Erwins eyes snapped open to darkness
Not the darkness of a room with the lights off. Not the darkness of a long blink.
But the thick suffocating weighty dark of death
For a heartbeat he didn't even know if he was breathing then a cold rotting smell flooded his nose. And instinct forced a gasp into his lungs a sudden pain stabbed through his temples
A memory surfaced he and his two friends had stayed up far too late finishing the last chapters of Lord of the Mysteries. The emotional high of Klein's ascension the discussion afterwards the "what if we lived there" jokes… The three of them laughing in the dim glow of Erwins apartment
And then
Nothing
He tried to sit up
Something wet and sticky clung to the back of his head
With a groan Erwin pushed against the wooden floorboards beneath him his vision adjusted slowly as a dim lantern flickered somewhere nearby casting long shadows across the room
'Is this… a morgue'
Soon a voice called out to him
"Erwin.. Erwin, is that.. holy shit that is you"
The voice came from the darkness to his right familiar panicked
"Abel" Erwin croaked rubbing his temple he turned toward the sound
A shape stumbled into the lantern light Abel pale faced and wide eyed wearing a blood stained vest and a trench coat far too old fashioned to belong to anyone in 2025
"Bro..." Abel whispered "I woke up inside a corpse"
Before he could reply a third voice drifted from the far left of the room
"Same but I think mine was stabbed"
Louis pushed aside the white sheet covering him and sat up he looked the worst of the three his shirt was torn in multiple places soaked with dried blood. His skin had a faint bluish tint the kind bodies get when they've been dead for a while
The three of them stared at each other in stunned silence.
They weren't in their clothes
They weren't in their bodies
Erwin swallowed hard as a stray glint caught his attention something metallic lay on the floor beside him. He reached down with trembling fingers and picked it up
A brass, triangular pendant engraved with a pupiless eye with contorted lines
Abel noticed too "That… that looks exactly like"
"The Fool's symbol" Erwin finished quietly.
The moment his fingers closed around it, a streak of foreign memory cut across his mind
A ritual, A potion of translucent liquid smelling faintly of herbs and copper. A hand.. his hand lifting it and swallowing it all
Erwin staggered "I.. I think the person whose body I'm in… he already took the Seer potion"
Abel stared then shakily held up his own find a small worn leather pouch filled with small pencils, small notebook and a butter knife.
"Hey look I have a journal"
Abel muttered "Old Loen, scribbled all over with notes about formulas, spiritual perception training, dreams and the word ABRAHAM in all caps" He gulped "Well shit.. I'm deffinately an Apprentice"
Louis still sitting on the corpse table lifted a simple black ring from around his finger he looked confused at first until he clenched his fist and the air around him flexed with a faint invisible ripple
"Mine's a Marauder" he whispered, horror and awe mixing in his voice "And I think his killer stabbed him because he stole something"
The three exchanged looks fear, disbelief, and the creeping realization of where they were
Backlund
Loen Kingdom
Lord of the Mysteries
And they weren't readers anymore
Erwin stood braced himself on a cold metal table "Okay… boy's we need to stay calm First rule of transmigration stories don't yell, don't panic, don't draw attention"
"Hard not to panic when I woke up in a freaking Victorian horror morgue" Abel shot back
Louis groaned and slid off his table clutching his side "Before we do anything we need to figure out what time it is we aren't exactly safe depending on the era"
The three of them glanced around again the lamps were gas lit the furnishings old but not ancient the room was chilly, with no windows
They all stood and made their way towards the door Eriwn took a steadying breath and pushed open the as slow as possible door
A hallway revealed itself poorly lit by dim lamps the same cold damp feeling and the faint scent of disinfectant. Footsteps echoed from somewhere upstairs followed by a voice complaining about the fog
Backlund
Definitely Backlund
Erwin motioned for them to move quietly
They slipped out into the corridor climbed a short stairway and emerged into what looked like a small clinic's back room on a table sat three folders
Abels eyes widened "These are… death records"
He grabbed the first one.
