Chapter 13
Alucard and Akiko returned to the Hellsing Mansion inside Sir Integra's office. She wasn't alone, Seras was with her, on her lap behind her desk. Akiko squeaked in embarrassment, and the two women turned to see the arrivals. Seras blushed almost as red as her uniform. The older woman wasn't blushing, only angry as she glared at Alucard and Akiko, "This had better be good." Alucard smiled as he said, "I have gathered perfect intel on our enemy, Master. I now know their numbers, species, and strategy for conquering England." Sir Integra's look of shock was almost humorous, her eye widened spectacularly, and her mouth would have dropped if she hadn't covered it up. Seras jumped up and said, "That's amazing! How did you learn all of that!?"
"Apparently that kappa we were sent to kill was actually a lieutenant in their organization," Alucard explained. "He was one of their first recruits and was privy to many meetings with the Yokai-gumi's leaders. The kappas, and Yokai that haunt the rivers and waterways would have attacked people and riverside villages, they were hoping to convince ocean dwelling Yokai to aid them as well, to cut England off by the ocean. And then, they would have had the Yokai such as kitsune and tanuki possess the Prime Minister and Members of Parliament to effectively control England from within. It would have been a rather subtle plan, if they hadn't gotten anxious to test their might against us." Integra nodded at all of this, "Tell me, how did you defeat this kappa lieutenant?"
Alucard and Akiko described their trap for the Kappa Manjuro, and the Hellsing leader took all of this information in. "He called for aid, you say? And believed that Miss Itto was our prisoner? This isn't good," Integra said as she stood up, "We need to get our men ready for an attack, right away!" "What?" Akiko yelled. "Don't you understand!? They think that you are our prisoner, they believe that you are here against your will, your BROTHERS believe that their SISTER is in danger! Even if it is only for appearance's sake, they will attempt a rescue of you! We need to be prepared for anything!" Integra said as she immediately got on her phone and started making calls. "Seras, go on the roof and keep your Third Eye open, use the Harkonnens. I'll get the mines set for detonation. Miss Itto, you go prepare any mystical protection you believe may be required, MOVE!"
"What about Mr. Goro? His illusions may help us as well," Alucard suggested. "Get him, tell him that his life depends on it, and see what he thinks up. Time is of the essence!" Integra ordered as she got the soldiers of Hellsing to man their battle stations. Soldiers ran throughout the mansion, armed to the teeth and prepared for an army to arrive. Barricades were made throughout the hallways and traps were set in every door and window. Spikes, spears, tripwire explosives, and a variety of sensors were brought out and put into position. All the while, Sir Integra Hellsing was in the thick of it all, directing troops and making sure they would know where the traps were so they wouldn't be injured by their own devices.
Akiko did what she could, quickly spreading around charms and talismans on the traps and walls of the mansion. It was all sheer chaos for her, it was more luck than skill that allowed her to apply the charms without bumping into any of the soldiers as they manned their stations. Within an hour everything was set in place, Mr. Goro was even persuaded to assist by making the traps even harder for Yokai to spot, while allowing Hellsing to see through his illusions. After that, it was a waiting game.
After applying her talismans, Akiko was assigned to the roof along with Seras. The female vampire was stock still, her eyes and Eye all opened and watching throughout the grounds of the Mansion. Her hands gripped the mighty Harkonnen Cannons tightly, ready to be used at a moments notice. Akiko's stomach was tying into knots, and her fox ears and tails showed her distress; her ears were flattened against her skull and her tail was stiff and sticking straight up. She almost screamed when Seras said, "Take deep breaths, Akiko." Akiko swallowed and took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled slowly out her mouth.
