Note: I increased the rating to M because this chapter contains graphic scenes of violence and bullying that may be disturbing for some individuals. Reader discretion is advised.
Day 8 after the Hunter Exam, Republic of Padokea
"You're holding up well," Asterra said as the trio disembarked the blimp. It was a three o'clock and sunny in the Republic of Padokea.
"I feel like I've been hit by a truck." Ponzu fixed the strap of her backpack and stretched. "Those thirty minutes made me burn more calories than any Turbo-fit video. Was that what they made you do during your combat training?"
"Those were first-level exercises. I did that when I was ten."
"Say what now?"
Asterra shrugged. "You said you wanted to learn. So I taught."
"That set was for ten-year olds?!"
"We did that for three hours every day."
"…Isn't that child abuse?"
Tiny sparks of anger bloomed in her gut, but Ponzu's eyes were like Gon's back on Zevil Island—all earnest curiosity and no malice. It wouldn't be fair to snap at her…which was why she let Kikiri respond.
"It's just how things work over there," the Dokujo replied. "Don't worry, not a lot of people die."
"Not a lot?"
"Things happen," Asterra said.
Passing through customs was uneventful. After picking up the sword Asterra had been required to check in they headed for the train station that would take both of them to their final destinations: Asterra to Mukuroo, the town at the foot of Kukuroo Mountain, and Ponzu to Shaklis in Beekeeper Valley.
According to Ponzu, the walk was a fifteen-minute walk. The trek was simple enough on a map—a straight line and one turn—but once they started walking in the area, Asterra started to have second thoughts. There were too many people of working age loitering around at this time of day for her taste. The dark alleys did not improve her impression of the site.
"It looks worse than it is," Ponzu added. "I've never gotten mugged here before."
"How many times have you taken this street?"
"A lot. I usually go this way when going to the airport. Besides, I don't think they'll attack an armed person." She glanced at Asterra's sword, which was back on her hip with the rope belt.
I'll keep watch regardless, she thought. Kikiri also raised his head, tufted ears flicking to catch any sound.
After several minutes of walking the back of her neck began to prickle. Something's coming, coming, coming. They're coming, coming, coming. The reptile brain was incessant, a nagging whisper. She couldn't catch any malice yet, so either the people were too far away or too good at their job. She hoped it was the former.
"Ponzu," Asterra said.
"I know," the teal-eyed girl replied, not batting an eyelid. Ponzu took out her phone from her pocket and swiped at the screen, then angled the phone at various angles. She straightened her hair and hat. "There's two so far, maybe a third."
So, her travelling companion knew when she was being followed. That was useful. "Do they look like they know the area?"
"Can't tell. They don't look like locals, but that doesn't really mean anything in this city."
"There's two more," Kikiri whispered.
Outnumbered. Asterra thought back to the training session yesterday. Ponzu had spoken truthfully about having some experience in self-defense—emphasis on some. She had potential and was fit but lacked the strength to deal damage at close range. However, she had performed well on the exercises focused on the first rule of a fight—know when and how to run. It made sense; her repertoire included laying traps and performing hit and run attacks, after all.
"Kikiri and I can take care of close quarters if you take care of long-range," Asterra murmured. "I'd rather not fight at all, though."
"You and me both." Ponzu put the phone away. "There's a more populated area up ahead. If we can just make it—"
Malice exploded from the left, accompanied by a blur of pale skin.
Asterra's body went on autopilot, sidestepping and guiding the hand away from her. As momentum dragged the man past her, she slammed the heel of her hand into the man's nose. Blood sprayed from his nostrils and the figure staggered back, clutching his face.
She yelled at Ponzu to run; the teal-eyed girl was sprinting before Asterra finished the syllable. There was another flash of malice, with Kikiri screaming "Ten o'clock!" and the sound of knives hissing through air. The Resca ducked, but something made her cheek burn. Metal pinged off of trash cans.
Shit shit shit! "Firearm!" the Resca hollered, then pivoted and ran in an irregular zigzag fashion, hoping Ponzu knew this area as well as she said she did. The few minutes of looking at a map had allowed her to get a gist of the area but not memorize where every alley led.
It didn't take long for her to catch up with Ponzu. The path ahead was filled with malice, and Ponzu veered to the right. But everywhere they went, malice blocked more and more paths. Ponzu was also starting to hesitate and pause more, as if to think. Another turn later, the malice become more distant and the corridor narrowed.
Ponzu bit her lip. "Asterra, we're being corralled."
The Resca checked for enemies over her shoulder. "Yeah?"
"They've been blocking all the routes I know for sure lead out of this district. There's another path here, but it's blocked by a high fence. I don't know if it leads to the main road for sure either."
Kikiri flicked his ears. "I hear city noises nearby. Our chances are good."
"Let's' just see what we have to work with first," Asterra said as the corridor narrowed to a point where it was barely one shoulder-width wide.
The stench hit them like a tidal wave, warning the three of what lay ahead. The three exited the narrow corridor and came to a square yard-like area filled with refuse. There were several dumpsters that stood out like boulders among the heaps of discarded items ranging from food to clothes to rusted nails. On their left was a chain-link fence, maybe seven feet tall. Barbed wire coiled around the top of the fence in large loops, gleaming in the sunlight.
Ponzu started to walk up to it and Asterra grabbed her shoulder. "Wait." The Resca looked around and took a paper napkin in her hand as she bent down to the floor. Moments later she was holding a dead rat by its tail. From the relative lack of decomposition, it looked like a newly dead creature.
"Umm, what are you doing?" Ponzu asked.
Asterra didn't reply; instead she threw the rat against the fence. The corpse hit the fence and bounced off, landing on the concrete floor with a small thud. The Resca observed the rat for several moments, then turned to Ponzu. "Doesn't look like the fence has electricity running through it. Should be safe to touch."
