dot hack//HUNTER
|bY |kURA
~*~
Chapter 1 : Just a Game
~*~
"Silence! I am not one to tolerate insubordination!"
The shout echoed throughout the whole woods of Meludia, alerting every and all creature in it of the party's presence. Birds fled from the branches of the trees into the sea of dark colors of the twilight sky, disappearing into the horizon as if nothing but an illusion. In the background, a soft melody can be heard playing over and over again, in an undending loop pre-coded by the game's creators and programmers.
In the heart of the forest, where the disturbance has originated, was a party of two sorcerers, a rouge, a thief and a rider. As a group, they have been dubbed 'The Scout Raiders', legendary for their power and influence within the game. Though suspected of being hackers themselves, they are the ones who hunt such users as well as investigate on any unnatural occurences happening within the massive multi-player game of 'The World'.
Amidst the group, one of the sorcerers glared at the thief. The impression upon the player, however, was weak. The sorcerer, clad in a blue tunic-like clothing beneath a red material that went down a few inches below his knees, had a comely face with keen brown eyes. He had the face of a young handsome teenager yet, somehow, something was amiss. Or perhaps the exact opposite. One glance would tell you that he had with him something that was highly unlikely for an adolescent Player Character: a pacifier. No other flowery words can substitute or describe the inappropriate childish thing. The sorcerer had a light blue circular pacifier in his mouth as if it was an essential part of his character. And maybe it was.
The thief looked back at him calmly, black eyes as black as his hair showing surpressed anger. One eyebrow went up in a kind of mild anxiety while he fixed the ends of his white and maroon robes that had come to graze the ground as he sat down on a rock next to the rouge. If you would look closely however, you would see the small sly smile in the corners of his lips. A crazy smile made only by crazy men with greed and bloodlust too intense to be portrayed. Done of brushing the debris from his clothes, his hands came up to his horns, for there were really a couple of them protruding from his head no matter how unbelievable it may seem, and his six ears. A slightly more scrutinizing gaze and it would appear that the said ears were pointed, proving the fact that the character was indeed part elf.
"Yomi-san," the rider with light aquamarine hair wearing what looked like a blue Japanese kimono called quietly. All eyes then shifted to her, the one of the two female characters within the group. "Yomi-san, don't argue. Of course Koenma-sama knows perfectly well what he is doing and it is nothing but for the good of all The World's players."
The one addressed as Yomi, the thief, kept silent, glowered at the rider for a moment before shifting his glare back to the one addressed as Koenma, the sorcerer. The other sorcerer, who is also the other woman of the party, gave Yomi a disapproving look, raking a hand through her short orange-like colored hair. Her pink-violet vest got caught onto a twig at this act and she mumbled something inaudible before getting it un-caught. The rouge with his long silvery white-brown hair remained impartial, brushing away fallen dried leaves from his bare shoulders and loosely white pants clad knees. He softly mumbled something akin to 'why here?' before turning his eyes again to the others.
A slight wind blew and though none could feel it, their hair and loose parts of clothing swayed to the direction it went along with leaves and some soil. It was one of the many programs of the game to make it more realistic, one they often didn't think much of. The World to them was a game and nothing more, but in the contrary, some other players out there...
"You are not planning to leave the group now, are you Yomi?" Koenma asked after a moment of silence has passed. When he received no reply but a single cold look and one-shoulder shrug, he turned to the female sorcerer. "Mukuro, what do you think of this? A friend of yours is part of the group at hand as well, is it not?"
The woman gave him a contemplative look before answering. "Yes...I care not. Hiei knows what should be and what shouldn't be. He knows what kind of players he is with and with that knowledge in mind he should be more careful."
"And so you have no objections with the next mission?" Botan asked.
"None."
"And you, Raizen?" Koenma inquired, turning towards the direction of the rouge.
"My sister-in-law wrote to me that my son is playing The World," the one called Razien stated, giving a side glance to the one beside him, Yomi, who still remained unmoved. "I at least want to make a game safe for him even if I myself cannot be a true father to him."
"Fine. Yomi?" However, thoughts remained unreadable within the elf's obisidian eyes.
It was pathetic, cowardly and foolish, that Yomi knew. To sacrifice a whole party for the safety of the rest of The World players was, indeed, justifiable, and yet it isn't right. Silent laughter. Then again, when had he been with the side of the right? It was not that matter that remained unsettled with him. It was the fact that the group that had been picked, for truly only they seem to possess the characteristics the Scout Raiders were looking for, consisted of the main actors of their little play. It would be foolish to hand them over now that they are already in the second act.
"Yomi?"
"I've decided. Count me in."
~*~
Keen crimson eyes watched the tall, lean figure as it ran by, trailing red behind it. The person watching stood up and jumped off the branch he had been sitting on, intending to run after the other. A blur of black and it seemed as if he disappeared out of thin air.
"Where are you off to, Kurama?" he called in a deep masculine voice to the emerald-eyed redhead when he had caught up with it.
