The Second Chapter:
The Null Stone
* * * 11 April --- 22:30 * * *
"First, free tickets onto this spectacular train, then an old woman turned young lady, and now the news that all members of the Genei Ryodan are here, exactly what is happening here?" Leorio is both confused and annoyed.
"I'm sorry for all this confusion and may I now explain myself. The truth is I am a priestess of a small village in the Hunter's Land where my mission is to guard the null stone".
"What is that?" Killua asked.
"It is basically a stone that can collect, store, and transform nen power into any form of energy. It can also increase the nen power of any nen user by removing the barriers caused by the specific nen type."
"…?"
"In simpler terms," Kurapika explained, "it's like my Emperor time where the nen user can use all the different nen systems at 100% level. However, unlike Emperor time, you don't have to be tokubetsu type (special type like Kuroro), plus there is no time limit and it does not exhaust the user afterwards because the extra nen power is derived from the null stone and not the nen user."
"That is convenient!" Killua said with excitement.
"It is", sighed Hitomi, "but it is so powerful that in the past, it has resulted in many tragedies and so its creator asked our ancestor --- Kusanagi Touya, a famous researcher of seals --- to guard the stone and for a while, the stone was safe and forgotten by mankind. Unfortunately, a few months ago, the Ryodan came, slaughtered everyone in the village, and stole away the stone. I could only survive because I was then praying at the secret base in our village and the Ryodan wasn't aware of that."
"So, the Ryodan now are almost invincible!" Killua shivered.
"Not really. It seems the Ryodan haven't found a way to remove the seal of the stone as yet. However, I have heard they have asked a famous seal remover from the makai (place where demons reside) of Yu Yu land to assist them at breaking the seal. I suspect the two parties will meet up on this train."
"And you want us to help you use this opportunity to get back the null stone?" Gon asked.
"Yes. If the Ryodan manages to remove the seal of the null stone and uses its power, disaster will befall this world again, just as what happened centuries ago. Also, I will not be able to fulfill the last wish of my parents. I…I must get back the null stone before it's too late!" Tears began pouring down her cheek like stardust, attracting sympathy from the rest of the people in the room.
"Hey, stop crying. We'll help you, right guys?" Killua said.
Gon smiled. Leorio nodded, but Kurapika just stared at Hitomi with eyes that indicated he understood her feelings perfectly.
"Now that we know what's happening, we need to plan what we are going to do. Why do you think the Ryodan wants to unseal the null stone here on this train? " Gon asked.
"That's because there is a rule on this train that no aggressive energy can be released while the train is moving. Since this is an express train, it won't stop until it arrives in Yu Yu land three days later. If I were the seal remover, I would want to perform the ceremony on this train so that the Ryodan cannot kill me after the ceremony and must honor the terms of the transaction."
"No aggressive energy? Meaning we cannot use nen at all?" Killua asked.
"Not really," Hitomi further explained, "I mean you can still use nen to search for objects or to heal wounds but not for attacks."
"If we cannot fight, then how can we get back the null stone?" Gon questioned.
"We can still fight," Kurapika smiled, "not with our hands though, but with our brains. It's almost midnight now. Why don't we all get some sleep and then meet again tomorrow morning to plan on how we can get back the null stone".
"Sounds good. By the way, can I ask Mizuno san one more question before I go to bed?" Gon said cutely.
"Sure, Gon and just call me Hitomi." Hitomi said.
"Why is the stone called 'null stone'?"
"Ah, that's because the stone itself is neither good nor evil. In the hands of an angel, it can save millions. However, in the hands of the devil, it can ruthlessly destroy the whole world."
"Then why is the 'null stone' not given to an angel to save other people and instead hidden from the human race?"
"That's because there's no angel in this world. Even the kindest of all persons, once in contact with power, the heart will gradually become corrupted. Eventually, the person will be blinded by his own greed, so blinded that he would allow his own happiness and the happiness of the people around him to be eroded away."
