You are now the father – Stein’s strangest assignment?
Death City, a large gothic metropolis ruled by the one known as Lord Death. Lord Death is a spiritual entity whom heads a school known as the DWMA or Death Weapon Meister Academy. This academy, while teaching normal subjects, also trains and operates specially trained individuals called Meisters. A Meister is a normal human being with a Soul capable of resonance, this resonance allows them to connect themselves to a second individual -a Weapon- and wield them against evil Soul-eating monsters known as Kishin. Through a Weapon-Meister pair collecting ninety-nine Kishin Eggs and one Witch’s Soul the Weapon will evolve into a Death Scythe -one of Lord Death’s personal Weapons- this is considered an honour above all other to those at the academy and it drives both Weapon and Meister forward.
Over the years this academy has produced many fine and well-known Death Scythes and Meisters, one of whom is the man who begins our tale.
On the edges of Death City, between graveyards and tombs there stands an old blocky hospital building, worn in a grey monotone exuberated by the large cartoonish stitches running along its walls, floors and ceilings. Within this building resides one Doctor Franken Stein, one of the most powerful Meister’s ever to graduate the DWMA. Known for being the ex-partner of both the Death Scythe Spirit Albarn and Marie Mjolnir both reputed as some of the most powerful Death Scythe’s ever created. Needless to say, his title as DWMA’s Strongest Meister isn’t just for show. Though since his graduation he has been in self imposed isolation to help curve some of his more… questionable tendencies.
But today is the day something will change for Stein, something that will change him forevermore.
It all started with a letter. One from a very old test sub- ally, Stein mentally corrects as he turns over the relatively neat and orderly letter in his hands. Cranking his screw a few times to focus he flips open the envelope with a small scalpel.
“Now let’s see what’s so important I had to stop my Shark dissection.” Mumbles the eccentric Meister as he unveils the letter before him.
It reads as followed:
To Dr Stein,
So uh, Spirit here. Yes, the guy you dissected… repeatedly.
It’s not my fault you’re such a sound sleeper.
So yeah. This is a warning! And a message… I guess. But my beautiful, amazing, adorable, and amazing wife just gave birth. Which is something she says should be spread joyfully.
Congratulations. You now did the one thing you’ve been trying to do since the first time you stepped into a brothel; get someone pregnant. At least you did it after you got married first so that’s a win, I guess.
The adorable baby girl is called Maka, and you are to STAY AWAY from her. You are not to, under any circumstance, touch my beautiful baby girl! I know what you’ll do, you’ll cut her up, swap her feet and put her back together whenever you want. And I am not subjecting my precious princess to your twisted genius’ experiments.
From Spirit.
Yeah, that’s more up Spirit’s alley. I wonder if he figured out, I switched his lungs around yet… probably not. He doesn’t make a habit of cutting himself open so he’s unlikely to notice how his lungs just so happen to be in the wrong places. At least they still work properly. Took me a month to finish that procedure. Oh, there’s more.
P.S. That doesn’t give you an invitation to cut me open instead. Stay away from all of us you mad scientist.
Spitting out his now finished cigarette Stein spins his chair around to face the computer. It’s not like I go around dissecting you every day. Just every few months when the animals get old… speaking of, maybe I should take a visit? Could give me a chance to get his lungs back in- Cranking his screw forcibly Stein snaps out of his spiralling thoughts. Not dissecting people is the sole reason I went into isolation; I’ve manage a year already and I’m not planning on giving up now.
As he goes back to his long self-isolation the patchwork professor hears the doorbell ring. Curious about the disturbance that just interrupted his relatively peaceful – read: experiment filled – isolation he does what he has habitually done every time he needs to move during his exile. He kicks off the desk and sends himself, atop his five wheeled chair, rolling across the building. All the way to the front door which he rigged to open shortly after he kicks off a specific point on his desk and then out into the open- slamming into the cold hard floor after tripping over the small ridge that ran along the bottom of his front door. Silently flying across the elevated platform that lies right on his doorstep Stein contemplates something… something important… something that will affect him for years afterwards- I should really get that ridge removed.
But then, lying there contemplating his existence on the cold hard floor he saw something. A basket. Standing up he cautiously approached the small bundle, focusing his Soul Sense as he did so. What he saw next was… interesting. A large White Soul, almost five foot in diameter, with black cracks bleeding in from what looks like some kind of Soul parasite latching onto it alongside a few other small glowing chains that wrapped around the central Soul protectively, obscuring the Souls other features. Looking down the mad scientist let out a hum of curiosity. “A child? Just over a year old.”
Now why would someone leave a child -with such a strange Soul no less- at the doorstep of a definitely shady and suspicious building. Now Stein acknowledges his off-putting aesthetics proudly but knows keenly that others are less… supportive of his tastes. Regardless, it definitely wouldn’t be the place just anyone would leave a child that’s for sure. Picking up the basket he heads inside, and when at his ‘study’ he turns to a relatively normal – if the stitches lining its outline is normal – mirror and puts his finger to glass. Writing 42-42-564 on the glass the surface shimmers before a comedic white ‘grim reaper’ mask appears in frame. Stepping back in the mirror reveals the individual is clocked in a large black shroud with two cartoonish large white hands at his sides. “Stein! Wassup.” The figure – Lord Death – raises a hand in greeting.
“Lord Death.” Replies the stoic Meister. “Something unusual just got put on my doorstep.”
“Oh?” Death leans forward with interest. “Something that caught your eye must be special.”
“A child, just over a year old by my guess. With such a strange Soul to boot, the main things cracked with several chains wrapping around it and some strange parasite like entity latching onto it too.”
“Hm.” Death puts a hand to his ‘chin’ – aka bottom part of his mask – thoughtfully. “Strange, I didn’t receive any word of such an individual being brought to Death City. There was a rather spiteful family that just suddenly came and left like the wind a few hours back.”
“Really?”
“Yup. They were some of the worst normal Souls I’ve ever seen. So spiteful of everything that doesn’t fit in their world view.”
“Why would people like that come to Death City then?”
Death’s tone turns serious. “Precisely why I mentioned them, such a child would likely contradict their worldview and would lead to them – for lack of a better word – dumping said child at the strangest place they could find.”
“I see, so what do you want me to do with them?”
“Raise them of course.” Caught off guard the mad doctor splutters out into a series of coughs, spinning their screw wildly to try and process what Death just told him.
“R-raise them?” Asks the now recovered doctor.
“Yes. I believe you are probably the only person capable of both figuring out the child’s unusual Soul and at getting rid of that parasite thing. Besides,” Deaths comedic tone returns. “You’ve shown an interest in children before and such a unique one would likely hold your interest much longer than normal. Plus, I’m getting sick of Spirit’s constant ramblings about his own child so yours would serve as a break of sorts.”
“Are your serious? Me, with a child.”
Nodding fiercely Death then gives one last wave. “Well, I best be going now, good luck.”
“Wait! Dea- Bastard.” Cranking his screw a few times to calm himself the newly christened guardian turns to his newfound ward. “Well, since I’m stuck with them, I may as well do my best. Just imagining Spirit’s face when he finds out would make it worthwhile.” Laughing to himself the mad scientist Meister and now guardian habitually takes out his cigarette pack before throwing it in the bin. Then they turn to the child with strangely warm eyes. “Now let’s sort out this little parasite issue, ey?”