hour.
"H-hello, Walter! And... Good night! Good night, Master!" - Seras made a haste retreat under a crossfire of two keen looks, piercing her back. She had had enough for a day, really... The vision of the coffinated bunk in the basement became her most cherished agenda by that moment.
When the sound of the girl's footsteps faded away in the maze of castle's corridors, Walter returned the full attention to his old comrade, who walked in a lazy pace up to the entrance.
"You had some fun today." - stated Walter, having put on his monocle and thin smile.
"Yeah, we ran into Anderson. The idiot started raving in a busy street, can you imagine that?"
"Outcome?" - Walter' monocle glistened as a chill appeared in its owner's voice.
"Out cold. Temporarily or constantly - not sure, Maxwell came over and called somebody to scrape his best employee into a bucket... Heh-heh-heh."
"No bystanders killed or injured, I hope?"
"Nah, unless some overimpressionable human got a heart attack in the street. Anderson decorated all the sidewalk with his guts. Bloody expessionistic...- the nosferatu grinned nastily. - A brand new definition for 'body-art' term, I'd say."
"Well, that's nice. - Walter's smile became a little wider. - But basically, I'm sure you had another sort of fun this evening."
"Oh, really? How come? Clearvoyance?" - inquired Alucard sarcastically, rising a brow at his friend.
"No, sheer observation. You have some lipstick on your shirt's collar, you know. I doubt it's Anderson's. - Walter's tone dripped with irony too. - Looks like young female aides are absolutely irresistible for their bosses these days..."
Alucard just grinned and shrugged his shoulders. The tiny pink spot on his collar vanished.
"I've always envied the way you take care of your clothes. Handy ability, indeed." - remarked Walter, closing the heavy oak door behind them.
Victoria twitched and sat up quickly, trying to hold her breath. The terror of the nightmare was fading, leaving the vague memory of blood, dripping from stone walls, overflowing Hellsing-Hall's empty corridors. The feeling of condensed hatred in the air, strange whispers and cold humorless laughter, ringing and echoing in every corner... And not a sign of human presence anywhere. Victoria sighed. Being a human, she had never had nightmares that intense and emotional... And she had used to wake up in a sunlit room with light walls, hearing the sounds of the city buzz and birds chirping through the numerous windows. What a difference to this silent stone chamber and the coffin bed! The girl glanced down at the main furniture item in her room. "Oops!" - Victoria's eyes widened, observing her pink-clad upper torso, sticking out of the bed's lid. A closed one. "Oh, crap. I look like a sailship nose figure. - Victoria absendmindedly raised her right hand to scratch her head but only hurt the palm, knocking into the lid from inside. - Owww... The lid is not real... Not real, damn it... Gotcha!" Master's lessons helped - she pulled both hands out and licked the aching knuckles. Propping her head with both hands, she started to think what to do. She didn't have any urgent duties for today, unless some vampires made themselves obnoxious enough to win a visit by Hellsing's Trash Cleaners. She needed a breakfast, but still the idea of blood consuming didn't make her enthusiastic. At last she decided to visit the castle's kitchen - to look at humans' food, smell it, admire it... Victoria was going to avoid the only product available for her now as long as possible, being too shocked with the carjackers incident the previous day.
Everything went on as usual, when she reached the main source of yummy scents in Hellsing castle. The cooks gave her wary looks. Passing by the notorious red fridge with "snacks", as Master used to call the numerous packs with medical blood, she noticed a young trooper with a sandwich in his teeth. He stared at her, then at the fridge, gulped and left the place in a hurry. Victoria cursed silently. Again... No chance for her to be fully accepted by her human comrades. What about unhuman? She remembered the previous day and her soul was thrown into a chaos of contradictory emotions again. Alucard, her Master... She had got used to his presence at first. Started to enjoy being around him later... When it'd come to romance, she had always been shy with men before. So shy it had been almost painful... But her new nature was sprouting through the old one, weakening it, like an ivy drains the tree it grows on. Was it the influence of her vampiric bond to the Sire or her old human self that she needed to see her Master now, to be beside him, to become closer to him? Quite a question. She almost lost herself in that feeling the day before... And was accepted somehow. What did all that mean to her Master? Just another way to amuse himself and get rid of his eternal boredom? Her pride screamed against the idea of being just a toy. She sighed, deep in thoughts, when the door banged, returning her to reality. Walter walked to the table, where a tray, served for tea, was placed. Apparently, he was going to carry it up to Lady Integra, still sick in bed. Walter looked not that healthy as well. Victoria quickly rose to greet the old man and was quite in time to hold him up - Walter pressed a hand to his chest and swayed slightly.
