Hellsing Fan Fiction / Trinity Blood Fan Fiction ❯ When Doves Cry ❯ The Return of Nothing ( Chapter 1 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Chapter One

The Return of Nothing

Time is a fickle thing, time is what turns saplings into trees and mountains to dust, equal parts destruction and creation make up this thing we call time. Humans capture it with hands, digits, and cogs, but never will a human understand time, a single mortal lifespan is simply not long enough to comprehend this endless procession of seconds, hours, days, weeks, months, years, decades, centuries, and even millennia.

A day will come when time will no longer matter, the apocalypse will arrive to wipe the slate of life clean. In the Vatican not so far in the future, merely a blink of Father Time's eyes, they face down the demons of apocalypse. Humanity is at the brink, war has driven the last of the people into the few safe havens left, technology has been lost to time, replaced with new and ever more deadly creations. Now though, however fragile, mankind will have its epic climax in a battle of blood and bone, faith and brutality. To fight fire you need ice, or maybe you just need a stronger fire…

XXXXXXXX

Father Abel Nightroad was a complicated creature, he often acted the fool, and yet his eyes spoke of a sadness so deeply embedded no mortal could truly understand its depth. His black and silver priestly robes draped across his form shapelessly, hiding the strength hidden in the slim body. He was tall, the first thing many noticed was his height crowned by a neatly tied pony tail of white blond hair. Those sad eyes were colored like the sea, at one time blue, others green or gray, but they never lost that sheen of sadness, even when he let the fool take over his actions. His skin was nearly as pale as his hair, a sharp contrast to the black robes of his station. Within the folds of his robes lay a cross and a gun, he used each when the need for them arose, but more than religion kept him from taking life, some vows are stronger than that. His appearance gave away nothing about himself that he did not want to be seen. No amount of covering could hide what he knew was lurking in his heart, he was a catholic priest with a thirst that could only be quenched by drinking blood.

The woman staring at Abel was no less complicated, garbed in the scarlet robes of a cardinal, her honey hair hung in ringlets around her proud features. She was such an imposing presence it took a few moments for the casual onlooker to notice her beauty. She owed her very life to the priest in front of her, and yet he took her orders calmly, and carried them out without true complaint. Of course he had to tease her as he did so, sometimes even she forgot the last time she smiled. Cardinal Caterina Sforza controlled the AX a group of priests and nuns trained in combat, of which Abel was a member since its founding.

At the time the two of them were in Caterina's office for a meeting concerning an AX mission that was very personal to Abel.

"Abel, we have new intelligence on Contra Mundi, he may be searching for something amongst the lost technologies. Archives have been broken into and searched, many documents have been stolen all having to do with something called the Bird of Hermes. Do you know what this might be? And why he would be searching for it?" Caterina saw what little color there was drain from Abel's face.

"Are you sure that is the only thing those documents had in common?" Abel asked seriously, wondering just what Cain was up to. His brother just didn't know how to stay dead, he kept coming back again and again.

"Yes, the archives were very well kept, that is the only topic common among the books taken." Caterina knew Abel would get around to answering her questions if she gave him some room to think.

"The Bird of Hermes is my name, eating my wings to make me tame." Abel recited softly with his eyes closed, and his tone left no doubt he was reciting. "You are wrong on your initial analysis, Contra Mundi is not looking for something but instead someone."

Caterina couldn't contain her shock at that, she had faith that Abel would never lie to her, but this was hard to accept. "Some of those books are from before Armageddon, centuries old, maybe more. How could a living being last that long? Methuselah don't and even you are not that old."

"The Bird of Hermes is the title of a very old, very powerful, vampire. His power was so great authors feared to write his name, instead they use part of an inscription found on his coffin. That was what I said earlier." Abel explained slowly. He remembered his studies as a child, reading of the Bird of Hermes, and couldn't stop the shudder. What worried him the most, was the shudder wasn't in fear. A vampire. A true vampire, made his heart pound, and thirst attacked him viciously.

Caterina caught the shudder, and not knowing the truth, mistakenly thought Abel was afraid. She grasped at what he said trying to nullify the threat. "If these authors use something written on his coffin that means this Bird of Hermes is dead right?"

