Chapter 16 – Breaking the Silence

"What are you doing?" Alucard asked while watching his two vampire companions with interest of what they were doing.

In his vast chamber, they were seated in a lotus position on the floor with their eyes closed, and their hands laid peacefully on their laps. They hadn't moved for an hour already and he just mused himself by playing a game of who-moves-first-would-lose. It was then that both of them levitated from the cold hard floor. He was, again, amused. The women ignored him and focused themselves in meditating. Only Pip was there, enveloping the whole chamber who answered him.

"They're meditating. Remember when Integra mentioned she wanted to try some oriental customs? She asked Seras to join her meditate, hoping to develop her ability of clairvoyance. But, err… Here they are… I don't even know if they can hear you, Sir." Pip's voice echoed.

Alucard stealthily moved to examine Integra as she was obviously focused and unaware of her surroundings. Alucard tried to bother her thoughts but he only found nothing. Her mind was blank. He even thought that there was something wrong because even Seras was unmoving.

"This is very interesting… It seems like there's a barrier in their heads that prevents us from bothering them. Only physical contact can disturb them." Alucard said, plotting to touch Integra.

"Uhhh… Mister Alucard, I don't think you should bother her… I have a bad feeling…" Pip warned.

"I'd like to see what she can do." Alucard smirked and moved to Integra's neck, intending to bite her neck.

But when Integra felt his intimate presence, she startled, immediately opening her raging eyes, and unleashing the power she had mustered. It was like as if a massive impact pushed Alucard and Seras away from her. Seras had fallen from her meditation but Alucard took a direct hit as he was standing in front of her. He propelled away from her with great speed and crashed to the wall. The impact crushed his form, and Pip felt pain from it.

Pip screamed in agony. "Aw! Damn it! That hurts!" He retracted his shadow out of the hit.

Thanks to Pip, the wall was unharmed but Alucard was. It took him a few beats before he gathered himself. Meanwhile, Seras rubbed her bottom from her fall.

"Wh-what happened, Master Integra? I felt you…" Seras looked at her with worry.

Her worry was, indeed, appreciated. Integra was kneeling on the floor, panting, as if she was out of energy, breathing haggardly.

"Master Integra?" Seras rushed to her and stroked her back while Pip willed himself into solid form and went over to them.

"She released too much power from the surprise. I warned you, Mister Alucard…!"

Alucard appeared suddenly in front of them and aided Integra. He sighed for his mistake.

"Master!" Seras called out. "She's too drained! What do we do?!" She tried to compose herself out of the panic.

Alucard brought a medical blood pack out of his pocket, hoping to aid Integra with it. But once he touched her shoulder, she broke out of his touch immediately as if he was a predator preying on her.

"Don't touch me!" Integra screamed.

Her eyes were bloodshot. She panted as she scuttled backwards to the wall, trying to push herself back even more as if she wanted to phase through it. She could but she can't…

The three wondered what happened and Alucard grew solemn. He grasped the situation and he tried to read Integra's mind.

Fear.

She was afraid. He didn't know how and why, but it was the result of her mediation. He looked at Seras who was calm but worried.

"Seras, what were you thinking about earlier when you meditated?" Alucard started.

"I was just reflecting and…" She looked at Pip's shadow form and blushed slightly. "I was thinking of what else Pip and I can do as a new tactic in fighting." She white lied.

"That would mean Integra was dwelling on her fears and regrets." Alucard stood and the other two watched him as he slowly went to Integra.

Alucard knelt in front of the sitting Integra who was still gathering her thoughts, and was trying to compose herself. But she trembled… there were unshed tears in her eyes and they were redder than usual because of what she saw. She tried to reach out to herself. She needed to stop her thoughts from overtaking her whole being. She couldn't control her body from trembling and moving away from her companions. Somewhere deep inside her, she knew what was happening but fear invaded every cell of her body; something she never thought could control her.

Alucard knew what was happening… everything that she kept hidden took its toll on her. He knew that this would eventually happen to her because she was troubled. He knelt in front of her and reached out to soothe her…

"You're gonna die… You're gonna… die…" Her voice was soft yet, it trembled.

