LW: We're back, and now Vivi has some Helsing-related shenanigans to deal with. Enjoy!
Drop in the Ocean - The North Crusades
"So, this is Helsing Manor, our main base of operations throughout the 4 Blues" Seras explains as they reach the entrance of the large, Gothic compound, just before the main doors open and 3 people come out to greet them.
One was a young woman with long blond hair and piercing blue eyes behind wire rimmed spectacles, dressed in a pantsuit and blazer with the Helsing logo on the breast-pocket, topped off with an ascot with a silver cross draped over it. Alucard went into a lot of detail about his 'Young Master' and the 22 year old clearly impressed the vampire
On her left was an above-average man with reddish brown hair that was held in a long braid and green eyes… well eye given his left was covered by a fairly non-descript black eyepatch. He was well built and that combined with the South Blue styled Hat and the cigarette in his mouth must mean he was Mr. Bernidotte, or Pip as his friends (such as Seras) referred to him as
Finally on her right was a very tall, very slim figure. If not for the subtle swell of her bust and the antenna-like hair bangs it would be understandable if Vivi mistook her for her brother in law Kaos, she looked about the same height and build, the eyes had a spark of madness even if they were mostly hidden by the lens flare of her glasses and that grin…. It was feral, though the conical teeth at least made it clear it wasn't a Devil fruit that made her like that, but that like Alucard and Seras, she was a vampire. She was dressed in basically a pantsuit that emphasised just how long and narrow the woman's frame was. The Musket was a nice touch though, so few people knew how to fire such an old looking weapon.
"So, zis is the new hire? Doesn't luk like much" she muses, her accent heavier than Vivi expected, though what happened next wasn't either, as Rip fired sideways…. And the bullet TURNED in mid-air and in a streak of electric blue light flew towards her
"Rip" Alucard growls as the bullet makes several revolutions around the blue haired princess, even slipping through the gap between her arm and her ribs, before hitting the tree 100 yards behind them and exploding
"Interesting, she might survive after all" Rip grins before slipping back into the shadows, Walter sighing and Sera apologizing but Vivi just let it slide
"So, you're the one Alucard brought to us, Nefertari Vivi of the Straw Hat Pirates" Integra muses, scanning the girl up and down apraisingly "Anything you have to say for yourself?"
"Yes Miss Helsing" Vivi nods before bowing "Through mysterious means I was separated from my family and ended up crossing paths with your group. I've had a whole new world opened up to me and Alucard said this would be the best way for me to understand all I've learned and am now aware of. During this time I was given a goal and a deadline: I need to be New World ready in 2 years time, so I hope that working for Helsing will allow me to do that"
Integra pursed her lips before nodding "We'll see Miss Vivi, you've impressed my field team but can you impress me? You're hired, we'll work on the contract details in the morning" she declares before heading inside Pip grins and gives Vivi a halfassed salute before heading inside himself
"That went better than expected" Seras chuckles, putting her arm around Vivi's shoulders "Come on, I'll help you find a room"
"Excellent work Miss Vivi, you are getting much better at using the correct amount of pressure to restrain rather than purely cuttting through everything" Walter smiles as Vivi's wires looped around Alucard's neck and wrists, binding the vampire's limbs together "Of course, when fighting vampires, most have a high enough regeneration factor that it's probably safer to dismember them than attempting to restrain them, but it is good to be covered in case of accidents" he winks and Alucard laughs before pulling against Vivi's wires until they cut through his wrists, only to grow new hands and pulled out his gun
"You see the problem pri…." he begins, before his head was separated from his body "Ay hahahahaaha! Maybe we can make a hunter out of you after all girlie" the vampire cackles, before his entire body collapses into blood and reforms "I told you this would be fun"
"That horse, is on fire" Vivi notes pointing to the drawing in the book she was studying
"Indeed it is, that's how you know it's a magical creature and not, just a horse" Walter laughs
"So the ghost rider is real?"
"Yes"
"And you killed it?"
