Hello everyone.

If you are following the story this far you are my favorite people. :D

I hope you like the turn I am taking with the story.

xxx

Chapter 17: A chance at redemption.

3POV

It had been a few hours since Iscariot arrived back in Rome. Odette Avery and the remaining Iscariot members all checked into the local hospital and had their wounds looked at. Avery was still unconscious but had been made stable by the medical team; her neck had been cleaned and stitched back up for the time being. She was being kept in the hospital to be monitored.

Alexander Anderson had set off in the early morning to visit Bishop Thomas his superior, an older gentleman of the cloth who had mentored him in the ways of the Lord since Anderson came to the Lord in his late twenties. He had short greased back black hair and a thin curling moustache, overweight by a fair amount as his clerical robes hung on his body like bed sheets.

"Welcome home Father Anderson." Bishop Thomas greeted the Scottish priest as he invited the priest into his quarters. Anderson nodded and brought himself into the room, as the older man signalled for him to sit down on the sofa. The room was large and woody, there was a lot of oak items in the room, crosses hung across the walls and there was a faint smell of cigarettes and brandy.

"Thank you Bishop Thomas…much has changed I sense." Anderson commented politely as he slumped himself into one of the leather chairs. Anderson liked to keep his quarters modest, there would be no expensive seats or furniture in his place of rest. However, he knew Bishop Thomas was an important man and has his superior he never thought to question his gluttony. That was between his mentor and the Lord himself.

"Yes, much has changed. The loss of Bishop Maxwell was a tragedy but what he did was not of God." The Bishop sighed as he poured himself a large glass of brandy offering one to this protégé who politely refused the alcoholic refreshment. Anderson took a quick look at the clock in the room. 4:17AM, Bishop Thomas is starting early today. Anderson mused to himself as he turned back to the older man as he handed him a glass of water.

"No, it was not of God…he was a foolish boy. May God have mercy on his soul." Anderson sighed as he took a sip from his glass. He thought back to young Maxwell, he had come to the orphanage as a child, Anderson had taken him on as he had all the other children cared for him like his own son but he still could not remove the stain of hatred from his heart.

"Amen. Why do you come to me at this hour Father?" Thomas spoke finally, cutting the pleasantries. They both knew a call this early in the morning could not be good. The ministers of the church had been given a briefing of the goings on in London but there was more information which needed to be addressed.

"You have brought something back with you Alexander…" The Bishop stated plainly as he took another sip from his glass. The priest looked up from his glass slightly shocked that his mentor had figured the issue out as quickly as he did. Bishop Thomas may well have been a drunk but he was a smart drunk none the less.

"Yes, in a sense…." Anderson began as she furrowed his brown as he thought about the best way to word what we was about to say. There was no good way to explain that he had brought back a demon woman from London….brought an ex demon into the Holy Vatican City…

"Speak openly Father please it is early in the morning." Thomas snapped slightly as he nursed his drink. Anderson sighed and placed his glass on the oak table between the two men.

"During the confrontation in London, I came across a woman; she was the Hellsing demon attendant. Odette Avery, The Vengeance Demon. She saved my life…she protected me from ghouls during the confrontation…when I asked her why she saved me when she was a demon she quoted Psalms…91:11"

"Well I must say that is not normal, demons don't tend to quote God's word.…this is very strange…" Thomas mused out loud as he listened to his protégé explain.

"There is more, she fell in battle, pierced by Helena's Nail, Sir Integra Wingates Hellsing stabbed her in the throat, a mercy killing the demon had begged for death…"

"Dear God what miracle did the artefact bestow?" Thomas took a deep breath as he waited for the response. The Nail of Helena was known to bestow certain properties onto whomever it pierces, there have been no records of it being used on demonic forces; this would be a first for the church to see.

"She is no longer one of Hell's monsters, it looks like she is now human once more I think her soul has returned, she has taken on a new form she no longer looks demonic she looks human, very human.…." Anderson said as he thought back to the new appearance of the Fury, she was more pleasing to the eye in this form in his opinion.