"Huh, good call." Ponzu rushed over to the fence and pressed her face to it. "I think I see cars."
"Think or know?" Asterra shot back. In this scenario, the options were run, fight, or hide amongst the refuse. Depending on how certain the chances of reaching the main road were, the plan would change.
"The sounds of engines are closer than before," Kikiri said. "They're cars."
"Any alleys branching off?"
"There's two that I can see," Ponzu replied. "Some dumpsters could be blocking more alleys though."
Damn. More possible ambush points. Regardless, running was the best option in this case; they would have to get over the barbed wire though. A quick scan revealed there was one spot towards the edge of the fence that was free of dangerous-looking wire. The Resca pointed to a yellow dumpster near the fence. "That dumpster has wheels on it. Doesn't look too heavy. Push it to the fence and use it to get to that spot with no wires on the right for a footing, then jump down to the dumpsters on the other side."
"Me? What about you?"
"Kikiri and I are going to buy you time. Yell when the dumpster's set. If you hear a whistle like a bird call, close your eyes."
Ponzu nodded. As Asterra turned to take position though, the turquoise-haired girl cried out "Wait!"
The Resca turned toward her to see Ponzu had taken out a bottle with a spray top on it. She recognized it from this morning, when she and Ponzu were getting ready for the day. "Is that your perfume?"
"It's a precaution." Ponzu sprayed both Asterra and Kikiri twice each before Asterra could protest. The spray felt like water against her bare skin and did not smell like anything, which made her wonder if it was just water. "There, done. Don't die!" Ponzu turned on her heel and ran to the dumpster. She rolled up her sleeves, lowered her center of gravity, and started to push.
The Resca took position next to the entrance she and Ponzu had used, pressing her back against the wall. The malice she could detect was accumulating at a point beyond this alley; if she played her cards right this funnel could help buy more time.
Someone was speaking from far beyond the entrance. "We've got'em trapped. Now whoever shot at'em earlier, put your fuckin' gun away! I want the orange one alive!"
So, the enemy was going to hold back. Part of her wondered why they wanted her alive, but she shoved that question aside. It wasn't important at this point; what was important was staying on her feet until Ponzu secured their escape route.
Oxygen flowed in, one deep breath at a time, and her senses sharpened. Focus, focus. Locate and differentiate. The grating sound of Ponzu dragging the dumpster across the concrete phased out of mind as Asterra centered in on the malice, until she could tell where each one was. Eight people in all, all lined up and struggling to pass through.
Now.
Asterra forced air through her lips and a warbling bird call cut through the silence. A moment later a tan ball flew into the alleyway and Asterra covered her eyes.
BANG!
There were cries of surprise and pain as the flashbang exploded in the narrow alleyway. The flashbang was not a grenade—it would not burn severely or release shrapnel—but the blinding and disorienting effects were useful.
The first figure tumbled out of the smoke crawling out of the alley entrance, coughing and sputtering. His arms flailed in the air in a futile attempt to orient himself while his sight recovered. He tripped over Asterra's strategically placed foot and ate concrete. Kikiri descended upon him as a crippling blow. The next man that tumbled out met a cracking blow to the face. While he was dazed, Asterra grabbed his arm and used it to slam his face into the nearby brick wall with a snarl. Something white tumbled out of his mouth after a hearty crack, and assailant number two fell to his knees and toppled over with a groan.
The assailants stopped exiting the alleyway. It was likely the rest of the group had heard their companions' moans and decided to wait until their senses returned to normal. After all, a flashbang's effects on vision lasted mere seconds, and the effects on balance several minutes at the most. Those minutes could be all they needed to escape, though.
"You done yet?!" the Resca shouted over her shoulder.
"Almost…!" Ponzu hissed back, strain coloring her voice. Rusted wheels screeched in protest at being moved. "Move, you stupid…chunk…of plastic!"
Asterra bounced on her toes in front of the smoky alleyway, body ready to spring. And then Kikiri was fluffing up at her shoulder and malice spiked four, five, six times. Shit, they're gonna charge me.
It didn't matter how strong a person was—fighting multiple enemies at once was difficult. One had to consider so many variables when fighting one person; compounding those variables by fighting multiple opponents simultaneously ran the risk of sensory overload. She would rather avoid such a situation; after all, it took only one mistake to take down even the strongest of warriors. But she didn't have that choice at the moment. She had to buy time, no matter what it took.
Asterra took a small step back as adrenaline coursed through her veins, like a magic serum that made everything clearer and simpler. The effect was compounded by the faint sense of déjà vu she felt—she had been in this situation before, had always been in this situation—and the cold acceptance (or resignation?) that she would continue to be in this situation.
All right; come on then. One deep breath to steady her nerves. A second one, because her hands were still shaking slightly. "Vok o garei, tul dan ag Dorei. Vok o garei, tul dan ag Dorei." She said the words under her breath in a rhythmic chant that sped up with each iteration. For a battlefield chant, it had a surprisingly meditative quality to it. "Awaken or die, Fate is the Spirits' game."
Kikiri fluffed up on her shoulder.
The glob of malice hurtled itself at her.
Six figures stumbled out of the alley. The first muscularly built woman lunged at her with bloodshot eyes and drunken steps, arms spread out wide in a bear hug. Asterra sidestepped the tackle and whistled for Kikiri. An auburn streak flew up the woman's body in the next moment, and there was a cry as the Dokujo's venomous fangs punctured her skin.
Kikiri's assistance let her focus on the overhead hook flying at her. She ducked, then used the upward momentum to slam her fist into her opponent's groin. The man doubled over, and she continued upwards, grabbing the back of his head with both hands and slamming her knee into his face. A roundhouse kick to the face sent him flying into the brick wall.
