The scene a kilometer outside the tower flat was one of controlled chaos. The residents that were displaced by the ghoul attack milled about in the streets, where aid agencies managed to keep the peace in the form of hot tea and sandwiches. Meanwhile, a barricade was set up by the London Police, with constables stationed to keep any of the residents or the curious from venturing into the hot zone, with the sound of gunfire vaguely audible in the background. It was there when a solitary male got out of his car and tried to enter. "Sir," one of the constables said, holding him back, "I'm afraid you can't go in there, it is too dangerous. I'm going to have to ask you to leave." "PLEASE, YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!!" the male roared, trying to break through. "I HAVE TO GO IN THERE!! MY WIFE COULD BE THERE, NOW LET ME THROUGH!!" "SIR, PLEASE, YOU'RE NOT HELPING MATTERS!" the constable continued to plead as others tried to restrain the struggling man. "Constable," a new voice spoke up, "I can handle this." Turning around, everyone involved caught the sight of Sir Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing calmly striding towards them. "So, you believe your wife is in that building, Mister..." "Morse, Harold Morse," the man answered. "I was over at Scotland Yard trying to find out the status of the child we found yesterday when this occurred. Please, you've got to tell these men to let me through, my wife may be in danger!" "She already IS in danger, Mr. Morse," Sir Integra said, her face never losing it's calm. "And if you go in there, you may already compound the situation." She then changed tack and inquired, "You mentioned a child. Might I ask where you found her?" "Uhh... yes," Harold said, bewildered. "Myself and my wife Elysse found a small girl in Enfield after we came from a party... but how did you know that the child is a she?" "I have my methods, Mr. Morse," replied Sir Integra in an enigmatic fashion. "But right now, I have several of my best agents combating to contain the evil responsible for this attack... an evil you and your wife inadvertently brought to your neighbors when you brought that child." Harold looked at Sir Integra with disbelief. "What?" he gasped. THE TOWER FLAT, HAROLD AND ELYSSE MORSE'S UNIT... "It was only a matter of time before I started my hunting again," Angela smirked as she stood before the group facing her - Alucard, Seras Victoria, Irene "Rally" Vincent, Pip Bernadotte, Elysse Morse and Moria Hedgley. "Frankly, I find it easy if I just... used the form I have to get where I want and what I want." "But... why?" Elysse asked, horrified. "Why do you do this to us?" The child vampire smiled evilly as she answered, "To be honest, I don't think it's proper for the cattle to ask their butchers their motivations before the slaughter. You humans are so na‹ve at times, always taking in strangers who seem helpless, despite the danger some of them are capable of." "So your sick methods haven't changed, I see," the No-Life King snarled, "playing upon human sympathies to stalk your prey!" He then produced the Jackal and aimed it at Angela. "You really disgust me at times, Angela!" Alucard then opened fire, but Angela had easily evaded the shots at a pace so rapid, only the other vampires could barely follow. As soon as the six-round magazine was spent, the child vampire stopped her darting. "As you see Prince Vlad, I've greatly refined the use of my powers," she laughed "That, combined with my small size, makes me a harder target to hit, so not even you can draw a bead on me soon enough." She then pouted as she added, "Or could it be that you have gotten soft by being a human's pet for so long." Rally blinked. 'Ho-boy... he's going to really lose it now, Master!' she told Seras mentally. She knew 'fighting words' when she heard them. 'There is not doubt about that, Rally,' Seras added in a dead-pan fashion. They were correct. The 'pet' remark only made Alucard angrier, this time bringing out his Casull as well as his reloaded Jackal. But try as he might, no matter how much ammo he expended, he could not hit Angela, her size and speed confounding his aim. Seeing an opening, Angela then made a charge towards one of the humans - Moria in particular, fangs flashing. But before she could strike, Rally rapidly placed herself between the vampire and human, CZ-75 in hand. "Hold it!" she ordered, aiming at Angela. "Really?" Angela scoffed, stepping back. "You, a fledgling, threatening me with that pop-gun?" Glancing over to Alucard, she added, "You have really poor tastes in choosing your apprentices, Prince Vlad. I would've expected a fledgling of a prince of Walachia to be at least compliant." Rally was about to object when she heard Alucard's voice in her head. 'Don't correct her, Rally Vincent. This might be an advantage we can exploit.' 