Hellsing - Blood Heritage

"Maxwell, would you care to explain why Father Anderson dared to set foot on British soil last night?" Integra demanded into the phone. "We have an agreement with the Vatican about these matters."

Her voice was much calmer than she actually looked. The knight was absolutely livid about Iscariot's interference in the Badrick mission. Syn was sitting across from her desk, with Alucard and Seras on either side of her, watching the one sided phone conversation. At the rate she was going, Integra would have an anuerism any moment.

"Ireland 'does' belong to the Catholics - but Northern Ireland is still a British territory." the knight declared. "And that does not excuse..."

There was a short pause, and then: "He chopped off the heads of my bodyguards you bloody fool! It was not just a misunderstanding!!"

Syn sighed and offered an open bag to Seras. "Potato chip?"

Alucard snatched the bag before Seras could slip her hand into it. "Human food will make you sick, police girl."

"Bullshit." Syn replied. "You steal food from me all the time!" she accused.

Seras' eyes went wide in accusation. "Master! You hypocrite!"

Alucard narrowed his eyes at her. "Don't talk to me that way police girl. If you didn't starve yourself, you might be able to eat small amounts of human food."

Integra took the phone away from her mouth and glared at them. "Will the three of you shut up? I am on the phone!"

They remained silent, until Integra finally finished telling off whomever she had been talking to. When she hung up the phone, Syn glared at Alucard and jerked the bag of chips away from him.

"Well, this is going to be a demerit for the Vatican, that's for certain." Integra commented. She glanced at Seras, who was deliberately sitting on the edge of her chair to avoid scraping her back against anything. "Have your wounds not healed yet?"

Her master snorted. "If she would drink the blood like she's told, she wouldn't have this problem."

"Was I talking to you?" Integra snapped. She leveled a cold look of warning at him, before sitting back in her chair with a sigh. "We have other matters to attend to here." She looked at Syn. "The weapons are completed, correct?"

Syn nodded. "Yes sir."

Alucard suddenly straightened, his interest captured. "Where are they?" he asked, his voice carrying a note of anticipation in it that was usually reserved for battle.

"I have them locked up down at the firing range." she replied. "I figured you guys would want to test them out after you saw them..."

Seras practically jumped out of her chair. "Then what are we waiting for!? Let's go!"

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Syn unbolted the gun cabinet under the watchful eyes of Integra and the vampires. She took out an armored black case and laid it out on the table in the center of the room. After unlocking it and popping the clasps, she swung it around and opened it. Alucard stepped forward and withdrew the gun from it's case, a huge grin spreading across his face. It was a large black pistol, similar in design to the Casull, only slightly bigger in size. She had designed the weapon to be used in conjunction with the pistol he already had - so the ejection port was recessed into the left hand side rather than the right. Down the left side of the gun's body was a large, silver engraving: 'Jesus Christ is in Heaven Now' imposed over the Hellsing cross. In smaller script underneath was a phrase that came directly from the pentagram on Alucard's gloves: 'Hell's gate arrested, and shine heaven now.'

"Well well..."

Syn beamed with pride. "I present you the Jackal. A 13mm anti-freak combat pistol. 39 centimeters long, 16 kg, with a six round magazine. Unlike the Casull, which is only slightly heavier than a gun of it's class, this is a weapon that no human could ever hope to handle."

Alucard's eyes flickered to the loaded magazine still in the case. He picked it up and loaded it into the grip. "The rounds?"

"Customized 13mm armor piercing rounds." she replied. "With explosive shells."

"Casings?"

"Pure Macedonium silver."

"The gunpowder?"

"Marvels chemical cartridge N.N.A.9." she informed him.

Alucard pulled back the slide. "And the tips? Explosive, or mercury?"

Syn smiled. "Mercury tips. And I've already blessed them." She waved her arm toward the shooting range. "We have targets set out at 500 and 1000 meters if you want to test it's accuracy."