A flash of malice to her right and her peripheral vision warned her of the next blow—a roundhouse kick. She tightened her guard and the kick thudded into her right upper arm. Her left arm snaked around and captured the foot; her right hand flew to the lateral side of the man's knee. With a hissing exhale, she pushed inwards on the knee and while holding the ankle steady. The result was a dull popping sound as the man's knee bent at an unnatural angle, and a scream of pain that razed her eardrums with its proximity.
Ponzu hollered words she had long waited to hear. "I'm done! Let's go!"
About time. Asterra threw the man's leg aside and pivoted on her foot, whistling for Kikiri at the same time, and propelled—
Something yanked on her ankle, taking her entire leg out from under her. She landed on her forearms and toes, knees above the ground, and glanced back. A pale hand, tattooed with some sort of insignia, had grabbed her ankle.
"Heh, gotcha," the muscular woman chuckled, her smile more gums than teeth.
Shit.
Asterra yanked on her foot in an attempt to break free, but within seconds she was surrounded by the remaining three assailants. The first blow was a low kick to her kidney; the second a kick to her gut. Both stung, the latter made her cough and gasp. And try as she might to curl into a ball and protect her organs, head, and neck, the woman's iron grip on her ankle kept her one leg straight. Blows continued to connect with the girl's body, and she heard someone—a girl—scream.
Something grabbed her arm and she was being flipped onto her stomach. Rough hands pulled her left arm back and she felt the scratchy sensation on her wrist, wrapping around and around. In the next moment her right hand was being pulled behind her.
The action reminded her of when she tied up a sheep or goat's legs before setting it on a horse for transport.
Fear bloomed within her; her reptile brain was deafening in her mind, screaming at her to Fight, fight, fight! You cannot be captured, not here, not now!
Fire flooded her veins, accompanied by a furious strength that had welled up within her from nowhere. Her body instinctively, violently writhed. She snapped her free foot and launched it at the nearest face with a grunt; foreign syllables shot into the air as there was a crack, and the man stumbled back a step. But a moment later that leg's ankle was grabbed and forced down to the ground as well.
The shriek of rage that cut through the air made the people around her pause; a startled yelp and gurgling sound filled the void. Her foot was released and fell to the floor. The smell of iron entwined with the sensation of mist on the back of her neck and she knew what was happening even before she turned around to look at the carnage.
Kikiri had sunk his teeth deep into an assailant's throat, then snapped his small head sharply to the right. The result was the jugular vein being incised and releasing a shower of blood that stained Kikiri's fur crimson. When the man tried to claw at where the Dokujo was with the fury and desperation of a dying animal, Kikiri hopped to another human. The man with a torn throat toppled over on top of Asterra, his body twitching against her spine. A shriek later, the force holding her wrists back disappeared.
Her wrists now free, the Resca switched her focus to freeing her ankle, this time slamming her foot into the woman's face. The woman drew up her other arm to protect herself. Kikiri fought viciously, crawling and clawing all over the person he had jumped onto and hopping between people. But eventually someone got a hand on his torso and started to squeeze, eliciting a pained squeal from the Dokujo.
"NO!" She kicked at the woman's head with renewed vigor. "Get the fuck off me, beshkar—"
Her swearing was cut off by a sound that chilled her blood.
Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Her head snapped up to see a swarm of yellow and black converging on the assailants. More screaming ensued as the swarm converged on the assailant's faces; Kikiri was released so the man could claw at the bees with two open hands. The pressure was alleviated from Asterra's ankle as well. The girl's hand shot out to Kikiri and brought the Dokujo close to her chest.
The buzzing and sight of bees near the assailants' mouths brought up flickers of memories.
Blood in the mouth, swollen lips and tongue; prickly, chitinous masses being shoved into her forced-open mouth. Three jeering faces—faces that delighted in torment as long as it was not their own—
She screwed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. Come on, stay in the present, stay in the present. She focused on Kikiri's fur, the blood trickling down her cheek. Adrenaline and the man screaming in pain helped cement her here as well, kept her from being swept away by remembrance.
But where had the bees come from? Asterra wiggled her foot in an attempt to escape the weight, but froze when she heard Ponzu yell, "Stay still!"
The Resca obeyed the command and lay face down on the ground, covering her head with one hand. The screaming continued above her head, and she could imagine what was ensuing while trying to control her heart rate with deep breaths. There were faint, prickly sensations on the back of the leg that stuck out from beneath the corpse, like some very light creatures were walking on them to investigate. She shut down her mind to avoid further identification of those creatures, instead counting the grains of sand she could see in front of her.
Once the screaming de-escalated into moans, Ponzu's voice called out, "Come back!"
The faint prickling sensations left her leg. Asterra raised her head in time to see the bees surround Ponzu's hat and wriggle into the cloth, as if the hat was their hive.
Spirits, she had been that close to bees this whole fucking time?
"Don't just sit there! Come on!" Ponzu's command snapped Asterra out of her reverie. The Resca shot up, and the weight on her back slid off with a meaty thud behind her. Fingernails tore the rope off her wrists as she stole glances around her to check if her assailants were standing back up. The humans did not move; they lay still like demented dolls, faces and limbs swollen beyond recognition. Insect carcasses lay scattered among the corpses.
Three of the assailants had the same tattoo: a curved crescent-like shape spread to the right of a rounded, vertical rectangle. There was another smaller rounded rectangle below the crescent, oriented perpendicular to the other rectangle.
The rope fell to the ground; at the same moment there was the sensation of claws needling along the length of her spine and a familiar weight settling across her shoulders. Once Kikiri was situated, she pushed off the ground and ran towards the fence. Ponzu was jumping down onto the other side as Asterra clambered onto the dumpster. The Resca set her foot in the space devoid of wire and jumped onto the dumpster below. It didn't take long for her to catch up with Ponzu, who had bolted towards end of the alley and was almost in the street.