Abel opened his eyes and caught her gaze. "No one knows if he is alive or dead, many of those stolen books most likely also spoke of another thing, the bird of Hermes cannot be killed by any hand other than a human. It takes a man to kill a monster. He is not a Methuselah, they are weak blooded compared to the bird. The coffin, according to legend, is lined with earth from his native soil, a restorative of sorts."

"How could books know all this, why would they be concerned about something that deadly?" Caterina was visibly shaken now, this was much worse than some lost weapon, this was a creature that even Abel was wary of.

"Rumor has it he worked with humans before, not willingly, but somehow they controlled him. Barred his power from use, and sent him to clear the world of other vampires." Abel couldn't help but think that sounded a bit familiar to him. He was here by choice yes, but the similarity wasn't lost. "I was far more curious about him than Cain ever was, I wonder what made him remember about the bird."

Caterina visibly pulled herself together, now was not the time to fall apart. "I don't care what made him remember, but if this Bird of Hermes is as strong as you are implying we can't let Contra Mundi find him. Abel do you think you can unearth this creature before the world's enemy does?"

Abel took a breath, that question wasn't easily answered. "I think I can find him first, but that doesn't mean I will be successful in keeping Cain away. He might have stolen the books as some kind of trap, knowing I would remember the Bird and warn you. I might lead Cain right to him."

"I don't think we can risk not trying to stop this before it gets started. The risk is greater if we let Contra Mundi get to the Bird unobstructed." Caterina knew the risks, but couldn't think of another option.

XXXXXXXX

The country once called England, did in fact survive the Armageddon wars, but in its survival it had changed its face into the kingdom of Albion. Allied with the Vatican, this country was powerful, and about as peaceful as a human country could get in these days of warring humans and Methuselah. The citizens there felt safe and protected not knowing the slumbering beast that lurked deep in the basement of a deserted manor.

Hellsing the blood line had dispersed, sleeping within the hearts of many, but only the direct Hellsing heir could control this slumbering creature beneath the earth. Power does a person no good, if they don't know they have it. This unknowing child would be given the reigns to the oldest creature to still walk the earth.

Abel had traced the remnants of rumor and legend to the crumbled steps of the manor. It hadn't taken as long as he feared. It was almost too easy, knowing nothing was ever that easy, the Crusnik walked warily up the steps, wondering when the axe would finally fall. The Bird of Hermes was almost in his grasp, he felt the same wonder and astonishment now that he had as a child first discovering the legend.

The manor was strong, despite years of neglect the foundations held and the damage was superficial at the most, Abel could see that when he went inside. He was expecting rubble, or at least heaps of dust, when he entered the building, but it was surprisingly clean. There was no way centuries could go by without one mark of the time passing, no, someone was here keeping up the building. Moving carefully now that he was sure he wasn't alone, he walked towards the staircase going down into the subterranean levels of the old manor. A creature allergic to sunlight could only be sure of darkness under ground.

It didn't take long for the sound of a heart beat to reach his ears, only one, and it was slowly beating, much slower than a human heart beat. Not knowing what he would find, he slowly slid his revolver from its concealed holster, and kept going. It was far too late in the game to turn back.

He was met on the lowest level by nothing he had been expecting, no preparation he made could have prepared him for this. First, he was staring down the barrel of a gun, this he could have handled on its own. Second, gun was the wrong term for the weapon he was facing, it was more of an elongated cannon. Third the person handling the weapon was most definitely female. A female with close fitting blue clothing, and short blond hair.

"The Bird of Hermes is a female?" Abel was not sexist, but every story ever written about the bird classified the vampire as male.

"You better have a good reason for being here priest," The woman snapped at him, her voice was accented, not with the Albion tongue but something else, the root of Albion's accent to be precise.

"I am here for the Bird of Hermes, the vampire of legend. I need to speak with the bird as soon as possible, lives hang in the balance." Abel phrased carefully, not knowing who he was addressing, no one had laid eyes on the Bird of Hermes since pre-Armageddon this very well could be her.

"What do you know of Master?" The woman asked sharply, and Abel understood she was not the Bird of Hermes but a servant of some kind.

