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[Dragon]

This is where it all starts... We begin the Rp in this thread. Here is the backstory... i'm going to wait to post 'til someone else does. Before you post, though, put up your Character Bio in the other info thread. Alright, let's get it started in here.

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In the beginning, all the 12 factions of the Zodiac, of course, lived in harmony. For centuries the 12 zodiac’s home world, Extoriem, was the model for peace for other worlds. No violence, no wars, not even a sadistic thought. One day the peace came to an end. Rumors without a known origin spread throughout the world; rumors of death and destruction, rumors of towns burning, rumors of an invisible menace terrorizing the once peaceful world.

Soon, suspicion arose in all the towns. Of course, everyone looked to the Rats as the starters of the rumors and as the scavengers they’d have the most to gain from the destruction of towns. For a while, the rats were treated like lowly beings not suitable to be alive on the earth. Eventually, the wisest of the rats stepped forwards and rationalized for the whole Rat race. “Rats might have had an amount to gain by the destruction of the towns, but they did not have the ability to destroy the towns. The Oxen are powerful enough to destroy all in their path. Why haven’t they been persecuted as we have?”

Obviously, the Oxen did not take to this in a receptive manner. While persecution might have turned towards the Oxen, they were not as defenseless as the Rats and met their persecution with violence. The first of all the strikes was blown from the Oxen towards the race of the Dragons. One wrong remark by a Rat had his head become a crater in the ground. A Dragon stepped forwards and saved the nearly dead Rat by setting the Ox ablaze. The instant the Ox threw the first blow, all persecution turned to that if the Ox was capable of such violence, it had to be them who were causing all the damage and destruction through the world.

Tempers flared everywhere as the news of the violence spread. All were outraged towards the Oxen but were still suspicious of everyone. Riots broke out, factions formed, and eventually everything escalated into all out assaults on other factions.

The world was cast into war. The Zodiac Wars had begun. Years had passed. The only people who could be trusted were the members of their own race. The races would walk around with part of their bodies transformed to prove their validity as part of their race.

There was to be one final battle. All gathered to destroy all remnants of the other races. A 12 way battle for life and for final peace. As the 12 gathered at their destination, the found a figure hovering over the horizon. He was at least 15 feet tall, black hair, golden plate armor, and even from the distance you could see the glow of his orange eyes. A dragon stepped forwards towards the figure.

“Are you friend or foe?” he spoke. The figure lifted his hand into the air as if to wave. For a second, all was united in this figures wave for what seemed like peace. But that second passed as the figure brought his hand down with unholy strength into the Dragon’s head, killing him instantly.

The Figure responded only with “I have come to claim all your powers. I have come to be catalyst for your world‘s Armageddon.” Realization quickly spread throughout the 12 Zodiac Factions. It was this figure that had started it all. This figure was the one who had destroyed the villages and started all the rumors. All rushed the figure but none of them, no matter how many, stood a chance. The figure had been leeching off of all the slain bodies from the battles past and was much more powerful than anticipated. Soon all of the factions had been wiped out but for the Dragons who had shifted completely to their Zodiac forms and taken to the air. When all but one was left the figure held it by the neck.
The Dragon simply laughed. “Your hope to wipe us all out has failed. You are a failure. There are still ones who could destroy you. But you’ll never find them. Each of the 12 factions have hidden away their chosen one and given them their quest. The one who is to carry on the race will find the Fabled temple of Extoriem and free us of you. You may kill us all but Zodiac Paradise will await us all when you are destr--.”

The figure narrowed his eyes, then tightened his grip and as the body of the last Dragon died, his essence was drawn into the figure. “More, he says. I will have to find these chosen ones and they shall find the wrath of Malik.”

[Pyro]

Slick, in the remnants of his town, fell to his knees and he could not stop staring at the rubble of his home. His body felt weathered, it had been bruised and beaten from rubble of towns that were destroyed. He was not sure whether or not his was the only one, but he knew for a fact that he was the only one to be alive in this town.

He stared at the doors of his house, finally pushing up to his feet and walking in. He felt cuts and bruises ache as he walked through the door, but he instantly pushed them from his mind and ran his hand across the wall. As he entered he saw the high ceiling, and the large entrance hall that lead to a set of large stairs. Slick was a descendant of one of the Elders, and his family was rich. The walls were beginning to crumble, and the roof had actually caved in slightly. The pillars to hold it up were cracked and looked like they were some kind of ruins that Slick felt he knew very well. His hand ran across the exterior and his fingers bent into the cracks and the chunks taken out of the pillar.