The player referred to as Kurama didn't slow down a bit for he knew all too well that it required his black-clad companion little effort to run alongside him no matter how much smaller his player character was. Making sure that he has enough breath for running, he answered. "To meet Yomi, Hiei. I reckon that their conference is done by now. Are you not going to see Mukuro?"
"Hn. I forgot," Hiei grunted and turned towards a different direction. "I'll meet you later with that idiot," he shouted as he ran away.
"His name is Kuwabara," Kurama muttered needlessly and continued his run alone.
~*~
"When are you ever going to give up?"
The swordsman glared at the black-haired archer before charging at the character again. The player merely dodged it and hit him in the face with a clenched fist. He slumped to the ground, not really feeling the pain but his player character's health meter too low to continue the fight.
"This is no fun. I'm not even using my weapon!"
The defeated orange-topped player made his way languidly to a nearby tree and leaned against it, sitting on the dirty ground of the field. Weakly, he raised his head to look at the one who defeated him. "Use it then," he challenged. "I just bet you don't have a very good aim!"
"Not a good aim, huh? I'm going to make this one miss your head intentionally so just watch." The player took an arrow from the leather bag he carries and 'loaded' his bow, ready to shoot at the idiot who dared provoke him. The said idiot blinked and the next thing he knew - felt - was a searing pain on his cheek.
"Ow!" He exclaimed. He tried to glance behind, but couldn't turn. Beside his head was the arrow's wooden stem, its tip buried deep into the tree's trunk. "Damn!" He cried, feeling the welt on his cheek hurt yet again.
"Ow?" Yuusuke muttered, looking at him bewilderedly. An odd sort of look crossed his face, as if thinking a few things over but he soon shook his head and glared at the other. "Moron. Pain doesn't exist here, Kuwabara...or any other feeling for that matter." He walked over and kicked his side. He then made his way towards the trees, saying something over his shoulder. "That'll teach you to mess with me."
"Yuusuke..." Kuwabara called feebly. Yuusuke turned around, gave him an annoyed look, and continued to walk away, ignoring him. He lay there, looking at the retreating figure and silently thinking that blood doesn't exist in The World so the welt shouldn't really bleed. It was, however, bleeding. He closed his eyes and waited for his party, Kurama and Hiei.
Once sure that he was out of view, Yuusuke began to run, his heart beating fast in his chest.
'Moron. Pain doesn't exist here, Kuwabara...or any other feeling for that matter.'
He closed his eyes and ran, feeling the wind against his face.
~*~
To be continued...
~*~
Standard Disclaimers Applied. I don't own HxH/YYH and the concept of this story, as well as some of the terms and the game 'The World', was taken from the .hack series which I don't own too.
|bY |kURA
~*~
Chapter 1 : Just a Game
~*~
"Silence! I am not one to tolerate insubordination!"
The shout echoed throughout the whole woods of Meludia, alerting every and all creature in it of the party's presence. Birds fled from the branches of the trees into the sea of dark colors of the twilight sky, disappearing into the horizon as if nothing but an illusion. In the background, a soft melody can be heard playing over and over again, in an undending loop pre-coded by the game's creators and programmers.
In the heart of the forest, where the disturbance has originated, was a party of two sorcerers, a rouge, a thief and a rider. As a group, they have been dubbed 'The Scout Raiders', legendary for their power and influence within the game. Though suspected of being hackers themselves, they are the ones who hunt such users as well as investigate on any unnatural occurences happening within the massive multi-player game of 'The World'.
Amidst the group, one of the sorcerers glared at the thief. The impression upon the player, however, was weak. The sorcerer, clad in a blue tunic-like clothing beneath a red material that went down a few inches below his knees, had a comely face with keen brown eyes. He had the face of a young handsome teenager yet, somehow, something was amiss. Or perhaps the exact opposite. One glance would tell you that he had with him something that was highly unlikely for an adolescent Player Character: a pacifier. No other flowery words can substitute or describe the inappropriate childish thing. The sorcerer had a light blue circular pacifier in his mouth as if it was an essential part of his character. And maybe it was.
The thief looked back at him calmly, black eyes as black as his hair showing surpressed anger. One eyebrow went up in a kind of mild anxiety while he fixed the ends of his white and maroon robes that had come to graze the ground as he sat down on a rock next to the rouge. If you would look closely however, you would see the small sly smile in the corners of his lips. A crazy smile made only by crazy men with greed and bloodlust too intense to be portrayed. Done of brushing the debris from his clothes, his hands came up to his horns, for there were really a couple of them protruding from his head no matter how unbelievable it may seem, and his six ears. A slightly more scrutinizing gaze and it would appear that the said ears were pointed, proving the fact that the character was indeed part elf.
"Yomi-san," the rider with light aquamarine hair wearing what looked like a blue Japanese kimono called quietly. All eyes then shifted to her, the one of the two female characters within the group. "Yomi-san, don't argue. Of course Koenma-sama knows perfectly well what he is doing and it is nothing but for the good of all The World's players."