Honks and yelling greeted them as they burst into the busy street of a commercial district. Asterra grabbed Ponzu's bicep and drew her into the crowd, pulling up her hood to hide her hair and beckoning Ponzu to take her hat off. She opened her backpack so Kikiri could dive into it, then repositioned it in front of her chest. The pair zigzagged amongst the crowd, and Asterra tried to make their path cross as many people in uniform as possible—do not rely on them, they could be corrupt—and kept going, going, going, her mind continuously searching for any malice directed towards her while stealing glances over her shoulder. When Ponzu grabbed her hand and led her through busy markets and crowded intersections at a relentless pace, she obeyed quietly, letting herself be led so she could focus on detection of danger.
She didn't know how long they walked. But eventually Ponzu dragged her into a park filled with families on their day out, then glanced back at her. Her gaze was a question in it of itself, and Asterra nodded in response. I don't detect anything.
Ponzu nodded as well and let go of Asterra's hand once they reached a large tree. The turquoise-haired girl leaned against the tree and took a few deep breaths. Asterra unzipped the backpack and beckoned Kikiri to come out.
"What was that?" Ponzu's voice was indignant, but it shook as well. "That's never happened before. That place is supposed to be safe."
"You should revise your definition of 'safe,'" Asterra said.
"There is a time and place for being a smartass, and this is not it," Ponzu replied with a disapproving edge to her voice as she shot Asterra a withering glare. She dug a mirror out of her bag and held it out to the Resca. "Hold this."
"And this is the time and place to be fixing your hair?"Asterra quipped back as she acquiesced.
"Hey, this thing is heavier than it looks. I need to balance it properly if I don't want a stiff neck tomorrow." Once the orange-haired girl was holding the mirror, Ponzu placed her hat back on her head again, tilting it this way and that, and fixed some stray locks of hair. Pale hands shook throughout the whole process. Her next words were a careful murmur. "They wanted you alive."
Although the words were said as a statement, the question woven into them was impossible to miss. "Yeah. Don't know why though." The cold voice from the dream in the hospital echoed in her head—Because, child…the hunt has begun. And you are the prey. Sea green eyes narrowed to slits, and lips pursed into a thin line.
Ponzu glanced up at Resca. "That look in your eyes says otherwise." For a person who was visibly shaking and taking steps to calm herself down, her teal eyes had a surprising amount of steel in them that dared Asterra to even consider ignoring her statement.
"…I have a hunch, but no evidence."
"Gut feeling, huh?" Ponzu turned her head slightly to check a different angle. "My grandma always said to listen to your gut feelings. Said it was your past lives trying to tell you something."
"My past lives need to speak up already."
Ponzu chortled. "Yeah. I wish it worked like that." She held out her hand and thanked Asterra when she returned the mirror.
"You may have been safer travelling without me," the Resca added.
Ponzu shrugged. "Maybe. But I'm going to become a Hunter; I can't let this scare me so easily."
"Fear is helpful in moderate doses."
"Sure—until it paralyzes you."
"Emphasis on moderate," Asterra replied. She crossed her arms. "So back there, with the insects."
Ponzu shook her head. "Not now; trade secret. Just know that if I scream or collapse, they come out to attack whatever's around me."
Asterra cocked her head. "They didn't attack me."
"You were hidden under that body and stayed still. Bees use carbon dioxide, heat, and movement to target their enemies."
She doubted staying still was the only prerequisite to not being stung but refrained from further questions.
Kikiri chirped up next."Will they stay in there?"
"They won't come out or attack unless I tell them to," she replied. Confidence provided a solid foundation to her tone. "Anyways…want to head over to the train station? If we leave now, we can still make the train we booked."
"You still want to travel with me?"
"We had an agreement. Besides, whoever those people were might have me marked too. I have a better chance of surviving if we stick together. You too, no?"
The Resca smiled once more. "You're practical."
"So I've been told. Got a problem with it?"
"None at all."
"Good. Now, train station is that way. Are we travelling together or no?"
"Yes," Asterra nodded. "As you said—we had an agreement."
"Follow me, then." Ponzu proceeded to walk toward an exit surrounded by evergreen trees.
=o=o=o=
Day 8, evening – Train to Mukuroo
Asterra and Ponzu situated themselves into their assigned train cabin, which was eight feet by eight feet and smelled like car freshener. Towards the window there were two seats with navy blue cushions facing each other; these could be converted into the bottom bunk of the accommodations. The top bunk, with sheets and all, was folded into the wall above the window and could be pulled down as needed.
"Finally," Ponzu sighed, taking her shoes off and hugging the pillow provided. "We're almost there."
"You are. Mukuroo's the last stop," Asterra replied, checking the hallway one final time before locking the door. The train ride to Mukuroo was scheduled to take 24 hours, which put Asterra's ETA at 5pm tomorrow. Ponzu was scheduled to get off tomorrow later in the morning; she would meet up with relatives in the Shaklis market and hitch a ride home with them.
"You'll be fine. I'm pretty sure Kukuroo Mountain's close to the station; an hour bus ride, max. You'll get there while it's still light."
An earlier phone call had revealed that Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio were still trying to open the front door to Killua's house. Said house was apparently a popular tourist frequented by a bus tour. Asterra had expected an assassin's nest to be more…under the radar. Resca mercenaries had safehouses in major cities that changed often, and she had expected something similar from the Zoldycks. Perhaps being one of the most feared assassin households in the world gave them the privilege of living in plain sight.
"Hey, I feel bad saying this after you're about to get comfortable but do can you leave the cabin for like, thirty minutes?"
"Why?"
"I need to feed my bees, and I do that by putting out sugar water and letting them all out. They don't sting unless I'm in danger, but people don't usually like being surrounded by a swarm." She placed her hands together in front of her, as if offering Asterra a prayer. "Please? They're really sensitive to their feeding schedule."
