The home base.
A place where the thorns that pierced the earth had brought the cathedral closer to the sky.
It was a place high enough to oversee most of the city, and it was a location where the sight of starlight could be fully appreciated.
Yes, it wasn't a bad place, and for the Revenants that had come from bunkers and other underground shelters, it was a good change of environment.
The flickering of artificial lighting couldn't compare to the sunlight on the surface.
Of course, they weren't building the shelter around the cathedral just for the change of scenery. They didn't have the luxury to care.
They were here for work and the benefits that the new division offered to them.
Surprisingly, this new division was willing to take workers from the shelters as long as they could hold a weapon.
Any Revenant blessed with a strong Blood Code and affinity with their parasite will strive for the ranks within Cerberus officers, while the not-so-lucky ones will have to make do with the jobs the shelters have for them.
So, most of them tend to have reconnaissance Blood Codes or are just plain unfit in most combat scenarios.
After all, Cerberus cares more about defending and maintaining the order of their territory. Exploration comes in second.
But now?
It appears this division is now getting more support…
At least, Davis, the commander, makes it seem like it.
'... this hasn't happened since…' Daryl couldn't remember that well since he has died quite a few times, but he can tell what the current situation is to an extent.
'Although the process is odd, Cerberus is extending its reach again.'
Law and order were priority since Cerberus needs steady footing before reaching out, lest they fall over a shaky foundation.
It wasn't hard to notice the number of Cerberus soldiers moving about from shelter to shelter.
They aren't usually involved unless they have to suppress rebels within their territory. But this new division was different; no commander goes around gathering and evaluating Revenants.
'He is being careful about gathering personnel, that is for sure.' Not like he could care about the internal politics that Cerberus is going through.
Daryl is a man who doesn't have many things, that is, except for the heart of a lovely lady.
Doesn't matter the gore he has to walk through; he just wants to keep his wife safe and sound from the Lost outside the shelters.
"This should be the last one." After bringing the last pile, Daryl recounted the rebars in front of him. Although hard to come by, construction material that could be recycled wasn't nonexistent.
He and his friends saw an opportunity, and thankfully, they were accepted. Most of them were in the same situation. They required Blood Beads before the levy to keep their remaining family safe within the shelter and receive its benefits.
"Where did you get this guy? At this rate, we are going to finish before the other teams." One of his friends came up and asked with some worry, "You didn't promise him our price, did you?"
"Huh… Ah, no. I didn't. He says Anderson told him to help whoever he wanted." He shrugged and answered, looking at the young man who pointed out a hidden crack in the wall to the engineer assigned to their team.
Anderson, someone who is already the head of the team, was familiar with him for some reason. Not only he, but some of Anderson's men knew him too.
Almost all of the workers came to the man to find the weakness in the walls of the hall they got assigned to. Daryl had to shoo them away to let him work.
Before the new division under Commander Davis could start their expeditions, they needed a proper base to return to. The hall beside the cathedral needed some proper remodeling, and even more for accommodations.
"This side is done." The young man said as he got down the makeshift ladder.
Daryl found him unique, with such a Blood Code, he would've heard of him the moment they initiated reparations.
Green eyes, fairly pale skin, and a build on the slimmer side.
Given that most of the Revenants were workers and scouts from shelters, they all knew or heard of each other to some extent.
But he couldn't recognize him…
'Unless…'
The cathedral is the territory of the rumored Crimson Sword. A mad dog who burned anyone to a crisp if they looked at him wrong.
There are few as crazy as him, maybe The Immortal, who fought anything and anyone to see if they could kill him.
But it's not always good to trust rumors.
After all, as it turns out, this named Revenant has a team with him in the cathedral.
A lot of things aren't what they seem to be.
Even the group that was already here when Daryl entered the division wasn't scared to talk about the Crimson Sword and his party.
'Right- Huh?' What was meant to be a glance at the cathedral turned into a scrutinizing look.
A woman stood on the balcony.
She waved down, and Daryl followed her direction to see the man helping them, waving as well.
'Wasn't the commander meeting with some people today?' Daryl connected a few dots.
And he called the young man, "Hey! Don't you have to go to a meeting?!"
The young fellow, still in the middle of confirming with the engineer the location of the fractures, gave him a surprised look but answered with a grin, "I'm already late, no need to rush!"
"...Huh." Speechless, Daryl signaled his group to leave to avoid the trouble of holding up someone that might be important, just in case.
Their destination? Other teams inspecting the other walls to lend a hand…
And to brag about their job being well done before the opposing team.
"I… damn, there are a lot more than I thought." A man frowned at the scheme between his hands, all weak points of the structure marked with the help of the man behind him.
After a moment of agonizing about the work he has to do, he turned around, "Oh- Hey, you can go and do your thing if you want."
The young man, with the palm of his hand pointed towards the wall, responded, "You don't want me to help the other team?"
"Nah, we made a bet about who finishes first." He cackled, "Right, Thanks! We are getting some good wine from this."
"You…" The other man was left without words for a moment.
Perhaps, this sort of competitiveness was good for morale, so he didn't say anything.
He only shook his head with a light laugh and focused on the wall in front of him.
A purple slime slowly slipped through the cracks before it went into the sleeves of his shirt.
"Alright then, enjoy that wine!" He said as he headed to the makeshift tent with Cerberus guards.