* * * 12 April --- 07:00 * * *
"There's no angel in this world." Hitomi's words kept ringing in Gon's head throughout the night. Up until now, Gon had longed to become a powerful hunter, just like his father. He went through the hunter test, the tournament on the skyscraper, and training with Wing sensei[1] just so that he could become stronger. However, could his thirst for power erode away his heart and bring sadness and misfortune upon those he loves? Remembering his father and how he deserted him, remembering Aunt Mito and the many tears she shed in the middle of the night, could his own father's heart be corrupted by the lust for power already? Gon could not be sure. All he could do was to trust his own father. At that moment, his alarm clock rang loudly. The LCD panel of the clock displayed a big 07:00. Killua was still sleeping very soundly and with one sleepy hand, silenced the clock. Gon woke up and headed to the little shower room to brush his teeth. In 15 minutes, he was ready. He tried to wake Killua up but his efforts were in vain. He then proceeded to the dining cart where he found Kurapika already up and reading a book.
"Good morning, Kurapika!" Gon called out cheerfully.
"Good morning, Gon." Kurapika answered politely.
"Kurapika, what do you think we should do upon seeing the Ryodan? They'll immediately recognize us!" Gon worried.
"I know, but the Ryodan knows best that on a train like that, we both cannot use nen to attack each other. So, even they see us, there's little they can do, just like there's little I can do, except …" But Kurapika had no time to finish his sentence for Gon noticed the beautiful brown eyes already turning crimson red, indicating the Ryodan had arrived.
"Oh my friends, talking about coincidence, it seems Togashi land is smaller than we think! After all this hard work of searching, the chain guy is just right in front of us!" Kuroro said in a rather weird tone.
Kurapika was silent but his eyes were sharp and filled with a fierce aura. Yet, he soon turned into a complete shock when he saw Ubogin coming into the dining cart.
"Great! Now, it's pay back time!" Ubogin shouted and raising his fist but Shalnark quickly held him back.
"Stop Ubo! Here's not the place to fight! Have you remembered what I told you before? Any aggressive actions on this train would be penalized! We have more important things to do at the moment than to deal with the chain guy. You can do anything you want the moment we arrive at Yu Yu Land!"
"Ubogin…but aren't you already dead?" Kurapika gasped with horror.
Gon was already saying his prayers to try to drive the soul or ghost or whatever back to his resting place.
"Ah, don't you know when a character died in Hunter's Land or Yu Yu's land, he wouldn't disappear for good, he would just be sent to a different land, called the paradise or hell land within the Togashi territory."
"How come?" Gon asked.
"That's because all the characters are licensed and copyrighted by Togashi Yoshihiro. You can't just claim me, say, Ubogin to be yours even though I'm dead in the Hunter's World. However, since I'm still in Togashi's territory, I can travel via this Moonlight Express to other parts of the World (except Hunter's Land where I can never return)". By now, Ubogin is weaping.
"Shut up, Ubo you big guy and stop whining like a baby. After all, Hell Land is not that bad. People all think it's a scary place where you'll be tortured eventually. However, I get a pretty decent treatment there. Look, even my figure has improved!"
And all the guys nodded as they stared at Pakunoda's well developed breasts which had even become fuller. Machi and Suzuki took a look at theirs and quickly contemplated on a beauty treatment trip to Hell Land.
Just now, it was Pakunoda who spoke. Even she was on the Moonlight Express!
"Crap, Kurapika thought to himself. On this train, they could practically ignore Ubo and those brainless spiders who had nothing more than strength. However, if they were caught by Pakunoda, it would be pretty bad as she could peep into their memories".
"It seemed what Mizuno san said was really true" Gon thought. "Kurapika, let's go back to our room".
Kurapika nodded, wiped his face, rose, and turned to leave along with Gon. The two were heading back to Mizuno Hitomi's room, where they agreed to discuss their plans of action. Gon was following Kurapika and judging how bad the situation was when he felt someone hugging him from behind!
"What the…" Gon never finished the sentence for he turned to find Hisoka smiling at him.
"Kid, have you become riper? I wanna eat you earlier ^o~" Hisoka said with a seducing voice.
"Hi…Hisoka? Even you are here? Haven't you left the Ryodan already?"
"Well, sort of, but then I want to meet you, so I have come on board the Moonlight Express! Aren't you delighted, my little pussy?"
But Gon never managed to hear the rest of it for he had just vomited his breakfast and was already fainting with an overdose of disgust by the words of Hisoka.
Kurapika slapped Hisoka quickly on the face and shouted, "Curse you, Hisoka the pedophilia!" He then picked up Gon and hurried to Gon's room instead.
Hisoka was watching as the two vanished into the hallway.
"This is getting more interesting." Hisoka murmured to himself and began humming a theme.
