This is based off of the racing game, Monster Racers. The game says something like "ten years ago strange monsters began to appear….". My question is: Why did they suddenly start appearing ten years ago, wouldn't they have always been there? So that's where I got the idea for this.

I did have problems with this, so there will be plot holes and weak plot points, which is actually okay because that's very canon in the game. The game itself doesn't have that great of a plot and a lot of things are left unexplained. It's still fun to play, though.

Because it's unlikely the monsters had the same names like they do in the game when this is based (a few hundred years before), I will be using Japanese names. The English names will be at the end.

All the humans are OCs and so is one monster.

Tiny snowflakes fell from the gray sky, giving warning of a coming storm. Rex barely noticed the cold, even with his thin cloak that served more to hide his appearance. A dark blue and white wolf bathed in icy flame hobbled after him on its three legs. It stared up at him with its red eyes and barked softly.

Rex looked back, watching it for a moment. "Fine, but only until we get to the village," he held up a hand, "Back." The wolf dissolved into particles that went into the crystal on its forehead and the crystal appeared in Rex's hand. If he still didn't need it…. He continued on in silence, mentally noting his surroundings in case he had to come back this way, needing some knowledge of the area if his plan was to fail. He stopped on a ridge that gave full view of the rest of the small island and, finally, the village he had been searching for.

Finally… he was going to get a worthy partner….


The village was quiet, no signs of recent activity were around other than the multiple sets of tracks leading further in, slowly disappearing from the falling snow. Rex looked around as he followed the tracks. It was odd the buildings were made of stone, a sight more common in desert nations. The island had little to no resources of rock, instead it had more than enough wood to suffice.

Several of the stone buildings had older and newer markings on the sides, suggesting the village was often attacked by a powerful monster, not a group. There were only two monster species known to live on the island that were aggressive, but one was far too small to do that extent of damage, even in groups and the other never bothered with humans unless provoked. Other nations weren't quite as lucky with their large numbers of aggressive monsters that would go near and attack human settlements for no reason.

Rex came to the center of town, where the path split in two, equal sets of tracks going both ways, with no indication of the newer path. He took the crystal that contained the wolf out of his battered bag. "Come." The crystal dissolved and the energy particles formed back into the wolf. "Okami, we need to find the villagers." The wolf nodded and turned, studying each path. It turned to Rex and walked down the left path.

A crowd stood along a stone wall that was enclosed into a wide oval, cheering as small creatures raced each other. Rex watched, uninterested. They really called that a place for competition? What looked like a pig with tiny wings was ahead of several other creatures, a strange event as its species was not known for being that fast. It crossed a line drawn into the ground and stopped, jumping up and down happily.

It was just a useless race…. The crowd went to congratulate the owner of the pig monster, as did all the other monster owners, each of them having a tiny triceratops-like monster, the island's second most aggressive species. And then there was that one… A young girl petted her monster's head, a white tiger cub with gray stripes and big, blue eyes. It was a very rare monster and could only be handled by those chosen by the legendary monsters themselves.

"See, Kotora? It's fun to hold back."

She let it lose?

Rex walked up to her. "You let your opponent win?"

She looked up. "Yes, but only because he said Kobuta needs a confidence boost, so I thought it would be nice."

Kotora and Okami glared at each other, growling.

The girl picked up Kotora, staring at Okami for a moment. Her attention turned when a few people passed by, waving to her and calling her Mia.

"Mia," Rex said, "I heard this is a good place to find new monsters to race with. Okami hasn't been able to race much since its injury. I'm hoping to find a new partner it can coach."

Mia stared down at the ground, deep in thought and turned to Okami, watching as it whined softly. "Really? Well, there is an aquatic species here that's fast on land," she looked up at Rex, "that will help from where you're from," she hesitated for a moment, listening to Okami, "Rex?"

She could understand monsters? No wonder she was chosen….

Rex nodded. "It really would."

Mia looked up at the sky as the snow began to fall harder. "I can help you find one when it stops snowing."

She was too trusting. Rex followed her, somewhat annoyed with her interest in Okami, but wasn't going to complain if it meant getting the partner he deserved.

"I've never seen an animal like this before," Mia said. Her response to it was the same as the rest of the villagers. They likely never saw one before. Okami was from the mountains on the mainland far north, after all.

Screams pierced through the air, and the villagers began fleeing to the buildings. A strong gust of wind came from above as something huge flew overhead. Mia watched. "Not again…. It attacks often, and sometimes takes one of us…." Any fear of seeing the monster didn't show on her face.

A gargoyle-like monster flew down from the sky, its target being a young boy that had tripped. Okami darted forward, leaped at the much larger monster, ramming into it. It landed back on the ground, having gotten the much larger monster's attention.

Rex took a step forward, looking up at the monster. "I challenge you to a race. If I win you have to leave and never come back. If you win you can take me."

Mia stared at him, shocked. "What? But…" she looked at Okami as it quietly barked to her.

The larger monster floated, staring down at Rex. After a moment it nodded and went to the edge of the village.

Rex gave Okami a nod and walked out of the way so the wolf could run straight through. It would take the larger monster roughly ten seconds to fly the length of the path. Some monsters were fools. He barely noticed as Kotora growled at him.