"3 times actually, fucker keeps finding new hosts to possess. Then again I suppose there's anyways someone willing to make a deal with a demon for another chance at life" Alucard muses with a taunting smirk
Vivi sighs deeply "If you ever do meet the rest of my crew, don't shoot the skeleton, he's not the Rider he's the current Yomi Yomi user, and our musician"
"No promises, but I won't fire the first shot"
"That's as good as I'm going to get isn't it? So I guess I'll take it"
"Vampire attacks as well as suspected ones are getting more frequent up and down the North Blue, as well as ghoul sightings" Integra explains, calling everyone to a meeting "Our resident sniper believes she knows what this may be. Take it away"
"This is most likely the work of Millenium, my former employers. The organisation was formerly a World Government Blackops, still was back when I was stationed there" Rip begins then turns to Vivi "I'm 106 Miss Vivi, and was turned into a vampire 70 years ago as part of the site project, the goal being to create a vampire army to control the populase with. Of course when that task was nearing completion, the process was being refined and results were becoming predictable, things went south, as the head of the project in as simple terms as possible, decided…. Fuck the World Government, I have a vampire army! and defected. Since then Millenium has been a force striving to destroy this world with its Vampire Hoard"
"Integra's predecessor, her father Arthur, tasked myself and Walter with eliminating them about 50 or so years ago, and until we ran into Rip, I presumed we had succeeded" Alucard adds, giving his 2 beri "Haven't seen anything that could hint to anything besides run of the mill vampire and ghoul attacks…"
"Until now" Integra finishes
Warp
"Oh my, it seems zat Huntress iz still alive after all, that is… troubling" a new voice hums, causing all heads to turn in his direction "Good day Helsing!" the boy in an altered marine uniform salutes "Warrant Officer Schrodinger here with a special announcement"
Warp
BANG
"How wude" Vivi tenses as she feels a knife to her throat "Don't you people ever hear to not shoot the messenger? Anyway…" the boy sighs before pulling out a Den Den and setting it on the desk "My regards from ze Major"
"Hello"
"Bollocks"
"Didn't we kill him already?" Alucard asks partially in confusion "Because it sounds a LOT like the same dickhead in charge of it when we cleared house"
"Seems you missed a spot" Integra scowls, lashing out at the one person she can do so to
"Now I believe you probably already have some idea of our plans, given you have Alucard and Miss Winkle on your staff but I decided to make things easier for us all and tell you, we're launching our First strike to topple the Statute in a matter of days, do try to find us before we do, things would be so boring if we just kept winning without any resistance" Major cackles, before the snail falls asleep once more
"Zis should be fun, tata" Schrodinger winks before warping away
"FUCK!" Integra yells
"Sorry to interrupt, but what did he mean by the Statute?" Vivi asks in concern
"It's an unwritten rule amongst the magicals, not to reveal the full extent of the world to the general populace. Millennium plans to reveal the existence of magic, and in turn set the normal and the supernatural against each other in a conflict that could tear the world apart" Walter explains as best he could
"With them right in the centre of it" Rip agrees, "And given all the attacks in the North…. They're going to unveil everything in Brittania aren't they?"
"That would make the most sense, it's one of the biggest islands in the North, with a sizable marine density that if they could take out now, would make their future attempts much easier at least until reinforcements from the other Blues and the Grand Line start to trickle in" Pip nods as it was a tactically sound plan "When do we leave Boss?"
"As soon as the ship is fully stocked we head off ASAP. Pack up and move gentlemen, we're going to war"
Brittania - Warzone that was once the Capital
'Everything is on fire!' it was an accurate description for how most of the city looks not long after nightfall as Millenium launches their attack. Vivi hadn't seen destruction like this since Alubarna and even then her and the Straw Hats had managed to end the altercation before anything even close to this level or carnage could have been unleashed, not that it would have gotten this bad as Baroque Works lacked Vampires and Ghouls, both well armed and armored, as well as a few loaded with certain 'surprises'
"Clever bastards" Walter mutters as he dispatches another group of ghouls and zombies, grimacing at the for lack of a better word glowing black needles piercing his left side and calf. A threat pings his Observation haki and he swings with his wires, only for them to be caught barehanded "Bugger. Of course, you're still alive, and you've not aged a day have you?" he scowls
"Ah yes we have aged like fine vine" the Den Den on the Captain's shoulder croons "You on the other hand have aged like milk: spoiled, sour, and ruining my meal. But enough of this foolishness it's still splendid to see you, would you kindly sit with us and have a heart-to-heart?"
"Dengeki Blue!"
