Rani Konohi

Rani is the main female protagonist of the series and ally of Jae Park . It is revealed in the first novel that she is a child of the zodiac born in the year of the Metal Dragon.

After her mother's suicide, Rani becomes a street fighter in New York, testing newly developed weaponry, in order to survive. Therefore she's exceptionally familiar with the ins and outs, secrets, blackmarket, etc. of the city, making her a valuable ally to Jae.

She is first introduced while Jae is taking out the trash in an alleyway, where she first proposes an alliance between them. Despite his initial refusal, Rani later convinces him to meet her at a local club, where she rescues him from smugglers (granite, being the one to get him into that situation). She explains what they are (children of the zodiac) and what the race is, mystified by how he couldn't know this. They soon after agree to become allies.

Appearance
Rani's hair is black and wavy, cut into a messy inverted bob at her shoulders with teal highlights and side bangs.This prevents her hair from being pulled in fights. Her skin is also a medium tan tone, reminding Jae of smooth caramel. The most noticeable thing about her is probably her golden eyes, which are said to shine so bright that they pierce even the darkest of nights. Many say that one look from her and it's as if she's literally peering into your soul, figuring out what's the best way to kill you.

She is of average height, but street fighting has given her a strong, toned, and lean body. On her left arm is the mark of the metal dragon, silver and twirling from her wrist all the way up to her shoulder.

Style
Rani is fond of the grunge look, usually wearing "bad girl/tomboy" style clothing. In the beginninng of the story, she is described as wearing a dark denim jacket with a black hood, a tight teal tanktop, and black ripped short shorts. It's soon made clear in the series that she prefers to wear crop tops, shorts or ripped jeans, dark clothing, motor jackets, graphic tees, combat boots, anything with spikes or studs, etc. Giving her a delinquent vibe, which is the right thing to believe.

She has an immense amount of peircings all over her body, ranging from her eyebrow to her hip. However, she alternates between which ones to wear, and only has one tattoo on her ankle (not including her zodiac mark.) Though, chokers and studded bracelets are probably her favorite accessory. One more thing to add is that although she typically wears little makeup, as she doesn't have time for it and neither does she really care if people find her attractive, she'll oblige to putting on black mascara and a thin line of eyeliner, along with chapstick. However, when the occasion calls (i.e. going to a party,) she's often seen with heavier makeup, such as a smokey eye and dark lip. All of these things added together, and it's understandable why a majority of people are intimidated by Rani, and to steer clear of her.

Personality
She is first described as being shady, untrustworthy, and a typical bad girl by Jae. This is probably due to her appearance and the fact that she drinks, smokes, and is a regular party-goer (she does these things to try and drown out the monster inside her.) Rani emits a strong and intimidating outer-persona, which has a tendency to push people away. Her mere presence has the power to cool conflicts, such as a bar fight. To others she is insensitive, arrogant, and manipulative. And on many accounts, Rani has gotten Jae into an immense amount of trouble (being drugged, attacked, etc.) without any sign of remorse.

Yet despite her heartless depiction, it's right to believe that, that is just a way to shut others out. She has shown signs of being sacrificial by forcing Jae to buy her Mcdonald's, and turning around to give it to a homeless man. Not to mention that she is protective and cares deeply for the ones she loves to the point of sacrificing herself, and will even give up their trust and love for her if she knows that it will be for the greater good. Ironically so though, as long as she knows that the people close to her will not be severly damaged, she'll put them in dangerous situations to get closer to the prize.

Rani doesn't bode well with being told what to do, and is perfectly okay with doing things on her own. She has the mind set of "if you want things done right, do it yourself." She can be idealistic and overconfident in her abilities, which are outstanding, but relying too much on herself causes her to get into hazardous situations she can't get out of on her own. It's hard for her to trust others and because of this, her pride can get in the way of asking for help. However, when she finally realizes that she needs help, she is a leader (though, not a very popular one) and knows how to get people moving. She is commanding, bossy, and will beat people out of their daze and into reality. Plus, she is an expert in knowing how to force them into listening to her orders. Though, her harsh methods are used in the best interest of everyone, it's obvious as to why people don't always see her in the best light. She can also be a bit hypocritical, setting rules for others that apparently, don't always apply to her. For example, telling Jae that he shouldn't drink any of the club's beverages, and then went and drank a beer from the pub. Yet, it's usually for a good cause, even though it's hard to tell. It could be that she's just messing with people.