'Okay, I'll follow along,' Rally replied mentally. Returning her attention to Angela, she then said, "Well frankly, I don't care about your opinion, you little bitch. And as for my gun, it may be only 9mm, but it's been customized especially for vampire hunting by a good friend of mine - one who knows how to kill annoying vampires like you. It's got a custom barrel plated in titanium nitrite, and it fires a specialized ammunition similar to Alucard's Jackal: casings of Macedonian-processed pure silver, the power charge Marvel's MMA-9, mercury-tipped bullets - and blessed, meaning I have to store the clips in a special carrier before storing them in my darkness, not to mention wearing gloves so I won't burn my hands handling them." She indicated her gloves. "Oh really?" Angela said, her voice building an edge. "Do you get a special pleasure hunting down and murdering your own kind? I find you disgusting... especially since you were the one who destroyed my fledgling!" "You mean that teenaged virgin you FORCED to become a vampire?" Rally shot back. "You never even asked her if she wanted to become a vampire, you just went and took her! And as for 'destroying' her... she made that choice for herself! She didn't want to spend her existence as part of the living dead! At least I can proudly say that chose to be a vampire!" "But you know so little about yourself," Angela countered. "If you'll abandon these humans and," pointing to Alucard, "your master, I can show you how a true vampire is supposed to be." "Really? It doesn't take that much just to murder some humans for blood," Rally scoffed. "You're nothing more than one of those goddanmed FREAKs going around England and this city nowadays." "Oh please," the child vampire dismissed, "don't associate me with those pale imitations. I do have my pride, you know." "Zo you are aware of ze FREAKs we're fighting," Pip said, still monitoring the situation the Wild Geese were still facing Angela's ghouls downstairs over his radio. Angela smiled. "I am... familiar with the situation, human." She then sweetened the pot by adding, "In fact, I may have some... insight into who's creating them." "You know about the creators of the FREAK chip?" Seras gasped. "Not offhand, mind you... just a few rumors and ungrounded facts I've heard in my travels every now and then," Angela offered, but then giggled, "But even if I tell you, I don't think you'll be able to find them in a thousand years." "Really, you say?" Rally said, a sly sneer coming across her face. "Oh I don't know, the Hellsing Organization could do it. We can be pretty stubborn if we like. So how about it, you little creep... if you'll kindly tell us who they are and where we can find them, then maybe we can give you the favor of a quick end." "Sorry, you're going to have to do better than that," the little vampire smirked. "Well that is all we have to offer," Alucard remarked, still aiming his Jackal at Angela, "so make up your mind." "I choose... neither. I'll destroy you three disappointments and kill the humans," replied Angela, then turned her attention to Pip and Elysse. "This woman and the Frenchman could be excellent as my ghoul slaves... but this one," she eyed Moria hungrily, causing the woman to cringe, "is different! Even from the scent of her, I can tell she's still a virgin! Yes, she can be my new fledgling... to replace the one this dark haired one," she looked at Rally angrily, "had murdered." "Don't you dare touch her, bitch!" Rally snarled, still aiming at the vampire. Moria looked surprised at the dusky vampire, amazed by the concern that the dark-haired vampire had expressed about her welfare. "I wouldn't demand anything from your elders if I were you, little fledgling!" Angela shot back dangerously. "Remember, I am 300 years your senior, and I can do whatever I please!" She then looked at Moria and Elysse and added, "But before I do, I might... satisfy my urges before I kill them." "What are you talking about?" Alucard demanded. "I may have the body of a child," Angela began, "but I am fully an adult. And I have an adult's needs... and passions, I might add." "I'm... not sure I want to hear zese," Pip said, a sick look on his face. "You're not saying... that you...?" "Oh don't be ridiculous, human," the little vampire dismissed. "Why do I want you... you're a man, I prefer women." Angela then added, "Of course, because of this body of mine, I cannot get into the action, so instead I usually hypnotize two or more women to seduce each other so that I can watch. I find that much more entertaining!" While Angela was describing this perverse discourse, Rally couldn't help but feel angry and disgusted. Wanting to hear no more, she finally let her rage loose. "I... I DON'T BELIEVE IT!! Y-YOU MEAN TO TELL US THAT YOU FORCE HUMANS TO SEXUALLY DEBASE THEMSELVES... JUST SO YOU CAN GET OFF WATCHING THEM!? YOU'RE JUST AS BAD AS GOLDIE!! NO, YO... YOU'RE WORST THAN SHE WAS!! GRANTED, GOLDIE LIKED HER GIRLS YOUNG, BUT AT LEAST SHE HAD HER STANDARDS, YOU... YOU... YOU FUCKING BITCH!!" "You know, I'm finally getting a little tired of your impertinence, fledgling," Angela growled, holding up her hand. "If Prince Vlad doesn't have the courage to discipline you, then I'm afraid I've got no choice but to do that for him!" And with that, she waived her hand in Rally's direction. Nobody couldn't have predicted what happened next. An irregular circle of shadow extended itself around and under the dusky