Disclaimer: Seeing as how poor I am, I sincerely doubt I own Monster Rancher. (or any of the animes I stole... um... "borrowed" names from)
A/N: I didn't get any reviews.... *cries softly* Oh well! HAPPINESS! Okay. I know I said Tiger was going to be in this, but...... Had ya going there didn't I? Even if I didn't I at least tried! Trust me though. Tiger plays one of the most important parts in the next chapter. I promise. Anyway, FYI, this chapter is long! I would say it was the longest I have ever written but that would be a lie. The longest chapter I have ever written was easily eight pages long. Of course the only person that knows about this story lives in FL. Whoops! I went on a rant! Read the chapter!
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Chapter 8: The Great Den
Everyone turned towards Achika. Her face remained panic-stricken as she scrambled up and stuffed her feet into her skates. Red stood up on all fours, turned towards the direction that Achika was staring at, and nearly fell from pure surprise. The hill that ended the meadow they had rested in was covered with a growling army of Tigers.
Most of them were males, but a few females and a motley crew (A/N: good band) of first years were thrown into the mess. A large Grey Wolf stood in front of the rabble. One of his eyes were scarred over and he was missing half of his right horn. A second year Tropical Dog (A/N: Plant/Tiger) stood next to him. The Grey Wolf growled at a few of the Tigers behind him. Five of them broke away from the main group and immediately ran towards the little group of six.
They paused a few yards away and a Rock Hound stepped towards the little group.
"Who are you?" he yelled.
Genki stood up and yelled the reply, "We are travelers."
"Foreigners are not welcomed here," growled a Datonare.
"We did not mean to tread on your land," Holly said.
"Fools. We do not own this land. He does," a Terror Dog (Tiger/ Monol) replied as he pointed at the large Grey Wolf.
"Is that Lord Ginta?" Red asked.
Everyone, including the five Tigers, turned towards Red in surprise.
"Lord Ginta of the Northern Mountains? Yes, that is who he is," hissed a Hare Hound (okay this one's obvious).
"May we speak with him? We are seeking Tiger of the Wind," Red replied with a half decent smile.
The Noble (Tiger/ Gali) that was with the five tigers, nodded. He looked towards Lord Ginta and howled. Lord Ginta glared down at him, then nodded slowly.
"He says he has been expecting you, Red of the Lightening."
Red smiled as everyone looked at him in surprise.
The team followed the Noble to Lord Ginta.
Red bowed in a formal greeting and politely said, "Hullo great Lord of the Northern Mountains. I have heard word that Tiger of the Wind may be passing through your territory."
Lord Ginta studied the humans that came with him, "Since when have you traveled with such disgusting creatures?"
His voice sounded like brittle bones breaking. The three humans shuddered.
"They are helping me gather the jewels. He has reawakened and is now stronger then Moo."
"It is not possible. I thought they destroyed his lost disk."
"Nope. Humans are not highly intelligent. Especially this seer," Red replied pointing at Achika.
"WHAT?!" she shouted as Genki held her back.
Lord Ginta glared at them, and then laughed.
"We have a human seer in our midst, and she's funny. Come, you will stay at our den tonight."
"But it's morning..." Genki trailed off, obviously thinking way too hard for his tiny brain.
"By the time we get to the den it will be dusk," Red replied, with a sly smile. Lord Ginta sent up a bone chilling howl. At once, every single last one of the Tigers turned and ran. Yuri and Mako ran along side the Tigers trying to out race them. Achika followed behind Red and Lord Ginta. Genki threw on his skates and began to give Holly an "innocent" piggy-back ride. He liked the fact he was holding her thighs. The Hentai.
They traveled through out the day, with no distractions, no interruptions, nothing bothered them. As the day progressed the Tigers began to become conservative and talk freely with the humans.
At noon, the humans were given rides by three old veterans. One was a very proud Jagged Hound (Tiger/Worm) named Yahiko. Another was a very fast Jell Hound (Tiger/Jell) called Lupin. The last one was the Noble who had "introduced" them to Lord Ginta. His name was Taku.
By nightfall, they arrived at the den. It was a cave within giant white-capped mountains. The cave itself was over thousands of years old. The large warm tunnels were smoothed by much use, and smelled of only Tiger.
The Tigers that had been on the hillside were nothing compared to the numerous crowds that were in the actual tunnel. Pups, Females laden with cubs, Elders, First Years, and Alphas were traveling through the honeycomb that was the den they all thrived in. Even the Outcasts found themselves amongst kin here.
