Chapter 17
"Commander Matthews, in your report you state that you found one of the highest priority targets, and yet you allowed Dracula to continue to exist, explain yourself!" Jonathan stood in a column of light, hidden in the shadows was a U-shaped table that surrounded him. Hidden from even his eyes sat his superiors, both fellow dunpeal and human sat side by side.
"At the time I was within the Hellsing mansion hours after the attack, if it weren't for the sudden attack on the organizations headquarters we would never have learned that such an HPT still existed."
"We have read the report Commander, now give us your reason for why you failed to silence the HPT!" this time the voice was female and old, a human, most likely someone from the senate.
"As I have stated in my report, we had just come threw a surprise assault, a fellow dunpeal had been the target, recently turned I might add. As for failing to silence the HPT, we... I had felt that enough blood had been spilt."
"That brings up another point commander, any dunpeal that goes berserk or turned is to be silenced without question, another failure on your part. Christ, Jonathan you were the one that pushed for such a priority order!"
"I have no explanation as to why I allowed David to suffer..."
"David?"
"The dunpeal that was turned sir."
"Well Jonathan, you really screwed this one up royally. The same dunpeal that you were sent to try and restore has fallen into enemy hands, you allowed the HPT to continue to exist, what exactly was accomplished in your trip to England exactly, answer me!" this voice belonged to Jonathans divisional commander, a fife hundred year old dunpeal that went by the name of will. Section 80 long ago had given up on trying to keep up formalities with its more older members. Whatever the dunpeal wanted to be named was ok with the government. One of the advantages of belonging to an organization that officially didn't exist.
"It's easy to make accusations in high sight sir."
"That will be enough commander, you may leave now."
Jonathan took one swift look around the room half expecting to see something, anything come out of the darkness and silence him. A second before he could be considered lingering he turned and exited the chamber. Out in the hallway he was greeted by his team. Laura and Sam were leaning against the wall, the other two seemed to be talking about something before the doors opened and Jonathan exited. "Man boss, looks like the old men went vamp on you."
"Maybe it would have been more merciful if they really did let a vampire clamp down on my neck Priest."
Laura sighed and headed down the hallway followed closely by Sam. "Where are they headed?" Jonathan asked as he watched them head down the hallway.
"Both of them have been spending a lot of time over in the training chambers. Either Laura is still working off steam or is stepping up on Sam's training, most likely the first while pretending to be the second. Sam has been coming out of the infirmary after a few hours of training every night sense we got back." Michael added.
"Really?" Jonathan thought out loud. Walking down the hallway he looked forward to what entailed in this training.
DS/
The training chambers were technological marvels at any standard. A combination of black lights, normal lights, lasers and a touch of undead power came together to form kind of hologram that solidified and became as deadly as the real thing. Watching form the safety of the observation deck Jonathan watched in child like delight as the lights came together, merging and shifting until finally it looked like a normal room, complete with walls, weapons scattered about, and more importantly, targets.
From his hidden vantage point, he could see several from walking about, light ghouls, as one technician had called them. Like the created walls they were nothing more than light that could beat you down, tear you apart, and in one sad case, kill you. The only difference about these creatures that they created for training was that they couldn't turn the trainee into a ghoul or something worse, as little comforting as that was.
On the far end, Laura and Sam entered the chamber; Laura held David's staff in one hand, a Section 80 Jackal in the other. Sam carried his modified six shooter pair. Jonathan took a look at the monitor below the window to see the level that was set. 'Level ten, impressive."
Suddenly one of the light ghouls lifted its head into the air and breathed in, it gave a little cry indicating it had found food. A pack of the creatures moved towards the two dunpeals. "Unholy blend of technology and black magic if you ask me."
Jonathan turned to see who had just entered the observation deck and was taken back by how it was. "Mr. Chairmen."
Mr. Chairmen was human, recently appointed to the Section. In his mid fifties he was slightly overweight and bald. Walking over to the window he looked down as the exercise began. Both watched as Laura used the staff weapon to neatly cut the heads off of several of the holographic monsters. Bringing the weapon up and then back down Laura quickly cut down another one of the holographic monsters that currently occupied the training chamber. It separated into two half's before the light disappeared, resetting the ghoul somewhere else in the maze. Sam was firing his weapons as quickly as he could, each bullet finding its first target square in the head, exited out of the back and continued on its way into several others.
"Sweet Jesus..." Jonathan tried to sir press a smile but failed. It was always fun seeing the reaction on humans when they first came down to the chambers to watch the top agents do their training. Eventually they had completed the level, Jonathan noticed Laura shout something out in the chamber. 'New orders for a scenario most likely' Jonathan thought.
The walls disappeared and were replaced by an old style ring. Sam returned his preferred weapons to their hoisters on his belt as he took up position opposite of Laura. Sam mumbled something and a staff similar in design to the genuine article that Laura held appeared in his hand. Jonathan chucked, he quickly noticed that the other man was looking at him. "It was just a warm up; I guess this is what the others meant when they kept seeing Sam come out of the infirmary every night now.
