The Scales are Weighed [Open]

[tokoz]

Bran leaves the front gates of Shibusen, wearing his customary jacket. His hands are in his pockets, and he is extremely deep in thought. He is mumbling to himself, as he runs down the stairs, sliding on the large banister, and jumping over the various students and other obstacles sitting on it, practicing his free running, for all appearances. And yet, something seems serious about him. He passes by the various students with little notice on either part.

Bran had not made any real friends, or even acquaintances in Shibusen. He had generally avoided people, and people had, somewhat unnerved, avoided him. One might easily assume Bran simply wasn't interested. Bran belies that very statement on his continued trip into the city, heading in a straight line, to stop and look at a group of friends laughing as they left a nearbye cafe. Deathbucks, he believed it's called. Bran looks sadly down, then glances at his pocket, sighs, and continues on.

As He runs across the rooftops, his pace slows, and just after Deathbucks, he stops running altogether, simply walking, and jumping from roof to roof. If the distances are too far, he walks around. He seems to be considering something. "I need to learn to control this, godamnit. I can't.. I can't live like this. I'm.. Angry. Feel's like I'm always angry.... And now talking out loud to myself. Fantastic."

[Singer]

Singer padded down the street, her head held high. Her steps were measured and graceful, still every ounce the queen she once was. It had been a long time since she had been in her pack though. She took a few steps before looking around, scratching her claws against the hard ground. Clearly it was not the best move and left her paws sore, but it let out a bit of frustration she held. Singer began walking down the street, ignoring the children's sweet giggles as they saw the “pretty puppy.” Singer was not a puppy in the least bit, she was a full grown wolf.

Singer noticed a boy walking around. Speaking to himself out loud, what a silly thing to do. She wondered what was wrong, why he was upset. The elgeant she-wolf walked over to the boy calmly. When she felt she was close enough she walked close enough, she plopped down on her butt and looked up at him. She cocked her head lightly to the side, blinking her black and teal eyes up at him. “What's wrong?”

[tokoz]

Bran blinked, a little nonplussed, and turns. He looks at the figure in front of him, and blushes a bit, realizing from her question that she had overheard him. He sighs, and nods in aquisence.

"Sorry. Was just thinking about something. Names.... *He pauses for a second* Balor. Balor Tuithail. Demon Spear, and... Well. Recently discovered Berserker. I've always been a bit quick to anger, but I keep a lid on it. But I recently discovered it was a bit more when I slipped into a battlerage on a mission. It's... Been a bit stressful."

He shrugs, his ponytail bouncing, and sighs a bit, sitting down on a nearbye bench. He takes off his jat, revealing his icey blue eyes. He looks extremly tired. "Doesn't help when I'm fighting on my own. Still not found a Meister.

[Singer]

Singer nodded at the boy's explanation. A berserker she had never met before, it was an interesting thought though. The wolf bounced up off the ground to sit on the bench beside the boy. Singer wrapped her tail around her as far as it would go than shook her back just softly to get the sword attached to her back to lay more comfortably. “I see, have you ever tried to learn how to accept the strong emotions inside you.” The canine turned her head to look up at him. “Anyway My name is Singer and ,though I don't look much like one right now, I am a meister.” Singer smiled as much as a Wolf could before turning to watch the land again.

It wasn't all that hot today, with clouds in the sky to hide the sun. It was a nice day, very comfortable for the cold weathered female. Though everything was kind of downcast and gloomy today. Maybe it was her company, it didn't matter really to her. Singer kept her head high and her eyes warm.

[tokoz]

Balor looked a bit nervous when the Meister sat next to him, but strangely, not of Singer, it seemed. He calmed, and nodded, giving a small smile. "A pleasure. And To answer your question, no. I discovered my powers around 4 years ago. I was brawling with a friend of mine. I used to be... Quite a rough and tumble. I was losing, and as I struggled... My arm changed." His arm shifts to the head, and part of the shaft of a large, serrated spear.

He sighed deeply, and his arm shifted back to normal. He looked at the clouds, seemingly lost in thought."Travis Mcgregor. Age 14. He wa- is.. in a coma, due to brain damage. We were wrestling. My hand entered his eye.
A tear made it's way down Balor's Cheek. That's why I supress my emotions. Since I fight alone, If I lose control near people... I don't want that to happen again.

He flicked the tear off with a finger, and chuckled. He seems a bit happier, having gotten that off his chest. He looks over, and gives a embaressed smile. "Sorry, Singer. Just needed someone to talk to, I guess. Forgive my boring rants about my problems. So, what brings you here, anyway? New to Death City, and exploring?" He sticks his hands in his pockets and looks questioningly at the wolf.