"What am I going to do now?" He asked himself walking around his house. He ascended the stairs and began to look around, his eyes moving between rooms and then finally he stopped in his tracks and felt he couldn't move. His head instantly spun away from the broken down door as he clenched his fists as tightly as possible. He was surprised his nails did not draw blood from the palms of his hands, and though he felt his heart rate double, he had to look.

There in the room, underneath the crumbled roof, lay a hand that pushed out with fingers flexed. Blood seeped through the floor, and obviously Slick realized. Mom... he thought as he entered the room and keeled down before the rubble. His eyes swelled with tears before they sprang forth in endless rivers on his face. His fists wrapped around the largest of the chunks of ceiling that had caved in, as he struggled and managed to lift it. That's when he realized it was not only his mother, but his father as well.

"You tried to save her." Slick clenched his eyes tightly and attempted to stop the tears, but they wouldn't. Finally Slick knelt down and lifted his arms above his head, slamming his fists down against the ground in sobs of anger. They were gone, his family, his friends, everybody. The council of the elders, they were all gone and they could not be brought back.

Slick stood up and stormed out of the room, back down the stairs and up the adjacent stairs. He was heading towards the opposite wing of the house, where he would find his room. As he bolted up towards it, he realized that the roof had caved in and blocked off a good portion of the way. He climbed up and began to move the rubble, though one last boulder he could not lift. Slick's body contorted as he fell forwards and his skin grew thick. The color changes as horns sprouted from his head, and now he had become the Ox. His back stood at 7'5", his own height. His horns ripped into the boulder as he shoved his head upwards and it rolled out of his way.

His hooves clicked against the floor, and he charged forwards while attempting to gain speed and slid in a turn. As he slid he transformed, standing up and stopping no more then a centimeter from the wall. His shoulders no longer arched as he threw them forwards and backwards continuing to make his way to his room.

It look almost untouched. Somebody had missed him, and they had had to miss him on purpose. The town was not in complete rubble, though it seemed to be destroyed, closest to where the bodies were. Somebody knew what they were doing, and Slick realized that he was not supposed to die with the rest of the town. He was destined to live.

He went into his dresser and pulled out the leather he wrapped around his horns while playing shooball and wrapped it around his left wrist. It didn't go that far up, though it was much thicker then his skin. He stood up and looked around the room, walking over and pulling his weight lifting gloves on before he grabbed the necklace he had been working on. Making his way back to his parent's now grave, he reached into his father's destroyed body, and pulled out a bone that belonged to his finger.

Several hours passed as Slick worked on the bone, carving with a penknife a perfect hole through one end and lacing it on the chain. He now had a bone from every zodiac sign, and as he strapped it around his neck he stood up and turned, ready to leave his house.

"I will find those who lived." Slick growled, as he pushed his way through the doors of his former home. "If I am alive, other must be. I cannot be the only one." With that, he shifted back into his Ox form, and began to charge forwards through the town. He would go to the other towns. There HAD to be people there, he could not be the last one on the planet... Could he?

[Rani Lilith]

Huge paws hit the ground, as a tiger ran, as fast as it could through the thick forest that stood on much of it's town. She could smell it, the smoke, something was burning, something big. Finally the tiger burst through the thick forest, and was instantly hit by the sight of flames, and the terrible stench of smoke.

Shifting back to her normal form, Rani stood there, just staring. The simple sight of seeing one single house in her town, hurt her, seeing the whole town fall to pieces by a hot blazing fired, killed her inside. It was at that moment, that her eyes turned red-orange. "We need to get revenge.. Theres no point in letting whoever did this get away with it!" Rani didnt pay any attention, her mind was blank.

Yang came out, her eyes turning a gentle golden color, "Why kill someone? For all we know this could of been an accident, a fire getting out of control.." An accident..an accident like this never happens in this town... With a small sigh, she stood up, and slowly walked through her town, letting the two sides of her bicker, and argue, while her eyes constantly changed. Yin talked of getting revenge, laughing at the sight before her, while Yang, made up excuses, and kept saying how terrible the burning town was. Rani finally blocked them out, she couldnt take it.

Turning into full tiger form, Rani ran as fast as possible to her house, the only house that was completley down. Shifting back to her human form, she stared at the house. It was the worst house there, nothing of it stood, not even a single piece of wood. She looked down at the other houses, and noted that even though some where down, they all werent completley down. Someone did this purposley, she knew it, could feel it.