ZAP
"Ha these weaklings never stood a chance. Hey babe how about once I deal with these peasants you come to me for a night, I'll rock your world" the blue-haired man says with an arrogant smirk and a quirk of his swirly brow
Vivi would be nicer any other time, but she had bigger things to worry about than some guy's feelings "I don't have time for this so please head to the safe zone with the rest of the civilians and stay out of the professional's way" she scowls, not referring to herself of course, but the whizzing musket ball Rip was controlling, as well as the more obvious work of Alucard and the Seras and Pip team up.
'Civili… I'm a fucking Germa Prince you dumb broad!' the man fumes "Now listen here…" he turns to shout, only to see she was gone "FUCK!"
Pura pura pura
"What?"
"Where did you run off to Niji, these things are all over the place and we're losing agents left and right!"
"I scouted on ahead. Did any of you see a girl with blue hair pass you by a minute ago? If you do grab her, I need to teach that bitch a lesson on respect" Blue growls. Pink and Red roll their eyes at their brother's dumbassery, while Green nods, but decides to have a little fun with the girl if he finds her first, before dragging her to his brother for whatever he has planned for her
With the others
"Tinker tailor soldier sailor, my bullet punishes all without distinction" Rip chants, the runes up and down her weapon flashing as her magical core synchronises with her rifle, then launching a homing bullet through a small hoard of unarmoured ghouls to hit the uniformed vampire behind them, burning them all to ash in the process
"This is getting tedious, they just keep coming" Seras frowns as she lines up another shot of an armored zombie and fires, the needles it sprayed luckily only hitting other zombies due to the range
"I didn't miss anything important right?" Vivi asks as she returns to the main group "There are some, odd characters in this place, though it might just be a North Blue thing, I don't know"
"We're good Miss Vivi, Alucard and Walter have gone off to do their own thing as usual so it's not that surprising you would want to do the same. There have been a lot of ghouls but the good news is that it's just been a lot of weak cannon fodder no?" Pip assures her as he prepares more grenades…. Just as a hulking brute crashes through a wall onto the street they'd been firing upon "Me and my big mouth" the man sighs
The creature mostly humanoid, was already starting to decay, covered in boils and sores and as much held together as protected by the cage-like armour it was decked out in, particularly the section around it's bloated looking head as it groans and began to lumber towards the Helsing group. Or at least that seemed to be the plan, as it got about half way to them, before vines shot down from a rooftop, restraining the beast before a bayonet to the skull caused it to turn to dust
"Well well, seems it's not just abominations here but pirates too. I never did get to kill your Captain Missy, but I can at least deal with you" a familiar voice almost purrs as the thorny vines retrieve Anderson's bayonets
"Shit, why did it have to be a Vice Admiral?" Rip hisses turning her musket though unsure if he'd actually go down before he could at least cripple some of them
Bang
Bang
Bang
Bang
"That girl belongs to us" Integra declares as she returns
"So hands off the princess dickhead. Sorry, Vice Admiral Dickhead" Alucard cackles having risen from his master's shadow and been the one to destroy Anderson's bayonets
"Ah, the vampire of Legends himself, should have known you'd be here with the rest of your kind"
"If by here, you mean killing every zombie, ghoul and vampire I see that isn't already considered as allies like former Corperal Rip Van Winkle and Petty officer Sera Victoria, then yes" Alucard agrees, as the rest of Anderson's men arrive to deal with the vampire threat, most notably being Captain Heinkel, and Lieutenant Commander Yumi who flanked him on the roof
"Seems much like their Captain, the Straw Hats are all beings of mayhem and destruction" the blond mutters, reloading her pistols
"Or they could simply be drawn to it, like moths to a flame" Yumi chuckles as she unsheathes her sword, the fire causing her glasses to shimmer "Which will end as badly for them as the moths if they were to ever reach the object of their desires"
"You picked a fine day to die Vampire, the flames of this ruined city will be a perfect introduction to the pits of Hell, when I send you there!" Anderson laughs until…
SHING
SHING
SHING
"Oh, should have known I'd find you eventually, this isn't exactly a large city" Walter's voice comes from the rubble and dust, something feeling off about him even before he stepped into view with jet black hair tied off in a thick ponytail and a serious expression. Honestly he made Vivi think of a less joky Alucard, the vampire not seeming to take any situation seriously and acting like life was a joke nobody else seemed to know the punchline to, either that or apatetic boredom, which was almost worse "I really hope none of you were attacked by the spike-covered ones, they seem to be laced with the Millenium's poison"
"Did you let it get close enough to grab you, or did it explode in your face, because we found out about the latter when Seras headshot one" Rip asks curiously
"The latter. Seems even in my old age I had the will to outlast the toxins" he chuckles humourlessly "Unfortunately…."
