Who: Matthias Cronqvist & Integral Hellsing Where: Castlevania When: Backdated to the night and the morning after Pollution's destruction What: Character death Rating: R Status: Complete
Integral Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing had spent all nights worth sleep researching about the Horsemen and was now targeting information about Raven Sable, but all she could find before slumber won her weary mind was that he was in the director of the Department of Public Health, maker of famous diet fads and an accomplished owner of food chains across the globe. He had neither known family nor address. How come such a man was able to clean his profile so easily? The coughing had begun after she took a stroll in the balcony not soon after sundown. The atmosphere within Castlevania had grown oppressive and she had sought ventilation to clear her mind.
There had been a pair of dry coughs, the knight thought nothing about it when she skipped dinner and crawled into her bed with her laptop and printed pages; nothing when she slipped slowly into sleep and crushed the cigar remnants on the astray over the nightstand. The lingering smoke tickled at her nostrils and she convulsed during the entire evening. There was absolutely nothing that would awake her from the lull of the deadly tobacco fragrance.
When the first rays of the morning arrived, Integral tasted the blood in her mouth, felt the sweat in her brow and listened to her heavy, shallow breathing. She couldn’t spare strength open her eyes.
Alucard! Seras! Walter! her mind called out impotently, not recalling where she was staying nor what she was doing. Her life flashed in slow motion at the dreadful realisation that she was dying.
Matthias had watched her while she worked tirelessly, had watched her while she skipped dinner and had watched her while she crawled into bed. As she slept, he could taste her blood in the back of his throat. Something was wrong, very wrong. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on her vital signs, her internal body functions- they were slowing down. They were off. Moving to her bedside, he conjured a healing potion from the depths of his cloak and set it at her nightstand. Weight sinking into the mattress, he sat, leaning over her, backs of his fingers running coolly down her cheek, "Integral, you need to wake up now." A thread of urgency underscored his tone. "Integral." A little more harsh now, adding a small shake to her shoulders.
Drawing her up to the crook of his arm, Matthias picked up the vial with his free hand and unstoppered it with his teeth. Then, tiling her head back, Matthias pressed the vial to her lips, slowly pouring in the potion, helping her swallow it. "This should help." And then waited. But nothing. "Impossible- Integral, please, you must awaken." Her body was off and he could do nothing. "Please, Integral, only awaken." Tears stung at his eyes, gathering there, then sliding down his cheeks in bloody tracks. Matthias pressed his lips to her forehead.
There was a crippling pain shot through her lungs and the sensation of drowning multiplied that grew all her other serves numb. She couldn’t listen to him or felt his hands on her shoulders. Her face was ashen - white - while the potion slip in and out unresponsive lips. Her mind was racing, trying to hold into precious life with the last fibre of her will. She wouldn’t perish this way. She had to kill the Major. That little worm who had bloody dared to kill her--
Her eyes suddenly opened wide, the setting around her unseen. She was hallucinating back to the Zeppelin. Seras, she had tried to say but opening her mouth caused more hacking to come and more blood spilled. Her was expression wild while she tried to reach for something in her shirt, an invisible pistol unholstered and ready to shoot. Her arms trembled in effort she was making, her heart raced in her ears. She had to fight, until her last breath. He would go down with her.
Matthias felt her eyes open and pulled away, running fingertips over her cheeks, unsure of whether she saw him or not. "Integral?" He asked, tone not entirely hopeful. "Integral, you are safe." She appeared to be hallucinating, on second glance, but of what, he was unsure.
"Fairy," Matthias called for his familiar, "Can you heal her?" The fairy, after all, was capable with potions and life apples and the sort of things that Matthias was unused to dealing with. The fairy appeared, alighted on his shoulder and gave a small curtsy, "Master!" She called, then glanced at Integral, seeming to concentrate, "No, my Lord, there is nothing in my power to be done." Then gave him a small pat on the cheek. Matthais, in turn, continued to hold her, wiping the sweat off of Integral's brow.
Feebly, Integral struggled against the hold. Let me go, Seras! He has to die! Die there! Die there! she had tried to exclaim but once more her convulsions and coughing fits had muted her. A new wave of blood and fluids came from her mouth. She stretched her arm and pulled up the invisible trigger. Her ears rang with the silent bang. Blood…
Blood everywhere; hers and Major’s, the red was painting the battlefield while London burned below. Alucard… she thought while her mind slowly shut down and the vigour of her limbs weakened again. She looked up, eyes boring at Matthias with a satisfied smile. She could see him again. The git had just been toying with her patience and called for her attention. Why weren’t his eyes red? She may be dreaming all this. The pain she had experienced became numb. This was a bad dream and she would soon awaken.
“This… isn’t our… farewell,” she mouthed with a faint smile, “Co…unt.” She was just tired. Killing that bloody pig had drained her. His blood was everywhere on her. It must have been a messy death. How laughable she did not recall her best kill. Had this war affected her mind so? Abruptly, Sir Integral Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing shuddered when lungs stopped working, her heart soon paused for good. She had her eyes open, stubbornly refusing to close them even after she perished.
Her still hand kept a tight grip on a weapon that had never existed.
If Integra had been lucid, she would thank God for her feverish hallucinations. There was no shame to be taken by illness just like her father, but she would have chosen a warrior’s death.
"Never farewell, Integral," Though he imagined she was speaking to her Alucard. "Integral, don't close your eyes," He demanded, panic threading through his voice. He could feel her body slowly shutting down, her breathing slow, then cease, her heart beat and then stop. "No. . no. . please- not again," Matthias begged. "Anything, I will do anything, give you anything. . " His own breath shuddered hard, eyes closing tightly against the sting of blood welling inside of them. "Integra."
His eyes opened, glowing red, "I will avenge you. There is. . there is nothing left."