Hellsing Heir 17/19

[melrose_stormhaven]

Disclaimer: Okane ga nai. I don't own this fic. I don't make any money out of this. If you sue me, I'll just laugh my head off. ^^+

Free talk: Yes! Again, another chapter of The Hellsing Heir! I hope you liked the last one…I didn't leave you hanging THAT long, did I? ^^

Everyone: Three months! We waited for three months!!!! ^_^++++++++++++

As always, this fanfiction is dedicated to Damned Caeli and Momo. This is also for Eden.

Chapter XVII: Twisted Paths

Integral Wingates Hellsing felt something rough pressed against her cheek, against her body. It was hard, unyielding, and cold, like a block of ice. Startled by the chilling cold that seemed to seep into her body, she opened her eyes, and found herself in a dim, stone room.

She was lying nearly facedown on the bare stone floor. She took a deep breath, throwing a sudden coughing fit as she inhaled the musty air.

She pressed her palms against the floor, flinching slightly at the feel of the ice-cold stone that seemed to burn into her, and slowly rose. She absent-mindedly dusted herself, grimacing at the rumpled state of her clothes. Then she raised her head and looked around. Where am I?

She remembered sitting in her study, drinking some wine, worrying about Christina, taking little notice as her room was slowly filled with a strange-looking mist. A sudden languor came over her, and that was what all she knew before darkness overcame her.

I'm in a library, Integral thought as her eyes swept over the place. She was in the middle of a large windowless room, almost as big as her mother's study. Several tall wooden bookshelves lined the stone walls, almost circling the whole room; each of them was filled top-to-bottom with books. At one end of the room was a single, but long, rectangular table. Hovering above it, attached to the ceiling, swung an old-style electric lamp, looking quite out of place in this dusty room, its dim light illuminating the room.

Behind the table was a tall, wooden cabinet and another shelf. An overturned chair lay not far from the table. Scattered on the floor were heavy, iron chains of various lengths, their manacles gaping open. Silence reigned in the room; all she could hear was the sound of her breathing.

"I see you've finally arrived, Sir Integral."

It can't be! He's dead! Integral froze at the sound of that voice. She whipped round, her eyes wide.

Joseph Jonathan Harker stood in front of her, a smirk on his lips. "Hello, Sir Integral. Did you miss me?"

*******

They came together in a great, ringing clash that echoed throughout the manor, the powerful vampire Alucard and the implacable regenerator priest Alexander Anderson. The metallic sounds of gunshots filled the study, along with the steely hiss of blades and insane snarls coming from the two combatants.

Christina Elizabeth Hellsing stood not far from the two, scarlet eyes wide with fascination as she watched them fight. It seemed like Anderson was throwing blessed blades at Alucard by dozens at a time and that Alucard's guns had an inexhaustible supply of bullets. Every available surface on Integral's study had either a blade pinned on it or a bullet hole, sometimes even both.

She ducked as a blessed blade hissed past her, impaling itself on the cabinet behind her. Around her, furniture broke with a sickening crack and glass shattered with a brittle crash.

"Nosferatu!" Anderson snarled as he blocked the bullets coming from the Casull and the Jackal with his blades. Alucard swiftly dodged the regenerator as he swiped his blades at him, his coat flaring.

Anderson took a step back, and then released a storm of sheets of paper that flew all over the room, sticking on every surface. Christina glanced at them, noting that it was written in the ancient language of Latin. With a start, she realized it was pages from the Vulgate, the ancient bible of the Catholics.

"I have sealed this room so you cannot escape from me!" Anderson rasped out, indicating the pages. "I will destroy you and your daughter, so that your damned presence may no longer profane this earth. Then I will get that Hellsing bitch who whored herself to you."

Christina’s eyes widened slightly at what Anderson said, then her eyes narrowed dangerously.

Alucard growled then gave Anderson a wide, insane grin, baring his white, sharp fangs. "I have other more pressing business, but since you are eager to go to hell, I will fight you, Judas Priest." Alucard aimed the gun at the priest's head and shot him squarely at the center of his forehead, blood blossoming forth like a rose in bloom.