Seras smiled and turned to her, it was the comforting smile that made Akiko think of an older sister, "That's it, just remember to keep breathing. That's all you can do right now, keep breathing and keep your eyes open." Akiko felt herself calm down, her pulse stopped racing at least, and she asked Seras, "How can you keep calm like this?" Seras sighed and sadly said, "My first year in Hellsing, the Mansion was attacked, twice. I watched many good men die horrible deaths they did not deserve. Maybe it's because I'm stronger now than I was then, maybe I've lost something in the last thirty years, I'm not sure. Right now, I feel calmer than I did then; I think we have a better chance this time around."
She was quickly interrupted by the sounds of screams from the soldiers. It looked like a gigantic horde of mosquitoes, all of them as large as bulldogs, was flying in. Akiko quickly yelled, "It's an illusion! It's not real!" Seras opened her Third Eye and saw she was telling the truth. Seras then telepathically sent a message to everyone in the Mansion, Hold your positions! It's an illusion! Hold your positions! Akiko opened her mind to try to sense who it was that was creating the illusion, "This must be Sakki-nee-san's work, she always had a thing for bugs." Seras growled, "Damn it, I can't find her!" Akiko said, "Give me a minute, I have an idea! You and Alucard unite your psychic powers with mine, and I will be able to counter this illusion with one of our own! If I do this well, then we'll survive this night!"
Alucard then walked out of the shadows behind them, his hair billowing in the wind, "That's a good plan. What kind of illusion will you make?" Akiko explained, "One of the natural predators of mosquitoes." Alucard chuckled at this as his mind enveloped Akiko's, and Seras' followed. Seras felt like light, oddly enough, a powerful light that burned brightly despite its source. Their combined power was nearly overwhelming, and Akiko telepathically reached out to the vampires, We need to all focus together. Focus on bats! A giant swarm of bats like has never been seen before!
Within a minute that felt like an hour, a gigantic swarm of bats appeared out of nowhere and swirled around the Mansion. Every bat had a wingspan of at least three meters, all of them rendered in such exquisite detail that Akiko almost thought they were real when she saw them with her own eyes. She noted that they were all vampire bats as the illusory bat swarm flew at the fake mosquito hoard. It was a slaughter as the bats swarmed in and devoured the mosquitoes as if they were real. The battle was absolutely one-sided the whole time, and it was difficult for Akiko to keep it up, if she hadn't had Alucard and Seras backing her up, it would have been impossible. After five minutes of maintaining the illusion, the mosquito hoard illusion was no more.
When the last mosquito was gone, the bats disappeared, and Akiko collapsed. Alucard caught her and helped her gently sit down, "You did well, it would seem that that was all they could think to do for now." When he finished speaking, a massive woman in a red kimono appeared from thin air, her hair and eyes like Akiko's, but her chin was more pointed and her skin paler. "Sakki-nee-san," Akiko whispered in fear. The giant woman was obviously an illusion as it spoke with a voice as loud as cannon fire, "THIS BATTLE HAS ONLY BEGUN, HELLSING. MARK MY WORDS, THE YOKAI HAVE EYES AND EARS EVERYWHERE! WE WILL FIND A CRACK IN YOUR ARMOR, AND WHEN WE DO, WE SHALL SLAUGHTER YOU AAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLL!"
The illusion of Itto Sakki disappeared like fog, and Seras asked, "Is it over for tonight?" Akiko swallowed, "Maybe? Large illusions like that are difficult to maintain, and having an illusion destroyed by a stronger one causes psychic backlash, it feels like getting hit in the head with a kanabo club. She must have felt it like a million times, that last one was a bluff, it has to have been!" Alucard nodded, "Perhaps. For now, you need to rest. If you are needed further, then we shall call on you." Akiko was more tired than she realized, and passed out by the time Alucard was done talking.
The vampire lifted her up princess style and teleported to her dungeon. He gently laid her down on her bed and covered her up after taking her shoes off. He quietly left her room and returned to the roof with Seras. The Draculina smirked at him and Alucard said, "Do you have something on your mind, Police Girl?" Seras just smiled, "You seem to have taken a shine to Akiko." The No-Life King snorted and said, "Keep your eyes open for the enemy."