"Kotora, that isn't very nice," Mia said.

Okami waited for the larger monster to move first and for Rex's delayed signal. The wolf ran ahead, quickly gaining speed despite its handicap, and even slowed down to a trot as it finished, seconds before the other monster finished. The larger monster gave Rex one last look before flying away.

Mia stared, shocked. Okami had started a few seconds late and yet it… Wait…. She stared hard at it. It was-! She looked up at Rex, smiling. "You're from the legend… The legend states a traveler with a wolf will free us from the monster's terror…" She took his hand. "You need to meet my grandmother."


The tunnel made of stone was dimly lit with torch light, the ancient engravings on the walls very similar to the shrines Rex had visited before. The carvings depicted a monster very similar to the one that had attacked the village and people ran from it in terror. The carvings repeated over and over, though each one was different with the monster's position and how many people were left. Occasionally the people seemed to be trying to defend against it, though their attempts were useless based on the carving after. The last few before the wall began to crumble away were of a monster that had a surprising resemblance to Okami. It and a human were outside of the village, and the next pictures were of the wolf racing against the monster that had attacked the village, and of the wolf winning and the other monster leaving.

"This is the legend," Mia said, "For a long time we've been waiting for the Hero, you, to come."

Patches of the rest of the legend still remained the rest of the way, making it difficult to tell what the rest of the story was.

At the end of the hall was a wooden door with torches on either side of it. Mia knocked and opened it. "Nana, I brought a guest." She led Rex in.

The torch-lit room had little more than a table and a few chairs. On the table was a small stack of handwritten books, a rare sight as most people couldn't read. The woman reading one of the books looked up. Her clothing was more detailed than those that belonged to the villagers, so she had to be the village elder, despite her appearance looking as if she could be Mia's mother, not grandmother.

Next to her lied a griffin-like monster covered in deep blue and white feathers, a monster extremely rare in regions this far away from the mainland where its species, Takaraion, lived in mountainous regions with caves hidden in canyon walls. They were powerful, fast, and basically one of the top predators because it could both run and fly, and in very rare cases, swim. Anyone that could tame one deserved high respect. The monster lifted its head, blinking clouded eyes at him and growled.

Its owner set a hand on its back. "Galewing," she looked up, "I apologize for her behavior. She doesn't like strangers, especially men."

And the monster was a female, the highly dangerous member of its species that often had a bad temper, and that was when it didn't have any chicks to look after. The monster still glared at him. It turned its attention to Kotora, looking happy to let the tiny monster play on its back and slide down its wings.

"He defeated Ishiryuu with his Okami. That means he's the one that can bring us back, right?" Mia said "us" as if she were talking about her whole village.

The elder studied Rex. "Are you certain, Mia?"

Mia nodded and turned to Rex. "Show her Okami."

Rex got out the crystal that contained his monster. Kotora and Galewing immediately began to hiss and growl.

"You don't need to have it appear," the elder said, "It's very fast, isn't it?" she turned to the other two monsters. "They can sense how strong it is." She turned to Mia, "Let everyone know the Hero has finally come. We'll celebrate tonight."

Mia excitedly nodded and left with Kotora following her.

They were really going to celebrate him being there?

"You've come to find a powerful partner, haven't you? Not many people know that part of the legend," the elder said, "Please don't tell Mia the real reason why you're here. Let her believe you only came here to defeat Ishiryuu. You can ask her to help you find another partner." Her tone strongly implied that she would make sure he got what he wanted if he did as she asked.

He nodded. "Of course." At least until he found It, anyway….


Despite how poor the village appeared, the amount of fruit and fish suggested it was only slightly better than that. Rex sat at the very edge of the wooden table where he wouldn't be crowded and where everyone else, thankfully, mostly blocked his view of the performers. Mia sat next to him, happily talking about how much happier life would be with him there and about all the monsters nearby.

"Do you know about Yokaishi?" A deathly silence followed.

"It's extremely dangerous," one villager said.

Another nodded. "Everyone that has gone after it never came back."

"Not even the legends go fight it."

They didn't know just how powerful It was…

Later that night everyone started to slowly leave, thanking Rex for chasing off Ishiryuu.

"I'll show you where the Inn is," Mia said, "I'm sure you'll get to stay as long as you want to," she got up.

"Do you know where the monster is?" Rex asked. "My… sister wanted to see it before she died and I'd like to at least see it from a distance for her."

"Well, I've heard from some of the monsters that sometimes stop here when they're migrating say there's an island west of here. The only thing there is a shrine."

Now he only had to find a way to get there, and because of the fish that had been at the celebration, that wouldn't be too difficult.


Mia woke the next morning to Kotora whining and trying to open the door with its paws. Shouts came from outside, which only made the small monster even more anxious. Ishiryuu didn't come back, did it?! Mia quickly got ready to go outside, having to go frustratingly slow because Kotora kept tripping her as it ran around, whining. She had it return to its crystal, promising she'd send it back out later.

A small crowd stood outside of the healer's house, looking worried.

Mia ran up to them. "What happened?"