Rani walked up to a hill that overlooked the town. Sitting down, she simply sat there, watching as the town crumbled away to ash. The sky was beginning to turn a mix of oranges, purples, pinks, and blues as the sun began to set. Stars started to glitter in the sky, as the fire died away slowly. Rani just stared, not moving a single muscle, while listening to her two sides fight inside her mind.

"I need sleep!" She yelled to the two, before she layed back, her black and orange hair sprawling out underneath her head. Instantly the Yin and Yang inside of her quieted down, a few bickering words were said here and there, but not enough to keep Rani awake.

[Dragon]

OOC: For the record for this rp... i ONLY have the goal planned out and how it's going to end. As for the rest of it... i don't do the whole... i've got plot points and shit for how this is going to go. I support everyone doing plot advancement and any ideas you wanna throw in there, twists and turns and shit, i'm fine with. JUST REMEMBER that we are the only people left on the planet aside from actual animals that don't have the ability to shape shift or anything, they're just normal animals for the carnivores to eat. Alrighty... here's my first post.

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On the first night i heard the screaming of the people outside in my village. The rats were all too loyal to each other to tell their attacker where i was. I listened as all i knew was destroyed, as the final gasp of life left the last person's mouth.

I mused to myself "Well... there goes the neighborhood." I had to make the joke. It was sick but it was all i could do to keep myself company and to deal with whatever the hell i'm supposed to be doing.

I took a look at the food supply that i had already delved into and my face fell. "This is not going to last me 4 days like that guy told me it would."

Around the afternoon on the second day in my Ceremonial Cave i was reduced to mere boredom and hunger, laying on my back trying to find pictures in the contours of the rocks in ceiling of the cave.

At night during my second day in the cave, i completely ran out of food. I had eaten a 4 day supply of food in 2 days. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ME!?

When the third day rolled around, i was laying on my back with my stomach growling exclaiming "I'M HUNGRY!!! I ATE ALL THE FOOD! IT'S GONE!!! *sobs things incoherently* FOOOOOOOD!!!"

It was at that moment of low-ness that i decided that even though i hadn't tried something as big as this, i was going to try to use my power on the door to make it spring to life and let me out into the air where i could finally get sustenance and start my "quest" that i was sent out on.

I stood up, clapped my hands and rubbed them together. I gathered all my energy and a grayish aura started emminating from my hands, making a sphere around them. I brought my hands apart and spread my arms out to stretch out on either side of me and thrust them forwards in the direction of the stone door that kept me in. The grayish light shot forwards and started to engulf the stone door until it covered the entire thing. The door emminated gray light until it sank into it and the door sprang to life. I concentrated on the door hobbling itself out of my way and as i pictured it in my head, it moved accordingly.

The door was finally completely out of my way and i let loose it's reanimation and it collapsed to the ground. The grayish light dispersed from the door and quickly disappeared into thin air. I took a few steps towards freedom and the sunlight, and realized how much that took out of me and stumbled forwards and tripped to land flat on my face in the grass.

After about 10 minutes or so, i regained enough energy to stand back up and take a look at my... well... FORMER village. Everything was torn down, bodies littered the streets. Blood painted the walls. And there was still a stench of danger that filled the air.

"I can hardly believe that this was once the place I grew up." I paused and let everything sink in. "Well i guess it's time to pay my last respects, salvage what i can from this place and then be on my way." I headed towards my village, uttering apologies to the corpses i passed but ultimately with my mind on the goal. No idea how the hell to get there... but the point is... i know my goal.

[Twilight]

In the grassy fields of a small village, a young girl sat on one of the small hills and watched the wild horses run free, graze, and other things.

'Those horses...so lively and healthy..nothing at all...like me..' the girl thought, her light blonde half of her face.

Many people never knew this, but this petite girl had a special power in her frail body. She was the Zodiac Sign of the Horse, and had the power of healing.


Her name was Amy.

Amy glanced at the horses one more time before turning back around and heading toward the shed to complete her chores.

'I wish I could be able to spend my time running with those majestic horses...but no..Just a same, ordinary day doing chores..' Amy daydreamed.

What she didn't know was that this wasn't going to be an ordinary day...and that in less then a hour, her life would change...

((^^U Sorry, brains not working today. Umm..okay, I'm going to sound stupid but...is it okay that I have an original character? If it's okay, is it fine that he's the same Zodiac sign as Amy, or should he have another sign? Sorry for being so confused. ^^;;; Next~!))