[Singer]

Singer smiled softly and laid a paw on his leg as the tear rolled down his cheek. Singer knew in time he would learn to forgive himself. You must learn to make peace within yourself. All this came in time, but one must be patient. “It's alright, I'm always happy to listen to anyone in need.” Singer replied. “As to why I am here, well I'm just an old out-dated alpha looking for a new home. I just so happened to find that here.” It wasn't exactly a lie. She had found a home here, but it wasn't all the truth.

Singer was here to fix what she had done under the witches control. She was here because she had murdered many young lives that had so much promise. The blood she shed, the blood that stained her paws, her fangs, and her claws would never be washed off. No but she could atone for what she has done. He didn't need to know this though, He had his own problems to deal with.

Singer looked back up at him, taking her own paw to swipe it over her ear to shoo a pesky fly. “There are many great places here though isn't there? Not a lot of nice sleeping places for a girl like me, but there is a lot to see. Sometimes I wonder why there aren't more tourists, it could bring a great deal of money to this place.”

[tokoz]

Balor smiled, and leaned back. Above them, the clouds rolled over the park, the few that passed by bathed in golden sunlight. He sighed. "It really is an amazing place. I guess nore people associate it with chaos and destruction, though. Like the epicenter of an explosion waiting to happen.
I was pretty unsure about coming here, actually. I didn't want to be forced to kill, to use my weapon self to destroy. "


"But it's not like that. I realized a few days ago, on a mission, that My nature is to be a weapon, to be a fighter. But I can choose who to bring that to bear against. I've seen some twisted people, those who kill to satisfy their own whims. The idea makes me enraged. I was forced to kill someone like that. But... By destroying him, I prevented all the other deathshe would have caused. And... Well. Maybe, just a little... I'm still trying to wash the blood of my friend away.

Balor stared off into the sky, his eyes unfocused. He seems calm, his ponytail whipping slightly in the wind. He looks solem, as he looks sideways at the wolf beside him. "I probably sound pretty silly. From the sword, and the way you moved, you seem like you've seen a few fights. But I get the sense that you wouldn't condone senseless slaughter either. That's why I hold my rage back.

[Singer]

Singer smiled just softly, yes she had seen a lot in her day. Many fights, against defenseless humans, students of the very school she now protected, yes she had seen a great deal of bloodshed in her life. “Yes I've seen a lot of fights in my time. I know what I'm doing in a battle.” Singer hummed the words softly. Senseless slaughter, my had she been the source of it for so long. Singer's eyes hide within clouds, pain hidden deep within. “It really is a horrible thing, and maybe that's why I'm here. I'm willing to do anything to find peace in this world, even for a few seconds.” That's why she would shed her own blood until there was none left, all in the name of just a few moments of peace in the world. She couldn't die until she removed that witch from this world though.

Singer looked around the world, the dusty city. The desert town was tucked away from the world so weapons might be in peace, and their meisters' could train hard along side them. Every second of beauty in this world seemed to be matched with chaos on all sides. Singer sighed and looked back up at the boy. Why must somebody so young have to understand just how cruel life is?

[tokoz]

Bran smiled, a genuine, happy smile. "That's a great thing to work for. I... I'm not sure what I want to look for yet. I'm predisposed toward War, it seems. I lost my dad at 12. My life wasn't bad... But I'm constantly in abstae of confusion, not having a direction to work toward. I don't crave power.

Power corrupts if not wielded properly. The sheer potential for chaos caused by the power those who lust after it have is horrible. Maybe I should do something similar." Bran reaches into a pocket, and retrieves a pair of odd looking sunglasses, shaped like a knights visor. He spins them by one tip, thinking.

"I've seen what happens to those who search for strength without purpose. It never ends well. I refuse to allow those blessed with a normal life to be victimizied. Not if I can stop it. My soul holds within a weapon. I might as well use it where it's needed.

[Singer]

Power, yes it often led to corruption, yet Singer couldn't help but wonder if this was something only humans had the power of fully understanding. As an animal Singer could only remember the need to hunt, to protect her pack, when she was given power nothing really changed. The world was not controlled by power, her life was not changed by gaining power. She just took her position and led as her Father had taught her. Singer nodded softly, it would be something Singer would never truly understand. She wondered if somebody like her ,that didn't know it's control, could ever fix something like this.

“I wish I could tell you I understand those troubles. It is something I don't know if I could ever understand. There was always a purpose for me to do something, always something I needed to do. The power that has corrupted others I have been safe from.”