"We found him, and now the Angel of Death is my greatest veapon" The Major cackles from the Den Den in Walter's pocket "Now Valter, would you kindly Eliminate Helsing!"
"Of course Sir" he nods extending his wires, only for them to tangle against another set "Are you sure you want to do this Miss Vivi? You're the one person here who can escape me, all you would need to do, is declare yourself something besides Helsing, and you have several other titles that would do the job"
Vivi straightens her back and tightens the grip on her wiregloves "No Walter, I'm not going to run away. I've been part of Helsing for almost a year and a half, I'm practically your apprentice, so I'm not going to let everything you've done be ruined by some Wackado trying to cause the End of Days!"
"Very well. I shall try to kill you quickly" Walter sighs before lashing out, Vivi dodge rolling under an attack that shredded the wall behind her as she tried to catch Walter's legs, only for him to grab a still-standing lamppost and soar right over it
"Should we, you know, help her or something?" Seras asks
"She can handle herself, if we interfere it may switch his focus to us and that just puts us back to square one" Rip argues and Integra nods "For now we deal with the other vampires, Alucard has already gone off half-cocked against Mr Anderson"
Seras sighs, as that does sound EXACTLY like something her Sire would do.
"You are doing better than most against me Miss Vivi, you took to my fighting style like a duck to water" Walter comments as his wires throw debris at the bluenette only for it to get shredded by her own gloves "But I'm afraid there's a limit to what you could learn in this time, compared to the skills I actually have myself" he smirks as he twitches another wire which ensnares one of her own
"I may not have all your skills, but I do have is experience fighting you specifically, I know your rhythm more or less which is enough to at least hold you off" Vivi argues "Case in point, Your usual methods of attack, which I can then at least attempt to counter and work around, like so!" she claps her hands together just as Walter swings, causing a shimmering cats-craddle of razorwire to form between them "Like it? I knew I couldn't beat you, least of all now you're a vampire, so breaking even was the best I was going to get"
"Impressive Miss Vivi, almost perfect. You just failed to keep track of all of my wires, and are about to pay the price" Walter sighs before closing his fist slightly, all the wires tightening, then as he curled both pinkies Vivi realised his plan, those missing wires now digging into her leg, tearing through it like a sword through paper. As the pain rose hard and fast Vivi went with her last option and yanked down with all her might. The gesture increased the tension on the bound wires, but more importantly, caused the ones wrapped around Walters arms, to amputate them…. Well more shred, but either way he was now missing his arms from just above the elbow, which definitely felt like a win in the princess turn pirate's mind before she fell over, unable to support herself on both feet anymore
"You know, this seemed like fun for like 3 minutes, now it's just getting tedious" Alucard growls as he regrew the right side of his head meanwhile the bullets popped out of Anderson's skin as he regenerated at a similar rate "Are we 2 unkillable beings forced to duel for eternity now we've finally met and begun out conflict?" he asks, partly in jest but also curious as to what the man had planned knowing he was up against the so-called 'No Life King' a title he never actually used and was merely attributed to him…. But still.
"No, I have something I never thought I would ever need to use, hidden away on my person for just such an emergency. A beast such as yourself should fear the wrath of Heaven, as I'm about to re-educate you on that fact" Anderson states before pulling a case from his marine jacket and crushing it, revealing the contents clenched within his fingers
"Isn't that one of the 12 Holy bullets? The blades the were used to execute Christ?"
"Hai"
"From the 'Don't fuck with this' section of Mariejois?"
"Hai"
"Oh, you brought out the big guns" Alucard says before laughing, though Integra and Rip noted it seemed flat and hollow "A blade with some savior juice on it. What you gonna do, stab me through the heart?"
