"Ugh… my head."

"Damn, less than a minute. Looks like I owe you a thousand Haze."

"W-What the hell!?" The lone Revenant shouted in shock, his protest going silent immediately once he experienced an extreme sense of vertigo. Upon his awakening, he realized he was being held by his ankle over the edge of the platform, looking up to see Yakumo easily hold onto him. "Y-You three!"

"Morning sunshine." Yakumo smirked under his mask, looking down to the Revenant. "Sleep well?"

"Let me go you damn bastard!"

"Are you sure you want that?" The redhead questioned, motioning with the hand grasped on the Revenant's leg. "Not that it's my place to judge, but it looks like a pretty long drop from here. I can't imagine it feels good."

The Revenant froze at the threat, looking down to see the chasm that surrounded the platform the Greater Lost had nested itself in. Sure, his chances of survival were low, but dispersal wouldn't be the worst experience. The problem came from the chance of him landing on a stray rock or weapon that a Lost dropped, falling at the wrong angle would be a death sentence, and he couldn't risk that.

"We have some questions for you, after you answer them we'll let you go back to your group." Louis spoke, kneeling down to be closer to the Revenant's face. "First off, how did you get your hands on a human?"

"Why should I answer anything? Your promises are empty, once I give you what you want you'll just kill me. So why bother waiting you bastards?"

"We don't operate like that." Louis answered, stabbing his blade into the ground, revealing the crimson blade to the Revenant. "But it'd be best to not test Yakumo like that. He is former military after all."

"And I've been told I have butter fingers." The redhead joked, playing with his grip as he did. "So it'd be best to get it over with as soon as possible. You know, better than to risk it right?"

"…We found her." The Revenant would relent, now fully considering his position and knowing that refusal was pointless. "The woman was with two elderly folk, couldn't be younger than seventy."

"Human's that old are still alive?"

"Yeah, that's what confused us as well. Our leader had us report the two and had one of our scouts get them to a shelter, telling Silva's troops that we found them."

"And decided to ignore bringing up the girl?" Louis spoke, more stating than questioning.

"You try going four months with only five beads to go around! We have a large group; we couldn't support ourselves with the damn levy!" The Revenant shouted in response. "We had half a dozen nearing frenzy by the time we found them! And what did we get for giving them the old bags!? Two Blood Beads! We didn't even get enough to support those that were near frenzy for a month! At least with her we had something to help keep us all from turning into the damn Lost!"

"And all you had to do was treat a human like cattle!" Yakumo responded, his grip tightening in anger as he glared at the Revenant.

"Don't try acting all high and mighty on me you damn dog! You and your boss here get special treatment working for Silva on finding Blood Beads! The rest of us struggle to make ends meet! Most of us don't even get that luxury and survive on day-by-day traces of blood! We don't even get a full dose to keep us going! The best that damn woman can do is give us the blood we need to survive!"

"Humans aren't property, you can't devolve their worth into blood banks like that." Louis stated, pushing himself up by his sword as he did. "They think, act, live as they have to for survival. They're no different from you and me, they deserve the same treatment as we do."

"Spare me that talk, they don't deserve those rights!" The Revenant growled. "Who was it that kicked us out of our graves to fight the Horrors? Who tried to play God and create an ultimate lifeform? Who was it that turned us into weapons when they no longer could contain the damn monster they created? It was them! It was the damn humans! Time and time again they made things worse, forced us to become monsters, walking corpses that have an endless thirst for blood!"

"It's thanks to them the Queen was created in the first place! They created us; they created this hell we're forced to live in! And who do we give our lives to protect, the same damn humans! So if all they have to do is pay with their blood they have a damn good deal, better than any deal we could have!"

"You bastard!" Yakumo growled, throwing the Revenant back onto the platform, disorienting him before he recovered to see the redhead's massive sword in front of him. "These humans have nothing to do with that, they didn't do anything wrong! The scientists who created the Queen are all gone now, you can't condemn them all to a fate of food because you hate the few that did this!"

"Like hell we can't, they did the same thing to us!"