"Walter, what's going on? You look so pale! - cried the girl, leading him to the chair. Cooks left their workplaces to crowd around with anxious looks. - Give him some water, hurry! And call a doctor!"
"Sorry, miss Victoria... No need to worry... I'm fine." -Walter's voice cut the noise suddenly. He stood straight again, but his hand was still there, holding the place where his heart was. He tried to take the tray, but Victoria caught his hand and stepped forward.
"No. I'll take it up to lady Integra or you'll fall somewhere in the hallway with all this fancy china. Please, Walter, go and see the doctor. Now! You don't look like Hellsing family butler now, more like Hellsing family ghost!"
Walter just shook his head and tried to walk around Victoria and reach the massive silver tray.
"I must do it myself, miss Victoria."
"I see... You don't trust me enough either... Nobody does here. - the young vampire's voice was bitter. She released the butler's hand and lowered her head, hiding her eyes under the unruly golden bangs. - But please, go and see a doctor! Give this thing to someone else and take care of yourself!"
Walter looked into the ex-policewoman's face, thinking of something. Then he bowed slightly.
"Please, deliver these meals to lady Integra for me, Miss Seras. Don't forget to tell her that it's nothing serious with me, in case she asks... For the last 10 years I served her meals myself every day." - he turned and walked to the door. There he stopped, holding the doorknob, and looked back at Victoria, donning a white apron already. - You remind me of lady Integra, when she was younger... Thank you, Miss Victoria." He smiled warmly and disappeared around the corner.
Victoria raised the heavy tray easily - it was nothing compared to the Harconnen gun she carried so often. One of the cooks opened the door for her. She nodded and passed through it, tossing a remark over her shoulder: "Follow Walter and make sure he gets to the doctor without any problems."
"Yes, ma'am." - the sound of feet, walking hurriedly in the direction of Hellsing's infirmary, proved to the girl that her advice was taken seriously. She nodded again and gripped the handles of the tray tighter, walking up to the fourth floor. She was still a little afraid of the 'iron maiden', inhabiting the upper part of the main building.
The knock at the door was responded with "Come in, Walter." at once. Victoria managed to open the door, holding the tray with one hand, and slip inside. The doubtlessly most feminine Knight of the Round Table in all its 1500 years long history sat in the bed with a notebook computer and an ash-tray on a pillow beside. The bed was so big, that the tall figure of Integra was almost lost there. She raised her head and frowned.
"Where's Walter? What's happened?"
"Hello, Lady Integra! - rattled Victoria on hurriedly, - Walter felt slightly unwell and I asked him to go and see Dr.Trawelian! I thought it's OK if I bring your tea instead! Um... I... " - the girl stopped, following Integra's gesture to keep silence. Hellsing's leader was dialing the infirmary number with an extremely worried face. Victoria just silently watched, curious. She never saw Lady Integra, the woman of steel, show any emotions... It was a completely another side of Integra's personality, usually securely hidden under a severe mask.
"Uh-huh... Yes, of course. Don't let him out until he passes the complete check. Tell him it's an order. Thank you, Dr. Trawelian." The phone clicked, and Integra turned to her subordinate.
"Thank you too, Miss Ceras." - the nod of Integra's head was so royal, that Victoria suddenly felt an urge to bow in answer. She suppressed the urge though, because doing it with the tray in her hands would most likely end with her left breast overturning the tea-pot.
"Put the meals there. - Integra motioned to the bedside table and picked a cup. Victoria readily poured some milk and tea into it and stood back, awaiting for a dismission order.
"Despite all the talk about his age, Walter tends to act as if he's still young. Doesn't care about his health at all... - went on Integra. - He's always been like that."
Victoria listened to Lady Integra Wingates Hellsing, seriously surprised. Those few occasions her commander had addressed her directly had usually been scolding and short orders. She looked at Hellsing's leader attentively and noticed feverish blush and tiny sweatdrops on Integra's face.