[Dragon]

OOC: i don't know if the rules say that i'm not allowed to say that you CAN'T have a friend....

BUT... the way i set up the rp... is that everyone except Malik and the others who are in the rp are the only ones left a live, really... there may be some native tribes left over that may show up later on but that's all... i'm sorry Twilight... but the way i set it up makes it only us

[Dragon]

I travled non-stop for three days straight in a random direction. Without knowing where i was going i pretty much could only guess a way to go and just follow through with it. Walking out of town was one of the most scarring things that i've ever had to go through; seeing everyone slaughtered. My friends... my family.... my acquaintences.... my barber. It was horrible.

Through the three days i came upon the villages of seperate tribes. It seemed as if the Dragons, Pigs, Rooster and Sheep had all been completely obliterated. No "chosen one" to carry on their legacy and revive their race. But who knows, maybe just by making it to the Temple of Extoriem, we could revive everyone and not just our own tribes.

On the third or so day, i made it to a Tiger tribe village. I transformed my ears to my rat ears so that i could hear anything that planned on sneaking up on me. It sucked just as much to see all the Tigers maimed. Tigers were always a more respected race. They knew balance better than anyone else and knew how to keep it. The Tigers also helped out the Rat Race during the Zodiac Wars when we were in times of need. But mainly because we were fighting their enemies. In a time of war people usually take up the phrase "The Enemy of my Enemy is my friend."

I walked aimlessly through the village looking in houses and shops for actual food that i could eat. Afterall, the Tiger's weren't going to be eating it anymore. Just as i had about made it through the entire village and lost hope of finding anyone alive, my ears picked up a noise. I froze in place for a second so that i could see if it happened again to make sure i wasn't just hearing things. I heard a rustle behind me again.

I turned. "H-... Hello?" I moved towards where i heard the noise slowly and on guard. It came from between two houses where there was tall grass in between. I leaned in close to investigate the noise when it stopped.

I leaned in just a bit closer and out of the brush a body lauched itself at me and pushed me backwards towards the ground. I saw claws swing at my head and dodged just in time for the claws to slice the ground. I used my feet to flip the body off of me and rolled onto my feet.

I stared at the figure that had attacked me. Her red-orange eyes were piercing right into my own eyes. If i didn't know any better, i'd think this girl was possessed by the devil. Despite her initial attack i found myself staring a the rest of this girl's body. She had a pretty nice body that was covered by a relatively tight orange t-shirt, and dark blue jeans. Her black hair with red and orange highlights went to mid back.

Just as i finished staring up and down at this girl, i noticed her once again start an assault but half way towards me, her eyes turned golden.

"No, i can smell fear on this one. He means us no harm." a gentle voice spoke.
The red eyes surfaced again. "He's an outsider, who's to say he didn't kill everyone we know and burn down our village."
Golden "He's a rat, he couldn't have done this alone, you know that."
A new color eyes showed up, brown, and an even, level voice spoke to me now. "You can calm down, i'm not going to attack you."
Red "Says you."
Brown "What are you doing here?"

"I'm just looking for some food while on my quest." i said shakily.

"Your quest?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm heading towards the Temple of Extoriem."

"But that's only a fairy tale. It doesn't exist." she told me skeptically.

"Well, most likely. But everyone's dead. What've i got to lose. Nothin left to live for, ya know. I was told the fairy tale too. You go there when your race is in dire need. A miracle happens. The world is right again." I recited in sparknotes form the fairy tale that was told to my race. "I figure, if i could get to the temple, i could try to bring back my race."

The girl took a moment to think about what i was saying. "I'm Rani. I think i'll come with you."

"Hi," i said reaching forwards, leaned in and kissed her hand. She merely raised an eyebrow at me. "I'm Dante. And i'd be happy to have you accompany me on my quest.... as long as you don't try to eat me again."

"Deal." She said and smiled.

[Skid]

Skid slinked from building to building in his town, looking for survivors. He duck his head into each building he came by, "Helllooooo...?!" He yelled, no response. He slinked to the next, same results, and the next... same results. It went on and on, and Skid expected no less.

He finally began to just loot the town for whatever supplies he could use. Obviously there was no point in sticking around here. He had no relatives and most of the town didn't like him because of his posture and attitude. The dead bodies were a bit disturbing, but largely Skid got over it.