"What…?!" Alucard gasped. "What are you saying? Snap out of it, Integra!" He held her shoulders and gave her a shake.

Integra stared blankly. "I saw flames… I saw ruins... Rivers of blood… Once again… Everything here; in London... I never saw any surviving soul… The sound of cackling wood from drought brought by fire... The sound of screaming people hoping for help… And you… Alucard… something was killing you!" She said in an audible whisper.

She saw the future. She saw the horrors of war… the war that will come soon. Alucard noted this, but she was clearly terrified. He knew that something morbid like the war they faced more than a century ago wouldn't faze her, but he knew what would… it was the cost of losing them; the ones dear to her. She saw everything and she was the only victor… Alucard thought. He was going to get killed by something…?

"It's a warning, Integra. We make the future. Don't let it bother you. We can prevent it." Alucard said.

Seras came next to her master and put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, Master Integra. We'll do our best to prevent it."

Her voice should've calmed her but it did the opposite... Integra pulled Seras in her arms and embraced her with little strength she had left. "Seras, your life would be in danger as well… I hear you scream in pain… I'm hearing you struggle and calling both me and Alucard for help… But none of us are there to help you… You might also get ki–"

Alucard hit her back for her to fall into unconsciousness. "She needs to rest. Enough of it. She's…" Alucard sighed. "Seras, put her in her coffin. Shut it tight and let her rest. There's something more in her than I had expected. She has become something dangerous. I won't overlook. Always keep an eye on her. Understood?"

Seras looked at him with great shock and worry. "Y-yes, Master… Will she be alright?"

Alucard looked back at her in a grave façade. "She's developing the powers that I have… but being witness to what happened earlier, it's something more powerful. Psychic abilities are influenced by the strength of mind. It all ends to her emotions… The more that she will feel, the more her ability would unleash… That would mean that the force that sent me crashing to the wall would be amount of emotions she had kept… and because of those unexpressed emotions that she obviously couldn't contain, she couldn't control her power… Rather, the power controls her. Her clairvoyance is another topic. She told me that she saw your memories, Seras. It could be that through physical contact, she could involuntarily see one's psyche. But now that she has the ability to see the future… It only means that her unbecoming has developed into something more dangerous... She doesn't realize this and it's taking its toll on her…" He looked at Integra's unconscious being with doubt and hesitation.

"All of it means that she's keeping a lot of secrets from us… Seras, you will tell me everything she tells you from now on, understood?" He turned his back on them, heading to the only door of the chamber. He stopped before going out…

"Seras, I will warn you now. If anything happens… If she decides to do something reckless, we will stop her no matter what. Her actions have led her to this…" He said and left.

Seras took Integra in her arms and dearly held her for a long time…

What have you been hiding from us, Master Integra? I can't stand the two of you fighting. Please… I hope you'll be alright…

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The day that Sheldon Penwood would become an official member of the council had come. He expected this would happen but he never expected the difficulty of work. He was used to what he needed to do but it was still enervating. There were a lot of papers to review, including past reports about vampire attacks that needed his attention. The papers weren't that important to take notice, but because of the man that he is, he needed to make sure he would know what to do in case the same scenario would unexpectedly happen. He created himself a very strict schedule that he diligently followed. It consisted of work, family, and rest. In the morning, he would make sure his pregnant sister was taking good care of herself by eating a salubrious breakfast. Afterwards, he would go to work, to the military communications headquarters while reading various papers and reports. He would go back home for lunch, and again, make sure his sister would not succumb to depression which he noticed after their father was put to bed rest because of his disease. Even though he was a very strict and serious man, he softens when it comes to his sister. He sometimes wonder how he became like that but reminiscing about their childhood, he always looked out for her and promised his mother that he would be a good big brother… always.