"You're wrong, humans didn't do this. The Horrors forced us back, too many were lost." Louis said, stepping towards the Revenant as he remained calm. "The past happened; mistakes were made that can't be fixed. People, humans and Revenants alike, are now forced to live a caged life. We can't be degrading each other when we're all we have now. We have to work together, and what you and your group was doing was too far."

"What the hell are we supposed to do then!? We can't just go back to the way things were!" The Revenant screamed, his eyes flashing red underneath his visor. "Without her, we'll all continue to thirst until our bloodlust takes over! Then there's more Lost and less of us to fight! All she has to do is give us blood, and then we can remain what we are!"

"She won't be staying with you." Louis informed. "We're going to take her into our custody. Once she's safe, we'll inform Silva and have her transferred to a shelter where she'll stay out of harm's way."

"You bastards! I won't let you-!" Before he could finish, the Revenant was surprised as a bag was thrown at his feet. A Blood Bead had fallen out, getting him to stare in shock as he saw several more of the rare fruits inside the bag glow faintly.

"Take those. They should last you a few months." Louis ordered. "Find yourself a new group, ones that don't exploit humans and give them a fair chance. Because if I ever see you with a human who even looks injured I'll carve your heart right out of your chest." The black-haired Revenant threatened, his eyes glowing with fury as he pointed his sword at the rouge's throat.

"Y-You…" The Revenant was extremely cautious, seeing well that surrounded by three Revenants that defeated a Greater Lost put him on the fence. Betraying the group he was in was dangerous, and could easily backfire if caught. But on the other hand, he likely had a better chance than he did now. Trying to get the human back was impossible now, and the Blood Beads at his feet was the only certainty he had.

After a few seconds of internal debate, he'd go down and pick up the bag of beads. Making sure to grab the one free bead with his spare hand, he'd turn and run back the way he had came. The three remaining Revenants watched as he tucks and run, keeping his head down until they couldn't see him anymore.

"That's what a lot of Revenants think about humans." Louis announced, turning to Heredis who had remained silent the entire exchange. "Many feel it's humanity's fault the Queen was made, and that the Lost are entirely a result of humans purposing Revenants as weapons. They feel humans owe them for everything, in blood or any other means."

"They're scum, punks picking on those that can't fight back." Yakumo added in, scoffing as he turned. "Unfortunately though they're the majority, and Silva's the only thing between them and the humans still alive."

"So then the levy…"

"Is just as much meant to weaken the Revenant factions as it is to support him." Louis finished. "It's flawed and causes too many issues, but it's the only chance humans have. But if we can find enough Blood Beads to prevent frenzy from becoming a problem, maybe we can convince the others to let go of their anguish towards humans. Especially since most currently alive were children when the Queen was killed."

"…Damn it." Heredis growled, tightening his free hand into a fist before turning to the nest the Butterfly of Delirium had made. "How bad do you think she is?"

"If she's been with them for more than a week, I'd imagine she's anemic, malnourished and dehydrated. So she's probably in worse condition than we saw her as." Louis guessed, noticing Heredis' wince. "Revenants don't need food or water; they probably only went out and got it so that she could replenish her blood. But with her escape, I doubt she had anything since they last drank from her."

"Then we don't have much time." Heredis concluded, the three heading for the structure the woman ran in to.

"Just remember to take things slow Heredis. She's scared as hell right now and you're the last thing she'd want to see." Yakumo reminded. "A Revenant, a fresh one at that, is a hell of a fright for a human in her condition. So let us handle this."

"But I can-" The silver haired Revenant attempted to argue, interrupted as Yakumo placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You've done plenty, this is entirely for her sake."

"…Fine."

"The bloodspring's still here." Louis noted, seeing the dried-up root tree.

"I'm on it." Heredis sighed before taking off his mask, biting into his hand and letting a few drops of his blood drip onto the roots. The spring then released the same particles as the others before several Blood Beads began to grow.

'Three down.' He'd think as he put his mask back on, looking to the glowing fruit melancholily. 'Is this really all we can do? Just make more and stave off the inevitable?'

"I'm going to test and see where the veins lead to, give me a second." Louis would inform before kneeling down, taking out a small vial containing a yellow liquid inside. He'd then pour a drop onto the bloodspring, and almost immediately the lifeforce running through the veins lit up and created a path down from them. "Looks like our hunt will lead us to the trenches. Hopefully Cerberus' old access elevator is still operating."

