Bonds of Fate


Autumn had set in on the lands of Divinity Ranch. The temperature stayed mild, but when the winds blew the leaves around in a swirling painting across the sky, one could feel the sharp chill of winter setting in. The air was crisp and clear, and the skies so blue as to put the oceans to shame. The sun swung lazily through the heavens beaming golden light upon the earth.

The girl stood, leaning against the fence, watching the Tigers that frolicked in the field. Her dark silver hair fell down her back, tangled in windblown knots, two black shocks framing her thin face. Her obsidian eyes were misted over, as if she was not there at the moment. Her skin was the color of cinnamon, speckled with scars of cuts and scrapes, and one new one on her knee when she had tripped on the long run over here. She was chewing on the tip of her thumb, like she often did when she was thinking.

"Shindri! Girl what are you doing over here?! Get back to work! You have a responsibility on this 'ere ranch ya' know!"

Shindri turned towards the speaker, annoyed. "Coming Rafe!" under her voice she muttered, "You picky stick-in-the-mud loser."

She jumped of the fence and ran toward the speaker, a thin man with dark chestnut hair and pale blue eyes. Rafe glared at her as she approached. "You been stayin' over your break for more than an hour. Master Devon don't pay you for actin' lazy."

"I'm not as lazy as he is," Shindri retorted, falling into step behind the older rancher. "He's got a whole houseful of serving pixies to wait on him day and night, he doesn't do anything for himself. And don't call me Shindri, call me Shin!"

"Why shouldn't I call you Shindri, it's your name anyways."

"I don't like it! It makes me sound like I'm-"

"Some weak and sissy breeder, I've heard it before," Rafe shrugged his shoulders. "Is that the reason you wanted to become such a strong breeder?"

"Partly."

"Well your not doing a good job. You have a huge responsibility on this ranch, taking care of the Zans. If you keep slacking off like this you could lose it."

Shin snorted. "Devon can't afford to lose me. I've been working with those monsters for three years now and they've gotten used to me. To pitch in another rancher now would make them testy, they'd go wild."

"That doesn't mean you have a right to do as you please on this ranch. He can replace you!"

"It would be a HUGE dent in his reputation. Now I'd better get going before Seta sets another part of the ranch on fire."

"Alright, see ya'. Wait...Seta started that fire!!!!"

Shin giggled and ran off, leaving Rafe alone to fume.

-*-

Midway to the ranch, Shin met up with Loki, or rather, was ambushed by Loki. She was walking to her stables when a red and black blur tackled her too the ground, then flipped off her. A few moments later a face entered her spinning line of vision. "Gotcha!"

"Hardee-har. Funny Loki, funny."

She picked herself up and brushed the dust off her clothes. "Do that again and I'll sick one of the Zans on you."

The monster rolled his eyes and laughed. Nobody knew what Loki was exactly. Some said he was supposed to be the first male pixie, some said he was a demon from hell, others said he was a hybrid reject, but all people really knew was that he had been created in Devon's labs and then set loose on the ranch for lacking anything better to do with him. He had a humanoid body, clothed in baggy black trousers, a loose red, black embroidered vest which he wore unbuttoned, tied at the waist with a black sash. His long, fire red hair was tied back with a string of black leather, and his golden dragon eyes always held a wild sparkle. His hands were replaced with black, long taloned dragon claws, as were his feet. His large black dragon wings were folded, his thin black tail twitching back and forth playfully.

"You're late," he stated impishly, opening his wings and gliding along next to her.

"Tell me something I don't know," Shin said lightly. Loki cawed and soared into the sky. She shrugged and continued, knowing that he would follow her anyways. She was virtually his only friend.

She reached the Zan barn fifteen minutes later. She inspected it closely for a few moments. Nothing burning, no smoke, Seta must really be learning self control. Either that or Dante had bashed his head in.

She pushed open the large wooden door, made of polished mahogany. Devon was so rich he even made his barns look sophisticated. "Hey! Sorry I'm late!"

Loki zoomed in, throwing in a cloud of dust and hay. She coughed and shut the door.

"Did you have to bring the reject?" quipped Dante dryly. The Naraku (Zan/Joker) stood leaning against the wall, looking bored out of his mind. He gestured to the stall next to him. "We've already got the pyromaniac, now you have to bring the kleptomaniac."

In response to this, a tall pillar of flame shot up from the stable. "Shut the fuck up you son of a circus clown!"