After lunch, he would head back to the communication headquarters to resume work. And lastly, before the sun sets, he would go to the Hellsing manor to fulfill his other duty. His task in the Hellsing manor wasn't as strenuous as in the communication headquarters but in order to be ready for the next day, he would work overtime, filing and reviewing more papers. He never faltered when it came to his duty because it was all for his family, just like his father would do.

That evening, he received two reports of vampire attacks in two remote locations outside of London. He immediately called the two vampires to dispatch the freaks. Alucard came out of nowhere and Seras came in, knocking at his door. The two smelled the obvious scent of cigars and scotch as Sheldon consumed them because of his obvious frustration level.

"You two. Here're the locations. Seras, you and your shadow go to the west. The vampires there were reported as a couple who has massacred a number of families, following a route. Follow it and you'll find them along the way. I'm sure you can handle it. Easy? Good. Alucard. The vampire you're to destroy is in the remote area in the north coast. It's far but my father told me that that wouldn't even bother you. The said vampire is hiding in the shadows so make sure your search is thorough, understood? I am not going to play games with you so obey. Understand?"

Alucard grinned at him before vanishing and Seras gathered Pip before leaving. The two didn't need to respond to his order but just comply. Sheldon silently thanked for the lessened load for the evening. He groomed himself for the meeting and proceeded. His night was just beginning…

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"Henry. I'm honestly disappointed with you. We discussed about the issue of your secrecy to your children. Does your wife know about me? Did you tell her?"

Integra was standing at the end of Henry's bed as he laid weakly. That evening, she visited him to persuade him, at least one last time before the inevitable comes, of telling his children about her existence but Henry declined because he didn't want them to get involved with the situation.

"Sir Integra… I know what I've been doing… Thank you for everything but I believe this is the best I can do for them. I hope you understand. As a father, everything I want for my son and my daughter is to be safe especially to the warning you have informed me of. This war, we cannot stop it. And I fear that my son would be marked as a traitor by the council if he is proved to be hiding your existence. If he is to be sanctioned as a traitor, his punishment wouldn't be severe compared otherwise… My wife doesn't know… If she gets involved…" Henry said in a tone he could muster.

"I know. She'll be punished as well…" Integra looked outside his window. She closed her eyes and heaved a sigh.

"Please, protect them Integra. I hope you understand." Henry sounded like he begged yet he sounded so firm.

"I have no choice, Henry. That's what I promised to your great grandfather. I will never go back on my word. I owed this much from your family…" She looked at him.

"Thank you, Integra." Henry looked at her with abundant sincerity in the midst of his worries.

The silence of the night in the Penwood manor was soon disrupted by an explosion coming from the front gates. Integra's attention turned to where it came from. She vanished from the room where Henry was resting. Henry gently got up from bed and took grasp of the telephone to call the head of the surveillance room.

"Sir Penwood!" The officer shouted in panic. "We're being invaded by priests! They're inhuman! Please evacuate immediately! We'll stop them!"

"I see. Very well. Take heed, defend the manor and its people, am I understood?" Henry said as he prepared to leave, getting his coat and pistols.

"Yes, Sir!" The officer soon hung up and proceeded to fulfill his duty.

Integra came back in her red hooded military trench coat. She wore her hood and helped Henry prepare to leave.

"Your wife and your daughter are informed by the head security of this house. They're on their way to the back of the manor. Let's go. Time is short. I've already taken the measure of our enemy. They're from Iscariots, regenerators, even. Your men won't stand out too long. We need to move before–" She cut her sentence and used the end of her coat to shield Henry from an explosion below them, crashing the windows of his room, and sending its debris towards them.

"Tsk! There's no time! Their attack is well-planned." Integra groaned in irritation.

The third floor of the manor was still clear of any invasion so Integra led him to the direction where his wife and daughter were headed; but the beginning of infortunes made its move. Integra could hear rushing footsteps of an estimated seven to twelve men. And judging from the direction where the sound was coming from, she was sure they weren't Henry's men.

"Sir Henry, you go ahead and get your family to safety. I'll handle the regenerators. Do you have enough strength…?" Integra stated and guarded his back.

"Enough to keep them from harm. Farewell, Integra." Henry said and made his way with all his might.