He swayed from side to side as he went down aisles. Grabbed a bag here, some cans of food there, a few survival tools there. He swayed a little more violently as he tripped over a dead body, but kept his balance easily enough. He wanted to get to the shelf with the large atlas he could use to travel with. No telling how handy that might be.

Skid rolled a body over with his foot, and casually yanked the book off the shelf now that he could stand in his blood soaked spot below it. Skid thumbed through the pages, looking for the nearest village. "Hmmm... Oxen... Surely a village with that kind of people would fare a little better?" Skid said dully, licking his lips as he though aloud. "No... No one survived this. The orphanage was reduced to dust by the end of all this, I don't care how strong they were... That kind of power could easily kill an Oxen efficiently." Skid's lips closed as his tongue returned, and he slammed the book shut as he tucked it away.

"Time to find a temple..." Skid said casually, stroking his jet black hair back and out of his eyes as he slinked out of the shop. Skid then returned to the orphanage, and looked about the orphanage. He eventually came upon the body of his bully, the one who would torment him and everyone that would ever come close to him. Skid poked him with the tip of his shoe a few times before shrugging his shoulders and moving on. "What a bother."

Skid eventually found the whereabouts of where his bed would have been. He examined the rubble, and turned into his snake form. He slithered underneath the rubble, and came back out with his sack of clothing. He shifted back, and stored that away in his bag too.

Skid moved along, heading directly for the gate out of town. He passed by many familiar places, and none of them pulled a heart string. Nothing very depressing about this scene, its not like he had love for this place. Skid tripped over another dead body. "Oops... Sorry." Skid said apologetically, and made his way out the gate and into the big wide world.

((OOC: Short but to the point... Just keep in mind Skid is a wierdo and you can pretty much figure out what he'll do during what.))

[Pyro]

Slick stomped forwards, still charging ever since the Oxen village. He wasn't quite sure where he was going, but he never did worry about the future. Live for the moment, fuck everything else. Great motto he liked to live by, though he did feel slightly lonely given he was the only one on the earth left. Finally his charge eased down and he stood still, looking around for any type of life. A few animals running around, they weren't important. The world seemed desolate and his entire being seemed like it was slowly giving up hope.

No, Slick yelled at himself shaking his head while snorting. there are more... There's got to be. He snorted a very vicious snort and began to stomp his way through the forest that surrounded the Oxen village. As he ran a very large tree stood in front of him, his horns digging into the tree as he threw his head up, ripping the tree from the ground with much resistance.

He needed to start working out more, there had to be something more he could do to make himself stronger. Slick snorted and gave out a huge stomp with the back of his hoof. He dropped his head and ran forwards, watching only the ground directly in front of him as he charged, though on the side of him he could see houses shoot by as he ran. The snake village, he was coming closer to the entrance as he slammed his hooves against the ground, sliding at what he saw ahead of him.

His body contorted as his hooves shifted back to hands and his legs pulled him straight up. He side stepped and spun, his heels digging into the ground as he slammed his fist to the ground as well to stop his momentum. It shifted and he soon stopped, standing straight up and cracking his spine. Rolling his shoulders they cracked as well before Slick then turned his head cracking his neck.

"There's somebody else alive?" the man screamed.

"Yeah, this somebody's got a name ya know." Slick replied.

"What might it be?" He asked, flicking his tongue out. He was obviously part of the snake village given his tongue was forked.

"It's Slick, and yours?" Slick asked.

"It's Skid, Skid Marks." Skid extended a hand strangely. Slick reached out as Skid pulled it away laughing slightly and then patting him on the arm.

"Sure, that works."

"What kinda name is Slick?"

"What kinda name is Skid?"

"Good point..." Skid said placing his hand on the side of his head and pondering. "I KNOW! It's snake-ish-ian...." The silence that followed was weird as Slick and Skid both burst out laughing.

"The hell is wrong with you?" Slick asked through his laughs.

"I don't really know," Skid said. "This is just how I am."

"I know, I was joking." Slick replied.

For the next hour the retold their stories, going over what happened when they found out they were the last of their kind. Each told the story of what they did, what they felt and how the acted. Skid obviously was much more calm then Slick, but Slick realized Skid didn't seem to take it as hard as he did. Whether or not he did, he didn't show it. Slick admired that about him, and that is one reason he stuck with him, asides for the fact that they had to work together.

"So do you think anybody else is alive?" Skid asked.

"I don't know," Slick replied. "I just hope the rats died."

"Why?" Skid asked.

"They blamed us for the war," Slick replied. "I hope every last one of them died."

