PART SIX

Falsworth Manor, England
1943

"Captain America... oh, how the mighty have fallen."

I was supposed to be the best: the pinnacle of human strength and endurance. I could run all day, climb a mountain and dodge bullets without breaking a sweat, but yet never had I felt so weak and helpless as I did at that moment. My body was at it's peak, I was in my prime, the scientists had gone so far to call me a 'perfect' specimen. Though what good was a 'perfect' body without a ready and capable mind to guide it?

"It seems you've stumbled upon my little secret," Lord Falsworth mused. From head to toe he was draped in a costume of midnight black and imperial purple. It was the symbol of his transformation, the creature he had become. "Did you think I would not notice you, sneaking about my gardens? I am more than a mere man, 'Sentinel of Liberty'. I am reborn! I am nosferatu! I am a creature unlike anything you've ever dreamed!"

As much as I battled the vice-like grip he had over my mind I could do nothing: I was just a doll standing in his chamber, waiting to be bent to his will. He looked perfectly ridiculous in that costume, as if the bat-like fins were supposed to make him look terrifying. What a shame that my life should have ended like that, at the hands of a theatrical pansy like him.

"I wish for you to amuse me," he said dryly. "I wish for you to scream in protest, beg for your life: to express whatever feeble thought rests within that head of yours, oh Captain, my Captain. I grant you permission to speak..."

"Falsworth, I'll see you suffer for this." My response was automatic: I didn't even know if it was really me saying it.

He responded first with a sharp backhand across my cheek followed by a rotten sneer. "Lord Falsworth is dead, you pompous bafoon! I am the least of him, yet I will surpass him, for I am no foppish English lord! No, I am... Baron Blood!"

More than anything I wish I could say I hated the melodrama most, but no. Before his death and rebirth Lord Falsworth had done something I hated even more. "You're a traitor... to your country and to the crown! You've sold out your homeland and your fighting men and women for your own personal gain!"

"It was never my homeland," he said flatly. "It was merely the place where I happened to be born. That I should feel no love for it, for soil and dirt, is hardly important. I have seen the future, Captain, and Britain has already failed. A new age is upon us and those who are smart enough may very well live forever."

He forced me to my knees with a the wave of his hand. Suddenly carrying myself was like trying to benchpress a truck. Around in circles he walked like a vulture readying himself for the final kill. I managed to spit at him. "Millennium... they did this to you. They want to make... ugn... an army of undead soldiers... and you volunteered..."

"Of course I did," he gloated. "I would be mad not to! What would we have had to look towards otherwise? Old age, death, the ultimate humiliation of our minds and bodies failing?"

I struggled. "What do you mean 'we'?"

He grinned at me, his teeth glistening as he readied his bite. It was a blow he planned to inflict with a very specific purpose. "What I mean, Captain, is that you are about to be enlightened as to what a burden it was to be human."

Suddenly the doors of the study burst, shattering into splinters. In the same instant a boy even younger than Bucky flew in, arms flailing skillfully as the thin stream of wires sliced through the Baron's arm like a hot knife through butter. Initially I'd thought that Walter C. Dornez had no place in this war, that he was far too young, but his skills said otherwise.

Furiously the Baron caught him in his gaze, catching him with the same move that he'd used on me. I thought that with his attention divided that I might have a chance to break free, but still his hold was strong. Instead I had to lie there and listen to him rant.

"You dare challenge me, boy? Are you so eager for death that you would burst in here and ask me for it? Because I can assure you, there are quicker paths to Hell..." Falsworth stopped, confused. The boy was laughing: it was weak, but he was definitely laughing. "I don't see anything funny about this, boy."

"Oh, A-a-aluca-ar-ard," he managed to call through his almost hysterical snickering. I could have sworn then and there that the shadows literally bled from the corner. It seemed that was exactly what young Walter wanted. "S-say he-hello... to the Mm-major... for me..."

His eyes widened at the mention of Millennium's figurehead. "Who are you exactly, boy? Who sent you?"

"You simply cannot keep yourself out of strife, Walter. This will never do." There was a girl standing in the corner. I didn't notice her come in and by the look on Blood's face I'd say neither did he. She couldn't have been much older than Walter, but her demonic red eyes told a different story.