Shin sighed. "Calm down Seta," she slid a glance to Loki, seeing the hybrid power up a ball of flame. "Loki, quit."

"They've been at this all the time you were gone," Zephyr said from the rafters. The Gai (Zan/Morx) glided down to her side. "You know how edgy Seta gets when he isn't fighting? Dante's been baiting him."

"Dante I swear I'm going to kill you," Shin growled, glaring at the monster.

He shrugged. "Do what you will."

Shin nearly screamed. "You are so impossible."

She turned on her heel and stomped over to Seta stall. She flung open the door. "Out!"

The Zan glared at her, then exited sulkily. He was one of Devon's prize creations, a breed of Zan he called Zaku. Main Breed: Zan Sub Breed: Phoenix. Where he had gotten Phoenix DNA was a constant mystery on Divinity Ranch, but like all the other things Devon did, no one cared after awhile. This was because Divinity Ranch wasn't a normal ranch. Master Devon made this ranch especially for rare, exotic, or extremely powerful monsters. There was a series of labs under the ranch where he combined different monster DNA, and a constant supply of trucks carrying strange mystery disks. Hell, this place even had its own shrine. Divinity Ranch was famous in these parts.

"Let's see, one, two, three. We need Silvern, Dis, and Shade."

As if on cue the three Zans appeared from thin air. Shin cried out in surprise, then let out a slow breath. "You guys try to kill me!"

Silvern shrugged. She was the only female Zan in the stables, another product of Devon's experiments. She was a deep black, with glowing silver eyes. Flame-like designs of silver decorated her forearms and chest. They curved around her left eye, and around the claw appendages on her back. The blades on her body were made of the finest silver, and a clear diamond horn rose from her forehead.

Dis was a silver colored Zan, probably the oddest in the stable. He was half technology, half biological. His forearms were covered with a protective case of black metal, and the blades jutting from them were made of titanium alloy. So were his legs from the knee down. His chest was covered by the same metal, as well as half his face. A red laser eye glinted from the faceplate, weird enough to creep anyone out.

Shade was quite the opposite of his name. He was a pure, brilliant white, his blades made of blood ruby. He had golden eyes, with a red mark crossing across the right one, like a scar. Instead of the usual claw appendages on his back, he had crimson wings touched with gold, a foot longer than his body. Gold stripes arced across his back, and gold cuffs circled around both his upper arms and ankles.

"Okay that accounts for everyone," Shin said. "The B Rank Autumn Tournaments are coming around next month, so I have to get you in shape by October. We're going to have to train harder, because Devon wants to show you to the public, and he wants your flashiest moves."

There was a collective groan from around her. "I know. I think he cares more for show than anything. But we have too and that's what we're going to do. Okay, first one to the training field gets to beat on Loki."

All the Zans were off like a shot. Loki looked at her in alarm. "What?!"

"Don't worry, they know I was joking."

Far away they heard shouting.

"Alright!!! I was first!!! I get to beat the crap out of him!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Shut up Seta!!!! I was here first!!! I get to chop him into ribbons!!!"

Shin gulped and laughed nervously. "On the other hand...Loki, you should stay here."

-*-

Shin tapped her pencil against the clipboard, watching the aerial battle with squinted eyes. Seta and Shade soared against the blazing sun, dipping and wheeling in a glorious, almost dance-like combat. She marked a few things down on the paper, then turned back to the skies. This was Seta's last fight. He had won three and lost one to Silvern. He seemed to be winning this one.

Shade glided upwards, expanding his wings to their fullest. His armbands started to glow as he collected the solar energy. Usually Zans were more physical monsters, using their body as their main weapons, but on Divinity Ranch they were trained in using elemental or energy attacks as well. Shade hurled the energy at Seta. The other Zan looked up in surprise as the attack hurtled toward him and engulfed him. Shade grinned in triumph, then gasped as the light disappeared and Seta was nowhere to be seen. He whirled around as the streams of fire shot at him, hitting him full on the chest he cried out and fell, striking the earth with a sickening thud. Seta floated down victoriously, smirking at his beaten adversary.

"I am again unsurpassed."

"Cheap trick," rasped Shade, rising from the ground.

Dante rolled his eyes. "Don't get all cocky, you were beaten by Silvern, a female."

"So were you!"

"So were all of us," said Zephyr, trying to cool the upcoming fight.

