Glad so many people are enjoying Kismet! I do apologize; the last chapter was very rushed. I finished it off in about half an hour. I meant to explain the hoverships better; they are Mage 'tech' if you will. Thanks as always for the positive response!

Any other pairings besides the slight ShanksxMakino aforementioned I'll write as little side-stories.

-Kismet-

Chapter Two: Guardian Entrusted

St. Kuina of the Crystal Katana was revered as the greatest swordmaster of her time. She was a prodigy in swordplay, beginning to fight when she was very young. She defended the village in which she lived until her untimely and mysterious death. She fell down the long flight of stairs to her mountainside home, and even though many people have called it an accident, many others do not believe a swordmaster such as her would ever lose their footing. Could an assassin have pushed her down the mountain? None now know the truth, but rumors tell that her sword, the Wadou Ichimonji has awoken from its half-century of sleep.

But who would carry such a magnificent katana? It's crystal blade will only allow the most righteous to touch it, and what man has no darkness in the silence of his soul?

Luffy introduced Zoro to Shanks and the crew, and Kuina introduced herself. Though she was a spirit, no one seemed quite surprised (after all, they were of the society of Mages, seeing spirits was fairly unusual, but not totally alien) but were quite delighted to meet the Saint of Swords herself. As Luffy promised, Zoro got some of Makino's champion ale and had to agree with the younger boy.

"It is the best." Luffy made a wide grin at the swordsman's reaction to Makino's brew.

"See? Didn't I tell you?" He half-laughed through a mouthful of venison. He gulped harshly to swallow the large bite of meat, and then bit off another huge chunk.

"Hey, thanks again. I really owe you."

"Yeah, me too. I thought I was never going to get to fight again!" Kuina materialized quite suddenly, and Luffy started a little. "I picked it up from Zoro's memory, you were the one who told him to try, right?" She floated over to Luffy and looked longingly at his plate. "It sucks to be dead..."

"Your both welcome. How did you die, anyway?" Luffy inquired, but then regretted his action when the spirit fell silent. "I shouldn't've brought that up... Sorry."

"No, it's just that I'm not really sure how I died. I was going up the stairs, and then I was going down. That's it." She shrugged, making her outline flicker. "I can't wait to see you use my sword, Zoro!"

He nodded. "Interesting that I should get a third sword. I needed one more so that I could use my true style." Kuina squeaked when she received what he was thinking.

"Hwah?" Luffy cocked his head, having been left out of the mental connection he was quite confused.

He took a draft from his tankard and put it back down. "The 'Three Dragon's Swordstyle', Santoryu."

"Three swords? But you only have two hands!" Luffy perched on the table with a pensive look on his face for a bit, until it seemed something dawned. "Ah, I get it now!"

"You do?" Kuina and Zoro asked in unison, the latter with a dubious air.

"Yeah, you must hold the third one with your foot! That is so awesome!" He jumped around, his black hair bouncing with him. "Can you show me?"

Zoro waved his hand and Kuina stifled a giggle with her hand. "Some other time, kid."

Luffy nodded rapidly before scooping up his plate to go get more venison from Makino. "Do you want more? I'll get it for you." Luffy took off before the swordsman even answered.

"Zoro, I have to tell you something about that Luffy. I'm a spirit now, so I can sense stuff, like energy. He is surrounded by a very, very thick energy. It just doesn't seem natural,"

"Because it isn't." Zoro automatically turned his head to see who was speaking. It was the raven-haired man Luffy had introduced as 'Uncle Ben', Shanks' first mate. "He doesn't even know his true origin yet."

"Hn? True origin?" Zoro raised an eyebrow, bringing his headband lower on his forehead. "What do you mean by that?"

Ben looked around. "Eh, Luffy is coming back. Maybe I'm not meant to tell you." He shrugged his broad shoulders and took a puff from his cigarette. Zoro and Kuina remained confused until Luffy's rapid chatter made them forget what Ben had said.

Suddenly, Shanks banged his flagon on the table, making three sharp thuds. "Hey, everybody's attention please!" Obeying, every face looked forward to the Captain, and all conversation ceased. He stood upon the table and laughed. "So, Zoro, right? Where are you and Kuina headed after this?"

"Not sure. There's nothing to guard here anymore, so I'll probably just leave to somewhere I can fight." At the word "fight" Kuina glowed as she smiled.

Considering for a moment, Shanks paced the end of the table. "Ah, I know! We do plenty of fighting as we travel, and we travel constantly. What say you come with us?" Luffy's expression brightened at Shanks' proposal; he had made friends of Zoro and Kuina, and it distressed him to think that he would never see the swordfighters again. He turned his pleading eyes to them, hoping that they would accept.

Zoro mulled the idea over for a while, his dark eyes intense. "Yes, but I think I should ask Kuina as well."

"Hells yeah! I was afraid you were going to say no!"

"It's settled then! A toast, to new comrades and warriors!" There was a cheer, and none raised their mugs higher than Luffy.