"Umi was found badly injured this morning. Mizu is missing."

Why would someone do that? You didn't need one of the aquatic monsters unless— No…

Mia ran down the street. "Tell him I'm finding Mizu with Nessie!" By the time she reached the beach the monster was already waiting for her, its delicate wing-like ears twitching slightly. Although Nessie was younger and smaller than Mizu, it was a lot faster. It waited for Mia to climb on its back before swimming towards where the island was.

She had to save Rex before he got hurt.


Rex stood before the shrine, a large, stone square with a tall, carved, stone pillar in each corner. A beam of light came from the tip of each pillar, meeting in the center.

"Rex!" Mia ran up the steps. "Get away!"

Rex held a crystal out, and it floated into the energy beams, causing a form to emerge from it. "Yokaishi only appears when you have a crystal fragment," he said, "When the last holder of it dies the crystal goes to the next person worthy until a holder is found that won't die under the stress of the bonding process," he turned to Mia. Behind him a dragon-like creature appeared, its light colors slowly turning darker as its kind, pale eyes turned aggressive and bright red. "I thank you for leading me to my true partner."


It had been weeks since Rex summoned Yokaishi. Its form could change only slightly to allow it to fly, run, or swim. Since then Rex had been fighting other nations, obliterating them before they even had a chance to fight back. Soon, they would be next….

Mia watched as smoke rose far off in the distance. There had to be a way to stop him! She ran, barely hearing her name being shouted by the others. She finally came to a stop at a shrine in the wide open prairie. She fell to her knees. "Please…" she said, tears beginning to fall, "Help us."

Ishiryuu flew down from the sky and gently nudged her with its tail, as if trying to comfort her. It stared off in the distance and flew to the coast, where seven other large monsters waited for it. They resembled a gray and red unicorn, another a red and gray Tyrannosaurus-rex, a black and golden Egyptian dog, a delicate, lithe, dragon with scales that shown in the colors of the rainbow, a dark blue skeletal humanoid bird, a green and silver fairy-cobra, and a wingless, stout, wingless, quadruped red dragon. Along with Ishiryuu, they were the other legends of the world….

Yokaishi flew towards the village, screeching. The unicorn, dog, and Tyrannosaurus-rex immediately went in the path of its oncoming attack, protecting the village as the other two dragons worked together to evacuate everyone, the lithe dragon constantly disappearing and reappearing, taking the villagers with it as the red dragon ran back and forth at an amazing speed, taking smaller groups with it.

Ishiryuu and the skeletal bird struck Yokaishi, occasionally forcing it low enough for the cobra to strike. Mia watched. Even with all of them working together they were failing…. Why did she tell Rex where the shrine was?!

Ishiryuu cried out, and the legends began moving towards where the island was. It glanced back at Mia and flew to her.

"Take me with you."

It stared at her for a moment before quickly picking her up and lifting her out of the way of a blast of energy from Yokaishi's hands, the attack completely destroying Ishiryuu's shrine. Ishiryuu set Mia on its back and flew toward the other island. Just as it got there the lithe dragon appeared on the beach, bringing the other legends with it.

Mia stared at Yokaishi's shrine. It was nearly destroyed. If it was damaged anymore the monster belonging to it couldn't be sealed away… Ishiryuu set her down safely out of the way. The stout dragon ran to the center of the shrine, waiting for Yokaishi to attack it, luring it closer by darting around. As the monster got there, the dragon jumped back as a glow began to surround the other legends. A barrier began to form around Yokaishi.

Rex, who had been riding on the monster's back, looked around, panicked. "No!"

Yokaishi lashed out at the stout dragon, knocking it back and cutting a long cut over its eye in the process. Rex held out his hand. "Yokaishi—" Okami leaped onto the larger monster's back and lunged forward, biting Rex's arm.

The barrier formed into an egg shape and filled with light, reducing into a small crystal that disappeared, just as the other legends, all except for Ishiyruu, returned to their crystals. All of the crystals shot away in different directions. Ishiryuu took Mia back to its destroyed shrine.

"The rest of the legend states the Hero will use the Death Monster to attack the world, " it said, "And then we would seal it and its master away." It looked sad. "All monsters have to go into hiding until the Hero's bloodline ends… All except for me…"

That meant…. "What will happen to Kotora?!"

"She will be summoned again in the future by the one that will free Yokaishi."

Mia stared at the ground. She was never going to see Kotora again…. But that didn't compare to Ishiryuu having to live alone…. She put together a small shrine with what was left of the old one. It was big enough to hold only a single crystal. She looked up at the monster as it disappeared into its crystal. "Thank you."

What the monsters are:

Okami – Wolfreez

Kotora – Cuboom

Kobuta – Snorpork

Small triceratops – Poko

Mizu and Nessie – Flyptid

Galewing – Blitzhawk

Ishiryuu – Galaxtar

Stout red dragon – Furion

Fairy cobra – Slythe

Red and gray unicorn – Tryphorn

Tyrannosaurs-rex – Wreckx

Lithe rainbow dragon – Rainbeau

Egyptian dog – Snyph

Humonoid bird – Kristar

Yokaishi – (OC)