vampire, then ebony tendrils grabbed Rally by the torso and arms and began to slowly pull her under, her feet sinking into the dark puddle. Nearly panicking, Rally began struggling to escape, but the tendrils holding her prevented this. "RALLY, HANG ON!!" Seras called out, grabbing her fledgling by one hand. "I'LL AID YOU, TOO!!" Pip added, grabbing the other hand. Alucard, in the meantime, held out his hand to prevent Moria and Elysse from aiding as well. "I must ask you not to go, otherwise you'll endanger yourselves as well!" Turning back to Angela, the No-Life King snarled, "What are you doing, Angela? You know you cannot kill her." Angela cocked her head coquettish-like, smiled and said, "I know that. Since I cannot kill another vampire, I decided to do the next best thing... I'm going to absorb your impertinent fledgling and add her power to mine. It's much more efficient." The little vampire then turned her attention to the tableau unfolding. She had to admit, Seras and Pip were having some success trying to pull Rally out of the shadow pit. Then she made her big mistake. "You know what?" Angela piped up. "While I'm at it, I think I'll add her as well." She then waived her hand, and soon more tendrils wrapped themselves around Seras and began to pull her in along with Rally. "MIGNONETTE!!"Pip called out, releasing Rally to try to save Seras, which caused the dark-haired vampire to sink further into the ebony morass. "NOOO!! LET ME GO, YOU IDIOT," the Draculina pleaded as the mercenary grabbed her, "OR YOU'LL BE PULLED IN AS WELL!!" Feeling like she was drowning, Rally floundered for a time, then caught sight of her master in distress. Just as her head was about to go under, she cast one last, hateful glare at Angela, snarling, "You...", before finally being submerged into the muck. Feeling like she had won, Angela continued to watch as Pip futilely tried to save Seras from a similar fate... only to be distracted by Alucard laughing. It began small enough, the No-Life King chuckling, which developed into a loud laugh, which finally developed into a fiendishly maniacal bellow. "Somehow, I find your reaction somewhat confusing, Prince Vlad," Angela said, feeling annoyed. "I had just consumed one of your fledglings and am about to do the same to the other and you find in amusing?" "You idiot," Alucard managed to say, "do you have any inkling what you have just done?", continuing to laugh. "What are you talking about?" the little vampire snarled, but then was distracted the actions of her shadow pool - namely Seras pulling herself from the shadow tendrils. "What's going on?" she asked, now seeing the pool convulse - followed by a huge, inky explosion! When everybody had gotten their bearings afterward, everyone - including Angela - were surprised to see Rally hovering over what was the shadow pool - but she was changed! The fingertips of her gloves were torn, revealing claws that were once nails. Her teeth were also changed, appearing sharpened, and her eyes now had a hideous glow to them. But the look in her face now showed a gleeful, murderous fury - which was directed at Angela! Thinking quickly, Angela decided to get out of the way and fled. However, she was surprised that Rally had matched her move - and clawed her across the face! Falling to the floor, Angela had managed to catch sight of Rally, who was crouched down, ready to attack! "PRINCE VLAD," she pleaded, her facial wounds healing, "YOU HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!! CALL HER BACK, ORDER HER TO STOP!!" "Now why should I do that?" Alucard purred, smiling. "It's not like Rally Vincent is my fledgling, after all." "W-what?" Angela gasped - then made the connection quickly, looking at Seras. Deciding to add to the little vampire's terror, Alucard added with, "Angela, what you are witnessing is the power that even the Iscariot Organization was fearful that Rally Vincent would develop - the power you are seeing right now! Whenever her emotions are sufficiently aroused, her powers briefly increase, making her almost unstoppable. Even though she is still a fledgling, she currently has the power of a full vampire. Just imagine what it would be like when she truly becomes a full vampire herself!" All sense of arrogance gone, Angela could only watch in horror as Rally prepared to strike. Briefly, she looked over to Seras, silently hoping the Draculina would be merciful towards her. No such luck. "You don't have to wait for an order from me, Rally," Seras purred, looking scornfully at Angela. "Do what you like to her." For the longest two seconds Angela experienced, Rally did nothing. Then the most hideous of smiles came over the dusky vampire's face. "Yesss, my master!" was all she said before tearing into her. Moria wisely pulled Elysse close to her, turning the other woman's head away from the awful scene. However, she bravely watched as Rally savagely attacked Angela, using hands and teeth in tearing away limbs that reproduced themselves. But as Rally's assault continued, Angela found it harder to regrow arms and legs, as well as healing the wounds Rally had inflicted. Pip stood next to the maid, amazed as well