Blood in the mouth, swollen lips and tongue; prickly, chitinous masses being shoved into her forced-open mouth. Three jeering faces—faces that delighted in torment as long as it was not their own—
She shoved the memory back.
Well, the bees had saved her back there. They had their use. They deserved to be fed. She just had to think of them like the horses or sheep back home, even if it made her skin crawl to think this room was to be taken over by the damn insects temporarily. So Asterra replied "okay," grabbed her bag, and left the room with Kikiri.
Curiosity made her linger in the hallway and peer in through the window. Ponzu lay out a bowl of water and sugar and set her hat down on the table and tapped the hat twice. The surface of the hat puckered and pitted, then insects crawled out of the hat by the hundreds. Ponzu stayed where she sat, unaffected despite being surrounded by a tornado of chitin. In fact, there was a soft expression on her face, like a mother watching her children.
Chills shot up Asterra's spine at the sight; nausea welled up from the pit of her stomach. The pinpricks of pain—Kikiri headbutting her ear—made her tear away from the sight. The Dokujo's dark eyes looked up at her, the concern apparent within them.
"Come on. Let's go somewhere else," he said. "You're just going to make yourself sick here."
Asterra left, grateful that Ponzu had not unleashed the swarm on her while they had been sitting in the cabin and walked to the observation car.
The car had a series of seats facing the windows on the left and right side of the train. It allowed one to watch blue mountains that contrasted with the fiery colors of the sunset. She took an open seat and watched the colors bleed together, Kikiri wrapped around her neck.
She shouldn't had let her guard down—the memories always pounced at times like these, after all.
=o=o=o=
Mereta, five years ago
"Dammit!"
Their skin was starting to pull at their bones.
Frustration, desperation curled in the air around the Trainees…Asterra could feel it slice at her skin without making it bleed, as surely as each strike that pounded into the flesh of her limbs, her back.
The group she was part of—the three people she has been assigned to work with this month—have lost today. There will be no second meal for them.
"It's your fault, beshkar," a dark-haired boy spat at her. Tem, the leader. Blood crusted around a gash on his forehead.
"I…sorry…" the wet trails won't stop streaming down her face at the pain stabbing throughout her body. She knew the stupid drops of water wouldn't win her any allies, and there were too many for Kikiri to face alone. Her fellow Trainees' anger was stewing, and they needed a scapegoat to beat.
"Shut up, stupid. You can't even speak right." A jeer from a blonde girl, Tem's twin sister Rem, showed rows of small teeth slightly yellowed. "Why are you so weak?! If you hadn't messed up that last round, we wouldn't be in this position!"
"I not eaten…in long hours…" Asterra forced out. An excuse. An attempt to make this all stop.
Another foot dug into her ribs—Soret, the silent one. The obedient one. The angry one.
The dark-haired boy cocked his head. "Why didn't you tell us?" There was a pale-looking beehive all of a sudden, and the boy shakes the hive. Little insects tumbled out, falling to the ground like pepper. "Bees are nutritious."
Asterra shook her head vigorously. "No."
"You're hungry, aren't you?" The gleam in his eyes scared her and Asterra attempted to rise to her feet.
She was yanked back, her arm captured. One by one her limbs were caught, their freedom robbed, until she felt the dirt cold and hard against her knees.
She bit the first hand that touched her face. Rem snapped her hand back, and Tem stepped in to punch her in the nose, making it bleed. Then there's too many hands, too strong—her face was held in place and her mouth forced open.
Her last resort was a wordless scream. A cry for her parents who were on another continent and for Kikiri who was out hunting. The other Trainees were stuffing their faces with food in another place too far for them to hear and there were no Trainers around.
And then there were too many bee carcasses in her mouth.
…
She didn't know how much time passed before an anguished howl dimly registered in her brain. Snarling, humans screaming, of teeth shearing flesh. Vibrations from the dirt made her teeth chatter. Her nose was stuck into the soil, her mouth swollen and tasting of blood and something else. When she finally flopped onto her side, there was Kikiri in front of her, sobbing apologies, his chin dripping with blood.
Asterra cried with him.
Because everything hurt—her mouth, her stomach, her sides, her legs, her arms, her shoulders, her nose, her chest, everything.
Because nothing made sense in this place.
Because she didn't understand why she had to go through this.
Because there was no Mommy or Daddy to make her pains go away with a stroke of the head or a whisper of comfort.
Because there was only the voice in the back of her head, whispering, urging, No mercy, no mercy, no mercy. There is no mercy in this place. So give none, expect none. Climb over the corpses and become the strongest.
Or this pain will never stop.
=o=o=o=
Day 8 after the Hunter Exam, evening
Asterra grit her teeth and fought the urge to curl up into a ball. Instead, she stood up and walked towards the end of the car. The observation car of the train also happened to be the last car of the train; therefore, it happened to have an observation deck that would be perfect to get some fresh air.
Cold air whipped across her face once she was outside, leaning on the railing. It felt good—more than good enough for a distraction. It felt like she was horseback riding, and she could still see the vibrant sunset and how the violet bled into red.
She didn't know how long she had been out here when a face peered into hers. She jolted, then realized it was Ponzu and relaxed.
"Not sure what you were thinking about, but must have been interesting," she replied. "And jeez, how long have you been out here? Your cheeks are really red."
"Not sure…lost track of time." Asterra mentally kicked herself, because she really did not know. The sun had sunk below horizon, leaving her alone with the white pinpricks dotting the night sky. Not being aware of one's surroundings to the point of being oblivious to the passage of time was not a productive habit to have.
"Come on, I finished feeding my bees. You must be freezing out here."
Ponzu was right—Asterra couldn't feel her fingers, courtesy of the cold night air. She brought her hands up to her mouth, using her breath to warm them, and followed Ponzu back to the cabin.
Once she reached the door, though, her feet froze at the sight of the hat.
"Asterra?" Ponzu asked. "What's wrong?"