The one addressed as Yomi, the thief, kept silent, glowered at the rider for a moment before shifting his glare back to the one addressed as Koenma, the sorcerer. The other sorcerer, who is also the other woman of the party, gave Yomi a disapproving look, raking a hand through her short orange-like colored hair. Her pink-violet vest got caught onto a twig at this act and she mumbled something inaudible before getting it un-caught. The rouge with his long silvery white-brown hair remained impartial, brushing away fallen dried leaves from his bare shoulders and loosely white pants clad knees. He softly mumbled something akin to 'why here?' before turning his eyes again to the others.
A slight wind blew and though none could feel it, their hair and loose parts of clothing swayed to the direction it went along with leaves and some soil. It was one of the many programs of the game to make it more realistic, one they often didn't think much of. The World to them was a game and nothing more, but in the contrary, some other players out there...
"You are not planning to leave the group now, are you Yomi?" Koenma asked after a moment of silence has passed. When he received no reply but a single cold look and one-shoulder shrug, he turned to the female sorcerer. "Mukuro, what do you think of this? A friend of yours is part of the group at hand as well, is it not?"
The woman gave him a contemplative look before answering. "Yes...I care not. Hiei knows what should be and what shouldn't be. He knows what kind of players he is with and with that knowledge in mind he should be more careful."
"And so you have no objections with the next mission?" Botan asked.
"None."
"And you, Raizen?" Koenma inquired, turning towards the direction of the rouge.
"My sister-in-law wrote to me that my son is playing The World," the one called Razien stated, giving a side glance to the one beside him, Yomi, who still remained unmoved. "I at least want to make a game safe for him even if I myself cannot be a true father to him."
"Fine. Yomi?" However, thoughts remained unreadable within the elf's obisidian eyes.
It was pathetic, cowardly and foolish, that Yomi knew. To sacrifice a whole party for the safety of the rest of The World players was, indeed, justifiable, and yet it isn't right. Silent laughter. Then again, when had he been with the side of the right? It was not that matter that remained unsettled with him. It was the fact that the group that had been picked, for truly only they seem to possess the characteristics the Scout Raiders were looking for, consisted of the main actors of their little play. It would be foolish to hand them over now that they are already in the second act.
"Yomi?"
"I've decided. Count me in."
~*~
Keen crimson eyes watched the tall, lean figure as it ran by, trailing red behind it. The person watching stood up and jumped off the branch he had been sitting on, intending to run after the other. A blur of black and it seemed as if he disappeared out of thin air.
"Where are you off to, Kurama?" he called in a deep masculine voice to the emerald-eyed redhead when he had caught up with it.
The player referred to as Kurama didn't slow down a bit for he knew all too well that it required his black-clad companion little effort to run alongside him no matter how much smaller his player character was. Making sure that he has enough breath for running, he answered. "To meet Yomi, Hiei. I reckon that their conference is done by now. Are you not going to see Mukuro?"
"Hn. I forgot," Hiei grunted and turned towards a different direction. "I'll meet you later with that idiot," he shouted as he ran away.
"His name is Kuwabara," Kurama muttered needlessly and continued his run alone.
~*~
"When are you ever going to give up?"
The swordsman glared at the black-haired archer before charging at the character again. The player merely dodged it and hit him in the face with a clenched fist. He slumped to the ground, not really feeling the pain but his player character's health meter too low to continue the fight.
"This is no fun. I'm not even using my weapon!"
The defeated orange-topped player made his way languidly to a nearby tree and leaned against it, sitting on the dirty ground of the field. Weakly, he raised his head to look at the one who defeated him. "Use it then," he challenged. "I just bet you don't have a very good aim!"
"Not a good aim, huh? I'm going to make this one miss your head intentionally so just watch." The player took an arrow from the leather bag he carries and 'loaded' his bow, ready to shoot at the idiot who dared provoke him. The said idiot blinked and the next thing he knew - felt - was a searing pain on his cheek.
"Ow!" He exclaimed. He tried to glance behind, but couldn't turn. Beside his head was the arrow's wooden stem, its tip buried deep into the tree's trunk. "Damn!" He cried, feeling the welt on his cheek hurt yet again.
"Ow?" Yuusuke muttered, looking at him bewilderedly. An odd sort of look crossed his face, as if thinking a few things over but he soon shook his head and glared at the other. "Moron. Pain doesn't exist here, Kuwabara...or any other feeling for that matter." He walked over and kicked his side. He then made his way towards the trees, saying something over his shoulder. "That'll teach you to mess with me."
"Yuusuke..." Kuwabara called feebly. Yuusuke turned around, gave him an annoyed look, and continued to walk away, ignoring him. He lay there, looking at the retreating figure and silently thinking that blood doesn't exist in The World so the welt shouldn't really bleed. It was, however, bleeding. He closed his eyes and waited for his party, Kurama and Hiei.
Once sure that he was out of view, Yuusuke began to run, his heart beating fast in his chest.
'Moron. Pain doesn't exist here, Kuwabara...or any other feeling for that matter.'
He closed his eyes and ran, feeling the wind against his face.
~*~
To be continued...
~*~
Standard Disclaimers Applied. I don't own HxH/YYH and the concept of this story, as well as some of the terms and the game 'The World', was taken from the .hack series which I don't own too.