Anderson's head was thrown back, the bullet making a deep hole in his head. He stumbled slightly, and then he snapped up, and with incredible speed slashed his swords at Alucard, blades gleaming wickedly in the dim light. Alucard dodged it easily, and with a fierce growl lunged at the priest.

The Iscariot raised his swords again, ready to hack Alucard into pieces when he suddenly found himself flying towards the wall. "What the–" he started to say, but then he slammed into the hard ice-cold stone wall, knocking the wind out his lungs. As soon he slid down the wall, his eyes widened with shock when he found himself staring at the barrel of a gun that definitely did not belong to Alucard. It was much too small, and the figure that stood before him was definitely female.

Christina loomed over him, gun pointed at the priest's head. She glared at him, her scarlet eyes filled with hellfire. "I don't know why you're here," she began, her voice soft and ominous. Anderson struggled to get up, but something seemed to be pinning him down. He opened his mouth to speak, but was quickly silenced when Christina shoved the gun into his open mouth. "But I do know you're blocking my way, Vatican swine–and I don't take kindly to those who interrupt me. I tire of your interference. Perhaps I'll do something about it. You've been a bane to my family for years."

Slowly, Christina let the gun trail down, its mouth brushing against Anderson's chest, down to his abdomen, then finally resting on his groin, pressing against it. Christina's eyes never left Anderson. "I wonder if the Iscariot division allow nuns into their order," she asked in a soft, deliberate voice, and a wicked smile on her lips.

*******

Integral stared at Joseph Harker in silence for a moment, her mind in a whirl. Then finally she gave an outraged gasp as realization came over her. Her eyes burned bright with fury. Her hands clenched into tight fists, struggling to control the urge to fly across the room and strangle Harker with her bare hands. "You traitor," she snarled out, taking a step closer. "You're Adrian's human Master."

Joseph Harker let out a peal of mocking laughter. "It took you a long time to realize that, Lord Hellsing." He stepped closer into the light.

I should have seen this. It was all there. It was in the way he held back information from Hellsing, to how easily his mansion was taken. I was just too blind to see it.

His lips curved into an ugly smirk. His words dripped with venom. "Poor, na?ve little Integral. You've always been a bit too trusting for your own good. You're a bit like your father, filled with love for England, ready to die for it. Such touching patriotism! To think your ancestor was not originally English, but a bloody Dutchman mongrel." He frowned when he saw Integral's expressionless face and the cold disdain in her blue eyes. "Don't look at me that way, with your holier-than-thou expression. You are filth as well, my dear. You have the blood of a vampire in you. Your daughter's even half-vampire, isn't she?"

A startled look came into Integral's eyes, and then she quickly hid it. Joseph Harker laughed. "Do not deny it, Integral. I know about what Alucard did. After all, I am the Keeper of the Codes, the Head of Intelligence of the Knights of the Round Table. I know about your marriage. I know everything."

There was something in the way Joseph said 'everything' that caught Integral's interest. Everything…he knew everything. My movements, he knows it and he could use it to– A sudden, horrible possibility struck her. "You. Were you the one who set up the ambush that–"

"–nearly killed you. Who else? I knew your schedule. It was my job. I knew when to strike. The ambush was meant to kill both of you, but it only killed Christopher, as I recall."

Christopher. "Why? Christopher was your best friend, and," she added bitterly. "Your ally."

Joseph gave her a confused look, then he laughed again. "Ally? You think Christopher is in league with me? My dear, Christopher was never a traitor. You should know that. He was far too noble for his own good. I had to kill him. He was so close to finding out my true purposes."

He then glanced at his watch. "It's almost time. In a few minutes, Adrian will send an army of ghouls and FREAKS to attack Hellsing. With Alucard probably searching for you, along with most of your troops, Hellsing is vulnerable, and will easily be destroyed."

*******

Anderson looked at the girl, his eyes wide with shock. The Hellsing girl looked like she really meant to blow his manhood into smithereens and although as a priest he had little use for it, he didn't want to be without it. He glanced past the girl's shoulder. Alucard stood still behind the girl, a neutral expression on his face.

