A/N: I have a question for the readers, does anyone want me to name the chapters? Just for convenience? Thanks for reviewing again, anime z0mbie! And to everyone else, thanks for reading this far!
Abilities come from the heart,
From the need to improve.
The next evening Seras awoke feeling drained. She slowly rolled out of bed, stretching her aching limbs as she stood up. Shuffling to the main room of the suite, her feet felt as if they were made of lead.
As usual, she found that Alucard had risen before her. Her master was standing by one of the large windows, the heavy curtains now pulled back. His head was slightly tilted upward, telling Seras that he was looking at the waxing moon. She wondered if he ever slept, though where he would find the energy to stay awake was a mystery to her. He also seemed to have a fascination with the moon, staring at the pale orb often.
Walking to the center of the room, she settled herself down on one of the couches. Just as she was getting comfortable, her stomach rumbled loudly. The noise echoed throughout the silent apartment, making Seras wish she had stayed in bed a little longer. As in the rest of the night.
Alucard turned away from the window, a smile on his face. Seras blushed at her body's sudden outburst, as her master stared amusingly at her. She was noticing for the first time the gnawing hunger in her stomach, reminding her that she hadn't had any blood for almost two nights. Seras marveled at how Alucard handled the hunger. He'd never shown any signs of losing restraint, even during their journey to England.
"Hungry, Police Girl?" he asked amusingly.
"Yes" she answered quietly, embarrassed by his question. "But where will we get our blood, Master?" Seras asked nervously. There were very few options for them to choose from.
"Shall we resume your training?" Alucard said, not seeming to hear her question. "I think tonight we'll try hunting of a different sort."
"What sort of hunting are we doing?" Seras asked suspiciously.
"Humans" Alucard answered, a large grin growing on his face. "The tracking will solve both problems, your lack of training and the hunger growing in your stomach."
"No" Seras said firmly, while rising from the couch. "I won't kill anyone else. There must be some other w."
"Silence!"
The harshness of Alucard's tone snapped Seras to attention. He'd never before been so forceful, but Alucard was adamant about this lesson. He marched up to Seras, towering over her small frame. She thought he meant to strike her, but he merely continued to speak.
"There is no other way! We live in death and we kill to survive!" I've been too lenient with her Alucard thought to himself, as he watched Seras' face slump under his barrage of words. "We will drink tonight, understood?"
"Yes sir" Seras said obediently. Now was not the time to argue with him. And deep down, she knew he was right. There was no other way to live, especially when they returned to Romania. There were no blood banks, nor a Hellsing organization, from which to obtain a steady supply of donated blood.
Traveling through the London streets in their human forms, Seras still dreaded the coming "necessity" more than anything in her life. Of course, what was anything she'd done in her brief existence compared to the nightly atrocities she would now willingly commit as a vampire? Out of protest, she followed him from a distance, only keeping him within sight. After some minutes of scouring the city, Alucard suddenly stopped atop a small six story building.
Seras cautiously settled next to Alucard, looking down at what he was staring at. The fledgling shuddered when she realized he was observing a young couple, walking arm in arm down a dark street. Apparently these two were who they were to kill. No, murder she thought, disgusted with her body's source of nourishment. She once more felt regret for her decision to become a vampire.
"Don't hesitate, or your prey will become aware of your presence."
Seras looked sharply at her master. He thought of the humans only as cattle, nothing more than someone to feed off of.
Helena's words once more rang through her head, about not regretting her choice and living her new life to the fullest. The child vampire had given her wise advice, but in her gloomy state, Seras began to doubt whether she could follow through with what she was telling her. In order to survive as a vampire, she'd be giving up her conscious to feed. Her previous attack on humans had been a form of self-protection, but tonight was entirely different. She was purposefully hunting out humans to end their lives, without a thought to whom they were or what they meant to others.
Alucard's sudden shifting startled Seras out of her thoughts. She could feel him tense up, preparing to strike. She tried to copy his gestures, pushing all unnecessary thought aside. To commit murder was horrible, but to fail her master would be far worse.
In a split second, Alucard launched off the building, followed closely by Seras. She could see he was going for the girl, so she aimed her descent toward the boy. The pair never knew what had grabbed them until the instinct to flee was useless. Both vampires had easily taken hold of their shoulders, trapping them to their inevitable fate.
