Waking up 2: Electric Boogaloo

A Big F*cking Dumbass.

That's what I am for not thinking of a solution before falling asleep.

I could've asked Io to just move me out of sight so we wouldn't be discovered by the Revenants.

Or I could've just asked Io to kill them, she is an attendant that actually survived long enough to find me, a successor, when most of them don't even make it to their targets. I'm sure that she is strong enough to make quick work of some wanderers.

But that would've alarmed the other Revenants who suddenly lose connection with the scout team that discovered us.

Damn it!

I was so… ugh. Whatever, no crying over spilled milk.

But screw the past me for being lazy. Even if he was too tired to think of a solution.

Screw him!

I let out a sigh as I fixed my gaze on the ceiling of my confinement.

But there is one thing I don't blame him for, and that is wanting to rest his head on Io's lap as soon as possible.

The warm pillows on which my head had blissfully rested remained the same.

They are mad comfy.

I did wonder about how I was carried while being knocked out cold but given the fact that Io was an attendant, that thought was short-lived.

Bet she could bench 500 pounds with little to no effort.

Speaking of superhuman strength- I closed my hand with a strong grip that had the prowess which didn't belong to a normal person- Hell yeah, this is what I'm talking about!

I felt rejuvenated and filled with absurd amounts of energy that I had never felt before.

Even with my new slim build that is rather toned than ripped, I still had prowess beyond any human should have. Even if my past body was bigger, I could beat it with my hands tied behind my back.

This whole new set of sensations was the hammer that drove in the nail in the coffin that held my doubts about my reincarnation.

This was definitely real and oh boy, I was liking it. But I knew that I shouldn't be delighting in such incredible sensations just yet. The situation that I was in wasn't favorable at all.

I slowly sat up only to notice that Io wasn't sleeping. She had her back on a concrete pillar and gazed at me for a second but-

"Ah, you're finally awake." A rough-sounding voice spoke. I turned around and saw a well-built man with short purple hair and pale blue eyes. His posture and aura around him told me a lot about him.

A jaded veteran sitting on the ground with his legs crossed.

He wore a uniform similar to mine. In fact, the other Revenants who were in the prison wore the same queenslayer blood veils accompanied by military clothes.

Upper body tactical armor, military pants, combat high boots, forearm protection, and gas masks.

Before I could even speak he held his hand up, "first of all, both of you better get your masks. The sooner the better."

"Masks?" I asked with slight confusion but I quickly remembered why.

The gas masks were made so Revenants could navigate through the environments filled with miasma. A fog-like substance that hastens the thirst effect on them.

"Masks?" The man repeated my question with slight bewilderment. "I hope that you asked because you just woke up and not because you lost that much of your memory." He shook his head with pity.

"If it isn't the former, then oh boy… you are in for a treat." He signaled toward a stack of military boxes on the other side of the room.

I just nodded and stood up. Io followed after me.

Arriving at the stack of boxes I saw different types of gas masks but I decided to pick the ones that offered full face protection. They were made of a metal that felt flexible enough to hug your face but decently sturdy to take a hit. It was a strange feeling since the only masks I know of are mostly made of nontoxic rubber but I didn't dwell on it too much.

"Wait, why didn't you pick one for yourself?" I asked Io who should've been told by the old Revenant to wear a mask.

She tilted her head slightly, "I was looking after you." She spoke as if stating the obvious…

This girl…

"Listen, we will look after each other, but you should try to at least take care of yourself," I advised the silver-haired girl.

She nodded. "I will."

I examined our masks to see if anything was faulty and there was something that I noticed about the maks frame you put under your jaw before the mask itself. Not a good thing at all.

I do know that the masks use the blood of the users to stop the miasma from taking effect on them, so it's a tool used by every Revenant out there who wants to live…

But they should at least clean the damn thing!

Nasty Fu*ks!

The bottom of the mask frame that binds to the jaw had tiny needles that were tainted with blood.

Ew…

Do vampires get HIV?

I don't really want to find out… technical immortality doesn't mean immunity to diseases.

I cleaned up the blood with the cloth of my pants before putting on and giving the other one to Io. The needles that pierced my skin were a little bothersome but that feeling disappeared in seconds. A person afraid of needles wouldn't last in this world.

Huh, this actually feels better than any gas mask I've worn. Or maybe the ones I've worn were bad?

Io and I returned to our spot, a pillar in the middle of the room, I was greeted by the sophisticated Revenant giving me a nod of approval.

"Glad to see that you appreciate hygiene. Many nasty bastards don't even clean them." He spoke with a grimace.

"And good thing you talked some sense into her thick skull. She just wouldn't listen when she brought you here."

I turned to Io who was now looking at the ground in what I assume was embarrassment. I patted her and gave my attention back to the man.