as horrified at the spectacle. "You are unusually brave, Mademoiselle," he commented. "The little bitch deserves it," was all Moria said, thinking of all the misery the child vampire had inflicted to her neighbors. Seras, on the other hand, felt a sense of satisfaction at the job her fledgling was accomplishing, seeing Angela growing weaker and weaker by the minute. "You're doing good, Rally," she said in a low voice. Alucard, however, stood impatiently, a look of concern on his face. "She's toying with her too long," he said to himself. "She should be finishing her off by now! What's taking so long?" After a few minutes, Angela found herself shaking in pain and fear, preparing for another assault. Rally, in the meantime, was grinning hugely, her clothes covered in blood and pieces of the little vampire. "Please... stop. No more," she gasped, sounding more like a little girl than a mature vampire. "Stop?" Rally smirked, her sharpened teeth bloody and flashing. "You were going to do to my master what you tried to do to me! Do you think I'm going to... to... to..." All of a sudden, Rally fell to the floor, violently convulsing as the glow faded from her eyes and her teeth resuming their normal appearance. Seeing an opening, Angela then made a move, hoping to destroy Rally before she could catch her breath. Charging her, Angela raced over to the disabled vampire, hoping to rip her head off - but then two shots had rang out, blowing away the little vampire's legs! Those watching turned to see Moria sternly looking at Angela, still embracing Elysse, her gun barrel smoking. This was the chance Alucard waited for. Taking advantage of the distraction, the No-Life King quickly closed the distance between himself and Angela and shoved his right arm into her chest and through her heart! "Y-y-you..." was all the little vampire could say before her body exploded into a cloud of ash. Dusting off Angela's remains from his red trenchcoat and hat, Alucard walked over to the convulsing Rally, who was apparently gasping for breath, then handed her a unit of blood from his darkness. "You should thank Walter for this. He always thaws more than one unit for me," he said. "The power you had only has a limited amount of time, so maybe next time, you should avoid toying with your prey before destroying it." "Point... taken, Alucard," Rally gasped as she bit into the bag and began drinking the contents inside. For a time, Pip stood in shock of the whole thing until he heard a crackling over his radio headset. "El Capitan, el capitan," Sergio's voice called out. "Oui?" Pip answered back. Sergio replied, "Sir, all the ghouls have dropped dead and turned to dust. Shall we start the sweep of the building?" "Oui, begin ze sweep, but I do not believe we shall encounter any more ghouls," the Wild Geese leader replied. Taking up his machine gun, he nodded to the No-Life King as he began to search the corridors of the floor. "If you all will excuse me, I must be going. Adieu." Seras, in the meantime, helped up Rally from the floor. "All the same," she said, "you did weaken the little devil enough so that Moria and Master could get their chance at her. I cannot help but feel proud of you." She then added while hugging her, "Are you feeling alright, Rally?" Feeling her strength returning, Rally silently nodded - then her body clenched as once again the powerful desire to drink Seras' blood came back, strong as ever. "No," was all Rally could say as she tore way from her master and fled the room, now wishing to attack Seras again, bloody tears in her eyes. "RALLY... WAIT!" the Draculina called out as she tried to stop her, only to be restrained by Alucard. "This is not the time, Police Girl," he said, "but it will soon come." Seras just looked sadly at the door opening where Rally had fled. "I hope so, Master," she forlornly said. THE HELLSING MANSION, EARLY THE NEXT EVENING... "...All the same," Sir Integra said as Elysse and Harold sat in front of her desk, "it was remarkable that so few of the residents of your flat had been turned into ghouls." Standing nearby, Walter C. Dolnez offered tea to the couple. "Afterwhich, we made discreet inquiries to the surviving residents about the situation, making sure your names were not mentioned. None of them recalled seeing you taking the vampire girl inside your unit." "But all the same," Elysse glumly said, "so many of them had died all the same... especially Emma and poor Jenn. If only I hadn't heard that... that awful creature crying, none of this would have happened!" "You had no knowledge this Angela was the vampire that caused this. From what Alucard had told me, she had used this same modus operendi for over three hundred years, preying upon the sympathies of human to gain her sustenance." "Sir Hellsing," Harold offered, "what is going to happen to Elysse and myself? We certainly cannot return to the flat, that's for certain." The Hellsing leader thought for a while, her cigar smoldering in her hands. "To begin with," she began, "we work covertly with other agencies around the world specializing in vampire attacks and their aftermaths. If you wish, we may have you placed within