Spirits, she was supposed to be over this. She had thoroughly thrashed Tem, Rem, and Soret five years ago and left them bleeding in the forest, where they been discovered with wounds covered in bloody icicles. It had been her first act of obedience to her reptile brain. But here she was, afraid to cross this threshold because of some stupid insects that lay on the other side. She may have left the trio in the forest to die all those years ago, but the fear had refused to stay with them.
Ponzu glanced behind her, following Asterra's gaze, and turned back to the Resca. "Hey…do you not like bees?"
Asterra pursed her lips.
"Were you stung before?"
The Resca shook her head.
"Look, I promise they won't hurt you. They don't attack unless I tell them to."
Her shoulders shook without her permission, and she grabbed her forearm.
Ponzu finally sighed. "All right, fine. Let's do this." She played with a piece of her hair. "I'm not about to let you stand out there the whole night and ruin your sleep. So if you come in and sit there, I'll tell you how I control the bees."
Kikiri nudged her. "Come on. You wanted to know about this, didn't you?"
Knowledge is power. You know this. Do not falter.
Asterra finally took a deep breath and walked into the room; her joints felt stiff and rickety. Ponzu locked the door behind her and sat down. She tapped once on the hat, and a single bee came out of the hat. It buzzed lazily around the teal-haired girl then settled down on the palm of Ponzu's hand.
"This here is a neurotoxic bee," Ponzu started. "I keep them in my hat. They attack if I collapse, scream, or order them to."
"Why don't they sting you?"
"Because I'm their queen." Ponzu took out the plastic spray bottle with water from her bag—the one she had used to spray Asterra with earlier. "Bees communicate mainly by pheromones and movement. A queen has its own unique pheromone; that's how bees know to protect her and know she's alive."
"That's the perfume you sprayed on me."
"Not perfume, pheromone. But yep. So now my bees think you're their queen as well."
"Isn't it a problem for the hive to have two leaders?"
"If you knew how to control the bees as well, it would be a problem. But you don't, so that pheromone marks you as a friend of the hive. They won't sting you, no matter what." Ponzu looked up to Asterra. "Look…I don't know what bees you ran into before, but you should know they aren't mindless insects that sting on sight. When bees sting elastic skin, like mammals and birds, their stinger is ripped out of their abdomen, poison gland and all. They give their life to protect their 'queen.'"
Asterra remembered the bee carcasses sprinkled around the unconscious assailants. "That's not helpful for survival."
"Which is why it's the older bees that usually serve as guards. The ones I have with me are older bees that don't have long to live." She glanced down at the bee in her palm, a soft yet melancholy look on her face. "They're not just insects—they're my guardians. My friends. They will lay down their lives to protect me; I can't just unleash them on anyone I please. I have to be responsible."
I have to be in control of my fear, her tone said.
"So, you see? I'm not going to unleash the bees on you, and they won't attack you either."
Asterra nodded. The objective part of her marveled at how the small insect could make her feel powerless while making Ponzu feel the opposite. And the look in her eyes—they were like the eyes of a child playing with a beloved pet, or a Resca taking care of a favored horse. A complicated bond, for it was a delicate balance between cherishing something and maintaining enough distance because the creature was bound to die sooner rather than later.
"Are those bees the only ones you can control?" Asterra asked.
Ponzu made a sign in the air with her finger, and the bee returned to her hat. "For now, yes."
"For now?"
"In Beekeeper Valley, we keep several types of bees and can control them. More experienced people keep wasps for self-defense."
"What's the difference between them? They both buzz and sting."
Ponzu made clicking noises with her tongue and waved her index finger. The morose air was gone, replaced with one of a chiding teacher. "A lot of differences, actually. The two big ones are that bees have a laxer temperament and can only sting once. Wasps are meaner—unless you know what you're doing—have a straight stinger and can sting multiple times. The wasps in Beekeeper Valley are especially poisonous and cranky."
"So the wasps make better fighters. When do you get them?"
"After you learn the 'weight of life.'" Ponzu made air quotes while replying. "That, and you have to have a really good reason to persuade the elders to give you permission to even learn how to control wasps. I thought becoming a Hunter would be reason enough, but…" She stared out the window. "Here I am, without a license."
"You entered the Hunter Exam so you could learn how to control wasps?" She must really love her bees.
"Huh, I guess it does sound like that. Not quite though." She took her shoes off and curled up on the chair. "Have you heard of colony collapse disorder?"
Asterra shook her head.
"That sounds bad," Kikiri said.
"It is bad. CCD is when the majority of a hive's worker bees suddenly disappear, leaving behind the queen and the young. There's honey and pollen left over in the hive, but without workers the hive can't survive for long. The hive—colony—collapses. No carcasses near the hive, or anywhere, actually. Just there one moment, then gone the next."
"Oh." Asterra frowned. "What causes it?"
"Nobody knows."
"So you want to become a Hunter to find the cause."
Ponzu nodded. "It hurts when a hive you've been taking care of just…dies on you and you can't do anything without it. Beekeeper Valley hasn't been badly affected yet, but other countries have been reporting thirty to fifty percent losses. I want to figure out why, and that'll take me to dangerous places I don't want to bring my bees to."
"It sounds like you're trying to do your people a favor," Kikiri said. "Why don't the elders want to help you by letting you control wasps?"
"Who knows," Ponzu replied, throwing her hands up in the air. "They're old, I'm not. They see things differently, I guess."
"Then see it their way."
"Whose side are you on?" she asked incredulously.
"If you understand their views, you'll understand the weaknesses in their arguments." Asterra added.
"Or in less brutal words—what about you makes the elders not want to give you access to wasps?" Kikiri asked.
Ponzu paused for a moment. "I…don't know."
"Have you asked?"
"Yeah. But they keep saying I 'don't understand the weight of life.'"
"What did you say before saying that?"