"Thanks for the advice, um…"

"Just call me Anderson. What about you? Do you still remember your names?"

Name… I do know my name as I have the entirety of my past life memories intact. But I have zero recollection of the ones from the body I've taken over.

"Adam Hart." I used the first name of my past life and the last name of my character in Code Vein. It just felt fitting.

Even though I know I don't look like my character at all. He had pale skin and purple eyes. Since it was a game about anime vampires, I went along with the aesthetic.

I looked at the silver-haired woman who would now finally give me her name.

"Io." She introduced herself to me more than the old Revenant who asked.

"Well, Sir Anderson," I spoke courteously, taking a seat on the floor, "why do we need the masks exactly?"

"...sir?" The man muttered surprised, almost baffled even.

"Heh… there is a reason why you don't judge books by their cover…" I could hear the little smile behind his mask.

The remark about my appearance did intrigue me as I have no idea what I look like at the moment. But given his comment, I surely don't look very friendly despite severely lacking big muscles that could intimidate anyone…

Must be about my face then. I do know that I have light brown skin like the one from my past life, the one that just gets darker if you stay out when it's sunny rather than getting pink.

Other than that, I'm clueless about my visage. Even so, it wasn't time to ask about my appearance. The info I wanted was something else.

"You need them to stop the miasma from turning you into a Lost." Anderson leaned forward, getting into a more comfortable position than one can get by sitting on the ground. His tone had a slight change, the roughness of his voice now carrying a certain gaiety.

Good thing it worked.

Old people either favor the polite or the blunt. From experience, I've noticed that the people before my generation liked polite young men.

While the ones before that one tend to have favoritism for the blunt. The no-bullshit type of person.

But given the fact that Code Vein should take place at least 5 or 6 decades ahead of my world's timeline, I guessed that he would favor the polite.

That, and also I should be in a setting made by Japanese developers. In Japan, the social rule that almost everyone follows is respecting your elders.

Alright, time to confirm some info. Gotta see if my knowledge of the game can hold up when I'm sent to explore the underground of the land.

Because this isn't a game anymore.

…

'Impressive' Io thought as she observed Adam talk to the old Revenant.

With the information given by Anderson, they understood a lot of things.

The most important between them were the following.

The Thorns of Judgment sprung up from the earth one day without warning. This event is known as the Great Collapse and took about half of the human life on the planet.

Revenants are ex-human beings revived by the BOR Parasite that offers immortality at the cost of thirst. They say immortality but they can still die if their heart, where BOR Parasite resides, is destroyed.

Dying will cause the body to disperse and revive near a mistle that purifies the miasma or in an important location for the revenant. But death can affect the Revenant's memories. Many end up forgetting their identities without even knowing, believing themselves to be truly immortal.

Thirst, an effect that leads to frenzy, is the craving for human blood or blood beads from the BOR Parasite to sustain itself. Failing to keep the thirst at bay will cause the Revenant to frenzy. Leading the BOR Parasite to take over the host and brainwashing them into beasts that will try to obtain blood at any cost.

This leads them into joining the ranks of the Lost. Revenants who have frenzied lose their sanity forever and will have to be put down. It is known that trying to kill a Lost the same you do a Revenant isn't as effective. It takes more than destroying their heart. Most say that it's because the BOR Parasite spreads further on than just the heart.

To stave off the thirst, Revenants can drink human blood or blood beads. Anderson didn't tell how much human blood one would need to keep it at bay. Only told them about how one blood bead can delay it by 2 months at best. If the Revenant is actively in combat daily then they will need one bead within the span of a month or even a week. Depends on the wounds sustained.

Blood springs give blood beads. Unfortunately, the blood beads began to dry up so they have become scarce, even more so with the levy from the Provisional Government. As for where they come from, Anderson himself had no idea. He knows that they appeared after the Queenslayer operation and the red mist that stops anyone from leaving surrounded the city.

As for what the Queenslayer operation was, Anderson simply said that it was a long story. It would be better to hear it as they had little time.

There was also Haze, which is a currency used by almost everyone. It's a matter dropped by Lost after being slain, it's rather rare to find it but it's mainly used to enhance equipment. Other than that, there is little info about Haze.

"It's about to be your turn now." He warned with a somber tone.

"WAIT!!" A shriek permeated the air as two men fell from the hole in the ceiling, where some guards with weapons stood at the edge indifferently.

One landed on his feet while the other rolled on the ground, desperately trying to get up. "Y-YOU SAID I WOULD GET ONE!!!" The battered revenant bawled.

"If you had brought any." One guard on the roof said matter-of-factly.

He stood in place with shoulders shaking before hollowing in frustration and turning to the other man that landed with him. "It's your fault!" And didn't give his partner a chance to talk as he stormed off to a corner where a bag lays. Possibly his belongings.