"Uh-oh, she's not feeling better at all... Whatever treatment she gets doesn't work. - thought the girl, biting her lip. - Well, that explains the present lack of her usual coldness... a little." Integra looked up and met her intent stare.
"What's the matter?"
Poor Vicky freaked out. Was her keen stare considered rude?
"Ah... Nothing, really! Just thought about how long have you known Walter..." - blurted the girl the first thing she could think of.
"Walter? Since childhood - he was my father's friend. Actually, he's like a relative to me... When Father died, he was the only person I could rely on... He and Alucard at some extent."
"Alucard?" - Victoria tugged on her apron absentmindedly, looking at Integra with the big eyes of a child listening to a fairy tale. Integra couldn't help smirking a bit.
"Yes, Alucard. They... Sometimes they both acted like foster uncles or legal guardians towards me. Goodness, it was so annoying! I remember that row about the dress for my introduction ceremony... I had to be introduced to Her Majesty as the next Hellsing leader."
"Dress? - Celes looked perplexed. - I... I've never seen you in female clothes... Ah, sorry! I didn't mean to..."
"Never mind. I don't wear that kind of clothes now - they don't fit Sir Integral Hellsing image... Besides, they are not very comfortable. I realized that after the forementioned row... I had to choose the color for the dress. Walter insisted on the pale blue shade to match my eyes color, Alucard... Well, you know Alucard and his obsession about red. They argued for a week and all that thing was going off the deep end..."
"And what color did you prefer? - the young policewoman tried to imagine both variants in her mind. - Either would look great on you, I think!"
"Thank you, but I didn't care about all that a bit. I was just tired of those two, who were pretty close to the point of calling each other names. Heh, come to think about it, even past that point… So, I made a kind of Solomon's decision. - a sly smile appeared on Integra's face, - I wore a tuxedo."
Victoria couldn't hold a snicker, Integra's smile became wider too. She opened her mouth, obviously going to say something else, but all of a sudden moaned and started to cough. The coughing was making her bend over and tremble, gasping for air in the short pauses between the fits. At last her body curved into the fetal position and the terrible ripping sounds in the lungs of the young woman faded. Victoria jumped up to her commander and tried to turn her body as gently as possible. The sight made Victoria's heart wring and ache - the bed sheets under Integra's head became crimson. A tiny stream of blood ran from the corner of her mouth, the blue eyes, always having beamed with life and will-power, were staring at the ceiling blankly, like two marbles.
"Oh-my-God, oh, no, no, NO! - groaned Victoria desperately, feeling the cold gush of terror overflowing her. - God, please, not this! Not now!!!" She clasped Integra's neck with a palm, trying to feel the pulse. Seconds crept by, at last a faint throb under Victoria's thumb made her exhale in relief - the hope was still alive, together with a tiny spark of vitality in Integra's unconscious body. All at once something squeezed her shoulder, almost breaking the collar-bone, and jerked her back with immense power. The girl flew across the room and hit the wall with her back. The sharpness of pain made her vision burst with white light and shatter into pieces. Victoria's weakened knees folded and her body helplessly slipped down on the floor. Such an impact could be lethal for a human, but the body of the undead was less vulnerable - the girl raised her head almost immediately and her eyes widened. Her Master stood in front of her, holding Integra in his arms. A red pentagram sigil blazed above his head like a halo and his face was the face of death.
"What were you doing here, cop? - his icy voice pierced Victoria, making her shrink on the floor. - What have you done? Answer me!!!
In spite of all the softness of the young blonde's appearance, one of the main features of Victoria's character was her remarkable stubbornness. Like a backbone of steel, it made her keep struggling in any situation if she thought the truth was on her side. The same happened this time. Still shocked and in pain, she clenched her fists and rose her chin.
"What have I done, you ask? Nothing but bringing the tea instead of Walter! You can read my mind almost all the time, so go ahead and read! I'm not hiding anything!"
Alucard frowned and Victoria felt the mental connection between them. Not the one she had experienced before - this time it was like a burning squall, washing every corner of her consciousness. The memories of the last hours flicked through her mind in all its revealing clarity. She didn't object - the unfair accusation dominated any other thoughts.
"I see... Not your fault. Let's go! - he turned to leave, glancing at the girl over his shoulder. - Hurry!"