"So, this demon woman saved your life, begged for her own death and the Lord brought her back…" The Bishop tried to summarize as he refilled his glass once more.

"That is correct My Lord…" Anderson nodded at his mentor's summary.

"Why did Hellsing not take her with them?" Bishop Thomas asked as he sat back and nursed his drink.

"We do not know the status of Hellsing at this point. They went to confront the Major and the aircraft exploded. We are unsure if any survivors were found." Anderson explained as he thought back to the explosion, there was no way that they would have survived that, the vampire Alucard and Seras Victoria may have survived but the others would have been killed.

"Have you spoken to the woman?" Thomas asked as he placed his cup back on the table.

"No Sir, I have Yumiko and Heinkel watching her in the hospital." Anderson explained as he sat forward in his chair. He was slightly concerned about how the ex demon would react to her condition and her new appearance. He decided it would be best to make a move back to the hospital.

"Very good, I will join you and visit this creature"

3POV

It had been a week since the Hellsing organization lost their friend and attendant. Walter had fallen into a deep depression only leaving his room when summoned by Sir Integra and then remaining away from the rest of the company. He had turned cold to the world, he was no longer the warm gentleman that they had come to know, he snapped at servants for their mistakes and would often be found punching walls or lashing out at inanimate objects in a rage.

Seras had been watching the development of her colleague and it had started to worry her greatly, he was turning into a monster on the inside as well as on the outside. He had moved his belongings into Avery's old room and refused to let us enter the room or even so much as bring up her name in conversation.

Seras and Alucard stood at the window of the country manor discussing the goings on in the manor. Seras was worried for the Hellsing butler. She missed her mentor a great deal to and something was not sitting right with her. Something felt wrong, when she lost people in the past she felt a piece of her missing inside, when Avery passed away she did not feel that hole…something was not as it should be and she needed to talk to someone about it.

"Master, what are we going to do about Walter…he barely leaves his suite. When he does he doesn't talk. He is broken and I feel so bad for him." Seras sighed to her Master who sat at the window looking out at the moon. He had been internalizing the loss of the fellow demon. He was not her friend, they would never have been considered friends by any means but there was a mutual hatred and respect between the two seasoned demons. When the humans of the manor turned their noses up at his cruel ways Avery was the another demon which he could go to and discuss matters. She wasn't a friend but he did feel the loss of his fellow demon.

"He will have to work on getting over it, it happens to us all…we all lose those closest to us." Alucard said coldly as he kept his gaze on the moon.

"Master…I miss her too…" Seras admitted sadly as she crossed her arms across her chest letting out a long sigh.

"I know you do Police Girl but it won't change anything. She is dead that is all." The elder vampire said coldly as he turned to his protégé. She would still need to get used to the way of the world , loss is loss, it happens to all creatures. Implied immortality is not a prerequisite for happiness and everlasting love. More often than not it is quite the opposite; having to live centuries on this cold dead planet alone or searching for a mate. It was no way to live but it was better than the short human life demons had rejected.

"Is there nothing we can do? No spell, a séance anything? We are demons can't we use some kind of magic?" Seras chirped up as she searched for some way to see her mentor and get some closure.

"No Seras, she is dead. We can't change that. Just leave Walter to deal with it on his own, he chose the dark like we both did, Odette being with him was never guaranteed. They were doomed from the start." Alucard snapped, he had enough of the child's moping, she would need to get used to the reality of death.

"Y-yes Master" Seras bowed slowly as she made her way to her room.

Avery POV

I could hear the sounds of machines beeping, my throat was burning and my neck stung like hell. As I stirred from my sleep the smell of cleaning products filled my nose as I opened my eyes I winced as I was greeted by a bright light. Was this hell? Did hell smell like asbestos? As I looked around I caught site of two female members of Iscariot sat on the chairs at the side of my bed. Looking around the room I was in it was clear now that I was in a hospital. Why didn't I die? I was supposed to be dead!