With a sharp nudge of the boy's shoulder Falsworth pushed Walter to the ground like a rag doll. He clutched at his right stump, trying desperately to keep all of his blood in his veins. The young girl, far from sweet and innocent, eyed the pool hungrily, yet she managed to keep herself in check.

"You... you're him," he gasped with a sadistic smile. "My lord, it is an honour. I have heard a great many stories..."

She tilted her head curiously as if his words were alien. Suddenly grasping the meaning she frowned indignantly upon him. "I am afraid you're mistaken. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"We will duel," he announced. "I will take you for Millennium! I will take you for immortality! I will take you that this beautiful war might never end!"

"Fool," she said as her voice dropped like a stone. Her eyes flared as the walls crawled and billions of insects poured from the cracks. Still I couldn't move as the elements clashed in the very room before me, death looming with expectation. The girl didn't flinch, she just spoke those cold, lonely words: "You are about to be enlightened as to what a burden it is to be inhuman..."

There's where the nightmare always ended. Even after all of the things I'd seen I knew that horrors such as those didn't exist, not in the real world. There were no monsters: only men who do monstrous things.

London, England
Now

"Squad! Fall back!"

The call was repeated by several commanders down the line once Sir Integra had made her announcement. They inched away, never for a moment taking their eye off of the enemy. All they could do now was sit back and watch patiently as Hellsing's pet came out to play.

Colonel America stood frozen. There was no doubt in his mind that this was the same creature as the one he met that night. No other creature, man or demon, was that far gone. That little girl all of those years ago, over six decades, had somehow grown into the monster before him: Alucard, agent of Hellsing, king of the vampires.

"I hear you, Master!" he cackled wildly. "I hear you and I obey!"

The Jackal roared as the first bullet fired down the barrel with phenomenal force. The air around it burned as it soared towards it's intended target: the arm of Hawkeye, pulling back his bowstring as he took precise aim. Rancid meat exploded as his arm was obliterated, leaving the stray arrow to misfire and land harmlessly in the distance.

With each shot the gun cocked itself and was ready to fire again in quick succession, launching heavy rounds into the heads and hearts of the undead. Miss Marvel flew in for a frontal attack, relying purely on his strength to get her through. As a wide gaping hole blew into her chest she fell from the sky and to the ground before him.

Alucard smiled upon his works and walked towards the dead superherione to inspect his kill.

"Carol," the Colonel gasped as he looked from behind his shield. Miss Marvel lay perfectly still, but he knew she was only playing dead. There was no way a blow such as a destroyed heart would kill any of them: she wanted to lure him closer. He cursed her for being so stupid.

With a gentle nudge of his shoe Alucard tested her. She was certainly dead, had been for a while, though this was the first time he'd ever come across a walking corpse smart enough to convincingly play the part.

"It's no use pretending," he said knowingly. "You dare face me, I want you to die on your feet. Stand." She stirred only slightly, still feigning weakness. "You seek to test my patience. Hnh. I am immune to your petty games, freak."

Hissing hungrily she snapped to all fours and within a fraction of a second she lunged, taking a good bite from Alucard's calf. Insulted he slapped her away sharp jab that took her nose and a great deal of her face. Miss Marvel lay on the dirt and looked up to the vampire, satisfied with what she'd done.

"If we could turn Blade and Morbius then we can turn you too," she laughed sickeningly.

"Nice work, Carol," Iron Man chuckled sadistically. "How does he taste?"

She spat his meat out. "Terrible..."

Alucard looked down to the open wound, seemingly unconcerned as the virus began to run it's course. The massive hole was already turning black: he extended his garb so that it was covered. Perhaps he should have been worried. As they'd said even vampires were not immune. The thought gave him pause for merriment: he was not like them.

The zombies laughed feeling secure in their victory: all except for Colonel America. He waited and watched, uncertain as to what abilities Hellsing's dog had hidden from them. Alucard smiled: it seemed the nightmares had taught the old soldier well.

"How amusing," Alucard lamented. He wretched, summoning the thickest bile from the bottom of his bowel. He wretched, drawing the black goo from deep within and summoning it to his throat. He spat it in Miss Marvel's face and watched as her expression dropped. "That is what I think of your poison. You can have it back."