[Rani Lilith]

Rani simply stared at the stranger before her. Tilting her head to the side,her eyes rapidly changed from red, brown, to gold, as each side of her looked him over. Yang felt the need to give this guy a chance, a complete stranger, while Yin, wanted to abandon him, never let the guy follow them, the works. Rani herself, did neither, she never started trusting him, nor did she leave him to be.

Her steps where light, graceful as the two started walking, where to, Rani didnt know. The forest that surrounded them was simply quiet, not a sound was made, other than the stranger's footsteps. Rani's was quiet, living in the woods for so long teaches you how to be quiet.

"So a tiger eh..?" Dante said, trying to strike up a conversation. Rani simply looked at him, and raised another eyebrow, as her eyes turned from golden, to red, to brown once more. Shrugging lightly, she stared ahead. How empty the forest seemed, so much larger now that the place was completely empty.

Rani frowned, as her sides began to talk to her inside her mind. Rolling her eyes, she did her best to block them out. The two teamed up, and forced that block down, until they were certain that Rani wouldnt do it again.

Why are you letting him come and join us? For all we know, he could be a liar, kill you when you arent looking. Yin's nasty sneer sounded into her brain. With a small, almost inaudible sigh, Rani shook her head slightly.

We dont know that. Give him a chance, youll never know unless you try. Rani thought this over to herself, not letting the two sides of her interfere with her thought process. Yang was right, but on the other hand, so was Yin. A groan escaped her lips, as she turned around to face Dante. He stopped dead in his tracks, and gave her a confused smile.

"Ill be back.." Rani mumbled gently, until she turned into her full tiger form. Orange, black, and white fur shimmered in the sun light that peeked its way through the tree tops. Her paws pounded against the earth floor, as Rani ran as fast as she could so her two sides could go at it all they wanted. Once she figured she was far enough from the stranger, Rani closed her eyes and concentrated. She could feel her mind splitting, than her body, and in an instant, there were two of her. The one with the red eyes, Yin, smirked as she knelt down, putting her hands to the ground. Yang, her golden eyes glistening joyously, did the same. Both stood up at the same time, light surrounding Yang, dark surrounding Yin.

It was rare when Rani let the two fight, but in her mind she could feel the tension growing between the two. Whenever this happened, she would split, and let the two fight it out, argue it out, whatever, until the tension was gone. In that instant, the two sides lunged at each other.

[Dragon]

I laid down on my back for about 10 minutes hearing random screams every once in a while. I once had a Tiger acquaintance who'd do this same thing. He told me that he needed to relieve tension in his head so he'd seclude himself for a while. He never, however, told me how he did it. Usually i just sleep for a while and my tension is gone. Apparently it was different for the tigers. And i learned this when i suggested a good nap to him and got slapped in the back of the head.

I decided it was about time to figure out how exactly the race of Tigers relieved the tension that constantly built up in their heads.

Walking over to where the sounds of connecting flesh originated, i noticed the occassional screams of pain grow louder until i found where i apparently stepped into the middle of a full on charge between...

Wait.... two? people.
Wait.... two of the same people?....
Wait.... two of the same people?.... who happen to be my new accomplice Rani....

Then it hit me, no not the realization that the Tiger race can split themselves into two entities. What DID hit me was a punch to the face and the leg sweep that landed simultaneously, meant for each side of Rani. I did two complete backflips in mid air and came around and landed on my stomach.

NOW that i wasn't being double teamed, it dawned on me that the Tigers could split into two separate entities. I let out a moan of pain and spat some blood out to the side. The Yin side was laughing at the effect the dual attacks had on me while the Yang side was kneeling next to me, apologizing profusely.

I got up and smiled, still some blood on a couple of my teeth and started laughing a bit. "As fun as that was, let's not do that again." The two sides melded back into one entity.

"Well as a positive side to this. Both my Yin and Yang are satisfied now. Yin's happy that she got to hit someone and Yang is happy that you're alright." Rani mused.

"Haha... well i'm always willing to sacrifice my own body to satisfy a friend... err... friends... You know what i mean." I stood up, wiping my hands on my pant legs. "I suppose we should get going, now. Who knows how long it'll take us to find this Temple."

We started heading off towards the direction of the Ox village. I stopped for a second "I-......I don't think that we should be going to the Ox Village."

"Why not?" she turned around to face me, curious.

"Well... my ancestors blamed the Ox for the war... ever since then, our races never really got along. They kind of hate us..... a lot.... A LOT." I said kind of laughing at the end.