Rani can charm the pants off of anyone when she wants to, in order to get what she wants. When she acts like this, she is seemingly optimistic and extroverted, which is true (well at least the extroverted part is), but unlike her outlook on the world. Rani sees the world as a cruel and heartless place, where casualties and making sacrifices are only "how things are." Because of this, she tends to keep her emotions on a tight lock and trust her own judgement more than that of others, sometimes blatantly ignoring the advice they give her. Rarely does she genuinely laugh, and some of the scarce times she does, it is malicious and at the misfortune of others. This is probably due to the Nian inside her. Despite her mistrust in others leading her to rely on her own judgement, and thus sometimes making the wrong decision, Rani has proven resilient. She is able to remain strong against whatever life throws her way. Yet, it is also ironic how she can be quite gullible. Rani often believes ludicrous things that people tell her, and can fall for obvious schemes and traps. Fortunately though, she usually remains unscathed thanks to her uncanny luck.

Another misconception people often make about her, is Rani's nonchalant demeanor. She may seem as though she cares about nothing other than herself, but deep down, Rani yearns for acceptance. This is reinforced by Rani always wanting to please her parents, no matter how badly they may have hurt her. She also tends to shift all the blame on to herself when things go wrong, leading her to push others away out of the fear that she will harm them, At times, Rani can come off as lazy, but is usually depicted as having bags under her eyes. These are from nights spent tirelessly working towards her goal, and believe it or not, for the benefit of others. She is a fighter and once she has something to strive for, she will do everything in her power to accomplish that goal. She is a go-getter, being able to make things happen, and always seems to know what to do in every situation. Rani is a courageous and asserive woman, who will defend her strong morals and opinions, even if people don't agree with her. Yet, she can also have a loss of faith in others and the world; even questioning herself.

There is no doubt that Rani is an intelligent young lady, who is quiet when deep in thought. However, she gives the impression of always having calculated movements, when in reality, she's really just impulsive. Sometimes, she moves without thinking, especially if betrayed or deceived, leaving all reason out the door.

Rani enjoys having many lovers, and often flits from one to the other, unable to stay tied down in one place. However, when she really loves and cares about someone, she is unbelievably loyal, generous, passionate, protective, and caring towards them. Though, she's not very voluble about her emotions, and prefers to show her feelings through her actions.

Background


Rani is polynesian, and grew up in Hawaii. When she was young, she grew up in a loving home with 2 parents and a younger brother. However, at the age of six, her powers were activated. If it were merely her powers, her parents might have been able to handle it, but it’s the specialty of the metal dragon that led her to being abused the way she was. The metal dragon is arguably the most powerful sign of the entire zodiac. Thus with great power, comes great responsibility. For some reason, the dragon that used to terrorize chinese villages every new year, called a Nian, has been locked inside the metal dragon, and threatens to leak out. They are total killing machines, where barely anything can stop them. It’s thoughts often invade hers, which can lead the metal dragon to total insanity, trying to suppress it. Murderous and malicious thoughts that she can't escape from, and something only she can hear. Despite her being able to hold back the Nian's viciousness now, when she was first gifted with the responsibility of the metal dragon, she couldn’t control it. And so, although she wasn't the one who actually killed her younger brother, she's the reason behind it. She and her brother were playing together, when a game of tag lead them to escape their parents' sight. At that moment, as she chased her younger sibling, the Nian's curse struck. She went after her brother viciously, leading him into an accident that took his life. When their parents finally found them, they suspected nothing as they had no knowledge of the tragedy that had occured. Yet upon the dicovery of their dead child, Rani's parents immediately became frantic, hoping that what they thought happened was a simple prank. However, Rani showed no remorse as she told them their son was dead. When they asked what happened, she told them bluntly and without any emotion. She asked why they were so upset, and explained that Ryan (her brother) was in a better place now.