To be continued
----------------------- [1] Sensei = teacher
The Null Stone
* * * 11 April --- 22:30 * * *
"First, free tickets onto this spectacular train, then an old woman turned young lady, and now the news that all members of the Genei Ryodan are here, exactly what is happening here?" Leorio is both confused and annoyed.
"I'm sorry for all this confusion and may I now explain myself. The truth is I am a priestess of a small village in the Hunter's Land where my mission is to guard the null stone".
"What is that?" Killua asked.
"It is basically a stone that can collect, store, and transform nen power into any form of energy. It can also increase the nen power of any nen user by removing the barriers caused by the specific nen type."
"…?"
"In simpler terms," Kurapika explained, "it's like my Emperor time where the nen user can use all the different nen systems at 100% level. However, unlike Emperor time, you don't have to be tokubetsu type (special type like Kuroro), plus there is no time limit and it does not exhaust the user afterwards because the extra nen power is derived from the null stone and not the nen user."
"That is convenient!" Killua said with excitement.
"It is", sighed Hitomi, "but it is so powerful that in the past, it has resulted in many tragedies and so its creator asked our ancestor --- Kusanagi Touya, a famous researcher of seals --- to guard the stone and for a while, the stone was safe and forgotten by mankind. Unfortunately, a few months ago, the Ryodan came, slaughtered everyone in the village, and stole away the stone. I could only survive because I was then praying at the secret base in our village and the Ryodan wasn't aware of that."
"So, the Ryodan now are almost invincible!" Killua shivered.
"Not really. It seems the Ryodan haven't found a way to remove the seal of the stone as yet. However, I have heard they have asked a famous seal remover from the makai (place where demons reside) of Yu Yu land to assist them at breaking the seal. I suspect the two parties will meet up on this train."
"And you want us to help you use this opportunity to get back the null stone?" Gon asked.
"Yes. If the Ryodan manages to remove the seal of the null stone and uses its power, disaster will befall this world again, just as what happened centuries ago. Also, I will not be able to fulfill the last wish of my parents. I…I must get back the null stone before it's too late!" Tears began pouring down her cheek like stardust, attracting sympathy from the rest of the people in the room.
"Hey, stop crying. We'll help you, right guys?" Killua said.
Gon smiled. Leorio nodded, but Kurapika just stared at Hitomi with eyes that indicated he understood her feelings perfectly.
"Now that we know what's happening, we need to plan what we are going to do. Why do you think the Ryodan wants to unseal the null stone here on this train? " Gon asked.
"That's because there is a rule on this train that no aggressive energy can be released while the train is moving. Since this is an express train, it won't stop until it arrives in Yu Yu land three days later. If I were the seal remover, I would want to perform the ceremony on this train so that the Ryodan cannot kill me after the ceremony and must honor the terms of the transaction."
"No aggressive energy? Meaning we cannot use nen at all?" Killua asked.
"Not really," Hitomi further explained, "I mean you can still use nen to search for objects or to heal wounds but not for attacks."
"If we cannot fight, then how can we get back the null stone?" Gon questioned.
"We can still fight," Kurapika smiled, "not with our hands though, but with our brains. It's almost midnight now. Why don't we all get some sleep and then meet again tomorrow morning to plan on how we can get back the null stone".
"Sounds good. By the way, can I ask Mizuno san one more question before I go to bed?" Gon said cutely.
"Sure, Gon and just call me Hitomi." Hitomi said.
"Why is the stone called 'null stone'?"
"Ah, that's because the stone itself is neither good nor evil. In the hands of an angel, it can save millions. However, in the hands of the devil, it can ruthlessly destroy the whole world."
"Then why is the 'null stone' not given to an angel to save other people and instead hidden from the human race?"
"That's because there's no angel in this world. Even the kindest of all persons, once in contact with power, the heart will gradually become corrupted. Eventually, the person will be blinded by his own greed, so blinded that he would allow his own happiness and the happiness of the people around him to be eroded away."
