The Ludicrous Escapade

Testing

You looked at the man curiously as you brought your hand to your chest and rubbed your left pinky. "What do you mean by German science is the greatest in the world. My blood is not a creation of yours."

He chuckled darkly, "I was referring to the truth serum that was given to your friend Speedwagon. Although, I suppose in the eyes of the world you're his granddaughter. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Rudol von Stroheim."

You narrowed your gaze, this man smelled of trouble. "How much do you know?"

"Enough." He stood up from his seat and waved the now empty vial in front of your face. "To think you're only a little younger than the old man, truly bizarre, is it not?"

You began to move your thumb towards your mouth to bite and draw blood. "If you know so much, why did you bring me here? I could easily end your life."

"Would you really kill those who healed the wounds of your dear Speedwagon? If not for us, he'd likely have died. When I learned of your capabilities, I thought you might be a useful...assistant in our research on the Pillar Man."

"Pillar Man?" He reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a picture which he handed to you. You cautiously took it from his grasp and flipped it over to see a picture of a man carved in stone. Around his form were several vampiric masks. It was the very thing Speedwagon had set out to destroy by going to Mexico. "I see."

"So, will you assist me? I won't harm you if you decline, but Speedwagon may not be so lucky."

You handed the photo back to him and moved your hand through your hair. "Let me see Robert first, then I suppose I'll help you."

"Of course." He repocketed his photo and motioned for you to go in front of him out the door as he buttoned up his shirt.

He led you down a hallway and into a white room with several hospital beds. Resting in one of the beds was Speedwagon himself. Bandages were wrapped around his head and he was in a strait jacket. Several emotions went through his eyes when he saw you walk into the room.

The blonde man watched from the corner of the room while you sat down on the edge of Speedwagon's bed. "(Y/N)?! What are you- Don't tell me they..."

You gently placed an arm on his shoulder, "Yeah, he opened the vial. Don't worry about it though. I'm just going to help them with the research on the Pillar Man for a bit and then we can go back home."

"But (Y/N), the Pillar Man is even more dangerous than Dio! Awakening it could mean destruction of humanity as a whole! A-And Straizo! Oh no! He's going to go after Joseph and you won't be there to help him!"

"He's already come after Joseph. Jonathan's grandson won't have much trouble with him, though. I can feel that he's going to be okay. I relayed what information I could, but the vial was opened mid battle."

The German soldier was tapping his foot impatiently, "We have work to do, the faster the research is complete, the sooner you can leave."

You gave Speedwagon a tight hug, but you were careful to not apply pressure to any of his wounds. "Even in a situation like this, I'm glad to see you again Robert. Please, keep living your life." Speedwagon nodded somberly.

You followed the blonde man out of the white room and you were led to a different area. You could see the Pillar man now, the only thing separating you was a thick piece of glass. Several cameras were focused on the stone man that rested in the bottom of the pit like room. There were other people on your side of the area who were sitting in front of control boards or simply standing on watch. There were several bright lights focused on the currently lifeless stone man. Walking in front of the lights made your skin sting slightly.

"Well, this is it. Whatever is in this pillar can absorb blood, if we give enough it might awaken."

"It is similar to the stone masks then..." You mumbled to yourself, but he heard you anyways.

"Oh, so you are aware of the masks. We plan to do an experiment with those soon."

Your eyes widened. These men truly did not realize the danger of vampires, and if that creature in the pillar was even stronger, the results could be devastating. "Stroheim, perhaps it would be best to avoid interacting with such things."

His gaze turned cold as he look down on you, "Are you trying to get out of our agreement? Do you want Speedwagon to die?"

"Of course not, but-"

"Then be quiet. The only way to learn is through trial and error. The rooms are entirely sealed off anyways. They'd be incapable of escaping." You looked into a sealed off room that seemed to be connected to the one with the pillar man in it. Inside was a rather sickly looking old man. "We'll be testing the mask on him. I understand a vampire can not kill you, so you might feel better if you are the one to don the mask on him. You must get him into the areas connecting the two rooms before you can exit."

You nodded as he led you to an area that let you enter the room. He handed you a stone mask and you resisted the urge to break it then and there. Stroheim left the area to watch you from behind the safety of the thick glass. The door slid into the side of the wall and you walked through the new entryway.

An old and feeble man was crouched on the ground. He backed away from you as you moved towards him with the mask in hand. You backed him into a corner and he brought his arms to cover his face. He wasn't sure what you planned to do with the mask, but he didn't want to find out. He pleaded for you to stop and the words sounded strange due to his lack of teeth. You gave him a sad smile before putting the mask on his face and then swiping your now cut thumb on it.

The mask glowed and created a force that pushed you back a bit. The event triggered memories of the day you and Dio discovered the true purpose of the mask. That time seemed so far away now.

"Is he dead?" Stroheim's voice echoed throughout the room.

You shook your head, "No, merely unconscious. He'll likely wake up soon." You removed the mask from the newly turned vampire and began dragging him to the area in between the two rooms. While doing this, the man's eyes opened. "So...thirsty...Give me a taste of your blood!"

His fingers dug into your neck and the onlookers were watching with their mouths agape as you just stood there. The vampire's cocky expression quickly became one of confusion when realized he could not drink your blood. You had just reverted it to its usual rubbery form so the zombie wouldn't be able to digest it or whatever.

The vampire's strength was nothing to laugh at though, and it slammed you into the wall. You turned your blood liquid for a moment so that it would enter the undead man's body. The creature seemed to now gain a more youthful appearance. You used the blood within his body to move him into the area against his will. His body slammed into the wall and the door slid into place, trapping him.

You exited the area to see Stroheim standing there with a smirk, "Wonderful job. I am very pleased with your performance." You handed him back the stone mask and you were going to walk past him but he grabbed your forearm. "Indeed, you would make a great ally."

He set the mask down and used his now free hand to move the scarf off your neck. He now saw the recent holes from the vampire regenerating as well as the fang marks you received from Dio many years ago. His hand gently grazed over the soft skin of your neck and he gazed at the wounds curiously before handing your scarf back to you.

"How is it that your wound is healing when the blood from it is still within the vampire?"

"Well, I believe only a certain amount of my cells can exist at once. I had the ones within his body disappear, so new ones are now being made. After a certain amount of time of being separated from my body, I can no longer call it back. That is the purpose of the vials. Instead of the small amount of blood disappearing and being recreated from the larger part, it recreates it from the few droplets as soon as the vial is opened."

"Interesting. I know experiments done on you weren't part of the deal, but would you mind if I tested your abilities out? Since you are related to the masks and the Pillar Man, it could further our research on them."

"I'd rather not, I have experimented with my capabilities enough as it is."

"Very well, then I shall request you join me for dinner instead."