Chairmen gave a weak nod like he understood and returned his gaze to the impending match. It was Laura that moved first; with lightning speed she quickly closed the gap between herself and Sam. Sam reacted by jumping several feet in the air allowing Laura to run under him harmlessly.
"Is there anything I can do for you Mr. Chairmen?" Jonathan asked as they continued to watch the match between master and pupil.
"Yes actually. I sat in on your debriefing that you just had. What the others don't know is that I know you personally led the charge on Dracula's castle." Jonathan stiffened when he heard that. It wasn't classified knowledge, but at the same time it wasn't exactly common knowledge among humans.
"I admit it, I led my comrades against that monster centuries ago, what of it?"
"I find it rather strange that decided not to kill him commander, anyone else in your shoes would have blown him away without giving it a second thought."
"Are you implying something sir?" Jonathan said half accusingly, breaking his gaze from the match to look straight into Chairmen's eyes.
"Not at all commander, but you still haven't given a viable reason for failing to kill him." Suddenly a body flew towards the window, it was Sam. Before he crashed threw the window he moved his right hand towards it and a wave of energy pushed him back to the ring.
"Does that happen often?" Chairmen said, changing the subject for a second.
"With those two, usually. As for my reasons for not silencing him, I felt that there was still a need for him. Once that need if fulfilled I will be the one putting a slug into his head." Suddenly a dull alarm began to ring threw the chamber, looking back in Jonathan noticed the two dunpeal's were ignoring it. Slamming his fist into a large red button quickly ended the training and sent a transparent light wall between the two.
"Ok, Laura, Sam, I think you have had enough, when you're cooled off you may have the rest of the day off."
Looking at Chairmen again he noticed the confused look on his face. "Even with the silver graphed to all dunpeals in Section 80 we still tend to eventually give into our vampire side. About a half hour from now Sam and Laura will be able to come out and act normal."
"Normal? You mean they won't try to kill each other."
"Yeah, pretty much." With that Jonathan left heading for his quarters.
DS/
Alucard sat in his chair in his cell. Thoughts over the past seven months going across his eyes like a film reel. The mission that he and Seras had been dispatched to deal with some freak vampires. The discovery of his moral grandchildren even though he didn't know it at the time, finding his son still alive and well, watching the burden of revenge settle on David's shoulders. Losing touch with him again for some time, nearly losing Seras to his son's own demented weapon. Then David joining Hellsing in his own twisted way. Bloodlust and battle thrust taking control of David, him coming back only to be snatched away once again this time by his bride to be, Elisabeth.
It had been close to six weeks now and not a single disturbance that warranted Hellsings attention had occurred. The freaks seemed to simply have disappeared from the isle. It felt to much like the calm before the storm.
Mentally Alucard reached out and watched his police girl silently cutting threw the air with her new toy. A supposed gift from that incompetent, dunpeal Laura, that couldn't even watch over the one that she supposedly thought as her own master. Seras had strangely taken to the new weapon. Either it helped her feel more connected to her undead family or it was her vampire blood secretly taking control of the prospect of being bathed in blood at close range. Alucard decided it was a mix of both sense it seemed she only allowed himself to train her in the use of the new toy.
Turning his attention again to the thoughts of his son he tried to push to locate him. He was convinced that he was the one spoken in the prophecy. Three days after the attack he braced himself to feel the bond shatter between the two, no dunpeal after being turned survived after three days. Instead no bone shattering feeling came to him, though the connection remained numb. After the enemy had retreated into the dark portal he had could only feel that he was still alive, even the bond of father to son was numb.
Then, about a week ago he felt a surge of energy from David. Like a beacon in the night he instantly found for a moment where they had taken him. Integra had dispatched a team to locate him accompanied by Seras but when they reached their destination they found the area abandoned save for a note that Seras failed to report to Sir Integra but rather handed it directly to her master.
She told him that laying along side the note was a strange bottle that reeked of his scent. The blood that Elisabeth had stolen most likely, sense then he had felt a stream of energy coming to him, he noticed that Seras was experiencing the same as well but never noticed it.
'Alucard, my office, bring Sears, now.' Integra's voice echoed in Alucard's head. Getting up from his chair he stretched like a cat waking up from a nap, walking towards the door he phased threw and headed towards Seras's room.
DS/
"It appears the vampires are back from holiday. We have gotten reports that an American air force base outside of London has been hit, hard."
"Isn't that out of our jurisdiction Sir Integra?" Seras asked.
"Hellsing is not concerned over that kind of border officer Victoria, the fact is that the air force base rests on England soil, so that falls to us to protect it. We haven't gotten exact numbers but the first reports indicate that an extremely large number of vampires are involved. The Americans are doing their best to hold them back but can only do so much given what they have. Go without delay."