"Yeah, here's hoping." Yakumo said, before his eyes shifted to the corner in the room. "I know you're there."

A panicked gasp was then heard, and the three Revenants turned to the source before the human woman came out. Immediately the three were put on guard, seeing her hold a knife up to her throat.

"What are you doing!?"

"Stay back!" She threatened, the Revenants taking a step back as she placed the tip of the knife against her throat. "I'm tired of being a walking meal for every passing Revenant, barely kept alive just so that I can feed the next one that comes around! I refuse to let any more just drink my blood as if I were some dispenser!"

With the woman closer, the three Revenants could see the extent of her injuries with horror in their eyes. She was covered in gashes, most going up her arms and legs, likely early injuries to prevent her from escaping. There were smaller cuts and bruises across her face, and a dark set of marks on the side of her neck, the favored spot the Revenants had drank her blood from.

"I am not an animal!" She screamed, her hands shaking as she pressed the knife more, opening another cut as she looked to the three in terror. "I won't go back to that life! I'd rather die than go back!"

"That isn't necessary!" Heredis shouted, taking a step forward.

"Heredis wait-!" Louis was about to stop him, but was stopped as Yakumo grabbed his shoulder, shaking his head. Louis caught on to the message, having known Yakumo long enough to know when he figured it best to sit and wait.

"You can't just take your own life away like that! What was the point of running away in the first place if you resort to just this!?"

"S-Stay back!" The woman responded, stepping back in fear as the Revenant took another step towards her.

"Why run away? Why run when the moment you get backed into a corner you resort to killing yourself!?" He pressed on, the smell of the human's blood causing a ripple of hunger across his body as his eyes turned red. The urge was rising rapidly, but he bit his own tongue with all his will, causing himself to bleed and snap himself out of the hunger.

'No, not now!' He thought, his eyes radiating with passion as he looked to the girl, who saw the crimson glow.

"Y-You're… you're…"

"Why put yourself in this position if you didn't think it was worth it!?" Heredis screamed, his fangs flaring as he fought against his desire for blood. "If you so willingly thought your life was worthless, you could've just cut your wrists on some sharp rocks back at the Revenant's camp! So you had to run for a reason! Beyond getting away!"

"I… I wanted to… I didn't want to…"

"The only thing you should say is that you wanted to live! You're not an animal, you aren't cattle to feed on, you're human!" The Revenant yelled, the glow to his eyes slowly fading as he stepped closer. "You're human, you have every right to live! You can't give in at the first sign of danger! You punch, kick, scratch and bite to survive! Because you're a human, you're more resilient than this!"

"So tell me, what do you want!?"

"I… I want to… I want to…!"

"Scream it! Say it to yourself, not to me!"

"I want to live!" She cried out, dropping the knife as her legs gave out on her. Before she hit the ground, Heredis caught her in his arms, slowly kneeling down so she would be comfortable. She was shaking, terrified of what would happen next as she remembered his crimson eyes. But when she looked up, she saw icy blue eyes look back, the Revenant staring at her with support as his thirst went away, the small trail of blood down his lip being his own. "Y-You're thirst…"

"I don't want your blood." He responded, keeping a hand on her shoulder to support her as Yakumo and Louis stepped closer. "We want to make sure you get somewhere safe, away from the Revenants that will harm you."

"You… mean it? This isn't some trick to lower my guard and bring me back to your camp?"

"Well, we do have to bring you back." Yakumo informed, rubbing his neck as he did. "But that's because we have an officer of the Provisional Government, he can get you to a human camp where you'll be safe."

"Provisional… Government?"

"They're an organization of Revenants that try to keep a semblance of order in Vein." Louis explained, kneeling down next to Heredis and the woman. "They protect the humans at the camps, and have more restraint with blood than any other Revenants. You will be asked to donate blood, but a reasonable amount, and through humane methods. In return you'll be fed, clothed, and protected."

"You'll be safe. No one will be able to hurt you there." Heredis finished. "You'll never be hurt like this again, I promise you."

