Blood and Rust

Balo led Lana to the edge of an enormous graveyard. Many people have died in this city. Most of them didn't even have families or friends which is why most of the plaques didn't have any names on them. They happened to catch a glimpse of the a burial being performed by the local undertaker. The man looked up to see Balo and recognized him immediately. "Hey Balo, come to pay your usual respects?"

"Possibly for the last time in a good long while."

Lana nodded her head in respect to the undertaker and followed Balo to his destination...the graves of his family. She just stood a few feet back and watched as he kneeled in front of the headstones, carved in the shape of crucifixes.

'Aelfric deserved every bit of his death... May your souls rest in peace.' Lana thought as she watched her friend do what he needed to do.

The names of his family members were on the gravestones crudely considering Balo etched out the names himself. Next to all of them there was a blank one that had an empty grave.

"This was supposed to be mine."

'It was, Balo. It was supposed to be yours, but then you made the choice...that made you into what you are now.' Lana thought grimly, eyes kept on her friend.

Balo looked back at the other graves. "But at what cost?"

Lana came up behind Balo and wrapped her arms around his waist, laying her head down on his back. "...I don't know. You have to figure that out for yourself, but I'll tell you this: everything happens for a reason...usually through the process of equivalent exchange. This happened for a reason, and that reason might be a good one in your future. You'll have to see when the time comes."

Balo clenched his teeth and fists. His voice turned angry. "Nothing the future holds will be good enough to make up for this." He knew Lana was just trying to help but still.....

Even if it was in the heat of the moment, a sting of pain rushed through Lana's heart upon hearing those words. Letting go, she knelt down in front of Balo and gazed into his eyes. "How can you know that for sure if the future hasn't even come yet? For all we know, whatever good thing the future may hold in return for deaths of the innocent could be in front of you...if only you could just open your eyes. Stop moping about this or the world will just pass by you. If you keep your head in the past, you're bound to trip over something in the future."

Standing up, Lana made her way out of the cemetery, nodding again to the undertaker. She waited at the entrance, sitting in a tree.

Balo tried to make her stop "Lana wait..." but it was too late; she was already gone. As soon as he said it, he knew it was a bad idea.

Why does everything he do hurt people? It always seems like he can't do anything right. "I am sick and tired of this happening. Of being useless...." Balo let out a howl of fury that rang throughout the entire city.

"There is no way she will want me to go with her now. Guess there is no way that I am going to ever leave." He turned around to look at the entrance but then began to run in the other direction.

As Lana fingered her dagger, she heard his howl and turned in the direction it came from. But she didn't move. Sooner or later he would have to forget about the past and move on; it seemed a little cruel to leave him like this, but then again, she wouldn't be leaving him alone. Lana Black would wait for him, no matter how long it took. She was too caught up in her thoughts to realize that someone was behind her until it was too late; hands enclosed themselves around her wrists tightly, causing her to drop the knife. "Mmnnn!" Was all she could get out as a leather clad hand covered her mouth.

"Be quiet or you will suffer a fate far worse than death!" A voice hissed in her ear...before knocking her out cold. "Time for dear Balo to join his family...this time permanently."

Balo was walking back towards the entrance. He couldn't do it. He couldn't hurt Lana more than he already has. Balo already felt responsible for what happened to her the night before. As he walked he passed by the undertaker. The man looked up. "So...couldn't go through with it huh? Had a feeling you wouldn't do it too." Balo just smiled at him and continued walking.

As he came to the entrance, he saw the scene of Lana being grabbed from behind by a figured he couldn't recognize. He immediately used After Image in order to reach her in time.

"Well, look who it is! Balo Fry...and I thought Aelfric was enough to send you to hell with your parents. Seems you can't find good help these days." The figure said as he leapt down from the tree and picked up Lana's knife, holding it to her throat. "Ah, I wouldn't do that if I was you. Wouldn't want your little girlfriend to have a little...accident now, would we?"

Balo didn't move his foot even an inch. "You bastard...." Balo clenched his teeth to reveal a set of fangs. "Don't you dare hurt her. If you even scratch her... I will make you wish I show you mercy and kill you fast." Balo's eyes went between red and silver.

"Oh, trust me, I've already died once." The figure chuckled as he pulled back his hood, revealing a mess of wicked silver hair and equally wicked blue eyes. "You didn't think your half-brother Aelfric was the only one involved in your death, did you? The name is Jack Brown...got it memorized?"

"Jack Brown, huh? Well, now that I know your name, I feel less guilty about ripping you limb from limb." Balo's voice shook with anger. A ring of black fire was now burning around Balo. "I will only say this one more time. Let...her...go..." Balo was glowing red.

Jack grinned like the insane man he was and pressed the blade to Lana's throat, drawing a small amount of blood. "And if I say...no? I get to slice this little jewel up."

He then dared to lower his mouth to her neck and lapped up the blood from the shallow wound.

Balo exploded with fury. The black fire had returned but this time it was more intense with anger and hate powering it. As the inferno raged on, there was a split in the flame and you could see a face but it wasn't Balo's. Balo walked into the flame but something else was rising from the ashes. Suddenly, it was all gone. As if the fire never was there.

((Face in the fire: https://2img.net/h/i175.photobucket.com/albums/w151/Vladzeppes/hellsing-4.jpg))

"What the...?" Was all Jack could get out.

Balo shoved his hand through Jack's back and ripped out a rib. As Balo licked the blood off his hands, he picked something off the ground. "Delicious..." Then he took the object that now looked a lot like a hand holding a knife with blood on it. He licked the blood off the knife. "Her's is better than yours though."

The flames continued to burn which made it looked like his body was nothing but fire that burned darker than the night itself.

Two nearby figures sighed simultaneously. "Aelfric failed to send him to his death..." One said.

"As did Jack..." The other finished. "It seems that if you want something done..."

"You have to do it yourself."

The pair then leapt from the shadows in front of Balo. They could have been mistaken for the same exact person, but then again, that was why they were called twins. "Allow us to introduce ourselves. We are..."

"Chita..."

"And Fujita. You could say that we are...well, were...the aquaintances of Jack Brown and your darling brother, Aelfric Fry. You can probably guess what we are here for."

The duo stood back to back and stared at Balo with the same equally intense amber orbs. "Your life..." They said in unison.

Balo laughed out loud. "Fools. You can't kill me. Let me guess. You were thinking of just hitting me until I fell right? WRONG! You can't hurt me but trust me...I can very much hurt you." Balo had a smile on his face that made his fangs shine in the moonlight.

"The part that really makes me laugh is that you still think I am Balo Fry."

"And what do you mean by that?" Chita asked curiously.

"If you are not Balo Fry, then who are you?" Fujita questioned.

Balo's new host was now standing behind the two men with his nails going through their arms. "Now why would do that since you are going to die shortly?"

The twins simply smirked...and dissolved into water. They were ice clones! A prison of ice soon formed around "host" of Balo's body, with Chita's hands pressed into the snow in front of it.

"Oh, we just felt like knowing a new tidbit of information..." He said.

"...Before we finish what Aelfric and Jack started." Fujita finished for him.

"You won't be doing that..." A voice said by his ear...before chains closed around his throat. Lana Black hissed into his ear, "Not now, not ever...because you'll be dead forever."

In the air, you could hear Balo's host laughing with menacing intensity. He was no longer in the ice prison. "You think you are the only one who can make clones. Please...as if I would trouble myself with actually showing myself to pathetic worms such as yourself that can't even kill Balo. Oh don't worry. Whether or not you aren't capable, I will still enjoy every second of your agonizing death."

A ring of fire appeared around everyone.......even Lana.