Just then, the door opened, revealing Celes and David, both of them armed and ready. Behind them were several soldiers. Celes saw them first. "Miss Christina! We heard the alarms!" she exclaimed, wild-eyed at the sight in front of her. Christina seemed to be pointing her gun at someone who looked like–"Father Anderson!" Celes took a step back and surveyed Integral's study room, noting the shattered glass, overturned furniture and other whatnots. "What's happened here?"

Christina rose slowly, though her gun was still pointed at Anderson. She glanced briefly at Alucard then turned to the stunned Celes. "Sir Integral has been abducted."

Celes's eyes widened with horror and glanced quickly at Anderson then at Christina.

Christina shook her head. "It's not him. It was Adrian. The priest just burst in after we found out she was missing." She shifted her attention to Alexander Anderson. "What are you doing here, Father Anderson?" she asked calmly, finally lowering the gun.

Alexander Anderson stood up, and shot Christina a venomous glance. "I will not explain to you, Protestant whore. I–"

As soon as Anderson spoke those words, more than fifty guns pointed at him. Christina gestured for them to put the weapons down. She glared back at the priest. "If you will not say anything, I will. I don't think you realize what exactly you've done, Father Anderson. Not only have you trespassed on my property, you have also tried to murder me, the daughter of a British noble who is related to the King."

She paused for a moment and continued, "Not only have you violated and broken numerous treaties between Britain and the Vatican that took centuries to make, you have interfered with an important mission. I think with the mess you've made, you certainly deserve the chance to explain why you're here in my house before Britain or the Vatican hangs you by your bloody balls for your impertinence."

Anderson glowered at her, hands moving to draw out his blades, but the guns came up again and stayed up. He stilled his hands, and sneered at her. "You cannot threaten me, you spawn of Hell, daughter of the devil. You are an abomination, filth that walks upon this earth, like the vampire that has taken your mother. When the world finds out what you are, I myself will kill you with my bare hands. You will die slowly and painfully, I promise you, along with your pets." He smirked at Celes, who involuntarily took a step back.

Christina smiled mockingly at Anderson, unfazed by his threats. "Be careful of what you call me, Father. You might regret it. Is that why you're here, to threaten me? I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I won't let you kill me. As for my being a daughter of the devil, I'm afraid you're quite mistaken. My father is Lord Christopher Henry Greystone, Earl of Greyhall, and a distant cousin of the King. The Queen herself witnessed the wedding. My father died before I was born."

Anderson sneered at her. "Greystone was a traitor to everything your family holds dear as well. Traitor's daughter, that's what you are, bitch."

Deafening silence followed Anderson's statement. The alarms had mercifully stopped blaring. The mocking smile remained in Christina's lips. "I see you've been busy wallowing in filth, Father Anderson. I should have guessed earlier." She reached out and briefly touched his slightly grimy sleeve. "You look a bit soiled."

Anderson whirled away from her, and in one sweep, knocked down several soldiers to the ground.

"Chris? What happening here?" Anna stood at the doorway, rubbing her eyes. Her eyes widened when she saw Anderson standing among the soldiers whose guns were still pointed at the Catholic. "Father Anderson?"

"HA!" Several pieces of paper burst forth and quickly surrounded Anderson. Everyone took a step back. As the whirling mass converged on the priest, Christina could hear his roaring laughter. "We will see each other again, heathen beast!" In a blink of an eye, he and the papers were gone.

*******

"You certainly took your time, Father Anderson," Enrico Maxwell drawled as soon as Anderson appeared. He quickly noted Anderson's rather disheveled state. "I see you had a rather interesting time. How is the girl?"

"Alive." Anderson spat out. He glanced at huge rusty, broken-down iron gate in front of him, gazing past the tall grasses to the gravel road leading to the tall, dark castle with its towers reaching up to the blue-black night sky. "I was unsuccessful in my attempt to eliminate the girl. However, I found out that Integral Hellsing is missing. How fares the others?"

Enrico glanced at the other priests of the Iscariot as they prepared themselves. They were to go into the castle, to discover more about the mystery surrounding it. That this was technically beyond their jurisdiction did not matter. If the castle was a hotbed for FREAKS and ghouls as they thought it was, it was their scared duty to get rid of them. That the castle belonged to a Hellsing and therefore might help discredit them was simply…a bonus.