She didn't even crack a smile "Well then we can head to the snake Village, it's just a bit to the east of the Ox Village."

"Sounds like a plan to me." i agreed.

[Skid]

Skid moved around in a way only he could, checking every nook and cranny he could to find his prey. Slick watched amused, oddly on the edge of his seat to see how many he could catch. "11!" Skid darted on top of his scurring prey, and dropped another dead mouse into his sack. "Actually, thats the 6th mouse, the other 5 were rats." He chewed on the tip of his thumb, looking for more possible hiding places.

"And what are you going to do with all of these rodents?" Slick laughed, amused by this merry little Snake game. Like his Ox village, the Snake's seemed to have their own way of amusing themselves.

"Eat them of course!" Skid hissed excitedly, his eyes glowing with a certain devilish(yer child-like) joy.

"Ew... Why would you put that filthy thing in your mouth?" Slick made a face, not completely freaked out but slightly churned in the stomach.

Before Slick even knew it, his snake friend stood only inches away and was holding a live mouse to his face. "12!" Skid exclaimed, proud of himself. "They taste like chicken, you sure you don't want to try?"

"I'll pass." Slick waved Skid's hand away, and he soon dropped it in the sack with the rest of the little buggers. "Did you hear that?"

"Was it a mouse?" Skid's eyes widened, looking around.

"No... voices..." Tyson ran powerfully to a nearby bush, and pushed it aside with one mighty arm. He broke into an alternate path, scaring the bejesus out of a man and a woman.

Skid slinked onto the scene, seeing Slick stare down at a man while a woman just stood off to the side. "I was hoping one of you didn't survive." Slick snorted, steam seeming to come out of his nostrils.

"Can't say I'm sorry to disappoint you." The man grinned, almost mocking the giant man.

"13!" Skid exclaimed, holding up the biggest rat of the bunch, and effectively breaking some of the tension in the air.

"Let's go Skid, we don't really have much business here." Slick sighed, turning his back to the newly discovered Rat and his friend.

Skid approached the two new people, and offered to share his sack. "You guys hungry? I swear, once you get past the rodent thing, its just like eating crunchy chicken nuggets after you cook them."

Slick went a little ways away, leaving the others to talk. He obviously wanted nothing to do with the Rat. "Err... That's alright, I'd feel a little wierd eating my own zodiac animal, you get the picture." Dante simpered. "My name is Dante." He introduced himself, holding out his hand.

"Skid." Skid reached out his hand, grasping it and shaking it in a sort of wavy boneless way.

"And this is Rani, shes kind of quiet." Dante gestured to his friend, "She's a tiger... the zodiac I mean."

Skid chuckled, and shook her hand as well. "Do YOU want some?"

"... No thank you..."

"... Oh well, more for me." Skid shrugged, unceremoniously popping a live one in his mouth and swallowing it whole.

[Pyro]

Slick slowly began to turn back around, seeing Skid talking to the people they had met. Tigers aren't bad, Slick thought but I can't stand rats.... As he stood there, he clenched his fists, swallowed his pride, and then turned around. His stubborn ways got him into trouble sometimes, but he knew this time around he had to go with whoever was alive, if that meant teaming with a rat, it was something he would be forced to do.

"You guys lived?" Slick asked, approaching the group.

"Well obviously we lived stupid," The rat spoke out.

"It's not a good time to mock me," Slick replied. "I am not an enemy you want."

"Don't threaten me!" The rat yelled back. "You're an OX, you blamed US!"

"I did NOTHING to you!" Slick hollered back, his body pushing up against that of the rat's. "If I had done anything to you, you would know."

"Leave it to an Ox to bring strength into this!" The rat spat out before turning around.

"Leave it to a rat to crawl away from a battle." Slick was aware that rats had the power of reanimation, meaning they could make things jump alive and do their bidding for them. The Oxen found this a disgrace, because they used the power of other things to do their bidding for them.

"I'm Skid!" Skid spat with a large smile on his face. Slick only laughed, shaking his head and then looking to the ground with the large smile etched across his face. "Skid Marks, that's me."

"I'm aware," Slick laughed.

"What's yoooooooooour name?" Skid asked the Tiger.

"I'm Rani," the tiger said. Slick looked to all of them, and stopped on the rat. He only stared back, refusing to budge.

"Are you going to tell us your name?" He asked bitterly.