Seras nodded and Alucard gave a twisted smile as he faded from sight. Seras began walking to the door when Integra called out for her.
"Officer Victoria, we know that at least three Section 80 agents were on base at the time of the attack. The official stance right now is that they are hostile with Hellsing, prepare accordingly." Seras gave a strange look then nodded. Turning she walked out the door down to her room to gather what she would need.
DS/
The air force base had become a miniature version of hell in no time. The solders that had not been killed in the first wave were busy trying to repel the invaders. Some of the invaders, the ones that looked horribly mutated and grey seemed to fall fairly simple. But the others, the ones that looked human just stood their laughing as bullets ripped at them and did nothing.
However three of the Americans company seemed to be able to deal with that kind of monster. Their choice weapons made magnum's look like everyday hand guns as they fired their rounds into the unstoppable monsters.
"This is Sonya; I've taken out the bastard that nearly got to the general, headed to the hangers to see if any of them are hiding in there."
"Keep your whits about you Sonya; these vampires seem to be acting with a purpose. Ill send Hunt over to help you out."
"Negative, you know I work best alone Hawk." Sonya said over the radio, No response.
"Hawk?" still no response. Silently Sonya hoped that it was just equipment problems. Snapping back to reality she shot off another round into a solder turned ghoul. "Poor bastard..." quickly she ran over to the hangers, as she ran she heard two bursts and the sound of screaming missiles come her way. Before she had time to focus on the sight of the pair of sidewinders the world around her went dark as pain swept across her, and then nothing.
DS/
The heavy assault vehicles that the Hellsing organization typically used smashed threw the fence that separated the burning air force base. As the drivers kept there vehicles at high speed, a ghoul would wonder into their path and a new speed bump would be created for a moment before becoming dust. Above the heavily armored vehicles flew a swarm of bats.
As the transports, ten in all ground to a stop and the troopers emptied out several ghouls wasted no time in advancing towards them. As the human troops went about dispersing the ghouls into dust both Alucard and Seras reformed from the swarm of bats to their human forms once again, Seras looked a little shaken from the flight. As they reformed a Hellsing solder ran over to them "Right, consider no survivors."
"I never do..." Alucard said as he loaded his guns and gave a grin towards Seras.
DS/
Bang. 'Dam this is boring.' A ghoul turned to dust under the weight of one of Alucard's bullets.
Bang. 'Master never sends me on anything more than clean up.'
Bang. 'I can think of several things that I could be doing better with my time.' Another ghoul fell.
Bang. 'Like finding my son...' this time it was a poor excuse of a vampire that turned to dust, Alucard didn't bother to tell the difference. To him, a weak vampire was just an annoying little ghoul pretending to be a vampire, no class at all. The thought of his son gave him pause, for nearly five hundred years neither had seen each other, why after all this time had that tradition have to be broken. Even after he found him, they never spoke. He could sense the hatred still coming from him as if it was the day that, she died.
Alucard tried to shake off the memory of her soft yet strong face. That strength was his guide back then and maybe was what started to push him over the deep end. Alucard felt a bullet rip threw his shoulder. Looking to his left he noticed a vampire laughing at him. Alucard returned the laugh as he leveled his jackal and fired, turning the vampire to dust.
In the distance he heard the shout of his fledgling's cannon as it took out vampires and ghouls by the dozens being highlighted by the chirp of the mortal's weapons. Threw their bond he could feel the ecstasy encroaching on her mind as she threw herself into the battle. Alucard watched the flames that were scattered across the base threw a strange mix of dark and light, almost like the two fought each other. How many times had he and his son fought when their paths crossed?
This was driving him insane, well more insane. Nearly a year ago he knew he was crazy, but now, he felt as if he was returning to when he first met David's mother. What truly frightened him was that he wanted it to return.
DS/
Clean up seemed to last only a few minutes to the two vampires but in reality the blood lust had made them lose all sense of time and dawn quickly approached. Seras was exhausted; Hellsing troops had found her collapsed near one of the hangers and had brought her back. She now slept on one of the cushioned benches inside a armored transport.
Alucard returned shortly after they found Seras. He chuckled, even though she had accepted that aspect of her life she had simply let the slaughter get to her. To much fun for one night. Looking at the lightening sky Alucard decided it would be best to remain with the human solders instead of trying to use his powers to return to the mansion. Suddenly he felt eyes drilling themselves into the back of his head. Looking towards the smoldering hangers he thought for a moment he saw the outline of a man in a royal black and silver cape. As if he was standing there the entire time, watching the battle unfold.
The first rays of sunlight raced towards the armored transport but before they could touch the Nosfaratu, Alucard calmly walked in and shut the door. The lone figure watched as the transports drove away, his pale skin and fangs unfazed in their power by the sunlight as a dark portal opened and he stepped into it.