"You… really mean it." The woman sobbed, tears escaping from her as she bent down, trying to control herself as the Revenants had offered her a chance at living an actual life. One not treated as an animal, waiting for the inevitable slaughter. "I… please… thank you…"

"Of course." The silver haired Revenant smiled. "Can you stand? Are you able to walk?"

"I… I don't know…" She admitted. "I can't… feel my legs right now…"

"Then I'll take care of you." Heredis said, stabbing his sword into the ground. "I'll carry her, we should head back to base now."

"We got far enough for one day." Yakumo shrugged, smiling underneath his mask as he grabbed Heredis' sword for him. "Besides, our filters will need some time to clean out, so this works out."

"I suppose it's for the best, our destinations are in miasma thick territory so refreshing will be important." Louis nodded, standing up.

"Oh, before I forget." Heredis realized, reaching into his coat looking for something. "It was guessed you were hungry; I don't know how much it will do, but I have this." He then pulled out an apple, the same Yakumo had thrown at him in the base and held it to the woman, surprising her. "You can eat while I carry you. That way you save your strength."

"I… I… thank you…"

"Of course." He responded, giving the woman the apple before picking her up, one arm underneath her knees and the other behind her shoulders to keep her comfortable. "But you don't need to thank me, I'm just doing what I think is right."

"Good job."

'Io?' Heredis paused, looking in confusion when he heard the woman's voice out of nowhere.

"Thank you for calling in a Cerberus squad Davis, we can't thank you enough." Louis said, shaking hands with the Revenant.

"Of course, thank you for saving another human while on your mission." Davis responded, the man a head taller than even Yakumo wearing Cerberus armor minus the helmet.

"If you don't mind me asking, how'd you know ahead of time?" Yakumo questioned. "Not that we're complaining or anything, but it was weird walking here and finding the squad already waiting."

"Coco contacted the camp, said something about a new Revenant that's an apparent miracle worker?" The officer answered, looking over to Heredis who was helping the human girl up onto the truck the Cerberus squad arrived on.

"Yeah, that's him."

"Never was one for superstition, at least I don't think I was. But if he's managing to revitalize bloodsprings I won't question a miracle." Davis stated. "Was he able to handle himself?"

"He's a natural but lacks in experience." Louis informed. "If he was in Operation Queenslayer, all he needs to do is remember his past and he could be a better fighter than anyone here.

"Silva thought as much. Which is why until your search is resolved I'm stationed here to give reports."

"You're staying for good this time? Not a few special visits?" Yakumo asked, getting a nod in return.

"I won't be able to go on the field with you, but the Provisional Government wishes to show it's full support in your mission to discover the source of the Veins."

"So what you're actually saying is Silva's getting desperate and is lifting the ban on the locations I requested we search." Louis guessed, getting a disappointed sigh from Davis.

"I personally disagree with the uplifting of the quarantines, but Silva's concerned the Revenants will get desperate and attack the human camps. So we need as many Blood Beads as possible. Any information gathered by Cerberus I'll give straight to you. I don't wish for there to be concern."

"Hey man, it's your boss we have a problem with." Yakumo said, patting the giant's shoulder. "We trust you, let us know what we can do and we'll do it."

"Thank you."

"Be careful with her, she's lost a lot of blood." Heredis said as the Cerberus soldier took the woman from Heredis, sitting her down in the back of the truck.

"We've cared for humans in worse conditions. She'll be fine." The Revenant stated, Heredis unmoving as he looked over to the human.

"I… I'm fine, you don't have to worry about me." She responded, getting a tired sigh and smile from the silver-haired Revenant.

"Doesn't change the fact that I do." He said. "You've suffered enough, try and get some living in."

"I will, I can't thank the three of you enough."

"Yakumo and Louis did most of the work, I just cleared the Miasma." Heredis rubbed the back of his neck, looking to the side as the Cerberus officers were loading up.

"Please, don't die." The human begged, surprising Heredis as the truck started to move.

Seeing the vehicle begin to head off, Heredis paused for a second before smiling, calling out to the truck. "The next time I see you, tell me your name! Give me something to look forward to!"

"I… I will!" He heard her call out before the truck turned, going back on its path to the human camp.