Genki whistled, "This is impressive."
"OH WOW!" Achika said with huge hearts in her eyes. She loved Tigers.
"I never knew that such a place like this existed," Holly said as several pups ran pass her.
"I thought that The Den of Tigers was just a myth," Mako said with awe.
Yuri stayed upon the ground (ceiling too low!) and silent as she watched all types of Tigers going around her.
"This is the Great Den. Our ancestors made it during the war against Moo. Though most of us love a good fight, some did not wish to fight Moo. They ran from their human captors, and found this place. They dug out some of these tunnels and began to live happily. Food was never short. There are plenty of monsters that live up here," Taku began to explain as he lead them through the tunnels.
"Wait, you eat other monsters?" Yuri asked a bit nervous.
Taku paused, "These monsters are different. They were not made by the ancient humans but existed before them. We do not eat our own kind of monster but a different. I once heard a human call them mammoths."
Both Genki and Achika paused at what he said.
"Mammoths? Big, ugly, woolly things that have tusks out to here?" Genki asked.
Yahiko looked at him and smiled, "Yeah, but how did you know? They only live in this area."
"Um... Let's just say we know at lot," Achika said with a nervous smile.
"Anyway," Taku continued, "Water has never been short considering the fact that there is ice everywhere."
While Taku was speaking, Genki and Achika held their own conversation.
"Mammoths? I thought we were on a different world," Genki hurriedly whispered.
"We Tigers have thrived here for what seems like an eternity," Taku droned on in the back round.
"I guess this is our past?" Achika whispered.
"After the war, Lord Ginta along with the leaders of the packs, found it once more and built it to be the glory you see in front of you now," Taku said with a smile.
"No way. Are you telling me we are the future?" Genki asked with huge eyes.
"Of course we are now leading you to the Main Hall where we will then go to the Council Room," Taku explained to Holly, the only person who was actually listening. Red had disappeared with Lord Ginta and the rest of the pack. Yuri was actually talking to Mako, who was relating the myths of the den.
"That sucks. We know what's going to happen," Achika said with a scowl.
"Welcome to the Main Hall. Please, Try to keep together. The hallways are hectic at this time because everyone is trying to get to the exits. It's time to start hunting for breakfast."
The five companions that were being lead by Taku, Yahiko, and Lupin found themselves in the biggest cave ever constructed. The ceiling was at least 30 feet high. Yuri flew up and found the other side of the the cavern was over two miles away. It was filled with Tigers.
"Over 300 Tigers can travel through here at a time. This is the only time of the night that you will see it this crowded. Most of these monsters are usually in their own private dens with either their mate and cubs or their pack. Only at this time, when everyone is hunting, is this place insane," Lupin said as he pushed through the crowds.
"Is it me or is he repeating himself?" Genki whispered with beady little eyes.
"I don't think it's just him," Achika replied as everyone followed silently. They had to be quiet. They could barely hear each other anyway. The Tigers were having millions of arguments as they crossed through the valley that was the Main Hall.
Lupin, Yahiko, and Taku snarled, snapped, and growled at anyone that got in the way. Soon, a path was cleared and everyone meet up with Yuri, who had flown across.
"Hey Fairy. You shouldn't be flying around here. Some of us might think you're an intruder and try to cook you," Yahiko whispered.
"Shut up. I might just cook you for the hell of it."
Yahiko smiled furiously as they entered the hallway to the Council Room. The hallway was small, and only made for Tigers. Genki, Holly, Achika, Mako, and even Yuri, had to hunch over. Genki was so lazy he just crawled along the floor. Of course Holly ended up being in front of him...
WHAM!
"My brother is just such a hentai," Achika said as she walked pass him, hunched over more like a monkey. Genki found himself spitting out a mouthful of dirt as everyone else passed him. His eyes became spirals and he started crawling around like a drunken cat with its claws removed. He started to speed up his pace to catch up with the others. He sped up so quickly he didn't realize that he had caught up to them until he ran into someone. He peeled his face off of...
Yuri's BUTT! She turned around and glared more then just daggers at Genki.
"Um..." was Genki's reply as he couldn't help but stare at the imprint of his face on her anus.
"Hey buddy. My face is up here," Yuri said as she poked at his head and then pointed to her face.
"Oh! Sorry! It's just-"
Smack!