Not far from the camp of the spies, the scout could hear their apparent party. He laughed to himself and prepared to return. Finding these spies would definitely please his master, the trail he had followed had shown signs that these were the mages that held project 7h-Tt.

"Just wait until my father hears about this!" He snickered as he scrambled back through the thicket. "Just wait!"

He arrived back at the outpost of Morgan the Axe, Cyborg Captain of the army of the Scientists. He was rather pleased with himself for finding such elusive mage thieves, especially ones that were so powerful. And the missing project had to be recovered for Crocodile's research plans. If they were ever going to invade Alabasta as planned, they would need the prototype for a super-soldier.

The gates to the outpost were quite menacing, all polished steel with jutting protrusions like the talons of eagles or dragons. He couldn't help but to shudder every time he entered but he soon forgot his problem as he saw a familiar blur of pink...

"Helmeppo! Where were you?" The smaller officer asked, leaning on his mop. The wet thing slipped from under him, however, causing him to fall into the bucket of soapy water at his feet. After finishing his fit of laughing, Helmeppo decided to explain.

"I was on assignment, Koby. You know, for my father. I found the Spies of Red-Haired Shanks the fire mage."

"R-really? Ar-re you sure it was them?" Koby got up and spluttered water, then proceeded to wring out his uniform.

"The figurehead of the crystal Hovership was a hawk, there was no mistaking it. Now, you be sure to mop that floor spotless or my father will be very angry with you."

Koby grumbled and continued his work as Helmeppo ascended the stairs to the lookout chamber of Morgan the Axe to report his findings. He reached the top at last, and strutted through the door. "Oh, father, you'll never believe what I found!"

"Hnn... What is it now?" A rough, basso voice inquired from behind the back of a turning throne, which now faced the window of the lookout.

"Shanks' spies, I found them!" He made sure to kneel quickly; his father was rather touchy about such things. "Eh— Great One."

"Good. You shall lead one of the troupes to annihilate the spies and bring me 7h-Tt. Dismissed."

"Me? Lead the raid? But father—"

"Dismissed, brat. Get going, that's an order."

"Yes fath— Great One." Helmeppo carefully rose and stalked swiftly and carefully out of the room.

Lunch at the spies' camp was extended through to dinner. Zoro watched with wonder and mild appreciation as Luffy ate plateful after plateful, one after another without rest.

"Where do you keep it all?" Kuina asked, flitting around the young man to see if he was hiding it all somewhere under his vest.

"In here!" He chirped, patting his belly. He let out a contented sigh and lifted himself up from the stool and walked to a scruffy-barked piñon tree and leaned against it. "I'm gonna' take a nap now, 'kay Zoro?"

"Yeah, go ahead." The swordsman thought about joining Luffy himself for a moment, all of that ale he drank was making him a little groggy, but he felt a light touch on his mind. It was Kuina.

"Hey, Shanks over there wants to talk to you. It's something about Luffy." Her ectoplasmic form shifted strangely in the firelight as she pointed to the head of the table. Zoro pushed himself out from the table and strode up to the Captain. He had his battered sun-hat perched on his head as if it was a crown, and he took puffs from an intricately carved wooden pipe.

"Hn? Kuina said you wanted to tell me something sir." He retied his headband again to prevent it from slipping as he spoke.

"Sit down, sit down. And call me Shanks." Zoro complied and pulled up a nearby chair, spinning it around backwards so that he could rest his arms on the back of it. Shanks continued, "Yes, I suppose since you are with us I should tell you what Luffy is." The use of the word "what" startled Zoro. "I was working in Fuchsia City as a scientist for a mission about ten years ago. I was to destroy a project to create a human through cloning. At first, I realized that the project was a total failure, none of the clones ever had a soul and they never had true life. I couldn't take it anymore, so I called my crew in and we trashed the place just after the head scientist for the sector pulled the switch to complete a clone. After I fought him, Ben picked the clone out of the glass... We named him Luffy, but the Scientists know him as project 7h-Tt.

"I still don't know why he ended up having a soul, but I think it has something to do with Gold Roger, who had similar beginnings. We haven't told Luffy yet, he still thinks we rescued him from an accident that his parents died in. The Scientists are searching for him now, and I can't let them have him. They'll treat him like a— An experiment. After ten years of living with that boy I can't let them do that."

Zoro was shocked, needless to say, but Shanks' next request explained why he had trusted the swordsman with such a secret. "You're a Guardian, right? If anything should happen, would you look after Luffy?"

"I will. I promise." Zoro offered his hand to the Captain of the spies and shook it. "I promise." After being with Luffy for just the afternoon had shown him what a good person he was. It didn't take him long to feel as Shanks did. The Scientists should not have him.

Shanks dumped the ash from his pipe and pulled out a packet of tobacco. He poured half the contents into the bowl of the pipe and stuck his finger in after it. A warm glow appeared around the rim, and smoke rose. "I'll hold you to your word." He said before he puffed on the pipe again.

Zoro's Guardianship would be tested sooner than he thought as the troupe of cyborgs marched towards the camp...