Name: Osmond Reed
Age: 27
Cause of Death: Severe fever, succumbed at 3:20 a.m
Notes: Deceased was a clerk at a trading company. Had been found unconscious near Iron Cross Street
"That's me" Erwin said softly
He didn't know how he knew but the name resonated in his mind as if it belonged
Then a scene replayed in his mind where was mid excerise with a very unnaturally charming woman then passed out
To embarrassed to say how he died just stood in silence
Louis picked up the second
Name: Will Acker
Age: 24
Cause of Death: Rapid blood loss due to multiple slash and puncture wounds.
Notes: Found collapsed in an alley. Suspected gang altercation
His own scene also materialized where he confronted a man because everyone of his words stirred anger from the simplest phrase
Louis swore "Yep.. that explains the stabbing"
Abel grabbed the last
Name: Harry Manson
Age: 21
Cause of Death: Poisoning {suspected self administered}
Notes: Strange ingredients found near body. May be a case of Physcosis/Hallucinations
Abel's voice trembled while as he remembered "
"Mine… committed suicide trying to take the trickmaster potion"
A heavy silence filled the room as they contemplated all the previous owners stupid decisions
"Alright we can freak out later right now we need to get out of here before someone notices three corpses walking out of a morgue"
Louis nodded clutching his abdomen "Agreed"
They slipped through the side door emerging into the alley behind the clinic
A wall of freezing air slammed into them
The Backlund fog hung thick and suffocating pale, swirling with the brezee between the lampposts and buildings. The distant clang of a factory bell echoed, and horse-drawn carriages rattled somewhere deeper into the city
And the smell
Coal Smoke, Sewage and Wet Stone
They had imagined Backlund a thousand times while reading the book but standing there was surreal. Feeling the slick cobblestones beneath their boots hearing the distant shouts of people it felt overwhelmingly real
We're actually here
A carriage rolled past the alley entrance wheels splashing through puddles. The driver cursed as a drunk man stumbled in front of him. A pair of policemen marched by on patrol, blue uniforms crisp in the fog
Louis leaned close "We need money, shelter, an identities"
Abel exhaled shakily "And we need to figure out what level of danger we're in. Is this before Klein becomes the Fool, After, Middle of the smog incident We have no idea"
Erwin nodded slowly and made a mental note
First priorities
~Learn the date
~Remeber as much as they can about their new bodies
~Understand and experience their new abilities
~Avoid people as much as possible for now
"We need a safe place" Abel said "Not a busy inn those ask for names somewhere quiet and preferably cheap"
Louis rubbed his forehead "That place mentioned in the book… those cheap communal rentals and inns.. near the East Borough.. Full of factory workers maybe"
Erwin winced "We're going to get mugged if we go there now and Louis already got stabbed before"
They thought for a moment
"Osmond Reed's memories… I think he lived in a small 2 bedroom apartment not far from here I can feel it like a distant impression"
Abel blinked "How the hell do you.."
"Potions" He said simply "The Seer pathway enhances intuition I.. know the way.. kind of"
They moved navigating Backlund's narrow alleys everything matched the descriptions from the book from the ragged workers queuing outside a soup kitchen to the rowdy drunkard singing an off key sailor's tune
After twenty minutes of walking Erwins steps slowed
"This is it"
A cramped brick building with peeling paint and a sagging roof. A narrow stairwell led up to rooms on the second floor
Everything felt eerily familiar
They pushed into the door based at the corner of the building but soon realized the problem that he didn't have the keys
"What do you mean you don't have the keys to your own apartment" Louis said with a slight grin forming on his face
"Sorry I only just woke up from being dead half an hour ago just let me finish my daily resurrection routine so I can remember where the keys are you idiot" he whispered
Louis dropped to his knees hand over mouth trying his best not to laugh Erwin just rolled his eyes in response
As that happened they saw Abel just walk through the door like air they froze and looked at each other astonished
*Click* "Welcome to my crib" Abel said with a huge grin arms wide open
the rooms inside were cold and bare besides necessities
Home for now
Louis slumped into a chair and Abel dived into the couch Erwin slammed the door shut and locked it
Erwin leaned against the wall and finally let himself breathe
"We're in Backlund" he whispered "And we're Beyonders"
Abel laughed shakily "Barely"
Louis exhaled "This is insane but also terrifying and amazing at the same time"
Erwin stared at his hands and felt the future open before them like a foggy road
"One thing's for sure" he murmured
"From this point on… every choice we make can change everything"
A/N: Thoughts and prayers so far pleasee!!