The accused revenant clicked his tongue in frustration and went to a pillar, grumbling to himself.

Even with clear anger in his voice and movement, the agitated man removed his mask with unexpected care and calmness before desperately sucking on an empty blood bead that was inside the bag.

Io saw Adam and Anderson carefully observing the duo.

'This… Oliver's turning might not even be necessary. I have to see how strong the Lost are with my own eyes first before making assumptions though…'

"Don't end up like that, kid." The solemn warning from Anderson was given a nod of recognition from Adam, still gazing at the revenant in the corner of the room.

Adam went to the other side of the room moments later. The confinement in which they inhabited was possibly an office building. The walls covered by rubble didn't show any concrete evidence, but one of the destroyed walls gave a view of the red mist that Anderson talked about and a long fall that seemed to have no end.

"Don't get too close to the edge, this building has been falling apart for a while." A short purple-haired woman informed Adam who curiously gazed at the abyss.

She had been supporting her side against the wall, staring at the red mist without purpose since he woke up.

"Thanks, I'm just curious if there is anything down there." Adam turned to the gloomy woman. "But I can't even see an end except for that blood curtain."

"...it's always been like this after the war against the Queen. Don't get close to it, it will make you go mad." She helpfully enlightened Adam despite being listless herself.

There seemed nothing wrong with her, even though her equipment was in good condition. She was just burned out mentally.

"How long has that been here?" Adam wondered how long it had been since the war with the Queen ended. It hasn't been specified in the game and Anderson didn't know either. He said that he stopped counting years ago.

But no answer was given as her red eyes met his for a few seconds…

"S-sorry."

She broke eye contact and remorsefully looked down.

"What is it?" Adam inquires despite having a good idea about the problem already.

"It's just… even with the mask on, your eyes are a little off-putting. Sorry."

'Is it that bad?' Adam thought. This might hinder him in situations that require the other party to calm down and avoid escalating situations peacefully.

Although this will also help him in making someone surrender and be intimidating, his circumstances didn't fit with that course of action

Aggressiveness will only make him an outcast in the group, besides, he has to make a good image at the moment since having more helping hands is better.

Many hands make light work.

A heavy metallic sound interrupted Adam's thoughts.

"Number three and four! Newcomers, too! Time to work! Check your gear and come up!" A not-so-friendly guard ordered as a heavy steel ladder extended all the way from the roof to the ground.

"Good luck…" The woman Adam was just talking to gave her best words of encouragement… or at least he would like to think she did.

"Will need it." He nodded.

"It's hopeless, there is no way we will find blood beads here… they are crazy if they think that there is anything left." A woman with shoulder ash brown hair fretted in frustration.

"... I don't want to forget them. I have nothing left… I don't want to die again…" A man with messy black hair muttered to himself, devoid of any emotion and energy. Losing his sanity.

"Pieces of sh!t, wouldn't be searching for beads if they stopped f*cking hoarding them all." A dirty blonde man seethed.

He heard complaints from the revenants as he made his way to Io who was resting her back against the pillar he woke up to, sitting with her knees up to her chest under Adam's coat.

'This is what happens when you have immortality but live in Ohio 2.0'

(A/N: Has anybody seen that image about google saying that Elden Ring takes place in Ohio? I remember taking a screenshot of it but I can't find it.)

Io heard his conversation and decided to do her best in supporting him. Why would she do that? She didn't know herself, but it was decided and she took it as her sole duty to accomplish it.

From Adam talking to the old revenant to then inquiring more information from the woman, if she wants to help him then she would have to try better. She should've been the one to acquire such findings before Adam woke up.

And so, with determination in accomplishing her duty, she stood up when Adam arrived and held his face gently, making him freeze.

"I like your eyes."

"... thanks?"

As heartwarming as it was to him that she would say such a thing because of the comment from the woman in low spirits, Adam knew that he didn't have the time to enjoy her soft hands tenderly touching his face… well, not his face but the mask. Anyhow, it's the intention that counts.

He took her hands off his mask gently before looking into the beautiful windows of her soul. "Listen, I need you to trust me."

"I trust you." She nodded.

"Whatever happens, don't confront them. Let me handle it and don't do anything rash. If they separate us and something happens when I'm not there, hide."

"Will do."

"Good."

The duo made their way to the ladder.

"They are too worried about their levy. They won't be doing anything nasty for now," Anderson commented as he saw them off.

He probably knew what would happen, or perhaps he was planning it.

'Hm… He should be new, but why did it look like he knows?'

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Word Count: 3,097

Now you have a good idea about the world in case you haven't played the game, or you just don't remember much about it. I won't be shoving exposition down your throat this hard in the next chap so you can calm down.

Also, if you have played Code Vein and know about the lore, please tell me if some topics weren't properly explained.