"Doctor!"
While everyone but Bul-Kathos was still immersed in the shock brought by Imperius's arrival, a mournful wail, sounding like a bird crying tears of blood, pierced the air.
The Blood Queen, having traveled relentlessly, finally appeared amidst the wreckage of St. Paul's Cathedral.
Visually, Nimue was in a wretched state. Her gauze-like garments were torn and tattered, and her beautiful body was marred by burns and all manner of grotesque injuries.
Along the way, the Blood Queen Nimue had not hesitated to endure the holy fire scattered by Imperius, arriving here bearing the scorch marks of that divine flame.
All for the sake of the reunion she had so desperately awaited.
As for the strange wounds on her body, they were leftovers from her battle with Mephisto's avatar.
Most of the personnel from the "Last Battalion" who had stayed behind had perished in her vengeance. The only exception was M.O.D.O.K., who had begun plotting his escape long ago.
That giant head was currently rushing toward the location of Hellsing's last remaining forces. He had finally seized the opportunity to break free from the Major's control, primarily because the Major and that mad scientist had found a better toy to play with.
M.O.D.O.K. needed a talisman, a bargaining chip to survive the final reckoning. After all, aiding the Third Reich was a stain that couldn't be washed clean, and he had no desire to go from the leader of A.I.M. to a rat being chased down in the streets.
Integra Hellsing was an excellent entry point. M.O.D.O.K., knowing the entirety of the Last Battalion's plan, did not fear Alucard the vampire. If everything went according to plan, Alucard would vanish from the mortal realm for a very long time.
However, something even more terrifying existed in M.O.D.O.K.'s path ahead.
A statue of an angel, covering its face with its hands, stood within the ancient manor where Hellsing's last forces were gathered. As long as someone looked at it, it remained frozen in place.
But the moment it was unobserved, the monster would move.
Casualties had already begun to mount within the manor. The mercenaries were steadily dwindling under the monster's attacks. Now, everyone who could still move was huddled together, waiting for the "enemy" to appear.
A Weeping Angel!
A monster from the Doctor's universe that could only be truly defeated by creating a time paradox.
And the person currently facing this monster was Seras Victoria.
Even though Seras was not yet a complete vampire, she was capable of evading the creature. But evasion was not a long-term solution.
"That which holds the image of an Angel becomes itself an Angel."
No drawings or recordings of Weeping Angels existed in any archive, because those images would eventually become Weeping Angels themselves.
This rule applied even to the reflection in one's pupils.
This was how the Weeping Angels increased their numbers.
However, Seras had one person to thank—someone whose existence severely restricted the Weeping Angel's movements. In fact, as long as that person existed, the Weeping Angel could not multiply.
The life that exists and does not exist! Warrant Officer Schrödinger!
The cat-like boy was observing an existence similar to himself with evident delight.
Between the quantum-state Weeping Angel and Schrödinger's Cat, a long entanglement was destined to unfold.
A cat's curiosity is not easily extinguished.
This standoff would last at least until the Major's final plan was set in motion.
Meanwhile, in the ruins of St. Paul's Cathedral, a touching reunion was taking place.
"Vivian!"
Our mysterious Doctor watched Nimue appear before him. With a look of nostalgia and pity, he opened his arms to the Blood Queen.
The Blood Queen, whose face already showed signs of aging, threw herself headlong into the Doctor's embrace, offering up her burning red lips.
Perhaps the Doctor was accustomed to such passionate treatment, for he responded to Nimue with practiced ease.
However, seeing the holy fire still burning on Nimue's body, his expression turned grim.
A promise he thought he could keep had led a young girl to embark on a path of "immortality" without looking back.
Such cruelty was unbearable, even for a Time Lord.
"These things are called Cybermen?"
Bul-Kathos stroked his beard and turned to look at the metal figures marching out of the rift, his expression somewhat ferocious.
Andariel's incessant screaming inside his head was plucking at his nerves.
No one could endure a high-pitched voice echoing in their mind for long. It had nothing to do with whether the sound was pleasant; even the most beautiful song becomes annoying when one seeks silence.
CLANG!
A suit of red and gold metal armor crashed heavily onto the ground, snapping the sawed-off horns on Hellboy's head in the process.
"How on earth does a flintlock musket fire that kind of bullet? It defies all laws of physics!"
Everyone present heard the exasperated voice coming from the suit.
It was Tony Stark.
To ensure Dugan and the others landed safely, Tony had taken on the responsibility of intercepting First Lieutenant Rip van Winkle.
Although he used his onboard missiles to disrupt the Magic Bullet Shooter's attacks, he was still shot out of the sky by that unreasonable projectile.
If Imperius's holy fire hadn't dispelled the bizarre energy contained within the bullet upon his resurrection, Tony might have made a much more tragic entrance.
"Huh? First a helmet guy, now a tin can man? Is this guy seriously not one of the Cybermen's kin?"
Constantine felt his brain short-circuiting, blurting out the question subconsciously.
He then shifted his gaze to the Doctor, who was still hugging Nimue. Perhaps he wanted confirmation from the expert.
After all, Tony's Iron Man suit looked somewhat similar to the Cybermen. Especially the faceplate—the resemblance was off the charts.
"I think he might be a secret weapon of the military, just like that guy over there," Daimio said with some difficulty, pointing a finger at Johnny Blaze, who was passed out on the ground.
As the M11 commander working directly with the B.P.R.D., he knew a thing or two about the Ghost Rider. And Tony's gold-and-red armor left him with no other plausible answer.
"Tony Stark?"
Bul-Kathos uttered the name with a hint of skepticism, watching as a golden portal opened before his eyes.
Through the portal, one could see Madawc and the other Ancestors delivering a brutal beatdown to Satannish and Mephisto.
Then, the Ancient One walked straight through.
The passage between the Mortal Realm and Hell had been sealed by Imperius's holy fire, and the entities capable of crossing over were currently being pinned to the ground and pummeled by three Barbarian Ancestors.
This gave her a moment of respite to check on the situation here.
For the Ancient One, any truth-knower aware of the "Time Reapers" would not miss the chance to meet the "Child of Time"—the Doctor.
Simply because everything he witnessed became a fixed point in time. Such an existence was simply too unfathomable to ignore.
(Author's Note: The update is a bit late; I stayed up all night to get this out. Handling the pacing for this part was difficult—I wrote and deleted, deleted and wrote, until I couldn't take it anymore and just posted it. I feel a bit better after the night passed; at least breathing doesn't burn anymore, and the anti-inflammatories helped. Going to sleep now. I'll see if I can return to the 10,000-word daily update schedule today.)
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