"I told them I wanted to learn how to use wasps because they're better offensively and I wouldn't have to put my bees in danger." She ruffled her hair. "Ugh. I love old people, but man oh man can they be a pain."
"They probably say that about young people too," Kikiri said.
"Yeah, I bet," Ponzu laughed. A few moments of silence. "Why do you want to become a Hunter?"
"To obtain any and all information," Asterra replied.
"Information broker?" Ponzu asked. "Is there something you're looking for specifically?"
"Yes." When Ponzu's eyes asked for more information, Asterra said, "That's my business."
"That's not fair. I told you about my bees."
As much as Asterra didn't hate Ponzu's company, there was no reason to tell her about her crystals or her odd dreams. Ponzu likely did not have access to human trafficking or human genome databases, after all. "That was your call. We never agreed to exchange information in equal amounts."
"…Do you realize how Tafta you sounded?"
"I've been told plenty by my relatives." Specifically, the Resca side of her family. Being stoic and tight-lipped may have been a Resca trait, but Tafta were notorious for driving people up the wall with their talk of agreements and contracts. "Takes one to know one, though."
"Oomph." Ponzu pretended to be in pain, then righted herself. "Fine, I should have known better. It's still shitty, though."
"Why is it shitty?" Why did this bother Ponzu, when she had not been bothered by Asterra's other honest remarks?
"I told you something personal."
"Did you expect something in return without making an explicit agreement?"
"People don't say all their agreements out loud. Some rules are unsaid."
This must be the whole "manners within culture" her mother had once talked to her about. How groups of people could move efficiently because they had similar beliefs and rules they did not have to discuss; how assumptions were required to move daily routines along. "How do you expect people to follow through with rules they might not know?"
Ponzu regarded her coolly. "What happened to you before this, Asterra?"
"Before what?"
"Before this exam. You know how to fight but can't tell a flip phone from a laptop. You take everything literally. Your social graces could use some work. You're so focused on making sure you get a verbal confirmation before doing anything with me, almost like…" Ponzu paused to gather her words.
"I don't make assumptions."
"Yeah, I can see that from a mile away. But this isn't on that level."
Spirits, what now? Did Ponzu think she was treating her unfairly? "I've been treating you like I treat everyone."
"Everyone, huh?" Ponzu leaned back in her seat. "Then what happened to make you think the whole world isn't worth trusting?"
Asterra brought her knees to her chest and clamped her mouth shut. She raised her shoulders to make sure Kikiri was still there, curled around her neck.
Ponzu cocked her head and waited. Moments melted into seconds, seconds into minutes as the two girls stared at each other within the steady running sounds of the train.
Finally, Ponzu shrugged and stood up. "Whatever. It's not my business. My bad for prying. I'll be gone tomorrow, so you won't have to deal with these questions for long." She reached towards the bunk above the window and pulled on a lever to make it descend into an upper bunk. Within seconds, she had brought down the ladder and was in the bunk with her hat. "Piece of advice though—lot of information comes from people. If you can't connect with people, you're going to have a hard time finding what you're looking for."
Asterra stared up at the bottom of the bunk that now blocked the light. It creaked, presumably as Ponzu shifted her weight. Is she angry? Why? I didn't do anything. The Resca looked to Kikiri, who usually had something to chime in at these points in time.
The Dokujo, though, remained silent. When she poked him, he opened one eye.
"Help me," she mouthed.
"You're on your own for this one," he muttered back.
"But you're better with people than I am!"
"Do you know how sad that sounds?" he said. "I'm not even human."
"Would you quit being a smartass?!"
"No. I think this is a good learning opportunity for you," he replied. "Figure it out." The Dokujo jumped down to the rim of the window and curled up into a ball.
"Turn out the lights whenever," Ponzu said, then went silent.
The situation evoked déjà vu—like when Leorio had had ended the conversation on the blimp after Zevil Island. She had thought Ponzu would be easier to work with because of her pragmatic nature. Were all people of the outside world so sensitive? If so, the road ahead was going to be more difficult than she thought.
Was this because she didn't know all of the unsaid rules? Was knowledge of these things what was required to survive in the world outside Mereta?
…
Fine then. Asterra had been taught to see the relationships between people by observing them. She had honed her ability to identify weaknesses by identifying the patterns in their actions. She would use those skills of observation to figure out all of these stupid, incomprehensible unspoken rules. After all, human society was built on patterns. Surely, she could determine the proper way to elicit a desired response from interactions with non-Resca.
Observe, formulate, execute, revise; repeat until the objective was completed. There was no difference in the order of tasks between immobilizing an enemy and interacting with other humans. What differed was the information she used to accomplish the latter objective.
Asterra made the bottom bunk by pushing a button that made the opposing chairs extend and connect into a mattress. She made the bed with the sheets provided, made sure the door was locked, and turned off the lights. After she slipped into the sheets, Kikiri crawled in next to her.
The sounds of wheels against rails served well as white noise for her racing mind.
=o=o=o=
Day 9 after the Hunter Exam, morning
The bunk creaking above her woke her up from sleep. The bed creaked more as pale feet hung from the edge of the upper bunk, resting above the rung of the ladder. There was a sigh, and Ponzu descended the ladder. After shuffling around, the girl looked towards Asterra's bunk. She yelped when she saw Asterra staring at her from the lower bunk.
"Holy cheeseballs, Asterra!" Ponzu placed a hand over her heart and leaned over the counter. "If you're awake, say something! Don't just look at me like that!"
Asterra sat up in the bunk. "I'm looking for humans with crystals embedded in their skin."
"….Huh?"
Her words were the result of two generalizations produced after several hours of thinking and combing through her previous experiences with all the humans she had encountered.