She gasped in surprise. "What in the..."

"Silence your fool's tongue!" He raised the Jackal to her temple and flirted a moment longer with the trigger than he should have. In that moment he took to soak in the anticipation a sonic boom shattered the air and a pair of fists collided with his chest, forcing him off the ground then flying him into a wall. Captain Britain had him pinned and had shattered countless of Alucard's bones in doing so.

"We're hungry," the Captain drooled. "You will not keep us from our food!"

"Is that so, 'John Bull'?" He raised the Jackal, but his wrist was quickly caught in the Britain's grasp. Squeezing with all of his super-strength the bones shattered and ligaments tore: it would have been pure agony, but Alucard would not scream. He smiled widely, joyous at his predicament.

Captain Britain was not amused. "If I were you I wouldn't be smiling."

"Oh, but John Bull, this is simply too marvelous," he wailed. One couldn't help but wonder if he was ranting from sheer hysteria in the face of such intense pain, but Alucard was no stranger to it. Instead his heart had been set aflame. "I never thought I'd see the day... yet another new kind of freak: another challenge to conquer!"

"Not for much longer." Captain Britain pressed in further, cracking the stone lying behind the vampire and liquefying his organs. Still Alucard grinned, drinking it all in like sweet nectar, as if pain were the only thing that reminded him he existed.

His free hand shot up like a searing dagger completely destroying his oppressor's shoulder. Captain Britain cried in frustration and grabbed his enemy by the scruff of his collar, throwing him to the ground in the ring of zombies assembled behind him. Iron Man, Thor, what remained of Giant-Man and Luke Cage, the Wasp, She-Hulk, Miss Marvel, Hawkeye and Excalibur looked down on him, caging him in like an animal.

"So much for the 'vampire king'," Giant Man remarked casually.

Inhaling sharply the flat bag of flesh and bone pulled itself back together, then lost itself in the mad flow of his bright crimson coat. Alucard turned wildly, pointing the Jackal threateningly at every enemy before him. He laughed, taunting their weakness and ineptitude. "Come on, freaks! Hurry up and kill me!"

They didn't have to be asked twice. Almost immediately Alucard was struck with Iron Man's repulsor ray at full power punching right through him, the cleansing flame of the Phoenix, arrows that Hawkeye awkwardly fired pulling the bowstring back with his teeth and finally from Thor a bolt of lightning that shook the Earth and sent them all flying back.

Colonel America was the first to bring himself to his feet and ignored the others as they argued, chastising Thor. He inched towards the epicentre of the strike, to where a smouldering body lay flattened, perforated and cooked by everything they had. Though it had all been burned away he could still make out a manly shape lying with his arms outspread as if he'd welcomed his demise.

With a swift crack from the blunt edge of his shield he attacked the neck, freeing the vampire's head from it's body. His hair had been badly singed and the skin of his face had shriveled, now tightly hugging the bones beneath. The Colonel grabbed a remaining tuft of it's hair and picked it up, holding it out at arm's length. He considered the creature whose remains lay before him. Could this really have been the same Alucard of 1943?

Thor scoffed and turned to leave. "Pitiful. 'Twas a meaningless distraction to our hunger."

"That was even easier than that Scottish priest," said Hawkeye as he followed with the other Avengers. "You coming, Steve?"

Still Colonel America pondered the scorched head. There was no way the battle could have been won that easily: not by a long shot. Hellsing's Alucard was a creature of power and hate and jealousy: a force of and against nature turned loose on the dark corners of the world.

The eyes shot open with pupils of blood red. Alucard smiled a toothy smile and laughed breathlessly as he taunted the Avenger.

Colonel America jumped back and dropped it to the ground. With his shield at the ready he sneered. "I knew it. I knew it would take more than that..."

"Colonel! Join the line!" Iron Man barked from the back of the group. With their team leader going slowly mad he'd assumed control and no Avenger seemed to disagree.

"Why?" Colonel America pleaded with all of his hate. He raised his shield above and brought it down, bashing the mutilated skull into the Earth. His desperate scream could be heard for miles around. "Why won't you die!?"