"No. Not yours" Anderson states, holding the golden speartip in his hand, before impaling himself on the spike, holy light filling his veins as his eyes flared and his hair erupted into golden flames, a radiant corona visible in his aura
"Bastard!" The Undead King growls before unloading both guns into the Vice Admiral's head, only stopping when vines tore into his chest, then more wrapped around his arms and rose him into the air, as golden flames reform into Anderson's head
"This is the end of your curse on this world, may you find peace in the arms of God" Anderson chants before a rush of flames shoots along the vines and ignite Alucard's body, just before the entire street lights up as if the might of the sun was condensed to this one spot of the island
Space between Worlds
"Fuck me that stings!" Alucard groans as the flames cut off, (though a part of him was morbidly amused there was a flame besides the sun itself, strong enough to harm him, even now) hitting the ground with a sigh, meanwhile, Vivi stood nearby, blinking the spots from her eyes
"Nefertari Vivi, heir to the throne of Alabasta. Celestial Dragon, World Noble, Straw Hat pirate. You are an interesting conundrum" she turns and sees the voice came from an old man who seemed to radiate an aura of peace and tranquility "You seem to be the closest that group has to a moral core, which is surprising and impressive all things considered"
"Um, thank you, I think" Vivi says with a light blush "Um, where are we?"
"A place outside of reality, not quite heaven but that's only because you didn't seem ready to die just yet" he chuckles
"You, you're him aren't you?" Vivi gasps
"Yes I am God, and you Miss Nefertari have impressed me, and my child" he tilts his head and Vivi noticed Alucard speaking to a woman, about 10ft tall by her closest estimate, with a large chest and open Captain's Coat like garment over her shoulders
"Well, this is happening" Alucard hums while avoiding the woman's gaze
"What's wrong Vlad, not happy to see me?" she coos, a pout audible in her tone
"Actually all things considered just surprised, as I was 99.7% sure I was Hellbound whenever someone did finally manage to kill me" Alucard admits with a shrug
"And that .3%?"
"That I kill the bitch on the Iron Throne and earn a free pass"
Shi shi shi shi
That, wasn't meant to be a joke, but it had been over 500 years since he'd heard that laugh, so he let that slide "I'm sorry, I couldn't follow your rules. I gave into my base instincts and killed all of them"
"Did they suffer?" she asks
"They died screaming. They weren't going to get away with what they did to you" the Undead King growls, before feeling a hand on his head, stroking it almost like he was a cat
"I understand, and they deserved what was coming to them. Not even father could blame you. Only you, blame you, given the scars on your back still remain unhealed" she states, feeling Alucard flinch under her hand "I am…"
"...the bird of Hermes, devouring my wings, to make me tame" the vampire recites, the ancient seal finally broken and his back splits open, blood gushing before congealing and reforming into ebony black wings
"My pretty bird. Rise once more, the Sanguine hand of God" she grins, stepping back as the flames were once more igniting in Alucard's soul…. And on his back.
"I live to serve, for all eternity if that is what I require"
"Don't worry Alucard, you can relax. Find some light in this dark world, I will see my Angel of Blood again one day, but feel free to keep me waiting, maybe even bring a girl home with you" she grins and winks, a more gentle smile crosses the vampires face before he fades away, to Vivi's concern and worry "So, you're the girl Pops had his eye on? Honestly, you're probably the best we've seen in at least the last century" she admits with a shrug, causing her breasts to bounce and the princess to see a Cross burned across her stomach
"She's a child with the heart and the will to make things right, she just needs a little… push" the old man chuckles "And I think I have just what you need. Of course, this means sainthood for you and acknowledgment of the Lord you now stand for but given unlike most I don't demand more than being a good person I doubt we'd run into much trouble now would we?" he winks and Vivi nods
"I agree, though this seems oddly simple. There are no hidden details are there?" she asks curiously, but also worried
"Not for at least a good few years, maybe around the time of your first kid we might talk and see if they're the sort of savior the world needs or we wait further down the bloodline" he admits with a casual shrug "You, just need to live a good life Miss Vivi, and if you can, spread my word to the masses, but that's more of a side quest"
"Then I accept this gift, gOda of the Divine Light" Vivi says before bowing at the waist, a warmth spreading through her body as his hand touched her head
Goda smiles as she stands once more "You are ready to return my child. And while I could probably fix your little issue, it seems things will work out without my interference, and might actually be better in the long run" he chuckles as Vivi looks down, remembering what happened to her leg during her fight with Walter and seeing it was smoky and almost drifting in and out of reality, though was also supporting her just fine, in this place at least "Good luck my dear, I'm sure everything will turn out just fine" he adds before she fades away
"The girl has some big shoes to fill, but I think she can do it. Hope she isn't too mad about the increase to her wardrobe budget your blessing is going to cost her" the woman chuckles as she steps over
"She'll be fine and it's not my fault the blessing reacts that way around women. Probably tries to match you kiddo" Goda hums, as while he would have preferred a natural passing, it was nice to have his child on hand to help him deal with matters such as this
The true child of God: Jesus D. Lamb
Back in reality - a few days later
Vivi groans as she comes too, a green light in her peripherals causing her to turn even if it was against the urgings of the rest of her body. Seeing the glow coming from the man beside her's hands she guessed he was a magical healer, though something about him seemed familiar
"Ah you're awake, Miss Valentina will be pleased. And of course Miss Integra" he chuckles
Vivi blinks "You know Valentina?"