"Get better." He said to himself, going back into base and closing the doors behind him.

"It's rare seeing a Revenant be so concerned for an ordinary human." As he entered, Coco spoke to him from beside the door, getting his attention. "Maybe for an official or someone with rich blood, but she was rather average as far as humans go."

"In a world like this, I'd say average is special." He responded, getting a smile in return.

"I found something for Io while you were out, but the owner's been challenging." Coco informed him as she pat his shoulder, walking past the man. "Give me a day and she'll be all dressed up and pretty."

"As long as she's comfortable."

"Ahem, excuse me?" Heredis' attention was brought to Davis, looking up from the sheer size of the man as he offered his hand. "I'm Davis, a lieutenant in the Provisional Government. I suppose we'll be working together as of today."

"Heredis, a nobody with a gift of the impossible." He responded, accepting the handshake and getting a chuckle from Davis. "So the girl, you can guarantee she'll be safe?"

"She'll be taken to our base of operations. She'll get the medical treatment she needs and be looked after." Davis answered, seeing the concern in Heredis' eyes and understanding. "No Revenant will lay a finger on her with the intention to do harm. That I can promise."

"I'm going to hold you too that." Heredis stated, groaning before taking off his mask, having forgotten to after carrying the woman so far. "Man, I knew the stuff was bad, but I never imagined the Miasma could gunk up the filter's like this."

"Normally they don't, but considering you encountered a Lost that utilizes poison, it makes it important you clean it as soon as possible." Davis then pulled out a small canister, giving it to Heredis. "In Cerberus we believe every Revenant should be able to clean their own mask. Murasame's the best in the business, but if time's a problem you won't want to leave the field." Heredis opened the canister, seeing the orange liquid and taking a small whiff of it. That alone was a mistake as he gagged, coughing to the side as Davis laughed.

"Not the best smelling, but it destroys whatever miasma is built up in your filters quickly. Oh and whatever you do, don't drink it." The last part had Davis dead serious, not needing to explain as Heredis closed the canister.

"I'll keep that in mind. Thank you for it."

"It's the least I can do, you've single handedly doubled the Blood Bead rations in just a few days. We'll have officers guarding the bloodsprings, but if you can revitalize more then Revenants outside of the Provisional Government can get enough rations to where their bloodthirst won't be an issue."

"That's the goal."

"Gooooooooood…" Heredis sighed, water splashing from him suddenly dropping in and relaxing back.

"Told you this place was better than it seemed." Yakumo chuckled, seeing the silver-haired Revenant nearly melt into the water.

"It feels like years of stress is just melting away, I didn't think we could feel like this." Heredis admitted, closing his eyes in bliss. "I'm starting to understand why Murasame likes this so much. It's heaven."

"Makes sense it's affecting you so much." Louis responded. "You've been dead for a decade, with only a handful hours' worth of sleep to amount to the stress you had before you died."

"If it makes slipping into hot water this good, I'll stay dead for another decade. Human or Revenant I don't think I've felt this good. I bet Io loved washing off too."

"I'm surprised you joined us instead of checking on her. With you standing by her like she was a lost puppy." Yakumo commented.

"Murasame told me she was sleeping. I didn't want to interrupt her." Heredis answered. "Plus, after fighting that Lost I really needed to relax."

"The big ones can do a number on you." The redhead agreed. "Good thing we took it out as quick as we did. Fighting that thing in endurance wouldn't end well."

"Especially with the poison." Louis added. Washing a bit of purple slime out of his hair, the remnants of the poison was purified by the water, the healing properties even overpowering the toxin. "I didn't see a Vestige in ashes, think it was an anomaly?"

"Probably, mutations are drastic but normally you keep the number of limbs you have, maybe an extra or two but that thing definitely wasn't natural." Yakumo assumed.

"Is this going to be on the test?" Heredis groaned, getting a laugh from the two.

"No, most anomaly Lost don't get that big or powerful. At worst they'll be broken down sludge that either hardened or gained a sense of hunger."

"Good, because I really don't want to deal with that again."

"Unfortunately, we may not have that luxury." Louis stated. "We've only scratched the surface of the Veins, they seemed to go deeper then I thought. No doubt the further we explore the deeper into the Miasma the worse Lost we'll run in to."