As I stirred I noticed the blonde woman turn to me and nudge her dark haired colleague. "You are awake!" The brunette hissed as she stood up quickly making her way over to the bed.

"Iscariot scum! What is the meaning of this?" I barked as I pulled myself up from my bed and wrapped my hand around her neck. I winced as the IV port was ripped from my arm causing me to bleed out down my arm. "…I am was supposed to be dead! Why didn't I die! What did you do?!" Why was I bleeding?! I felt a wave of dizziness hit me as I looked down at the blood. I squeezed the woman's neck tighter it should have snapped under my touch by now. I was so weak what on earth was happening?

"Let her go or I will shoot you in the head demon scum!" The German blonde barked as she pressed her pistol against the side of my head. I growled and turned to face the blonde woman, refusing to let go of the brunette who had started to gasp for air as she began to claw at my hands leaving nail marks in my hand and arm.

"What did you do!?" I shouted as I pushed the brunette into the blonde causing them to both fall into a medical trolley which say at the far end of the bed.

"What is going on here?!" A familiar voice called from behind the bay curtain. I was not liking my odds in this situation, if this was hell why in God's name was the Iscariot organization here; didn't they pride themselves in being God's right hand men?

I narrowed my eyes at the two men who made their way into my room. It was the Judas Priest Alexander Anderson of all the luck I had to be around these people? I did not recognize the man who followed the Judas Priest into the room although I felt a horrible shiver crawl up my spine as soon as I saw him. He looked like a fat greasy mole, I did not like that man at all.

"The demon has woken up." Heinkel explained as she got off of the flood and helped her colleague up.

"Why the fuck did you bring me here! I was supposed to die!" I shouted at the four Catholics as I tried to march forward to them but was pulled back by the sheer amount of wires still attached to my body.

"…it seems the Lord wants something from you." The greasy man chuckled as he sat in the bedside table taking out a hip flask and began to take long sips of the fluids. An alcoholic priest, well that is not a cliché now is it?

"Father Anderson, shouldn't we tell her about the fate of her friends…" The brunette asked with a hint of a sadistic smile. Her eyes had changed, she removed her glasses and placed them into her coat pocket.

"Not a good idea to escalate the situation Yumie…" Anderson spoke calmly as he stared me down. This was slightly unnerving as I realized I was in a small medical robe. Fucking perverted priests of course they were going to stare.

"What are you talking about?" I growled as at the dark haired woman. What did she know about Hellsing and my friends? As I thought back I remembered the battle and the sheer amount of destruction we had caused were they ok? I started to panic a little as I leaned back onto the table feeling a little faint.

Anderson sighed began to explain the situation. "After you died, the remaining members of the Hellsing Organization, they went to confront the Major…whilst they were inside the aircraft exploded. We have heard nothing from Hellsing since that explosion. We believe they were killed inside…" As the words set in I could feel my heart racing, my mind was going over my memories of the battle in my head, there was no way they would have died. No way! Not them, Alucard and Seras would have protected Sir Integra. Walter….Walter was fighting Alucard, oh God! No, he couldn't be dead, Integra would not have allowed them to kill each other.

"Shut up! That is a lie!" I shouted back at the Catholics as I sat on the bed, my chest started to feel tight and I couldn't catch my breath. It was hurting now, as I thought about the fact my friends could be dead. Walter, he could be dead. No… that is not right!

"The aircraft exploded and your friends have burned up inside." The blonde woman snapped with a chuckle. "Liar!" I screamed as I felt rage and panic set in as I moved to send a fire ball at the offending woman but nothing happened. I looked at my hand in shock and tried again, there was nothing happening.

"W-what why can't I?" I gasped as I kept looking at my hand; I started to shake a little this had never happened before. When I had my powers drained I could still feel the power there, now I just felt weak. The blood was still pouring my arm from where I pulled out the IV, I did not bleed from needles…what was happening?!

"The nail you were stabbed with, it has changed you…you are human now. No more powers no more strength, no more immortality." The greasy Bishop chuckled from his chair as he watched with glee as the events unfolded before him.