"I see. I wonder where could she be?"

*******

Christina stared at the spot where Anderson had been. Damn. And he never answered my question. She turned away in disgust. "Joy. Not only do I have to tackle an effeminate-sounding vampire, I have a fanatic Catholic priest to deal with." Then she turned to the confused soldiers. "Go back to your posts." She faced David, her mouth pressed into a tight grim line. "I want every soldier on alert. Adrian or Anderson may come back. Try not to let them slip past you this time." David flushed slightly at the rebuke. "Anna," she said, fixing her gaze on her best friend, who was staring with wild eyes at Alucard, "Go with David. He'll protect you."

"But–but what was that all about?"

"My mother was just kidnapped by Adrian. We're going to bring her back." Christina whirled around. "Do you know where Adrian has taken her?" she asked Alucard, who had been silent during the whole exchange. Anna shrank away from the vampire.

The vampire smiled at Christina. "Do you need to ask, little one? Surely you know where."

"Greystone Castle." Christina suddenly remembered the vision she had there of Alucard in chains and of a man dressed in red. She also remembered the circle, and the dark power that seemed to radiate from it. With chilling certainty, she knew what Adrian has planned for her mother. "He's going to use her as sacrifice."

"We will leave now," Alucard said, a hint of impatience in his voice.

"No." There was a note of command in Christina's voice that startled those around her, even Christina herself. She had never spoken like that with Alucard. She met Alucard's scarlet eyes and saw the eagerness there, the impatience to kill. "Don't be foolish, Alucard. That's what he wants us to do–to go there. It might be a trap."

Silence filled the room. Christina and Alucard stood glaring at each other. The others backed away, uneasy with the sudden tension in the room.

"Are you suggesting we leave my Master in his hands?" Alucard spoke in a soft, dangerous voice.

Christina took a deep breath. She wanted to immediately look for her mother, but she could not shake the feeling that if they were to do that, they would be so screwed, as the American would say.

"Adrian expects us to storm into Greystone. He knows the full fury of Hellsing will fall upon him after he kidnaps Lord Hellsing. He wants us to go there. He knows, and he's likely to be prepared. For all we know, there is a whole bloody army of ghouls and FREAKS waiting for us there. I will not blindly send anyone to be slaughtered mindlessly. We stay here until we know more of Adrian's plans. Moreover, I wasn't suggesting. I was ordering."

"You are not my Master, little one. I need not obey your orders."

Christina ignored the threat. "Adrian is not some ordinary freak we could just destroy on a whim. He is powerful. Have you learned nothing from Incognito? Or what from what had happened to Walter? Hellsing paid dearly for both incidents because we lacked information. I am not inclined to repeat those disasters again and neither am I allowing you to do as you bloody please. You will stay here, Alucard and that is final. If you chose to disobey, so help me God, I will destroy you."

Alucard glowered at her, a snarl on his lips. Christina glowered back. Suddenly, Alucard grinned and said, "As you wish, Lady Christina."

Christina turned to Celes. "Is there anyway we can find out what's happening in Castle Greystone? Satellite imaging, perhaps? As I recall, we left guards to watch over Greystone. What happened to them?"

One of the soldiers spoke up. "We tried to contact them a while ago, and we haven't had any response yet, Lady Christina."

"What makes you think it's Adrian who took your mother?" Anna asked, sidling closer to her.

"Who else could it be? The Vatican? Father Anderson?" She gave an exasperated sigh. "It could only be Adrian. Besides, I felt his hand in this. He's going to use her to summon whatever his summoning."

"Could he be summoning a demon? The Anti-Christ?"

Christina impatiently shook her head. "You can't summon the Anti-Christ. According to traditional prophecy, the Anti-Christ will be born from a virgin, and my mother is definitely not a virgin."

"But you are," Anna pointed out.

Christina gave her best friend a weird look. "You don't think–"

A loud explosion from outside cut through their conversation. Ears ringing, Christina could barely hear the hysterical voice from the radio. "We are under attack! I repeat, Hellsing is under attack!"

~T.B.C.~

Free talk, part 2: Just two more chapters to go, and this will be all over! *sigh* Thank God its my summer break.