While Alucard immediately sank his fangs into his victim's neck, Seras stood for a moment, staring at the boy she held. He was no older than herself, with the same color of eyes she had once been proud to own. But her hunger would not allow her a longer look, as she could feel his veins pulsing beneath her fingers. He squirmed furiously under her steel grip, making her mind race with pleasure for the power she held over the helpless human.
Before Seras knew what was happening, she had sunk her fangs into his throat. The warm taste of blood flooded into her mouth, making her bite down harder to retrieve more of the precious fluid. The man shivered under her grasp, only adding to the ecstacy of the moment.
Not a drop escaped her waiting lips as the boy's blood flowed faster from the growing wounds. The human's body became limp under her hands, and Seras could feel his breathing slow. Instinctively, she pulled her mouth away from his throat as his heart stopped completely. Letting go of him, the boy's now lifeless body slipped to the cold pavement with a dull thud. The realization of what she'd done came slowly, and she had a difficult time keeping back the tears which threatened to swallow her.
Hearing Alucard do the same with the girl's body, she turned to look at him. To her amazement, his eyes were already upon her, and because his glasses had slipped down the bridge of his nose, Seras was able to see his eyes.
Alucard was staring at her strangely, the look in his eyes one she'd never seen before. Noticing that he'd caught Seras' attention, his expression quickly changed. His now customary frown appeared, and his eyes held scorn as he continued to stare at her.
Two bullets to the heads of the couple finished their business there.
"We'll see what aim you have." Alucard rather roughly grabbed her shoulder, transporting them away from the alleyway and out into the countryside.
Reaching their destination, the master vampire let go of Seras quickly. The young vampire looked around at the meadow they now stood in. Trees lined the edges of the tall grass, creating a natural border. Three large oaks were situated in the middle of the field, with a sloping hillside in the background.
Seras gazed emotionlessly at the peaceful landscape, still lost in the reality of what she'd just done. Suddenly a metal object was practically shoved into her face. She realized the object was a hand pistol, and Alucard was holding it out for her to take. She tentatively reached out and grasped the hilt, then snatched the weapon from him quickly.
Looking at the gun she now held, Seras recognized the make as having come from the Hellsing Organization. She assumed Alucard must have taken the weapon on their previous visit, with little intent on returning the item.
"Now, Police Girl, aim for the largest tree and fire" he ordered, pointing to the oak in the middle.
"Yes Master" Sera answered mechanically, leveling the pistol at the pointed target.
She fired until the clip was empty, managing to hit the center tree about a quarter of the shots. Not a bad score at the police academy, but Alucard was less than impressed. He pulled out his own large, black handgun and pointed at the targets.
"Shoot like you have a third eye in your forehead. Like this." In quick succession, he fired off his round, hitting the center of the left tree perfectly every time. "Now, try shooting the oak on the right."
Seras, given another clip by Alucard, pointed her barrel at the still unscathed tree. She imagined what her master had said, focusing her vision on the large oak. Suddenly the world of darkness became focused and she could see everything, from the blades of grass around the base of the tree to the bugs crawling on the bark. Shooting rapidly, she successfully hit the target with pinpoint accuracy, and incredible speed.
"Wow! I did it!" she said with not a little pride. Maybe it wasn't so bad being a vampire, especially if she was this good. She turned to Alucard to ask what to do next, when she noticed the frown had disappeared. Now a look of concentration, and maybe a little confusion, pervaded his face.
"We have company. Now's the time to test your abilities." His psychotic grin appeared, warning Seras that a battle was brewing. And the kind he enjoyed would not be easy, nor safe.
Seras looked around at the quiet scenery, not seeing a soul, much less an enemy. She would have wondered if Alucard was imagining enemies, but knew better than to question his judgement. But maybe could she tell?
"But I don't see anyone, Master" she said quietly, preparing for her master to lash out at her apparent lack of skills. She was surprised when Alucard calmly, almost gently, answered her.
"Use your senses, Police Girl."
Seras looked at her master, and was disappointed to see he wasn't paying any attention to her. His mind seemed preoccupied with something else, though with what she couldn't hope to fathom.
She did as he said, opening her mind to the area around her. Doing so, Seras immediately recognized the auras of two beings, not more than a few hundred feet from them. They were moving inhumanly fast toward them, possibly with the purpose of catching her master and her off guard. They underestimated their abilities.