Hellsing and all the characters involved are not mine, I make no money off of this.
There was an old man waiting for them at the dock. "Captain Bernadette of the Wild Geese?"
Pip jumped off the gangplank. "Yes sir. Are you from Hellsing?"
The man bowed. "Walter C. Dornez, Hellsing family retainer. If you will please come this way, there are several trucks and a bus for your men. Have you anybody else that you would like to participate in our conference? The subject matter should be kept private until Sir Hellsing has had a chance to meet with you."
"If it would be possible, sir," Pip said, "I'd really rather stay with my men until we arrive."
"Very well," Walter bowed and smiled. A good choice was made. He is a good commander. "We shall talk at further at Hellsing." He turned and led the Wild Geese to a parking lot where several trucks and busses waited.
The state and size of the Hellsing grounds managed to shock even the most jaded of the Wild Geese. Uncharacteristically silent, they followed Walter into an outbuilding and settled down in a large room. "Anybody want a drink?" One man asked doubtfully, and was mobbed as the soldiers reached for some form of comfort in their new surroundings.
Pip followed Walter into an adjacent room, where they sat down.
"There was slightly false information that you were given in the letter, Captain," Walter calmly said. "We do need you and your men as guards, yes, but also as fighters. We fight monsters, Captain, and anything else must be told to you by Sir Hellsing herself. Our personnel were recently depleted, all but ten died in a recent attack here. I dare say that you saw some of the repair work?"
Pip narrowed his eyes. "Monsters?" he asked cautiously. "And there are attacks here?" He leaned forward, wishing for a cigarette. "Sir, is there anything else that I need to know before I decide whether or not to take my men away?"
"Only that I wish you would allow Sir Hellsing to meet with you later on today, Captain. You will most likely change your mind after meeting her. Ah yes, contracts. I suggest that you take a look at this and then make changes."
Pip scanned the document. Full medical, wages that most of his men could only dream about, time off, "This is almost too good to be true, Mr. Dornez. Where is the catch?"
"No catch, Captain," Walter replied smoothly. "And please, call me Walter. I will not lie to you. This is a potentially dangerous job here, one that will make Uganda look like the proverbial walk in the park. It has been the Hellsing tradition to ensure that the soldiers are all happy. Now, if you will excuse me, I have other duties that I must tend to. Sir Hellsing will be down in just a few minutes."
Pip returned to the other room and claimed the only chair, positioning it so that he could watch the door.
"Captain?" A voice said doubtfully. "We've got questions for you."
"What are they," Pip asked without looking around. "I can't promise that I can answer them all since I don't have all the answers."
"What's all this then, Captain Bernadette?" a medic asked.
"What's what?" Pip replied, not taking his eyes off the door.
"Something about us having to be guards or something? Are we some rich bloke's personal army?" Mike questioned, also staring at the door.
"No, and try not to let this spook you," Pip grinned, "Our job this time...is to kill off monsters!"
Amid the laughter, a female voice spoke. "It's true."
Pip stared at the person who had walked in. Was this the Sir Hellsing, then?
"Your enemies are blood sucking, ageless, immortal vampires," the woman continued. "We carry garlic and holy water, drive wooden stakes into their hearts, and cut their heads off. Then we burn their corpses and scatter their ashes at a crossroad. That is how we work." She smirked. "Read Bram Stoker for more details."
"You must be barmy!" Pip couldn't help himself. "There's no way vampires exist in this world..."
"You simply don't know. No, to be accurate, you simply haven't been informed." The woman interrupted. "This Hellsing organization was formed one hundred years ago. We have conducted our operations beneath an unsuspecting populace as an instrument in the war against vampires. It's hard to understand no matter how I say it. So behold. That is your enemy, a vampire." One of her hands shot out to point at a blond haired, blue-eyed woman wearing a mini skirt and a tight top.
"Wha..." Pip couldn't believe it. He stared at the girl that he had been dreaming about for the past week. She was real? "You're...a vampire?"
"Uh, yeah...something of the sort..." the girl stammered, blushing.