Not bothering to give the targets more than a passing glance, Alucard raised the gun and fired two shots. The 500 meter target exploded into tiny pieces, while the one at 1000 meters gained a hole big enough for someone to stick their head through. The vampire's grin grew wider - if that was even possible - and he turned to Syn with a satisfied chuckle.

"Sheer perfection." he purred. "A work of art such as this could only have been created by a true master."

If there was one thing in the world Syn appreciated more than anything, it was praise for her work. The sound of his voice raining down blessings on her head only intensified the feeling. It made her feel like she could float up off the floor if she wanted.

Seras gaped at the pistol in astonishment, and started circling around her master in an attempt to touch it. Every time she came close to her goal, Alucard would do a little half-turn to foil her efforts.

"Oh my god Master! That's amazing!!! I've never seen anything like it!" she gushed.

Syn giggled to herself. "Walter, would you mind helping me with the police girl's gun?"

The butler stepped away from his position operating the targets. "Of course Miss."

Working together, they lifted a HUGE armored box from the gun cabinet and rested it on the table. Syn again unlocked the box and allowed the sides of it to drop away, revealing an enormous cannon, more than eight feet in length. Walter assisted her in hefting it up from the table and resting the shoulder stock against the floor. Standing upright, the barrel towered nearly two feet over Alucard's head - which was quite a sight since the vampire king stood at a good 6'10. Seras' eyes bulged, and her mouth dropped open.

"Wha...wha..."

"This," Syn began. "Is the 30mm anti-median Harkonnen cannon. It uses two types of ammunition. Depleted uranium shells, and armor piercing incendiary rounds. It take can out multiple targets at once, or be used as an anti-tank or anti-aircraft rifle. Only the most heavily armed of targets will survive a shot from the Harkonnen."

Integra arched a brow as Seras continued to sputter. Finally, the police girl broke.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS THAT THING??!!"

Alucard examined the cannon closely, then shot Seras a sideways grin. "I think it suits you police girl."

Instantly, Seras stopped gaping at it, and stared instead at her master. "Huh? Do you really think so?" She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the weapon. "Isn't depleted uranium illegal?"

Syn laughed. "My assignment was to design and build a gun suitable for long range artillery support. No one told me I couldn't use illegal materials..."

"Bu..bu...but..."

"It's fine police girl." Integra finally interrupted. "Hellsing has permission from Her Majesty to use restricted materials."

"Bu...bu...bu...but...but it's so BIG."

"You're a vampire." Syn replied with a shrug. "You should be able to carry much heavier loads than a human. Try it and see. It shouldn't be any more difficult than holding an ordinary rifle."

Seras didn't look convinced, but she cautiously approached the cannon anyway. She looked at though she thought the thing would come to life and eat her or something. Much to her surprise, she was not only able to lift and aim it easily, but she hardly registered the weight of it.

"Wow..." she breathed. "Can I shoot it?"

"Of course. That's what it's meant for after all." Syn pulled her over to a sectioned off part of the range. "Walter and I put up different targets for you, so you could see what it's capable of." She directed the girl's attention down the field. "We have targets at 500, 1000, and 1500 meters. Each one is reinforced steel, 2 meters thick. Have at it."

Seras' shots weren't nearly as accurate as Alucard's had been - but the size of the holes the shells left behind more than made up for it. Even at 1500 meters, a hole nearly 2 feet in diameter punched all the way through the steel plating.

"Most impressive, Miss Newsom." Integra praised. "Now that we've seen what you can do for the vampires, I trust modifying the soldiers arms will be an easy task."

Syn gave her a proud grin of accomplishment. "I'm already working on it, Sir Integra."

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While Seras remained on the shooting range - completely enraptured with Harkonnen, Syn went back up to her room to settle down for the night. But, as often was the case, she found she wasn't particularly tired. With a resigned sigh, she did what she usually did to try and make herself sleepy. She took a hot bath, pulled on her most comfortable pair of pajamas, and curled up with Victor's journals. She didn't know why, but she always came back to them - reading and rereading over the passages until they were committed to memory. Though she had been studying them for more than a month now, she could always find a section she had missed. Usually, it was something mundane and of little interest. But tonight, she found a passage that not only was incredibly interesting and relevant,but it both disturbed and touched her.