It was much easier to say than to do though. Having received a direct order through the fully activated master-servant bond, Victoria had no choice but to follow it even if the world was falling apart. Actually, for her it had just happened... The girl gritted her teeth and tried to get up, holding the slippery silk-covered wall with both hands, but her body didn't obey her properly yet. Dizzily, she leaned against the wall for a second, and the room swirled around her when a big hand in a white glove rose her like a kitten and placed on the shoulder.
"Here we go... Hold on, Victoria." - the bedroom background blinked, being replaced with the hallway... the third floor... A heartbeat later they were at the medblock door. Alucard stormed into it, not bothering himself with opening the door - he just stepped through the wall, holding both females carefully. The place was busy already - the doctor and his assistants surrounded a bed in the corner, tossing brief sotto voce remarks to each other. The bed was occupied by Walter - with an oxygene mask on his still face and numerous medical equipment hissing and bleeping around. Dr. Trawelian raised his worried eyes up at the newcomers: "He's comatose, Alucard. It's... What the hell!" The whirlwind of green robed people snatched Integra's body from Alucard's hands at once. Two medics observed the visible part of Victoria's figure, hanging over Alucard's shoulder like a trophy, and tugged at her legs, apparently going to add her to the growing number of their patients. Being literally pulled out of her stupor, Victoria twisted and turned, poking her head from behind Alucard's side to protest.
"Leave me alone, I'm OK. Go and take care of Lady Integra! She started to cough blood all of a sudden and then fainted!"
The medics kept looking at the vampires dubiously. Alucard snorted.
"As far as I know, your medicine is helpless if a person died more than several minutes ago... The cop here is technically dead for about a month already. Don't bother."
He turned and walked out of the ward, still with Victoria on his shoulder. The corridor was empty and silent, reminding the girl of her recent nightmare. The events of a few hours ago seemed so distant suddenly... Alucard stopped at the crossing of two long passages not far from the staircase.
"We have to talk, policewoman."
Victoria stirred under his hand restlessly: "Let me go."
Being descended from her 7 feet high perch, the girl swayed a little, lacking the balance. Her senior caught her by shoulders, putting up straight.
"I'm at your command, Master." - came from the deep shadow, covering the face of the young undead. She stood looking down, wrapped into a cocoon of gloomy self-detachment.
"Listen to me carefully, Seras. I have never doubted your personal loyalty to Hellsing. The only thing in doubt was your ability to stay free of any influence... Someone is trying to behead Hellsing, aiming at Integra and Walter."
"Aiming?" - the cocoon fractured a little, but the blonde's head didn't rise.
"Yes. It's a curse - the old foolproof technology. All this handiwork looks familiar... But whoever planned this, the job couldn't be done without insiders."
"Rats again."
"Not necessary. It could be mental control... Hmph. When I entered Integra's bedroom, I thought that you were bespelled, Victoria. The weak link in the chain... Exhausted with constant hunger, weakened with your memories of being human, you could've become an easy prey. I was wrong. - Alucard's hand moved up from Victoria's narrow shoulder and brushed her cheek. – I'm glad I was wrong."
The young vampire's jaw was set as she locked her gaze with Master's one. - "I understand. I will not be weak anymore. No more regrets."
"Good. – the No Life King'tone was grave. – Now, let's begin. Look for anything suspicious. And remember - don't trust anybody here. Got it?"
"Yes... My Master." - answered the girl, starting to run through a darting flock of bats, which had been her senior's tall body a second ago. Having fetched a gun from the weaponry room, Victoria entered the kitchen.
"No more regrets." - whispered she again, tearing off the top of a blood package, not giving a damn about the stares of people around. The red fluid tasted bitter this time... Seras wiped her mouth with a hand, looked at the red stain and frowned.
"Not human... So what, if I still can think, feel, move...serve and protect, as I swore once. And I will, dammit! No matter what it would cost to me, I'm not going to let people be killed in front of my eyes. Not any more."
Clenching her fists, the small figure of the immortal moved along the corridors of the old mansion. She was determined to do her best in the hunt.
Author's note: woo-hoo, Gonzo would probably make the second season of Hellsing! Can't wait for it! dances around, scaring the innocent bystanders Errr, what I was talking about... Ah, yes, thank you for your reviews, they really encouraged me to write more! Not sure about the outcome though. So, read and tell me what you think about all this, please.