I've actually written 1/4 of the last chapter of The Hellsing Heir, so all I need to write is chapter 17 and 3/4 of the last chapter. I have drafts, so I'd probably post it soon. *crosses fingers*

FANART: Yes! Yes! I finally have fanart! In color too! Just go to my website. It's in the Work section! You'll love it, I swear. My thanks to Buta-chan!

Delays: Sheesh. Christina's being cautious, Ghouls are attacking Hellsing…will they ever rescue Integral?

Integra's location: Sounded familiar? Yup! Christina was in that same room in 15b. Used the same description, so you can immediately recognize it.

Christina and Alucard: Off they go to rescue Integral! Wheee!!! More butt-kicking action from sire and daughter! Why the long conversation between the two? I think there's a lot in that little conversation. I guess it’s a glimpse on how the two would be dealing with each other in the future. Personally, I think Christina will have a harder time dealing with Alucard than Integral because of her blood relation to Alucard. She is his daughter, after all (and therefore subordinate to him–at least in Alucard's way of thinking).

Joseph Harker: Oohh…was that expected? Hehehehehe….

The violence: I'm sorry! I realize it's sacrilege to do what Christina did to Anderson, but she was under terrible strain. Can you blame her? I'm sorry if I offended anyone.

Next chapter: More on Harker and his alliance with Adrian. Meanwhile, Alucard and Christina hurry to save Integral from Adrian and deal with the Vatican and ghouls at the same time. All things now converge in Castle Greystone.

[Red Ninja]

You can't end it there!!!! Write quickly Mel, write quickly. Chop chop!

[Eden]

I saw that you updated this when I got my lil' Email from FF.net, but I held off reading it until now so that I could review here. Yeah!! I am soo happy to see an update! It may have taken a long time, but damn it was worth the wait.

So, we now have a kidnapped Integra, a Harker come back from the dead, and Cristina taking charge of an over zelous vampire father. Do I have everything? Oh yeah, Adrian is coming to take over the Hellsing mansion with an army. :-? Do I smell unbelievable odds? Of course I do, what would a hellsing fic be without it?

I am soo loving this, you have no idea. I think that the best part for me was when Alucard stopped calling Cristina little one and started calling her Lady Cristina. Talk about finally showing respect! Who would've ever thought that Alucard would ever show that kind of respect for anyone besides Integra, especially towards his own half daughter? Well, I suppose she is her mother's daughter as well, eh?

Great stuff!!

Well, I guess there's only 2 more chapters to go, hum? Things are slowly drawing to a close. Alas, all good things must come to an end, and don't think that's going to be the last time I say that either.

Till next time then Melrose, I'll be wating for however long it takes.

~Eden

[pilot03]

NNNOOO!!! *lets out a growl as if sunlight has just hit a vampire* Must continue!!! Next chapter....next chapter!!!!

[Leia Avenrose]

Oh, COME ON! I've been reading this ALL day, and now, at 1:30am, I'm forced to just STOP because SOMEONE hasn't updated since .... uh ... April? If I read correctly....

Anyways, this is an awesome Hellsing story; my second so far that I've read today. Very impressive; you have the characters down-pat; it's literally mind-blowing, and I love you for writing such awesome fanfiction ... just reading Hellsing all day has given me the urge to start writing my own, which is not what I need since I still have to update old, old stories from last year...

Well, really nice story and I really, really hope you come out with the last chapters soon, or else expect your inbox to be flooded with hatemail...

[melrose_stormhaven]

Thanks everyone! You have no idea how much your reviews help me.

Anyway, it might take a while for me to update, since I have a thesis up. Gomen. But I'll try hard. It seems it gets harder and harder to write HH as it gets closer to its end. The plot gets increasingly difficult and complicated, and not only that, I have an ending to write. :-?

Someone asked me to do a sequel of it, but I'm not sure. Maybe I'll wait until I see people's reaction on HH's ending. :-?

Anyway, thanks once again! *hugs everyone* I'll make sure the next chapter is worth the wait.

[Leia Avenrose]

*sobs* Where is the next chapter?! *goes on a wild search*