A/N: The enemy is revealed and another cliffhanger is added to my collection, lol. As always, thanks to the readers and reviewers!
Sacrifice for the innocent
Brings redemption.
Alucard, after Seras' departure with the Hellsing team, had returned to the suite. The thought of spending his time with the humans was disgusting to him, and he chose to wait alone for his fledgling. He'd also decided not to follow his child, trusting in her abilities to destroy any Freaks found within the area of their hunt.
But musing to himself, Alucard was suddenly unable to feel his fledgling. He shot up from his seat, confusion on his face. Focusing all his powers, he sought to find her location but nothing would come. The feeling was as if the line had gone numb, though he knew she had not been destroyed.
The elder vampire snarled, frustrated with the failure of his search. But calming himself and clearing his mind, he thought of his options, coming only to one. He needed to find out what had happened to Seras, and Hellsing held the answers.
Transporting himself to the large mansion within the space of a few seconds, he appeared on the grounds. First inspecting the rear of the building and seeing that the Hellsing team had returned, he swiftly made his way to Integra's office.
Walking through the door, he was met with the sight of Integra and Walter, deep in conversation. But both humans turned at the entrance of the vampire, agitation in their demeanor at his bold coming.
"Tell me what happened" he ordered, ignoring the Hellsing leader's twitch of annoyance at his tone. But she nodded her head to Walter to answer the vampire's question.
"The mission was a trap" Walter explained, addressing himself to both Alucard and Integra. "Our troops were detained in the rear of the building by an unknown number of Freak vampires. No one was seriously injured and the militants left the area within a matter of minutes. But..." The elderly retainer hesitated, seeing Alucard's strained features.
"But what?" Alucard snarled.
"But it appears the Freaks were only after Miss Victoria. She was taken by them, we don't know where to. A note was left in the office of the building, addressed to you." Walter pulled out a folded piece of paper, handed to him by the commander, and held the message out for Alucard
The master vampire snatched the note from the retainers hand and read the contents quickly, his scowl changing into a smirk. Integra and Walter watched Alucard carefully, looking for signs of a violent reaction. They had lost his child while she was under their care, and an elder vampire's vengeance was not something they could handle at the current time.
Alucard, having finished reading the contents, tucked the paper inside his jacket and turned to leave. "You're getting sloppy, Hellsing" he spoke with a mocking tone, before disappearing into a dark vortex.
Alucard appeared on the outskirts of London, staring down at the large city. The note had given him the precise location of an empty manor house, and he'd pinpointed the area in Integra's office. But when he'd attempted to teleport to the spot, he'd appeared here, several miles from the location. Apparently barriers had been erected around a large perimeter, a discouragement for unwanted intruders.
Alucard smirked, wondering what challenge this threat would give him. However, Seras was his main priority and he would have his fun after she was freed. Changing into the form of his hell hound, he leapt from the building and sprinted through the alleys, going in the direction of the manor. Reaching the end of the city's limits, he moved across the fields and massive lawns of the regal mansions, searching for the correct house number.
Finding the number of the building he was seeking, Alucard carefully prowled around the perimeter, searching for sentries stationed outside. Much to his disappointment, he found no one. Growing tired of the lack of fun, he boldly approached the front of the manor. Coming within sight of the structure, he saw with mild amusement that the manor was Tudor in age, and in a far state of disrepair. How cliche he thought with some humor.
Stopping before the impressive structure's entrance, he sniffed the air for signs of undead or Freaks. What returned to his senses confused him. He could smell three different scents, one being Seras, and another was a male vampire near her location. But the third puzzled him. He could smell several different varieties of blood within the building, but they were all centered on one precise location. His sense was telling him that many vampires were standing in the exact same spot, with no distance between them whatsoever.
Returning to his human form, Alucard easily pushed open the heavy wooden doors and strode in. He first turned his footsteps toward the mysterious number of scents, assuming the leader to be the unknown entity. The risk of freeing Seras before he confronted his opponent would be greater than if he met the enemy head-on, so he opted for the lesser danger.
Reaching the location, the elder vampire found himself standing before a large metal door, one which reeked of a spell barrier. Grinning, he opened the metal slab and walked into the room beyond. Staring around his surroundings, he saw only a large desk with a pad of buttons placed on one corner. There was also a large-screened tv behind the desk, but that mattered little to him as he noticed movement in a darkened corner.
"So you've come, vampire" a voice said from the shadows.
"Enrico Maxwell" Alucard responded.
The figure stepped forward, revealing a man in his mid-twenties, his long silver hair pulled back into a pony-tail. He wore an immaculate suit and a pair of large rimmed glasses, apparently used against the glare of the sun. His face wore a large smirk, though there was a hint of surprise tugging at the corners.