Integra was left standing, watching his back.

Just like Sir Shelby would have done… Your greatest duty is to protect the ones dear to you… As for myself, I will protect you as I promised, and I will protect the ones dear to me and my country.

The sound of rushing footsteps were getting closer to her vampiric hearing. Her resolve was strengthened and her eyes glowed red as she materialized her knightly sword kept in her shadows. She turned to defend Henry's path as their enemies came. There were eleven of them and all were armed with either blades or pistols. They paused as they saw Integra blocking their way but they didn't hesitate to attack her. Those who held blades charged into close combat with her while the others who were holding their pistols shot. Integra charged and dodged the bullets directed at her. As she did so, she swung her sword in a few swish, cutting the heads of the ones who charged at her.

Four. Seven more. She thought.

She was about to attack them but loud thuds of three soldiers, followed by a shout to turn the attention of some regenerators, distracted her. Obviously, they were Henry's soldiers. It was a bad move. They'll easily get killed. Henry's soldiers opened fire but did nothing to the regenerators. The opposing party fired back, returning the offer. With her inhuman speed, she rushed to the hallway, took a sharp turn, and intercepted the enemy's bullets with her blade successfully. She looked at Henry's soldiers in the eye and showed them where their master headed with her clairvoyance.

"You know what to do. Protect your master while I end our enemies' invasion." She told them telepathically and they obeyed, finding no hostility from the unknown auxiliary.

Integra stood guard to let Henry's men do their job. When the coast was clear, Integra made sure the invaders didn't have an easy death. Heads were decapitated, chests were stabbed, and others were cut in half by her blade. She made haste towards the others that caused havoc in the other parts of the manor, making sure that the manor would be clean of their enemies. She repeated the same routine to slaughter the storming regenerators: decapitating, stabbing, slicing their bodies in half, and sometimes impaling them by lengthy materials she could find in the manor.

While Integra was clearing the inside of the manor, Henry made his way to the back of the manor where the expectant Caroline and her mother were making their way towards the armored car used for emergency purposes. Caroline was hesitant to go without her father and before reaching the vehicle waiting for them, she pulled away from her mother and looked back at the manor with her eyes pure with worry. She was about to run back towards the building when she saw the familiar silhouette of her father, running with all his might towards them.

She teared up because of the relief of seeing her father safe and unscathed with soldiers following behind his back. But her relief transmuted into fear when the vision of her father's men fell into their deaths by gunshots coming from two figures from behind. The ear-splitting sound that she heard made her run towards her father. When Henry heard the gunshots, he immediately turned to look and saw his enemies, pointing their guns towards him and her daughter. Fear also struck him as his daughter's life was in grave danger; he instantly ran towards her with all of his might then embracing her smaller frame in his to protect her from the inevitable demise.

Caroline's sight turned black yet her eyes were wide open. There was a gunshot heard… She felt the impact resonated by the strong frame her father had but the bullet never hit her. It seemed like her world had come to seize. Tears consistently flowed from her eyes as the realization slowly creeped into her senses. Her father took the blow of one of the enemies' shot. Her father's heavy weight fell on her as his head slowly rested on her shoulder. Upon receiving the blurry scene which her tears had brought, she saw an unknown individual in red, decapitating one of the gunners who was about to shoot them. That was why only one gunshot was heard… She saw the individual stab the one who shot her father through the chest with her knightly sword.

Before she could process what was happening, her father spoke to her ear…

"Caroline, my dearest, I'm sorry it has come to this. Always remember how much I love you and our family. Take this…" Henry spoke with the tiniest strength he had as he took a white envelope from his jacket as locked it in her hand. "Give this to your brother. And I'm deeply sorry for keeping secrets from you..."

Henry spoke as he slumped to the ground. "Get to safety… Find your brother and tell him I'm sorry."

Caroline was left dazed with everything that happened. She looked at her father with tears blurring every bit of detail she wanted to see of him. Before she could wail of pure sorrow, the individual in red flashed in front of them.