a relocation program within one these agencies. Provided you can keep this and other agencies under your confidence, I am certain you and your wife could return to a somewhat normal life." "That sounds ideal," Harold said. "What do you think, Elysse?" "It would be a shame to leave behind our friends in London... but it might be for the best," Elysse said. "Your organization will be able to provide a sufficient cover story to explain our departure, will you?" "If I may, Sir Integra," Walter offered, then told the couple, "to answer your question, a cover story has already been provided." He handed the couple two manila envelopes, which the two studied the contents. "All it needs is your approval." Harold thought for a while. "It sounds... plausible," he said. "What about you, 'Lysse?" Elysse nodded, "A new home... a new job... and a new life. It's ideal." She looked over to Sir Integra and added, "And I suppose there will be a support system to aid in transition, as well as... counseling to deal with this." "All provided, rest assured," Sir Integra agreed. XXX Outside the office, Rally leaned against the wall, wondering why Sir Integra would ask to talk to her. She was still feeling miserable, mostly because she spent the day sleeping in a coffin away from Seras; she didn't trust herself anywhere near her. "You've got an appointment to see the lady?" a voice asked. Rally turned to her left and saw Moria, who was in her maid uniform. "Yeah," she said. "I thought Integra gave you a few days off." Moria shrugged. "With my flat still a mess from that ghoul attack, I asked Sir Integra if I can live at the mansion for a while." She paused before adding, "To tell the truth, I'm thinking about moving here permanently. Might be a bit safer that way." "Even with me around?" Rally asked. For a while, the brunette thought of what to say next. Then she said, "I was wrong about you, Miss Vincent. I had... this whole misconception about vampires, mostly because of all the rumors I hear about them, and I'm sorry about telling you so." Rally was curious. "What changed your mind?" she asked. "I remembered talking to my grandfather. He was troop leader here before the Wild Geese came, remember?" Rally nodded. "He had the same idea about vampires - that is before he really got to know Alucard, not to mention how your master Miss Victoria had saved him when the Valentine Brothers attacked. Taking care of him during his convalescence afterward, he spoke highly of her. I should've remembered that before I popped of at you, yesterday." "Hey, I don't blame you," Rally offered. "We vampires just got bad press, that's all. And about yesterday... look, I may also be a lesbian, but I know enough that, when a girl says 'no', she means it." She sighed before added, "I gave up a lot of things when I left Chicago - my business, the friends I had - I just got lonely, that's all." Looking at Moria, she concluded with, "For now, I just like to have a friend who is... just a friend, that's all." "Fair enough," Moria said, smiling. "In a way, I find you... intriguing. To be best, regardless of your relationship with your master, we might take this one day at a time if you like, Miss Vincent." "Oh please, just 'Rally'," the dusky vampire said, also smiling. Right about then, the doors to the office opened up. Walter had escorted the Morses from the office when Elysse suddenly walked over and hugged Rally. "Thank you for all your help," she said. "You will tell your master and that other vampire the same, will you?" "Uh... yeah, you're welcome," Rally replied, somewhat flustered. "Elysse, we better get going," Harold gently said, patting her shoulder. "Yes." Elysse patted Rally on the back before releasing her before departing. "All the best," she said as she disappeared around the corner. Rally lingered for a few seconds more before entering the office, closing the doors behind her. However, before he continued down, Walter turned to Moria, who prepared to resume her chores. "Miss Hedgley," he began, "I did ask Miss Victoria about your request." "And?" Moria implored. The old butler took a deep breath before saying, "She did agree, although I have not, for the life of me, would wonder why you should make such a request." Moria just shrugged as she said, "To be honest, Mr. Dolnez, I really don't know... but I do know I should be there." "I guess," Walter sighed before continuing on his way. XXX Rally stood in front of her friend's desk, clearing her throat. "Walter said you wanted to see me for something. Do you know why?" As she waited for an answer, the dusky vampire couldn't help but to notice that Sir Integra looked somewhat uncomfortable. After a few minutes, the Hellsing leader finally acknowledged the presence of her friend. "Rally," she began, "I just wanted to let you know a few things first. Ever since you've came with us from Chicago, you have proven yourself to be... quite a remarkable individual. From what Alucard told me last night, you finally realized a power that would even have Paladin Anderson quaking in his boots once he sees it." "Well, it's nice to know," Rally said, "but I've got a feeling that's not what you