'When these experiments began, I never thought I would find myself in the position I am now facing. I fear we may have driven the vampire into complete insanity. He is slowly developing a tolerance to the chemicals, but they still affect him in a most extraordinary manner. Far worse than silver or blessings, he writhes and cries out in such anguish that even the great Van Helsing cannot stand to be in the room with him. I cannot help but feel remorse for the vampire's anguish, as I am the primary cause of it. At times he thrashes about and pulls at his chains so mightily that I am sure they will shatter. Still other times he simply lays on the floor as if dead. It is at these times we must watch him closely, as it is nearly impossible to determine whether he has survived the night's treatment until he chooses to move. Abraham always retreats to the main floor of the manor during the daylight hours - so he has not borne witness to the horrid nightmares and visions that plague the beast as he slumbers. It is not uncommon for the vampire to wake suddenly, his face wet with bloody tears, or to give out terrible shouts, crying out for his slaughtered wife and son from so many centuries ago. His personality shifts rapidly - an emotionless, unremorseful animal one moment, and then quiet and timid the next, almost like a frightened child. It is in this most vulnerable state that he reaches out, as if seeking a comforting hand to soothe him. He falls into melancholy so deep that only reminders of my promises to him will bring him back to a more normal state. As I have dedicated myself to this purpose for my friend Abraham, I must remain until these tasks are completed. But my mind is plagued with thoughts that we have become the monsters, and he the pitiful victim. Surely no man - even one as ruthless and dangerous as this - deserves such constant torment.'

Reading this made Syn wonder how Alucard had survived at all, or how he was able to regain any semblance of sanity. It was depressing to think that anyone could have done this - even to him.

"Do you ever stop reading those dreadful books of yours?"

Syn slammed the book closed, not wanting the vampire to see what she had been reading - though there was never any way of telling how long he had been there. She looked up, doing her best not to look guilty, to find him sitting on the bed, watching her.

"What are you doing up here?" she asked him. "I thought you would be downstairs playing with your new toy."

Alucard tilted his head to the side. For once, he didn't look mocking or playful. He wore an expression that was honest, but otherwise unreadable.

"I wanted to give you my thanks."

Syn blinked at the calm sincerity of his tone. It was...weird to see him speak so seriously. "For what?"

"The weapons you've made." he replied. "They both are extraordinary - without like or equal. Such a thing deserves a show of gratitude." he took her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckle.

She blushed lightly at the praise. "I'm just doing my job."

"Ah, but you could have done less and fulfilled the requirements. Instead you refused to settle, and went above and beyond my expectations." he leaned in close, and for a moment, she thought he was going to kiss her. Instead, he pressed his lips chastely against her cheek. His cool breath came as a whisper against her ear. "Goodnight, Syn."

He moved to rise from the bed. Syn's heart lurched when she realized he was leaving. That was his way of thanking her - he came to say goodnight without teasing or tormenting. Whether it was the action itself, or what she had read she didn't know, but she didn't want him to go. She reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Alucard."

He stopped.

Syn chewed on her lower lip. "Nevermind."

He arched a brow, but didn't respond. He simply got up and walked out - actually bothering to use the door for once.
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yeah, I know I've been horrible about not leaving author notes. ~gets on knees and begs forgiveness~ Everything up to this point was either already written, or planned out, so I was just trying to get it out there. I know I'm shamelessly stealing manga dialogue for this chapter, but I'm trying to stay as close to the actual plot as I can - aside from some minor/not so minor changes.

Reviews make the world go round, so don't be afraid to say what you think! I love hearing your comments!!! ~pokes at audience~ And I do answer questions if anything isn't clear. So if something is confusing, or is worded in a weird way, ask about it! The only thing I wont talk about is major plot points. Everything else is free game.

And for those who are reading and wondering when anything particularly juicy is going to happen, I'm hoping there's going to be some lemons in the next chapter. Yay for lemons!