"You should have been more careful, Vatican" Alucard said, gleefully noticing annoyance along with the surprise. "Your subordinates whom you sent to destroy my fledgling and myself were able to catch a glimpse of your face. Such an easy task to find the memory within their minds, and the similarity between the Freaks' weapons and Iscariot's was slightly obvious" he spoke, recalling the blades one of Seras' opponents had used.
Maxwell silently stared at the vampire before him for a few seconds, before a chuckle escaped his lips. "That was careless of me, wasn't it?" he mused, stepping in front of the desk. "But you have also been careless. You thought to kill all of Iscariot by setting fire to the citadel and feeding off of those who escaped the flames. Unfortunately, your plan backfired."
"Obviously" Alucard interjected.
Maxwell continued, though he was slightly perturbed by the interruption. "Escaping from the fire through the laboratory, I was showered with the entire stock of vampire blood. The tainted blood seeped into my body as my own spilled out. The results are before you. I was turned into one of your kind, though the burns on my body were permanent." He held up a badly charred hand, showing several fingers also missing.
No wonder his smell had confused the master vampire. Several types of blood had mingled together to produce the abomination standing before him.
"You are a fool to create these pathetic imitations, humans with fangs" the master vampire said with disgust. "The boy who invaded my castle was bait, to lead me to you; and now you use my fledgling. Where is she?" Alucard snarled, looking ready to tear everything in sight to shreds.
"Certainly, I'm the one who sent the boy to you" Maxwell said, striding behind the desk. "He was a useful tool to gain your attention, though easily thrown away. Every servant is expendable, don't you agree?" he asked mockingly, turning to the large screen behind him.
Alucard watched an image on the tv slowly appear, snarling as he saw the who was on the screen. A picture of Seras was shown, her arms and legs chained to a stone wall behind her. She was unconscious, but otherwise appeared to be unharmed.
"Though I was hoping you would destroy that heretic organization in your search for me, rather than joining with them" Enrico commented, referring to Hellsing.
Alucard laughed, a strange sound in the large office. "You still speak of religion, after what you've become? Such foolishness, Iscariot, even for you."
"Tell me this, Alucard. Why do you fight for them, knowing what they did to your wife? What Van Hellsing did to you, trying to seal you within your own castle. The only fool within this room is you, not I."
"Why should I tell trash like you?"
"You needn't, but I have something which may decide for you." Maxwell leaned over the large desk, flipping a switch nestled on a panel of many.
Alucard watched with rage as the image of Seras was bathed in a bright violet light, her body writhing in agony at the mere touch. The elder vampire moved toward the former Iscariot leader, intent on shutting down the machine and breaking his fingers.
"Not another step" Maxwell said, his hand going to the panel once more. "The sprinklers in her room have been adapted to hold a liquid other than water. If you attack me, I need only press a button and she'll be showered with holy water. A very painful way for a vampire to die. Now, I have an offer for you." So saying, he flipped off the ultraviolet ray, a gesture of truce.
Alucard stopped his approach, but said nothing. His eyes wandered back to his fledgling, who still lay unconscious. Then his gaze shifted to the Iscariot before him, eyes boring into his own. This man had become a monster so similar to himself, he knew the battle would be difficult. Also, Seras was helpless at the moment and very vulnerable to Maxwell's torture.
"I wish for you to join me, but not as an equal" Maxwell proposed, a smirk on his face. "I need a strong pet and you would fit the part nicely. Your first assignment would be most enjoyable, the destruction of Hellsing. Well Alucard, do you accept?" His face showed a smile, showing his arrogance at having the upper hand.
Alucard studied Maxwell for a moment, face unreadable to the Iscariot leader. But turning toward his fledgling, a grin crept on his face. "No" he replied, smirking at the astonished face of the vampire before him.
"Why do you refuse my proposal?" Maxwell asked, surprised by the No-Life King's response. "Unlike Hellsing, Iscariot kept a well-detailed report of your past. I know what the first Hellsing did to you, during your first eventful trip to England. What he and his colleagues did to your beloved wife."
"What guarantee have I that you won't destroy us both?"
"None whatsoever, but what choice do you have?" the Iscariot asked, hand hovering over the panel.
Alucard made no response, and Maxwell's grin broadened.
"So you've given up, then" Maxwell spoke, pressing a new button on the console. Alucard didn't flinch as he felt cords wrap around himself, even when he felt a binding spell enact around him. He merely glared at the abomination before him. "You know well not to struggle, or your precious fledgling will perish."
A/N: Okay, no one needs to get mad at me about Alucard's 'capture'. Everything will be explained in the next chapter, which I might upload before next Sunday if no one else (besides Anonymous, since I'm writing this after his/her review) yells at me for his behavior.