"Henry!" Integra shouted, only enough to hear. She knelt and looked at Henry.

"Integra, please… See to it that my wife and daughter are safe. Caroline… I'm sorry. Please be safe. I will see you maybe in another time…" Henry's eyes closed against his will.

As Caroline's heart shattered before her, Integra spoke. "You must get to safety. You're not the only target. I must get to your brother as soon as possible; for I fear I'm already late. You heard your father. You have a duty to fulfill. Come." Integra stood. And when Caroline didn't move, she picked her up and carried her to the armored car.

Henry's wife saw the whole thing but couldn't do anything. Instead, she left her tears unshed for she knew that she had to be strong for her daughter. When Integra put Caroline in the car, she instructed the driver to bring them to the palace where safety would be, at least, guaranteed. Before leaving the two Penwoods, she declared: "I will find and protect your brother, I promise. Please take care of yourselves." With that, she closed the door and watched as the car drove away from her.

She knew what was happening… Section XIII launched an unpredictable attack. Because of her gift of clairvoyance, she was able to get a glimpse of one of the regenerator's memories. She knew that the enemies were also targeting the Convention of Twelve to also kill Sheldon and declare his treason of secrecy towards the council and to the crown. She needed to make haste to intercept the attacks before it was too late. She ran as fast as her vampiric speed would allow her towards her mansion.

Alucard! Seras! There's an attack. Be back as soon as you can. That's an order.

When she got to the mansion, massive damage was already dealt. She felt no life populating the area, judging from the distant sounds that only an estimated number of three to five invaders got pass security. Though she was only at the foyer, she realized she was already too late. Hearing an explosion coming from the third floor, she rapidly phased through walls in haste of protecting the council. From a generous distance and even through the walls, she heard Heinkel Wolfe's voice together with clicks from her guns…

She cursed as she summoned all of her strength to phase through the solid walls. The voices and sounds she was hearing got louder as she neared the sources…

"How dare you!" It was Sheldon's voice.

A few seconds passed, Heinkel raised her guns and said: "Hmph. Traitor. You and the Round Table Council are going to die. Goodbye."

With that, Heinkel fired twelve consecutive bullets in rapid succession, with her precision accurately aimed to hit each of the council members' heads. Flashes of red and silver were descried. Heaving haggard breaths, Integra impeded her bullets in the same manner, repelling the bullets using her knightly sword with exact precision and accuracy. Due to the rush she exerted, her red hood, cravat, and the ends of her military trench coat, had been swept sideward from the direction where she came from, before billowing into a stop. Her hood slipped from her head, causing her long platinum blonde hair to escape from its concealment. Her eyes burned like hell against her enemies.

The Knights of the Round Table Conference stood shocked as they realize their lives were spared. And time stood still as everyone in the scene apprehended the auxiliary that stood in between them. No one in the new generation of the council knew who she was, though, considering the information that some of them possess, it was possible for them to know who she is. And that was when someone shouted…

"Integra Hellsing!"

A/N: We are back to the present! And I still don't know how the crusade will turn out. Forgive me because I SUCK at writing fighting scenes. It's so much easier to imagine them than writing them. If there's any mistake, please point them out to me. I'm having writers block at some points, so I think that some of the future chapters will be shorter than normal (which is 4k words). LOL.

So this is what happened behind the scenes of Chapter 7. While Alucard and Seras were doing their mission, killing the vampires sent by Section XIII, Integra was in Henry's manor, wiping the second group of regenerators; Heinkel and Dante, along with only a few regenerators, being the first group. Have I answered the questions I left before? I believe I did, but there are still more questions lingering. I'm starting to write Chapter 18, and I dare say, it's going to be one of my fave chapters, and Chapter 19 might be included there. I will do my best to post faster.

The title of the chapter, "Breaking the Silence", is a song by Breaking Benjamin. Yes, I'm also a big fan. Haha.

As always, stay tuned for the next chapter! Questions and Suggestions are always welcome~ PM or review, I always appreciate it!

Tschüß und Auf Wiedersehen!