Rafie: Ah, Trick Tower...
Valenia: What are you planning?
Rafie: -laughs-
"Oi, wake up..."
I opened my eyes, blinking the last remaining traces of sleep in them. I saw Killua in front of me, bending down and poking my cheek. "Um, good morning Killua." I greeted him.
"Mind telling me why you both are asleep on the side of the hallway?" he asked.
I turned to Leorio. His arm was resting on my shoulders and I was leaning on him. I stood up, blushing like crazy. "I-I can explain." I stuttered.
"No need. We're already approaching the exam site. You'd better get ready."
I looked out the window and saw a giant tower in a distance. "So cool…" I commented.
I walked back to Leorio and bonked him on his head. "Wake up sleepy-head."
"Huh?" he whispered, drool dripping down his cheek.
"We're here." I said, "Get up, dude." He ignored me and continued to sleep.
"You've just won a million bucks." I said, changing my voice a bit. Leorio jumped apparently wide awake. Killua and I laughed.
"Gotcha."
The airship landed on a giant tower. When all of the candidates got out, Beans started explaining.
"Welcome to Trick Tower. This is where the third phase of the exam will be held." he said.
"So this is Trick Tower." I thought aloud.
"You've heard of this place?" Kurapika asked me.
"Yeah, my master always tells me that he'd send me here if I disobeyed his orders."
"That master of yours... I want to kill him so bad..." said Leorio.
I laughed. "Leorio, don't say things like that!"
"For this phase of the exam, you'll need to climb down to the base of the tower within seventy-two hours." said Beans. "Good luck."
The airship departed, leaving us on the top of the tower.
"How do you climb down this thing?" Gon asked.
"Jumping down would be suicide..."
"I never liked heights."
All of us were looking down the tower, trying to find out how exactly we'd be able to get down to the base.
"No problem." said a man behind us, "Something like this won't be a hindrance to professional rock climbers." The man started to climb down the tower with ease, one foot after the other.
"Impressive,"
Suddenly, strange, flying creatures appeared out of nowhere. One of them devoured the man and flew away.
"Help! Help me!" was his desperate plea for rescue.
"Well, we definitely can't climb down."
I moved away from the guys and looked over at the sea. I could actually Altaria from here.
"Valenia, what's wrong?" asked Gon.
"There it is." I said, pointing at the tiny island with a giant gold tower in the middle. The others turned to look at what I was pointing at. "That's Altaria." I sighed, feeling the spot on my chest that I'd burned not long ago.
Leorio bonked me on the head, causing me to lose my train of thought. "Idiot, there's no time for you to worry about that stupid master of yours."
"I'm not really worrying about that jerk." I explained. "I'm worried about Feldar and Sophilia. My two best friends... the master is probably torturing them by now."
"You shouldn't worry about them either! You should be worrying about the Hunter Exam!" Leorio screamed. Kurapika nodded.
"Focus on the task at hand, Valenia."
I smiled and nodded. Before I could say anything else the collar began to shock me again. I fell to my knees, burying my face in my hands.
"Valenia!"
The ground below me shifted and I was thrown into the inside of the tower. I'd fallen into a trap door. I spun around and studied a poster that was nailed to a wall.
"The Loner's Path" was written on the poster. Below that was a podium with a single watch on it. I took the timepiece and put it on, making sure it clicked.
"Hello," said a voice from nowhere.
"Who's there?" I asked, taking my boomerang.
"Don't fret, dear. I'm your examiner. For this path, you must go alone. Beyond the door in front of you is a maze. You'll have to make your way through it to be able to reach the base of the Trick Tower." I faced the door in front of me and took a deep breath.
"Are you ready?" asked the examiner.
"Yes." The door before me opened and I walked into the maze. "We'll see each other at the base Gon, Kurapika, Killua, Leorio..."
Kurapika: Why did you have to give us Tonpa instead of Valenia.
Rafie: It's hard to alter those kinds of things, ya know.
Review please!