"Yes," said Shin, as she turned to the female. "Silvern, you need to lay off the charm attack for awhile."

Silvern shrugged. "Okay. But the Pixies use it all the time, why is it so wrong for me?"

"Because Pixies are small and fragile most of the time. And sometimes they need something to distract an attacker so they can power up an attack. People will think you're not strong if you use that all the time."

Silvern nodded, as if realizing this the first time. Shin continued. "You all are very good, and improving greatly. If we keep this up we can breeze through that tournament. We finished early, so we have a few minutes of leisure. You can go do what you want, just come back by sunset."

She turned and walked back to the stables. It was her job to clean it now. She pushed open the door. Loki was nowhere in sight, he must've gone to the kitchens to filch something, or maybe the house. Regular little thief that 'un. She picked up the broom and started to sweep out the dust and leftover food sighing as she saw the whole mess.

She had cleaned almost the whole stable when she heard it. At first she ignored it, everyday there was another truck coming, but this time, she listened to the conversation the haulers were having, just out of boredom.

"Hey Max, which one?"

"The silver one, with the jewels on it."

"Goddess! Max! This is worth a fortune by itself! Who would want to ruin a beautiful Mystery Disk like that!"

"Kyle, look at it this way. If the Mystery Disk looks like that, what kind of monster must be inside?"

"Good point. Alright, lets give it to him."

She heard the crunching of paper as something was wrapped, then heavy footsteps. Dropping the broom, she followed out the back door, looking for the two men. She spotted them by the Dragon stables. Stealthily, she stalked them, her bare feet not making a sound on the earth. She noticed it was one of the paths to the shrine. Her heartbeat quickened.

Master Devon was waiting at the entrance to the shrine. He was a tall, trim, business-like man with sharp features and hard green eyes. He had thick gold hair which he combed back and held in place with maybe a bottle full of gel. He was tapping his foot impatiently as the men arrived. "Well?! Do you have it?!"

"Here sir," said one of the men, handing him the disk wrapped in tissue paper. Devon ripped it open eagerly as a child does to a birthday present. His eyes glittered strangely as the last shreds fell away and he held the disk. Shin had to keep from gasping in awed amazement.

The Mystery Disk was pure silver, rimmed with black crystal. The lizard pattern upon it was the same black crystal, but with glowing ruby eyes. She was so enraptured she failed to hear the last bits of conversation before Devon entered the shrine, followed by the others. As soon as they were gone, she crept up to the entrance, carefully hiding herself behind the marble wall. She watched as Devon placed the disk on the alter, biting her lip in anticipation.

The disk started spinning, glowing softly at first, then brightening to a halo of remarkable brightness. Suddenly, the light grew dark, and it appeared that a void of inky blackness hovered in midair, before it slowly took form. When it shaped itself, the light flared out and disappeared, leaving the monster standing in the center of the shrine.

It was a Joker by the looks of it, but unlike any she had seen before. It's mask was black, but there was a band of silver that curled around the right edge, looking like a crescent moon. A small circle of silver stars rimmed the inner curve of the crescent, sparkling against the black. It's eyes were a deep red, like blood, and the left one was rimmed with a band of silver, the opposite with black. Two black diamonds lay under the right eye, like teardrops. A glowing crimson ruby hung in the center of it's forehead, suspended from a circlet made of delicate silver chain, studded with smaller rubies like tiny pebbles. It knelt before Devon. Unlike other Jokers, this one seemed to have a body underneath the black cloak. "I thank you for releasing me, Master."

Devon nodded curtly, a triumphant smirk painted on his handsome features. "Rise, Oberon."

Oberon...fitting name, Shin thought. Her leg was falling asleep from kneeling so long, but she hardly noticed. The monster rose gracefully, and she noticed he carried no scythe. Devon swept over him with approving eyes. "You are more remarkable than I expected, Oberon, you will be an excellent addition to my collection. Come."

He marched out of the shrine, Oberon walking after him with an unearthly grace, trailed by the awed spectators. Shin ducked behind the wall, crawling under the bushes as they went. She felt the monster's cloak brush her hand and held her breath, being as still as possible. When she was sure they were gone, she rose out of the bushes and stretched. I'm in the clear...

Or so she thought, until strong hands clamped over her shoulder and mouth.



So what do you think? Please be nice, this is my fist MR fic. I hope I don't get to many people confused, It's been awhile since I've seen the anime, and I've only played MR3 ^_^(). Please R&R