"I know nothing of the creature himself, merely legends, but it is very important I speak with him even if I must forfeit my own life to do it." Abel replied cautiously, his hand gripping his revolver professionally, just as she hadn't yet lowered the huge weapon.

"Master sleeps now, he speaks to no one." The woman replied as carefully as Abel, a few millennia alone with her master had taught her a lot of things, but she never forgot something important from her youngling years. Trust your instincts. Something screamed at her that this man before her was worth the truth, and also dangerous. A part of her advised her to run as far as she could from this apparently frail human, the same part that told her to run from her Master as a matter of fact.

"When will he awaken?" Abel couldn't stop the impatience for all he knew Cain had in fact followed him here and was well on his way to waking the creature in question.

"I do not know, he doesn't awaken on any schedule, the only thing that can force him to wake is the heir to Hellsing." The woman answered.

"What if I told you that it was both of your safety that is also in danger. The same threat to humans will kill everyone here if you do not agree to join him. I can grant you protection from the Vatican itself, with myself as your escort to Rome. This truly is life or death." Abel tried to press the issue, he had come so far, was in the same building as the legend. Now he was being thwarted by nothing more than sleep.

The weapon was lowered, "I don't think you are going to understand until you see what I am talking about. Follow me, and before you ask, if I could do something about it, I would have a long time ago."

Hand still comfortably on his gun, Abel followed, wondering if maybe this wasn't the time to go for the cross. There was only one room on this level that was not a cell, and Abel was surprised when the woman, or vampire as her heartbeat suggested, walked right passed the room and to the last cell in the hall. Pulling out a key that looked to be as old as the manor around them, she unlocked the door and motioned Abel to come inside.

Abel was no fool, despite how he acted at times, he knew better than to walk into a cell in front of the person with the key to the door. He did not go inside until the woman did as well, he would have at least some warning if she tried to lock him in. Although once he saw what was inside the room all thoughts of his own safety left him.

He was staring at a corpse, or at least what looked like a corpse. The skin was dried to the point every bone was visible, and the shockingly white hair was somehow still attached to the corpse's skull. The body was dressed in black leather, a durable material that lasted, and secured to the wall with dozens of straps. The body was held in a sitting position by the straps, its head lolling forward in what would have been a painful position had they been in any shape to feel it.

"This is your master?" Abel managed to ground out.

"Yes, and he is not dead, but hasn't fed in a such a long time this is the state he is in." She answered, and Abel remembered he had yet to learn her name.

"Why can't you release him? The straps don't look thick." Abel asked.

"They are treated with something, I'm guessing a silver compound, I can't touch them without burning myself badly. I try every now and then to see if its warn off with no luck. Master says he can break them himself, but he would need the command of a Hellsing to do it." She told him.

"He can speak?" Abel was surprised at that, his withered form didn't give much credibility to that.

"To me he can, he is my Master, he made me. He can talk to any who carry his blood, and any who carry Hellsing blood." The woman explained.

"If I were to release the straps would he be free or would he still need a child of Hellsing?" Abel asked knowing he had to try.

"I do not know, it will be dangerous to be close though, if it works he is going to want to feed." She warned.

"I can take care of myself, relax, but first what is your name?" Abel finally asked as he went over to the vampire chained to the wall.

"No one can match Alucard." She warned before answering, "My name is Seras Victoria."

"I don't have to match him, just stall him until you can bring him blood, I assume you have some means of feeding without drawing attention to yourself or you would have been found a long time ago." Abel wasn't about to let all his tricks out of the bag until he needed them, if Seras had blood with her, he might not have to change at all to retrain the legendary vampire. Alucard she called him, finally a name for the legend.

"I keep medical blood on the compound, its been getting harder to find, but there is still a few packets left." Seras informed him before rushing off, presumably to wherever it was stored.

Abel had completely forgotten that if she wanted to she could lock him in the cell with Alucard without a seconds thought. There was no evidence to say she wasn't the one to bind Alucard, but something told him it would take more than one person, vampire or not, to subdue him. More likely Alucard was trapped by his human masters, who had some kind of control over him.

When Seras came back, two pint bags in hand, Abel went up to the bound Vampire and started removing restraints one by one, wondering what would happen when he got to the last one.

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