The picture crackled from the satellite feed as Integra watched the battle unfold. The Avengers and Excalibur were advancing north towards the barrier, leaving behind Colonel America to stare awestruck at her agent's remains. She frowned at the knowledge that Alucard was having more fun than could be afforded them, but she supposed that was simply the nature of all things. Never before had he ever failed her and this time would be no exception.

"What should we do, Sir Hellsing?" asked a terrified commander from behind her. What he saw on the monitor he took at face value. Why wouldn't he? He didn't know any better.

"We wait," she said coolly, again lighting another cigarette.

He was shaking, panicked. He probably even thought her mad. "With all due respect, sir, we simply cannot do that! The enemy is approaching and soon they'll reach our forces. Perhaps if we summoned what remaining vessels we have and launch a fighter attack from the south we can box them in and..."

"And with all due respect, commander, you are not the one in charge." She rose to her feet, her expression unimpressed. "Since you are not familiar with Hellsing's strategies I will forgive your imprudence this once. Those navy vessels could be better used to evacuate civilians to another continent."

"But, sir..."

"Don't," she began harshly, "question me again. Is that clear?"

He swallowed his pride as bitter a pill as it was. "Yes, Sir Hellsing."

She looked to the screen for a moment then turned back to her path to the door. "What you see is Hellsing's top agent lying dead: the latest victim of an unstoppable foe that would consume the world. Do not trust your eyes, gentlemen. They are foolish."

As she stepped through the wide doors of the war room and into the featureless grey hall she was met by Walter, his own face painted with concern. He bowed to her politely when he recognised her mood: one that had little to do with the disagreement inside.

"Is everything alright, Sir Integra?"

Giving the situation another moment's pause she then huffed. "It's nothing of concern. It seems that Alucard is choosing to cut it very fine in this battle."

"That is his way," he reminded her. "If I may ask, what course of action will we be taking in the meantime?"

She blew the thin jets of cigarette smoke from her nostrils. "I simply need a moment alone to think. I believe I can trust you to overlook the situation should anything arise."

"Of course, sir." With another polite bow Walter parted ways: he into the war room whilst Integra made her way to a private chamber. She retained a constant, flat demeanour as she advanced. After all she couldn't appear worried in front of the troops, not even for a moment.

The single door slammed behind her. The room had everything she needed: a bed, a desk, a computer, a telephone and a light. With any luck she'd be able to muster a better plan than relying on the brute strength of her family's secret weapon. Better men had tried and failed that very night.

It was only for a brief moment that she let her guard down before a hand jerked back her head and the cutthroat dagger pressed dangerously near her jugular. "Hands where I can see them, Hellsing."

She did as she was told. The voice was more than familiar to her. "Father Maxwell. I heard that you'd made it out of Spain alive. It's a pity about your agent, though."

"Spare the mockery," he seethed.

"Then we'll skip the smalltalk. What is it that you want?"

"I want you to withdraw your agent," he stated simply. "Pull him from the field. Let those monsters finish this world. Let it be emptied of all humanity."

She sneered, almost laughing. "You must be mad. If you think I care so much for my own life that I'd condemn countless others to death then I am afraid you are mistaken."

"I told you to spare the mockery!" He shook her, enough that a drop of blood ran down her neckline from contact with the blade. "Do you think I don't know what that monster of yours really is? If I'm not mistaken, you're the last to carry the Hellsing name. You have no heirs."

"And what consequence is that?"

His breathing became heavy, infuriated. "You humiliated him, Hellsing. You and your entire family. Abraham Van Helsing imprisoned him and since then he's been bound by blood to servitude. Without you he is free to do as he pleases: he is free to take the world as these creatures do!"

Integra sneered so that she mightn't struggle not to laugh. "Is that what you really think? Maxwell, you're less than a fool, you're a fucking idiot! Next to the myths you clearly don't know anything at all. Without Hellsing he is nothing."

"Then it doesn't matter if I finish your life right now." She was silent: she needn't give him another reason to end her.

"Die! Die! Die!"