"Give me a mirror…" I hissed as I took some deep breaths. If I was human I would have returned to my human form, my real human form. I had not been in that form for over 300 years. I had to see myself, I had to check. This was not happening.

"I said give me a fucking mirror, I want to see myself!" I barked at the two women closest to me, they exchanged a worried look and turned to their seniors who nodded as they motioned me to the mirror which was hanging on the wall. Pulling at a few wires I pulled myself over to the mirror on the wall.

As I looked over myself I gasped as I took a look at the reflection in front of me. It was me. My true human form, I had not looked like this in centuries. I avoided looking like this for a reason; I took on my other human form for a fucking reason! "N-no….no no no no! This is not happening! Not this!" I began to hyperventilate as I took note of my appearance.

I was no longer the dark haired, golden eyed demon I was used to seeing. I had reverted to my mongrel human form. My long black hair had been changed back into my shoulder length copper hair messy and slightly curly, my eyes were no longer the gold I was used to they had gone back to my old human eyes. I hadn't looked into my own eyes in years it was shocking, I wasn't that person anymore I was not the pathetic human woman I once was. This is not happening! It can't be!

"You don't look like the person you were before…"Anderson commented as I looked at myself in the mirror.

"No, I look exactly like the person I was before…" I sighed as removing my gaze form the mirror. "You are human now. Your soul had been spared by God" The Bishop said happily as he took another gulp of his drink.

With a quick groan I punched the mirror, shattering my reflection into large shards as they fell in the sink; cutting my hand on impact I grabbed a hold of one of the shards and tried to stab myself in the heart. But my hand was enveloped by a large gloved hand which caught me before I broke skin. Turning around to the culprit I found myself nose to nose with Alexander Anderson. He did not look happy.

Anderson POV

As I watched the ex demon look over her reflection I could see she was disturbed, she looked nothing like the fearsome creature we had come to know. She was no longer as intimidating to be around. Although a heretic whore and enemy of God she looked strangely innocent. I lunged forward and took hold of the redhead as she took a hold of a shard of glass and plunged it into her chest. I was fast enough to catch her before she pierced her skin. I could feel her shaking; I could not tell if it was from her own anger or with fear as she turned to glare at me.

I was caught off guard by her eyes; they were not the fierce golden eyes or even the black holes which we had come to see. My green eyes locked with her new human eyes they were a pale blue. I felt an odd churning in my stomach, the woman still unnerved me. I had seen what she had done as a demon and to see her human form be so weak it oddly satisfying. The power of the Lord was great to turn this demon into a feeble human.

As she fought against my hold, dropping the shard of glass onto the floor she began to scream. "Let's not be doing that; you won't be killing yourself tonight or any time soon. God has a plan for you or you would not be here." I stated as she tried to fight against me, her strikes were messy and did not hurt much. Pinning her arms to her side I held the woman in place as she tried to lash out at me.

"Release me Catholic!" She barked, even her voice was different; it was no longer piercing or blood chilling. It was human, everything about her was very human and it unnerved me greatly.

"I can't do that." I growled slightly as I tried to keep her still. She was still attached to many wires and machines which were now beeping and ringing out.

"Let me go now!" She screeched causing a Doctor to rush into the room.

"She is lashing out too much; we will need to sedate her or she will hurt herself. Can you hold her still please Father" The Doctor stated as he rushed over to us, he prepped a syringe of liquid and moved over to the ex demon and injected it into her upper arm.

"No! Let me go! Not again NO!" She screeched causing me to wince a little as she fell limp in my arms, I frowned slightly as I placed the redhead onto the bed as the Doctor filled in a chart and left.

"And a great multitude followed the Lord Jesus Christ because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased. Amen"

3POV

As the redhead was placed on the bed the Bishop stood from his chair and moved over to her bedside. Looking over the body of the unconscious woman he let out a small chuckle and looked over to this protégé.

"Anderson, you are to take her to the orphanage she will remain there for now please ensure that she regains her health. The church can use her." Bishop Thomas ordered.