plan to say. I know you too much, Integra, and it's not like you to beat around the bush like what you're doing." "Indeed. Very well, I will tell you." Sir Integra took a deep breath before continuing. "You have impressed quite a few of the Round Table by your actions. Myself, Sir Islands, Sir Penwood, Sir Townstead, and even Sir Kensington feel that you are valuable to the Hellsing Organization... but we are only five voices in a group of twelve. Most of the Round Table are still suspicious of you as a vampire, and a very vocal minority of them are calling for your destruction." "What?" Rally gasped, suddenly feeling concerned. "There were a lot of discussions over the months that you were here, as we were trying to find some way to legitimizing your continuing existence. It was Sir Kensington that had came up with a solution. The other knights in your favor were not at all pleased with it... and I found it personally appalling... but in the end, we all agreed that it was the best way to keep you here." Rally looked at Sir Integra's face carefully. She noticed the lip of her friend was quivering slightly, and her eyes were showing signs of leaking of tears. "Integra... what are you saying?" she asked. Taking a deep breath to center herself, Sir Integra elaborated. "Rally, consider this as your standing orders from now on: your duties with the Hellsing Organization will continue as before... but with additional duties. From now on, anyone you feel that is willingly contributing to the distribution of the FREAK chip, be it FREAK or human... you are to consider them as your prey." Rally took in her breath, horrified that Sir Integra would be forced into this to save her. "You're... kidding?" she gasped. "There is more," Sir Integra added. "You recall what had happened to the previous incarnation of this organization." Rally nodded, still in disbelief as Sir Integra got out of her chair and circled towards her friend. "The order," Sir Integra choked on her words, "are to include... any human who willingly tries to betray this organization... to the general public." Sir Integra then collapsed into Rally's arms, sobbing. "Rally... I... I am so sorry that..." "Hush, Integra," Rally gently said as she held her crying friend. "It wasn't your fault for giving those orders. You just got backed into a corner trying to save me and this was the best that can be done." She had gotten a tissue from the desk dispenser and dabbed her friend's eyes. "Still, I guess I should have know that this had to come about one of these days." Sir Integra nodded, then centered herself as she added, "However, since I am your commander, I think I might blunt the shock this order. If you feel that, whoever is aiding who is creating this chip, is only doing so because of either economic circumstance or by force, you can be discriminate about how to deal with them... as well as, from time-to-time, you might hunt down those who you feel is deserving of their fate... just so long as, by your discression, they are not turned into either ghouls or vampires. Now Rally, could I be left alone?" Rally nodded. "Just so long as you don't go into the corridor with puffy eyes," she said. "Wouldn't want to ruin your rep as 'the Iron Maiden', now would you?" Sir Integra laughed briefly at Rally's joke. "Granted." Rally then eased her friend back to her seat, then departed the office. As she headed down the corridor, Rally couldn't help but think about the burden of what Sir Integra had told her. 'I keep telling myself that I will not kill any humans to live, now I've been given orders to the contrary,' she thought to herself glumly. 'Wasn't easy for her, I can tell.' Then Rally ran into Alucard, who was standing in front of her. "Sir Integra told you?" the red-clad vampire asked. Rally nodded, walking past him. "You do realized that Sir Integra did not make that order lightly?" he added. "I know, now just leave me alone," Rally muttered, continuing on her way. "You know," Alucard continued, his back turned to Rally and smiling, "I cannot help but feel envious of you." Rally stopped. "Just what the hell are you talking about?" she grumbled. "Well think about it, you have been given a golden opportunity - the license to indulge in fresh, warm blood, as much as you like." Rally clenched her fist tightly as Alucard continued to talk. "I could be jealous just thinking about it." Rally gritted her teeth in rage. She wanted to lunge into Alucard, to give him a greater measure of violence that she had given Angela. However, she held her tongue and proceeded away, mostly because in a way... he was right! The very thought of drinking warm blood had brought a strange, almost perverse thrill within her body. She was SO looking forward to finding and killing her first victim, much to her horror and shame. "By the way," Alucard added, "I have a message from your master. She seemed to have missed you this morning and would like to have the presence of your company as soon as possible." Rally froze, her eyes wide. "Oh... and she did make it in the context of an order, Rally Vincent." He then disappeared. For the better part of three minutes, Rally stood in