"My name is Tyson Phillips," Slick said, telling them his real name. "They call me slick." With that he morphed onto all fours, his body turning into the huge magnificent Ox he loved to be. Skid switched to his snake form, slithering up Tyson's leg and wrapped around his horns. A six foot snake on a seven foot Ox, they would scare the hell out of people if they were left.

[Ryu-gemini]

Food? Where's the food? My stomach screamed at me as I kicked over another brick. My town was filled with all sorts of bakeries and resturants. Where'd the food goooooo? I rubbed my stomach and whined. A small critter scurried along the ground with a piece of bread in it's mouth.

"Hey..." I said, taking a step forward, "HEEEY!!! WHERE'D YOU GET THAAAAAAT!?" I tripped over my own foot and fell over.

I layed there for a while. Face down in the ground. If someone where to walk by they'd think I was just some dead person lying on the dirty ground. But soon a low growl emmited from me.

"rrrr....RRRAAAAAAH!" I errupted, going into a fit, "NO FAIR!! NOFAIRNOFAIRNOFAAAAIIIR!!!!" I banged my hands and feet on the ground " I'M FRIGGIN' HUNGRY!!!! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAH-HAAAA!!"

As suddenly as I had started screaming, I stopped and became a dead person again. Just lying there. Then I threw a fit again, then stopped, then threw another, then stopped. This time I rolled onto my back and sat up.

"No food here... I should go to another ... 'town' " I stood up and dusted myself off and tightened the cloth around my neck. I hopped up and down a few times and stretched my legs. Then I zoomed off in search of another town.

I visited two more destroyed towns with no results. My frustration was building. I tapped my foot and huffed a bit, "Did everyone just decide to have a great big feast before they died?!!" I kicked a plank of wood and growled.

I heard voices behind me and turned around. People? Alive? I scurried around in search of the people and soon came apon an odd looking group, with an Ox and a Snake. I frowned. Different Zodiac? I snuck up behind them. But I was noticed..

"Who are you?" A man spoke up.

"Uh! Me? Well I'm just, you know a hungry lil passer by so I guess I should get going now so if you'll just excuse meee. " I took a step away slowly with a nervous smile. New people made me jumpy.

"Wait!" The snake changed into his human form and waved his arms, "You said you're hungry??" He asked.

I stayed silent for a moment and nodded, I opened my mouth to say something but then my stomach growled loudly. I squeaked, "Gimmee foooooood." I whined.

"You wanna mouse? They're quite tastey." The snake grinned holding up a wiggling sack.

[Rani Lilith]

Rani stared at the new comers, her eyes changing simutanuously from red, gold, and brown. Her thoughts were empty, no fighting, no talking, just silence. The three sides of her, Yin, Yang, and herself, stayed silent, as they all examined each person.

The girl that had just arrived surprised her. She was amazed at how, hyper she was. Rani thought for a moment, thinking if hyper was even the right word to describe it. Shaking her head she sighed, so softly that only she could hear it.

Can we trust these people...? Yang asked softly. It was rare when she thought this. That side was the one that was always willing to give people a chance.

Hard to say... Yin's voice was actually civilized, normal. These type of conversations, the kind where no arguing happened, where everything was calm in her mind, was Rani's favorite. Tilting her head, she let herself get a good look at the people before her.

The man that called himself Tyson stood tall, looked harsh and hot headed. The other one next to him, the snake, tall, skinny. Shaking her head, she turned her head to the girl that just appeared out of no where. Short girl, filled with energy.

Stay close to Dante.. even if we dont trust him completley.. he still has atleast a little bit of it.. Yin's currently calm voice sounded in Rani's mind. Taking a small graceful step closer, she stood at Dante's back, not to close, a few feet or so away. The wind began to pick up, blowing her black hair, with a few orange red strands into her face.

Not saying a word, she simply watched, and absorbed the information that left the strangers' lips. In her own mind she was having a conversation.

The one that calls himself Skid.. he amuses me.. Yang's voice became childish suddenly. Rani raised an eyebrow before rolling her eyes.

That could all change in a heartbeat if we dont watch out.. Yin's voice instantly became nasty once more. Rani reached out and touched Dante's shoulder gently. He turned around, and she let their eyes connect. Brown instantly turned to red, as Rani let Yin take over.

"I say we take out everyone and just make a run for it.. " A smirk played its was across her lips, before her eyes turned back to brown. "No.. Can we trust them..?" Rani herself asked Dante.

All she got was a simple shrug, before she let her thoughts wounder even more into the subject.