"Are you sure this is wise to keep her there, around the children?" Hienkel spoke up before stepping back with a bow as she was scolded by the Bishop. It was not her place to address such a high standing member of the clergy.

"Is there nowhere else we could take her Bishop…I already have over fifty children in the orphanage." Anderson answered with a slight groan. He did not want to spend any more time around the heretic than they had to.

"All the more reason you will need a new pair of hands, get this woman to work for the orphanage. Share the word of God with her; we shall see if we can save her soul yet. She could become a useful asset to the church with her knowledge of demons." The Bishop said dismissively as he made his way to the door, turning back to the Priest he nodded.

"Yes Sir as you wish. May God be with you" Anderson bowed slightly to his mentor.

"May God be with you Father"

3POV

A few nights later at the Hellsing country manor a grieving butler was pacing on the landing. Walter had not had a full days sleep since they returned from London. He had tried to bury himself in paperwork and meetings with the surviving members of the round table. He could not manage to get his head out of the fog which had descended since the loss of his mate.

Sliding down the landing wall he sat in deep contemplation until he was interrupted by Alucard. He had heard the butler doing laps of the landing and decided to come and give his old friend some advice.

"Are you having nightmares again my old friend?" Alucard broke the silence as he approached from the shadows. The Butler sighed and looked up from his position on the floor, he looked dishevelled, his shirt was not ironed and bit of fabric was untucked from his trousers, his hair was half done tied at the back of his head, strands of hair falling into his face. He looked a mess in all honesty, Alucard knew he was not himself and he needed to snap out of it now.

"Yes, every night they never end. I understand how Odette felt now." Walter sighed as he looked at his hands. His mind was plagued by memories of her dead body. He could not unsee the image which has seared itself onto his brain. Whenever he closed his eyes he say her laying there dead and cold.

"It's something you will need to get used to. We all get them" Alucard said with as much empathy as he could muster, being empathetic was not something that he was used to. He was trying for his friend, he was the closest thing to a brother and friend the vampire had over the last sixty years.

"I will never get used to this." Walter said coldly as he started to pick at his knuckles. A nervous habit he had grown into as a child. "You know what is fucking hilarious about this whole thing Alucard?" Walter chuckled as he looked up to the older vampire who raised an eyebrow.

"I can't even drink fucking gin anymore; that used to get rid of the pain when I was human. Gin always helped. Now I can't even stand the smell of the stuff. " Walter tried to laugh but he just ended up getting angrier as he pushed himself off of the floor onto his feet.

"The pain will leave eventually, you will get over it Walter." Alucard said plainly as he lent onto the banister behind him. Alucard knew loss, of course he did, his first fledgling had broken what had remained of his heart and since then he had not found anyone to match her. Love was something demons were never blessed with.

"I will never get over the pain of living without her…" Walter spoke softly as he moved forward and leaned his elbows on the banister next to him, pushing the strands of hair out of his face he let out a long sigh as he lit up a cigarette.

"You know she would not approve of you smoking?" Alucard chuckled as the butler took a long puff of his cigarette. A small smile crept over his face as he thought back to the times where Odette would just appear from nowhere and snatch the cigarette from his mouth. He chuckled as he thought about the fact that in thirty years she never let him finish one cigarette, not ever.

A small flitter of hope rose in his stomach as he looked around hoping that she would come out of the shadows and take his cigarette. He took a few seconds to look around when the heavy feeling hit his heart. She wasn't coming to take it from him; she wasn't coming back at all…

"Walter, the sooner you accept she is gone it the sooner that pain will stop." Alucard said as he tried to console his friend who had put out the cigarette on the banister and tossed it out the window.

"I don't want the pain to stop. If it stops it means she is really gone." The younger vampire sighed as he rubbed his hands over his face and breathed out deeply trying to deal with his enhanced demonic emotions. It was so hard to not lash out or break down in tears at the smallest of comments or actions. How did they do this for so long? Walter wondered.

"She is gone Walter…" Alucard spoke as he went walk down the landing back to his room.

"Then why can I still feel her?"

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