"Doubt we'll run into the worst I've seen, so there's some solace." Heredis said, opening his eyes and looking into the night sky with a thousand-yard stare.

"Did you remember something?"

"Just a bit, some of the sensations from before I died. Heavy blows, immeasurable power, and cold eyes. Whatever it was, the thing was a monster among monsters."

"Probably the Queen, man you must not have been able to catch a break back then either." Yakumo sighed. "I couldn't imagine fighting such a powerful Revenant. They threw hundreds of Revenants at her, and we barely managed to kill her."

"And we're still in the same damn spot."

"Not quite, it's a small start but we're making progress. Enough Blood Beads for Revenants to avoid frenzy, saving a few lives, and we've gotten a lead on where the Veins all come from." Louis countered. "It's not the best, but nothing worthwhile is earned easy."

"I suppose…" Heredis groaned. "So the Veins go further deep?"

"Yeah, unsurprisingly they went down through the city. The way we were going is good, but there is one other segment that goes deep under the city. The Howling Pit."

"God damn it, you had to bring that place up?" Yakumo grumbled.

"What's the Howling Pit?"

"A massive pool of sludge and debris, the biggest dump you'd ever lay your eyes on, a swamp within a concrete tomb, really I could go on for hours to explain how awful the place is."

"After the Queen attacked, the city's ground went hollow as her roots and thorns tore apart the area. Whatever isn't up here, it's down there." Louis explained. "It also has a horde of anomaly Lost. Anyone who goes down there usually doesn't come back."

"Sounds like a shit hole."

"That's what I've been saying, but our leader here thinks otherwise." Yakumo scoffed.

"If there's a chance the Veins originate there, it's a risk we have to take." Louis argued.

"The place is a sewer of the worst the main city has. I doubt whatever is creating the Veins is down there."

"But if there's a lead, we can't pass it up." Heredis admitted, sitting up in the water as he looked to the two Revenants. "How far away is the Howling Pit from where we are?"

"We passed it on our way to save the human, so it'd be an easy travel. As long as you aren't afraid of heights or falling." Getting no objection from Heredis, the ruling is 2 to 1 for the Howling Pit, solidifying their plan. "Then we got our destination. We'll rest up and head out first thing in the morning."

"Great, poison flung at us, and now we go to the sludge infested scum heap. What a winning track record we're having."

"Look at the bright side, we're getting rid of the worst areas possible right away. Can't get worse can it?" Heredis asked, getting a groan from Yakumo.

"Just saying that doomed us, you know that?"

"Come on, you can do better than that."

"Fuck! Take it easy will you?"

"Sorry Heredis, you know how I can get."

"No, I really don't. Remember, memory issues?"

"Right, well I'm sure it'll come to you. Now, come at me again. This time like you mean it!"

"God damn it… RAGH!"

"You're gonna kill him boss."

"He can handle it; a single death won't hurt too much."

"It will when he forgets everything."

"That may do more good for him than bad."

"I wasn't referring to him, sir."

"Shit!" Heredis growled in pain, holding his hand over his heart as it throbbed in pain. "Fucking bastard, that hurts, a little warning next… time?" Realizing where he was, he sighed before falling back into bed, waiting out the pain in his chest. "Two more faces, a fur coat and… thread?"

*Knock Knock Knock*

"I'm sorry, it sounded like you were hurt." Looking to his door, Heredis saw Io waiting, concern in her eyes as she heard his growl of pain.

"It's fine, just another memory flash. Honest." Heredis tried to relax her, the woman coming to sit next to him as he sat up.

"More random flashes?"

"No, it was a bit clearer this time." Heredis admitted, thinking back on his dream. "I think I was training with someone. Probably a few days after I became a Revenant. And I think I saw someone else, but his face was blurry."

"Traumatic memories are harder to remember then normal ones, perhaps a member of your team that died fighting the Queen."

"Yeah, that's probably it." Heredis sighed.

"…You're heading out again?" Io asked.

"Yeah, Louis thinks he's got another lead. And from what he and Yakumo are making it out to be, this trip may be even longer then the last. So we might be gone for an entire day."