Genki found himself eating a dirt sandwich for the second time within five minutes. Yuri walked away with a humph.
The spirals in his eyes didn't disappear until five minutes later, when Red had been sent to find him.
"First Holly, and then Yuri. You truly have become a hentai," Red said as he tried to lead the 18 year old down the tunnel.
"Is it me? Or is everything spinning?" Genki asked as he nearly passed out. Red rolled his eyes and practically had to drag the dazed guy into the Council Room.
In the Council Room, seven different Tigers stood before the them. There was an 8th space, but it remained empty.
A Calabos (Tiger/Naga) with scars that traveled the full length of his body, stared at the group with hatred. Next to him, a Terror Dog with a bad leg and no tail, didn't even look at the group that had entered. Lord Ginta stood next to him. Next to Lord Ginta, sat a very old Rock Hound. He was in perfect condition, the only problem being his age. The Tropical Dog that they had seen next to Lord Ginta earlier, was now standing in front of the group. He was barely a second year, and thus had the same problem of his age as the Rock hound. A Noble sat next to the young one, and showed the only problem was her bad eyes. The half Gali stared with eyes that did not see. Sitting on her hackles, a Datonare stared down at the group with wisdom and friendship. She didn't have a mane, but small ears were found were the lost fur had been.
"This is the Council of The Tigers. Lord Fujitaka of the Southern Seas," Yahiko shouted. The Calabos nodded.
"Lord Youji of the Eastern Sands," Taku said as he bowed. The Terror Dog nodded.
"Lord Kazu of the Western Plains," Lupin announced without emotion. The Rock Hound cocked his head as though he did not hear what Lupin had said.
"Lord Satoshi of the Western Icelands. Lady Rumiko of the Eastern Jungle. Lady Ariana of the Southern Forests. I, Red of the pack Moon under the order of Lady Rumiko of the Eastern Jungle, have brought before the Council of Free Tigers, brethren that will help aid us with the fight against Golbez."
"Are you telling us you have proof of his existence?" Lady Ariana asked.
"I am living proof that we who were before Moo are arising," Yuri replied.
Lord Satoshi glared down at her, "You are only to speak when spoken to."
"Hey, give her a break. She's been flying for more then half the day. We're tired and hungry and wish to sleep. Can we please deal with this tomorrow?" Achika asked.
Lord Satoshi glared down at her with a hatred that could have only come from the very bowels of the seven hells, but Lord Kazu cut in before the Tropical Dog had time to reply.
"I am sorry if we have insulted you. We did not mean discomfort nor harm. We just need to know what has happened to our packmates."
"What do you mean?" Holly asked.
"A few days ago, my pack was traveling through Lord Ginta's territory, when a shrill sound was heard. Something very loud. Then, suddenly most of the first years ran off without as much as an excuse me. I found this disturbing enough, but then I found out it was not only happening to my pack," Lord Youji responded.
"What do you mean?" Mako asked.
"It was happening to many others as well. It has effected Katos, Pixies, Dinos, Zuums, Apes, Mews, Suezos, Dragons, and many others. We do not know what it is and it only effects first years. For now there seems to be a lapse. No one has seen or heard of anything since last half moon," Lord Youji said slowly.
"Huh?" Achika asked.
"We measure time by the phases of the moon. Tonight is the new moon. That means it was a few weeks ago," Red hurriedly whispered.
Achika found herself dazed by her own misunderstanding. Her eyes swirled into confusing.
"Stop using astrology."
Red rolled his eyes. "My dear Lords and Ladies, I present to you the group of travelers that will help aid me on my quest."
"Proceed little one," Lady Rumiko gently replied.
"I have seen the human world and found myself. I have found the boy who stopped Moo and his sister who can see beyond the dark. They have helped me find the girl with magic, the Tiger that is not part of a pack, and the Pixie who flies without her wings."
"That is interesting to know. Welcome back Genki," a mysterious voice replied.
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A/N: Lords, Ladies, and the knights of the mud table. These Tigers are HARDCORE MAN!!! Sorry. I kind of love being able to do that. But like I said Tiger is actually very important. Oh, and so everyone knows. I wasn't following the monsters average lifespan is only four years thing. I treated the Tigers like they were actual wolves. First years are pups that were just learning how to hunt. Free wolves can live up to 15 years thus, Lord Kazu should be dead. He's 20. If ya love Tiger, or Tigers in general like I do, you're gonna love the next chapter. So, review!
