Chapter One:

Survivors

The rain slowed the fires consuming London, but couldn't douse them.

Integra Hellsing stood outside the Hellsing Manor atop an observation deck and thought God himself wanted the city to be destroyed, judging by the the events of the past few years. An army of vampire Nazis and Vatican hit men had been bad enough, but they hadn't accomplished what this latest debacle had, the destruction of London .

Black smoke rose up from the buildings and mixed with the gray clouds over the city, reminding her that the current contagion threatened the entire country, not just London. Rumor had it that the infection was spreading to mainland Europe, Asia, and the Americas but she had heard nothing in two days, not from the Round Table, MI5, or SIS.

She had the creeping sensation that all was lost.

Lighting a cigar, she squinted at the burning city with her single blue eye, the other missing and covered in a patch, and gritted her teeth. Thoughts of defeat were not ones she was used to thinking, but the path to victory was difficult to see.

All surviving high-level government officials had been evacuated days ago. All known enclaves of survivors had been overrun or lost their ability to communicate. She had volunteered to stay in London with the rest of those under her command in order to provide cover and shelter for anyone who happened to remain alive and uninfected. That mission had been a disaster, as the infection spread to Hellsing's ranks and the infected outside had overrun the outer compound, leaving only the manor itself un-penetrated.

The disease was incredibly contagious, but some people, herself for instance, seemed to have an immunity. Only four Hellsing soldiers had been immune and three of them had been killed in the battle.

A door opened behind her and the last person under Integra's command stepped out into the roof. "It's not safe out here, ma'am," Seras Victoria said. "You should come inside."

"You should be manning the radio," Integra said, turning around to face Seras, a tall, long legged woman with a mop of short blond hair that stuck out at all angles in the back. She wore her blue uniform, complete with skirt and black stockings. Integra wondered why Seras didn't change into something more utilitarian, but then remembered that vampires, if nothing else, were creatures of habit.

"There hasn't been so much as a peep from anyone in days," Seras said. "If anyone is alive in this city, it's us or they don't have a radio."

Integra took a long drag from her cigar and let the smoke run through her nose. "Then we'll just have to go to them, won't we?" she said.

"Go out into the city? That's craz…I mean, I don't think that's a good idea, ma'am. I know I'm more powerful since…that time, but still," Seras said, shuffling her feet.

"Stuff the soldier routine, Seras," Integra said. "In case you hadn't noticed, it's just you and me here. Seems a bit silly to be saying 'ma'am this' and 'ma'am' that all the time. And if you're too scared to go out of the compound, say so."

Seras's face flushed. "I'm not scared," she said. "I'm just not interested in being torn apart. I don't know if you saw, but the disease it…mutated some people."

Integra had heard reports of creatures among the infected. Nothing concrete, but from what she had pieced together, one in every hundred or so regular infected had developed some sort of bizarre mutation that left the person with some added ability or temperament that made them far more dangerous than the average infected human.

"I'm aware of the mutants," Integra said. "They die just like the others. We've also faced worse."

"But this time we lost," Seras said. "If Master were still…"

"We would have lost all the same," Integra said. "We had about as much a chance fighting this as we do Spanish Flu or Malaria. I'm not one to shift blame, but this wasn't a problem Hellsing was designed to solve. That said, there's no reason we shouldn't be rounding up any survivors, no matter how few there may be."

"You're right, uh, Integra," Seras said. "What's the plan, then? Don't tell me we're going to just walk down the streets looking for living people?"

Puffing on her cigar, Integra allowed herself a wry smile. "We are not, no," she said. "You are."

"W-what!" Seras said, casting a horrified glance over the burning city. "I know I'm tough, but…"

Integra waved her hand to stifle Seras's protests. Flabbergasting Seras had always been a tiny source of amusement for Integra ever since Alucard brought her in. Recently it had become a full-blown hobby.

"Well you can't expect me to go out there unprotected," Integra said. "I'd be torn up in short order. Here's the plan: There's an APC in the motor pool that's full of fuel and ready to go. At night, when you're at your strongest and those blighters out there are in the dark, you'll stalk the city and look for anyone who's managed to keep alive. You'll have a radio with you. Our transmitter is still running and we cover a good sized area, so we'll start there and work outward.

"Once you find someone, radio me and protect them until I arrive to pick them up. We'll bring them back her and work on fortifying the place."

Seras had crossed her arms and was not looking enthused. "That's a lovely plan, ma'am, but there's only about a thousand things that can, and will, go wrong with it. Assuming you're even able to make it any distance in that armored boat, this place isn't the safest. It was overrun. The only place anyone can stay is in the manor."

Integra flicked the ashes of her cigar to the ground and thought that more than a little of Alucard's willful nature had rubbed off on his protégé. "So we have some work to do before we go out," Integra said. "No time like the present, either. The only reason we were overrun was because soldiers inside the compound became infected without warning. None of the walls were breached. You and I can clear this place out within a day and there's enough provisions and weapons to stock an army of survivors for three years once we get them in."

"If there are any at all," Seras said. "And who knows what shape they'll be in."

Integra was becoming annoyed. She flicked her cigar away and walked towards Seras. "This is discouraging enough without you finding fault. Are you helping me or not?"

It was a question. Integra gave orders, she didn't ask favors and it seemed to throw Seras off. Frowning, Seras uncrossed her arms and placed them on her hips. "I'm not finding fault," she said. "I'm thinking about how this will work. You're right about the compound; whatever we do it won't hurt to clear it."

"Then lets get it done," Integra said, walking to the door that lead to the stairwell. "We can think of the details while we work."

To be continued…