"You have to be careful, I need you to come back."

"Hehe, don't worry Io. I'm not planning on dying and forgetting you." He said, piecing together her worries and patting her shoulder.

"I don't like you going where I can't follow. But as I am… I can't fight."

"That's why I'm doing this, so you don't have to."

"I can barely reach you when you're gone… if something happens to you I can't help." Io then placed a hand over her eye, looking down as the eye started to glow. "I too remembered a bit, of how my connection to you allows us to always know where each other are."

"So that was you, after I saved the woman."

"I didn't know what else to say, the connection was weak because you were tired. I also… was too tired after being in the hot spring."

"Are… are you blushing?" Heredis asked with a smile, seeing the girl look away. "That's adorable Io. And it's good to know you're enjoying yourself while you're here."

"But it's not enough, I haven't helped you since we…" Io stopped as Heredis stood up, patting her head as he looked down to her.

"You being happy is enough help. I'm not expecting you to be by my side every waking moment, you're your own person. I'm sure Murasame would love to find plenty of things for the two of you to do together. And Coco's getting something ready for you, so be a little more patient for today."

"I… at least allow me to use our link once or twice, just to make sure you're okay."

"Hehehe, that's fair enough." Heredis chuckled, offering a hand to help Io stand up. "If we're lucky we'll find a couple bloodspring's down in the Howling Pit. I'll save a Blood Bead just for you."

"You don't have to, I can barely feel my thirst."

"Uh huh, tell that to these." He responded, tapping his finger on one of Io's elongated fangs. "It's okay to be cautious since we're rationing still, but remember you still have to drink. Make sure to ask Murasame or Coco if they have anything small for you to drink."

"Okay."

"That 'a girl."

"So… this is the Pit?" Heredis asked, the trio of Revenants back in the old city ruins. After the fork they made the opposing turn, and in it found a massive sinkhole that went down into pure darkness.

"Almost, once we're down we have to travel at least two kilometers. Then we'll be in the Howling Pit." Louis explained, all three looking down at the opening.

"…Looks like it goes really far." Yakumo said, speaking for everyone as they remained on the edge.

"Our eyes just aren't adjusted, it shouldn't be more than a few dozen meters down."

"Well… here goes nothing then." Heredis said, standing up and walking off the ledge. Louis and Yakumo waited and listened, waiting for the moment Heredis landed. It took awhile, and resulted in a loud crash that had the two look down in concern.

"…Two meters from where I went…" Heredis yelled out with a groan, the two looking to one another before following his instruction. They only dropped for a second before landing on a pillar, adjusting their footing and allowing their eyes to adapt to the darkness, seeing a series of rubble and thorns to descend down.

"Are you all right?" Louis asked, getting down first with Yakumo following.

"Yeah, fine." Heredis said, dusting off rust from his coat.

"You sure? Falling that long had to hurt." Yakumo commented, getting a pat on the shoulder from Heredis.

"Then next time there's a drop, you can test it." The silver-haired Revenant informed, ending the conversation as the three walked away from a rusted car with the hood crushed.

The path they took started to lead the trio deeper underground, the nearly crumbled tunnel slowly boxing them in further. Just as the path seemed collapsed, an opening with a source of light was seen. With Louis going first, the Revenant made sure the area was safe before calling the two in, Heredis taking a second to see the destruction of the Howling Pit. All the rubble, machinery and water dropping into the ceaseless void in darkness, a whole other world from what the surface appeared as.

"It has a sort of beauty to it, doesn't it?"

"I'd prefer a beach with a clear sky, but you do you." Yakumo responded, getting elbowed by Heredis.

"We'll stay here for now, Heredis?" Louis informed, asking for the Revenant while motioning to a shriveled Mistle.

"On it." Heredis said, wasting no time in cutting his wrist and letting his blood drip onto the plant. And like the others, bright blue particles dispersed as the Mistle sprung to life, releasing its spores and clearing up the Miasma in the area.

"Good, before we go it's best to make sure everything is in order." Louis stated, taking his mask off and sitting by the Mistle. "We've only ever scouted a few dozen meters in. We have no idea if there are any bloodsprings down here, or if there's another Mistle to clear the air. So any maintenance needs to be done here and now."