One, humans had a tendency to reflect what was done to them. She had seen other people "return favors" after receiving help or being the subject of actions that elicited positive emotions within them. For example, Gon's actions throughout the exam had led to some of the applicants, herself included, standing between Illumi and the door to Gon's room in an attempt to protect them. Two, humans expected some sort of payback of equal or greater measure when they committed an act that put them in a vulnerable situation. The "give-and-take," so to speak.
So, Ponzu's anger was the result of divulging something personal but not receiving something of equally personal value in return from Asterra. She was angry at the imbalance of power. Which meant if Asterra shared something personal, Ponzu's attitude towards Asterra would change to something more favorable because the balance of power would shift.
"You asked me last night what I'm looking for. I've given you an answer. Are you still angry?"
Ponzu stared at her, mouth agape.
"Why are you looking at me like I've gone crazy?"
"The timing of your comment, for starters. I was looking for a 'good morning' and not some bombshell. And second, crystals embedded in the skin? That happens?"
"It can."
"Jeez," Ponzu muttered. "Okay, back to your question. Am I still angry? A little."
"But I said something that would equal the balance of power between us. Why are you still angry?"
"Uhhh…because that's how my emotions work? I can't just stop feeling something at the drop of a hat." Ponzu said. "You're missing the point."
A flash of panic at the unseen development. "What point?"
"I wasn't trying to one-up you or anything. I spoke about my bees to make you feel safer around me."
"Why?"
"Because you looked scared. I wanted to help."
"Why?"
"Asterra, you sound like a little kid," Kikiri said.
"Uhhhh….it's what decent people do?" Ponzu replied.
"But you put yourself in a vulnerable position to help me," Asterra continued.
"Aren't you the one that took on a small army so I could get an escape route set up?"
"That was a tactical move. I'm better suited for combat than you."
"It still doesn't change the fact that you put yourself in danger to help me. You could have run away and left me behind."
"I suppose. But that wasn't the agreement we had."
"I feel like I'm talking to a broken record," Ponzu muttered, rubbing her temples with both hands. "Okay, let's try it this way. I talked about how I control the bees because I wanted to help you and I trusted you. But you didn't say a word of thanks or show me some of that trust back. That's why I was angry."
"…So all I had to do was say thank you?"
"Or show that you trusted me as well."
Asterra frowned. "My theory was off."
"What, the power balance thing? You weren't far off—it was more of a trust balance thing." Ponzu started to wash her face. "Besides, you can't just 'theorize' what's making someone angry. You'll break your brain. Trust me; people are hard."
"Yet they still insist on living in groups."
"Funny how it works, isn't it?" Ponzu wiped her face, then laughed upon looking at Asterra. "I should have warned you sooner; you look like you've broken your brain already."
Kikiri chortled while Asterra scowled. "Whose side are you on?!"
Spirits, this was aggravating. It made Asterra wish she was facing off with the people in the alleyway again or stuck alone in a forest somewhere. At least she knew what she was doing in those situations.
A stream of numbers appeared into view, and suddnely there was a piece of paper dangling in front of her. When Asterra looked to the side, Ponzu said, "Let's swap numbers."
"I don't have a cellphone."
"What about the cobra things?"
Asterra thought for a moment. "Kobriyet?"
"Yeah, that! Give me that number to keep in touch."
"Why? I got you to the destination. What other terms are there else to fulfill?"
"Terms? I don't remember being a contract. Oh, right. Tafta brain, Tafta brain." Ponzu tapped her chin. "Um…I'm asking you to extend the terms to keeping in contact."
"Why?"
"Because you're weird. I like weird." Ponzu grinned. "And once I have my sights on someone, I don't give up easily."
"Even if they're possibly being targeted by an unknown force?"
"It adds to your air of mystery."
Another tie; another potential complication. But Ponzu was interesting and practical, and easy to be around. And despite the most recent misunderstanding, she made more sense than the four applicants Asterra had met during the Hunter Exam.
"If you're going to become an Information Hunter, you're going to want contacts. A network to draw on. Even the unlikeliest of people can lead you to the most helpful places. You already have Menchi, and Gon and his friends. Make me a part of that network as well. I know what you're hunting; I'll let you know if I come across something."
Asterra looked down at the piece of paper.
Don't you dare. You have enough oaths already. Any more and you will trip over everything and become ensnared. Her reptile brain's hiss was cold at the back of her brain.
Her hand paused midair. After a moment it took the paper, ripped the blank half off, and wrote the kobriyet's number. "Here."
Ponzu beamed and typed the number into her phone immediately.
Time passed quickly after that. Breakfast was done in a flash, and soon she was chatting with Ponzu at the nearest train door while waiting for the train to pull into Shaklis station.
"Let's keep in touch, all right?" Ponzu said.
"It's going to take me a couple days to reply if you call."
"That's fine—as long as I can reach you," Ponzu smiled. "But seriously, get a cellphone ASAP."
"Yeah, yeah."
"I mean it! It's hard to get by without one outside of Sanaar." The train came to a stop, and the door opened. Ponzu stepped out. "Let me know when you get to Mukuroo. And when you get home."
"Are you my mother?"
"I'll have you know I make an excellent mom-friend."
Asterra smiled as the train conductor began to announce the departure. "Fine. I'll report my arrivals."
"That's the spirit. See ya around, Asterra."
The doors closed, and Ponzu waved with an exaggerated motion from the platform.
The Resca waved back in tight motions, not stopping until she lost sight of Ponzu amongst the other colors of the platform.
And that wraps up this chapter. Thanks for reading, as always!
Resca culture 101
Vok o garei, tul dan ag Dorei— "Awaken or die, Fate is the Spirits' game." A chant said before partaking in a battle. Awaken in this case means "get into battle mode" and does not refer to rising from sleep. The second part indicates that your survival is not guaranteed. As a whole, it is a call to focus on the present and do your best to survive, because who knows what will be thrown at you out there and you need to stack the deck in your favor as much as possible. Often shortened to "Vok o garei."