Grief stricken and in shock, they sent Rani to a psychiatrist. However, at this point the nian's spirit had retreated back into Rani, leaving nothing but a scared and confused girl. She told the doctor that she didn't remember anything. The psychiatrist advised more appointments, and so Rani began to have frequent visits from the therapist. Rani told the woman of the thoughts she had started to hear, and how she couldn't sleep because of them. She explained how sometimes she was scared of herself because she had urges to hurt innocent people. Rani was diagnosed as a psycho with insomnia.

The prescription pills never worked, and Her parents only grew more and more afraid of their own daughter. Upon discovering the dragon's mark and Rani's ability of metal manipulation, they snapped. Up until then, they had tried their hardest to be kind and support their only live child, but now they had officially deemed Rani as a monster from Hell. The Konohi's resorted to abusing her and rarely fed her, they treated her as if she was a demon's spawn. The fact that they could barely harm her due to Rani's iron skin only frightened them more. On top of that, h er parents’ marriage also began to fall through due blaming themselves for the monster they had created. Rani often overheard their arguments and the things they would call her, so she began to hate herself as well. Therfore, despite the brutal affects of her parents fear, Rani never once resented them for it. On contrary, she believed that she deserved everything they threw at her. Although she full-heartedly believed she deserved such treatment, she was still only a child, and craved loved and acceptance. She had learned to keep the monster inside her on a tight lock, but was still unable to recall any memories from when the Nian took over her mind. So, when she was her normal self, she would try everything she could to win forgiveness and kindness of ther parents, making up for all the awfult hings she did. Yet, she always failed with her efforts constantly backfiring. Despite trying to treat her parents with the upmost kindness, while she was being starved for weeks, the demon simply took over one day. Rani was begging for something to eat, when her father began to beat her. And in self-defense, she blanked out and the dragon killed him. Police said an animal must’ve broken in and mauled him, but her mother knew what the truth was. She was afraid to tell the police, A) because they probably wouldn’t believe her, and B) because she was afraid of her own daughter. Rani never forgave herself, and knew that all of the slim chances of going back to being a happy family, had vaporized. Her mother found it too risky to stay in Hawaii, so they moved to New York City. Yet, on Rani's 13th birthday, she came home to find her mother hanging in her bedroom. She had committed suicide. However, she left one last gift for Rani. It was a note that read, It's all your fault. . Since then, she dropped out of school and began roaming the streets of New York. While she was searching for scraps to eat in a dumpster, a short and stumpy man approached her. She doesn't remember much about him other than he had vivid green eyes and wore a jade ring. The man said that she would be the perfect person to test out the new weaponry he had been developing, and would like her to use them in street fighting. The mysterious man told her that in return, her would provide her with a place to live and pay for all her living expenses.

Thus, without any better choices, Rani obliged and became a street fighter. Shortly after, she became the best in New York, known as the Iron Blade.

Quotes

 * “I don’t really care if I die. I’ve had enough of this bullshit world anyways. If heaven’s got a little less fuckery, count me in, but I’ll probably be dancing with the devil.”
 * <span style="font-size:14.6666666666667px;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);white-space:pre-wrap;">“But if I tell you my wish, it won’t come true, will it?”
 * <span style="font-size:14.6666666666667px;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);white-space:pre-wrap;">(To Jae Park )“Ha! Did you think we left the planet Earth just because you got introduced to a bit of magic? Nice try mousy, but we’re still living in the same shitty ass motel we were in, when this race began. This is still a dog-eat-dog world and everyone’s out for themselves. So, ya better not forget only one person can cross that finish line, or it’ll be your grave. <span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial;font-size:14.6666666666667px;white-space:pre-wrap;">”
 * <span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial;font-size:14.6666666666667px;white-space:pre-wrap;">"May eyes used to be called beautiful, but now they're beautiful traps."
 * <span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial;font-size:14.6666666666667px;white-space:pre-wrap;">(To Jae Park )"There's no room for love on the battlefield."