* * * 12 April --- 07:00 * * *
"There's no angel in this world." Hitomi's words kept ringing in Gon's head throughout the night. Up until now, Gon had longed to become a powerful hunter, just like his father. He went through the hunter test, the tournament on the skyscraper, and training with Wing sensei[1] just so that he could become stronger. However, could his thirst for power erode away his heart and bring sadness and misfortune upon those he loves? Remembering his father and how he deserted him, remembering Aunt Mito and the many tears she shed in the middle of the night, could his own father's heart be corrupted by the lust for power already? Gon could not be sure. All he could do was to trust his own father. At that moment, his alarm clock rang loudly. The LCD panel of the clock displayed a big 07:00. Killua was still sleeping very soundly and with one sleepy hand, silenced the clock. Gon woke up and headed to the little shower room to brush his teeth. In 15 minutes, he was ready. He tried to wake Killua up but his efforts were in vain. He then proceeded to the dining cart where he found Kurapika already up and reading a book.
"Good morning, Kurapika!" Gon called out cheerfully.
"Good morning, Gon." Kurapika answered politely.
"Kurapika, what do you think we should do upon seeing the Ryodan? They'll immediately recognize us!" Gon worried.
"I know, but the Ryodan knows best that on a train like that, we both cannot use nen to attack each other. So, even they see us, there's little they can do, just like there's little I can do, except …" But Kurapika had no time to finish his sentence for Gon noticed the beautiful brown eyes already turning crimson red, indicating the Ryodan had arrived.
"Oh my friends, talking about coincidence, it seems Togashi land is smaller than we think! After all this hard work of searching, the chain guy is just right in front of us!" Kuroro said in a rather weird tone.
Kurapika was silent but his eyes were sharp and filled with a fierce aura. Yet, he soon turned into a complete shock when he saw Ubogin coming into the dining cart.
"Great! Now, it's pay back time!" Ubogin shouted and raising his fist but Shalnark quickly held him back.
"Stop Ubo! Here's not the place to fight! Have you remembered what I told you before? Any aggressive actions on this train would be penalized! We have more important things to do at the moment than to deal with the chain guy. You can do anything you want the moment we arrive at Yu Yu Land!"
"Ubogin…but aren't you already dead?" Kurapika gasped with horror.
Gon was already saying his prayers to try to drive the soul or ghost or whatever back to his resting place.
"Ah, don't you know when a character died in Hunter's Land or Yu Yu's land, he wouldn't disappear for good, he would just be sent to a different land, called the paradise or hell land within the Togashi territory."
"How come?" Gon asked.
"That's because all the characters are licensed and copyrighted by Togashi Yoshihiro. You can't just claim me, say, Ubogin to be yours even though I'm dead in the Hunter's World. However, since I'm still in Togashi's territory, I can travel via this Moonlight Express to other parts of the World (except Hunter's Land where I can never return)". By now, Ubogin is weaping.
"Shut up, Ubo you big guy and stop whining like a baby. After all, Hell Land is not that bad. People all think it's a scary place where you'll be tortured eventually. However, I get a pretty decent treatment there. Look, even my figure has improved!"
And all the guys nodded as they stared at Pakunoda's well developed breasts which had even become fuller. Machi and Suzuki took a look at theirs and quickly contemplated on a beauty treatment trip to Hell Land.
Just now, it was Pakunoda who spoke. Even she was on the Moonlight Express!
"Crap, Kurapika thought to himself. On this train, they could practically ignore Ubo and those brainless spiders who had nothing more than strength. However, if they were caught by Pakunoda, it would be pretty bad as she could peep into their memories".
"It seemed what Mizuno san said was really true" Gon thought. "Kurapika, let's go back to our room".
Kurapika nodded, wiped his face, rose, and turned to leave along with Gon. The two were heading back to Mizuno Hitomi's room, where they agreed to discuss their plans of action. Gon was following Kurapika and judging how bad the situation was when he felt someone hugging him from behind!
"What the…" Gon never finished the sentence for he turned to find Hisoka smiling at him.
"Kid, have you become riper? I wanna eat you earlier ^o~" Hisoka said with a seducing voice.
"Hi…Hisoka? Even you are here? Haven't you left the Ryodan already?"
"Well, sort of, but then I want to meet you, so I have come on board the Moonlight Express! Aren't you delighted, my little pussy?"
But Gon never managed to hear the rest of it for he had just vomited his breakfast and was already fainting with an overdose of disgust by the words of Hisoka.
Kurapika slapped Hisoka quickly on the face and shouted, "Curse you, Hisoka the pedophilia!" He then picked up Gon and hurried to Gon's room instead.
Hisoka was watching as the two vanished into the hallway.
"This is getting more interesting." Hisoka murmured to himself and began humming a theme.
To be continued
----------------------- [1] Sensei = teacher