the hallway, eyes wide in panic over the thought of what she knew what would happen. She wanted to run, to find the darkest part of the mansion and hide for the rest of her days - but she knew it was futile. "I... I must... obey my master," she weakly said as she slowly made her way to her and Seras' quarters. RALLY AND SERAS' ROOM, SUB-BASEMENT LEVEL... "Are you certain you want to do this?" Seras asked Moria, the maid sitting on the edge of the coffin/bed. "It might not be a pleasant sight to see." "Of course I do, Miss Victoria," the maid replied. "After all, I did see Rally tear apart a vampire with her bare hands and teeth yesterday, so I believe that I can bear to witness this." "All the same," Seras added, "just stay out of the way, just in case... and by the way, you can call me 'Seras'... if you like me to call you by your name." "Yes on both questions," Moria agreed, then heard a hand on the door. Wisely, she got up from the bed and stood at a corner of the room. The door opened. Rally meekly peered her head forward, trying to gauge any reaction. "You can come in, Rally," the Draculina said impatiently. Rally immedietly complied. "Close the door," Seras added, and the dusky vampire obeyed. Almost immedietly, the sensation returned, and Rally began fighting the urge to lunge towards her master. Gasping, she managed to take a few breaths before saying through lengthening fangs, "Master... you have to get away! I'm doing the best I can to hold back, but it's getting stronger! I don't want to hurt you, but if you don't run..." "Calm down, Rally," Seras reassured, then reached over and unbuttoned her uniform collar and part of the front. Rally could only stare in confusion at her master's actions, and didn't even notice Moria in the other side of the room. Pulling back the collar away from her exposed neck, the Draculina added with, "Go ahead, Rally... drink my blood! That's what your trying to fight, isn't it?" "W-what?" Rally gasped, staring in shock. Seras smiled as she said, "Master told me what is happening to you, Rally. Your body is telling you that you are ready to take your freedom from me. It's a rare condition, but somehow you were afflicted, and the actions you exhibited as a result were not of your doing." "You... you mean... that's what I'm feeling right now?" Rally asked, the sensation somewhat weakening. "But... what about your opinion? Doesn't that count?" "I was going to ask Sir Integra to allow me to free you anyway, Rally," added Seras, smiling. "I don't like seeing you in anguish as you are... and I do feel you're ready. So please... take your freedom, and become a true vampire." Almost immedietly, Rally closed the distance between herself and Seras, embracing her. "Oh Master," she choked out, "you don't realize how much of a relief this is! I thought... I was going mad all of a sudden! I only wished Alucard had told me of this when he had a chance." "Well he didn't think it was his place to tell you," the blonde vampire explained, still hugging Rally. "He told me what was going on, then made it clear it was my responsibility to tell you." Rally simply nodded, still embracing Seras. Moria could only smile seeing this scene. Then slowly, Rally took a couple deep breaths - not necessary but it made her feel better - slowly leaned over to her master's neck, and as gently as possible... sunk her fangs into Seras' neck. To Seras' credit, she only gasped slightly, the pain from the bite brief. As for Rally, the blood that rushed into her mouth was cold as ice - but just as sweet as the finest nectar. So for about ten seconds she deeply drank of her master's blood - and as a result, briefly lost track of time. "Rally," Seras muttered, starting to feel a bit dizzy, "you're... drinking too much." "Huh?" sputtered Rally, releasing Seras and seeing her collapse to the floor. But before she could do anything to help, the dusky vampire was suddenly hit with the most intense - and deep pain she could imagine. There was no specific location to this pain, it was in every part of her body, and so powerful Rally could not help but to scream in agony, falling to the floor as she did. "RALLY!!" cried out Moria, racing to the side of the writhing vampire. Thinking quickly, she had taken the right hand of Rally and placed it in the right hand of Seras, who was recovering from blood loss. "Don't worry, I'm here as well," the maid said as she gripped both the vampires' hands in her's, staying with the quivering Rally as another burst of pain hit. She then forced the two vampires together and embraced them both. All through this, Seras couldn't help but to feel amazed by the bravery of the maid - and showed it by whispering, "Thank you," to her. Rally's agony lasted for about two minutes, each peak of pain more stronger than the next, and with each peak, she screamed louder and louder. Then as sudden as it hit, it was over, and the dark-haired vampire sagged against the two. "I was surprised that something like this had hit her," Moria said. "I had something similar when my master freed me, but is wasn't as intense as what happened to Rally," offered Seras, patting her former fledgling's