The room erupted in laughter. Even Pip couldn't help himself, he joined in. No way could this girl be a vampire. "If, if, if you're a vampire," he gasped, "then I'm bloody Frankenstein's monster!"
His laughter was cut short as he felt himself go flying as she flicked her finger at him.
"I challenge you, Captain. And I'm only allowed to flick my fingers." The girl said coldly. And over the exclamations of the mercenaries, she did so, sending Pip flying back into his men.
"She's a freak!" Pip yelled. "Can't see her at all, can't even sense her! All she did was flick me but my head's spinning!" He felt blood trickling down his face. This was just like one of his dreams...but he knew that he was awake, this time. He only hoped that it wouldn't end as the rest of his dreams all had.
"Right, so," the girl continued. "Like she said, I'm a vampire."
Pip stared at her. "You're really a vampire?"
"Of course she is," a baritone voice said. A body followed it...through the wall? "Among us, she's the lowest of the low, but she's obviously a vampire."
The Wild Geese were cursing, trying to move away from this new threat. It was too much for most of them; after the fighting in Uganda and the long and difficult trip, their captain getting beat up and people walking through walls was sensory overload for the exhausted mercenaries.
"Not much in the way of guts," the newcomer observed. "Will they be of any use to us?"
"Alucard!" the woman snapped.
"My humble apologies," Walter entered the room. "I tried to stop him."
"Walter," was the only response.
"They'll be guarding my bed," Alucard stated, staring at the mercenaries. "I wanted to see what manner of men they are," he smiled.(1)
Pip stared. Those eyes...just like in his dreams. He noticed Walter handing the woman—she had to be Sir Hellsing—a letter, and their quick departure. He reached into his pocket for a cigarette. To hell with the rules here, he needed it.
"Captain," it was the girl. "If you will please come with me, I can show you the rest of the barracks. Ah," she blushed, "I am Seras Victoria. And don't worry about smoking here." She grinned, showing one elongated, pointed canine. "Sir Integra likes her cigars." She headed out the door.
Pip looked back at his men. "Well, now you know the truth." He winked. "You should see the contract that they've offered us. We'll talk more about it later." He stood up and followed Seras into the hallway, letting his men decide whether or not to stay there.
"She seems slightly familiar," Doc said, catching up to Pip. "Seem to recall you telling me something about this girl the other night."
Seras suddenly stopped. "This is the main barracks. I don't know if all of your men will fit in here."
Pip opened the door and started counting beds. "No." He turned around and looked at his men. "Half of you here, the other half lets keep going. Sort yourselves out however you want. This may be a long-term assignment." He saw Seras' grin. Did she know something? "Have anything that you want to tell us, Miss Victoria?"
"Ah, no Captain," Seras blushed again. "There are more rooms down this way, including a private one for you." She blushed even harder, if that was possible.
Pip smirked, and turned to the soldiers. "Hear that? I don't have to put up with your gossip and makeovers all night long!" That got the laugh that he'd been looking for, even if it was slightly forced.
Seras continued to the next door, and opened it, revealing barracks identical to the other. "And here are another set of barracks, Captain." Pointing at a door across the hall, she said, "And that is your room, Captain. Please, Sir Integra would like to meet with you in private now."
With that, the Wild Geese split up and started moving their gear into the rooms as Pip and Seras continued walking.
"Tell me something," Pip said casually, "Do you shoot?"
"Yes sir," Seras replied enthusiastically. "I've a Halconnen cannon as my personal weapon. Not much good for close battles, but I usually don't get all that close." She trailed off, looking sad. "This doorway leads into the main building. Please forgive the mess; it has only been a week since we were attacked. Sir Integra's office is on the third floor." She yawned. "Oh! Please excuse me, Captain."
Pip only grinned and continued walking up the stairs. "Don't worry, Miss Victoria. Everybody is bound to be tired right about now."
(1) Direct quotes taken from Volume 2 of the Hellsing manga, the Dark Horse English translation.
Again...if anybody sees any problems, please tell me and they'll get fixed. Muchos thanks to Kelia, who was kind enough to beta this for me.