He nods "She's a local back home, it was nice to see a lost lamb return after all that's happened. Sorry I forgot to mention, my name is Senju Hashirama, at your service"
"Nefertari Vivi. Um, not to be rude, but why are you here? Konaha is in the West Blue for one" Vivi asks
"I owed a favour to the No Life King after he helped me with an incident a few decades back, he called it in, to fix you up and I think I did a good job" Hashirama smiles
"I think he did too, and this was well worth helping to deal with that demonic possession incident with your friend. He still kicking? That was a fun fight" Alucard chuckles as he rises from a shadow, his burning wings proudly on display, the forgiveness allowing him to display his heritage with his usual 'no fucks given' attitude of most things "You tell her yet?"
"I was getting to it. Your fight with Walter… your leg was completely shredded, cleaved through bone and turned some sections of flesh into something more closely resembling burger patty meat. So a clean amputation was performed mid thigh, and a replacement was grafted on, which was the real reason he sent for me, and not my grandaughter who is honestly a better healer than I am" Hashirama admits, as Vivi sits up and reaches for the bedsheet "Please remain calm, and don't scream" he requests as he takes the sheets from her and steps back.
Vivi's eyes bulge as she looks at her right leg. Like most of her, her legs had a light-decent tan due to simply living in Alabasta, but now, it was bone white and felt off to her senses, she could still feel that leg and wiggle her toes somehow, but it felt muted and off. Also clearly something was wrong given Hashirama was staring at her with a, very strange expression
"I've never met another before" he mutters "Why didn't he tell me you were a wood-style user, I wouldn't have needed to do it all while you were unconscious had I known" the man groans while Alucard looked confused rather than amused
"What are you talking about, I'm not a wood user, Val's paper said I was Wind, Earth, so I can do magnet release not wood" Vivi asks in confusion.
"Seems you got more than a cushion from the Big Guy, you got Water to make Wood out of it" Alucard grins, and Hashirama hums
"More than Water, everyone else with the elements I have got mud, not wood"
"Life. The divine spark of life" Vivi says, feeling a strange warmth in her chest pulsing in time with her heartbeat. "While not from the same source you were clearly blessed with life from someone, and it let you make life, make wood from almost nothing. Speaking off, what were you going to tell me about my new leg?"
"Initially, it was going to essentially be a wooden leg, one that would hopefully not draw TOO much attention to you, but if you really are a wood style user, you should be able to use it basically the exact same way your normal leg did, just with more battle applications due to being able to potentially manipulate it freely, and as long as your entire leg isn't amputated, you should be able to regenerate the entire wooden portion of your limb with time and chakra"
"That, does sound like a step up and major upgrade" Vivi agrees as she stands to check out her new limb, only to feel her centre of gravity was off "Ok, that's not good"
"It's not the leg princess, it's your ass" Alucard smirks before pointing to the mirror, which upon doing so Vivi gasps.
"M-m-m-my" she stutters as she reaches down and grabs her cheeks, each now wide enough they could be seen from the front, and by her best guess, each were about the size of a pumpkin "What the FUCK happened while I was unconscious?"
"Besides the upgrade to the rear end?" Alucard asks with a smirk "Well….."
Flashback
As the light fades a crimson wave of flames erupted from Alucard, charring the vines and causing even Anderson to step back as the now winged vampire gently drops to the ground.
"Angelo caduto del vecchio Dio" [Google translate butchering of Italian: Fallen angel of the old God] he gasps, before scowling "You just won't die will you?"