Singer's ears twitched. She never thought about all the different purposes her life has had so far. She took care of a pack, she was a demonic pet of a witch, she was a care taker of children, a mercenary, and lastly a meister bent on protecting shibusen. When she thought about it she hadn't been alive all that long yet she had done so much in her life. She had many years to go and so much more to do. It gave Singer a tiny feeling in her belly, a satisfied feeling. “The only thing anybody can really do is just try to find there way.”

[tokoz]

Bran listens to Singer, seeming a bit suprised, then remembering he was speaking to an Magic Animal. He looks over at her, thinking for quite a while in complete silence. Magical animals did not simply spontaneously appear, as far as he was aware... There was something that changed them, wasn't it? Or not always... He wasn't sure. But the mental debate sparked another memory. She had been talking about finding a new home, and wolves were pack animals.... She had seen her fair share of battles....

"A witch." Bran states, not looking at Singer. "That makes the most sense. A magical animal, a wolf, leaving her pack. Wolves are intended for cold weather. Why would you pick the middle of Nevada? Shibusen is the absolute worst place to be as a witch. The perfect haven. Now, he turns and looks at her directly. "And I quote. I've seen my fair share of Slaughter. Witches tend to use others to do the dirty jobs."

Bran finishes his explanation, and waits. He wasn't sure if he was right, but he was reasonably certain. It fit into place quite well. If it was true, there was one thing likely. She would be wanting revenge on the witch. A witches soul makes a weapon a deathscythe. Bran secretly wanted to help her, if this was true. Not only would he be helping destroy a threat to normal people, and also... Being a deathscythe might be able to cool his rage.

[Singer]

Singer chuckled, “Not all wolves are made for cold weather. There are many species of wolves made for the hot weather. I am not one of them though, I am a cold weather wolf. My reason for coming here is not to hide from the witch who stole me.” Singer flicked her ears. “ My intention for being here has nothing to do with the witch, but with what I have done.” Singer spoke in a calm manner. Yes maybe she had been uncovered, but her emotions were not like that of a person's. It didn't bother her, the truth came out in the end. That is how it was.

Singer looked up at him. “I've seen my fair share of slaughter, yes. But I have caused more.” Singer watched him closely. How would he feel about being so close to a murderer. Her years of killing outnumbered those that she spent actually living her life. How would he feel about leisurely chatting with a woman who had killed so many, so easily. Yet in the end the fact that she had killed them did not bother her. Killing was in her nature, a wolf hunted and fought other wolves. It was how wolves just worked, it was how they were built. It was the fact she was forced to kill without reason.

[tokoz]

Bran watched her, listening calmly to Singer. His facial expression never changes.
After she finishes, he looks calmly at her. He seems unsuprised that his guess was correct. He looks straight at her.... And nods.

"Alright. You were forced to kill on a witch's behalf. You regret it? Good. If you hadn't cared, I might have been angry about that. But either way. You want to wash the blood off your hands. I can respect that. I'm the same way. " He nods slowly. He stands, tranforming his hand into his spear form. He stares at it, as the clouds roll across the sky behind him.

((Background Music: The Sixth Station))

Bran turns, and looks at Singer with a serious expression. "I want to help you with your quest. Our goals coincide. I want to use my skill in killing for a useful purpose. You want to repay the world for what you were forced to do under the witch." Bran slowly puts his hand out, and chuckles slightly. "A Beserker Weapon and a Wolf Meister... Rather fitting, don't you think?"

[Singer]

Singer listened to him quietly. She always questioned herself if she was truly sorry, but in the end either way her goal was the same. So as he stood and asked her to work with him, to be his meister Singer didn't hesitate. Why not, her only weapons were her magic and her normal sword, she needed a demon weapon to survive against a witch. He held out his hand slowly to her, and she stood jumping down from the bench softly. “Quite an odd pair, but it's a brave move to work out of the normal.” Singer spoke softly.

She turned her head up at him, fixing her black eyes on him. Than before in within a second there was no wolf in front of him, but a young woman. She was short and curvy, with cream colored skin. She had long pale blonde hair, that she quickly flicked out of her eyes. She wore a simple black leather dress with black gloves. Over that she wore a thin black jacket with a torn sleeve, and two black straps like a backpack that held her sword to her back. A small smile graced her pink lips and she looked up at him from the corner of her eyes. “You got yourself a meister,” Singer said softly while shaking his hand.

Singer turned so she was fully facing him now, her fists on her hips. He was much taller than her short frame, more built but was he was also younger leading to less experience overall. Yet the pair seemed effective when she really thought about it.