"Davis gave you the stuff to clean your mask, right?" Yakumo asked, Heredis nodding as he took his mask off and pulled out the container.

"How bad is the miasma down here?"

"Bad enough to create anomalies in bulk. We'll find more of them than Lost. And any Lost we do find will be powerful."

"Promising." Heredis sighed as he dipped his fingers into the gel and spread it in his filters. He watched in intrigue as it slowly broke down the miasma muck, melting into a grey slew that he dumped it out, before gagging a bit at the smell. "Holy crap, and I thought the stuff smelled bad on its own."

"Yep, but luckily it doesn't take long to get used to." Yakumo encouraged. "Just a few more times and the thought of puking won't eat away at you."

"How nice." Heredis said, spitting several times in hopes of getting the taste he felt out of his mouth. It didn't work, but it made him feel a bit better regardless.

"I chose a bad time."

"Io?" Heredis murmured, although heard by Louis and Yakumo.

"What about her?"

"I'm not talking to you." Heredis responded to Louis, looking up for a bit as he adjusted his senses. He felt a small prick at the base of his skull, both familiar and new at the same time.

"Sorry, I wished to check on you since it's been a few hours." Io explained through their mental link. "The sludge caught me off guard, and my nose is burning."

"Oh, sorry about that." Heredis chuckled sheepishly, rubbing where he felt the prick on his head. "So I'm guessing this is the link in full use?"

"Yes, we share a way to communicate openly as well as share senses. Although I'm uncertain if it's both ways or just for me."

"Ah, we can test that another time."

"I'm not the only one creeped out by this am I?" Yakumo whispered to Louis, the leader waving his concerns as he leaned forward on his seat.

"Heredis?"

"Just another minute." Was his response before he looked up again. "Hey, sorry Io but I think Louis and Yakumo are confused. We'll talk when I get to the next Mistle, okay?"

"Okay, be careful."

"I will." Heredis smiled, feeling the prick in his skull slowly fade away before turning his attention fully to his partners. "So what's up? Needed to ask something?"

"Yeah, what was that?" Yakumo questioned.

"Oh, I was talking to Io." Heredis answered, as if it was obvious and just something to be expected.

"With no phone or communicator?" Louis asked, intrigued at the notion.

"None, after we rescued the human I heard her voice. She said apparently its an ability we share with each other." He explained, or at least he tried to. "In all honesty I don't have a clue how it works. She mentioned it was because of some kind of connection between us and I just went along with it."

"Incredible, you two share a link that allows for immediate communication. I wonder if that's because you two have a similar BOR Parasite, or maybe because of your Void Blood Code it allows for such a deep connection. I wonder if I could replicate it with samples of your blood or tissue." Louis began to mumble to himself, thinking out loud again as Yakumo and Heredis watched with tired expressions.

"So, I'm not the only one that thinks his thinking out loud gets sketchier each time right?" Heredis asked, Yakumo nodding in disappointment.

"If I didn't know him, I'd think he was ready to dissect you and try implanting us with your particles." Yakumo said, shivering at the thought. Louis was a good guy, but the scientist in him didn't have a limit to what he came up with.

"I'd only need a small sample or two… and maybe another dosage of your blood." Louis stated, getting the same stares from his partners. "What? If I can reverse engineer it, we could all communicate perfectly, we could maybe even get an audience with Silva with that kind of discovery."

"Tell you what, if Io and I can't think of any explanation for our link I'll give you another blood sample. And if you can find something like that with a new batch, I'll consider letting you take a tissue sample." Heredis offered. "But that's only if Io and I can't come up with a reason, so you have to give us some time when we aren't on a mission."

"Deal."

"Oh man, you just had to feed his habit." Yakumo groaned. "Great, and I just know I'll be the first insertion."

"What? I'm hygienic."

"Not the problem."

(A/N): Haha! This is back too! Can't say much, but I'm luckily keeping a steady writing pattern. So with luck I can keep this and Abysswalker going as my main focus. If I'm feeling fully in the groove I might expand a bit, but for now Queen's Heir and Abysswalker are my main focus, thus I hope you're looking forward to updates on here again.