"Not to someone like you" Alucard states coldly before in a burst of speed is directly in front of Anderson, spearing him in the chest then not only removing the speartip, but the man's heart, and crushing it "Only a man can kill a monster like me, for I was made to kill monsters like you" he sighs deeply, then turns to the next actual threat in his eyes "WALTER!"
"Hello old friend. I do apologize for what I'm about to do, but a part of me does feel a flutter of pride that you've finally stopped holding back in time to fight me in my new and improved vampire form" the former hunter and butler manages a grin for a moment before it drops to a sad smile
"Oh, you think this is prime Alucard?"
"No, Dracula"
"Zehahahaha! This is why we get along Walter, and why I'm going to try and make this quick, not that it will" Alucard says before creating 2 large scimitar-like blades through a mix of blood magic and Lunarian pyromancy, before leaping at the wire dancer, only to lose an arm as he'd recovered and replaced his wire rings. Not that it mattered to the ancient vampire who simply regenerated the arm and reforged the sword
"Well, he's going to keep Walter busy for a while, so let's deal with the real threat" Integra sighs "The Major has a date with the gun and sword for messing with my people, my family, and my butler. Move out! The dumbass made one fatal flaw in transmitting everything over Den Den Mushi" she smirks holding up her wrist
"That's a black snail"
"Exactly, meaning he was able to help me locate. He's at City Hall, probably to give him the best view of the carnage"
Scene change
"So, where should he be?" Pip asks as they enter the mostly intact building
"Probably the main office, it does have the windows that open out into the square and main portions of the city" Rip suggests just as their path is blocked by the Captain
"I'll handle this" Sera grins before haki-ing up her fist and aiming to clock the man square in the jaw, only for it to waft through him like he was an illusion "Wha!" Sera squeaks as she overbalances and falls on her face as he sidesteps her
"Shit, what is he, a logia?"
"He can't be, I used haki like Master taught me!"
"Shit-za. He actually found one" Rip curses "Sanguis Lupus, an Alpha Werewolf" she explains as Seras goes for her gun and offloads, only managing to destroy the man's shirt and lose him his hat, his body flickering and reforming without any noticeable difference, before grabbing her and slamming her through a wall "SILVER! You need Silver bullets!"
"Talk about too late advice" Seras groans while Pip switches his clip and a surprising addition joins the fray "Though maybe we can see if there's room in the budget for silver knuckle dusters"
BANG
BANG
BANG
BANG
"Only you and Garp would want to punch out a Werewolf"
"Shit, now we're fighting on both sides" Seras whines
"Millenium is the greater threat to us all, so despite my current desire to tear your Vampire comrades to shreds, an alliance would better suit both our needs" Captain Heinkel suggests, having just left several steaming holes in the captain, though they were quickly sealing themselves
"I can live with that" Pip nods while Seras sighs and Integra agrees for all of them before heading the other way to try deal with the Major
"Now, let's spay this bitch!" the draculina shouts firing her machine guns on the now spectral wolf
Main Office
"Ah, finally you have arrived, I was beginning to think my obstacles were too strong for you" The Major purrs as Integra kicks open the door, pressing his hand against a device on his hip as she pulls her gun and fires
WHOM
"Cowardly bastard" she scowls as the defensive shielding blocks her attack
"Oh come now, we all have our shields, some have experimental modular energy barriers, other have the King of Vampires! It's all swings and roundabouts really. You think you can stop my army from ravaging the North Blue and the rest of the world in turn?"
"I do, because that's what Helsing was built for, to stop monsters like you, and take down all that go bump in the night" Integra declares as Rip Van Winkle steps out of her shadow "Just, like now"
"Tinker tailor soldier sailor, my bullet punishes all without distinction. Consider this my official resignation" she says as she fires a round, the musket ball slamming and bouncing off the forcefield repeatedly as it whizzes around the Major
"You stupid girl, the Montana Max Portable Field Generator can't be broken by a mere bullet. And I should know, my name is Max!" the Major cackles as the shield glows with each impact
"It's not just a bullet, it's a spell mine" Rip says with a near Alucard-level grin, before with a click and a whispered 'Configero' the next impact detonates it
Lower floors
"Ok, we're nearly out of bullets, this fucker won't die and we're basically fucked. Any suggestions?" Seras groans behind a ruined wall
"I have 2, one of which is, unpleasant, mostly for me, but the rest of us too" Pip admits
"Let's hear it" Heinkal scowls, then grimaces as Pip reaches into his mouth and yanks out a tooth
"Silver filling, If Seras can shove that in his heart, even a Werewolf as powerful as him can't survive that"
"Ok…. what was the other option?" Seras asks, grimacing as he hands her the tooth
"The only true enemy of a werewolf is a vampire, a True Vampire" Pip states and all 3 women know what he means, even if only Seras knew what he was implying
"So, either way, we throw the Vampire at the wolf? Seems like a plan" Heinkal agrees
"Not quite, Seras, isn't fully transformed and doesn't have the shadow magic the Boss Man and Miss Winkle do. She's not eaten from the source so to speak"
Hinkel blinks and stares in shock, while Yumi just cuts to the chase and shoves her arm in Sera's face "Get on with it, or should I have all the fun tonight?"