head. Seras cradled Rally in her arms as she knelt on the floor, Moria there as well. After what seemed an eternity, Rally finally opened her eyes - and the maid couldn't help but to look in surprise. "Rally," she gasped, "your eyes... they've changed!" Indeed they had. Instead of the deep blood red they were previously, Rally's eyes now shone with the same orange-red hue which Seras and Alucard had. "M...Moria?" she mumbled, her voice a bit hoarse. "Yes... it's me," Moria added. "I asked your master if I could see you gain your freedom. I must admit, it had gotten a little hairy from the way you were screaming." "I... I guess," admitted Rally. Seras then helped her former fledgling to her feet, with Moria assisting. "Rally, how are you feeling." "Better. No... more than better," said the dusky vampire. "All of a sudden... I... I feel like I've been reborn." Rally closed her eyes... and let out a gasp. "Master... my mind is suddenly outside the mansion! I feel like I'm flying, yet I'm still with you and Moria!" "Rally," Seras giggled, "you don't have to call me 'Master' anymore! We're equals now, free vampires together." Almost immedietly, Rally allowed her mind to return to the room. "No," she said, "I don't think I can ever be equal to you. The oath that I made to you when I rose in Chicago still stands." She knelt before Seras, taking her right hand and placing it on her forehead. "You shall be always... and forevermore... my master... and I shall follow your commands as such." Moria was smiling, watching this tableau. 'It is almost like... a wedding vow between those two,' she thought to herself. "Okay, I give up, Rally. You can still call me 'Master'," the Draculina giggled. "But please, could you describe that sensation once again... you know, what you called flying?" Rally smiled, then closed her eyes again. And once again, she sent her mind outside the confines of the sub-basement levels. "It's as though... I'm aware of everything that's going on in this mansion." She laughed as she added, "Pip just stubbed his toe on a table while watching a soccer game in the ready room with some of the Geese. Berttle is working on some of the transports, Integra's in her office doing her paperwork and..." Suddenly, the smile faded. "What the devil?" she gasped. Seras and Moria became concerned. "What did you see?" the Draculina asked. Rally was silent for a nanosecond, but then appeared as she was thrown back. "No... I couldn't lock onto it!" she groaned. "Lock onto what?" implored Moria. "To be frank, I don't really know," Rally said, sitting on the bed. "Just a stray thought, I couldn't tell who's. But whatever it was, from what impression I found, it felt like someone was thinking of... treason." "Treason?" Seras gasped. "But who?" "I wish I could find out who, and believe me, I tried," offered Rally discouragily. "But the minute I found it, whoever it was clammed up and it was gone." Moria looked at the vampires. "We should tell Sir Integra about this!" she said. "Tell her what? That someone is thinking about betrayal but we don't know who?" countered Seras. "Master's right," added Rally. "Integra would want facts and I couldn't get any. I hate to say this, but we're going to have to wait until, whoever it is makes another mistake so that I can lock on." "I guess," Moria said, she and Seras sitting in-between Rally. "However, I have this bad feeling that... if we do find out whoever this traitor is, it might be too late." "Let's just hope that doesn't happen," Seras added. However, she couldn't help but to feel the same way. IN ALUCARD'S CHAMBER, AT THE SAME TIME... The No-Life King woke with a start. He was sitting on his throne, and for the better part of a few seconds, he was back in 19th Century Romania. He remembered being defeated by Sir Integra's ancestor, Abraham Van Helsing. He remembered how the old vampire hunter had taunted him, told him that he had lost everything he held dear... ... And the next, he was back inside his chamber. Has he held up his gloved hand, he couldn't help but noticed drops of blood - his blood - staining it and his face. "...Dream... it was only a dream," he muttered as he sagged on his throne. "It was nothing." THE END...? AUTHOR'S NOTE - no, this is NOT the end of 'Night Angels'. However, I do not want to make this series without having some continuity with the Hellsing OVA series. Like I said when I started the first series 'Through the Years', I wanted to make this a fusion between the TV series and the OVA, which explains my references to Peter Farguson of the TV series. However, I want to wait until I find out how the manga series finishes up before I think about finishing this series, so I can have some idea on the plot. I've got some ideas for the next story, which will have a greater involvement of Millennium, and I got a good idea on how they will involve themselves. I'm thinking of making a sneak preview about it in the future. But I want to add another anime series in the next story, mostly a drama series. If you, the reader, have some ideas, please, give me an email about it. Until then... LATER!
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