"Ah! What's your name?"
"Adam!" He waved as he left.
He left without hurry as he heard the man say that tonight's first toast goes to his name.
And a second later.
"Are you?" The guard who heard the exchange between Adam and the engineer questioned, not letting him in.
Cerberus officers have something in common: they are the closest thing to the ideal super soldier when it comes to their Blood Codes and equipment.
One of the reasons anyone with a good affinity with their parasite strives to rise into their ranks is not just the benefits, but their armor and weapons.
The white armor covering their body from head to toe had the appearance of a rather robust white exoskeleton, and padded shoulders with thick clothing flowing down from each one, like a cape torn down at the lower end.
Although they resemble super-advanced armor inspired by football players, seeing them move will have anyone refrain from pointing it out.
The armor, seemingly making their frame appear larger, wasn't for intimidation purposes. Cerberus armor contains many technological features hard to count on both hands, but could all be summed up in a single word.
Prowess.
The offensive forms from their armor weren't as restricted as Blood Veils; it gave them a power and speed boost with their integrated muscle fibers. Their hooded helmets, aside from night vision and other sensory features, had integrated filters and backups. They had hidden pockets for Ichor storage and utility belts with more remedies.
Their weapons, aside from being made for them individually to fit their strengths, had the biggest percentage of Queen Tungsten with Queen Titanium as their base component, both being incredibly strong and rare metals.
Especially Queen Tungsten, it being the only metal whose distribution is strictly regulated by the Government. Not a gram escapes their sights.
Blood Veils and weapons that Adam and the party have available are riff raff compared to what the soldiers in front of him wear.
Yet, Adam found them quite… unimpressive? Could it be that his sight has degraded that much?
It was hard to describe it; he couldn't encompass the feeling in a single word.
But he didn't feel as small in front of them as he thought, even after messing up his body.
Maybe Jack, but…
No, it would be unfair to compare them to literally one of the top four strongest people in the city.
"Oh!" Adam didn't think much of this feeling and extended his hands with his palms pointing to the sky.
A ball of fire and a ball of strange purple liquid floated in each hand.
"..."
The officer who had questioned him just stared silently before looking at his partner.
"..."
They remained silent as Adam's expression dropped.
Although almost everyone left to meet Davis with Louis, he said that it wasn't necessary. And since Adam said he had something to do before following them, they should've informed the guards that someone would come after them…
Or maybe they didn't?
Maybe he looks too different?
Did they actually forget?
Wait, were the guards informed that he is a void type?
Do-
"Just fuckin' with ya!" The guard hollered.
He and the partner who had been quiet until now burst with laughter.
"Oh…You… I'll remember you." Adam narrowed his eyes and wagged his finger at the officer.
"Hahah! Hope you do that this time-!" He answered, his cackles coming to an end, "WWWonder-"
Adam immediately knew where this was going.
"Bite your fucking tongue-" And he didn't like it.
The lady officer, who had done nothing but chirtle, continued beside her partner, "BBBoy!"
Adam basically answered with a low grunt as if he had stubbed his toe on a table.
The two guards chewing every syllable of his dumb nickname and spitting it on his face had him almost seeing red.
Although beyond baffled by the lack of professionalism of the two guards, Adam could quickly deduce that they were familiar with him, surely from his early days in the Queenslayer operation.
"Wonder Boy?!" "He is in the camp?!" "Where!?" "He is real??!" "Isn't he dead???"
Adam heard the comments behind him, and, as much as it hurt his pride, none of the eyes searching for "Wonder Boy" fell upon him.
They probably expected someone more impressive looking…
The guards, still giggling, heard Adam's clenched teeth creaking as he walked inside the tent.
It was a simple tent, easy to set up and much easier to take down. But it did serve some privacy for the meeting.
A projector on top of a cart with other devices under it showed some images of underground caves. Probably meant for the briefing of Revenants before departing on expeditions.
There were some notices and rolling boards stacked with notes and writings.
Davis and Louis' group were standing around a wide table with papers and other research material laid across it.
In the few steps it took Adam to reach them, he expected a few questions, given the surprised looks, except for Davis, who appeared stoic most of the time.
Indeed, his appearance has changed quite a bit. After seppuku practice, Adam had lost some muscle, and his eyes turned back to green again.
Not just that-
"Why is your skin the wrong color?" Yami, the man who didn't bring his filter to the discussion, asked with an interesting wordplay in the presence of the only black man they've met until now.
(⊙_⊙;)
Even Davis' eyes widened a bit… and, although not as sharp as before, Adam saw some sort of amusement.
"Hahahaha!" Yakumo almost fell laughing, hand on the table to support himself.
"Heh, good one!" Adam chuckled and stood beside Louis, who looked at him strangely.
"Seriously," Oliver spoke after elbowing Yami on the side, "what happened to you? Why are you so pale? Did you get sick- Can you even get sick??"
"The answer will require team effort!" Adam dismissed his change in appearance. His new look certainly would require some research; he can't trust his own assumptions much. After all, he knows too little.
He suddenly heard some noise outside.
It wasn't a commotion, but he could hear that the guards were surprised.
"I apologize, I thought you were someone else." After that apology from the guard, Io entered the tent and took her place beside Adam.
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Word Count: 2,223
Not all NPCs will have their life story told, I want to at least show where they are or how they are doing as Adam changes the story and circumstances.