Sera's eyes bulge as Pip and a reluctant Hienkal follow suit, the temptation finally too much as she bites down on each in turn with her shark-like teeth, and drinks about a blood bag from each of them, her eyes shifting to blazing crimson and her shadow starting to shift and writhe
"Woah boy, if this is what Alucard feels all the time, now wonder he fucks around so much" Seras coos before standing up "I have a wolf pelt to rip off" she smirks before leaping out of cover and charging at the Captain, just punching and kicking, until she managed to pin his fist in her jaws, slowing him down long enough to ensnare both legs in shadows and punch right through his chest, opening her hand and releasing the tooth deep inside
The Captian freezes for a moment, just staring at the young vampire, before emitting a high pitched shriek and bursting into flames, causing Seras to make a hasty retreat to avoid being burned herself.
"Sucess, Team Helsing!" Pip chuckles, getting a head slap and kiss from Seras, before both her unintended brides also kiss her.
Flashback ends
"That sounds like Seras, but at least they all sound happy" Vivi sighs
"It is cute to see them all so easily flustered, except Pip, but he's the main cause of the blushes" Alucard cackles
"Either way, what happened to Walter?"
Flashback again
"Was that, really necessary?" Walter sighs as he winces, looking down at the cauterized stump that was his left arm from the elbow down
"Well you took the kid's leg, I would have done the same but you're too light on your feet so I had to take an arm too. Plus, 1 arm is less of a threat than 2"
"Fair enough, but much like Vivi, you don't know all my tricks either" Walter curls his lip as shadows extend from his fingertips and writhe like the wires from before
Alucard's eyes widen "I know it's rich coming from me… but your powers are bullshit" he shouts as he dodges the shadow threads, which pierce and cut just as good as his original wires "You know what, fuck it, you actually earned this one Walter"
The younger vampire raises an eyebrow before he's struck near point blank by a wave of Conqueror's haki and his vision starts to flicker. The man standing before him was tall and majestic, decked out in royal-esque armor though his face had a thin mustache and regal smirk to it
"You claimed I was at Peak Dracula, but this is him" Dracula smiles before forming a massive broadsword and hefting it over his head "Goodbye old friend, this is the most mercy I can give" he whispers, a bloody tear leaks out as he swings down "Blood Angel Slash!"
Walter coughs blood as he slumps back, bisected vertically just to the left of his head "Thank you, for giving me a good death"
"Don't talk, you've done enough" Alucard warns, returning to his normal form
"Tell Integra I'm sorry I didn't get to see her become a Draculina, and Miss Vivi…. She was a wonderful apprentice, and she is almost ready for the New World"
Alucard smiles sadly, offering a hand he knows the man won't take, he was dying here and now, otherwise, he'd have simply begged to be made a familiar already. It hurt, but all humans had their limits, and their pride
"I'm sorry it had to be this way"
"I'm sorry, I wasn't, strong enou…." Walter stops mid-sentence and crumbles to dust, all that remained being his rings.
Flashback ends
"Oh Walter" Vivi cries, letting Alucard's wings envelop her as she leans against him
"I did all I could, but it was too late and he wouldn't have wanted to live as a puppet like that. All you can do, is be the apprentice he created, and be a legacy so he will live on, in your heart and the hearts of those who you tell his story to" Alucard says, gently stroking her head "Did you know the Major was a Cyborg?"
"WHAT!?"
TBC
LW: God this was a bitch and a half to finish XP
I, honestly don't know what will come next, just that it will be in another 2 weeks as always. Have fun, everyone