By that point he was just pounding the asphalt. The Colonel's knuckles shattered as he continued to assault the fine paste that was Alucard's skull. Being dead he couldn't feel the pain of the broken bones in his hands or how the punches were softening with every blow.

Iron Man sighed heavily. "For God's sake, Colonel! He's dead! We have to move!"

The star-spangled avenger didn't give up. He grabbed his shield and started bashing it against the ground in a primal display of rage and desperation. "Shut up, Tony! You don't know him! You don't know what he can do!"

"Every second we waste here is crucial!" He yanked the Colonel from his knees and drew him close to make sure he was understood. "We have to move. The forces north of here are mobilising as we speak. We tore through the rest because they weren't prepared. Every second here is another second for them to ready themselves."

"Tony, if we leave him he will end us!" Colonel America's undead eyes were wild. Though his body was but a husk his basic will for survival still burned inside him and would not allow him to stop.

"Leave him," She-Hulk called out from the pack. "He'll only slow us down. The rest of us are getting hungry!"

The two Avengers glared at one another, neither of them willing to be the one to back down. However Iron Man had the team behind him and all left to the Colonel was superstition and an insane flashback to a distant struggle. He huffed at his others, determined to return to his work. "If you walk away now you will regret it."

"It's a risk we're willing to take," came Stark's snide reply.

Colonel America turned away. He had more important matters to see to, even moreso than food. Looking down there was nothing: only the black road where a body should have been. With a grunt he turned to his teammates, his eyes darting around and searching for signs. "Where did he go?"

"What?" Iron Man looked down and realised what the Colonel was looking for. The other Avengers gathered around, curious as to the goings on.

From all around them, from the night itself came the vampire's devilish laughter. His voice echoed from an unseen chasm stretching from the sky to the base of their chests. He mused loudly, "You needn't worry about the other forces. I rather think you have your hands full here."

Stark opened his visor and searched, hoping that his eyes could see what his sensors couldn't. He bellowed impatiently, "Show yourself, Vlad! Let's finish this right now!"

"Vladimir..." He meditated on the name. "I haven't been called that in such a long time. Why, it's almost as though he was somebody else entirely!"

"Shut up!" Iron Man cursed. "Show yourself!"

Shadows bled from the cracks of the pavement and quickly formed the shape of a man. The darkness dripped away as a sinister tint of red washed over him, revealing his physical form. Alucard smiled playfully. "Catch me... if you can."

He didn't need another moment's notice before opening fire. Solid bolts of hard light projected from his palms with force enough to give the Hulk a second thought. Though Alucard evaded it easily, his very body seeming to melt around the line of fire. He still had that infuriating grin smeared across his face as his body began to come apart.

"What the hell...?" Iron Man's systems were confused. In place of one target there were suddenly hundreds of thousands swarming towards him, diving at the chinks in his armour. One by one the army of locusts pried their way inside the plates and began gnawing on the walking corpse inside.

The other zombies watched and listened to him scream. Some even dared approach but quickly backed away fearing the same fate. After a moment the sounds of torment stopped and the Iron Man armour was perfectly still.

"All of you freaks are exactly the same." They jumped and saw Alucard was standing just where he was the minute before. With a wave of his hand a gust of wind blew over the empty suit. It hit the ground with a hollow clunk. "You possess power over the living but none of the dead. That makes you weak."

"We... are not... weak." Colonel America trembled as the battle raged inside of himself. This was no nightmare: it was the real world and he was an Avenger. Along with him teammates they'd conquered gods and monsters, fought back armies and stayed the hands of time. Who was a single vampire to speak down to them? That thought was all it took to overcome his fear and embrace it as a weapon. "Avengers! Excalibur! Assemble!"

Alucard beamed with joy as they approached. With the Colonel in the game it was finally an even battle. "Why, Captain, I see you've rediscovered your famous courage."

"The name's ColonelAmerica, buddy." The zombies gathered behind him, hissing and frothing at the mouth. Hunger was beginning to set in again and they didn't appreciate this dog keeping them from their meal. The Colonel took his battle-stance and the others followed suit. "Avengers! Excalibur! Take him apart!"

"Excellent," he said, beside himself with perverse delight. "Show me your power... that I may show you mine!"

TO BE CONTINUED...